Large fire breaks out in Myanmar market complex
Reuters - Monday, May 24
YANGON (Reuters) – Firefighters battled for more than 12 hours on Monday to try to bring under control a blaze at a commercial center housing 4,000 shops and stalls in Myanmar's biggest city, but no casualties were reported, officials said.
Mingalar Zay, a five-storey market complex in Yangon, burst into flames around 8 a.m. and officials said firefighters manning 79 trucks were still trying to put out the fire long after nightfall.
"Fortunately, there were not many people inside the building when the fire first broke out, since the market had just opened," said the owner of a pharmacy at the market.
"Otherwise, there would definitely be a very high death toll."
He said shops were devastated and stock was ruined. Traders said the fire will likely impact the cost of local goods and food.
Witnesses said loud blasts were heard inside the building when cooking gas cylinders in restaurants exploded. A spell of rain in the afternoon had stopped the fire spreading initially.
The fire was started by the overheating of a battery charger on the fourth floor, local traders said.
Myanmar is plagued almost daily by acute power shortages and factories, shops and hospitals are often affected by blackouts. Many people rely on batteries during power cuts and fires are common as a result of chargers overheating.
A total of 719 fires were recorded in Myanmar in 2008, killing 28 people and wounding 52, according to the latest available data.
Reuters - Monday, May 24
YANGON (Reuters) – Firefighters battled for more than 12 hours on Monday to try to bring under control a blaze at a commercial center housing 4,000 shops and stalls in Myanmar's biggest city, but no casualties were reported, officials said.
Mingalar Zay, a five-storey market complex in Yangon, burst into flames around 8 a.m. and officials said firefighters manning 79 trucks were still trying to put out the fire long after nightfall.
"Fortunately, there were not many people inside the building when the fire first broke out, since the market had just opened," said the owner of a pharmacy at the market.
"Otherwise, there would definitely be a very high death toll."
He said shops were devastated and stock was ruined. Traders said the fire will likely impact the cost of local goods and food.
Witnesses said loud blasts were heard inside the building when cooking gas cylinders in restaurants exploded. A spell of rain in the afternoon had stopped the fire spreading initially.
The fire was started by the overheating of a battery charger on the fourth floor, local traders said.
Myanmar is plagued almost daily by acute power shortages and factories, shops and hospitals are often affected by blackouts. Many people rely on batteries during power cuts and fires are common as a result of chargers overheating.
A total of 719 fires were recorded in Myanmar in 2008, killing 28 people and wounding 52, according to the latest available data.
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Chinese premier to visit military-ruled Myanmar
By AYE AYE WIN,Associated Press Writer - Monday, May 24
YANGON, Myanmar (AP) – Premier Wen Jiabao of China, Myanmar's closest and most powerful ally, will make an official visit to the country's military leaders in June, China's first high-profile trip to Myanmar in 16 years, a diplomat said Sunday.
Myanmar is shunned by the West because of its poor human rights record and failure to hand over power to a democratically elected government. But China has remained a constant political ally and trading partner.
Then-President Jiang Zemin last visited in December 2001, following then-Premier Li Peng's trip in 1994.
Wen was due to arrive June 2 on the last leg of his tour that includes South Korea, Japan and Mongolia, said the Asian diplomat who did want to be named because the trip has not been officially announced.
Wen will meet top military officials including junta leader Senior Gen. Than Shwe and Prime Minister Thein Sein during his two-day stay, the diplomat said.
China, which shares a 1,370-mile (2,190-kilometer border) with Myanmar, is the country's third biggest foreign trade partner after Thailand and Singapore. Its foreign trade with Myanmar reached $1.8 billion in 2009, according to official statistics.
Wen's visit comes as the junta prepares for a general election sometime this year as part of its "roadmap to democracy," which critics have dismissed as a sham. They say the military, which has been in power since 1962, shows little sign of relinquishing control and note that the government has made every effort to prevent opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi from taking part in the polls.
The junta has not yet set the date for the election but Suu Kyi's National League for Democracy decided against registering its party, which is tantamount to boycotting the polls. The party says the election laws are unfair and undemocratic.
Myanmar had its last election in 1990 when the National League for Democracy party topped the polls, but the military refused to recognize the results.
By AYE AYE WIN,Associated Press Writer - Monday, May 24
YANGON, Myanmar (AP) – Premier Wen Jiabao of China, Myanmar's closest and most powerful ally, will make an official visit to the country's military leaders in June, China's first high-profile trip to Myanmar in 16 years, a diplomat said Sunday.
Myanmar is shunned by the West because of its poor human rights record and failure to hand over power to a democratically elected government. But China has remained a constant political ally and trading partner.
Then-President Jiang Zemin last visited in December 2001, following then-Premier Li Peng's trip in 1994.
Wen was due to arrive June 2 on the last leg of his tour that includes South Korea, Japan and Mongolia, said the Asian diplomat who did want to be named because the trip has not been officially announced.
Wen will meet top military officials including junta leader Senior Gen. Than Shwe and Prime Minister Thein Sein during his two-day stay, the diplomat said.
China, which shares a 1,370-mile (2,190-kilometer border) with Myanmar, is the country's third biggest foreign trade partner after Thailand and Singapore. Its foreign trade with Myanmar reached $1.8 billion in 2009, according to official statistics.
Wen's visit comes as the junta prepares for a general election sometime this year as part of its "roadmap to democracy," which critics have dismissed as a sham. They say the military, which has been in power since 1962, shows little sign of relinquishing control and note that the government has made every effort to prevent opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi from taking part in the polls.
The junta has not yet set the date for the election but Suu Kyi's National League for Democracy decided against registering its party, which is tantamount to boycotting the polls. The party says the election laws are unfair and undemocratic.
Myanmar had its last election in 1990 when the National League for Democracy party topped the polls, but the military refused to recognize the results.
*******************************************************
UN chief urges action against child soldiers
By EDITH M. LEDERER - Saturday, May 22
UNITED NATIONS (AP) — Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon on Friday urged the U.N. Security Council to consider tough measures against countries and insurgent groups that persist in recruiting child soldiers.
The U.N. chief's annual report to the council for the first time includes a list of violators that have been monitored for at least five years, including Somalia's transitional government, Congo's armed forces, Myanmar's army, and rebel groups in Congo, Myanmar, the Philippines, Colombia, Sudan and Uganda.
The report also names two parties that try to maim or kill children in conflict — Somalia's government and al-Shabab Islamist militants trying to overthrow it. And for the first time it names seven parties that commit rape and sexual violence against youngsters -- six in Congo and Uganda's Lord's Resistance Army, which is notorious for kidnapping children and using them as fighters and sex slaves.
"We still live in a world with those who would use children as spies, soldiers and human shields," Radhika Coomaraswamy, the U.N. special representative for children in armed conflict, said in a statement. "The shifting nature of conflict has put many children on the front lines. Too often children become collateral damage during military operations."
A resolution adopted by the Security Council in 2005 took the first major step to prevent the victimization of young people in war zones by addressing the exploitation of children as combatants. Last year, the U.N. reported that there were still some 250,000 child soldiers.
The Security Council voted unanimously in August 2009 to name and shame countries and insurgent groups engaged in conflicts that lead to children being killed, maimed and raped. The resolution reaffirmed the council's intention "to take action" — including possible sanctions — against governments and insurgent groups that continue violating international law protecting children's rights.
The secretary-general recommended in the report that the council "weigh more vigorous measures against persistent violators who have been listed in my annual report for grave violations against children."
The largest number of persistent violators are in Congo, where the report noted that despite positive steps to investigate and prosecute those responsible, "known perpetrators of grave crimes against children" have been appointed to government or senior military positions.
In addition to the Congolese armed forces, the list includes units of the rebel National Council for the Defense of the People, formerly led by Laurent Nkunda and Bosco Ntaganda; the Rwandan Hutu militia known as the FDLR; and the rebel Nationalist and Integrationist Front and Mai-Mai groups in North and South Kivu.
The report names three separatist groups fighting in the Philippines — Abu Sayyaf, the Moro Islamic Liberation Front, and the New People's Army — as persistent violators. The Karenni Army and Karen National Liberation Army fighting the government in Myanmar are also on the list, as are Uganda's LRA, the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia and the country's smaller National Liberation Army, and the Sudan People's Liberation Army and Sudan's pro-government militias.
The secretary-general welcomed the signing of action plans to end recruitment and use of child soldiers by the Moro Islamic Liberation Front and the Sudan People's Liberation Army, though they remain on the list, and the Unified Communist Party of Nepal-Maoist which has released all minors.
Ban removed one rebel group from the list — Burundi's National Liberation Force or Palipehutu-FNL — following U.N. verification that all children associated with it have been reunited with their families. But three groups were added to the list for recruiting children, the Afghan National Police, the Central African Republic's rebel Committee of Patriots for Justice and Peace, and Somalia's Hizbul Islam.
By EDITH M. LEDERER - Saturday, May 22
UNITED NATIONS (AP) — Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon on Friday urged the U.N. Security Council to consider tough measures against countries and insurgent groups that persist in recruiting child soldiers.
The U.N. chief's annual report to the council for the first time includes a list of violators that have been monitored for at least five years, including Somalia's transitional government, Congo's armed forces, Myanmar's army, and rebel groups in Congo, Myanmar, the Philippines, Colombia, Sudan and Uganda.
The report also names two parties that try to maim or kill children in conflict — Somalia's government and al-Shabab Islamist militants trying to overthrow it. And for the first time it names seven parties that commit rape and sexual violence against youngsters -- six in Congo and Uganda's Lord's Resistance Army, which is notorious for kidnapping children and using them as fighters and sex slaves.
"We still live in a world with those who would use children as spies, soldiers and human shields," Radhika Coomaraswamy, the U.N. special representative for children in armed conflict, said in a statement. "The shifting nature of conflict has put many children on the front lines. Too often children become collateral damage during military operations."
A resolution adopted by the Security Council in 2005 took the first major step to prevent the victimization of young people in war zones by addressing the exploitation of children as combatants. Last year, the U.N. reported that there were still some 250,000 child soldiers.
The Security Council voted unanimously in August 2009 to name and shame countries and insurgent groups engaged in conflicts that lead to children being killed, maimed and raped. The resolution reaffirmed the council's intention "to take action" — including possible sanctions — against governments and insurgent groups that continue violating international law protecting children's rights.
The secretary-general recommended in the report that the council "weigh more vigorous measures against persistent violators who have been listed in my annual report for grave violations against children."
The largest number of persistent violators are in Congo, where the report noted that despite positive steps to investigate and prosecute those responsible, "known perpetrators of grave crimes against children" have been appointed to government or senior military positions.
In addition to the Congolese armed forces, the list includes units of the rebel National Council for the Defense of the People, formerly led by Laurent Nkunda and Bosco Ntaganda; the Rwandan Hutu militia known as the FDLR; and the rebel Nationalist and Integrationist Front and Mai-Mai groups in North and South Kivu.
The report names three separatist groups fighting in the Philippines — Abu Sayyaf, the Moro Islamic Liberation Front, and the New People's Army — as persistent violators. The Karenni Army and Karen National Liberation Army fighting the government in Myanmar are also on the list, as are Uganda's LRA, the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia and the country's smaller National Liberation Army, and the Sudan People's Liberation Army and Sudan's pro-government militias.
The secretary-general welcomed the signing of action plans to end recruitment and use of child soldiers by the Moro Islamic Liberation Front and the Sudan People's Liberation Army, though they remain on the list, and the Unified Communist Party of Nepal-Maoist which has released all minors.
Ban removed one rebel group from the list — Burundi's National Liberation Force or Palipehutu-FNL — following U.N. verification that all children associated with it have been reunited with their families. But three groups were added to the list for recruiting children, the Afghan National Police, the Central African Republic's rebel Committee of Patriots for Justice and Peace, and Somalia's Hizbul Islam.
*******************************************************
MYANMAR: Carving out humanitarian space post-Nargis
YANGON, 24 May 2010 (IRIN) - Two years after the destruction caused by Cyclone Nargis created a rare opening for foreign assistance into Myanmar, aid workers say they still face numerous operating challenges.
Under the Tripartite Core Group (TCG), comprising the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), the UN and Myanmar government, unimpeded humanitarian access was granted to the areas where Nargis struck on 2 May 2008, killing at least 140,000 and affecting 2.4 million.
There were hopes the experience would free up access to other parts of the country needing aid. However, no major changes have taken place, humanitarian workers say.
“We have learned a lot and come a long way,” Bishow Parajuli, the UN’s Humanitarian Coordinator in Myanmar, told IRIN. “But we have not yet taken full advantage of the trust that has been cultivated. There are positive moves, but we need to do more on that front.”
Some progress
Aid workers say the Nargis experience did help the government to better understand the international community’s work.
“There are issues that we are considering and discussing with the government now which we wouldn’t have thought possible before Nargis,” Chris Kaye, country representative for the World Food Programme (WFP) in Myanmar, told IRIN.
“There is an overall trend to a better working environment for NGOs in this country and it’s largely because of what the international community was able to do [after Nargis],” added Andrew Kirkwood, country director for Save the Children in Myanmar.
However, that period of easy access to Nargis-affected areas is evaporating, aid workers say.
“The issuance of visas is not so streamlined and fast-tracked …The fluidity of operations is quite different now to what it was a year ago. That’s unfortunate,” said Kaye.
Myanmar is also gearing up for its first elections in two decades this year, and the operating environment is changing.
While the UN says it has not seen more restrictions yet, international NGOs fear further limits, including restricting domestic travel for international aid workers.
“In the run-up to the elections in 2010, the government or the ministries are asking more and more INGOs for their numbers of international staff, and they are trying to reduce the number of international staff,” said Birke Herzbruch, liaison officer for a forum of INGOs.
Varied access
“It’s very difficult for us to say access is not being granted - that’s not true - or access is being granted everywhere, which is also another extreme. The truth lies somewhere in the middle,” said Thierry Delbreuve, head of the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) in Myanmar.
For example, access to Myanmar’s conflict-affected southeast border is difficult for agencies, which only deploy national staff there.
“The access and space available differs from agency to agency,” said Ramesh Shrestha, the UN Children Fund’s (UNICEF’s) Myanmar representative. “Some agencies have better access than other agencies. It depends on the scope of work, it depends on the partnering ministries.”
Unpredictability over who is allowed to work in the country, and when, also makes planning difficult, INGOs say.
Obtaining a requisite government letter of invitation to a foreign aid worker can take months, while there is a constant backlog of visa applications.
And for an INGO to operate in Myanmar, it must negotiate a memorandum of understanding with the government, which can take two years.
“Nobody seems to be able to grasp or reflect accurately the situation because it is also evolving over time. Today you may not have access, tomorrow you may have it. What is important is to continuously advocate for humanitarian access to all populations in need,” said Delbreuve.
Room for work
Despite these difficulties, UN agencies and INGOs say Myanmar is being unfairly painted as a country where aid workers cannot operate effectively, or are co-opted by the military government.
“You can actually work here. Although it is difficult, although we have all the restrictions … we can all remain and maintain our humanitarian mandate here without being compromised,” Herzbruch said.
Aid workers who have been in Myanmar for a number of years say there are now agencies in every state and division in the country, despite variations in access.
Kirkwood referred to the mid-1990s, when agencies were only working in limited areas, such as around Yangon. “If you look over a 15-year period, there’s a huge opening-up of places we can access,” he said.
YANGON, 24 May 2010 (IRIN) - Two years after the destruction caused by Cyclone Nargis created a rare opening for foreign assistance into Myanmar, aid workers say they still face numerous operating challenges.
Under the Tripartite Core Group (TCG), comprising the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), the UN and Myanmar government, unimpeded humanitarian access was granted to the areas where Nargis struck on 2 May 2008, killing at least 140,000 and affecting 2.4 million.
There were hopes the experience would free up access to other parts of the country needing aid. However, no major changes have taken place, humanitarian workers say.
“We have learned a lot and come a long way,” Bishow Parajuli, the UN’s Humanitarian Coordinator in Myanmar, told IRIN. “But we have not yet taken full advantage of the trust that has been cultivated. There are positive moves, but we need to do more on that front.”
Some progress
Aid workers say the Nargis experience did help the government to better understand the international community’s work.
“There are issues that we are considering and discussing with the government now which we wouldn’t have thought possible before Nargis,” Chris Kaye, country representative for the World Food Programme (WFP) in Myanmar, told IRIN.
“There is an overall trend to a better working environment for NGOs in this country and it’s largely because of what the international community was able to do [after Nargis],” added Andrew Kirkwood, country director for Save the Children in Myanmar.
However, that period of easy access to Nargis-affected areas is evaporating, aid workers say.
“The issuance of visas is not so streamlined and fast-tracked …The fluidity of operations is quite different now to what it was a year ago. That’s unfortunate,” said Kaye.
Myanmar is also gearing up for its first elections in two decades this year, and the operating environment is changing.
While the UN says it has not seen more restrictions yet, international NGOs fear further limits, including restricting domestic travel for international aid workers.
“In the run-up to the elections in 2010, the government or the ministries are asking more and more INGOs for their numbers of international staff, and they are trying to reduce the number of international staff,” said Birke Herzbruch, liaison officer for a forum of INGOs.
Varied access
“It’s very difficult for us to say access is not being granted - that’s not true - or access is being granted everywhere, which is also another extreme. The truth lies somewhere in the middle,” said Thierry Delbreuve, head of the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) in Myanmar.
For example, access to Myanmar’s conflict-affected southeast border is difficult for agencies, which only deploy national staff there.
“The access and space available differs from agency to agency,” said Ramesh Shrestha, the UN Children Fund’s (UNICEF’s) Myanmar representative. “Some agencies have better access than other agencies. It depends on the scope of work, it depends on the partnering ministries.”
Unpredictability over who is allowed to work in the country, and when, also makes planning difficult, INGOs say.
Obtaining a requisite government letter of invitation to a foreign aid worker can take months, while there is a constant backlog of visa applications.
And for an INGO to operate in Myanmar, it must negotiate a memorandum of understanding with the government, which can take two years.
“Nobody seems to be able to grasp or reflect accurately the situation because it is also evolving over time. Today you may not have access, tomorrow you may have it. What is important is to continuously advocate for humanitarian access to all populations in need,” said Delbreuve.
Room for work
Despite these difficulties, UN agencies and INGOs say Myanmar is being unfairly painted as a country where aid workers cannot operate effectively, or are co-opted by the military government.
“You can actually work here. Although it is difficult, although we have all the restrictions … we can all remain and maintain our humanitarian mandate here without being compromised,” Herzbruch said.
Aid workers who have been in Myanmar for a number of years say there are now agencies in every state and division in the country, despite variations in access.
Kirkwood referred to the mid-1990s, when agencies were only working in limited areas, such as around Yangon. “If you look over a 15-year period, there’s a huge opening-up of places we can access,” he said.
*******************************************************
ReliefWeb- European Parliament resolution of 20 May 2010 on the situation in Burma/Myanmar
Source: European Union (EU)
Date: 20 May 2010
The European Parliament ,
– having regard to its previous resolutions on Burma/Myanmar,
– having regard to Articles 18 to 21 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) of 1948,
– having regard to Article 25 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) of 1966,
– having regard to the statement made by UN Special Rapporteur Tomás Ojea Quintana on 5 May 2010,
– having regard to the Council Conclusions on Burma/Myanmar adopted at the 3009th Foreign Affairs Council meeting held in Luxembourg on 26 April 2010,
– having regard to the statement made by High Representative Catherine Ashton on 1 March 2010 on the rejection of Aung San Suu Kyi's appeal by the Supreme Court of Burma/Myanmar,
– having regard to the Chairman's Statement issued at the 16th ASEAN Summit held in Hanoi on 9 April 2010,
– having regard to the European Council Conclusions - Declaration on Burma/Myanmar of 19 June 2009,
– having regard to the Council Conclusions on Burma/Myanmar adopted at the 2938th General Affairs Council meeting held in Luxembourg on 27 April 2009,
– having regard to the EU Presidency Statement of 23 February 2009 calling for all-inclusive dialogue between the authorities and the democratic forces in Burma/Myanmar,
– having regard to UN Secretary-General's report of 28 August 2009 on the situation of human rights in Burma/Myanmar,
– having regard to the resolution of the UN Human Rights Council of 26 March 2010 on the situation of human rights in Burma/Myanmar,
– having regard to the Declaration issued by the Presidency on behalf of the European Union on 14 May 2009 on the arrest of Aung San Suu Kyi,
– having regard to Rule 122(5) of its Rules of Procedure,
A. having regard to the announcement by the Burmese authorities of national elections in 2010, the first since 1990,
B. whereas in their published form the five electoral laws and the four decrees violate all democratic principles and make the holding of free elections impossible, in particular by excluding the country's 2200 known political prisoners; whereas members of religious orders in Burma/Myanmar, including an estimated 400 000 Buddhist monks, are explicitly banned from voting, highlighting the perpetual discrimination by the military junta on the basis of religion or status,
C. whereas these laws violate the basic principles of freedom of expression and right of association; whereas Burmese news media based abroad, which constitute the main source of news for the Burmese people, are still banned from operating within Burma/Myanmar,
D. whereas these laws are based on the 2010 Constitution, which guarantees impunity for the crimes committed by the current regime and provides for the complete suspension of fundamental rights during the state of emergency, for an indefinite period; whereas Burma/Myanmar's new constitution is designed to maintain a dictatorship in a civilian guise, and does not grant any human rights or offer any prospect of genuine change,
E. whereas any expression of dissident political views is systematically and brutally repressed (for example by means of arbitrary arrests, unfair trials, imprisonment, torture and extrajudicial killings),
F. whereas elections cannot be considered free and fair if the opposition is not involved,
G. whereas the National League for Democracy (NLD), the clear victor in the last democratic elections, has decided to boycott the elections announced for 2010, in the light of the conditions imposed on participation; whereas the NLD was disbanded by law on 6 May 2010, after not registering for the elections,
H. having regard to the declaration issued at the 16th ASEAN Summit stressing the importance of reconciliation and the holding of free, regular general elections open to everyone,
I. whereas the United Nations Special Rapporteur on Burma/Myanmar has condemned "gross and systematic" human rights abuses committed by Burma/Myanmar's dictatorship, stating that they constitute "a state policy that involves authorities in the executive, military and judiciary at all levels", and has called for the establishment of a United Nations commission of inquiry into war crimes and crimes against humanity committed by the dictatorship,
J. whereas the Government of Burma/Myanmar continues to refuse the EU Special Envoy on Burma permission to visit the country and engage in dialogue, despite repeated requests over many months,
K. whereas since 2003 the Government of Burma/Myanmar has rejected every single proposal by the United Nations and the international community to revise its seven-stage "roadmap to democracy",
L. whereas there are currently 2200 known political prisoners being detained for engaging in peaceful activities in Burma/Myanmar, and whereas more than 140 political prisoners are being deliberately denied medical treatment, including 88 Generation Student leader Ko Mya Aye, who has a life-threatening heart condition,
M. whereas the military continues to perpetrate human rights violations against civilians in ethnic conflict areas, including extrajudicial killings, forced labour and sexual violence,
N. whereas attacks against ethnic minority civilians in eastern Burma/Myanmar continue, resulting in hundreds of thousands of displaced persons, many of whom, owing to restrictions on humanitarian assistance by the dictatorship, can only be reached by cross-border aid from neighbouring countries,
O. whereas Aung San Suu Kyi, leader of the opposition NLD, has been under house arrest since 2003; whereas on 14 May 2009 the authorities arrested her on charges that she had breached the terms of her house arrest by permitting the visit of an American, John Yettaw; whereas on 11 August 2009 a criminal court inside Insein prison in Rangoon sentenced Aung San Suu Kyi to three years' imprisonment for violating her house arrest, a sentence which was subsequently reduced to 18 months' house arrest; whereas on 1 March 2010 the Supreme Court of Burma/Myanmar rejected Aung San Suu Kyi's appeal against the unjust sentence imposed on her in 2009,
P. whereas the EU remains a major donor to Burma/Myanmar and stands ready to increase its assistance to the people of the country, in order to improve their social and economic conditions,
Q. whereas ECHO has reduced funding for refugees on the Thailand-Burma border, despite the number of refugees remaining almost the same, and has ended funding for boarding schools in refugee camps,
R. whereas the United Nations Security Council, the United Nations General Assembly, the United Nations Human Rights Council, the European Union and many governments have said that the solution to Burma's problems is proper tripartite dialogue between Aung San Suu Kyi and the NLD, genuine ethnic representatives and the Government of Burma/Myanmar, and whereas the Government of Burma/Myanmar is still refusing to enter into such dialogue,
1. Reaffirms its unwavering commitment to the people of Burma/Myanmar;
2. Condemns the holding of elections under completely undemocratic conditions and on the basis of rules which exclude the main democratic opposition party and deprive hundreds of thousands of Burmese citizens of their right to vote and stand for election, in a clear attempt to exclude the country's entire opposition from the ballot;
3. Deplores the fact that, under the new constitution, the military will be guaranteed at least 25% of the seats in parliament and will have the power to suspend civil liberties and legislative authority whenever it deems that to be necessary in the interests of national security;
4. Strongly urges the Government of Burma/Myanmar to take without delay the steps needed to ensure a free, fair and transparent electoral process, including the participation of all voters, all political parties and all other relevant stakeholders in the electoral process, and agree to the presence of international observers; calls for the electoral laws published in March 2010, which make the holding of free and transparent elections impossible, to be repealed;
5. Calls on the authorities of Burma/Myanmar to heed the appeals of the international community to allow Aung San Suu Kyi and all other prisoners of conscience to participate in the political process;
6. Urges the international community to make every effort to ensure that free and democratic elections are held;
7. Strongly urges the Government of Burma/Myanmar to lift restrictions on freedom of assembly, association, movement and expression, including for free and independent media, in part by making Internet and mobile telephone services openly available and accessible and ending the use of censorship;
8. Strongly condemns the ongoing systematic violations of the human rights, fundamental freedoms and basic democratic rights of the people of Burma/Myanmar; calls on the authorities of Burma/Myanmar to put an end to violations of international human rights and humanitarian law;
9. Urges the Government of Burma/Myanmar to release all prisoners of conscience without delay, unconditionally and with full restoration of their political rights and to refrain from further politically motivated arrests;
10. Calls on the High Representative and the Member States publicly to support the recommendation of the United Nations Special Rapporteur on Burma/Myanmar that the United Nations establish a commission of inquiry into war crimes and crimes against humanity in Burma/Myanmar, and to include this request in the draft resolution to be discussed at the United Nations General Assembly in 2010;
11. Emphasises that the political and socioeconomic challenges facing Burma/Myanmar can only be addressed through genuine dialogue between all stakeholders, including ethnic groups and the opposition;
12. Reaffirms the essential importance of a genuine process of dialogue and national reconciliation for a transition to democracy; calls on the Government of Burma/Myanmar immediately to open a genuine dialogue with all parties and ethnic groups; welcomes, in this context, the mediation efforts by the UN Secretary-General and the UN Special Rapporteur on Burma/Myanmar;
13. Urges the governments of China, India and Russia to use their considerable economic and political leverage with the Burmese authorities in order to bring about substantial improvements in Burma/Myanmar and to stop supplying the country with weaponry and other strategic resources; calls on the governments of the ASEAN countries and of China, which have a 'privileged relationship' with Burma/Myanmar, to use their good offices in particular to try to reverse Burma's policy of ethnic cleansing against the Rohingya, which is resulting in hundreds of thousands fleeing over the border into Bangladesh and increasing the hardship of the ultra-poor living in the Cox's Bazaar district;
14. Expresses its strong support for the continued work of the EU Special Envoy and invites the Burma/Myanmar authorities to cooperate fully with him;
15. Welcomes the Council's decision to extend the restrictive measures provided for in the current EU decision by another year and emphasises its readiness to revise, amend or strengthen the measures already adopted in the light of developments on the ground;
16. Calls on the Commission to reverse cuts in funding for refugees on the Thailand-Burma border and immediately start funding cross-border aid, especially medical assistance;
17. Reiterates its call for a solution to the problem of the Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh; urges the Bangladesh Government to authorise their official registration as refugees and the Burma/Myanmar authorities to halt all forms of persecution of the Rohingya and fully to respect their fundamental rights as a religious and ethnic minority;
18. Welcomes the European Union's support for a global arms embargo and urges European governments and the Commission actively to start working to build a global consensus in favour of such a ban;
19. Supports the mediation mission undertaken by the UN Secretary-General and welcomes his commitment to solving this problem;
20. Instructs its delegations for relations with ASEAN, China, Russia, the USA, India, the countries of South Asia and Japan to place Burma/Myanmar on the agenda for their meetings with their counterparts and discussion partners in those countries;
21. Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Vice-President of the Commission/High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, the governments and parliaments of the Member States, the EU Special Envoy for Burma, the Burmese State Peace and Development Council, the governments of the ASEAN and ASEM member states, the ASEM secretariat, the ASEAN Inter-Parliamentary Myanmar Caucus, Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, the UN Secretary-General, the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights and the UN Human Rights Special Rapporteur on Burma/Myanmar.
Source: European Union (EU)
Date: 20 May 2010
The European Parliament ,
– having regard to its previous resolutions on Burma/Myanmar,
– having regard to Articles 18 to 21 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) of 1948,
– having regard to Article 25 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) of 1966,
– having regard to the statement made by UN Special Rapporteur Tomás Ojea Quintana on 5 May 2010,
– having regard to the Council Conclusions on Burma/Myanmar adopted at the 3009th Foreign Affairs Council meeting held in Luxembourg on 26 April 2010,
– having regard to the statement made by High Representative Catherine Ashton on 1 March 2010 on the rejection of Aung San Suu Kyi's appeal by the Supreme Court of Burma/Myanmar,
– having regard to the Chairman's Statement issued at the 16th ASEAN Summit held in Hanoi on 9 April 2010,
– having regard to the European Council Conclusions - Declaration on Burma/Myanmar of 19 June 2009,
– having regard to the Council Conclusions on Burma/Myanmar adopted at the 2938th General Affairs Council meeting held in Luxembourg on 27 April 2009,
– having regard to the EU Presidency Statement of 23 February 2009 calling for all-inclusive dialogue between the authorities and the democratic forces in Burma/Myanmar,
– having regard to UN Secretary-General's report of 28 August 2009 on the situation of human rights in Burma/Myanmar,
– having regard to the resolution of the UN Human Rights Council of 26 March 2010 on the situation of human rights in Burma/Myanmar,
– having regard to the Declaration issued by the Presidency on behalf of the European Union on 14 May 2009 on the arrest of Aung San Suu Kyi,
– having regard to Rule 122(5) of its Rules of Procedure,
A. having regard to the announcement by the Burmese authorities of national elections in 2010, the first since 1990,
B. whereas in their published form the five electoral laws and the four decrees violate all democratic principles and make the holding of free elections impossible, in particular by excluding the country's 2200 known political prisoners; whereas members of religious orders in Burma/Myanmar, including an estimated 400 000 Buddhist monks, are explicitly banned from voting, highlighting the perpetual discrimination by the military junta on the basis of religion or status,
C. whereas these laws violate the basic principles of freedom of expression and right of association; whereas Burmese news media based abroad, which constitute the main source of news for the Burmese people, are still banned from operating within Burma/Myanmar,
D. whereas these laws are based on the 2010 Constitution, which guarantees impunity for the crimes committed by the current regime and provides for the complete suspension of fundamental rights during the state of emergency, for an indefinite period; whereas Burma/Myanmar's new constitution is designed to maintain a dictatorship in a civilian guise, and does not grant any human rights or offer any prospect of genuine change,
E. whereas any expression of dissident political views is systematically and brutally repressed (for example by means of arbitrary arrests, unfair trials, imprisonment, torture and extrajudicial killings),
F. whereas elections cannot be considered free and fair if the opposition is not involved,
G. whereas the National League for Democracy (NLD), the clear victor in the last democratic elections, has decided to boycott the elections announced for 2010, in the light of the conditions imposed on participation; whereas the NLD was disbanded by law on 6 May 2010, after not registering for the elections,
H. having regard to the declaration issued at the 16th ASEAN Summit stressing the importance of reconciliation and the holding of free, regular general elections open to everyone,
I. whereas the United Nations Special Rapporteur on Burma/Myanmar has condemned "gross and systematic" human rights abuses committed by Burma/Myanmar's dictatorship, stating that they constitute "a state policy that involves authorities in the executive, military and judiciary at all levels", and has called for the establishment of a United Nations commission of inquiry into war crimes and crimes against humanity committed by the dictatorship,
J. whereas the Government of Burma/Myanmar continues to refuse the EU Special Envoy on Burma permission to visit the country and engage in dialogue, despite repeated requests over many months,
K. whereas since 2003 the Government of Burma/Myanmar has rejected every single proposal by the United Nations and the international community to revise its seven-stage "roadmap to democracy",
L. whereas there are currently 2200 known political prisoners being detained for engaging in peaceful activities in Burma/Myanmar, and whereas more than 140 political prisoners are being deliberately denied medical treatment, including 88 Generation Student leader Ko Mya Aye, who has a life-threatening heart condition,
M. whereas the military continues to perpetrate human rights violations against civilians in ethnic conflict areas, including extrajudicial killings, forced labour and sexual violence,
N. whereas attacks against ethnic minority civilians in eastern Burma/Myanmar continue, resulting in hundreds of thousands of displaced persons, many of whom, owing to restrictions on humanitarian assistance by the dictatorship, can only be reached by cross-border aid from neighbouring countries,
O. whereas Aung San Suu Kyi, leader of the opposition NLD, has been under house arrest since 2003; whereas on 14 May 2009 the authorities arrested her on charges that she had breached the terms of her house arrest by permitting the visit of an American, John Yettaw; whereas on 11 August 2009 a criminal court inside Insein prison in Rangoon sentenced Aung San Suu Kyi to three years' imprisonment for violating her house arrest, a sentence which was subsequently reduced to 18 months' house arrest; whereas on 1 March 2010 the Supreme Court of Burma/Myanmar rejected Aung San Suu Kyi's appeal against the unjust sentence imposed on her in 2009,
P. whereas the EU remains a major donor to Burma/Myanmar and stands ready to increase its assistance to the people of the country, in order to improve their social and economic conditions,
Q. whereas ECHO has reduced funding for refugees on the Thailand-Burma border, despite the number of refugees remaining almost the same, and has ended funding for boarding schools in refugee camps,
R. whereas the United Nations Security Council, the United Nations General Assembly, the United Nations Human Rights Council, the European Union and many governments have said that the solution to Burma's problems is proper tripartite dialogue between Aung San Suu Kyi and the NLD, genuine ethnic representatives and the Government of Burma/Myanmar, and whereas the Government of Burma/Myanmar is still refusing to enter into such dialogue,
1. Reaffirms its unwavering commitment to the people of Burma/Myanmar;
2. Condemns the holding of elections under completely undemocratic conditions and on the basis of rules which exclude the main democratic opposition party and deprive hundreds of thousands of Burmese citizens of their right to vote and stand for election, in a clear attempt to exclude the country's entire opposition from the ballot;
3. Deplores the fact that, under the new constitution, the military will be guaranteed at least 25% of the seats in parliament and will have the power to suspend civil liberties and legislative authority whenever it deems that to be necessary in the interests of national security;
4. Strongly urges the Government of Burma/Myanmar to take without delay the steps needed to ensure a free, fair and transparent electoral process, including the participation of all voters, all political parties and all other relevant stakeholders in the electoral process, and agree to the presence of international observers; calls for the electoral laws published in March 2010, which make the holding of free and transparent elections impossible, to be repealed;
5. Calls on the authorities of Burma/Myanmar to heed the appeals of the international community to allow Aung San Suu Kyi and all other prisoners of conscience to participate in the political process;
6. Urges the international community to make every effort to ensure that free and democratic elections are held;
7. Strongly urges the Government of Burma/Myanmar to lift restrictions on freedom of assembly, association, movement and expression, including for free and independent media, in part by making Internet and mobile telephone services openly available and accessible and ending the use of censorship;
8. Strongly condemns the ongoing systematic violations of the human rights, fundamental freedoms and basic democratic rights of the people of Burma/Myanmar; calls on the authorities of Burma/Myanmar to put an end to violations of international human rights and humanitarian law;
9. Urges the Government of Burma/Myanmar to release all prisoners of conscience without delay, unconditionally and with full restoration of their political rights and to refrain from further politically motivated arrests;
10. Calls on the High Representative and the Member States publicly to support the recommendation of the United Nations Special Rapporteur on Burma/Myanmar that the United Nations establish a commission of inquiry into war crimes and crimes against humanity in Burma/Myanmar, and to include this request in the draft resolution to be discussed at the United Nations General Assembly in 2010;
11. Emphasises that the political and socioeconomic challenges facing Burma/Myanmar can only be addressed through genuine dialogue between all stakeholders, including ethnic groups and the opposition;
12. Reaffirms the essential importance of a genuine process of dialogue and national reconciliation for a transition to democracy; calls on the Government of Burma/Myanmar immediately to open a genuine dialogue with all parties and ethnic groups; welcomes, in this context, the mediation efforts by the UN Secretary-General and the UN Special Rapporteur on Burma/Myanmar;
13. Urges the governments of China, India and Russia to use their considerable economic and political leverage with the Burmese authorities in order to bring about substantial improvements in Burma/Myanmar and to stop supplying the country with weaponry and other strategic resources; calls on the governments of the ASEAN countries and of China, which have a 'privileged relationship' with Burma/Myanmar, to use their good offices in particular to try to reverse Burma's policy of ethnic cleansing against the Rohingya, which is resulting in hundreds of thousands fleeing over the border into Bangladesh and increasing the hardship of the ultra-poor living in the Cox's Bazaar district;
14. Expresses its strong support for the continued work of the EU Special Envoy and invites the Burma/Myanmar authorities to cooperate fully with him;
15. Welcomes the Council's decision to extend the restrictive measures provided for in the current EU decision by another year and emphasises its readiness to revise, amend or strengthen the measures already adopted in the light of developments on the ground;
16. Calls on the Commission to reverse cuts in funding for refugees on the Thailand-Burma border and immediately start funding cross-border aid, especially medical assistance;
17. Reiterates its call for a solution to the problem of the Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh; urges the Bangladesh Government to authorise their official registration as refugees and the Burma/Myanmar authorities to halt all forms of persecution of the Rohingya and fully to respect their fundamental rights as a religious and ethnic minority;
18. Welcomes the European Union's support for a global arms embargo and urges European governments and the Commission actively to start working to build a global consensus in favour of such a ban;
19. Supports the mediation mission undertaken by the UN Secretary-General and welcomes his commitment to solving this problem;
20. Instructs its delegations for relations with ASEAN, China, Russia, the USA, India, the countries of South Asia and Japan to place Burma/Myanmar on the agenda for their meetings with their counterparts and discussion partners in those countries;
21. Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Vice-President of the Commission/High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, the governments and parliaments of the Member States, the EU Special Envoy for Burma, the Burmese State Peace and Development Council, the governments of the ASEAN and ASEM member states, the ASEM secretariat, the ASEAN Inter-Parliamentary Myanmar Caucus, Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, the UN Secretary-General, the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights and the UN Human Rights Special Rapporteur on Burma/Myanmar.
*******************************************************
EarthTimes - EU seeks more dialogue with Myanmar - Summary
Posted : Mon, 24 May 2010 14:15:52 GMT
Madrid - The European Union may send a mission to Myanmar as part of a new approach to press the country's ruling junta to adopt democracy, sources in the Spanish EU presidency said Monday.
Over the past few months, the international community has adopted a "new focus" on Myanmar, amid concern that the country's upcoming elections will not be democratic, diplomats said ahead of a ministerial meeting between the EU and the Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN) in Madrid on Wednesday.
The EU and its allies, such as the US and Australia, were maintaining their sanctions and insistence on democracy and human rights in Myanmar, while "opening the door to dialogue," said Jose Eugenio Salarich, a Spanish senior official responsible for relations with Asia and the Pacific.
The EU and Spain "do not believe in a policy of a pure and simple isolation" of Myanmar, Salarich said.
"There is a tendency towards a dialogue," he said, citing the recent visit of US envoy Kurt Campbell to Yangon as an example.
The EU mission would be the first to Myanmar since 2002, and will only take place if the junta allows the EU delegates to meet opposition representatives, Salarich said.
The Myanmar opposition includes Nobel Peace Prize laureate Aung San Suu Kyi, who has spent 14 of the past 21 years under house arrest. Myanmar has been under military rule since 1962.
Suu Kyi's party was dissolved after deciding not to contest the elections at an as-yet unspecified date this year. The election rules would have forced the party to expel Suu Kyi as secretary-general.
Officials from the EU and ASEAN will meet in Madrid on Tuesday, followed by a foreign ministers' meeting Wednesday.
The EU will maintain its insistence on democracy in ASEAN member Myanmar, but no "great progress" was expected at the meeting, diplomats said.
The political turmoil in Thailand will not be officially on the Madrid agenda, because it is regarded as an internal Thai matter. However, Bangkok was expected to inform the EU about the situation in the country.
The Madrid meeting will mark the 30th anniversary of official relations between the EU and ASEAN this year.
It was due to be attended by EU foreign policy director Catherine Ashton, foreign ministers from eight of the 10 ASEAN countries, and from nine of the 27 EU countries, as well as lower-level representatives.
The ministers were expected to discuss a large number of issues, including climate change, terrorism, piracy, nuclear non-proliferation, natural disasters as well as EU and ASEAN relations with China.
ASEAN comprises Brunei, Myanmar, Indonesia, Laos, Cambodia, the Philippines, Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.
Posted : Mon, 24 May 2010 14:15:52 GMT
Madrid - The European Union may send a mission to Myanmar as part of a new approach to press the country's ruling junta to adopt democracy, sources in the Spanish EU presidency said Monday.
Over the past few months, the international community has adopted a "new focus" on Myanmar, amid concern that the country's upcoming elections will not be democratic, diplomats said ahead of a ministerial meeting between the EU and the Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN) in Madrid on Wednesday.
The EU and its allies, such as the US and Australia, were maintaining their sanctions and insistence on democracy and human rights in Myanmar, while "opening the door to dialogue," said Jose Eugenio Salarich, a Spanish senior official responsible for relations with Asia and the Pacific.
The EU and Spain "do not believe in a policy of a pure and simple isolation" of Myanmar, Salarich said.
"There is a tendency towards a dialogue," he said, citing the recent visit of US envoy Kurt Campbell to Yangon as an example.
The EU mission would be the first to Myanmar since 2002, and will only take place if the junta allows the EU delegates to meet opposition representatives, Salarich said.
The Myanmar opposition includes Nobel Peace Prize laureate Aung San Suu Kyi, who has spent 14 of the past 21 years under house arrest. Myanmar has been under military rule since 1962.
Suu Kyi's party was dissolved after deciding not to contest the elections at an as-yet unspecified date this year. The election rules would have forced the party to expel Suu Kyi as secretary-general.
Officials from the EU and ASEAN will meet in Madrid on Tuesday, followed by a foreign ministers' meeting Wednesday.
The EU will maintain its insistence on democracy in ASEAN member Myanmar, but no "great progress" was expected at the meeting, diplomats said.
The political turmoil in Thailand will not be officially on the Madrid agenda, because it is regarded as an internal Thai matter. However, Bangkok was expected to inform the EU about the situation in the country.
The Madrid meeting will mark the 30th anniversary of official relations between the EU and ASEAN this year.
It was due to be attended by EU foreign policy director Catherine Ashton, foreign ministers from eight of the 10 ASEAN countries, and from nine of the 27 EU countries, as well as lower-level representatives.
The ministers were expected to discuss a large number of issues, including climate change, terrorism, piracy, nuclear non-proliferation, natural disasters as well as EU and ASEAN relations with China.
ASEAN comprises Brunei, Myanmar, Indonesia, Laos, Cambodia, the Philippines, Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.
*******************************************************
Main Line Suburban Life - 'Nova students document story of Burmese refugee
Published: Monday, May 24, 2010
By Seth Zweifler
Meh Sha Lin has only fleeting memories of his father. He remembers the faint outlines of his face, unblemished by raising three children in the rugged jungles of Burma. He remembers the sudden, tight knot that would form in his stomach after his father “just looked at me the wrong way.” And he remembers the night when, at just 8 years old, his fingers felt the bullet holes in his father’s back.
Of the years before and since, Lin, now 17, has other memories. He remembers the often-unabated patter of gunshots from just beyond the Thai border. He remembers the sweet smell of his mother’s cooking, the weight of long sticks of bamboo thrown atop his back. And he remembers loss, brutality at the hands of Thai police officers in the Mae La refugee camp and fear of retaliation at the hands of the oppressive Burmese regime.
Today Lin’s remarkable journey from the Mae La camp in Thailand to a moderately sized apartment on Seventh and Jackson streets in South Philadelphia is the subject of a Villanova University student documentary, “Meh Sha.” After an initial screening on April 29 in Villanova’s Connelly Cinema, the film made its official premiere on May 11 at the Ritz at the Bourse.
“Meh Sha” follows the story of the 17-year-old South Philadelphia High School junior – from his humble beginnings overseas to the struggles he faced in coming to terms with his newfound American identity.
Lin, who speaks softly in the cautious English he has been learning over the past three years, took his first breath of life as a Burmese refugee in Thailand’s Mae La camp.
Spread over a dense green range of jagged low mountains, Mae La is one of the largest refugee camps in all of Thailand. Tall barbed-wire fences separate its confines from the rest of the world, with makeshift bamboo huts housing an estimated 40,000 residents.
Before he was born, Lin’s parents lived in the Karen region of Burma. The Karen ethnic minority, whose half-century struggle for independence within their native country has made them a primary target of the government, make up an estimated 7 million of the country’s total 48 million.
Lin said that his parents decided to flee to Thailand after the military swept through their village, destroying homes and setting fire to valuable crops and possessions.
“They felt threatened and wanted a new life,” he said.
But even in Thailand the Lin family hardly felt safe.
“We would listen on the radio to what was happening in Burma,” Lin said. “Just thinking about [the Burmese government] makes me angry even today.”
Lin’s childhood was marked by hardship and struggle. When he was in second grade, his father was brutally murdered after leaving the Mae La camp to sell goods in a nearby town. Lin said that, even today, he looks to his father in trying times.
“I’ve always admired him. I love my father,” Lin said. “Today I think of him before I’m about to do anything stupid and remind myself of what he would have said.”
A few years following his father’s murder, a golden opportunity presented itself to Lin and his family. After extensive interviews with both the U.S. Department of State and Department of Homeland Security, Lin, along with his mother and sister, were given the chance to move to the United States.
Finally they had the opportunity to get out.
Leaving on a bus that would bring him and his family to Bangkok International Airport, Lin took one last look at the only home he had known for the last 14 years. The banana trees, the lime-green rice paddies, the bamboo huts he shared with the other refugees – they were all part of his past.
“We were very scared at first, but now I feel like I’m [in the process of] moving on from that life,” he said. “We’re starting to get used to life over here.”
Starting over
Meh Sha Lin arrived at Philadelphia International Airport with his mother, I Sha, and older sister, Shi Dar Bi, in December 2007. He spoke no English and, according to officials with the Nationalities Service Center, had a formal education comparable to that of a second-grader.
“Meh Sha’s mindset when I first met him was fairly typical for a refugee having just arrived in a new country,” said Juliane Ramic, who serves as director of social services at the NSC, a nonprofit organization that provides social, educational and legal services to immigrants and refugees throughout Greater Philadelphia. “They have to make the adjustment from an arrival phase to a reality phase very quickly. It’s not an easy thing to do.”
Each year the NSC resettles about 450 refugees in the immediate area, Ramic said. With just $900 from the federal government to procure housing and provide for the basic needs of each individual refugee upon arrival, the challenges to hit the ground running can be immense.
In Lin’s case, these challenges proved difficult to meet. His first few months as a high-school freshman yielded failing grades and, much to Lin’s disappointment, no new friends.
“Someone I knew in Thailand had told me a lot of bad things about America, and so it was even harder to adjust,” he said. “People thought that I wasn’t that smart ... it wasn’t a good feeling.”
With the help of his English as a Second Language teacher at school, however, things started to turn around. Fs began turning into Cs and Ds, and he continued to meet more and more friends along the way. Lin also managed to secure a position working at a local market – a job now a vital source of income for his family.
Regardless of how immersed in his new life Lin becomes, however, Ramic said that his past will always stick with him.
“There’s no such thing as somebody who goes unaffected by war or ethnic conflict,” Ramic said. “Meh Sha certainly approaches life with a positive outlook, but his memories will be there for years to come.”
More than a class
Back at Villanova, a group of 15 students and their professor soon learned of the NSC’s involvement with Lin and other Burmese refugees in the South Philadelphia area. At the time, the students were all enrolled in the school’s Social Justice Documentary course, and were looking for material to use as part of their semester-long project.
“We started the process with a lot of different ideas floating around,” said Alex Villegas, a senior at Villanova and co-producer of the film. “Seeing this through definitely taught us about working together as a group and making compromises.”
Initial suggestions from the students varied far and wide. Some were pulling for a film that focused on general immigration trends in the country while others wanted to see the stories of a collection of different refugees told.
After first meeting with Meh Sha, though, the subject of the documentary left little room for debate.
“He had everything we wanted – he was very talkative, very funny,” Villegas said. “I think we all got a good sense of who Meh Sha was from that initial sit-down.”
The film did not come without its bumps in the road, however. Starting in late December, the students had about 14 weeks to complete the entire project – writing, recording and all. However, by week five they still found themselves stalled in the research phase of the process.
It was around this time when Hezekiah Lewis, the students’ professor at Villanova, called the troops together for a pep talk.
“I would constantly challenge them to narrow the focus,” Lewis said. “Ultimately we went from very general to very specific, zeroing in on one central idea throughout the film.”
Joe Caravalho, a senior at Villanova and director of the film, credits Lewis with much of the project’s success.
“He let us mess up pretty bad, but never to the point where we couldn’t fix it,” Caravalho said of his professor. “He gave us the tools to succeed and, in the end, I think we were able to use them.”
Dubbed by Lewis a “project intended to invoke social change,” the film has taken on a meaning of its own for each of the students involved.
“I think Meh Sha taught all of us the power of having a positive attitude,” said Kristina Grappo, a senior at Villanova and co-producer of the film. “Here’s a kid who has everything in the world working against him, and yet he’s never in a bad mood, always smiling. He has an amazing outlook on life.”
In addition to her contributions to the production of the film, Grappo also helped orchestrate one of the project’s most unique elements: its narration.
“Meh Sha” is narrated by Phylicia Rashad, a popular actress best known for her role on NBC’s “The Cosby Show.” Grappo managed to bring Rashad in on the project through her mother, who had met the “Cosby” actress at an event in Washington, D.C., last year.
In a special note to the students, Rashad wrote that she considered it “a rare pleasure and opportunity to be able to contribute something to your film.”
“She was the nicest woman you’ll ever meet – just like her character on TV,” Grappo said of Rashad.
The film was first screened for Villanova students and community members at the school’s Connelly Cinema on April 29. According to Villegas, it was here that the production crew first began to see the project’s potential.
“So many people came up to us afterward wanting to know how they could help, how they could get involved. Seeing such emotional reactions from all of our friends was pretty powerful,” he said. “Still, though, we didn’t know how that message would transfer from a college audience to an adult audience, so we were hopeful that things would work out.”
That hope was validated in a large way on May 11, with more than 170 people coming out to the Ritz at the Bourse in Philadelphia for the official “premiere” of the film.
“It got to the point where we had to start turning people away from the guest list because there were so many,” Grappo said. “I don’t think any of us could have anticipated how successful this would become.”
Moving forward
Looking ahead, Lin hopes that the documentary will open doors to a bright future.
“My brother is still [over in Thailand],” Lin said. “I’d like to see if this [film] can help bring him back to us.”
While specific details are clouded by distance and lack of communication, Ramic, of the NSC, said her organization believes that Lin’s brother has lost his refugee status because of frequent trips out of the Mae La camp – something prohibited by the Thai government. Because he is over the age of 21, Ramic said that it could be another six or seven years before Meh Sha’s brother is reunited with his family.
“I’d like to see if there’s something we can do about getting his brother back,” Caravalho, the film’s director, said. “I know there’s a lot working against him, but if we try hard enough maybe something can be done. I don’t think it has to be this way.”
Reuniting Lin with his brother is just one part of the “Meh Sha” process – a process that most say is just getting under way.
Lewis, the students’ professor, told the group on day one that “this was not going to be your typical class. Don’t expect this to end when you graduate.”
Over the next few months, Villegas said that the students are looking to go “all-out” with the film-festival scene – entering their documentary into competitions like Sundance, Tribeca and Chicago. They have also discussed sharing their project with other universities as part of a lecture circuit, in hopes of getting their message out to a wider audience.
“Right now we’re trying to get a pulse to see how far this can go,” Villegas said. “I think this is a great opportunity to raise awareness and inspire others to take action in some form.”
Starting in the fall, Villegas, Grappo and Caravalho will call each other colleagues once more as the three have all secured positions with the Los Angeles-based New York Film Academy.
“Meh Sha is going to be like family to us for years to come,” Caravalho said. “We want this story to be told over and over again.”
While Lin’s story is a moving one on many levels, it is not unique among Burmese refugees. The U.S. Department of State estimates there are more than 300,000 refugees living in Thai camps. According to the NSC, resettlement in another country is possible for just 1 percent of them.
Numbers like these can certainly appear daunting to the outside observer. But, as those involved with “Meh Sha” will tell you, knowledge is the first step on the road to change.
“A lot of people don’t know what’s going on in Burma,” Lewis said. “It’s not that they’re ignorant – it’s just that they don’t know. The challenge given to these students was to pull all of the emotion, the struggle and the triumph that came with a particular subject and piece it together in a 30-minute project. Now it’s our challenge to make a difference.”
Published: Monday, May 24, 2010
By Seth Zweifler
Meh Sha Lin has only fleeting memories of his father. He remembers the faint outlines of his face, unblemished by raising three children in the rugged jungles of Burma. He remembers the sudden, tight knot that would form in his stomach after his father “just looked at me the wrong way.” And he remembers the night when, at just 8 years old, his fingers felt the bullet holes in his father’s back.
Of the years before and since, Lin, now 17, has other memories. He remembers the often-unabated patter of gunshots from just beyond the Thai border. He remembers the sweet smell of his mother’s cooking, the weight of long sticks of bamboo thrown atop his back. And he remembers loss, brutality at the hands of Thai police officers in the Mae La refugee camp and fear of retaliation at the hands of the oppressive Burmese regime.
Today Lin’s remarkable journey from the Mae La camp in Thailand to a moderately sized apartment on Seventh and Jackson streets in South Philadelphia is the subject of a Villanova University student documentary, “Meh Sha.” After an initial screening on April 29 in Villanova’s Connelly Cinema, the film made its official premiere on May 11 at the Ritz at the Bourse.
“Meh Sha” follows the story of the 17-year-old South Philadelphia High School junior – from his humble beginnings overseas to the struggles he faced in coming to terms with his newfound American identity.
Lin, who speaks softly in the cautious English he has been learning over the past three years, took his first breath of life as a Burmese refugee in Thailand’s Mae La camp.
Spread over a dense green range of jagged low mountains, Mae La is one of the largest refugee camps in all of Thailand. Tall barbed-wire fences separate its confines from the rest of the world, with makeshift bamboo huts housing an estimated 40,000 residents.
Before he was born, Lin’s parents lived in the Karen region of Burma. The Karen ethnic minority, whose half-century struggle for independence within their native country has made them a primary target of the government, make up an estimated 7 million of the country’s total 48 million.
Lin said that his parents decided to flee to Thailand after the military swept through their village, destroying homes and setting fire to valuable crops and possessions.
“They felt threatened and wanted a new life,” he said.
But even in Thailand the Lin family hardly felt safe.
“We would listen on the radio to what was happening in Burma,” Lin said. “Just thinking about [the Burmese government] makes me angry even today.”
Lin’s childhood was marked by hardship and struggle. When he was in second grade, his father was brutally murdered after leaving the Mae La camp to sell goods in a nearby town. Lin said that, even today, he looks to his father in trying times.
“I’ve always admired him. I love my father,” Lin said. “Today I think of him before I’m about to do anything stupid and remind myself of what he would have said.”
A few years following his father’s murder, a golden opportunity presented itself to Lin and his family. After extensive interviews with both the U.S. Department of State and Department of Homeland Security, Lin, along with his mother and sister, were given the chance to move to the United States.
Finally they had the opportunity to get out.
Leaving on a bus that would bring him and his family to Bangkok International Airport, Lin took one last look at the only home he had known for the last 14 years. The banana trees, the lime-green rice paddies, the bamboo huts he shared with the other refugees – they were all part of his past.
“We were very scared at first, but now I feel like I’m [in the process of] moving on from that life,” he said. “We’re starting to get used to life over here.”
Starting over
Meh Sha Lin arrived at Philadelphia International Airport with his mother, I Sha, and older sister, Shi Dar Bi, in December 2007. He spoke no English and, according to officials with the Nationalities Service Center, had a formal education comparable to that of a second-grader.
“Meh Sha’s mindset when I first met him was fairly typical for a refugee having just arrived in a new country,” said Juliane Ramic, who serves as director of social services at the NSC, a nonprofit organization that provides social, educational and legal services to immigrants and refugees throughout Greater Philadelphia. “They have to make the adjustment from an arrival phase to a reality phase very quickly. It’s not an easy thing to do.”
Each year the NSC resettles about 450 refugees in the immediate area, Ramic said. With just $900 from the federal government to procure housing and provide for the basic needs of each individual refugee upon arrival, the challenges to hit the ground running can be immense.
In Lin’s case, these challenges proved difficult to meet. His first few months as a high-school freshman yielded failing grades and, much to Lin’s disappointment, no new friends.
“Someone I knew in Thailand had told me a lot of bad things about America, and so it was even harder to adjust,” he said. “People thought that I wasn’t that smart ... it wasn’t a good feeling.”
With the help of his English as a Second Language teacher at school, however, things started to turn around. Fs began turning into Cs and Ds, and he continued to meet more and more friends along the way. Lin also managed to secure a position working at a local market – a job now a vital source of income for his family.
Regardless of how immersed in his new life Lin becomes, however, Ramic said that his past will always stick with him.
“There’s no such thing as somebody who goes unaffected by war or ethnic conflict,” Ramic said. “Meh Sha certainly approaches life with a positive outlook, but his memories will be there for years to come.”
More than a class
Back at Villanova, a group of 15 students and their professor soon learned of the NSC’s involvement with Lin and other Burmese refugees in the South Philadelphia area. At the time, the students were all enrolled in the school’s Social Justice Documentary course, and were looking for material to use as part of their semester-long project.
“We started the process with a lot of different ideas floating around,” said Alex Villegas, a senior at Villanova and co-producer of the film. “Seeing this through definitely taught us about working together as a group and making compromises.”
Initial suggestions from the students varied far and wide. Some were pulling for a film that focused on general immigration trends in the country while others wanted to see the stories of a collection of different refugees told.
After first meeting with Meh Sha, though, the subject of the documentary left little room for debate.
“He had everything we wanted – he was very talkative, very funny,” Villegas said. “I think we all got a good sense of who Meh Sha was from that initial sit-down.”
The film did not come without its bumps in the road, however. Starting in late December, the students had about 14 weeks to complete the entire project – writing, recording and all. However, by week five they still found themselves stalled in the research phase of the process.
It was around this time when Hezekiah Lewis, the students’ professor at Villanova, called the troops together for a pep talk.
“I would constantly challenge them to narrow the focus,” Lewis said. “Ultimately we went from very general to very specific, zeroing in on one central idea throughout the film.”
Joe Caravalho, a senior at Villanova and director of the film, credits Lewis with much of the project’s success.
“He let us mess up pretty bad, but never to the point where we couldn’t fix it,” Caravalho said of his professor. “He gave us the tools to succeed and, in the end, I think we were able to use them.”
Dubbed by Lewis a “project intended to invoke social change,” the film has taken on a meaning of its own for each of the students involved.
“I think Meh Sha taught all of us the power of having a positive attitude,” said Kristina Grappo, a senior at Villanova and co-producer of the film. “Here’s a kid who has everything in the world working against him, and yet he’s never in a bad mood, always smiling. He has an amazing outlook on life.”
In addition to her contributions to the production of the film, Grappo also helped orchestrate one of the project’s most unique elements: its narration.
“Meh Sha” is narrated by Phylicia Rashad, a popular actress best known for her role on NBC’s “The Cosby Show.” Grappo managed to bring Rashad in on the project through her mother, who had met the “Cosby” actress at an event in Washington, D.C., last year.
In a special note to the students, Rashad wrote that she considered it “a rare pleasure and opportunity to be able to contribute something to your film.”
“She was the nicest woman you’ll ever meet – just like her character on TV,” Grappo said of Rashad.
The film was first screened for Villanova students and community members at the school’s Connelly Cinema on April 29. According to Villegas, it was here that the production crew first began to see the project’s potential.
“So many people came up to us afterward wanting to know how they could help, how they could get involved. Seeing such emotional reactions from all of our friends was pretty powerful,” he said. “Still, though, we didn’t know how that message would transfer from a college audience to an adult audience, so we were hopeful that things would work out.”
That hope was validated in a large way on May 11, with more than 170 people coming out to the Ritz at the Bourse in Philadelphia for the official “premiere” of the film.
“It got to the point where we had to start turning people away from the guest list because there were so many,” Grappo said. “I don’t think any of us could have anticipated how successful this would become.”
Moving forward
Looking ahead, Lin hopes that the documentary will open doors to a bright future.
“My brother is still [over in Thailand],” Lin said. “I’d like to see if this [film] can help bring him back to us.”
While specific details are clouded by distance and lack of communication, Ramic, of the NSC, said her organization believes that Lin’s brother has lost his refugee status because of frequent trips out of the Mae La camp – something prohibited by the Thai government. Because he is over the age of 21, Ramic said that it could be another six or seven years before Meh Sha’s brother is reunited with his family.
“I’d like to see if there’s something we can do about getting his brother back,” Caravalho, the film’s director, said. “I know there’s a lot working against him, but if we try hard enough maybe something can be done. I don’t think it has to be this way.”
Reuniting Lin with his brother is just one part of the “Meh Sha” process – a process that most say is just getting under way.
Lewis, the students’ professor, told the group on day one that “this was not going to be your typical class. Don’t expect this to end when you graduate.”
Over the next few months, Villegas said that the students are looking to go “all-out” with the film-festival scene – entering their documentary into competitions like Sundance, Tribeca and Chicago. They have also discussed sharing their project with other universities as part of a lecture circuit, in hopes of getting their message out to a wider audience.
“Right now we’re trying to get a pulse to see how far this can go,” Villegas said. “I think this is a great opportunity to raise awareness and inspire others to take action in some form.”
Starting in the fall, Villegas, Grappo and Caravalho will call each other colleagues once more as the three have all secured positions with the Los Angeles-based New York Film Academy.
“Meh Sha is going to be like family to us for years to come,” Caravalho said. “We want this story to be told over and over again.”
While Lin’s story is a moving one on many levels, it is not unique among Burmese refugees. The U.S. Department of State estimates there are more than 300,000 refugees living in Thai camps. According to the NSC, resettlement in another country is possible for just 1 percent of them.
Numbers like these can certainly appear daunting to the outside observer. But, as those involved with “Meh Sha” will tell you, knowledge is the first step on the road to change.
“A lot of people don’t know what’s going on in Burma,” Lewis said. “It’s not that they’re ignorant – it’s just that they don’t know. The challenge given to these students was to pull all of the emotion, the struggle and the triumph that came with a particular subject and piece it together in a 30-minute project. Now it’s our challenge to make a difference.”
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The Buffalo News - Burmese gathering here use newfound freedoms to press cause
By Patrick Lakamp, NEWS STAFF REPORTER
Published: May 24, 2010, 12:30 am
Dozens of exiled Burmese activists committed acts in Buffalo over the weekend that they say would have got them imprisoned — or worse — had they done so in their Southeast Asian homeland.
They assembled.
They organized their protest movement.
They participated in political debate.
And they talked about a day when the current military rule in the country will come to an end.
Some of those attending the two-day conference at Buffalo State College tell of how soldiers chased them from their homes two decades ago for leading student uprisings. Others have arrived in the United States more recently after spending years in refugee camps along the Thailand-Burma border.
Now resettled in this country, some traveled to the Buffalo conference from as far away as San Francisco; others from as close as Ithaca.
By Sunday evening, representatives from nearly a dozen pro-Burma democracy organizations from across the country agreed to form a coalition and to pick priorities and strategies together.
It’s another step forward, they said, to bringing democratic rule back to Burma, also known as Myanmar. The military regime changed the name of the country to Myanmar, but the U. S. government uses Burma in support for the democratic opposition.
“Definitely, it will change,” said Ko Ko Lay, who owns a photo and design studio in San Francisco. “Look around the world at how many dictatorships are left.”
Still, it won’t be easy, said Lay, who was one of the student leaders who organized mass demonstrations in Burma in 1988, during which military forces killed thousands of demonstrators.
That’s why conferences like the one in Buffalo are so important, he said.
“To go back, that is my hope,” said Htun Aung Gyaw, who now runs a catering business in Ithaca.
He remembers friends who were shot and killed, or hanged, for their roles in the student uprisings more than two decades ago.
Gyaw and Lay were among a group of 17 who escaped Burma in 1988 — a 28-day trek to the border. When they arrived at the border, their group numbered 400.
Some of those attending the Buffalo conference have known each for decades, since their student days. Gyaw said meeting his fellow exiles in Buffalo was like “meeting our brothers.”
Unlike past conferences, rife with rivalries, there was “no infighting at all” during the weekend conference here, he said.
“We can argue, but we understand each other. We compromised,” he said.
Myo Thant, 42, of Buffalo, spent 18 months under house arrest as a key aide to Aung San Suu Kyi, the Nobel Peace Prize recipient in 1991 for her nonviolent struggle for democracy and human rights.
He eventually fled and now lives on Buffalo’s West Side. Buffalo is home to some 2,000 Burmese refugees, with the figure climbing quickly, because Buffalo has become the unofficial state capital for resettling refugees from Burma and elsewhere.
He spent the weekend in Buffalo doing what is not allowed in Burma.
Political gatherings of more than four persons are banned.
“We would be under arrest,” Myo Thant said of holding such a gathering in Burma.
By Patrick Lakamp, NEWS STAFF REPORTER
Published: May 24, 2010, 12:30 am
Dozens of exiled Burmese activists committed acts in Buffalo over the weekend that they say would have got them imprisoned — or worse — had they done so in their Southeast Asian homeland.
They assembled.
They organized their protest movement.
They participated in political debate.
And they talked about a day when the current military rule in the country will come to an end.
Some of those attending the two-day conference at Buffalo State College tell of how soldiers chased them from their homes two decades ago for leading student uprisings. Others have arrived in the United States more recently after spending years in refugee camps along the Thailand-Burma border.
Now resettled in this country, some traveled to the Buffalo conference from as far away as San Francisco; others from as close as Ithaca.
By Sunday evening, representatives from nearly a dozen pro-Burma democracy organizations from across the country agreed to form a coalition and to pick priorities and strategies together.
It’s another step forward, they said, to bringing democratic rule back to Burma, also known as Myanmar. The military regime changed the name of the country to Myanmar, but the U. S. government uses Burma in support for the democratic opposition.
“Definitely, it will change,” said Ko Ko Lay, who owns a photo and design studio in San Francisco. “Look around the world at how many dictatorships are left.”
Still, it won’t be easy, said Lay, who was one of the student leaders who organized mass demonstrations in Burma in 1988, during which military forces killed thousands of demonstrators.
That’s why conferences like the one in Buffalo are so important, he said.
“To go back, that is my hope,” said Htun Aung Gyaw, who now runs a catering business in Ithaca.
He remembers friends who were shot and killed, or hanged, for their roles in the student uprisings more than two decades ago.
Gyaw and Lay were among a group of 17 who escaped Burma in 1988 — a 28-day trek to the border. When they arrived at the border, their group numbered 400.
Some of those attending the Buffalo conference have known each for decades, since their student days. Gyaw said meeting his fellow exiles in Buffalo was like “meeting our brothers.”
Unlike past conferences, rife with rivalries, there was “no infighting at all” during the weekend conference here, he said.
“We can argue, but we understand each other. We compromised,” he said.
Myo Thant, 42, of Buffalo, spent 18 months under house arrest as a key aide to Aung San Suu Kyi, the Nobel Peace Prize recipient in 1991 for her nonviolent struggle for democracy and human rights.
He eventually fled and now lives on Buffalo’s West Side. Buffalo is home to some 2,000 Burmese refugees, with the figure climbing quickly, because Buffalo has become the unofficial state capital for resettling refugees from Burma and elsewhere.
He spent the weekend in Buffalo doing what is not allowed in Burma.
Political gatherings of more than four persons are banned.
“We would be under arrest,” Myo Thant said of holding such a gathering in Burma.
*******************************************************
Monday, May 24, 2010
Jonesboro Sun - It’s a hard-knock life
By Sherry F. Pruitt
JONESBORO — A small group of Jonesboro teen-agers is raising funds to build an orphanage in Myanmar in Southeast Asia.
Five girls who are homeschooled formed a local Teens for Orphans organization in Jonesboro. There are other small groups in Arkansas, Alabama, Tennessee, Texas and California, member Michael Sherrill, 16, said.
“Our goal is to get several groups of people to raise awareness and funds,” she said. “They can get some friends together and go for it. It’s not just for teens. It’s a really big job, so we need all the help we can get.”
The TFO was started by a Rogers teen-ager after he visited Myanmar in 2009 and met a family caring for 60 orphans. The teen groups have a goal of raising $50,000 to build an orphanage in Myanmar.
“The government in Myanmar is a very oppressive military government,” Sherrill said. “The government has said if the family does not get into a building that meets specifications, they will send the orphans back home.”
But “back home” means the youngsters will be sent “back to the streets,” added Bethany Gallimore, a 15-year-old member of the Jonesboro group. “Myanmar is a major source for the slave trade and sex trafficking. That’s where the kids could end up.”
“If the family’s ministry is shut down, the orphans will have no homes,” Sherrill said.
Myanmar is home to more than 70,000 orphans, according to Sherrill’s research. Gallimore also learned the former name of the country is Burma.
“In 1989, the country’s military government began promoting the name Myanmar, but the U.S. government only officially recognizes the country as Burma,” Sherrill said. “Myanmar, located in Southeast Asia between India and Thailand, is slightly smaller than Texas and is home to about 48 million people.”
The reasons for so many orphans in Myanmar include: parents dying at a young age, some Buddhist families become Christian and put their children on the streets, and if a woman divorces and remarries a man who does not want her children, they are kicked to the curb, Sherrill said.
The Jonesboro girls raised money for the Myanmar orphanage project through a $50 challenge fund raiser, member Diamond Lee, 15, said. The organizer from Rogers, Cade W., said he wanted TFO organizations to come up with creative ways to raise funds. The Jonesboro group held a food, music and stuff sale, Chloe Huff, 17, said. They raised more than $300 at a yard and bake sale and collected some $400 more in donations for a total of more than $700, she said.
“People were very generous once they learned about the orphans,” Huff said. “One guy came just for the music.”
Another fund raiser they have planned is to make tote bags out of vintage T-shirts. The Martha Stewart idea is labeled “T-bag” project, she said.
“It’s nice to be part of something that helps someone else. They have so little, and we have so much,” Gallimore said.
Gallimore added that the members would like to host a variety show to generate funding for the cause. The girls also count on God.
“God will bring us money when it’s his timing,” Sherrill said. “He’s the one who has given us this vision. We’re relying on God ...”
The members of the organization said they have not set a goal but plan to raise as much money as possible. Once they raise enough to build an orphanage, they might try to raise more for another facility in Myanmar or another country, Sherrill said.
Molly Huff, 15, added that there are a Web site and Facebook page dedicated to Teens for Orphans.
sherry@jonesborosun.com
On the Net: www.teens4orphans.org
Jonesboro Sun - It’s a hard-knock life
By Sherry F. Pruitt
JONESBORO — A small group of Jonesboro teen-agers is raising funds to build an orphanage in Myanmar in Southeast Asia.
Five girls who are homeschooled formed a local Teens for Orphans organization in Jonesboro. There are other small groups in Arkansas, Alabama, Tennessee, Texas and California, member Michael Sherrill, 16, said.
“Our goal is to get several groups of people to raise awareness and funds,” she said. “They can get some friends together and go for it. It’s not just for teens. It’s a really big job, so we need all the help we can get.”
The TFO was started by a Rogers teen-ager after he visited Myanmar in 2009 and met a family caring for 60 orphans. The teen groups have a goal of raising $50,000 to build an orphanage in Myanmar.
“The government in Myanmar is a very oppressive military government,” Sherrill said. “The government has said if the family does not get into a building that meets specifications, they will send the orphans back home.”
But “back home” means the youngsters will be sent “back to the streets,” added Bethany Gallimore, a 15-year-old member of the Jonesboro group. “Myanmar is a major source for the slave trade and sex trafficking. That’s where the kids could end up.”
“If the family’s ministry is shut down, the orphans will have no homes,” Sherrill said.
Myanmar is home to more than 70,000 orphans, according to Sherrill’s research. Gallimore also learned the former name of the country is Burma.
“In 1989, the country’s military government began promoting the name Myanmar, but the U.S. government only officially recognizes the country as Burma,” Sherrill said. “Myanmar, located in Southeast Asia between India and Thailand, is slightly smaller than Texas and is home to about 48 million people.”
The reasons for so many orphans in Myanmar include: parents dying at a young age, some Buddhist families become Christian and put their children on the streets, and if a woman divorces and remarries a man who does not want her children, they are kicked to the curb, Sherrill said.
The Jonesboro girls raised money for the Myanmar orphanage project through a $50 challenge fund raiser, member Diamond Lee, 15, said. The organizer from Rogers, Cade W., said he wanted TFO organizations to come up with creative ways to raise funds. The Jonesboro group held a food, music and stuff sale, Chloe Huff, 17, said. They raised more than $300 at a yard and bake sale and collected some $400 more in donations for a total of more than $700, she said.
“People were very generous once they learned about the orphans,” Huff said. “One guy came just for the music.”
Another fund raiser they have planned is to make tote bags out of vintage T-shirts. The Martha Stewart idea is labeled “T-bag” project, she said.
“It’s nice to be part of something that helps someone else. They have so little, and we have so much,” Gallimore said.
Gallimore added that the members would like to host a variety show to generate funding for the cause. The girls also count on God.
“God will bring us money when it’s his timing,” Sherrill said. “He’s the one who has given us this vision. We’re relying on God ...”
The members of the organization said they have not set a goal but plan to raise as much money as possible. Once they raise enough to build an orphanage, they might try to raise more for another facility in Myanmar or another country, Sherrill said.
Molly Huff, 15, added that there are a Web site and Facebook page dedicated to Teens for Orphans.
sherry@jonesborosun.com
On the Net: www.teens4orphans.org
*******************************************************
Morungexpress - Assistance for road construction to Myanmar
Dimapur, May 22 (MExN): In a simple ceremony held at Moreh, Tamil Sangam Ground on 21 May 2010, Major General CA Krishnan, IGAR (South) presented the Engineer Plant Equipment for assistance in road construction to Myanmar on behalf of Govt of India, Chief of Army Staff, GOC-in-C , Eastern Command and GOC 3 Corps. This was stated in a press note from PRO IGAR South.
In the first phase of the four phased project consisting a total of 14 Engineer Plant Equipments and 18 Tippers, one Bulldozer BD 80 along with 46 types of Spares and accessories of Dozer,9 types of spares and accessories of Tipper were handed over to a 15 member Myanmar Army Delegation headed by Brig Gen Tin Maung Ohn .This Indian goodwill gesture was organized jointly by 31 Assam Rifles and 9 Engineer Regiment of 57 Mountain Div under the aegis of HQ 3 Corps. This Indian gesture will further strengthen camaraderie and co-operation for the future growth and amiable relationship between the two friendly Nations.
The short ceremony was culminated wherein Maj Gen CA Krishnan IGAR (South) handed over the keys of the Earth Moving Equipment to the Myanmar Authorities. The locals were enthralled by the performance of cultural troupes’ from both the sides of the border after the ceremony. The general officer on behalf of GOC-in-C Eastern Command and GOC 3 Corps conveyed best wishes to Myanmar Army and the Myanmar people.
Dimapur, May 22 (MExN): In a simple ceremony held at Moreh, Tamil Sangam Ground on 21 May 2010, Major General CA Krishnan, IGAR (South) presented the Engineer Plant Equipment for assistance in road construction to Myanmar on behalf of Govt of India, Chief of Army Staff, GOC-in-C , Eastern Command and GOC 3 Corps. This was stated in a press note from PRO IGAR South.
In the first phase of the four phased project consisting a total of 14 Engineer Plant Equipments and 18 Tippers, one Bulldozer BD 80 along with 46 types of Spares and accessories of Dozer,9 types of spares and accessories of Tipper were handed over to a 15 member Myanmar Army Delegation headed by Brig Gen Tin Maung Ohn .This Indian goodwill gesture was organized jointly by 31 Assam Rifles and 9 Engineer Regiment of 57 Mountain Div under the aegis of HQ 3 Corps. This Indian gesture will further strengthen camaraderie and co-operation for the future growth and amiable relationship between the two friendly Nations.
The short ceremony was culminated wherein Maj Gen CA Krishnan IGAR (South) handed over the keys of the Earth Moving Equipment to the Myanmar Authorities. The locals were enthralled by the performance of cultural troupes’ from both the sides of the border after the ceremony. The general officer on behalf of GOC-in-C Eastern Command and GOC 3 Corps conveyed best wishes to Myanmar Army and the Myanmar people.
*******************************************************
E-Pao.net - India hands over engineering equipments to Myanmar
Source: Hueiyen News Service
Imphal, May 21 2010: Inspector General of Assam Rifles (South), Major General CA Krishnan today handed over Engineering Plant Equipments for assistance in road construction to Myanmar at a function held at Tamil Sangam Ground, Moreh.
The Major General handed over the plant equipments to a 15-member Myanmar Army delegation headed by Brigadier General Tin Maung Ohn.
The items included 14 engineering plant equipments, 18 tippers, one bulldozer BD 80 along with 46 types of spares and accessories of dozer, nine type spares and accessories of tipper.
The items were handed over by Major General CA Krishnan on behalf of the Government of India, Chief of Army Staff, GOC-in-C, Eastern Command and GOC 3 Corps.
The equipments were meant for the first phase of the four phase project.
Source: Hueiyen News Service
Imphal, May 21 2010: Inspector General of Assam Rifles (South), Major General CA Krishnan today handed over Engineering Plant Equipments for assistance in road construction to Myanmar at a function held at Tamil Sangam Ground, Moreh.
The Major General handed over the plant equipments to a 15-member Myanmar Army delegation headed by Brigadier General Tin Maung Ohn.
The items included 14 engineering plant equipments, 18 tippers, one bulldozer BD 80 along with 46 types of spares and accessories of dozer, nine type spares and accessories of tipper.
The items were handed over by Major General CA Krishnan on behalf of the Government of India, Chief of Army Staff, GOC-in-C, Eastern Command and GOC 3 Corps.
The equipments were meant for the first phase of the four phase project.
*******************************************************
The Arizona Republic - Phoenix stabbing: Police ID 1st of 2 who died
by Allison Hurtado and Dustin Gardiner - May. 22, 2010 09:15 AM
A man and a woman from Myanmar were stabbed to death during a fight in Phoenix Friday afternoon.
Police said Dawt Cin Sung, 17, was killed by her 26-year-old former boyfriend after the two argued over money.
The man, whose name has not been released, also died. It was unclear if his wounds were self-inflicted.
The stabbing happened about 1:40 p.m. at Canyon Woods Apartments near 27th and Glenrosa avenues, Lt. Matt Knowles of the Phoenix Police Department said.
When police arrived, they found a 31-year-old woman bleeding from her arm. She said a man and woman were fighting inside her apartment.
Police said Sung went to the apartment to visit her friend. A short time later, Sung's ex-boyfriend arrived, according to a police statement. After the fight began, Sung locked herself in a back bedroom.
Her friend, the apartment owner, was cut on the arm as she tried to pull the man away from the door, said James Holmes, a Phoenix police spokesman.
The woman grabbed her four children and left the apartment, leaving Sung alone with her ex-boyfriend. Holmes said the children did not witness the stabbings.
Officers later found Sung and her ex-boyfriend wounded in the back bedroom. Paramedics pronounced Sung dead at the scene and took the man to a local hospital where he later died, Knowles said.
The man and woman were both from Myanmar, formerly known as Burma.
by Allison Hurtado and Dustin Gardiner - May. 22, 2010 09:15 AM
A man and a woman from Myanmar were stabbed to death during a fight in Phoenix Friday afternoon.
Police said Dawt Cin Sung, 17, was killed by her 26-year-old former boyfriend after the two argued over money.
The man, whose name has not been released, also died. It was unclear if his wounds were self-inflicted.
The stabbing happened about 1:40 p.m. at Canyon Woods Apartments near 27th and Glenrosa avenues, Lt. Matt Knowles of the Phoenix Police Department said.
When police arrived, they found a 31-year-old woman bleeding from her arm. She said a man and woman were fighting inside her apartment.
Police said Sung went to the apartment to visit her friend. A short time later, Sung's ex-boyfriend arrived, according to a police statement. After the fight began, Sung locked herself in a back bedroom.
Her friend, the apartment owner, was cut on the arm as she tried to pull the man away from the door, said James Holmes, a Phoenix police spokesman.
The woman grabbed her four children and left the apartment, leaving Sung alone with her ex-boyfriend. Holmes said the children did not witness the stabbings.
Officers later found Sung and her ex-boyfriend wounded in the back bedroom. Paramedics pronounced Sung dead at the scene and took the man to a local hospital where he later died, Knowles said.
The man and woman were both from Myanmar, formerly known as Burma.
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The Irrawaddy - Border Guard Force Plan to Be Sidelined
By WAI MOE - Monday, May 24, 2010
The Burmese military junta will not impose its border guard force (BGF) plan on ethnic cease-fire groups until after the general election, sources close to the War Office in Naypyidaw have told The Irrawaddy.
The move comes as Burma's top military generals gather for their four-monthly meeting in the Burmese capital this week when they are expected to discuss pre- and post-election strategies and decide who will run for parliament and who will assume higher ranks in the military hierarchy.
The sources said that Snr-Gen Than Shwe, the junta supremo who is also the commander-in-chief of the armed forces, will request an update on the ethnic situation from his commanders, including Lt-Gen Ye Myint, the junta's key negotiator and chief of Military Affairs Security, formerly known as military intelligence. However, barring any surprises, Than Shwe will instruct his men to sideline the issue until after the election.
Ahead of the junta’s meeting, Burma's commanders made several unsuccessful attempts at convincing and intimidating the ethnic crease-fire groups to join the BGF under the joint command of the Burmese army.
The talks involved several groups, including the United Wa State Army (UWSA) and the Kachin Independence Organization (KIO).
Burma's generals have set several deadlines for the ethnic groups to accede to their proposal, the latest being the end of March. In almost every case, the cease-fire groups either rejected the BGF plan outright and called for certain conditions to be met.
Maj-Gen Aung Than Htut, the commander of the Northeast Regional Military Command, on Thursday sent a letter on behalf of Ye Myint to the UWSA's Bao Youxiang, urging the Wa leader to agree to a meeting to discuss the BGF plan at his headquarters in Lashio in northern Shan State, according to sources close to the Wa.
The UWSA did not respond to the letter immediately. However, a Wa leader, Bao You-yi, said the 20,000-strong ethnic army is confident it can defend its territory and guarantee the safety of local Wa communities in the event of a conflict.
Maj-Gen Soe Win, the commander of the Northern Regional Military Command, also called last week on the KIO to hold BGF talks in Myitkyina, the capital of Kachin State.
Burmese observers of ethnic issues, however, said the fresh attempts at talks with the Wa and Kachin were superficial attempts by the commanders to gather information ahead of the four-monthly meeting.
“We have already told the junta that we will conduct a transformation of troops into our own Kachin Regional Guard Force,” said a KIO source in the headquarters of Laiza. “This is our stance.”
The source also said the KIO will abide by its previous proposal to maintain the same number of troops.
The KIO’s proposal to the junta made specific reference to the Panglong Agreement, the charter which created the Union of Burma with multi-ethnic nationalities in 1947, and which guaranteed the ethnic groups autonomy.
Although the junta will sideline the BGF issue for the time being, representatives of the cease-fire groups said they expect the regime to come after them using different tactics.
The KIO source said the junta’s secret agents have recently arrested at least two KIO members, and have conducted searches of homes of KIO members in Myitkyina.
Ethnic groups and observers have told The Irrawaddy that although the Burmese generals will be displeased that they have to sideline their BGF efforts, they will use the decision as a pretext for courting the Chinese government, which has in recent months been critical of the Burmese regime's persecution of ethnic groups.
Following the Burmese army' capture of the Kokang armed group’s territory, near the Sino-Burmese border, in August 2009, Beijing said it was seriously concerned with the stability along the Sino-Burmese border, and called for a peaceful resolution and national reconciliation in Burma's ethnic affairs.
“Since the Kokang incident, Chinese officials have repeatedly warned their Burmese counterparts not to resolve the issue with force, but peacefully,” said a Chinese scholar in Yunnan Province who spoke on condition of anonymity.
Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao is scheduled to visit Burma in the near future. He is expected to raise Beijing’s policy on Burma’s ethnic issues during his trip.
By WAI MOE - Monday, May 24, 2010
The Burmese military junta will not impose its border guard force (BGF) plan on ethnic cease-fire groups until after the general election, sources close to the War Office in Naypyidaw have told The Irrawaddy.
The move comes as Burma's top military generals gather for their four-monthly meeting in the Burmese capital this week when they are expected to discuss pre- and post-election strategies and decide who will run for parliament and who will assume higher ranks in the military hierarchy.
The sources said that Snr-Gen Than Shwe, the junta supremo who is also the commander-in-chief of the armed forces, will request an update on the ethnic situation from his commanders, including Lt-Gen Ye Myint, the junta's key negotiator and chief of Military Affairs Security, formerly known as military intelligence. However, barring any surprises, Than Shwe will instruct his men to sideline the issue until after the election.
Ahead of the junta’s meeting, Burma's commanders made several unsuccessful attempts at convincing and intimidating the ethnic crease-fire groups to join the BGF under the joint command of the Burmese army.
The talks involved several groups, including the United Wa State Army (UWSA) and the Kachin Independence Organization (KIO).
Burma's generals have set several deadlines for the ethnic groups to accede to their proposal, the latest being the end of March. In almost every case, the cease-fire groups either rejected the BGF plan outright and called for certain conditions to be met.
Maj-Gen Aung Than Htut, the commander of the Northeast Regional Military Command, on Thursday sent a letter on behalf of Ye Myint to the UWSA's Bao Youxiang, urging the Wa leader to agree to a meeting to discuss the BGF plan at his headquarters in Lashio in northern Shan State, according to sources close to the Wa.
The UWSA did not respond to the letter immediately. However, a Wa leader, Bao You-yi, said the 20,000-strong ethnic army is confident it can defend its territory and guarantee the safety of local Wa communities in the event of a conflict.
Maj-Gen Soe Win, the commander of the Northern Regional Military Command, also called last week on the KIO to hold BGF talks in Myitkyina, the capital of Kachin State.
Burmese observers of ethnic issues, however, said the fresh attempts at talks with the Wa and Kachin were superficial attempts by the commanders to gather information ahead of the four-monthly meeting.
“We have already told the junta that we will conduct a transformation of troops into our own Kachin Regional Guard Force,” said a KIO source in the headquarters of Laiza. “This is our stance.”
The source also said the KIO will abide by its previous proposal to maintain the same number of troops.
The KIO’s proposal to the junta made specific reference to the Panglong Agreement, the charter which created the Union of Burma with multi-ethnic nationalities in 1947, and which guaranteed the ethnic groups autonomy.
Although the junta will sideline the BGF issue for the time being, representatives of the cease-fire groups said they expect the regime to come after them using different tactics.
The KIO source said the junta’s secret agents have recently arrested at least two KIO members, and have conducted searches of homes of KIO members in Myitkyina.
Ethnic groups and observers have told The Irrawaddy that although the Burmese generals will be displeased that they have to sideline their BGF efforts, they will use the decision as a pretext for courting the Chinese government, which has in recent months been critical of the Burmese regime's persecution of ethnic groups.
Following the Burmese army' capture of the Kokang armed group’s territory, near the Sino-Burmese border, in August 2009, Beijing said it was seriously concerned with the stability along the Sino-Burmese border, and called for a peaceful resolution and national reconciliation in Burma's ethnic affairs.
“Since the Kokang incident, Chinese officials have repeatedly warned their Burmese counterparts not to resolve the issue with force, but peacefully,” said a Chinese scholar in Yunnan Province who spoke on condition of anonymity.
Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao is scheduled to visit Burma in the near future. He is expected to raise Beijing’s policy on Burma’s ethnic issues during his trip.
*******************************************************
The Irrawaddy - Two Rangoon Journals Temporarily Banned
By SAI ZOM HSENG - Monday, May 24, 2010
The Press Scrutiny and Registration Division has temporarily banned two Rangoon journals from publishing after they printed an “inappropriate” article with well-known actress Htet Htet Moe Oo.
The journals are The Voice Weekly and The First Music Agency. There was no information about the length of the ban.
A journalist told The Irrawaddy that the actress appealed to the censorship office, saying the writer, a journalist with 7Day News, asked inappropriate questions and wrote about the actress's private life. Htet Htet Moe Oo is known to have several husbands.
The journalist, Aye Thu San, interviewed Htet Htet Moe Oo at the Sedona Hotel on May 19. A journalist said the actress became upset with the writer's questions and struck her in the face and squeezed her neck.
7Day News journal filed a suit against Htet Htet Moe Oo in Yankin Court on May 20.
The incident and story has become the source of gossip in Rangoon.
By SAI ZOM HSENG - Monday, May 24, 2010
The Press Scrutiny and Registration Division has temporarily banned two Rangoon journals from publishing after they printed an “inappropriate” article with well-known actress Htet Htet Moe Oo.
The journals are The Voice Weekly and The First Music Agency. There was no information about the length of the ban.
A journalist told The Irrawaddy that the actress appealed to the censorship office, saying the writer, a journalist with 7Day News, asked inappropriate questions and wrote about the actress's private life. Htet Htet Moe Oo is known to have several husbands.
The journalist, Aye Thu San, interviewed Htet Htet Moe Oo at the Sedona Hotel on May 19. A journalist said the actress became upset with the writer's questions and struck her in the face and squeezed her neck.
7Day News journal filed a suit against Htet Htet Moe Oo in Yankin Court on May 20.
The incident and story has become the source of gossip in Rangoon.
*******************************************************
DVB News - Rangoon authorities quit en masse
By MAUNG TOO
Published: 24 May 2010
Lower-ranking administration officials in 10 Rangoon division wards have resigned from their posts, reportedly in frustration at their maligned reputation among Burmese citizens.
A member of the Ward Peace and Development Council (WPDC) in Thongwa township said that “all chairmen from 10 out of 12 wards in town, except Ward 2 and 9, submitted their resignations”.
“We were hated by people for being part of this organisation but in reality we don’t have power or hold any authority in our positions,” he said. He added that officials were forced to adopt “security measures whenever senior government officials or their wives come here”.
“We have to take action against suspects when bombs explode; we have to go on duty at teashops and get assigned to the nooks and crannies of temples,” he said, referring to a Burmese expression which means areas where drug users and prostitutes reside.
He added that officials were also required to regularly travel to Rangoon to beef up security.
But it was the people’s “mistrust” of the authorities that forced them to “bluntly [resign] from our positions”, he said.
Another WPDC member said that members of Village Peace and Development Councils in Thongwa were also resigning.
“There are 64 villages in Thongwa jurisdiction and officials there are also seeking resignation at the Township Peace and Development Council. But as senior authorities are not accepting this, the TPDC chairman is now in hot water.”
Government authorities in Burma are forced to operate under extreme bureaucracy, with power heavily centralised by the paranoid ruling generals in the capital, Naypyidaw.
Another WPDC member said that low-level authorities are “hated by the people” and “really don’t have any power” but instead act on the orders of the TPDC
He added however that the Thongwa TPDC chairman, Kyaw Thaung, informed them that they could not quit until the end of the upcoming elections this year, but said that they are “still seeking resignation as we don’t want to continue with this job”.
By MAUNG TOO
Published: 24 May 2010
Lower-ranking administration officials in 10 Rangoon division wards have resigned from their posts, reportedly in frustration at their maligned reputation among Burmese citizens.
A member of the Ward Peace and Development Council (WPDC) in Thongwa township said that “all chairmen from 10 out of 12 wards in town, except Ward 2 and 9, submitted their resignations”.
“We were hated by people for being part of this organisation but in reality we don’t have power or hold any authority in our positions,” he said. He added that officials were forced to adopt “security measures whenever senior government officials or their wives come here”.
“We have to take action against suspects when bombs explode; we have to go on duty at teashops and get assigned to the nooks and crannies of temples,” he said, referring to a Burmese expression which means areas where drug users and prostitutes reside.
He added that officials were also required to regularly travel to Rangoon to beef up security.
But it was the people’s “mistrust” of the authorities that forced them to “bluntly [resign] from our positions”, he said.
Another WPDC member said that members of Village Peace and Development Councils in Thongwa were also resigning.
“There are 64 villages in Thongwa jurisdiction and officials there are also seeking resignation at the Township Peace and Development Council. But as senior authorities are not accepting this, the TPDC chairman is now in hot water.”
Government authorities in Burma are forced to operate under extreme bureaucracy, with power heavily centralised by the paranoid ruling generals in the capital, Naypyidaw.
Another WPDC member said that low-level authorities are “hated by the people” and “really don’t have any power” but instead act on the orders of the TPDC
He added however that the Thongwa TPDC chairman, Kyaw Thaung, informed them that they could not quit until the end of the upcoming elections this year, but said that they are “still seeking resignation as we don’t want to continue with this job”.
*******************************************************
DVB News - Rangoon bomb suspect denied legal aid
By MAUNG TOO
Published: 24 May 2010
The engineer who was arrested on suspicion of plotting a series of bomb blasts in Rangoon in April has been denied legal representation, his lawyer said.
Kyaw Ho, the lawyer of Phyo Wei Aung, said that his client should, under domestic law, be released having been held for a month without charge.
Phyo Wei Aung is accused of being behind three separate attacks on the X20 pavilion in Rangoon on 15 April, as revellers celebrated the annual water festival. Nine people were killed and dozens injured. He was arrested by police on 23 April.
His lawyer said that he returned to court on 20 May to again request permission to represent Phyo Wei Aung, but was told that “it has not yet been approved”. It is the third time he has requested permission.
“So according to the law, if they cannot press [charges] on 23 May, then he has to be released. That’s what we have to wait for and see. Maybe that’s why they are not granting [legal representation].”
Phyo Wei Aung is accused by the government of being a member of the Vigorous Burmese Student Warriors, stormed the Burmese embassy in Bangkok in 1999 and took 38 hostages.
Police said that three grenades had been thrown into the crowds during the water festival. Another device, made with a beer can filled with explosive powder and attached by detonation wire to a mobile telephone, failed to explode.
A Rangoon-based graphic designer and his son were arrested after taking photos of the aftermath of the bombing, and are still being held.
Yee Yee Tint, the mother Sithu Zeya, said that her son had been tortured and denied food during his detention. He and his father have been charged under the Unlawful Associations Act.
By MAUNG TOO
Published: 24 May 2010
The engineer who was arrested on suspicion of plotting a series of bomb blasts in Rangoon in April has been denied legal representation, his lawyer said.
Kyaw Ho, the lawyer of Phyo Wei Aung, said that his client should, under domestic law, be released having been held for a month without charge.
Phyo Wei Aung is accused of being behind three separate attacks on the X20 pavilion in Rangoon on 15 April, as revellers celebrated the annual water festival. Nine people were killed and dozens injured. He was arrested by police on 23 April.
His lawyer said that he returned to court on 20 May to again request permission to represent Phyo Wei Aung, but was told that “it has not yet been approved”. It is the third time he has requested permission.
“So according to the law, if they cannot press [charges] on 23 May, then he has to be released. That’s what we have to wait for and see. Maybe that’s why they are not granting [legal representation].”
Phyo Wei Aung is accused by the government of being a member of the Vigorous Burmese Student Warriors, stormed the Burmese embassy in Bangkok in 1999 and took 38 hostages.
Police said that three grenades had been thrown into the crowds during the water festival. Another device, made with a beer can filled with explosive powder and attached by detonation wire to a mobile telephone, failed to explode.
A Rangoon-based graphic designer and his son were arrested after taking photos of the aftermath of the bombing, and are still being held.
Yee Yee Tint, the mother Sithu Zeya, said that her son had been tortured and denied food during his detention. He and his father have been charged under the Unlawful Associations Act.
*******************************************************
DVB News - What can gas transparency do for Burma?
By MATTHEW SMITH and NAING HTOO
Published: 24 May 2010
International pressure continues to mount on the oil companies Total, Chevron, and PTTEP of Thailand to practice complete revenue transparency in connection to the controversial Yadana natural gas pipeline in Burma’s Tenasserim Division. Non-governmental organizations, scholars, labour unions, investment firms, and even world leaders have urged the companies to publish over 18 years of payments to the Burmese military regime, including taxes, fees, royalties, bonuses, and social benefits since the project’s first contracts were signed in 1992.
This raises the question: What will this type of transparency actually do, and not do, for Burma?
Despite its virtues, revenue transparency has limitations. Regardless of any new policies of transparency in Burma’s gas sector, billion-dollar gas revenues will continue to line the pockets of the country’s elite for the foreseeable future, especially as new and lucrative projects come online in the absence of a real democratic transition. The management of billion-dollar revenues from the Shwe gas and oil transport pipelines to China is of particular concern, as these payments, estimated at $US29 billion over the 30 year life-span of the gas project, are set to become the largest sources of revenue for the state.
Moreover, without a novel scheme for managing and distributing gas revenues equitably, even transparent multi-billion dollar gas profits stand to increase inequality between the very few rich and the very many poor in Burma. This inequality is likely to have a disproportionate effect on the country’s ethnic nationalities. The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and Burma’s own Central Statistical Organization recently found that more than 30 percent of the entire population had insufficient income to provide for basic survival, a figure that increased to more than 50 percent in non-Burman states and regions, where most of the country’s lucrative natural resources are located and have been mined for decades.
Additionally, there is a serious risk that the continued influx of large amounts of oil and gas revenues, transparent or not, will have adverse impacts on Burma’s already fledgling economy. Burma is principally an agricultural society, and a continued sharp rise in the value of gas exports could exacerbate the regime’s dangerous disincentive against promoting the agricultural sector, to the detriment of huge parts of the farming population.
In the short term, revenue transparency will also do little for the protection of human rights vis-à-vis oil and gas projects. Local land confiscations as a result of gas pipelines will most likely continue, and local people will continue to be forced to work on pipeline-related infrastructure by pipeline security battalions operating on behalf of the oil companies.
Transparency will mean next to nothing to the families of two men recently killed in cold blood by Total, Chevron, and PTTEP’s “pipeline security battalion,” as documented by EarthRights International. For these crimes, the companies and the military regime need to be held accountable. Widespread forced labor, forced portering, and other human rights violations committed by pipeline security forces, directly and indirectly related to the project, will continue until the companies take full responsibility and work toward human rights protections.
However, despite its shortcomings, revenue transparency is still critically important for development and governance in Burma. For starters, it will shed a critical light on a dark corner of some exceedingly undemocratic concentrations of power in the country. This could have positive, long term political implications. Research indicates that states generating revenues from natural resources are less reliant on citizens, and this “independence” can erode the civic relationship between the government and the people, contributing to authoritarianism. Burma appears to be on the far end of this unfortunate spectrum. Revenue transparency can help push it in the other direction.
Second, the people of Burma have an intrinsic right to know what foreign companies have paid to the state for public resources. That is the underlying principle of the revenue transparency norm in the extractive sectors worldwide. Total and Chevron already purport to prioritize transparency and the promotion of human rights. In cooperating with this initiative, they have an opportunity to advance freedom of information and the peoples’ “right to know.”
Revenue transparency will also be important for the thorny process of transitional justice in Burma. Detailed data about the amounts, timing, and delivery of payments from these oil companies to the junta from 1992 to the present day could eventually improve the prospects for holding the junta accountable for the past and present mismanagement of the country’s natural resources. A free Burma will want to know how much money evaded the population, and its location. The longer the companies wait to disclose information about their payments to the state, the more troubled their engagement with future governments of Burma could be.
But beyond these imperatives, there are economic incentives for the companies to cooperate: Revenue transparency is good for business.
For one, transparency will serve Total, Chevron, and PTTEP’s ailing reputational agendas, what some analysts refer to as any oil company’s most important asset. While the companies’ bad reputations for complicity in forced labour, killings, and torture have been well-earned, and in some ways are irreparable, their transparency would demonstrate an overdue regard for freedom of information in Burma, and that would be duly noted by Burmese citizens, shareholders, non-governmental organizations, and others.
Reputational repair is something the companies have already spent considerable resources on in Burma, and to dubious effect. Revenue transparency, on the other hand, is objective and free; surely that must have some resonance in the upper corporate echelons.
Moreover, shareholders in multinational oil and mining companies increasingly understand the straightforward contributions transparency can make to areas such as corruption control, a much-needed outcome in Burma, which was ranked by Transparency International’s recent corruption perceptions index as the world’s third most corrupt country, behind Afghanistan and Somalia.
Revenue transparency also makes sense in terms of open and free markets. It would afford investors and capital providers access to previously unavailable information regarding industry in Burma, including the size and timing of payments made by these oil companies to the authorities. This is information deemed vital for decision-making in the investment community, information oil companies have traditionally withheld.
In other words, transparency is in the interests of even those whose primary concern is maximizing profit.
What is more, revenue transparency is also in the interests of the home states of oil companies around the world, improving governance and contributing to stability in resource-rich states like Burma. This is noteworthy at a time when palpable political risks stand to threaten innocent civilians in Burma, the material assets of some oil companies in the country, and the long-term energy security of their home states. Specifically, the risk of civil war between the Burmese army and non-state armed groups in areas surrounding the Shwe gas and oil pipelines to China stands to threaten not only citizens of Shan state, but also the interests of Daewoo International, the China National Petroleum Corporation, and the government of China.
Stability and energy security through revenue transparency is the rationale behind new bipartisan legislation pending in the US congress, which will require all oil, gas, and mining companies registered with the US securities and exchange commission to publish their payments for oil, gas, and minerals in the countries in which they work, including Burma. If passed, the Energy Security Through Transparency (ESTT) Act would apply to a number of oil companies operating in Burma, including Total and Chevron.
However, despite the international application of this proposed legislation, it will not apply retroactively, meaning it will not require companies to publish past payments to host governments. This makes Total, Chevron, and PTTEP’s voluntary cooperation in publishing their last 18 years of payments to the junta critically important.
The good news is that the companies are not legally restricted from publishing their payments to the junta. Their contracts with Burma’s state-owned oil and gas enterprise were obtained through the Doe v. Unocal [Chevron’s former name] human rights lawsuit in the US and were recently published on the website of EarthRights International. In no way do they prohibit complete revenue transparency.
The time is now for Total, Chevron, and PTTEP to do the right thing and practice complete revenue transparency in Burma. If they want a responsible and level playing field with their Asian competitors, they need to participate in creating it.
Matthew F. Smith is a senior consultant with EarthRights International, and Naing Htoo is a program coordinator with EarthRights International. The organization represented Burmese plaintiffs in the Doe v. Unocal Corp. lawsuit.
By MATTHEW SMITH and NAING HTOO
Published: 24 May 2010
International pressure continues to mount on the oil companies Total, Chevron, and PTTEP of Thailand to practice complete revenue transparency in connection to the controversial Yadana natural gas pipeline in Burma’s Tenasserim Division. Non-governmental organizations, scholars, labour unions, investment firms, and even world leaders have urged the companies to publish over 18 years of payments to the Burmese military regime, including taxes, fees, royalties, bonuses, and social benefits since the project’s first contracts were signed in 1992.
This raises the question: What will this type of transparency actually do, and not do, for Burma?
Despite its virtues, revenue transparency has limitations. Regardless of any new policies of transparency in Burma’s gas sector, billion-dollar gas revenues will continue to line the pockets of the country’s elite for the foreseeable future, especially as new and lucrative projects come online in the absence of a real democratic transition. The management of billion-dollar revenues from the Shwe gas and oil transport pipelines to China is of particular concern, as these payments, estimated at $US29 billion over the 30 year life-span of the gas project, are set to become the largest sources of revenue for the state.
Moreover, without a novel scheme for managing and distributing gas revenues equitably, even transparent multi-billion dollar gas profits stand to increase inequality between the very few rich and the very many poor in Burma. This inequality is likely to have a disproportionate effect on the country’s ethnic nationalities. The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and Burma’s own Central Statistical Organization recently found that more than 30 percent of the entire population had insufficient income to provide for basic survival, a figure that increased to more than 50 percent in non-Burman states and regions, where most of the country’s lucrative natural resources are located and have been mined for decades.
Additionally, there is a serious risk that the continued influx of large amounts of oil and gas revenues, transparent or not, will have adverse impacts on Burma’s already fledgling economy. Burma is principally an agricultural society, and a continued sharp rise in the value of gas exports could exacerbate the regime’s dangerous disincentive against promoting the agricultural sector, to the detriment of huge parts of the farming population.
In the short term, revenue transparency will also do little for the protection of human rights vis-à-vis oil and gas projects. Local land confiscations as a result of gas pipelines will most likely continue, and local people will continue to be forced to work on pipeline-related infrastructure by pipeline security battalions operating on behalf of the oil companies.
Transparency will mean next to nothing to the families of two men recently killed in cold blood by Total, Chevron, and PTTEP’s “pipeline security battalion,” as documented by EarthRights International. For these crimes, the companies and the military regime need to be held accountable. Widespread forced labor, forced portering, and other human rights violations committed by pipeline security forces, directly and indirectly related to the project, will continue until the companies take full responsibility and work toward human rights protections.
However, despite its shortcomings, revenue transparency is still critically important for development and governance in Burma. For starters, it will shed a critical light on a dark corner of some exceedingly undemocratic concentrations of power in the country. This could have positive, long term political implications. Research indicates that states generating revenues from natural resources are less reliant on citizens, and this “independence” can erode the civic relationship between the government and the people, contributing to authoritarianism. Burma appears to be on the far end of this unfortunate spectrum. Revenue transparency can help push it in the other direction.
Second, the people of Burma have an intrinsic right to know what foreign companies have paid to the state for public resources. That is the underlying principle of the revenue transparency norm in the extractive sectors worldwide. Total and Chevron already purport to prioritize transparency and the promotion of human rights. In cooperating with this initiative, they have an opportunity to advance freedom of information and the peoples’ “right to know.”
Revenue transparency will also be important for the thorny process of transitional justice in Burma. Detailed data about the amounts, timing, and delivery of payments from these oil companies to the junta from 1992 to the present day could eventually improve the prospects for holding the junta accountable for the past and present mismanagement of the country’s natural resources. A free Burma will want to know how much money evaded the population, and its location. The longer the companies wait to disclose information about their payments to the state, the more troubled their engagement with future governments of Burma could be.
But beyond these imperatives, there are economic incentives for the companies to cooperate: Revenue transparency is good for business.
For one, transparency will serve Total, Chevron, and PTTEP’s ailing reputational agendas, what some analysts refer to as any oil company’s most important asset. While the companies’ bad reputations for complicity in forced labour, killings, and torture have been well-earned, and in some ways are irreparable, their transparency would demonstrate an overdue regard for freedom of information in Burma, and that would be duly noted by Burmese citizens, shareholders, non-governmental organizations, and others.
Reputational repair is something the companies have already spent considerable resources on in Burma, and to dubious effect. Revenue transparency, on the other hand, is objective and free; surely that must have some resonance in the upper corporate echelons.
Moreover, shareholders in multinational oil and mining companies increasingly understand the straightforward contributions transparency can make to areas such as corruption control, a much-needed outcome in Burma, which was ranked by Transparency International’s recent corruption perceptions index as the world’s third most corrupt country, behind Afghanistan and Somalia.
Revenue transparency also makes sense in terms of open and free markets. It would afford investors and capital providers access to previously unavailable information regarding industry in Burma, including the size and timing of payments made by these oil companies to the authorities. This is information deemed vital for decision-making in the investment community, information oil companies have traditionally withheld.
In other words, transparency is in the interests of even those whose primary concern is maximizing profit.
What is more, revenue transparency is also in the interests of the home states of oil companies around the world, improving governance and contributing to stability in resource-rich states like Burma. This is noteworthy at a time when palpable political risks stand to threaten innocent civilians in Burma, the material assets of some oil companies in the country, and the long-term energy security of their home states. Specifically, the risk of civil war between the Burmese army and non-state armed groups in areas surrounding the Shwe gas and oil pipelines to China stands to threaten not only citizens of Shan state, but also the interests of Daewoo International, the China National Petroleum Corporation, and the government of China.
Stability and energy security through revenue transparency is the rationale behind new bipartisan legislation pending in the US congress, which will require all oil, gas, and mining companies registered with the US securities and exchange commission to publish their payments for oil, gas, and minerals in the countries in which they work, including Burma. If passed, the Energy Security Through Transparency (ESTT) Act would apply to a number of oil companies operating in Burma, including Total and Chevron.
However, despite the international application of this proposed legislation, it will not apply retroactively, meaning it will not require companies to publish past payments to host governments. This makes Total, Chevron, and PTTEP’s voluntary cooperation in publishing their last 18 years of payments to the junta critically important.
The good news is that the companies are not legally restricted from publishing their payments to the junta. Their contracts with Burma’s state-owned oil and gas enterprise were obtained through the Doe v. Unocal [Chevron’s former name] human rights lawsuit in the US and were recently published on the website of EarthRights International. In no way do they prohibit complete revenue transparency.
The time is now for Total, Chevron, and PTTEP to do the right thing and practice complete revenue transparency in Burma. If they want a responsible and level playing field with their Asian competitors, they need to participate in creating it.
Matthew F. Smith is a senior consultant with EarthRights International, and Naing Htoo is a program coordinator with EarthRights International. The organization represented Burmese plaintiffs in the Doe v. Unocal Corp. lawsuit.
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