Floods in Myanmar kill at least 25
Wed Jun 16, 6:50 am ET
YANGON (Reuters) – Heavy rain in Myanmar has triggered floods and landslides, washing away bridges, blocking roads and killing at least 25 people, local officials and an aid worker said on Wednesday.
Myanmar is no stranger to harsh weather and at least 140,000 people were killed in 2008 when a cyclone hit the south of the country.
Large areas of two districts in Rakhine State in the west of the country had been inundated after torrential rain this week, an official who declined to be identified said by telephone from the region. One road had been blocked by a landslide, he added.
A worker for an international non-governmental organization, who also declined to be identified, said at least 25 people had died.
"We are still carrying out a survey and assessment of the damage and casualties and I think the death toll will keep rising," he said, adding that the government and NGOs based in the region were doing relief work.
State media has made no mention of the floods, but the Meteorological Department said 34 cm (13.5 inches) of rain fell in the town of Maungdaw, on the border with Bangladesh, in one day this week.
Flooding had also hit the towns of Mrauk Oo and Kyauk Taw, about 550 km (350 miles) northwest of the city of Yangon, washing away three bridges, although no casualties had been reported there, another official in the region said.
Deforestation had contributed to the problem, with rain pouring off bare slopes and eroding soil, which blocked waterways, he said.
"The forests are gone and the creeks are choked. So flash floods are common in the rainy season," the second official said.
Wed Jun 16, 6:50 am ET
YANGON (Reuters) – Heavy rain in Myanmar has triggered floods and landslides, washing away bridges, blocking roads and killing at least 25 people, local officials and an aid worker said on Wednesday.
Myanmar is no stranger to harsh weather and at least 140,000 people were killed in 2008 when a cyclone hit the south of the country.
Large areas of two districts in Rakhine State in the west of the country had been inundated after torrential rain this week, an official who declined to be identified said by telephone from the region. One road had been blocked by a landslide, he added.
A worker for an international non-governmental organization, who also declined to be identified, said at least 25 people had died.
"We are still carrying out a survey and assessment of the damage and casualties and I think the death toll will keep rising," he said, adding that the government and NGOs based in the region were doing relief work.
State media has made no mention of the floods, but the Meteorological Department said 34 cm (13.5 inches) of rain fell in the town of Maungdaw, on the border with Bangladesh, in one day this week.
Flooding had also hit the towns of Mrauk Oo and Kyauk Taw, about 550 km (350 miles) northwest of the city of Yangon, washing away three bridges, although no casualties had been reported there, another official in the region said.
Deforestation had contributed to the problem, with rain pouring off bare slopes and eroding soil, which blocked waterways, he said.
"The forests are gone and the creeks are choked. So flash floods are common in the rainy season," the second official said.
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UN development chief: Myanmar, Thailand challenges
AFP - Wednesday, June 16
HANOI (AFP) - – Myanmar faces a tough task to eradicate extreme poverty and meet other global development goals, while political instability is holding back Thailand's progress, the UN development chief says.
In an interview with AFP, Helen Clark also said Vietnam had "a pretty good story to tell" about its efforts to achieve the so-called Millennium Development Goals, but faces a major challenge from climate change and rising sea levels.
Clark said military-ruled Myanmar, with "huge poverty", will find it difficult to meet any of the eight development goals by the 2015 global target.
"It would be tough," Clark, administrator of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), said Tuesday on the sidelines of a conference.
The former New Zealand prime minister said Myanmar has the lowest foreign aid per capita of any developing country, and "political factors" restrict what the UNDP can do in Myanmar, "so it's not so easy to make progress there at this time."
Myanmar, which has detained democracy icon Aung San Suu Kyi for most of the past two decades, is under European Union and United States sanctions.
Neighbouring Thailand has made reasonable progress in tackling poverty, Clark said, but further development is being hindered by political tensions.
Outbreaks of violence in Bangkok during two months of anti-government protests from March until May killed 90 people, wounded nearly 1,900, and left the country deeply divided.
"Clearly, instability holds back a country's development progress, and you end up punching below your weight when you could be punching to, or above, your weight," she said.
The unrest followed more than three years of political instability after the army seized power from then-prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra in a 2006 bloodless coup.
"Things haven't been stable since and I think what's really needed is a national dialogue on how to move to elections which are seen as free and fair and people will accept the result," said Clark, who assumed her post in April last year.
UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has called a September summit in New York to accelerate efforts toward reaching the 2015 development goals deadline.
Clark said Vietnam will be able to report good progress towards the goals of eradicating extreme poverty and hunger, achieving universal primary education, and reducing child and maternal mortality.
The country has work to do to combat HIV/AIDS and add to the existing progress on access to water and basic sanitation, she said, while the environmental cost of old-style industrialisation also needs to be addressed.
But fast-growing Vietnam, which this year is set to attain "middle-income" status, faces a "huge challenge" from climate change, Clark said.
"And I believe that the government is acutely aware of this, aware now that Vietnam is one of the most exposed countries in the world to rising sea levels, intensity and frequency... of adverse weather events like typhoons," she said.
Vietnam is planning for a one-metre (3.3 feet) rise in sea levels by 2100, which would inundate about 31,000 square kilometres (12,400 square miles) of land -- an area about the size of Belgium -- unless dykes and drainage systems are strengthened, a UN discussion paper said in December.
It said the inundation threat is greatest in the Mekong Delta, the country's main rice production area. Vietnam is the world's second-biggest rice exporter.
If that land becomes unusable there are "serious implications" for the region, Clark said.
She spoke on the sidelines of a conference to review a pilot programme that aims to improve the coherence and effectiveness of UN assistance. Vietnam and Pakistan are among eight countries worldwide participating in the pilot which, the UN says, has hastened achievement of the Millennium Development Goals.
AFP - Wednesday, June 16
HANOI (AFP) - – Myanmar faces a tough task to eradicate extreme poverty and meet other global development goals, while political instability is holding back Thailand's progress, the UN development chief says.
In an interview with AFP, Helen Clark also said Vietnam had "a pretty good story to tell" about its efforts to achieve the so-called Millennium Development Goals, but faces a major challenge from climate change and rising sea levels.
Clark said military-ruled Myanmar, with "huge poverty", will find it difficult to meet any of the eight development goals by the 2015 global target.
"It would be tough," Clark, administrator of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), said Tuesday on the sidelines of a conference.
The former New Zealand prime minister said Myanmar has the lowest foreign aid per capita of any developing country, and "political factors" restrict what the UNDP can do in Myanmar, "so it's not so easy to make progress there at this time."
Myanmar, which has detained democracy icon Aung San Suu Kyi for most of the past two decades, is under European Union and United States sanctions.
Neighbouring Thailand has made reasonable progress in tackling poverty, Clark said, but further development is being hindered by political tensions.
Outbreaks of violence in Bangkok during two months of anti-government protests from March until May killed 90 people, wounded nearly 1,900, and left the country deeply divided.
"Clearly, instability holds back a country's development progress, and you end up punching below your weight when you could be punching to, or above, your weight," she said.
The unrest followed more than three years of political instability after the army seized power from then-prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra in a 2006 bloodless coup.
"Things haven't been stable since and I think what's really needed is a national dialogue on how to move to elections which are seen as free and fair and people will accept the result," said Clark, who assumed her post in April last year.
UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has called a September summit in New York to accelerate efforts toward reaching the 2015 development goals deadline.
Clark said Vietnam will be able to report good progress towards the goals of eradicating extreme poverty and hunger, achieving universal primary education, and reducing child and maternal mortality.
The country has work to do to combat HIV/AIDS and add to the existing progress on access to water and basic sanitation, she said, while the environmental cost of old-style industrialisation also needs to be addressed.
But fast-growing Vietnam, which this year is set to attain "middle-income" status, faces a "huge challenge" from climate change, Clark said.
"And I believe that the government is acutely aware of this, aware now that Vietnam is one of the most exposed countries in the world to rising sea levels, intensity and frequency... of adverse weather events like typhoons," she said.
Vietnam is planning for a one-metre (3.3 feet) rise in sea levels by 2100, which would inundate about 31,000 square kilometres (12,400 square miles) of land -- an area about the size of Belgium -- unless dykes and drainage systems are strengthened, a UN discussion paper said in December.
It said the inundation threat is greatest in the Mekong Delta, the country's main rice production area. Vietnam is the world's second-biggest rice exporter.
If that land becomes unusable there are "serious implications" for the region, Clark said.
She spoke on the sidelines of a conference to review a pilot programme that aims to improve the coherence and effectiveness of UN assistance. Vietnam and Pakistan are among eight countries worldwide participating in the pilot which, the UN says, has hastened achievement of the Millennium Development Goals.
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Amnesty says Malaysia 'dangerous' for refugees
By Beh Lih Yi
AFP – Wednesday, June 16
KUALA LUMPUR (AFP) - Amnesty International on Wednesday said Malaysia was a "dangerous" place for refugees who were often often abused, arrested and "treated like criminals".
The Southeast Asian nation has nearly 90,000 refugees and asylum-seekers but the human rights group estimates the number of unregistered refugees at more than twice the official figure.
Amnesty said the refugees, mainly from military-ruled Myanmar, came seeking refuge in Malaysia but were subjected to a litany of abuses as the government does not recognise their status.
"For those refugees and asylum-seekers who are forced to flee their homelands in search of protection, Malaysia is an unwelcoming and dangerous place," it said in a strongly-worded report ahead of World Refugee Day on June 20.
"They come to Malaysia seeking safety, having fled situations of torture, persecution or death threats. But once they arrive, they are abused, exploited, arrested and locked up -- in effect, treated like criminals," the group added.
Malaysia has not ratified the United Nation's Refugee Convention and refugees -- who also come from Sri Lanka, Somalia, Iraq and Afghanistan -- are often treated as undocumented workers, Amnesty said.
The lack of legal status means refugees can be punished by imprisonment for up to five years and whipping for illegally entering the country.
Amnesty also claimed the Malaysian government had deported refugees to persecution that they had fled, but said no new incidents had been recorded since July last year.
The rights group singled out a government-backed volunteer force known as RELA, which is empowered to carry out immigration checks, for alleged abuse and extorting money from refugees and asylum-seekers.
Malaysia in February said it would consider issuing identification cards to UN-recognised refugees and a proposal to allow them to work while awaiting resettlement abroad.
Mahmood Adam, the secretary-general of the Home Ministry which is tasked to implement the proposal, told AFP the government had yet to decide on the matter and it would be discussed next week.
Nazri Aziz, a senior cabinet minister in charge of law, conceded the abuses claimed by Amnesty took place but denied the government was mistreating refugees.
"It's not the fault of the government at all, they may be exploited by the people who employ them knowing that they have no legal status here," the minister in the prime minister's department told AFP in an interview.
"They take advantage of the refugees -- employ them and pay them the lowest salary, I don't think I want to deny that," Nazri said.
The minister said the government could not recognise the refugees as it was a "sensitive" matter but said they were allowed to stay in the country.
"We don't push them out into the seas... they are refugees, they came here and if they have equal rights, certainly the locals are not happy," said Nazri.
Amnesty urged Malaysia to immediately issue ID cards to the refugees and grant them the right to work. It also urged other countries to increase their resettlement of refugees currently in Malaysia.
"Refugees should be able to live with dignity while they are in Malaysia," Chris Nash, Amnesty International head of refugee and migrant rights, said in the report.
By Beh Lih Yi
AFP – Wednesday, June 16
KUALA LUMPUR (AFP) - Amnesty International on Wednesday said Malaysia was a "dangerous" place for refugees who were often often abused, arrested and "treated like criminals".
The Southeast Asian nation has nearly 90,000 refugees and asylum-seekers but the human rights group estimates the number of unregistered refugees at more than twice the official figure.
Amnesty said the refugees, mainly from military-ruled Myanmar, came seeking refuge in Malaysia but were subjected to a litany of abuses as the government does not recognise their status.
"For those refugees and asylum-seekers who are forced to flee their homelands in search of protection, Malaysia is an unwelcoming and dangerous place," it said in a strongly-worded report ahead of World Refugee Day on June 20.
"They come to Malaysia seeking safety, having fled situations of torture, persecution or death threats. But once they arrive, they are abused, exploited, arrested and locked up -- in effect, treated like criminals," the group added.
Malaysia has not ratified the United Nation's Refugee Convention and refugees -- who also come from Sri Lanka, Somalia, Iraq and Afghanistan -- are often treated as undocumented workers, Amnesty said.
The lack of legal status means refugees can be punished by imprisonment for up to five years and whipping for illegally entering the country.
Amnesty also claimed the Malaysian government had deported refugees to persecution that they had fled, but said no new incidents had been recorded since July last year.
The rights group singled out a government-backed volunteer force known as RELA, which is empowered to carry out immigration checks, for alleged abuse and extorting money from refugees and asylum-seekers.
Malaysia in February said it would consider issuing identification cards to UN-recognised refugees and a proposal to allow them to work while awaiting resettlement abroad.
Mahmood Adam, the secretary-general of the Home Ministry which is tasked to implement the proposal, told AFP the government had yet to decide on the matter and it would be discussed next week.
Nazri Aziz, a senior cabinet minister in charge of law, conceded the abuses claimed by Amnesty took place but denied the government was mistreating refugees.
"It's not the fault of the government at all, they may be exploited by the people who employ them knowing that they have no legal status here," the minister in the prime minister's department told AFP in an interview.
"They take advantage of the refugees -- employ them and pay them the lowest salary, I don't think I want to deny that," Nazri said.
The minister said the government could not recognise the refugees as it was a "sensitive" matter but said they were allowed to stay in the country.
"We don't push them out into the seas... they are refugees, they came here and if they have equal rights, certainly the locals are not happy," said Nazri.
Amnesty urged Malaysia to immediately issue ID cards to the refugees and grant them the right to work. It also urged other countries to increase their resettlement of refugees currently in Malaysia.
"Refugees should be able to live with dignity while they are in Malaysia," Chris Nash, Amnesty International head of refugee and migrant rights, said in the report.
*****************************************************
Jun 16, 2010
Straits Times - 4 killed in Myanmar crash
YANGON (Myanmar) - FOUR people were killed and another was seriously injured when a military helicopter crashed in central Myanmar during bad weather on Wednesday, officials said.
The Mi-1 helicopter came down in jungle near the town of Pindaya in the west of Shan State, a Myanmar official said, declining to be named.
'Four people on board were killed and one was sent to a nearby hospital,' he added. Another military official said bad weather was to blame for the crash, without giving further detail such as the victims' identities.
Myanmar's secretive junta rarely reveals information about the operations of its military, though state media reported an accident involving a Chinese-made fighter jet with the death of the pilot in Mandalay in December 2007.
Straits Times - 4 killed in Myanmar crash
YANGON (Myanmar) - FOUR people were killed and another was seriously injured when a military helicopter crashed in central Myanmar during bad weather on Wednesday, officials said.
The Mi-1 helicopter came down in jungle near the town of Pindaya in the west of Shan State, a Myanmar official said, declining to be named.
'Four people on board were killed and one was sent to a nearby hospital,' he added. Another military official said bad weather was to blame for the crash, without giving further detail such as the victims' identities.
Myanmar's secretive junta rarely reveals information about the operations of its military, though state media reported an accident involving a Chinese-made fighter jet with the death of the pilot in Mandalay in December 2007.
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Sify News - 40 missing in Myanmar floods
2010-06-16 17:30:00
Flash floods in Myanmar have left about 40 people missing in an area near the border with Bangladesh, an official in the military-ruled country said Wednesday.
"The water level rose because of torrential rain," the official, who did not want to be named, told AFP.
"About 40 people were missing and about 2,000 people were relocated to nearby schools because of the flood in Maungdaw town in Rakhine State," he said.
Across the border in southeastern Bangladesh, at least 55 people have been killed after heavy rain triggered flash floods and landslides, according to police there.
Landslides caused by heavy rains are common in Bangladesh's southeastern hill districts where thousands of poor people live on deforested hill slopes.
2010-06-16 17:30:00
Flash floods in Myanmar have left about 40 people missing in an area near the border with Bangladesh, an official in the military-ruled country said Wednesday.
"The water level rose because of torrential rain," the official, who did not want to be named, told AFP.
"About 40 people were missing and about 2,000 people were relocated to nearby schools because of the flood in Maungdaw town in Rakhine State," he said.
Across the border in southeastern Bangladesh, at least 55 people have been killed after heavy rain triggered flash floods and landslides, according to police there.
Landslides caused by heavy rains are common in Bangladesh's southeastern hill districts where thousands of poor people live on deforested hill slopes.
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Strategy Page - Myanmar:The Nuclear Mystery
June 16, 2010: Over the last two decades, as natural gas deposits were developed along the west coast (Arakan and Chin states), the number of soldiers in those areas has increased enormously (from two to 48 battalions) and more and more land has been seized from tribal owners, for the troops, and the economic infrastructure for the natural gas operations. These changes are usually carried out by corrupt officials, and the tribesmen get screwed. So a low level war continues in these two states, continually stoked by new government misbehavior.
The air force is expanding its fleet of Chinese K-8 trainers to fifty aircraft (the first were ordered in the late 1990s). This is more than are needed for training, but that is because the K-8 turned out to be a good reconnaissance and light bomber aircraft, for hunting down tribal rebels. The K-8 pilot can spot a new camp in mountain forests, and drop a few bombs on it.
Earlier in the month, U.S. and UN intelligence officials announced that they believed Myanmar was importing North Korean nuclear weapons technology. This made little sense, but the intelligence seemed to indicate that something nuclear was going on. The government took a little while, and then officially denied the allegations. Myanmar gets most of its weapons from China, with whole it shares a land border. But North Korea will trade whatever it has (ballistic missiles, nuclear weapons tech, infantry weapons and such) to whoever can pay. Since the military establishment that runs Myanmar is trying to legitimize itself with new elections (where men who recently "retired" from the military are running as civilians), why stir things up with a troublesome (diplomatically) effort to develop nukes? One possibility is that Myanmar is partnering with North
Korea to help market and distribute North Korean nuclear weapons technology.
The low level war with tribal rebels, and those opposed to the military dictatorship, continues. It's mostly a low key battle that is purposely kept out of the Myanmar media, and is very difficult for foreign journalists to cover. Every month or so, the Myanmar media will report that a terrorist bomb has been found and disabled. News of major explosions (that cause a lot deaths) gets out, but many smaller attacks go unreported. So do air force bombings of rebel camps (or villages suspected of being bases). Army patrols, and abuse of tribal peoples, rarely makes the news. Occasionally, tribal refugees fleeting to Thailand will report new atrocities. But there's nothing new about the bad behavior of the troops (rape, robbery and general destruction) in the tribal areas. It's been going on for decades.
June 5, 2010: China began construction of two pipelines (each about 750 kilometers long) to carry natural gas and petroleum from Myanmar to China. This solidifies relations with China, and gives both nations an incentive to keep the tribal violence down along the border. For the first time in 16 years, the Chinese head of state visited Myanmar, to discuss the new, closer, relations between the two nations.
June 16, 2010: Over the last two decades, as natural gas deposits were developed along the west coast (Arakan and Chin states), the number of soldiers in those areas has increased enormously (from two to 48 battalions) and more and more land has been seized from tribal owners, for the troops, and the economic infrastructure for the natural gas operations. These changes are usually carried out by corrupt officials, and the tribesmen get screwed. So a low level war continues in these two states, continually stoked by new government misbehavior.
The air force is expanding its fleet of Chinese K-8 trainers to fifty aircraft (the first were ordered in the late 1990s). This is more than are needed for training, but that is because the K-8 turned out to be a good reconnaissance and light bomber aircraft, for hunting down tribal rebels. The K-8 pilot can spot a new camp in mountain forests, and drop a few bombs on it.
Earlier in the month, U.S. and UN intelligence officials announced that they believed Myanmar was importing North Korean nuclear weapons technology. This made little sense, but the intelligence seemed to indicate that something nuclear was going on. The government took a little while, and then officially denied the allegations. Myanmar gets most of its weapons from China, with whole it shares a land border. But North Korea will trade whatever it has (ballistic missiles, nuclear weapons tech, infantry weapons and such) to whoever can pay. Since the military establishment that runs Myanmar is trying to legitimize itself with new elections (where men who recently "retired" from the military are running as civilians), why stir things up with a troublesome (diplomatically) effort to develop nukes? One possibility is that Myanmar is partnering with North
Korea to help market and distribute North Korean nuclear weapons technology.
The low level war with tribal rebels, and those opposed to the military dictatorship, continues. It's mostly a low key battle that is purposely kept out of the Myanmar media, and is very difficult for foreign journalists to cover. Every month or so, the Myanmar media will report that a terrorist bomb has been found and disabled. News of major explosions (that cause a lot deaths) gets out, but many smaller attacks go unreported. So do air force bombings of rebel camps (or villages suspected of being bases). Army patrols, and abuse of tribal peoples, rarely makes the news. Occasionally, tribal refugees fleeting to Thailand will report new atrocities. But there's nothing new about the bad behavior of the troops (rape, robbery and general destruction) in the tribal areas. It's been going on for decades.
June 5, 2010: China began construction of two pipelines (each about 750 kilometers long) to carry natural gas and petroleum from Myanmar to China. This solidifies relations with China, and gives both nations an incentive to keep the tribal violence down along the border. For the first time in 16 years, the Chinese head of state visited Myanmar, to discuss the new, closer, relations between the two nations.
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The Dominion Post - Myanmar top brass at security seminar
Military regime 'rewarded' by visit
By TOM HUNT
Last updated 12:13 16/06/2010
A navy captain from Myanmar's repressive military regime has attended an Auckland security conference.
The visit has surprised two Opposition politicians who follow events in Myanmar. They say they knew nothing of the visit until it was revealed in papers from Foreign Affairs Minister Murray McCully, issued to The Dominion Post under the Official Information Act.
However, Mr McCully said the conference was widely known about.
The papers show the "risk to New Zealand's international reputation" was highlighted, though other details were blacked out.
The conference focused on "enhancing regional capabilities and cooperation".
Green Party Foreign Affairs spokesman Keith Locke said the Government, which had the weakest sanctions against Myanmar in the Western world, was effectively rewarding the regime, which has been accused of crimes against humanity.
Myanmar, formerly Burma, is ruled by a military regime under which opponents are persecuted.
The country's democratically elected leader, Aung Sung Suu Kyi, has been under house arrest for most of the past 20 years.
Labour MP Maryan Street said she was "astonished" at how high ranking the Myanmar visitor was.
This month Parliament voted unanimously to "call upon the military rulers of Burma to reinstate the political and democratic rights of Aung San Suu Kyi and allow her to contest the forthcoming general election".
Mr McCully's office confirmed that Captain Nay Win, from the Myanmar Navy, attended the March ASEAN Regional Forum Intersessional Meeting on maritime security from March 29 to 31.
Myanmar Foreign Affairs MInistry ASEAN Affairs Department director Wai Lwin Than and Transport Department director-general Winn Pe were to attend but dropped out for unexplained reasons.
Naing Ko Ko, a former political prisoner who escaped from Myanmar, said the New Zealand Government should have blocked Myanmar's inclusion.
Allowing Myanmar's participation showed support for the regime's extensive human rights violations, he said.
"The New Zealand Government should not be collaborating with a dictatorship which the United Nations Rapporteur has recommended should be charged with war crimes and crimes against humanity."
Significant parts of the OIA information were withheld by Mr McCully, who said its release would prejudice the security, defence or international relations of New Zealand, as well as another country sharing confidential information with New Zealand.
"As a member of the [ASEAN Regional Forum], Burma has a right to attend such meetings, and New Zealand, as hosts, has no right to pick and choose which members we invite to what was an important ASEAN meeting," a spokesman for Mr McCully said.
"We therefore decided to put New Zealand's significant regional interests ahead of our ongoing concerns over human rights issues in Burma."
There were no particular immigration concerns with allowing Captain Win to enter New Zealand.
Ruth Corlett, director of Partners Relief and Development New Zealand, a group fighting for human rights in Myanmar, said New Zealand's lack of sanctions against the regime "makes us complicit in their blatant disregard of global human rights standards".
"The United States, the United Kingdom, Canada, and the European Union all have wide-ranging sanctions against the regime whilst New Zealand sits idly by," she said.
In March, The Dominion Post revealed three Myanmar Government officials were being funded by Kiwi taxpayers to study English in New Zealand.
Military regime 'rewarded' by visit
By TOM HUNT
Last updated 12:13 16/06/2010
A navy captain from Myanmar's repressive military regime has attended an Auckland security conference.
The visit has surprised two Opposition politicians who follow events in Myanmar. They say they knew nothing of the visit until it was revealed in papers from Foreign Affairs Minister Murray McCully, issued to The Dominion Post under the Official Information Act.
However, Mr McCully said the conference was widely known about.
The papers show the "risk to New Zealand's international reputation" was highlighted, though other details were blacked out.
The conference focused on "enhancing regional capabilities and cooperation".
Green Party Foreign Affairs spokesman Keith Locke said the Government, which had the weakest sanctions against Myanmar in the Western world, was effectively rewarding the regime, which has been accused of crimes against humanity.
Myanmar, formerly Burma, is ruled by a military regime under which opponents are persecuted.
The country's democratically elected leader, Aung Sung Suu Kyi, has been under house arrest for most of the past 20 years.
Labour MP Maryan Street said she was "astonished" at how high ranking the Myanmar visitor was.
This month Parliament voted unanimously to "call upon the military rulers of Burma to reinstate the political and democratic rights of Aung San Suu Kyi and allow her to contest the forthcoming general election".
Mr McCully's office confirmed that Captain Nay Win, from the Myanmar Navy, attended the March ASEAN Regional Forum Intersessional Meeting on maritime security from March 29 to 31.
Myanmar Foreign Affairs MInistry ASEAN Affairs Department director Wai Lwin Than and Transport Department director-general Winn Pe were to attend but dropped out for unexplained reasons.
Naing Ko Ko, a former political prisoner who escaped from Myanmar, said the New Zealand Government should have blocked Myanmar's inclusion.
Allowing Myanmar's participation showed support for the regime's extensive human rights violations, he said.
"The New Zealand Government should not be collaborating with a dictatorship which the United Nations Rapporteur has recommended should be charged with war crimes and crimes against humanity."
Significant parts of the OIA information were withheld by Mr McCully, who said its release would prejudice the security, defence or international relations of New Zealand, as well as another country sharing confidential information with New Zealand.
"As a member of the [ASEAN Regional Forum], Burma has a right to attend such meetings, and New Zealand, as hosts, has no right to pick and choose which members we invite to what was an important ASEAN meeting," a spokesman for Mr McCully said.
"We therefore decided to put New Zealand's significant regional interests ahead of our ongoing concerns over human rights issues in Burma."
There were no particular immigration concerns with allowing Captain Win to enter New Zealand.
Ruth Corlett, director of Partners Relief and Development New Zealand, a group fighting for human rights in Myanmar, said New Zealand's lack of sanctions against the regime "makes us complicit in their blatant disregard of global human rights standards".
"The United States, the United Kingdom, Canada, and the European Union all have wide-ranging sanctions against the regime whilst New Zealand sits idly by," she said.
In March, The Dominion Post revealed three Myanmar Government officials were being funded by Kiwi taxpayers to study English in New Zealand.
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Nagaland Post - Indo - Myanmar bi-annual liaison meet held
DIMAPUR, JUN 15 (NPN): Article published on 6/16/2010 12:54:08 AM IST
The 40th Indo-Myanmar Bi-Annual Liaison meeting was held on June 9 at HQ IG AR (South) Assam Rifles at Mantripukhri.
According to an official statement, a fifteen member delegation from Government of Myanmar led by Brig Gen San Tun, Dy Cdr, NC arrived at Moreh on June 8 and the Indian Army delegation comprising of fifteen members was led by Major General C A Krishnan, IGAR (South). It may be mentioned that the Indo Myanmar Bi-Annual Liaison meet is a landmark event where representatives of both the Armies interact and exchange views on matters related to securityof border areas and measures to be initiated to control insurgency in both countries. The event also gave an opportunity to all the delegates to know each other personally and helps in further strengthening the friendly bond and co-operation between both the countries.
Meanwhile, the Myanmar delegation would also visit Kolkataand Gaya before returning to Imphal.
DIMAPUR, JUN 15 (NPN): Article published on 6/16/2010 12:54:08 AM IST
The 40th Indo-Myanmar Bi-Annual Liaison meeting was held on June 9 at HQ IG AR (South) Assam Rifles at Mantripukhri.
According to an official statement, a fifteen member delegation from Government of Myanmar led by Brig Gen San Tun, Dy Cdr, NC arrived at Moreh on June 8 and the Indian Army delegation comprising of fifteen members was led by Major General C A Krishnan, IGAR (South). It may be mentioned that the Indo Myanmar Bi-Annual Liaison meet is a landmark event where representatives of both the Armies interact and exchange views on matters related to securityof border areas and measures to be initiated to control insurgency in both countries. The event also gave an opportunity to all the delegates to know each other personally and helps in further strengthening the friendly bond and co-operation between both the countries.
Meanwhile, the Myanmar delegation would also visit Kolkataand Gaya before returning to Imphal.
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PM for tri-nation body to implement road-rail link
Wed, Jun 16th, 2010 7:23 pm BdST
Dhaka, June 16 (bdnews24.com)—Prime minister Sheikh Hasina has proposed a tri-nation committee for implementation of road and rail links from Bangladesh to China via Myanmar.
Hasina told parliament Wednesday that the Chinese leadership responded positively for setting up the road and rail connections from Cox's Bazar to China's Kunming through Myanmar.
The prime minister's written answer to the question made by Jaamat MP Lutfor Rahman was distributed among the MPs as she did not read out the same.
"During my China visit in March this year, I have had talks with Chinese president and premier in this regard," Hasina told parliament.
"I've made a proposal to the Chinese leaders about forming a tri-nation committee for implementation of the proposed Bangladesh-China road and rail links. This will help Bangladesh, China and Myanmar to work in a coordinated way," she said.
Prime minister Hasina on June 14 again discussed the issue of constructing the communication links from Ramu to Kunming during the visit of Chinese vice president Xi Jingping.
Xi responded positively for building the communication links, diplomatic sources say.
Bangladesh and Myanmar have been in consultation for constructing a 135 km-long cross boundary road starting from Ramu of Cox's Bazar to Kyanktow in Myanmar.
The two neighbours are also discussing construction of rail links between them.
The prime minister said China's Kunming had road communication link up to Kyanktow in Myanamr.
The two countries will have to construct a 135 km road link—one from Kyanktow to Bowlibazar (110 km), one from Bowlibazar to Taungbro (23 km) and the other from Ghundum to Ramu (2 km).
In the first phase, Bangladesh will provide funding for constructing a 2 km-road from Ramu to Ghundum (Bangladesh-Myanmar bordering point) and 23 km Taungbro- Bowlibazar road inside Myanmar.
In the second phase, Bowlibazar-Kyangtow road will be constructed by Myanmar.
Bangladesh and Mynamr in 2007 signed a memorandum of understanding for building the Bowlibazar to Taungbro highway.
"I will discuss the issue with the Myanmar authorities again in near future," said Hasina who would visit the country sometime this year.
"The communication links will not only connect Bangladesh with China and Myanmar, but also with the ASEAN countries", she said.
Wed, Jun 16th, 2010 7:23 pm BdST
Dhaka, June 16 (bdnews24.com)—Prime minister Sheikh Hasina has proposed a tri-nation committee for implementation of road and rail links from Bangladesh to China via Myanmar.
Hasina told parliament Wednesday that the Chinese leadership responded positively for setting up the road and rail connections from Cox's Bazar to China's Kunming through Myanmar.
The prime minister's written answer to the question made by Jaamat MP Lutfor Rahman was distributed among the MPs as she did not read out the same.
"During my China visit in March this year, I have had talks with Chinese president and premier in this regard," Hasina told parliament.
"I've made a proposal to the Chinese leaders about forming a tri-nation committee for implementation of the proposed Bangladesh-China road and rail links. This will help Bangladesh, China and Myanmar to work in a coordinated way," she said.
Prime minister Hasina on June 14 again discussed the issue of constructing the communication links from Ramu to Kunming during the visit of Chinese vice president Xi Jingping.
Xi responded positively for building the communication links, diplomatic sources say.
Bangladesh and Myanmar have been in consultation for constructing a 135 km-long cross boundary road starting from Ramu of Cox's Bazar to Kyanktow in Myanmar.
The two neighbours are also discussing construction of rail links between them.
The prime minister said China's Kunming had road communication link up to Kyanktow in Myanamr.
The two countries will have to construct a 135 km road link—one from Kyanktow to Bowlibazar (110 km), one from Bowlibazar to Taungbro (23 km) and the other from Ghundum to Ramu (2 km).
In the first phase, Bangladesh will provide funding for constructing a 2 km-road from Ramu to Ghundum (Bangladesh-Myanmar bordering point) and 23 km Taungbro- Bowlibazar road inside Myanmar.
In the second phase, Bowlibazar-Kyangtow road will be constructed by Myanmar.
Bangladesh and Mynamr in 2007 signed a memorandum of understanding for building the Bowlibazar to Taungbro highway.
"I will discuss the issue with the Myanmar authorities again in near future," said Hasina who would visit the country sometime this year.
"The communication links will not only connect Bangladesh with China and Myanmar, but also with the ASEAN countries", she said.
*****************************************************
Mobile Journalism on the Rise in Asia
By Kara Santos
MANILA, June 16, 2010 (IPS) - What do the protests in Burma, bombings in Jakarta, the recent earthquake in Haiti and the massive devastation left by typhoon Ketsana in the Philippines have in common?
These are all stories of international interest that either broke out or spread fast with the use of modern communication technologies, including mobile phones.
In the Philippines, graphic images taken with mobile phones of the extent of destruction wrought by the September 2009 disaster on hundreds of thousands of affected residents conveyed to the world the depth of the ensuing tragedy.
In Burma, the use of mobile phones to relay crucial information to the public as well as to the outside world has proved "very handy," Mon Mon Myat, a stringer for Agence France Presse in Burma (officially called Myanmar), where media are under strict censorship, told IPS.
"It’s very safe to shoot using a mobile phone because people think you’re just taking photos and not video. It’s less risky for us," said the Burmese journalist, adding that they could easily hide or dispose of the phone if needed.
Media experts say that mobile phones are increasingly becoming an important newsgathering tool in Asia. Mobile news coverage is said to be used by major broadcast networks like Al Jazeera. This phenomenon has given rise to ‘mobile journalism’, otherwise known as ‘mojo’.
The concept of mobile journalism refers to the use of information and communication technologies, including mobile phones, to post stories, images and videos on the web within seconds of their composition.
This type of newsgathering is especially relevant for breaking news events and countries with strictly controlled media.
According to the book ‘Mojo - Mobile Journalism in the Asian Region’ authored by Dr Stephen Quinn, a journalism professor at Deakin University in Australia, as of mid-2009, more than 4.2 billion mobile phones were being used around the world, with 43 percent of mobile phone usage from the Asian region.
The International Telecommunications Union says that the mobile phone is the fastest-growing communication device in history, with the percentage of users in the developed world jumping from 18 percent in 1997 to 97 percent in 2007.
Because mobile phones are so common in developing countries, it is easy for mobile journalists to blend in a crowd. In the Philippines, for instance, mobile phones are commonly used to capture images and footage of disaster and conflict situations.
"Photographers are at the front line. They need to be in a place where the news is happening, and sometimes using mobile phones is the best way to capture an image, especially if access is limited," photojournalist and founding member of the Philippine Center for Photojournalism Jimmy Domingo told IPS.
Photographers and video journalists who have to transmit files to their newsrooms fast find that innovations in mobile cameras make their job easier. Gadgets like the Flip video camcorders allow users to take video and transfer files easily to a computer or post video to the web. The Flip Mino, a compact model weighing less than 150 grams can shoot high-definition videos.
Apple Inc.'s popular iPhone also has new reporting applications that can transform it into a radio reporting device or multimedia, broadcast and podcast tool.
Poddio, designed for radio broadcasters, allows users to record, edit, and send complete radio news packages via the iPhone faster than sending via a laptop.
Given all these technological advances, research firm Datamonitor predicts that mobile phone usage in the Asia-Pacific region will jump from 389 million in 2007 to 890 million by 2012.
Speaking at a recent media forum in Manila, Dr Quinn said these advances would make news delivery even faster. "With the technological capabilities of modern gadgets, ‘mojos’ or ‘mobile journalists’ can easily put together a story in the field, edit and transmit it to the web, moments after an event takes place," he said.
Unlike one person carrying a mobile phone, a typical video crew requires equipment like a camera, tripod, laptop and cables to work. "Tools need to be easy to use so they don’t get in the way of telling a story," said Quinn.
Still and all, experts agree that going back to the basics remains fundamental.
"It's not possible to do new media until you do old media properly," said Quinn, adding that a solid grounding on journalism, research and writing skills, and knowledge of ethics is vital for journalists.
Photojournalist Domingo agrees that photographers should first know how to use standard cameras for coverage and use mobile phones only when the situation calls for it.
"If an event happened in a place where only mobile phones are available, the more important thing is to be able to bring the photograph out into the news and tell the story," he said.
By Kara Santos
MANILA, June 16, 2010 (IPS) - What do the protests in Burma, bombings in Jakarta, the recent earthquake in Haiti and the massive devastation left by typhoon Ketsana in the Philippines have in common?
These are all stories of international interest that either broke out or spread fast with the use of modern communication technologies, including mobile phones.
In the Philippines, graphic images taken with mobile phones of the extent of destruction wrought by the September 2009 disaster on hundreds of thousands of affected residents conveyed to the world the depth of the ensuing tragedy.
In Burma, the use of mobile phones to relay crucial information to the public as well as to the outside world has proved "very handy," Mon Mon Myat, a stringer for Agence France Presse in Burma (officially called Myanmar), where media are under strict censorship, told IPS.
"It’s very safe to shoot using a mobile phone because people think you’re just taking photos and not video. It’s less risky for us," said the Burmese journalist, adding that they could easily hide or dispose of the phone if needed.
Media experts say that mobile phones are increasingly becoming an important newsgathering tool in Asia. Mobile news coverage is said to be used by major broadcast networks like Al Jazeera. This phenomenon has given rise to ‘mobile journalism’, otherwise known as ‘mojo’.
The concept of mobile journalism refers to the use of information and communication technologies, including mobile phones, to post stories, images and videos on the web within seconds of their composition.
This type of newsgathering is especially relevant for breaking news events and countries with strictly controlled media.
According to the book ‘Mojo - Mobile Journalism in the Asian Region’ authored by Dr Stephen Quinn, a journalism professor at Deakin University in Australia, as of mid-2009, more than 4.2 billion mobile phones were being used around the world, with 43 percent of mobile phone usage from the Asian region.
The International Telecommunications Union says that the mobile phone is the fastest-growing communication device in history, with the percentage of users in the developed world jumping from 18 percent in 1997 to 97 percent in 2007.
Because mobile phones are so common in developing countries, it is easy for mobile journalists to blend in a crowd. In the Philippines, for instance, mobile phones are commonly used to capture images and footage of disaster and conflict situations.
"Photographers are at the front line. They need to be in a place where the news is happening, and sometimes using mobile phones is the best way to capture an image, especially if access is limited," photojournalist and founding member of the Philippine Center for Photojournalism Jimmy Domingo told IPS.
Photographers and video journalists who have to transmit files to their newsrooms fast find that innovations in mobile cameras make their job easier. Gadgets like the Flip video camcorders allow users to take video and transfer files easily to a computer or post video to the web. The Flip Mino, a compact model weighing less than 150 grams can shoot high-definition videos.
Apple Inc.'s popular iPhone also has new reporting applications that can transform it into a radio reporting device or multimedia, broadcast and podcast tool.
Poddio, designed for radio broadcasters, allows users to record, edit, and send complete radio news packages via the iPhone faster than sending via a laptop.
Given all these technological advances, research firm Datamonitor predicts that mobile phone usage in the Asia-Pacific region will jump from 389 million in 2007 to 890 million by 2012.
Speaking at a recent media forum in Manila, Dr Quinn said these advances would make news delivery even faster. "With the technological capabilities of modern gadgets, ‘mojos’ or ‘mobile journalists’ can easily put together a story in the field, edit and transmit it to the web, moments after an event takes place," he said.
Unlike one person carrying a mobile phone, a typical video crew requires equipment like a camera, tripod, laptop and cables to work. "Tools need to be easy to use so they don’t get in the way of telling a story," said Quinn.
Still and all, experts agree that going back to the basics remains fundamental.
"It's not possible to do new media until you do old media properly," said Quinn, adding that a solid grounding on journalism, research and writing skills, and knowledge of ethics is vital for journalists.
Photojournalist Domingo agrees that photographers should first know how to use standard cameras for coverage and use mobile phones only when the situation calls for it.
"If an event happened in a place where only mobile phones are available, the more important thing is to be able to bring the photograph out into the news and tell the story," he said.
*****************************************************
The Irrawaddy - Junta's Eyes Focused on Election
By WAI MOE - Wednesday, June 16, 2010
Burma's military junta has put its proposed Border Guard Force (BGF) plan on the back-burner in order to focus on dominating the upcoming election. They will have an additional advantage if polls do not open in areas controlled by armed ethnic cease-fire groups.
According to military sources in Naypyidaw, the regime's top generals decided that their first priority in the coming months is securing a landslide victory in the election, with the sensitive BGF issues to be resolved at a later date.
“Top generals, particularly junta chief Snr-Gen Than Shwe, recently said that winning the election is their urgent policy, and they would be dropping the BGF for a while,” said a military source.
Quoting Napyidaw's blue-print for the coming months, the military source said that the generals believe, “We need to focus on issues related to more than 50 million people rather than related to a few million.”
“However, it does not mean the generals have given up the BGF plan. They will implement the plan later on, as strategically they do not want to open two front lines— the election and the tension over the BGF— at the same time,” he added.
In recent meetings, the junta's top generals have instructed the military to make certain that Prime Minister Thein Sein’s Union Solidarity and Development Party (USDP) will win the election across the country by a large margin.
The generals' goal is for the USDP to top the 1990 polling results achieved by the National League for Democracy (NLD), led by pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi, who won 80 percent of contested constituencies in that election, sources said.
To achieve that goal, the junta will be going against the grain of Burmese election history. In 1960, under Gen Ne Win’s command, the military openly supported the Stable Faction of the Anti-Fascist People's Freedom League (AFPFL) led by Kyaw Nyein and Ba Swe over U Nu’s the Clean Faction of the AFPEL, asking the troops to vote for the Stable AFPFL.
In 1990, the current junta supported the National Unity Party (formerly the the Burmese Socialist Programme Party), and soldiers were again urged to support the military's preferred party.
Both in 1960 and 1990, the military-backed parties were unable to win the hearts of the Burmese people and soldiers, and the parties not supported by the generals won—including a majority vote in military areas.
In 1993, three years after the NLD’s landslide victory, the junta changed tactics under Than Shwe’s leadership and formed its own mass organization, the Union Solidarity and Development Association (USDA), which will support its political offspring, Thein Sein’s USDP, in the coming election.
Since its formation, the USDA has become a main actor in many infamous events under the junta's military rule. Independent human rights advocates said the USDA was a key player in both the brutal ambush on Suu Kyi’s convoy in May 2003 and the crackdowns on anti-junta mass movements in August and September 2007.
The USDA also organized polling across the country during the 2008 national referendum on the junta-back Constitution, which took place in the wake of Cyclone Nargis and was heavily criticized as unfair. After the referendum, the junta announced that 98.12 percent of the voter population showed up for the poll and 93.82 percent voted ‘yes’ to the Constitution.
The USDA will have an extra-advantage in the 2010 elections if polling does not take place in areas controlled by ethnic armed groups who are still opposing the BGF plan.
Both the junta and the armed ethnic groups have yet to guarantee that the elections will take place in these areas, particularly in Kachin State and Shan State where the largest armed ethnic group, the United Wa State Army (UWSA), and other significant groups such as the Kachin Independence Organization (KIO) and the National Democratic Alliance Army (NDAA), also known as the Mongla group, are based.
Unless further agreement is reached between the armed ethnic groups and generals in Naypyidaw ahead of the 2010 polling, observers believe that townships controlled by the UWSA and the NDAA in Shan State will be out of the elections.
Currently, no political parties representing the mandate of the UWSA and NDAA are registered with the election commission in Naypyidaw. Some ethnic political parties, including the Kachin State Progressive Party led by Tuja, a former leader of the KIO, still await a green light from the election commission over their applications.
“The Kachin State Progressive Party and other ethnic parties representing the real interests of the ethnic people have not been approved by the election commission,” said a KIO source in Laiza, the KIO's headquarters. “On the other hand, it is still uncertain if elections will be held in our territory.”
Armed ethnic groups are influential in their territories, and ethnic parties could be main challengers to the junta’s USDP in the poll. For this reason, some observers believe the junta may block ethnic parties linked with armed groups in the election unless the generals get a clear message from the frontiers in support of the BGF and the Constitution.
However, based on their experience in the 2008 referendum, even if the polls are opened in areas controlled by armed ethnic groups, there is no guarantee they will be free and fair.
“Leaders of the UWSA, NDAA and MNDAA [Myanmar National Democratic Alliance Army also known as the Kokang group] allowed the 2008 referendum to be held, but urged people in their areas to vote against the unfair Constitution,” said a Wa source on the Sino-Burmese border.
“Ethnic voters in the areas voted ‘No’,” he said. “But after the election the junta announced an overwhelming ‘Yes' vote in the ethnic areas. How would the result come like that, unless false?”
By WAI MOE - Wednesday, June 16, 2010
Burma's military junta has put its proposed Border Guard Force (BGF) plan on the back-burner in order to focus on dominating the upcoming election. They will have an additional advantage if polls do not open in areas controlled by armed ethnic cease-fire groups.
According to military sources in Naypyidaw, the regime's top generals decided that their first priority in the coming months is securing a landslide victory in the election, with the sensitive BGF issues to be resolved at a later date.
“Top generals, particularly junta chief Snr-Gen Than Shwe, recently said that winning the election is their urgent policy, and they would be dropping the BGF for a while,” said a military source.
Quoting Napyidaw's blue-print for the coming months, the military source said that the generals believe, “We need to focus on issues related to more than 50 million people rather than related to a few million.”
“However, it does not mean the generals have given up the BGF plan. They will implement the plan later on, as strategically they do not want to open two front lines— the election and the tension over the BGF— at the same time,” he added.
In recent meetings, the junta's top generals have instructed the military to make certain that Prime Minister Thein Sein’s Union Solidarity and Development Party (USDP) will win the election across the country by a large margin.
The generals' goal is for the USDP to top the 1990 polling results achieved by the National League for Democracy (NLD), led by pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi, who won 80 percent of contested constituencies in that election, sources said.
To achieve that goal, the junta will be going against the grain of Burmese election history. In 1960, under Gen Ne Win’s command, the military openly supported the Stable Faction of the Anti-Fascist People's Freedom League (AFPFL) led by Kyaw Nyein and Ba Swe over U Nu’s the Clean Faction of the AFPEL, asking the troops to vote for the Stable AFPFL.
In 1990, the current junta supported the National Unity Party (formerly the the Burmese Socialist Programme Party), and soldiers were again urged to support the military's preferred party.
Both in 1960 and 1990, the military-backed parties were unable to win the hearts of the Burmese people and soldiers, and the parties not supported by the generals won—including a majority vote in military areas.
In 1993, three years after the NLD’s landslide victory, the junta changed tactics under Than Shwe’s leadership and formed its own mass organization, the Union Solidarity and Development Association (USDA), which will support its political offspring, Thein Sein’s USDP, in the coming election.
Since its formation, the USDA has become a main actor in many infamous events under the junta's military rule. Independent human rights advocates said the USDA was a key player in both the brutal ambush on Suu Kyi’s convoy in May 2003 and the crackdowns on anti-junta mass movements in August and September 2007.
The USDA also organized polling across the country during the 2008 national referendum on the junta-back Constitution, which took place in the wake of Cyclone Nargis and was heavily criticized as unfair. After the referendum, the junta announced that 98.12 percent of the voter population showed up for the poll and 93.82 percent voted ‘yes’ to the Constitution.
The USDA will have an extra-advantage in the 2010 elections if polling does not take place in areas controlled by ethnic armed groups who are still opposing the BGF plan.
Both the junta and the armed ethnic groups have yet to guarantee that the elections will take place in these areas, particularly in Kachin State and Shan State where the largest armed ethnic group, the United Wa State Army (UWSA), and other significant groups such as the Kachin Independence Organization (KIO) and the National Democratic Alliance Army (NDAA), also known as the Mongla group, are based.
Unless further agreement is reached between the armed ethnic groups and generals in Naypyidaw ahead of the 2010 polling, observers believe that townships controlled by the UWSA and the NDAA in Shan State will be out of the elections.
Currently, no political parties representing the mandate of the UWSA and NDAA are registered with the election commission in Naypyidaw. Some ethnic political parties, including the Kachin State Progressive Party led by Tuja, a former leader of the KIO, still await a green light from the election commission over their applications.
“The Kachin State Progressive Party and other ethnic parties representing the real interests of the ethnic people have not been approved by the election commission,” said a KIO source in Laiza, the KIO's headquarters. “On the other hand, it is still uncertain if elections will be held in our territory.”
Armed ethnic groups are influential in their territories, and ethnic parties could be main challengers to the junta’s USDP in the poll. For this reason, some observers believe the junta may block ethnic parties linked with armed groups in the election unless the generals get a clear message from the frontiers in support of the BGF and the Constitution.
However, based on their experience in the 2008 referendum, even if the polls are opened in areas controlled by armed ethnic groups, there is no guarantee they will be free and fair.
“Leaders of the UWSA, NDAA and MNDAA [Myanmar National Democratic Alliance Army also known as the Kokang group] allowed the 2008 referendum to be held, but urged people in their areas to vote against the unfair Constitution,” said a Wa source on the Sino-Burmese border.
“Ethnic voters in the areas voted ‘No’,” he said. “But after the election the junta announced an overwhelming ‘Yes' vote in the ethnic areas. How would the result come like that, unless false?”
*****************************************************
The Irrawaddy - Thai PM Green Lights Crackdown on Illegal Migrants
By SAW YAN NAING - Wednesday, June 16, 2010
Thailand’s Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva signed an order on June 2 calling for the establishment of a “special center to suppress, arrest and prosecute” alien workers who illegally entered Thailand and are working underground.
According to the Human Rights and Development Foundation (HRDF), a labor rights group, the “Order of the Prime Minister's Office No. 125/2553” will impact up to 1.4 million migrant workers from Burma, Cambodia and Laos who are currently working in Thailand illegally.
Andy Hall, director of the HRDF’s Migrant Justice Program, told The Irrawaddy that the order is disappointing. “It is not realistic to deport thousands of migrant workers who work and contribute significantly to the Thai economy. It is not only a human rights issue, but also an economic issue,” said Hall.
Hall added that even though the intention of the Thai government is to deport illegal migrant workers and have only legal migrants working in Thailand, the order may give corrupt local authorities the opportunity to arrest and extort the illegal migrants, but not to deport them.
The purpose of the order is to ensure the effectiveness of the Thai Cabinet’s January 19 resolution on nationality verification (NV) for alien workers.
According to the resolution, illegal migrant workers were required to enter the Thai government’s NV process by March 2.
Migrant workers who entered the NV process by that time are now permitted to remain in Thailand provided they complete their nationality verification by February 28, 2012.
Those illegal migrants who refused or were unable to enter the NV process by March 2 may now be “suppressed, arrested and prosecuted” under the Prime Minister's order.
According to the HRDF, there are between 300,000 and 400,000 migrant workers from Burma, Cambodia and Laos who were eligible for but failed to enter the NV process by March 2.
In addition, there are an estimated 1 million unregistered migrant workers currently working in Thailand who were not eligible for NV due to their unregistered status, and thus are also targets of the order.
Hall said that the Thai government should provide these illegal workers with another opportunity to register because many have already been working for years in Thailand.
The “special center to suppress, arrest and prosecute alien workers who are working underground” has a central management committee chaired by the deputy prime minister. Its director is the deputy director general of the Employment Department.
According to a Thai government press release issued last week, the goal of the central management committee is to allow for the arrest and deportation of all workers refusing to enter into or ineligible for the NV process so as to allow the government to reach its goal of regularizing migrant labor in Thailand by allowing only two categories of migrants to continue working in Thailand in the near future: (1) Migrant workers who illegally entered Thailand but have or will soon complete the NV process to become legal; and (2) Fresh migrant workers who will soon be brought in from Thailand’s neighboring countries legally.
By SAW YAN NAING - Wednesday, June 16, 2010
Thailand’s Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva signed an order on June 2 calling for the establishment of a “special center to suppress, arrest and prosecute” alien workers who illegally entered Thailand and are working underground.
According to the Human Rights and Development Foundation (HRDF), a labor rights group, the “Order of the Prime Minister's Office No. 125/2553” will impact up to 1.4 million migrant workers from Burma, Cambodia and Laos who are currently working in Thailand illegally.
Andy Hall, director of the HRDF’s Migrant Justice Program, told The Irrawaddy that the order is disappointing. “It is not realistic to deport thousands of migrant workers who work and contribute significantly to the Thai economy. It is not only a human rights issue, but also an economic issue,” said Hall.
Hall added that even though the intention of the Thai government is to deport illegal migrant workers and have only legal migrants working in Thailand, the order may give corrupt local authorities the opportunity to arrest and extort the illegal migrants, but not to deport them.
The purpose of the order is to ensure the effectiveness of the Thai Cabinet’s January 19 resolution on nationality verification (NV) for alien workers.
According to the resolution, illegal migrant workers were required to enter the Thai government’s NV process by March 2.
Migrant workers who entered the NV process by that time are now permitted to remain in Thailand provided they complete their nationality verification by February 28, 2012.
Those illegal migrants who refused or were unable to enter the NV process by March 2 may now be “suppressed, arrested and prosecuted” under the Prime Minister's order.
According to the HRDF, there are between 300,000 and 400,000 migrant workers from Burma, Cambodia and Laos who were eligible for but failed to enter the NV process by March 2.
In addition, there are an estimated 1 million unregistered migrant workers currently working in Thailand who were not eligible for NV due to their unregistered status, and thus are also targets of the order.
Hall said that the Thai government should provide these illegal workers with another opportunity to register because many have already been working for years in Thailand.
The “special center to suppress, arrest and prosecute alien workers who are working underground” has a central management committee chaired by the deputy prime minister. Its director is the deputy director general of the Employment Department.
According to a Thai government press release issued last week, the goal of the central management committee is to allow for the arrest and deportation of all workers refusing to enter into or ineligible for the NV process so as to allow the government to reach its goal of regularizing migrant labor in Thailand by allowing only two categories of migrants to continue working in Thailand in the near future: (1) Migrant workers who illegally entered Thailand but have or will soon complete the NV process to become legal; and (2) Fresh migrant workers who will soon be brought in from Thailand’s neighboring countries legally.
*****************************************************
Burmese workers killed on Malaysian highway
Wednesday, 16 June 2010 17:21 Mizzima News
New Delhi (Mizzima) – Two young Burmese migrant workers riding a motorcycle to buy phone cards were killed in a highway accident in Selangor, Malaysia last weekend, a brother of one of the victims said.
Timber mill workers Than Win Hlaing, 25, and Saiang Lian Mang, 18, were on a highway 33 miles (53 kilometres) northwest of Malaysian capital Kuala Lumpur when their motorcycle smashed into the back of a preceding car, throwing the duo into the path of an oncoming car. Both died, a brother of one of the accident victims said.
“The two had gone to buy mobile phone cards … the riders were hurled onto the other side of the road and went under a speeding car, crushing Saiang Lian Mang’s head,” his brother Tawk Nei Lian said.
Saiang Lian Mang died instantly and was taken to Serdang Hospital in Sepang while Than Win Hlaing was declared dead at Ampang Hospital an hour after the collision.
Than Win Hlaing was a son of Hla Shwe and Khin Win, of Lanekone village, Latpadan Township, Pegu (Bago) Division, Burma. Saiang Lian Mang was the son of Bual Hlei Thang and Khuang Nawn Thluai, of Varpi village, Kalay Township, Sagaing Division.
Than Win Hlaing had been working in Malaysia for four years, whereas Saiang Lian Mang had arrived in February this year.
The bodies of the two are in the hospitals’ morgues awaiting autopsy.
Wednesday, 16 June 2010 17:21 Mizzima News
New Delhi (Mizzima) – Two young Burmese migrant workers riding a motorcycle to buy phone cards were killed in a highway accident in Selangor, Malaysia last weekend, a brother of one of the victims said.
Timber mill workers Than Win Hlaing, 25, and Saiang Lian Mang, 18, were on a highway 33 miles (53 kilometres) northwest of Malaysian capital Kuala Lumpur when their motorcycle smashed into the back of a preceding car, throwing the duo into the path of an oncoming car. Both died, a brother of one of the accident victims said.
“The two had gone to buy mobile phone cards … the riders were hurled onto the other side of the road and went under a speeding car, crushing Saiang Lian Mang’s head,” his brother Tawk Nei Lian said.
Saiang Lian Mang died instantly and was taken to Serdang Hospital in Sepang while Than Win Hlaing was declared dead at Ampang Hospital an hour after the collision.
Than Win Hlaing was a son of Hla Shwe and Khin Win, of Lanekone village, Latpadan Township, Pegu (Bago) Division, Burma. Saiang Lian Mang was the son of Bual Hlei Thang and Khuang Nawn Thluai, of Varpi village, Kalay Township, Sagaing Division.
Than Win Hlaing had been working in Malaysia for four years, whereas Saiang Lian Mang had arrived in February this year.
The bodies of the two are in the hospitals’ morgues awaiting autopsy.
*****************************************************
DVB News - USDP ’sapping’ election hopes
By AHUNT PHONE MYAT
Published: 16 June 2010
Ethnic parties eyeing Burma’s elections this year have complained that the party headed by Burma’s prime minister Thein Sein, which was given a head-start in campaigning, is hindering the efforts of other parties.
The social wing of the Union Solidarity and Development Party (USDP), the Union Solidarity and Development Association (USDA), has reportedly been recruiting party members in various parts of Burma even prior to the USDP being given permission by the Election Commission to campaign.
The USDP, led by the junta’s second-in-command, Thein Sein, is expected to win what critics of the Burmese junta have decried as a sham election aimed at entrenching military rule.
“We went for [a field campaign] in the Wa villages in the mountains [of Burma’s northeastern Shan state] and found out we were steps behind the USDP,” said Luk Pao, the chairman of the Wa National Unity Party, adding that the USDA had already been to these places to collect lists of civilians to be recruited into the USDP.
A retired government official in Chin state told DVB that USDA leaders were directed to recruit 50 party members each, while other reports of coercion of civilians by the USDA have already surfaced.
“I heard the original USDA members were told they will be transferred to the USDP as party candidates and are required to recruit 50 members each,” he said. “[Campaign activity in the region] is just mainly by the USDP. The Chin National Party has been approaching individuals but we didn’t see much people supporting them.”
Hopeful candidates have complained that the USDP was given preferential treatment by the Election Commission and granted approval to run in the elections early on, while other parties struggled with the registration process and hefty finances required to run.
Threats against civilians by USDA officials are also said to be forcing more people to join the party. Phyo Min Thein, from the Union Democracy Party, said that influential USDA members are warning people that communicating with opposition parties will result in “their livelihoods being ruined”.
On Monday it was revealed that USDA members had been appointed by the Election Commission to guard ballot boxes during the elections, scheduled for later this year, further calling into question the integrity of the polls.
The Election Commission head, Thein Soe, said in May that international election monitors “would not be welcome” in Burma, given the country’s “past experience” with elections. The last polls in 1990 were beseiged by controversy after the government ignored a landslide victory by the National League for Democracy (NLD), which has boycotted this year’s election.
By AHUNT PHONE MYAT
Published: 16 June 2010
Ethnic parties eyeing Burma’s elections this year have complained that the party headed by Burma’s prime minister Thein Sein, which was given a head-start in campaigning, is hindering the efforts of other parties.
The social wing of the Union Solidarity and Development Party (USDP), the Union Solidarity and Development Association (USDA), has reportedly been recruiting party members in various parts of Burma even prior to the USDP being given permission by the Election Commission to campaign.
The USDP, led by the junta’s second-in-command, Thein Sein, is expected to win what critics of the Burmese junta have decried as a sham election aimed at entrenching military rule.
“We went for [a field campaign] in the Wa villages in the mountains [of Burma’s northeastern Shan state] and found out we were steps behind the USDP,” said Luk Pao, the chairman of the Wa National Unity Party, adding that the USDA had already been to these places to collect lists of civilians to be recruited into the USDP.
A retired government official in Chin state told DVB that USDA leaders were directed to recruit 50 party members each, while other reports of coercion of civilians by the USDA have already surfaced.
“I heard the original USDA members were told they will be transferred to the USDP as party candidates and are required to recruit 50 members each,” he said. “[Campaign activity in the region] is just mainly by the USDP. The Chin National Party has been approaching individuals but we didn’t see much people supporting them.”
Hopeful candidates have complained that the USDP was given preferential treatment by the Election Commission and granted approval to run in the elections early on, while other parties struggled with the registration process and hefty finances required to run.
Threats against civilians by USDA officials are also said to be forcing more people to join the party. Phyo Min Thein, from the Union Democracy Party, said that influential USDA members are warning people that communicating with opposition parties will result in “their livelihoods being ruined”.
On Monday it was revealed that USDA members had been appointed by the Election Commission to guard ballot boxes during the elections, scheduled for later this year, further calling into question the integrity of the polls.
The Election Commission head, Thein Soe, said in May that international election monitors “would not be welcome” in Burma, given the country’s “past experience” with elections. The last polls in 1990 were beseiged by controversy after the government ignored a landslide victory by the National League for Democracy (NLD), which has boycotted this year’s election.
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