BNN-Burma News Network:FrontPage News

Assassination Haunts Suu Kyi's Security

2010-11-16T23:01:00.001+06:30

The security of Burma's pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi is a serious concern, but she says she wants to listen to the voice of the people and will resume tours across the country, according to leaders of the National League for Democracy (NLD).

In answer to a reporter's question at a press confernce on Sunday afternoon, she said her personal security like any other citizen of the country will depend on the authorities. Since she was released, she said she hasn't thought about her personal security.

However, NLD leaders said Suu Kyi's security will be a serious concern as she tries to reach out to the grassroots people.

“Before the Depayin incident in 2003, there wasn't a state of mind in the military or other forces to assassinate her though she faced a series of verbal harassment,” said Win Tin, one of the party's founders and secretary of the NLD. “But after the Depayin incident, we saw that there had been a state of mind to assassinate her.”

“What Daw Aung San Suu Kyi emphasized in her speech to the people yesterday and will do today, is that she wants to listen to the people's voice and follow what they truly desire,” said Win Tin. “She plans to travel, but I can't tell in detail about when and where she will travel.”

Citing the assassination of Pakistan's former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto as an example, Win Tin said: “As a political leader who always deals with the people, she can be assassinated by a killer who is hiding in the crowd at any time.”

Since her involvement in Burmese politics in 1988, Suu Kyi has faced a number of threats on her life.

The first incident occurred in April 1989 when she toured Irrawaddy Division, and she was in a situation in which an army captain was about to shoot her as she passed through an army blockade in Danubyu Township.

The second incident occurred in November 1996 when her motorcade was attacked by a group of thugs with sticks and bricks on Kabaraye Pagoda Road in Rangoon.

The third incident occurred on May 30, 2003, when her motorcade was attacked by a large mob systemically organized by the junta and its civilian wing, the Union Solidarity and Development Association (USDA), which has now been transformed into a political party which won the election unfairly with widespread vote rigging.

Her security has been a concern since 1988, but Win Tin said: “A political leader who the people love and rely on can't avoid such a risk. Without reaching out to the people and mobilizing their support, she couldn't have achieved her stature as a democratic leader.”

Burma has had a history of political assassinations. Gen Aung San, the father of Suu Kyi and the country's independence leader, was assassinated by a rival politician, U Saw, on July 19, 1947.

irrawaddy

20,000 burmese refugees fled violence into the arms of Thailand

2010-11-14T06:17:00.000+06:30

TAK, 9 November 2010 (NNT)-The ongoing clash between the Burmese military and the Karen minority rebels has forced refugees, mainly Karen, to take refuge in Mae Sod District of Tak Province. Meanwhile, the authority in Kanjanaburee has turned a local school's playground into a temporary camp to accommodate over 2,000 Burmese who also fled the violence into Thailand.

The Commander of the 3rd Army, Lieutenant General Wannathip Wongwai, has instructed Thai soldiers to continue to patrol areas along the Thai-Burmese border in Tak province. Since the battle broke out on Monday, 5 Thais and Burmese have been injured; however, the Thai government has insisted it will not interfere in the neighboring country's political affairs, and has, therefore, instructed its force not to retaliate after several shell strayed into Thai territory during the fight.

According to Lieutenant General Wannathip, the situation in Burma has improved, but whether or when the Thai government should repatriate the 20,000 refugees back to their country depends on the Burmese government's decision.

The fighting along the Thai-Burmese border in Kanchajaburee province also sent several rocket-propelled grenades landing on Thai territory but harmed no one. According to the Burmese news agency, violence broke out when the Burmese Karen minority learned that their government was not playing by the rules in the country's first election, which prompted them to defy the authority by taking over one police station.

However, Prime Minister Abishit Vejjajiva said that the fight, which could last three months, would not cause a conflict between Thailand and Burma, adding that Thailand would only provide refugees with shelter and other humanitarian assistance in line with basic human rights.

reliefweb

Suu Kyi Freed at Last

2010-11-13T18:53:00.000+06:30

Burma's opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi was finally released from house arrest in Rangoon on Saturday evening, welcomed enthusiastically by a wide public still angry and disappointed by the results of Sunday's election.

“Long live Daw Aung San Suu Kyi,” cheered several thousands of her supporters near her house on University Avenue in Rangoon, in welcoming their leader, who has continued to inspire Burma's oppressed people with her non-violent democratic struggle against the rogue regime throughout the past two decades.

“I can't describe how happy I am. I am so happy. She is our savior because she is the only one who can do what's best for the country,” said an old man who had waited near her house for news of the release since early this morning.

Several of her supporters waiting near her house were seen breaking into tears of happiness when they heard the news of her release. Some also waved to the Burmese soldiers who left the compound, which has been a prison for the Nobel Peace Prize laureate for 15 years of the past 21 years.

Her release came five days after the country's military regime held an election on Sunday marred by reports of widespread vote rigging. The junta's proxy party, the Union Solidarity and Development Party (USDP), was officially credited with winning 80 percent of parliamentary seats, despite strong popular opposition.

“She will draw huge crowds and receive strong public support as she did when she was last freed,” said Tin Oo, Suu Kyi's deputy and the vice-chairman of her National League for Democracy (NLD) party.

The NLD was officially disbanded after failing to register for the controversial election, which it boycotted on the grounds that it was held under undemocratic conditions. Although the party leaders continued to carry out party activities and gatherings, the junta has not yet outlawed it as an unlawful organization.

It remains uncertain how much freedom the regime would grant her even though she was supposed to be unconditionally released.

“The junta will surely attempt to restrict her movements so that she cannot reach out to the public and ethnic minority groups,” said Suu Kyi's lawyer, Nyan Win. “But she will not accept such restrictions.”

“The release shows that the government is quite confident of its control of the country because there is a lot of public resentment against vote fraud, which has been clearly exposed,” said Aung Naing Oo, a Burmese political analyst based in Thailand.

“She was released because her sentence has legally expired, but in countries like Burma that does not matter as much as the realities on the ground,” he added. “The current military rule continues and the rulers can still use several laws to detain her again.”

The 65-year-old Nobel Peace Prize laureate has been released twice before during the 15 years of the past 21 years that she has spent under house arrest.

In August 2009, Suu Kyi's house arrest was extended by 18 months after she was convicted of harboring an American who swam uninvited to her lakeside home.

The daughter of Burma's independence hero Aung San is expected not only to reconsolidate her party but also to reach out to a splinter group that formed a new party to contest the election, which the NLD refused to participate in, as well as other opposition groups that took part in the polls.

The leaders of the breakaway party, the National Democratic Front (NDF), said that they are willing to cooperate with Suu Kyi, but are uncertain if she will be willing to talk to them.

“Since we are former colleagues, we believe she will offer to talk with us,” said Dr. Than Nyein, the leader of the NDF, which was roundly defeated by the junta-backed Union Solidarity and Development Party (USDP), which allegedly benefited from widespread vote rigging.

Suu Kyi will also have to renew her efforts to find some way to deal with Burma's ruling generals. During the past 20 years, Suu Kyi has unsuccessfully called for dialogue with the military junta in an attempt to break the country's political deadlock.

Observers question whether that call will remain relevant given that the election results have paved the way for continued military rule by members of the current junta, which will control the new parliament with a civilian facade. The results have been recognized by Burma's largest and most influential neighbor, China, and by the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, of which Burma is a member.

In addition to internal divisions within her party, a major issue confronting her is a recent increase in ethnic tensions, which have heightened since the run-up to the election over the junta's border guard force (BGF) plan aimed at assimilating all armed ethnic groups under its command in the post-election era.

Soon after the Sunday election, deadly clashes broke out between Karen rebel soldiers and Burmese troops in Myawaddy Township in Karen State. Tensions between the regime and the two largest cease-fire groups, the Kachin Independence Army and the United Wa State Army, both of which have rejected the BGF plan, also remain high.

“Daw Suu would actively work towards calling for a second Panglong Convention to resolve the ethnic issues,” said Win Htein, one of Suu Kyi's personal aides, referring to the 1947 Panglong Agreement which provided the basis for a federal union in the aftermath of the country's independence from British rule in 1948.

Another issue that will need to be addressed is the fate of other political prisoners who remain behind bars. Despite Suu Kyi's release, the junta continues to hold more than 2,100 prisoners of conscience, including prominent former student leaders who have been sentenced to up to 60 years imprisonment.

But what many residents of Rangoon are most eager to know about is how Suu Kyi will respond to the election results, according to one of her supporters in the former capital.

“We are expecting her clear leadership, because we are confused and angry about the elections. We will see how she copes with the illegal status of the NLD and responds to the election results and the new government,” he said.

irrawaddy

Opposition Plans Joint Protest

2010-11-10T22:12:00.001+06:30

As Burma's military junta-backed party claims big election wins, opposition parties mull joint action.

Opposition parties in Burma are planning to jointly protest alleged election fraud as the ruling military junta-backed party claimed big wins in the country's first polls in 20 years.

Results of the Nov. 7 polls are only expected in a week, according to the junta, but its proxy, the Union Solidarity and Development Party (USDP), said it had won in 37 of the 45 townships in the former capital Rangoon alone.

Except for deputy health minister Paing Soe, all the incumbent ministers have been elected, said USDP official Tin Maung Win.

Khin Maung Swe, founder of the largest opposition party, the National Democratic Force (NDF), described the alleged election irregularities, such as the stuffing of last minute "advance" votes, as "daylight robbery."

"We are going to boycott the results and if be, boycott the parliament," Khin said. "The NDF is trying to get other parties to join the campaign."

NDF chairman Than Nyein said an official complaint would be filed with the junta-appointed Election Commission after the party collected information from all areas it had fielded candidates.

Candidates registering a complaint need to deposit the equivalent of U.S. $1,000, a costly sum in a country where one-third of the people live in poverty.

'Vote rigging'

Fraud complaints are also unlikely to be investigated by the junta which has locked up 2,200 political activists, including democracy icon Aung San Suu Kyi whose party won the last elections in 1990 but was barred from taking power.

"Our party, together with all parties, will file a complaint and explain our evaluation of the elections," said Thu Wai, chairman of the Democrat Party (Myanmar).

"There was vote rigging and irregularities," he complained. "We are collecting evidence."

"We won the ballot but lost in advance votes," added Aung Than, chairman of the Democracy and Peace Party.

As western powers criticized what they called the sham elections, China's one-party government praised the junta for holding the polls.

"This is a critical step for Myanmar (Burma) in implementing the seven-step road map in the transition to an elected government, and thus is welcome," Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Hong Lei said. The election had been carried out in a "steady and smooth manner," he said.

Rebel positions shelled

Meanwhile, some 20,000 refugees from Burma who fled into neighboring Thailand following post-election clashes between government forces and the Democratic Karen Buddhist Army (DKBA) in the border areas were streaming back home as fighting subsided, welfare groups said.

But the situation remained tense as junta forces pounded positions of the ethnic minority rebel group at the Three Pagodas Pass area.

The junta used two planes to bombard rebel hideouts, a rebel spokesman said.

The DKBA is a breakaway group of Buddhist former soldiers and officers of the Karen National Liberation Army, one of the larger insurgent armies in Burma, which has been under virtually continuous military rule since 1962.

The DKBA has backed the junta but a faction split off in protests against the military plans to bring under its control some of the ethnic group armies, which currently act as border guards as part of a ceasefire agreement.

The junta has regained control of the town of Myawaddy from the DKBA on the Burmese side of the border with Thailand. The rebel seizure of the town led to the fighting.

Two key ethnic minority groups—the Democratic Alliance of Burma and the National Democratic Front, an umbrella organization of 11 armed rebel groups—said they were ready to back the DKBA in the fight for greater autonomy in their areas.

"The current battles are for the campaign for democracy, equality and self determination," said the Democratic Alliance of Burma.

Several key ethnic groups have denounced the junta's weekend election as a ploy to end their struggle for autonomy under a federal system.

rfa

Reporter Shot in Myawaddy Fighting

2010-11-09T23:20:00.001+06:30

A Burmese reporter in Myawaddy Township was shot and critically injured on Tuesday while covering the fighting between an anti-government Karen group and Burmese government troops.

Thein Htun, 39, a reporter for the Rangoon-based Hmu-gin (Crime) journal was shot near a city administration building, sources said. He is being treated at Myawaddy hospital.

He sustain a servere wound, a witness at the scene told The Irrawaddy.

According to local residents, the father of Than Dai, who is a candidate of the junta-backed Union Solidarity and Development Party, was shot dead by Democratic Karen Buddhist Army soldiers when fighting broke out in the town on Monday.

At least three people have died and 29 people have been injured since Monday and “many of the injured at Myawaddy hospital are women,” said a source.

More than 20,000 Burmese have sought refuge across the border in Thailand's Mae Sot District.

The English language Bangkok Post on Tuesday quoted Third Army Commander Wannatip Wongwai as saying that all refugees are expected to return home by Tuesday evening.

Lt-Gen Wannathip said the Burmese side had reported that the situation in Myawaddy was under control.

Some refugees returned home on Tuesday morning, according to the newspaper.

irrawaddy

Eastern Burma ‘Comparable’ to Darfur: TBBC

2009-11-04T05:08:00.001+06:30

The growing instability in eastern Burma from ongoing military conflict is forcing thousands of ethnic people to become internally displaced persons (IDPs), according to a press release from the Thailand Burma Border Consortium (TBBC) on Thursday.

The statement said at least 75,000 people in eastern Burma were forced to leave their homes during the past year, meaning the number of IDPs in the area now exceeds half a million. TBBC compared the scale of displacement to that of Darfur in eastern Sudan.

“After 25 years of responding to the consequences of conflict in eastern Burma, it is tragic to see the causes remain unaddressed and the situation is likely to further deteriorate during the next 12 months.” Jack Dunford, the executive director of TBBC said in the statement.

Bangkok-based TBBC, an umbrella group of aid agencies that supplies a high percentage of humanitarian aid to IDPs and refugees at the Thai-Burmese border, said that between August 2008 and July 2009, some 120 communities were destroyed, making a total of more than 3,500 villages and “hiding sites” in eastern Burma that have been destroyed or forcibly relocated since 1996.

The main threats to human security in eastern Burma are related to militarization, TBBC said. While military patrols and landmines are the most significant and fastest growing threats to civilian safety and security, forced labor and restrictions on movement are the most pervasive threats to livelihoods.

Duncan McArthur, a coordinator of emergency relief for the TBBC, told The Irrawaddy on Thursday: “The people don’t have any security and our survey indicates the situation is getting worse.

“We have documented the situation to highlight the ongoing problems for ethnic people in eastern Burma,” he said.

The northern Karen area and southern Shan State have the highest rates of recent displacement, according to the report. Almost 60,000 Karen villagers are in hiding in the mountains of Kyaukgyi, Thandaung and Papun townships, a third of who fled from artillery attacks or the threat of Burmese government troop patrols during the past year.

In Shan State, nearly 20,000 civilians from 30 villages were forcibly relocated by the Burmese government forces in retaliation for Shan State Army-South operations in Laikha, Mong Kung and Keh Si townships, said TBBC.

The statement said that the scale of displaced villages has been recognized as the strongest single indicator of crimes against humanity in eastern Burma

irrawaddy

Patrols, movement restrictions and forced labour in Toungoo District

2009-10-26T03:34:00.001+06:30

On May 11th 2009, an explosion in Toungoo District, the northernmost in Karen State, killed Burma Army commander Kaung Mya (sometimes written Kaung Myat). Subsequent reports identified the explosion as part of an ambush by soldiers from the Karen National Liberation Army's (KNLA's) 2nd Brigade.[1] Based in the Kler La area in central Toungoo since early 2007, Kaung Mya's command of Military Operations Command (MOC)[2] #5 had earned him infamy amongst local villagers, due to his aggressive military operations, heavy use of forced labour and stringent restrictions on movement and trade.[3]

Unfortunately for villagers in the area, the death of Kaung Mya has not materially improved human rights conditions in Toungoo District. Khin Maung Hsint, a subordinate who previously operated in the Play Hsah Loh area, Tantabin Township, has replaced Kaung Mya. Long time observers have described Khin Maung Hsint as even more repressive than his predecessor and, since assuming control of MOC #5, he has issued new orders for forced labour and restrictions, as well as harassed and sexually assaulted female villagers in areas under SPDC control. "[Khin Maung Hsint] is the one who has power," a KHRG field researcher recently reported. "After the commander [Kaung Mya] died, he took responsibility for MOC #5... [and now] there is no one above him. He does not respect the villagers. He demands things from them and forces them to do things again and again."

For the thousands of villagers who remain displaced and in hiding due to a State Peace and Development Council (SPDC) offensive against villagers (which started in Toungoo District at the end of 2005) the situation remains tenuous as well: KHRG researchers report severe food shortages and continued patrols that target villagers and undermine their attempts to support themselves. Villagers in areas under SPDC control, meanwhile, report movement restrictions, forced labour and demands for material support that significantly undermine their ability to meet basic needs.

Continued vulnerability for IDPs in hiding

Beginning on November 26th 2005, SPDC forces began in Toungoo District what KHRG has subsequently referred to as the 'northern Karen State offensive.' For the next three years, during all seasons, the Burma Army has conducted an extensive campaign against villagers in Toungoo, Nyaunglebin and Papun districts. Thousands of troops flooded the area as the SPDC attempted to consolidate control over the region. Areas that could not be brought within SPDC control have been depopulated, with villagers forcibly moved to SPDC-controlled villages, towns and relocation sites. Villagers that have escaped relocation have been subsequently targeted, and the SPDC army has employed tactics designed to force them out of hiding or bring about their demise. Villages, food stores and farm fields have been destroyed while groups in hiding have been hunted by SPDC patrols, shelled and shot on sight.[4]

The offensive has displaced tens of thousands of people, who have subsequently been living lives of incredible vulnerability. Possessions, food supplies and farms have been repeatedly abandoned or destroyed, undermining villagers' attempts to address health, nutritional, educational and other social needs. Many villagers have ultimately fled to refugee camps in Thailand. Thousands, however, remain in hiding in Karen State's northern three districts, including Toungoo District. The Thailand Burma Border Consortium (TBBC) describes the area as the most "heavily militarised" in eastern Burma and home to the highest rates of displacement. According to TBBC, in northern Karen State, 27,000 people were displaced in the 12 months leading up to October 2008; 60,000 remain in hiding.[5]

In Toungoo District, thousands of villagers displaced by the northern Karen State offensive continue to live in areas not controlled by the SPDC. Ongoing army patrols force them to remain in dangerous hiding places, often going without food for days at a time. In some cases, hiding sites are far away from home villages and farms. In other cases, hiding sites are close to fields. In either case, the potential presence of SPDC patrols limits access to fields; KHRG has repeatedly documented the shooting of villagers while they work on their farms. This has disrupted planting cycles, undermining villagers' attempts to restore food supplies depleted by repeated flight. The arrival of Commander Kaung Mya in 2007 further undermined villagers' livelihoods, as he ordered restrictions movement of food and medicine within Toungoo in an attempt to limit their access to necessary goods.[6]

At the end of 2008, KHRG field researchers began reporting that SPDC operations in some upland areas of northern Karen State had been slightly reduced. In Nyaunglebin and Papun districts, KHRG was able to confirm that battalions posted to the districts had been rotated out. Scheduled rotations are normal SPDC practice, but the new battalions reduced the number of patrols and abandoned some frontline positions, limiting their actions to areas near major roads, army camps and SPDC-controlled villages.[7] Though KHRG does not have information regarding battalion rotations in Toungoo District, researchers in the area say they have seen a similar reduction in SPDC activity, including the abandonment of some SPDC camps. In January 2009, a KHRG researcher in Toungoo was able to enter and photograph a camp recently abandoned by SPDC soldiers. According to the researcher, SPDC mines remain in the area though the camp is no longer in use.

While SPDC activity has decreased, it has by no means ceased and SPDC patrols in all three districts continue to create security concerns and undermine the livelihoods of internally displaced people (IDP). After two consecutive rainy season agricultural periods were disrupted by SPDC patrols in 2007 and 2008, the 2009 farming period stands little chance of restoring food security for villagers. As the rainy season draws to a close, villagers report that they have still been unable to access their fields with the regularity necessary to protect them from encroachment by weeds and destruction by insects and wild animals. Consequently, severe food shortages are likely to continue unabated in Toungoo and, in spite of their efforts to support themselves, IDP villagers will remain heavily reliant on outside support from local aid groups delivering supplies brought across the border from Thailand.

It is important to note that, while the preponderance of SPDC activity focuses on consolidating control of villager's lives, clashes with the KNLA continue. Underscoring the fact that the Burma army has, in northern Karen State, most often targeted villagers rather than the KNLA, these clashes are most frequently the product of KNLA ambushes and brief, hit-and-run style attacks. When these attacks are successful, KHRG researchers report that villagers have been accused of supporting the KNLA, arrested, tortured and, in some cases, summarily executed. In other cases, villages have been shelled or shot at with rifles. On May 10th 2009, KNLA soldiers ambushed a Burma Army patrol between Baw and Yaw Sa Lo villages, Tantabin Township. Two SPDC soldiers were hurt. In response, SPDC soldiers shelled a nearby village and flat farm fields; a KHRG field researcher reports that soldiers fired 15 rounds from an 81 mm mortar and 20 rounds from a 60 mm mortar. At the end of July, the same researcher reported that mortars fired by the SPDC at a village in the Play Hsa Loh area had recently injured several villagers.

Movement restrictionsIn areas of Toungoo District where villagers live under SPDC control, KHRG researchers report that the Burma Army continues to impose stringent movement restrictions. These restrictions are not new. During the northern Karen State offensive, villagers have been required to build bamboo fences around the perimeters of their villages, limiting entry and exit points to a few easily monitored locations. Curfews have also been imposed, preventing villagers from sleeping near their fields. Traditionally, many farmers build small huts and stay near their fields during key moments in the agricultural cycle, so that they can both protect crops from wild animals and avoid wasting daylight making labour and time intensive trips between home villages and farms.

Daytime travel has also been restricted, with people sometimes confined to their villages and entirely prevented from accessing their fields or visiting nearby villages or larger towns like Toungoo and Kler La for business or to see relatives. In other cases, travel permission has been granted on a case-by-case basis to 'trusted' villagers, those who could purchase official travel documents or those who could negotiate and make bribes. Villagers caught outside their villages without permission or during curfew times have risked, at a minimum, being fined or, in many cases, suffering arrest, detention, torture or summary execution.

KHRG researchers report that the travel restrictions and punishments described above continue. In the Kler La area, for instance, villagers must pay 5,000 kyat (approx. US $4.72) to travel by motorbike, 10,000 kyat (approx. US $9.43) to go by bicycle and 500 kyat (approx. US $0.47) to leave their villages on foot.[8] Checkpoints on larger roads, such as the motor road connecting Kler La to Toungoo Town, also charge extra fees to villagers regardless of whether they have already purchased travel permission. Many villagers attempt to avoid making these payments. On March 9th 2009, SPDC soldiers from the Y--- army camp arrested villagers from Th--- village for driving three bullock carts to collect leaves for roof thatching without permission. The villagers were taken to the Y--- army camp. Soon after, the Th--- village head was ordered to arrange payment of 150,000 kyat (approx. US $141.51) for the release of the men and their bullock carts.

Forced labour, demands for material support and sexual assaultLike in other areas under SPDC control in Karen State, KHRG field researchers report that forced labour and demands for 'taxes,' food and other supplies remain the primary human rights abuse suffered by villagers in Toungoo District. These abuses are designed to enable the day-to-day operation of the Burma Army, which supports itself based upon an explicit 'live off the land' policy. Commanders are instructed to meet their basic logistical needs locally, rather than through the central supply system.[9] The predictable result of such a policy, especially when coupled with the general impunity and lack of accountability with which the military operates, is an extensive array of exploitative demands that burden local villagers on a daily basis.

Highlighting the frequency with which villagers in SPDC controlled areas of Toungoo suffer exploitative abuses, a KHRG research recently remarked that he had little forced labour to report, because villagers felt it pointless to comment upon. "The villagers in Toungoo have to face forced labour continuously," he wrote in August. "Because it is so frequent, it is not good to ask the villagers about it every day. The villagers are fed up with providing us information about forced labour, because they have reported it so many times and it still does not stop." This should not be taken to mean that forced labour is not worth remarking upon: instead, it is a distressing indicator of the perverseness with which forced labour is utilised by the SPDC, and the frustration felt by villagers who, year after year, have had to work as unpaid labourers for the army, fixing roads, clearing brush, gathering materials, building and repairing army camps and portering equipment; While at the same time attempting to meet their basic livelihood requirements.

For the period covered by this report, KHRG researchers said that frequently soldiers from MOC #5 based in Kler La have ordered villagers to cut bamboo and transport it using their personal trucks and ox carts. Twice a month, villagers were also ordered to use the bamboo to make fences around villages and military camps, as well as clean the camp and carry water. On each occasion, 30 villagers from Gk---, Gkl---, W---, Gko---, M--- and K--- villages are required to participated. Villagers say that they are required to cut bamboo for the soldiers with such frequency that it has become difficult to find pieces large enough to satisfy the soldiers; since Khin Maung Sint assumed command of MOC #5, villagers in the Kler La area have been ordered to cut down their durian and mango trees to provide wood in addition to bamboo for the construction of army barracks. Having to cut these trees down is particularly injurious to villagers, as the trees serve as a source of income and food and have already had to grow many years before being able to produce fruit.

According to KHRG researchers in Toungoo District, the Burma Army also continues to demand that villagers provide money, food and alcohol. Infantry Battalion #73, for instance, led by Battalion Commander Than Soe Oo, based in Zayatkyi army camp, Tantabin Township, has been making daily demands for rice, fish paste, pigs and chickens from at least three villages in the area, including Mah Lah Gone, Thah Yah Gone and Thay Chah Shay Lay Tih. Residents of Thah Yah Gone and Mah Lah Gone have also been required to provide porters to carry equipment, or make payments of 45,000 and 50,000 kyat (approx. US $42.45 and $47.17), respectively.

Since August 6th 2009, meanwhile, Khin Maung Sint, the new commander of MOC #5, has been active in the Kler La area. In every village he encounters, KHRG researchers say he makes demands for food and other support. He also demands whiskey or other alcohol from shopkeepers; an expensive demand, given that a bottle of whiskey typically costs 30,000 kyat (aprox. US $28.30). KHRG researchers also report that Khin Maung Sint frequently gets drunk, sometimes harassing or assaulting female villagers. On three separate occasions since August 18th, KHRG has documented Khin Maung Sint drunkenly assaulting women, including ordering them to drink alcohol, strip for him and, in two cases, kissing and fondling them. While KHRG has not confirmed any cases of rape by Khin Maung Sint, on September 4th 2009 the Free Burma Rangers [FBR] reported two other cases in which he had raped women. In the same report, FBR also said the he had arrested and detained male villagers after losing games of cards or snooker.[10]

Conclusion

Like many people across Karen State, villagers in Toungoo District continue to be faced with difficult questions about how and where they can best survive. Villagers in places under SPDC control must contend with the daily burdens of exploitative SPDC rule. These villagers must attempt to meet their basic needs while working under severe restriction, with limited access to farms and with working hours and resources consistently siphoned away by SPDC demands for forced labour. Villagers attempting to avoid SPDC control, meanwhile, must attempt to meet their basic needs while avoiding SPDC patrols, which actively seek to kill them. Though KHRG researchers report that SPDC activity decreased in some upland areas of Toungoo District after the end of 2008, the Burma Army remains active enough to undermine IDP villagers' livelihoods and keep them in positions of intense vulnerability. Continued abuse in SPDC controlled areas, meanwhile, indicates that villagers suffer not only when there are attacks and offensives; the daily burdens intrinsic to the presence of the Burma Army are sufficient to severely undermine human rights in rural Karen State.

khrg

Starving them out: Food shortages and exploitative abuse in Papun District

2009-10-26T03:27:00.002+06:30

As the 2009 rainy season draws to a close, displaced villagers in northern Papun District's Lu Thaw Township face little prospect of harvesting sufficient paddy to support them over the next year. After four straight agricultural cycles disrupted by Burma Army patrols, which continue to shoot villagers on sight and enforce travel and trade restrictions designed to limit sale of food to villagers in hiding, villagers in northern Papun face food shortages more severe than anything to hit the area since the Burma Army began attempts to consolidate control of the region in 1997. Consequently, the international donor community should immediately provide emergency support to aid groups that can access IDP areas in Lu Thaw Township. In southern Papun, meanwhile, villagers report ongoing abuses and increased activity by the SPDC and DKBA in Dwe Loh and Bu Thoh townships. In these areas, villagers report abuses including movement restrictions, forced labour, looting, increased placement of landmines in civilian areas, summary executions and other forms of arbitrary abuse. This report documents abuses occurring between May and October 2009.

Concentrated attacks by joint Burma Army and Democratic Karen Buddhist Army (DKBA) forces on Karen National Liberation Army (KNLA) 5th Brigade in Papun District have been predicted since KNLA 7th Brigade lost control of three camps in Pa'an during June 2009. [1] To date, KHRG researchers have not reported a significant increase in armed conflict. They have, however, reported increased military activity in the government-controlled areas of southern Papun. These activities include increased army patrols, planting of landmines in civilian areas, forced labour, restrictions on travel and trade, arbitrary violence and summary executions.

The recent increase in abuse by the SPDC and DKBA has prompted at least 30 villagers to flee northwards, to areas in northern Papun's Lu Thaw Township already populated by high concentrations of internally displaced people (IDPs). These newly displaced villagers are arriving in an area that has been facing food shortages since the State Peace and Development Council (SPDC) began an offensive in northern Karen State during February 2006. [2] As the 2009 rainy season agricultural season draws to a close with prospects for only a very limited harvest, veteran researchers, relief workers and community leaders say that IDPs already hiding in Lu Thaw are amidst a food crisis more severe than anything suffered since 1997, when thousands of villagers began to be displaced by SPDC attempts to consolidate control of the region.

Food shortages and a deliberately damaged harvest

"The hunger that villagers face now is more serious than any crisis that villagers have faced since 1997. In 1997, the Burmese government used only the army to attack villagers and took control of a few areas. Some villagers fled to Thailand, but the remaining villagers were helped once or twice by KORD [Karen Office of Relief and Development], CIDKP [Committee for International Displaced Karen People] plus other CBOs; later the villagers could support themselves again. Due to the SPDC offensive in Northern Karen state [starting in 2006], the army not only attacks villagers, also now the army controls more land, cuts connections between villages and patrols near hiding sites. Following this, the villagers haven't had enough land to farm and [there are] fewer places to hide."

Beginning during November 2005, KHRG began reporting significant military build-up and concentrated attacks on villagers in Toungoo District, which by February 2006 had spread to nearby Nyaunglebin and Papun Districts. Since then, the SPDC has systematically attempted to consolidate control of these northern Karen areas by forcibly relocating thousands of villagers to military-controlled relocation sites. Thousands of villagers that have instead chosen to flee into hiding in the area's forested upland areas are now targeted by Burma Army and DKBA patrols, who shoot villagers on sight as well as employ other tactics designed to force them out of hiding, including burning villages, farm fields and food stores.

The Burma Army has successfully deployed these tactics - in a campaign referred to by KHRG as the 'Northern Karen State Offensive' [3] - to significantly undermine food security for villagers. Prior to 2006, Burma Army attempts to extend into northern Karen areas were cyclical, typically only occurring during the winter and hot seasons and subsiding again during the monsoon rains. Villagers have sometimes likened these attacks to a hot wind blowing through the area, painful and difficult to withstand but survivable if one could wait it out. Since 2006, however, Burma Army troops have sustained their attacks through all seasons, setting up and occupying camps near IDP hiding areas and conducting patrols year round.

The consistent Burma Army presence has disrupted normal agricultural cycles for villagers, who were in the past able to farm and produce food supplies during the rainy season and then rely on them through periods of SPDC dry season activity. Since 2006, however, villagers have been unable to regularly access farms, causing them to miss crucial stages in the planting season and leaving their fields vulnerable to disease, weeds and destruction by insects and wild animals.

"All of us can't get enough rice. Almost everyone had finished their rice [stores]. There are some who can continue one month longer. There's no way to get enough food for the whole year. I don't know how to give advice. Just as we experienced in the past, we have to look after each other. If we can find paid labour, we will do it. It's because of the SPDC that we can't work very well and there's not enough space for everyone to prepare hill fields. So, the problem of food shortages happens."

"We couldn't get enough rice because the SPDC came and [we] dared not work in good places [where there was sufficient arable land]. All the places that are good for growing rice are located close to SPDC camps. The places we stay now are not good [for growing rice]. We don't dare to go and look for food freely because of the SPDC. If we go somewhere and we meet with them [the SPDC], they shoot us."

For villagers in northern Papun, three full agricultural periods have now passed without the ability to effectively farm. Though SPDC activity decreased in some areas from December 2008 to May 2009, it was not enough for villagers to regularly access farm areas. Moreover, even though the Burma Army abandoned 13 camps in Lu Thaw Township during December 2008, villagers were mostly afraid to farm arable land near these camps because of patrols that continued to return. October signals the approach of the 2009 harvest period, and villagers say that they do not expect to reap paddy sufficient to support them for more than a few months. This will be the fourth harvest season since the Northern Karen State Offensive began disrupting farming in Lu Thaw.

Villagers predict a weak harvest in 2009 for five main reasons. First, available land is shrinking while demands for land continue to increase. The number of IDPs in hiding in Lu Thaw continues to increase even as the SPDC has steadily expanded areas it can effectively operate or threaten operations in Lu Thaw, limiting areas that IDPs can regularly access for farming. Second, not all of the land in IDP hiding areas is suitable for rotational hillside agriculture. Third,land that is suitable for paddy cultivation is becoming increasingly depleted of nutrients. A typical family would normally expect to farm a 5 hectare (12.35 acre) field [4] for 2 or 3 years before leaving it fallow for up to 7 years so that soil can recover and replenish nutrients. [5] As IDP hiding areas have become more populated, space for families to rotate fields has become more difficult. When one considers that a given family actually needs significantly more land than it farms at any given moment to sustainably support itself, it becomes clear that the current concentrations of IDPs in Lu Thaw would likely struggle to support themselves in the best of circumstances. Fourth, circumstances have not been good; villagers report that the weather in 2009 has not been suitable for growing paddy. Fifth, villagers say that Burma Army patrols and movement restrictions have prevented them from maintaining and nurturing their fields as necessary.

The difficulty villagers who have chosen to avoid living under SPDC control have supporting themselves does not appear to be lost on Burma Army forces in the area. Villagers leaving SPDC-controlled areas are prevented from carrying more than a small tin of rice. This prevents IDPs from travelling to SPDC-controlled areas to purchase food supplies, or villagers from SPDC-controlled areas from meeting IDPs in 'jungle markets' where villagers often meet to exchange goods and news. The Burma Army is, in other words, starving out villagers who remain in hiding.

Villagers already displaced and in hiding are not in a position to provide support for themselves, in spite of their best efforts, nor are they prepared to support newly arrived displaced people. Influx of new IDPs has placed further strains on already limited and overtaxed farmland. On August 23rd 2009 for instance, 30 villagers in five families from Ny--- and Dt--- villages, M--- village tracts, Bu Though Township, left their homes in an SPDC-controlled area to hide in the forest near Bw--- village tract. These villagers already faced difficult livelihood circumstances due to exploitative abuse by the SPDC and DKBA. Already drawing from limited resources, they could also only carry limited food supplies during flight. Because the farming season is too far advanced in August, these families would not be able to produce food supplies sufficient to last them through the winter and summer seasons until the next planting period in May and June.

Consequences for children, education and health

"Usually sickness causes more problems for children. Children are getting colds and runny noses. Sometimes they've suffered stomach aches. Older people don't usually get sick."

"We had fields to farm. We couldn't work very so we couldn't get enough rice. Now we have people with problems like getting sick, but we have no one to look after them. We ourselves have to treat these illnesses."

The chronic food shortages in Papun mean that villagers are more vulnerable to health problems, with children among the most affected. In September, villagers began reporting incidence of a "mysterious" disease, describing symptoms akin to a serious and rapidly progressing flu. On September 22nd 2009, the Karen Teachers Working Group reported that the Th'Dah Der village middle school had been closed on September 7th because 300 students had become sick. [6] On the same day, The Irrawaddy reported that the Backpack Health Worker Team (BPHWT) had sent a team of medics to the area to treat victims and determine the nature of the illness, which BPHWT described as involving sore throats, coughs and high fevers of 40 degrees Celsius (104 degrees Fahrenheit). KHRG has not been able to confirm the nature of the disease, but field researchers sent to the area say that 7 villages with a population of 1,476 people have been affected. The villages include Ta Da Der, Ta Oh Der, Ta Kaw Toh Baw, Tay Muh Der, Htee Shee Kee, Bp'Deh Der and Thoo Bpo Kee, all in Lu Thaw Township. On October 12th 2009, BPHWT released a statement saying that it was working with residents of 8 villages and an affected population of 2,000. In the same statement, the group said that tests retrieved from Lu Thaw and processed in Thailand indicate that the symptoms are explained as seasonal human influenza with an "unusual seasonal peak. [7]

In spite of resource shortages, IDPs in Lu Thaw have been able to operate some schools, though on limited schedules and not for full school years. In some cases, schools have been temporary bamboo shelters or natural clearings near forest hiding sites. Cross-border support from groups in Thailand has enabled some schools to operate more effectively, even in cases where families are unable to continue supporting their children. In N--- village tract, Lu Thaw Township, for instance, the Thaw Khee Der school is able to provide education for 39 students whose families can no longer feed them. Of the total, 11 are under 9 years old, 15 are between 10 and 14 years old and 13 are between 15 and 18. In other places, such as Kay Bpoo village tract, fewer families are sending their children to school than in 2008. These families say they must rely on their children to help look for food in the forest.

Increased SPDC and DKBA activity in southern Papun

Beginning in mid-May, SPDC and DKBA forces increased activity in Bu Tho and Dweh Loh townships, issuing new movement restrictions, demanding food and supplies and conscripting villagers as porters and forced labourers. During May, soldiers from SPDC Light InfantryDivision (LID) #11 and DKBA Special Battalion #777 (also called Gk'saw Wah, or 'White Elephant' Battalion) briefly attempted to clear the Maw Low River area in Dweh Loh Township of KNLA 5th Brigade Battalion #102. DKBA soldiers were led by Officer Pah Nah Dee. Based upon KHRG radio monitoring, KNLA soldiers made radio contact with the DKBA and warned them not to cross the Maw Low River. The joint SPDC/DKBA force did not cross the Maw Low River, though it remained active among villages to the southeast of the river, where it planted landmines and issued movement restrictions.

At the end of July, KHRG researchers report that DKBA activity in Bu Tho and Dweh Loh decreased while commanding officers returned to the group's central headquarters at Myaing Gyi Ngoo for a large meeting. In September, however, the group resumed activity along with the Burma Army. SPDC soldiers in Bu Tho and Dweh Loh are in Light Infantry Battalions (LIB) #212, 216, 219, 243 and 434 all under the command of LID #11, [8] led by Commander Than Htunt headquartered at the Lay Kay army camp in Thaton District. DKBA troops cooperating with Burma Army soldiers are from Brigade #333, Special Battalion #666 and the Gk'saw Wah Special Battalion #777. Reports of increased DKBA and SPDC activity in Lu Thaw have also been confirmed by the Karen Information Center (KIC), which reported on September 23rd that an offensive had begun against KNLA 5th Brigade. [9]

SPDC and DKBA soldiers continue to enforce stringent movement restrictions on villagers across Bu Tho and Dweh Loh townships. Villagers have reported travel restrictions in Th---, Kl-- -, P---, K---, Kl---, L---, Th---, T---, Ht---, Me1---, Bp---, Ma---, Me2--- and Me3--- villages. [10] Residents of these villages have long been under nightly curfews, while they also report sometimes being put on a blanket, 24-hour restriction in which they are not allowed to leave their villages for weeks at a time. Life under such movement restrictions disrupts agricultural cycles much as the armed patrols undermine farming for villagers hiding in Lu Thaw Township. Villagers in Bu Tho and Dweh Loh risk being arrested, tortured and summarily executed as accused KNLA supporters if caught violating the movement restrictions, even if only to tend to their farms. Left uncared for, crops are vulnerable to wild animals, bugs and disease while crucial moments in the agricultural period are missed.

On June 19th 2009, for instance, soldiers from Burma Army LIB #243 led by Deputy Battalion Commander Thaw Hteh Oo based in Gkay Gkho military camp, Dweh Loh Township, placed villagers in Ma--- village tract under movement restrictions. Villagers were ordered not to leave their villages and warned that they would be treated as 'rebels' and shot on sight if encountered by soldiers outside. Villagers have not been able to access their farms since this time, guaranteeing that their crops have been destroyed. In G--- village, crops in twelve hill-fields and twelve wet paddy fields are confirmed have been ruined. This ensures that the households of twenty-four local villagers will not have paddy during the coming year. [11]

On September 18th, a 17-year-old villager from Meh Gkoo Htar, Bu Thoh Township, was shot after he failed to hail to a checkpoint. According to KIC, the boy was both deaf and mute. [12] In the same update, KIC also reported that DKBA soldiers led by Pah Nah Dee shot and killed Saw Htoh Gkoh, 35 years old, as he worked on his betel nut plantation outside Htee Doh Htar village. Htee Doh Htar has been under full SPDC control since 1995, but Saw Htoh Gkoh was in violation of a movement restriction and the soldiers accused him of making contact with the KNLA.

On September 27th 2009, two villagers from Way Sa village in Bu Tho Township were accused of making contact with the KNLA, taken by soldiers to a camp used by LIB #434 and then executed. The victims were Saw Hah Nay, a 28-year-old Karen man and Ah Ka Ma, a 35-yearold Muslim.

Two days later, on September 29th, Burma Army LIB #434 accused, arrested and executed three more villagers from Way Sa village. The victims were Ah Sa, a (different) 30-year-old Muslim man, and La Myint and Win Gyi, 20 and 32-year-old Burmese men.

Villagers also report that from May until June and again since September the DKBA has increased the number of landmines it has placed in civilian areas throughout Bu Tho and Dweh Loh townships. According to the villagers, they are not being notified of the location of the new landmines, which are on busy paths used by villagers, in farm field huts, around paddy fields and along the banks of canals. According to a report from a KHRG field researcher in September, one of these newly placed landmines recently killed Saw Pah Bploh, 50 years old, as he walked home from tending to his buffalo near Me4--- village tract, Bu Tho Township. "They don't inform villagers where the landmines are," said the researcher. "It causes big problems for villagers. Now they do not dare to go and work--- in their fields."

On June 6th, two buffalo and a dog owned by villagers from T--- village in Me4--- village tract, Bu Thoh Township, were killed by landmines planted by soldiers of DKBA Special Battalion #666 under the command of Saw Ba Thay. Every village in Me4--- village tract is currently occupied by DKBA soldiers, who are requiring villagers to do daily 'set tha' messenger duty. [13] Paths connecting Me4--- village and Me3--- were also mined by the DKBA in September, cutting people off from the neighbouring village tract. The DKBA is apparently attempting to limit flows of information from SPDC controlled areas to Me4---, which it believes to be accessed by the KNLA.

Arbitrary violence

Villagers in government-controlled areas frequently report arbitrary violence by SPDC and DKBA soldiers. These incidents should be recognised as sharing a distinct character that distinguishes them from violence that KHRG usually refers to as extrajudicial or summary. In incidents of the latter type, such as summary or extrajudicial execution, soldiers punishing or killing villagers do so while providing allegations of KNLA support or other excuses that they believe to legitimate the violence. These abuses are arbitrary insofar as they are subject to the whim of particular officers or soldiers rather than a legal code or process by which villagers can present a defence. In many cases the allegations are specious or potentially cynical cover for other motives. [14] Still, it is useful to highlight the difference between cases where the SPDC or DKBA feel compelled to provide at least a nominal legitimating explanation for violent abuse, and cases in which no explanation is provided at all. Cases of the latter type serve to effectively highlight the fact that military personnel operate with such impunity they do not necessarily feel compelled to provide even the most cursory justification for violent abuse.

On July 3rd 2009, for instance, Deputy Battalion Commander Tin Win and soldiers under his command from DKBA Brigade #333 Column #1 entered D--- village, Me3--- village trat, Bu Tho Township. Upon arrival in D--- village, Tin Win called a meeting with area villagers. As the meeting opened, most of the villagers in attendance greeted Commander Tin Win with the Burmese language phrase "Nyein chan ba say," meaning 'peace be with you.' This is the phrase villagers are typically required to use when greeting DKBA officers. On this day, however, Saw N--- greeted officer Tin Win with the casual Karen language phrase "Gaw Ler Gay," meaning 'good morning.' In response, Saw Tin Win ordered Saw Naw Day to be bound, kicked and punched him repeatedly and then left him with a cut and badly bruised face and potentially broken left arm.

On August 5th 2009, soldiers from DKBA Brigade #333 Battalion #1 led by Saw Pah Mee conducted an extensive search for a deserter along the road to Ma Htaw village, Dweh Loh Township. During the search, a DKBA truck carrying officer Saw Pah Mee encountered a truck owned by U A---, who was transporting wood for bridge repairs. Saw Pah Mee ordered U A--- to make way for the DKBA column, but the villager could not move his truck far enough off the road because heavy rains had made the ground muddy and soft. At this point, Saw Pah Mee pulled U A--- out of his truck, threw him to the ground and beat him with a piece of wood meant for bridge repairs. Saw Pah Mee then un-holstered his pistol as if to kill U A---, but the villager's profuse apologies were sufficient to convince him to put away his weapon without firing. The DKBA column then proceeded on towards Ma Htaw village.

Forced labour, 'taxation' and looting

"The DKBA demands that we pay 'porter fees' for three months and 10,000 kyat [US $9.40] per month. The last time I paid them was February 25th 2009. I had to go and give [money] to the village head. The person who demands these porter fees is Saw Hser Htih. He's a company commander based in Papun at Ah Naunt Beh Gka--- On February 15th the DKBA demanded 150 thatch shingles. We had to send them to the W--- village head."

Villagers living in government-controlled areas continue to report exploitative abuse by the SPDC and DKBA, including demands for forced labour providing materials as well as acting as porters, guides and 'human minesweepers.' Villagers also report looting by DKBA soldiers, who have entered homes and taken cash and jewellery as well as food, household supplies and equipment.

On May 8th 2009, for instance, a joint force of SPDC and DKBA soldiers entered Me3--- village tract, Bu Tho Township, and began issuing demands for food, money and porters. The force was made up of 70 soldiers from Burma Army LIB #219 under the command of Deputy Battalion Commander Aung Zaw Oo and 45 soldiers from DKBA Battalion #777. LIB #219 demanded one goat, 5 viss (8 kgs./17.5 lbs.) of pork and 2 chickens. Based on local prices, the meat and livestock were worth 40,000 kyat (US $37.56). The DKBA soldiers demanded 20,000 kyat (US $18.78) in cash, and then ordered the head of Me3--- village tract not to inform their superiors that they had taken the money.

On May 10th, the joint force left Me3--- village tract and forced the village tract head and five other villagers to porter supplies and accompany them to Me5--- village. Upon arriving in Me5--- later that day, soldiers demanded goods valuing 61,000 kyat (US $52.28), including another goat, 1 basket (25 kgs./55.2 lbs.) of rice and 18 more chickens. The soldiers then released the porters from Me3--- village, ordered fifteen villagers from Me5--- to replace them and left the village.

On June 11th 2009, Burma Army soldiers from LIB #243 led by Deputy Battalion Commander Thaw Hteh Oo based out of Gkay Gkoh camp, Dweh Loh Township, forced 22 villagers from Koo Thoo Htah village and 29 villagers from Gkay Gkoh village to carry paddy. The villagers taken as porters by LIB #243 were gone for two days.

Elsewhere, villagers are required to pay porter fees rather than provide labourers to carry goods. In Gkyoh Klee Loh village area, DKBA Gk'saw Wah Special Battalion #777 Deputy Commander Saw Hser Htih has been demanding porter fees since November 2008. Large villages must pay 15,000 kyat (US $14.08). Villages with fewer households must pay 8,500 kyat (US $8).

Every year as the rainy season begins to draw to a close, soldiers typically order villagers to work as forced labourers providing supplies for the repair and maintenance of army camps. From August 17th to 21st 2009, DKBA Battalion G'kah Hsaw Wah Special Battalion #777 under the command of Saw Hser Htee based in Ma Htaw military camp, Dweh Loh Township, forced villagers from five villages to cut bamboo and provide bamboo for camp repairs. Affected villages included Thwah Koh Loh, Ta Huh Loh, Thah Ma Suh Loh, Khaw Gklah and Gka Dwee Koh.

On September 1st 2009, soldiers from Burma LIB #216 led by Company Commander Yeh Lay Htoh also based in Ma Htaw military camp forced five nearby villages to each fabricate and deliver 100 thatch shingles. Affected villages included Thwah Koh Loh, Ta Huh Loh, Thah Ma Suh Loh, Khaw Gklah and Ma Htaw.

Villagers' protection strategies

On August 28th 2009, LIB #217 left Gka Hee Gkyo military camp, Bu Tho Township, to be replaced by LIB #216 as part of a regular Burma Army troop rotation. As LIB #216 approached Gka Hee Gkyo, the battalion attempted to conscript villagers to walk in front of the battalion as human minesweepers and advance warning of KNLA ambush. As the soldiers approached H--- village, however, they were seen by Saw W---, who was leaving the village to work on his farm. Saw W--- returned to H--- village to warn the other residents, most of who were able to flee in time and avoid conscription. LIB #216 was still able to capture Saw L---, age 57, who they ordered to act as guide. Soon afterwards, the soldiers triggered a landmine as they walked. The Deputy Battalion Commander and a private were killed. LIB #216 slept in H--- village that night and, after burying the two soldiers, left the left the village at 8 am the next morning, taking Saw L--- with them.

Worried about the safety of Saw L---, H--- village headwoman Naw Th--- organized an attempt to negotiate his freedom. First she travelled to nearby Ht--- village, whose headwoman Naw G--- is famous locally for the fearlessness with which she has stood up to SPDC and DKBA soldiers in the past. The two headwomen then walked to Kaw Bpoo military camp, where they found LIB #216 as well as the villager Saw L---, who had not been harmed. Naw Th--- requested that Saw L--- be allowed to return with her to their village, but the camp commander refused saying that he had to be taken to Papun Town. Naw Th--- replied that if the soldiers took Saw L---, she would escort them because she believed the soldiers would kill him if she did not. On August 31st she returned to Papun Town with soldiers from LIB #216 and Saw L---. Later the same day both villagers returned to Hsaw Bwe Der unharmed.

Conclusion

"For the future, if possible we would like to go back and stay in our old village to farm our fields which were destroyed by the SPDC. If the SPDC moves away, we'll go back--- and have better livelihood conditions. Our children will have a chance to study smoothly, and then they'll know what to do next--- They [the SPDC] didn't come to develop our village. They destroyed the village and made us poorer. There's no hope that they'll develop the village; they only make destruction and kill people."

Villagers in government-controlled areas of Papun continue to face a set of abuses that make their daily livelihoods incredibly difficult: movement restrictions, risk of accusation of KNLA support and the threat of harm by landmines constrain villagers' abilities to work on their farms, trade and undertake other activities to support themselves. Exploitative abuse such as forced labour, 'taxation' and looting, meanwhile, further deplete what resources villagers are able to muster. As a result, villagers continue to flee, seeking refuge in IDP areas like Lu Thaw Township.

The situation in Lu Thaw Township is dire. As the 2009 farming season draws to a close, villagers are looking towards a harvest that will not likely support them. Though villagers have recognized the role the weather has played in this year's weak paddy performance, their vulnerability to the vagaries of meteorological chance is the direct outcome of the Burma Army's attempt to starve them out of hiding. As of October 2009, these tactics are succeeding, insofar as some villagers are on the brink of starvation. It is important to emphasize that Lu Thaw Township is not an area that humanitarian aid agencies operating from Rangoon are permitted to access. At the end of September, Refugees International issued a report concluding, "Crossborder assistance remains a vital tool in meeting the humanitarian needs of displaced Burmese who can not safely reach Thailand." [16] This conclusion applies directly to the situation in Lu Thaw, and the international donor community should immediately provide emergency financial support to aid groups that can access IDP areas in Lu Thaw Township.

khrg

Burma orders 10,000 Chinese to leave

2009-10-02T04:28:00.001+06:30

(DVB)–Up to 10,000 Chinese nationals have been ordered by the Burmese government to leave the Kokang enclave in northeastern Burma, which was last month the scene of heavy fighting.

Rumours have spread throughout the region that fighting could again erupt between the Burmese army and a Kokang armed group, Reuters reported today.

A Burmese military analyst based in the China-Burma border could not confirm the reports, although the Chinese foreign ministry on Thursday advised its citizens not to travel to the region, and for Chinese businessmen in the region to exercise caution.

"The Foreign Ministry and the Chinese embassy in Myanmar [Burma] remind Chinese citizens and companies who are already in Northern Myanmar to pay attention to security risks," a statement on the foreign ministry website said.

The news coincides with reports that China is setting up new refugee camps close to its border with Burma, in anticipation of a fresh influx of refugees.

According to the Kachin News Group, the orders and funding to build the camps came directly from Beijing.

The three camps are around the Salween River that flows from China into Burma and are said to be able to accommodate around 15,000 people.

Around 37,000 civilians in the Kokang region in Shan state fled into China last month after the eruption of fighting. Chinese authorities reportedly provided food and shelter to the refugees, the majority of whom have since returned.

The influx of refugees pushed China into issuing a rare rebuke to the Burmese government, urging it to “properly deal with its domestic issue to safeguard the regional stability in the China-Myanmar border area”.

A report released by International Crisis Group last month said that the problem didn’t stop at conflict between the government and ethnic groups.

“Myanmar’s borders continue to leak all sorts of problems – not just insurgency, but also drugs, HIV/AIDS and, recently, tens of thousands of refugees,” it said.

Reporting by Joseph Allchin

Eight Democracy Activists Arrested

2009-09-18T04:02:00.001+06:30

Eight democracy activists including one Buddhist monk in Myingyan Township in Mandalay were detained by Burmese military authorities on Wednesday, according to local sources.

A friend of a detainee said that the authorities appeared at the homes of those arrested about 3 am and took them into custody.

The source said Myo Han, Wint Thu, Hla Myo Kyaw, Aung Myo Lat, Soe Ya Zar Phyo, Kyi Soe, one unidentified civilian and one unidentified monk were arrested.

The mother of Wint Thu said, “They came and searched our home about 2:30 am. My son wasn’t here, but later I heard he had been arrested.”

The detainees were taken to Mandalay, sources said. Sources believe the authorities made the arrests in an effort to disrupt planned demonstrations.

Special Police have been mobilized at various Myingyan monasteries and at youth gatherings in the township in recent days, sources said.

Burmese authorities have also increased security in Mandalay and Rangoon, and several other cities, as the Saffron Revolution’s two-year anniversary nears in September. Security forces have been deployed at strategic road locations and near monasteries and pagodas.

Last week in Pokokku, a journalist and two unidentified civilians were detained by the authorities while they attempted to interview monks in a monastery. Pokokku was a center of monk-led demonstrations in 2007.

The regime continues to regard monks with suspicion, and they have been restricted from traveling abroad and inside Burma without special permission.

Meanwhile, the Thailand-based Assistance Association for Political Prisoners-Burma (AAPP) reported that one monk from Rangoon and three from Magway Division were arrested in August.

According to the AAPP, of Burma’s 2,211 political prisoners, 237 are monks. According to official data, there are more than 400,000 monks in Burma. The monastic community has always played an important role in social and political affairs, often in opposition to oppressive regimes.

Ashin Gambira, one of the prominent Buddhist monk leaders of the 2007 demonstrations, is currently serving a 63-year prison sentence in Kalay Prison, located in a remote area of Sagaing Division.

Bo Kyi, the AAPP joint-secretary, said an estimated 100 political prisoners are in poor health and receive inadequate medical treatment.

irrawaddy

Karen troops ambush Burmese army

2009-09-17T04:37:00.000+06:30

Sept 15, 2009 (DVB)–Four government soldiers were killed and eight were injured after an ambush by ethnic Karen troops on Sunday near to the Thai-Burma border, according to Karen officials.

The attack occurred on a highway about 15 miles outside of Payathonsu (Three Pagodas Pass) border crossing point in southern Karen state.

Troops from the Karen National Liberation Army (KNLA), the armed wing of the Karen National Union (KNU), carried out ambush against government troops allegedly mobilized in the area for an offensive against the KNLA.

“This was a well planned battle and it didn’t take that long before ending,” said a KNLA official.

“[The government army] suffered four deaths and eight injuries… we only target military personals so we avoided fighting in areas with civilian presence.”

He added that the injured government soldiers are now being treated at a hospital in Three Pagodas Pass.

Meanwhile, a resident in Payathonsu said that another ambush by the KNLA that took place on the same day near the town has left at least three government soldiers injured.

“About seven Karen fighters ambushed the government troops patrolling in the area,” said the resident.

“Three [government] soldiers were hit, including a sergeant, and now they are at the Payathonsu hospital.” The Payathonsu town hospital was unavailable for comments.

On 9 September, two bombs exploded at a militia checkpoint about half a kilometer outside of Payathonsu.

No casualties were reported and the government troops, backed by the proxy Democratic Karen Buddhist Army (DKBA) in the region, are said to be investigating.

And another bomb exploded yesterday evening close to government buildings in Payathonsu, injuring one child. A KNU official denied involvement.

Reporting by Naw Noreen

Burmese political prisoner count ‘doubled' since 2007

2009-09-17T04:36:00.000+06:30

Sept 16, 2009 (DVB)–The number of political prisoners in Burma has more than doubled in the past two years, according to a report published by a New York-based rights group.

Unless the 2,200 political prisoners are released soon, the elections scheduled for March 2010 will hold no credibility, according to Human Rights Watch (HRW), who today released ‘Burma’s Forgotten Prisoners’.

The 35-page reports documents dozens of activists, monks and journalists who have been imprisoned since the September 2007 monk-led uprising.

"Burma's generals are planning elections next year that will be a sham if their opponents are in prison," said Tom Malinowski, Washington advocacy director at Human Rights Watch.

"Despite recent conciliatory visits by [United Nations] and foreign officials, the military government is actually increasing the number of critics it is throwing into its squalid prisons."

The report coincides with the start of HRW’s ‘2100 for 2010’ campaign, which aims to pressure the ruling junta into releasing all political prisoners by 2010.

"We named the campaign ‘2100 by 2010' in July - but since then, the number has grown to approximately 2250," said Malinowski.

"The United States, China, India, and Burma's neighbors in Southeast Asia should make the release of all political prisoners a central goal of their engagement with Burma, and use every tool of influence and leverage they have to achieve it."

Burma opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi was in August sentenced to a further 18 months under house arrest in a move widely seen by critics of the junta as a ploy to keep her in detention during the elections.

Suu Kyi’s National League for Democracy (NLD) party is yet to announce whether they will run in the elections, which many see as a foregone conclusion given that the redrafted 2008 constitution appears to guarantee continuation of military rule.

According to the constitution, even prior to voting at least 25 percent of parliamentary seats will be awarded to military generals.

A constitutional clause also bars Suu Kyi from running for office, were she to be released, because she was married to a foreigner.

Reporting by Francis Wade

Kachin officials resign with eye to elections Sept 8, 2009 (DVB)–Five senior officials from the largest Kachin ceasefire group have resigned in order

2009-09-10T03:35:00.000+06:30

(DVB)–Five senior officials from the largest Kachin ceasefire group have resigned in order to create a political party to run in the 2010 Burmese elections, party officials said.

The move comes following pressure from the Burmese junta on ceasefire groups to transform themselves into political parties and re-enter what it calls the ‘legal fold’.
The Kachin Independence Organisation (KIO), one of Burma’s most prominent ceasefire groups, had previously wavered over the transformation that would see them lay down arms and reduce the group size.
An announcement on 5 September that five senior officials, including vice-chairperson Dr Manam Tu Ja, were resigning will be warmly received by the government, which so far has had mostly rejections from ceasefire groups.
“We are not sacking them from our group – we are only letting them go to get involved in the practical business,” said James Lum Dau, foreign affairs coordinator for KIO. “They wanted to enter [the elections] and we also feel that they should.”
The KIO and other Kachin organisations, such as the New Democratic Army-Kachin and the Kachin National Consultative Assembly, last year formed the Kachin State Interim Committee.
The 49-member group was formed in order to carry out preparations for participation in the 2010 elections.
Dr Tu Ja said that it is now time to put the emphasis on forming a political party, and their plan was approved by the KIO’s Central Executive Committee.
“The KIO doesn’t disagree with civilians forming a political party to enter the elections even though they have no plan to do it by themselves,” said Tu Ja.
Meanwhile, the KIO has again stressed that it will not transform into a border guard force following increased pressure from the government.
Many believe that this is another strategy that will bring ceasefire groups under government control. This factor was a key catalyst behind recent fighting between the government and ceasefire groups in northeastern Burma’s Shan state.
“We want to be appointed as [Kachin state’s] regional guard force rather than be a border militia,” said James Lum Dau, following a general assembly meeting on 6 September.
“We said in the statement the KIO will avoid armed confrontation at all cost and that the [government] should work together with us for the fruit of the nation.”
Reporting by Aye Nai

Army abuse still rife in Karen state

2009-09-10T03:34:00.000+06:30

(DVB)–Abuse of civilians by Burmese troops and a proxy militia that forced 5000 into Thailand in June continue to occur in Karen state, according to a local human rights group.

Although fighting has calmed between Burmese troops, backed by the Democratic Karen Buddhist Army (DKBA), and the opposition Karen National Union (KNU), stability in the area remains fragile.
A report released today by the Karen Human Rights Group (KHRG) says that government and DKBA troops “continue to subject villagers to exploitative abuse and attempt to consolidate control of territory”.
“DKBA and [government] soldiers have been demanding that villagers work as porters, carrying supplies including rations and ammunition, as well as to walk in front of military columns where they serve as human minesweepers,” the report said.
The DKBA, who split from the KNU in 1994, are reportedly looking to wrestle control of Karen state from the KNU in order to create a trading zone.
Both DKBA and Burmese army units now occupy former KNU positions, many of which have been taken in recent months. During the June offensive, the KNU lost its strategically important Battalion 7 headquarters.
One of the focal points of the fighting was the Ler Per Har camp for internally displaced people. Many of the refugees who arrived in Thailand fled from the camp.
“Villagers continue to be forcibly recruited by the DKBA, which has been undertaking a consistent push for new recruits since August 2008,” said the report.
Reports have also emerged of the execution of a Karen village headman on 27 August, following which DKBA troops threatened his family.
"I think the DKBA doesn't have rules for their soldiers,” the report quoted a male villager as saying.
“They think the villagers are only animals. They kill people like killing animals. They killed this man for no reason and without asking any questions."
The conflict between the KNU and Burmese government has stretched over 60 years, and is thought to be one of the world’s longest running.
Reporting by Francis Wade

No Government Relief for Storm Victims

2009-09-02T23:51:00.001+06:30

Rathidaung: The victims of a tornado that hit an Arakanese village have not yet received any relief aid from the government authority, even though many houses were severely damaged in the storm that took place a month ago, said one villager.

"The chairman of Rathidaung Township, U Aung Myo Myint, along with other officials came to our village to inspect the area soon after the tornado slashed our village. He promised to provide us with relief, but there has been no aid for us from the government so far," he said.

The village of Ali Chaung under Net Chaung Village Tract in Rathidaung Township was hit by a tornado on 25 July. Nearly 70 of the 80 houses in the village were severely damaged.

"We had never seen a tornado in our area and it was the first time we had seen this. Ten people were injured and among them were one child and one elderly man who were critically injured. Many small houses were blown away by the tornado,” the villager added.

Officials from the local UNHCR office came to the village to provide food and other necessities to the victims soon after the storm occurred.

"Most villagers are homeless. So the UNHCR provided a rice bag, two cooking pots, a plastic sheet and clothes to each family that was affected in the village. But the government relief is not there," he said.

A witness who visited the village said that most of the villagers in the village have been unable to rebuild their damaged homes due to lack of money. Some families are still living on the ground floor of the village monastery.

"I think they still need aid from both government and local NGOs. Without aid the villagers can not build their houses and it is difficult to achieve a normal life," the witness said.

In Arakan State, the government typically fails to provide such disaster relief aid, despite that the Burmese government has a disaster and food ministry devoted to responding to natural disasters such as this.

An elder from Rathidaung said, "In Arakan State, the storm or cyclone usually attacks during the rainy season, but tornados are very rare. This is the first time a tornado has struck this township in 20 years."

A tornado also hit Gwa Township in southern Arakan State on 25 August, sinking one fishing boat and killing five people.

On 29 August, a ferry boat in Ann Township was sunk by a tornado and the operator, Ko Saw Shwe Maung, died in the accident.

narinjara

Rangoon School Closed because of Swine Flu

2009-09-02T22:59:00.000+06:30

A Rangoon private international school has been closed for a week after students tested positive for swine flu. It is the first school closure in Burma because of the A H1N1 virus.

The Web site of the International School Yangon [Rangoon] confirmed that five students have received treatment at a hospital after they were diagnosed.

According to the Web site, International School Yangon was informed by the Myanmar Ministry of Health that it would close Monday through Friday.

"When we reopen, we will continue the precautionary measures as recommended by the World Health Organization, the American Mission and the Ministry of Health," the Web site said.

School authorities declined to give further information when contacted by The Irrawaddy.

State-run media in Burma has failed to report the closure of the school because of swine flu.

The private international school offers an American curriculum from pre-school through grade 12 and has 427 students from 30 nations.

Meanwhile, The New Light of Myanmar, a state-run newspaper, reported on Wednesday that a 33-year-old female returnee on a flight from Singapore fell sick with flu-like symptoms and was transferred by the Department of Health to Waibagi Specialist Hospital on Tuesday.

Test confirmed the woman had been infected with the virus.

Passengers on her flight MI-518 and 131 airport staff are under medical surveillance.

A doctor near Rangoon noted that many border crossing areas of Burma do not monitor people entering the country for symptoms of swine flu.

“We are still in good shape with no deaths, but there will be more cases than are officially reported,” the doctor said. “But so far so good.”

Burma’s Ministry of Health has officially announced that 31 persons in have been infected with A H1N1; 25 have been released from hospitals. The rest are not in stable condition, according to the newspaper.

irrawaddy

30,000 flee as China rebukes Burma

2009-08-30T22:18:00.001+06:30

(DVB)–Around 30,000 refugees have crossed into China according to UN estimates as fighting between Burmese troops and ceasefire groups sparked a rare admonishment from China’s foreign ministry.

A spokesperson for the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) said today that between 10,000 and 30,000 civilians have fled Burma’s northern Shan state into China in recent days.

Fighting broke out between Burmese army troops and the Kokang ceasefire group yesterday after weeks of heightening tension.

Kokang troops yesterday attacked a police outpost near to Laogai town close to the China-Burma border, killing one Burmese police officer and injuring two.

The Kokang group has been joined by the United Wa State Army, Burma’s largest ceasefire group who had held a 20-year truce with the government.

Today China’s foreign ministry issued a statement urging Burma to "properly deal with its domestic issue to safeguard the regional stability in the China-Myanmar [Burma] border area".

"We also urge Myanmar to protect the safety and legal rights of Chinese citizens in Myanmar," said spokesperson Jiang Yu in the statement.

China is a key ally of Burma’s ruling junta, and seldom criticizes the internal affairs of its southern neighbour.

The mass of refugees pouring into China however, in addition to reports that a Burmese army shell fired across the border today killed a Chinese troop, has created a rare fissure between the two countries.

China has reportedly increased its troop patrols along the border area, and is said to be assisting the refugees.

“We have been informed that local authorities in Yunnan Province have already provided emergency shelter, food and medical care to the refugees,” said the UNHRC spokesperson Andrej Mahecic.

Local sources report that a number of civilians have also escaped into inner Shan state.

Reporting by Francis Wade

10,000 More Kokang Refugees Flee into China

2009-08-30T22:15:00.000+06:30

Another wave of 10,000 Kokang civilians fled into China on Thursday and Friday due to continued clashes between the Burmese army and ethnic militias in the Kokang region of northeastern Burma, said sources on the Sino-Burmese border.

Some 4,000 of the displaced villagers have not yet received food or shelter due to logistics, a relief worker in the area who requested anonymity told The Irrawaddy on Friday.

He said the newly arrived Kokang refugees are being divided into two shelters—one in Zheng Kang County and one in Gengma County where Chinese authorities are already providing humanitarian assistance to the more than 10,000 Kokangs who arrived within the last week.

He pointed out that many of the refugees are not sheltering in the camps because they can stay with their relatives on the Chinese side of the border.

Meanwhile, electricity and lines of communication have been cut in and around the Kokang capital, Laogai, said the relief worker.

Saeng Juen, one of the editors of the Thailand-based Shan Herald Agency for News, said at least 30,000 fled into China on Thursday. The Irrawaddy could not independently confirm this report, however.

A humanitarian NGO working in the region reported on Friday that refugees are still crossing the border into Yunnan Province and clashes between the Burmese army and the Kokang militia and its allies are ongoing.

Aung Kyaw Zaw, a Burmese analyst on the Sino-Burmese border, said that major clashes have been reported in Chinshwehaw, a Kokang town south of Laogai, at about 11 a.m. On Friday.

He said that Chinese authorities would only allow Kokang-based Chinese nationals to cross into China and that some refugees were stopped at the border crossing.

The Burmese army seized Laogai on Monday night without a single bullet being fired.

However, on Thursday morning a Burmese police patrol was ambushed by the Kokang army, and several clashes were later reported in and around Laogai between the Burmese army and an alliance of ethnic ceasefire groups: the Kokang militia, known as the Myanmar National Democratic Alliance Army (MNDAA), and its allies the United Wa State Army (UWSA) and the National Democratic Alliance Army—Eastern Shan State (NDAA).

The three insurgent groups are among 17 ethnic armies that have reportedly signed ceasefire agreements with the Burmese junta over the past 20 years.

irrawaddy

Thousands Flee Burma into China after Standoff

2009-08-28T03:06:00.001+06:30

BEIJING — Thousands of people have fled from northeastern Burma into China this month after tensions flared between government troops and ethnic minority groups, according to witnesses, an activist group and state media Wednesday.

Several thousand people a day have been streaming over the border into the town of Nansan in southern Yunnan province since Monday, one resident said. Some 10,000 have fled the Kokang area in Burma's northeastern Shan state between August 7 and 12 following a military confrontation, The Chongqing Evening Post reported Wednesday.

The US Campaign for Burma, a Washington, DC-based advocacy group, issued a statement saying the problems began when hundreds of Burmese troops were deployed in Kokang, a mostly ethnic Chinese region. Burma is also known as Myanmar.

The ruling military junta has been pressuring ethnic rebel groups to transfer their fighters to the government's control—something they are reluctant to do—as part of "border guard forces" before general elections next year, according to a statement by the rebels, who are part of an alliance of four ethnic groups called the Myanmar Peace and Democracy Front.

"Tensions between the junta and these cease-fire groups are extremely high and military confrontations between them are appearing frequently," said the statement, which the advocacy group released on the rebels' behalf.

The rebel statement said the standoff was triggered after Burma troops tried to raid the home of a rebel leader, where illegal drugs were allegedly being produced.

In China, a staffer from the Zhenkang County Public Security Bureau surnamed Li confirmed that large groups of people from Burma came to Nansan, though she gave no details.

A local business owner who only gave his name as Liu said the refugees have arrived in distinct waves. The first came between August 8 and 12. Many returned home after a few days, he said.

However, since Monday, several thousand people a day have returned to Nansan because of fears over the spreading conflict between armed groups, he said. Liu said some of his Burmese business partners and friends have sold off their jewelry, mobile phones and other valuables to flee.

"Businesses have been badly affected," Liu said. "Many people from Burma usually cross the border to buy clothes and other things. ... Not many people are coming to shop now."

Liu said the local government has set up refugee camps, while some people have been moving further into China.

irrawaddy

Webb meets Aung San Suu Kyi

2009-08-16T00:50:00.000+06:30

by Mungpi

New Delhi (Mizzima) - In a significant development, which came as a surprise, US Senator Jim Webb, visiting Burma as part of a whistle stop tour of five Asian countries, on Saturday met detained opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi, who was given an 18-month suspended sentence last week, her party spokesperson said.

Nyan Win, spokesperson of the National League for Democracy, said “Jim Webb met Aung San Suu Kyi this afternoon after coming back from Naypyitaw.”

The Virginian Senator, earlier on Saturday met representatives of 10 political parties including three leaders of the NLD, who were summoned for a meeting to Naypyitaw. The Senator also met the Burmese junta supremo Snr Gen Than Shwe before flying to the former capital Rangoon.

Eyewitnesses said, Aung San Suu Kyi was seen escorted from her house on Saturday afternoon and taken to the government guest house, where she met the visiting US Senator.

In Naypyitaw, Nyan Win said, leaders of his party met Webb but declined to give details of their discussions.

Webb is the senior most US official to meet Burma’s head of the junta Snr General Than Shwe in more than a decade. With the US reviewing its Burma policy, analysts believe that Webb’s visit could be useful for the Obama administration to get a clearer picture of the situation in the reclusive Southeast Asian nation.

But Nyan Win said, “We don’t have any official stand on Webb’s visit as of now. And we understand that he is not representing the United States."

Aung San Suu Kyi sentenced to 18 months

2009-08-11T16:58:00.000+06:30

New Delhi (Mizzima) - Burma’s opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi on Tuesday was sentenced to 18 months delayed prison term and will be taken back to her lakeside home.

The court on Tuesday announced three years prison term for Aung San Suu Kyi. But Lt-Gen Maung Oo, Minister of Home Affairs arrived in the court and read out an order signed by the junta’s military supremo Snr. Gen Than Shwe dated August 10.

The order states that if the court convicts Aung San Suu Kyi, half the sentence should be commuted and could be freed after the 18 months if she proves that she has good moral behaviour. The order said, her sentenced is commuted because she is the daughter of General Aung San, the architect of Burma’s Independence from the British colonial.

“The verdict on Aung San Suu Kyi is that she will be taken back to her house and kept under restrictions for 18 months and during which if she proves good moral she could be freed at the end of 18 months,” her lawyer Nyan Win told Mizzima on Tuesday.

He said, she will be kept under restrictions but could write a request for her rights including receiving guests. She will also be allowed to watch television and read newspapers.

Similarly, her two live-in party mates, Khin Khin Win and Win Ma Ma, who were also sentenced to three years in prison with hard labour, were also reduced to 18 months of suspended sentence and will be send back along with Aung San Suu Kyi to her home.

If all the three abides by the law and prove good moral, they could be freed at the end of the 18 months suspended sentence, the order states.

John William Yettaw, the American man, however, was handed seven years in prison with hard labour, for abetting Aung San Suu Kyi to violate the terms of her house arrest and other charges including violation of the immigration law.

-----------------------------------------------

Immediately after the court announced the verdict on Aung San Suu Kyi, Lt-Gen Maung Oo, Minister of Home Affairs arrived in the court and read out an order signed by the junta’s military supremo Snr. Gen Than Shwe dated August 10.

The order states that if the court convicts Aung San Suu Kyi, half the sentence should be commuted and if she proves that she has good moral behaviour she should be freed.

Aung San Suu Kyi will be taken back to her home and kept under restrictions. She will be allowed to accept guests but only with the prior permission of the authorities. For other rights she can send a written request, and she would be allowed to have a television and read newspapers.

Myanmar Building N-Reactor With N.Korean Help: Report

2009-08-03T15:08:00.001+06:30

A report in the Australian media says North Korea is helping the Myanmar junta build a secret nuclear reactor and plutonium extraction plant with the aim of acquiring its first nuclear bomb in five years time.

The report in the "Sydney Morning Herald" Saturday quotes two Myanmarese defectors as saying the nuclear complex, much of it in caves tunneled into a mountain at Naung Laing, in Myanmar's north, runs parallel to a civil reactor being built at another site by Russia that both the Russian and Myanmar say will be put under international safeguards.

One of the defectors was described as an "officer with a secret nuclear battalion in the Burmese army who was sent to Moscow for two years' training." The other, it said, "was a former executive of the leading regime business partner, Htoo Trading, who handled nuclear contracts with Russia and North Korea."

The revelations came just weeks after U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton voiced concerns that Pyongyang was transferring weapons and nuclear technology to fellow pariah state Myanmar.

rttnews

Flu Drugs Shortages in Rangoon

2009-07-27T04:33:00.000+06:30

RANGOON—While stocks of preventive medicines for influenza are diminishing in Rangoon, prices are soaring, with anti-seasonal flu injections costing up to 200,000 kyat (US $200) at some clinics.

Imported prophylactic drugs such as "Tamiflu" and "Vaxigrip," which are commonly used as preventative medicines against seasonal influenza (virus types A and B), are in high demand because of the H1N1 (swine flu) outbreak, which was declared a pandemic by the World Health Organization (WHO) on June 11.

Since Burma’s Health Ministry officially announced the incidence of swine flu infections in some people returning from abroad, some Rangoon residents have rushed to buy prophylactic flu medicines in panic, causing prices to sky-rocket, sources close to Rangoon-based drug companies said.

Normally, a vial of seasonal anti-flu prophylactic, which can used for injections, sells for 18,000 kyat ($18), the sources said. However, in recent days, pharmacies and medical supply stores have raised the price to between 50,000 and 100,000 kyat ($50 - $100).

At markets where previously Tamiflu was selling for 50,000 kyat per 10-capsule box, it is now priced at $60 to $100.

However, the “flu fear factor” has attracted some of the most unscrupulous elements in Rangoon who are using the pandemic for profit.

Speaking to The Irrawaddy, a medical practitioner from Shwe Bon Tha Street said, “"Vaxigrip is just an immunization medicine for normal influenza, but it is being sold to the public as a prophylactic to swine flu.”

A government doctor confirmed that well-off families in Rangoon are buying Vaxigrip and injection shots from private clinics in the belief it will protect them from swine flu.

"In most of hospitals and clinics, prophylactic medicines for swine flu are running out now and some manipulative clinics are making profits from the situation, by injecting vaccines at 100,000 to 200,000 kyat a doze,” he said.

Some well-known private hospitals and clinics, such as Asia Taw-Win, Shwe Gon Taing, Ba-Ho-Si, Sakura and Pan Hlaing, are reportedly in shortage of anti-flu medicines.

"But you can get so-called anti-flu injections at clinics on Mogul (Shwe Bon Thar) Street for 200,000 kyat a shot," a general physician claimed.

Thet Pai Soe Company is the sole agent for importing Vaxigrip, a French-made flu-shot for seasonal influenza, but an official from the company said it couldn't handle the demand and could import any more this year.

Meanwhile, a physician from Rangoon General Hospital warned that any swine-flu drugs should be taken under supervision of a respected doctor and that the public should be aware that the drugs have several side effects.

"The drug must be taken in accordance with a physician's prescription,” he said. “The drugs often cause side effects such as lethargy, diarrhea, nausea, vomiting and weakness.”

In recent weeks, the first case of swine flu infection was found in Burma in a 13-year-old girl, who was returning from Singapore. There are now a total of four cases in the country, the Health Ministry has said, but to date no one has died from the disease.

irrawaddy

Lawyers Finally Allowed to Visit Suu Kyi

2009-07-24T03:31:00.000+06:30

The legal team of Burma's detained pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi was permitted access to the 64-year-old pro-democracy leader on Thursday, a day before her trial resumes for final arguments, one of her lawyers said.

Kyi Win, who was one of the defense lawyers who met Suu Kyi, told The Irrawaddy on Thursday that they were allowed to see her for two hours at around noon to discuss her final arguments.

“We discussed what we should say and what we should not say,” said Kyi Win. However, he didn’t provide further details of the discussions.

“Tomorrow [Friday] we will request that Suu Kyi is released,” said Kyi Win.

Suu Kyi’s lawyers were denied access to her on Wednesday. However, the junta agreed to allow a visit after the defense team presented a letter.

Suu Kyi is charged with violating the terms of her house arrest by allegedly harboring an uninvited American man who swam secretly to her lakeside home and reportedly stayed for two days. She is being detained at Burma's notorious Insein Prison.

Suu Kyi’s trial has drawn condemnation from the international community, as well as local supporters, who worry the ruling junta has found an excuse to keep her detained through elections planned for next year. If found guilty, she could face five years in prison.

Meanwhile, the US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton called for Suu Kyi’s release at an Asean meeting in Thailand.

According to Agence France-Presse, Clinton said that the regional bloc should consider kicking out the military-ruled member state if it doesn't free the National League for democracy (NLD) leader.

However, on Thursday, Thai Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva said, “There are not enough grounds to do that [expel Myanmar]. We have already done what we can under the Asean mechanism.”

Speaking as current chair of the 10-state grouping, the Thai premier said that while Asean and the West have the same goal, “we cannot implement the same policy."

"If Myanmar is expelled it will further isolate [the regime] and would that solve the problem?" he added.

Suu Kyi has spent nearly 14 of the past 20 years in detention since the junta refused to recognize the NLD’s landslide victory in elections in 1990.

irrawaddy

As Foreign Aid Workers Leave, Food Security Concerns Grow

2009-07-23T05:03:00.000+06:30

Survivors of last year’s deadly Cyclone Nargis are worried that the departure of foreign aid workers from the Irrawaddy delta will expose them to even greater food insecurity, according to local sources.

“Food insecurity is growing because all the foreign NGO workers are leaving,” said Aye Kyu, a member of the National League for Democracy’s disaster committee in Laputta, one of the areas worst hit by the cyclone that struck on May 2-3 of last year. He said that there were only a few foreign aid workers still in Laputta and no new ones were coming.

More than a year after the disaster, many people in the delta are still struggling to meet their basic needs. Some survive by catching fish and selling it, while many others depend on loans to keep their heads above water, according to Aye Kyu.

“They go from house to house in the morning to borrow money,” he said.

According to a survey conducted by the United Nations World Food Program in Laputta and Bogalay townships in February, 51 percent of households reported that they are still relying on food aid from humanitarian agencies, while only 25 percent said they could feed themselves. The report also said that about 83 percent of households have gone into debt to purchase rice.

Local aid workers in Rangoon said that many foreign aid workers were leaving because the Burmese regime wants international NGOs and UN agencies to hire more local staff. They added that the authorities are also worried about foreign workers bringing news out of the country.

According to a senior official of the Tripartite Core Group (TCG), the main body in charge of coordinating the relief effort, about 200 foreign aid workers were facing delays in getting visas to enter the country.

Other sources close to the TCG said that the visa restriction was partly due to the Burmese junta’s anger over Thailand’s criticism of the trial against opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi, who is facing five years in prison for allegedly violating the conditions of her house arrest.

Thailand told the regime it should release Suu Kyi and all other political prisoners in the country and beginning working towards national reconciliation.

The uncertainty over whether foreign aid workers will be allowed to return only adds to the anxieties of people whose livelihoods were devastated by Cyclone Nargis. The storm wiped out the small-scale farming and fishing sectors upon which most local people depend.

International and local NGOs have attempted to address the needs of the most vulnerable segment of the population by delivering food aid to needy households, especially the landless and female-headed households.

However, many farmers are still finding it hard to make ends meet due to bad harvests over the past year, forcing many to buy rice on credit.

irrawaddy

Landmine casualties in Burma double

2009-07-17T04:31:00.000+06:30

(DVB)–The number of people killed by landmines in Burma has increased in the last year while survivors face difficulties receiving adequate healthcare, said an anti-landmine campaign group yesterday.

According to the International Campaign to Ban Landmines (ICBL), the number of victims with no access to healthcare is “substantial”.

Burma is one of only 17 countries that abstained from voting on a United Nations resolution in 2005 to ban the use of landmine. Similarly, the ruling State Peace and Development Council (SPDC) has not acceded to the Mine Ban Treaty.

The latest figures on landmine victims in Burma were collected by Landmine Monitor in 2007, and show a 90 percent increase from 2006.

International monitoring bodies have also said that the use of civilians as minesweepers, to walk in front of army patrols to prevent the unit taking the blast from a landmine, is prevalent.

“It’s been reported for years that they’ve been using prison labourers to walk ahead of the military,” said David Mathieson, Burma analyst at Human Rights Watch.

“Civilians in conflict areas are used depending on the army unit. [Minesweeping] is not a clear policy, it’s a practice, and so that depends on the unit or the commander.”

Landmine victims, particularly from Karen state, which is littered with mines laid both by the Burmese army and the opposition Karen National Union, often cross the border into Thailand to receive treatment.

“Around 60 to 70 percent of the landmine victims we receive are civilians,” said Dr Synthia Maung from the Mae Tao clinic in Thailand’s border town of Mae Sot, adding that the figure “includes women and children”.

According to Landmine Monitor, 47 people in Burma died in 2007 from landmines, up from 20 the year before, although it warns that this figure is not conclusive. More than half the states and divisions in Burma are contaminated with landmines.

The only armed groups in Burma to have ratified the Mine Ban Treaty are “very small groups who probably could not afford landmines”, said Mathieson.

Non-governmental organizations such as Medicins Sans Frontier have withdrawn from Burma partially as a result of restrictions imposed by the government on access to landmine victims.

“I don’t really see that there have been any moves by the SPDC or the main non-state armed groups to eradicate the use of landmines,” said Mathieson.

“Most of them are heavily dependent on the use of landmines and IEDs [improvised explosive device].”

Reporting by Francis Wade

Ban Should Now Tackle Burma’s Constitution, Says Opposition

2009-07-17T04:22:00.000+06:30

Opposition parties in Burma say UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon didn’t go far enough in urging the military regime to ensure that the 2010 general election is “credible, inclusive and legitimate.”

The UN chief should also have addressed demands to rewrite the constitution drawn up by the regime and enacted in 2008, they say.

Nyan Win, spokesman of the National League for Democracy (NLD), said that even if the 2010 election were to be “free and fair”—as the regime had promised—“the 2008 constitution is undemocratic.”

The NLD disagreed with Ban on this point, Nyan Win said.

The regime claimed the 2008 constitution had been approved by more than 90 percent of voters in a national referendum held shortly after the Cyclone Nargis in May that year. Critics say the constitution had been drafted by handpicked official representatives and that the referendum was anything but free and fair.

The constitution reserves 25 percent of seats in both houses of a new parliament for military representatives, appointed by the commander-in-chief of the armed forces.

It also bars any person married to a foreigner from serving as president of the country. Furthermore, presidents must have military experience.

Both restrictions rule out the possibility of Aung San Suu Kyi ever taking office. “Daw Aung San Suu Kyi is definitely banned from becoming president under the 2008 constitution,” Nyan Win said.

Burma’s largest ceasefire groups—the Wa, Kachin, Kokang and Mon—also take issue with the constitution, which reserves 25 percent of the seats in state or regional assemblies for non-elected military representatives. The commander-in-chief of the armed forces will have power to abolish the parliaments of ethnic states and autonomous regions.

In a joint letter to the Chinese government, Wa and Kachin leaders said they wanted the 2008 constitution amended because it failed to respect the truth of political history and perpetuated the Burman centric long-term political distrust towards ethnic minorities.

“Mr Ban Ki-moon’s election proposals are totally out of touch with stakeholders in Burmese politics,” said Aye Thar Aung, an Arakan leader and secretary of the Arakan League for Democracy. “The greatest difficulty for Burma’s democracy process is now the constitutional crisis.”

Aye Thar Aung said the UN’s Burma efforts should now be directed at making sure the constitution enshrined democratic principles and ethnic minority rights.

irrawaddy

Families of Prisoners Don’t Believe Talk of Amnesty

2009-07-17T04:21:00.001+06:30

Families of political prisoners in Burma have little hope that their family members will be released even after Burma told the United Nations that political prisoners would be released before the 2010 election.

Win Maung, the father of the democracy activist leader, Pyone Cho, said, “How I can trust what they say, because they never do what they say. If I believe, I just hurt myself.”

Pyone Cho received a 65-year sentence and is detained in Burma's southern Kawthaung prison in Tenasserim Division.

Burma's UN ambassador, Than Swe, told the Security Council on Monday Burma plans to grant amnesty to prisoners to enable them to take part in national elections next year, at the request of UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon.

However, the ambassador did not mention the word "political" or say how many prisoners would be released, or when, or whether it would include key figures such as opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi.

According to human rights groups, the junta has more than 2,100 political prisoners behind bars and many are serving long sentences. The number of political prisoners has doubled since the crackdown on the monk-led demonstrations in late 2007.
“The regime never talks about releasing political prisoners. But it sometimes includes a small number of political prisoners in an amnesty," said Tin Tin Win, the mother of democracy activist Ant Bwe Kyaw, who was sentenced to 65 years for his role in the 88 Generation Student group.
"I don’t have much hope for my son," she said.

irrawaddy

Burma confirms second H1N1 victim

2009-07-13T17:57:00.000+06:30

(DVB)–State-run media in Burma today confirmed that a 20-year-old man has become the second victim of the A/H1N1 swine flu virus in the country, following a trip to Thailand earlier this week.

Burma’s Ministry of Health has quarantined all family members, along with the 104 fellow passengers on the plane that brought him from Thailand to Rangoon on 6 July, the New Light of Myanmar newspaper reported.

Echoing the case of the 13-year-old girl who last month become Burma’s first A/H1N1 victim, the newspaper said that the man had not tested positive for a fever at the airport, but had fallen ill the next day.

“He is under intensive health care by a team of specialists in the hospital. Since this morning, he has been getting better with no fever,” said the report.

The 13-year-old has reportedly recovered and was yesterday discharged from the Rangoon hospital.

The news follows criticisms from locals living along the Thai-Burma border that the thousands of tourists crossing into Burma each day were not being properly checked for A/H1N1 by health officials.

A local Burmese business owner living in the Thai town of Mae Sai, across from Tachilek town in Burma’s Shan state, said yesterday that [Burmese] medical assistants at the border checkpoints are only assessing those who looked sick.

“They do check people who look nauseous but not everyone,” he said.

A local in the Burmese border town of Myawaddy in Karen state, across from Mae Sot in Thailand, said there was also little change from the normal protocol of inspecting people at the checkpoint there.

Reporting by Francis Wade and Thurein Soe

Karen armed group to fight ‘with guerilla warfare’

2009-07-13T17:55:00.001+06:30

(DVB)–The Karen National Union will defend their territory “with guerrilla warfare” following rumours that the pro-junta Democratic Karen Buddhist Army is preparing to attack a strategic Karen base.

Last month Burmese troops, supported by the Democratic Karen Buddhist Army (DKBA), took the Karen National Union (KNU) Brigade 7 base, an important victory for the Burmese government in its five-week long offensive.

Rumours have surfaced in recent days that the DKBA is set to attack the KNU Brigade 6 base, home to three battalions, although permanent bases have not existed there since 1997.

"I heard that [the DKBA] are preparing to fight with 600 people, but nothing particular has come out yet,” said KNU joint secretary, Saw Maw Htoo.

“As we have more than 60 years of experience, the KNU has always been alert and prepared. Now we have to be more prepared; we are ready to resist with guerrilla warfare."

The conflict between the KNU and the Burmese government is thought to be the world’s longest running, although observers say the weakening of the KNU and the loss of its Brigade 7 base could spell its end.

Around 80,000 Karen refugees have fled the conflict and are now holed-up in camps along the Thai border.

Numbers have swelled since the beginning of June, following the latest offensive which caused around 5000 to cross the border into Thailand.

"DKBA and [Burmese army] troops are positioned everywhere all along the border,” said Saw Maw Htoo, adding that KNU troops were active in these areas.

“We have our people all around the area, and they don't know where to fight. They come in, we go out; we go out and they come in."

A deputy strategist from the DKBA’s Brigade 999, Saw Maung Win, claimed to know nothing of the attack rumours.

However a source close to the DKBA, speaking on condition of anonymity, said that a joint DKBA force from Battalions 555 and 333 have gone to Taungoo and Nyaunglebin in Karen state to attack KNU camps.

"They went there because of an order from the top,” he said, adding that he did not know whether the order came from senior DKBA or army officials.

Reporting by Naw Noreen

Ethnic Burmese among world’s ‘most threatened’

2009-07-09T02:53:00.001+06:30

(DVB)–Nine ethnic groups in Burma have been ranked fifth on a table measuring groups of people throughout the world deemed to be most under threat of genocide, mass killing and other systematic violent repression.

Burma’s myriad ethnic groups, thought to number 137 in total, have long been marginalized by the ruling State Peace and Development Council, which is made up predominantly of the Burman group, which accounts for nearly 70 percent of Burma’s population.

The conflict between government forces and the ethnic opposition Karen National Union (KNU), which appears to be nearing an end, is thought to be the world’s longest running, and has forced 140,000 Karen into refugee camps along the Thai-Burma border.

Burma stands out in the Peoples Under Threat 2009 table, compiled by Minority Rights Group International (MRGI), as being one of only three countries in the top ten where Islam is not the dominant religion.

It is the threat of conflict in Muslim countries, in the context of Western countries tackling Islamic extremism, that dominates the top of the table.

Burma also takes a surprisingly high place given that, unlike Iraq, Afghanistan and, to an extent Pakistan, who rank second, fourth and sixth respectively, Burma faces no external interference.

Several prominent authorities on Burma, including British MPs, senior judges and a former advisor to the International Criminal Court, have said that state-sanctioned human rights abuses in Burma could now warrant charges of war crimes.

An Early Day Motion put forward by over 60 British MPs in May urged the UN to act on the campaign of ethnic cleansing that the ruling State Peace and Development Council is carrying out against ethnic nationalities.

The plight of Burma’s ethnic population was thrown into the spotlight earlier this year when around 1000 Rohingya refugees washed up in boats on Thailand’s shores, only to be towed back out to sea and set adrift by Thai authorities.

The Rohingya, who are a minority Muslim population, are not recognized by the Burmese government and suffer frequent discrimination due to their lack of legal status.

Reporting by Francis Wade

Honourary degree for Suu Kyi

2009-07-09T02:52:00.000+06:30

(DVB)–Burma’s imprisoned opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi was yesterday awarded an honourary doctorate by a British university for her services to human rights.

While Suu Kyi remains on trial over charges of breaching her house arrest conditions, Northern Ireland’s University of Ulster paid tribute to the National League for Democracy leader, who has been in detention for 13 of the last 19 years.

Collecting the award for Suu Kyi, the chairperson of Rakhaing [Arakan] Women’s Union donned the obligatory graduation gown and spoke on her behalf.

“I said in my speech that Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, at the same time I’m receiving this award, is in prison but she is standing strong and continuing her struggle for her belief,” said Saw Mra Raza Linn.

“She is a fearless woman who doesn’t hold grudge against her enemies. She is a woman hero engaging in a fight for her country and the people.”

The date for Suu Kyi’s next court hearing was last week adjourned to 10 July, with judges claiming that the relevant papers for the hearing had not yet arrived at the courtroom.

The original date for the last hearing would have clashed with the first of a two-day visit last week by UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon, who was twice denied a meeting with Suu Kyi.

Recipients of honourary degrees need not have any affiliation with the awarding university.

The degree is used as a marker to distinguish important contributions to various fields, both academic and non-academic.

Reporting by Nan Kham Kaew

Myanmar refugee numbers swell in Thailand

2009-07-06T17:04:00.000+06:30

MAE SOT, Thailand (AP) — As the 50,000th Myanmar refugee to be resettled abroad recently left Thailand for the United States, thousands of others fled their military-ruled homeland to seek shelter under tarps and in temples along the Thai-Myanmar border.

"We would be happier if we were back home as this is not our land, but we will stay here because that side is not safe," said a 30-year-old medic treating a child for malaria, pointing across an open field to Myanmar.

Escalated violence in rural Myanmar means despite the world's largest resettlement program, Thailand's refugee population — numbering more than 100,000 — is not likely to diminish any time soon. More than 4,000 ethnic minority Karen have crossed the border in the past month.

The exodus was sparked by fighting between the Karen National Union and the Myanmar regime, a brutal conflict that has been going on for 60 years as the Karen seek greater autonomy.

In addition to the refugees in Thailand, the aid group Thai Burma Border Consortium estimates fighting has spawned nearly 500,000 internally displaced people in eastern Myanmar and countless atrocities against civilians.

Critics say Myanmar's army seeks to eliminate opposition from the Karen and other ethnic minorities to seize control of the area's natural resources, a valuable source of income for the impoverished country.

And with elections scheduled for July 2010, securing Karen State would help the ruling generals claim the entire country was behind the vote and their so-called "road map to democracy." Critics have said the moves are a sham designed to perpetuate military rule.

"The main thing is the election — the government wants the Karen out of the picture," said Ba Win, a teacher who worked as a government veterinarian in Karen State for five years.

The latest round of fighting erupted in early June as government troops and the allied Democratic Karen Buddhist Army, or DKBA, moved against Karen military positions and a large civilian camp, sending villagers across the border north of Mae Sot, a Thai border town 240 miles (380 kilometers) northwest of the Thai capital, Bangkok.

The Karen Human Rights Group says the government is also forcing Karen villagers to join the DKBA and turn the group into a border guard force to better control natural resources in Karen State.

Meanwhile, the thin tarps provided the refugees are not keeping the heavy monsoon rains at bay, but they fear if the rain stops, fighting will break out again.

No mosquito nets are available to stop the spread of malaria, and the refugees depend on Mae Sot-based relief organizations and a nearby Thai Karen village for food and supplies.

They won't return home unless land mines in areas surrounding their villages are cleared. "Fighting we can see and run away from, but land mines can be anywhere," said the Karen medic, who like others declined to give a name because of the refugees' precarious status.

A number of the displaced, living in tent clusters according to the village of their origin, say they lost family members to mines during the flight to Thailand.

Other newly arrived Karen refugees have taken shelter in temples and schools along the border, but were wearing out their welcome as Buddhist Lent celebrations began this week, said Kathryn Halley of the aid group Partners, Relief and Development.

The new Karen refugees are to be moved into a single temporary camp, but aid groups and the Thai military have yet to agree on an exact secure location. Permanent camps in the area are too full to accommodate them.

The U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees says it will resettle 6,000 of the 112,000 registered Myanmar refugees in Thailand this year. The United States, Canada, Australia and several Nordic countries participate in the resettlement program that began in 2004 and is now the world's largest, according to the agency.

Mae Sot-based aid groups say repatriation has slowed because of the global financial crisis.

The newly arrived are unlikely to become candidates for resettlement abroad and were not even aware of plans to move them to a new location inside Thailand, a trip that will require climbing a muddy mountain pass and crossing a river.

One 50-year-old Karen woman said she had traveled back and forth across the Thai-Myanmar border three times in her life. "I just want to stay still now," she said. "I am tired."

North Korea exporting weapons overland to Burma

2009-07-03T18:41:00.001+06:30

(DVB)–North Korea is suspected to have illegally exported weapons to Burma via overland routes through China to avoid naval detection or interception, a South Korean newspaper said yesterday.

The news follows reports that the North Korean ship, the Kang Nam 1, being tracked by the US navy on suspicion that it is carrying weapons in breach of new UN sanctions on Pyongyang has turned around.

North Korea, like many countries, has traditionally used sea routes to carry exports to other parts of the world.

Following a series of sanctions on the regime that, since 2006, have increasingly targeted weapons exports, the government is alleged to have used overland routes that are harder to detect, the Chosun Ilbo newspaper said.

Using this method, Pyongyang has exported weaponry to Iran, Syria, Laos and Burma totaling $US800 million since 2000, the Chosun Ilbo quoting US intelligence agencies.

“It also exported weapons by building assembly factories in importing countries,” the report said.

“To circumvent an entry ban on its ships in ports, North Korean chartered ships under the names of foreigners, falsified the country of origin, or did business through a third country. That is mostly how it was able to export to Iran, Syria, Burma and Laos.”

According to North Korea expert Dr Leonid Petrov, this method has been used in the past to export sensitive material.

“Not every [North Korean] ship is government owned or government managed - North Korean crews sometimes operate under foreign companies,” he said.

“There are plenty of cooperative companies, not really private and not really government-run, that operate on a market basis and commercial basis, so they can go wherever they want and pick up any cargo.”

Burma reportedly refused to accept the Kang Nam ship, although it is unclear what its reason was.

Earlier this week US officials said the ship was still being tracked by US navy about 250 miles south of Hong Kong, heading north, although did not comment on possible destinations.

The new UN resolution on North Korea allows countries to request searches of North Korean suspected of carrying weapons or suspicious material, although the US is yet to board the Kang Nam.

“It’s simply impossible to monitor the majority of routes, either inland or air, and probably only maritime cargo can be stopped and possibly searched but there is a high chance of provoking a skirmish or battle, so I don’t think [the UN resolution] is going to work anyway,” said Petrov.

Reporting by Francis Wade

Aid workers still being denied Burma visas

2009-07-03T18:36:00.000+06:30

(DVB)–Aid workers attempting to enter Burma are experiencing increasing difficulties in obtaining visas following a change in protocol which gives sole authority on visa applications for aid workers to the Burmese government.

The ruling junta in Burma was roundly condemned following cyclone Nargis last May, when international aid workers trying to access the worst-affected parts of the Irrawaddy delta were denied entry.

Following the criticism, decisions over aid visas were put to the Tripartite Core Group (TCG), comprising Burma, the UN and the Associaiton of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), which formed four weeks after the cyclone.

Now, however, the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (UNOCHA) say that international aid workers are again being denied visas, following the government’s reversion to the pre-Nargis system.

On Monday a helicopter pilot working for a UN relief agency was refused a visa after having waited for one in Thailand for more than three weeks.

“The helicopter was temporarily suspended for some days this week, awaiting visa for the pilot,” said a UN spokesperson.

There are reportedly around 200 visas being considered by the government’s Foreign Affair Policy Committee, which now handles visa applications.

Aid for the delta region remains crucial, with the UN estimating that Burma receives annually only $US4 per capita in Official Development Assistance.

Similarly, the need for relief workers is critical, more a year after the cyclone hit.

“There are many problems there” said Mahn Mahn, from the Emergency Assistance Team (EAT), a Thailand-based relief organization that regularly works in the delta region.

The UN estimated that $US691 million dollars in post-cyclone recovery aid is required for the period 2009 to 2011.

As well as problems related to food and shelter, children in the areas worst hit by Nargis have little access to education, largely because “[parents] do not have any money to send their children to school,” according to Mahn Mahn.

The TCG released a statement on Tuesday saying that 257 schools in the delta “are in dire need of reconstruction”, with “some children still [having] to learn under temporary shelters in the raining season”.

Cyclone Nargis battered the southern coast of Burma in May last year, leaving some 140,000 dead and 2.4 million destitute.

Reporting by Daniella Nayu

Journalist Quarantined after Interviewing Swine Flu Patient

2009-07-03T18:34:00.000+06:30

RANGOON — Burmese Health Ministry officials have quarantined a journalist who interviewed a 13-year-old girl diagnosed with the H1N1 “swine flu” virus at Rangoon General Hospital.

Ministry of Health officials said the journalist, employed by the privately-run Rangoon Weekly Eleven Journal, interviewed the young patient and photographed her in her hospital room on June 28 without official permission. The teenager, Burma’s first known victim of the HINI virus, was admitted to hospital after returning from a visit to Singapore.

The journalist reportedly bribed hospital guards to allow him access. He will be quarantined for at least 10 days at Waipagee Epidemic Hospital in Rangoon’s North Okkalapa Township, health officials said.

“He will be watched for 10 days to see if he is infected with the H1N1 virus. If he is not, he can return home,” said a Ministry of Health official.

Deputy Health Minister Mya Oo reportedly ordered the destruction of the journalist’s interview notes and photographs. Health Ministry and hospital officials were told not to speak to the media about the incident.

irrawaddy

Reporter photographing A/H1N1 patient quarantined

2009-06-30T04:34:00.000+06:30

by Myo Thein

Rangoon (Mizzima) – Authorities on Sunday detained a journalist who tried to take a photograph of the 13-year old girl who authorities have announced is suffering from the first detected instance of A/H1N1, or swine flu, in Burma.

The journalist, who bribed hospital security in order to take the photograph, was detained in order to be tested for infection, a hospital official told Mizzima.

“It [our concern] is not simply the breaking of the rules of the hospital, his actions could also spread the disease,” said a specialist doctor of the hospital.

“He could be easily infected with the disease as he was not wearing any covers. Even when doctors go in to see her [the infected girl] they have to put on a special coat and mask. This reporter did not take any precaution, so we will have to quarantine him to check his situation,” the doctor explained.

Reportedly, the security agent who accepted the bribe from the reporter has since been sacked from his post.

Authorities are also said to be keeping a close watch over the infected girl’s parents, friends and schoolmates for any possible symptoms of the disease.

The 13-year old girl's temperature was normal when checked at Yangon Airport on June 26th. But later, while in school, her teacher, who is also a doctor at the Ministry of Health, found her cough strange and took her to the hospital.

While the rest of her classmates have been tested for the virus, one individual had reportedly already returned to their home village of Depayin in Sagaing Division, prompting authorities to continue their search for the missing pupil.

Iron mine could destroy 7000 Shan homes

2009-06-30T04:22:00.001+06:30

(DVB)–Russian and Italian engineering companies are reported to be involved in the development of a huge iron ore mine in Burma’s eastern Shan state that campaigners say could displace more than 7,000 homes.

The already volatile Shan state is home to Burma’s second largest iron ore deposit, on the site of Mount Pinpet.

Excavation of the site began in 2004, and work includes the conversion of around 11,000 acres of surrounding land for construction of a cement factory and iron processing plant.

The Pa-O Youth Organisation (PYO), in a report released today, said that more than 25 villages home to around 7000 mainly ethnic Pa-O people could be destroyed by the Pinpet Mining Project.

“Fifty people have already been forced to move and were not adequately compensated,” said the Robbing the Future report.

“The confiscation of vital farmlands has begun, leaving over 100 families without the primary source of their livelihood and sustenance.”

A spokesperson from PYO said that villagers had very little, if any, input on the plans for the project.

“[The government] don’t talk to the villagers, they don’t negotiate with the villagers regarding plans for the mining project - they don’t really discuss in advance what they are going to do,” said Khun Ko Wein.

The report points to Russian company Tyazhpromexport as being the major foreign investor in the Pinpet Iron Factory, with $US150 million so far channeled into the project.

Russia maintains strong ties with Burma despite the country’s ruling junta being under mounting international pressure over the trial of Aung San Suu Kyi and documented state-sanctioned human rights abuses.

An Italian company, Danieli, which claims to be one of the world’s leading suppliers of equipment to the metals industry, is also highlighted in the report.

The company, who in 2007 confirmed that they operate in Burma, was unavailable for comment.

Another concern of PYO’s is the link between the Pinpet mine and rumours that Burma is mining uranium, a key ingredient for nuclear weaponry.

According to the report, Burma’s Ministry of Energy has officially announced the presence of five uranium deposits in the country, although has not publicly stated that these will be mined.

Speculation that uranium exists near the Pinpet site has added fuel to the rumours, with some locals fearing that the mine could be being used as a cover to exploit and refine uranium.

Such rumours have been further compounded by growing evidence that Burma is strengthening its ties with North Korea, who last month successfully tested a nuclear bomb.

Reporting by Francis Wade

Arrest and Abduction in Bangladesh

2009-06-27T02:22:00.000+06:30

Dhaka: Bangladesh police arrested five Burmese citizens on Tuesday night as they were intruding into Bangladesh territory, according to a report from the Daily Star.

The report said the five were arrested by police at a village in Lama Township in Bandarban District in the Chittagong Hill Tract, when the group was looking for shelter in the village.

The Burmese citizens were identified as Nurul Alam, 30, Ziaur Rahman, 22, Sayedul Alam, 18, Abdul Hakim, 29, and Zafar, 20. All are reportedly from Buthidaung Township, 80 miles north of Sittwe.

According to a police source, they were produced yesterday in court and sent to jail.

Meanwhile, Bangladesh security forces, including the army, are undertaking an operation near the Burmese border to search for two construction laborers in order to rescue them from an armed group.

The two construction laborers - 40-year-old Alam Majhi, and 29-year-old Shabbir from Roanchari Township - were abducted by an armed group on Tuesday night and taken to an unknown location.

The report said the armed group had identified themselves as members of the Democracy Party of Arakan.

According to a local source, DPA has not been active in the border area for years since many of its members surrendered to the Burmese junta, but local miscreants in the area have been committing crimes under the name of the DPA.

narinjara

N Korean Ship is believed to be carrying weapons, missile parts or possibly even nuclear materials

2009-06-26T04:01:00.000+06:30

The Myanmar International Terminals Thilawa (MITT), believed to be the destination of the Kang Nam 1, a North Korean cargo ship being tracked by the US Navy, has often been used for deliveries of weapons, according to sources at the facility.

The Kang Nam 1, which left a North Korean port on June 17, is believed to be carrying weapons, missile parts or possibly even nuclear materials.

“There are two reasons to use Thilawa,” said an MITT operator. “First, it is not too close to Rangoon, and second, it is easy to increase security here so people don’t know what is being unloaded.”

The international multi-purpose container port, Burma’s largest deep sea port, is located about 30 km south of Rangoon.

According to other MITT employees, the facility has often been used for deliveries of weapons since it was built in the mid-1990s.

“Cargo ships carrying many kinds of weapons from Russia, China, North Korea and the Ukraine have docked at Thilawa,” said an MITT worker.

Normally, the source explained, the ships are offloaded around midnight to avoid attracting attention. Then, around 2 a.m., convoys of trucks deliver the weapons to a military depot at Intaing, about 25 km north of Rangoon.

“When cargo ships carrying military equipment dock at the port, naval personnel based near Thilawa take over port security and coordinate the unloading of the ships,” he said. “No unauthorized personnel are allowed near the port when cargo ships carrying weapons dock here.”

On Wednesday, officials from the Myanmar Port Authority, which operates under the Ministry of Transport, met with the Thilawa port authorities. It is believed that the meeting was related to the imminent arrival of the Kang Nam 1.

“We don’t know when the ship will dock and we haven’t received any instructions concerning its berthing schedule,” said an MITT employee, adding that this was normal procedure for handling ships carrying weapons.

The source also said that employees of MITT had been instructed not to speak to exiled media about the Kang Nam 1.

On Thursday, the Burmese state-run newspaper, The News Light of Myanmar, reported that the government had denied that the Kang Nam 1 was heading for Burma.

The report said that the Burmese junta had not received any information about the Kang Nam 1, but was expecting another North Korean ship, the MV Dumangang, to arrive in Burma on June 27 to pick up 8,000 tons of rice.

The USS John S McCain started following the Kang Nam 1 soon after it left port last week. The USS McCampbell is now shadowing the ship, which is being monitored under UN sanctions imposed earlier this month following North Korea’s underground nuclear test in May.

irrawaddy

KNLA Brigade 7 HQ Falls—Thailand Repatriates Refugees

2009-06-24T04:43:00.001+06:30

A joint force of Burmese army troops and soldiers of the Democratic Karen Buddhist Army (DKBA) seized the headquarters of the Karen National Liberation Army (KNLA) Brigade 7 on Sunday, its most important victory in a weeks-long offensive in the Burmese-Thai border area,

As fighting raged, Karen sources said the Thai authorities are forcibly repatriating refugees who had fled to Thailand.

The fall of the brigade headquarters of the Karen National Union (KNU) military wing was confirmed by Maj Hla Ngwe, joint secretary (1) of the KNU, who said KNLA forces would now resort to “guerrilla tactics.” only one KNLA Brigade 7 base remained intact, he said.

Hla Ngwe said seven soldiers of the attacking force had died when the assault on the Brigade 7 headquarters began on June 19.

KNU sources say the KNLA’s Brigade 7 has also lost three battalion bases—21, 22 and 101. Half of the battalion 202 base has also been taken.

Hla Ngwe said the loss of the KNLA Brigade 7 headquarters could have an effect on the work of Burmese opposition organizations based in the Thai border town of Mae Sot.

About 4,000 Karen refugees have fled to Thailand since the offensive began in the first week of June. Many are being forced by the Thai authorities to return to Burma, according to local sources.

The Karen Women Organization (KWO) issued a statement on Monday saying it was deeply concerned about the repatriation of Karen families from Tha Song Yang in Thailand’s Tak Province, and appealing for international action to help the refugees.

Aid groups, including the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, and Thai authorities are now discussing the problem.

KWO Secretary Dah Eh Kler said: “Thai authorities should at least wait and assess the situation. Forcing these people to return during the rainy season and to places where they still have every reason to fear for their lives is inhuman and a violation of their rights.”

The KWO said the repatriated Karen faced human rights abuses and even death.
“Women are vulnerable to rape if they are forced to return,” said the KWO statement, drawing attention to the rape and murder last week of two young Karen women by Burmese soldiers.

The two women, aged 17 and 18, were caught by Burmese army soldiers in Kwee Law Plo village in Pa-an district when their husbands fled into the jungle. The soldiers, from Infantry Battalion 205, raped and then murdered the women, one of whom was pregnant and the other was the mother of a six-months-old baby.

irrawaddy

Thousands of Karen Seek Safety in Thailand

2009-06-19T03:13:00.001+06:30

MAE SOT — Thousands of ethnic Karen villagers have been forced to flee
across the border into Thailand during the past few weeks as the Burmese
army launched a major assault on Karen military units.

Fierce fighting and constant mortar fire close to the Thai border by Burmese forces has forced an estimated 4,000 ethnic Karen to leave their villages since the beginning of June.

“Every day more people are arriving, looking for refuge,” Poe Shan of the Karen Human Rights Group (KHRG) told The Irrawaddy. “We expect many more to cross the border in search of safety in the coming weeks as the rainy season sets in.”

So far, the refugees have mostly come from seven villages in Burma near the Moei River; there are more than 40 villages in the area where the fighting is intense.

“If the fighting continues, at least 8,000 more villagers will have to escape across the border,” said Zipporah Sein, the general secretary of the Karen National Union (KNU).

“The key thing now is to provide them with more adequate shelter,” said Sally Thompson, the deputy head of the Thai Burma Border Consortium (TBBC). “They have food and medical attention, but the flimsy, makeshift homes they are now in provide inadequate protection from the weather.”

Local Thai authorities are drawing up an Action Plan, which would then be discussed with the international aid agencies and local NGOs before implementation.

Many recent refugees are crowded into the grounds of a Thai temple, a couple of kilometers inside the Thai border, where they lack access to basic necessities, aid workers said.

“They are in relatively good condition,” said Kitty McKinsey, the regional spokeswoman for the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees in Mae Sot.

“They are not emaciated, though many have walked for more than seven days to escape from the Myanmar [Burma] army,” she told The Irrawaddy. “They hurriedly left with nothing but the clothes on their back.”

Ma Theingyi, 33, the mother of five children, said: “We desperately need soap, toothbrushes and cooking utensils. More than anything though, we need clothes for our children.”

Most refugees are women and children. Some of the men stayed behind to look after the fields, aid workers said. Others were already in Thailand as illegal immigrants working in foreign-owned textile factories along the border. Others are soldiers in the KNU’s armed wing, the Karen National Liberation Army (KNLA).

The mass exodus of villagers from inside Burma began after the Democratic Karen Buddhist Army (DKBA) and the Burmese army launched a major offensive against KNU strongholds. This recent assault began about two weeks ago when the army started shelling the border area and terrorizing villagers with the help of the DKBA, a breakaway Karen faction that signed a ceasefire agreement with the military government.

Two weeks ago, the DKBA had called many village headmen to a
meeting where they said they would conscript more than a 1,000 soldiers—around 10 men per village, which prompted the mass exodus. Headmen were also told that each village had to buy two hand-held radios for the DKBA.

“We knew what that meant; all the able-bodied men would be used by the army in one way or another and on top of that we would have to give them money and food rations,” said 41-year-old Pa Naw Naw, who fled with his wife and three children. He left his 11-year-old son behind to keep an eye on their fields and livestock.

The UN says there are some 2,000 new refugees in Thailand. Some aid agencies estimate the figure at 4,000—with many people secretly living with friends or hiding in the jungle on either side of the border.

Refugees are receiving aid at five sites, including Noh Bo temple in Mae Sot. Thai authorities have set up medical centers to provide health care and medical examinations. The TBBC has distributed rice, beans, fish paste and salt, while the Karen Refugee
Council has provided blankets and clothes. The UNHCR has provided plastic sheeting and tarpaulins for the shelter.

The rain, which is already falling heavily on most days, is making life more difficult. Most refugees are reluctant to be moved far from the border.

“They all say they want go back as soon as possible, said McKinsey.

“But to what—they all said their crops and livestock had been confiscated by the authorities. They are clearly traumatized. They have lived with this kind of suffering all their lives.”

A 66-year old grandmother, Noh Thay May, told The Irrawaddy. “I have been on the move since I was five-years-old. My days are numbered. All I want is not to have to move again.”

Meanwhile, in Burma many villagers are bracing themselves for more fighting and shelling. The next few days are likely to see the Burmese military substantially step up military operations, a Thai military officer told local journalists a few days ago.

As fighting continues, more Karen refugees are certain to seek safety across the border in Thailand.

“We want an end to all this fighting,” said Pa Kyaw, 30, who found shelter at Noh Bo monastery. “All we want is to be left alone in peace and to be able to return to our homes.”

irrawaddy

Over 700,000 stateless persons in Burma

2009-06-18T05:40:00.000+06:30

(DVB)–Burma has the world’s third largest population of stateless persons according to the UN refugee agency, while at the same time Burmese refugees were last year the main beneficiaries of UN resettlement programmes.

The issue of stateless persons in Burma was thrown into the spotlight earlier this year when around 1000 ethnic Muslim Rohingya refugees from western Burma washed up on Thailand’s shores, only to be towed back out to sea and set adrift by Thai authorities.

The incident shed light of the plight of the Rohingya, who are not recognized by the Burmese government and suffer frequent discrimination due to their lack of legal status.

In total, around 723,571 people are considered to be stateless in Burma, according to an annual Global Trends report released yesterday by the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR).

The report warned however that figures do not “capture the full magnitude of the phenomenon of statelessness - a significant number of stateless people have not been identified and statistical data on statelessness is not yet available in many cases”.

Alongside the Rohingya, other ethnic groups such as Burmese Chinese, Burmese Indian and Panthay are not recognized by the government.

Burma is also home to over 500,000 internally displaced persons (IDPs), the majority of which are in eastern Karen state, who have been forced out of their homes largely by fighting between the Burmese army and the Karen National Union.

No data was available for the total number of Burmese refugees living abroad, although Burma is thought to contribute the majority of the total 3.5 million stateless persons living in neighbouring Thailand.

That situation has been compounded by the exodus of around 4000 civilians from eastern Karen state in recent weeks who are fleeing a government offensive against the Karen National Union.

Furthermore, the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (UNOCHA) on Monday warned that even children with migrant status in Thailand were struggling to access education.

However around 23,200 Burmese benefited from UNHCR-facilitated resettlement programmes last year, the majority of these departing from Thailand. This, according to the report, was the world’s highest proportion.

Globally, however, the situation last year for refugees was bleak, with a total of 42 million people had been uprooted by conflict.

The UNHCR found that numbers of IDPs in the world was at an historical high of more than 28 million, catalysed latterly by the intensification in recent months of conflict in Pakistan’s Swat valley, which had forced some 2 million to leave their homes, and in Sri Lanka where 300,000 were held in intenrment camps following government offensives against the Tamil Tigers.

Reporting by Francis Wade

Burmese and DKBA Troops Block Civilians Fleeing Conflict

2009-06-16T03:56:00.001+06:30

Karen villagers trying to reach the relative safety of Thailand after weeks of heavy fighting in Karen State are trapped and hiding in the jungle, as Burmese junta troops and their allies try to prevent them from joining the four thousand civilians who have already crossed the border.

Saw Hla Htun, the chairman of the Karen Youth Organization, told The Irrawaddy on Saturday that several hundred villagers from Pa-an District in southern Karen State were unable to reach the border because Burmese soldiers and troops from the Democratic Karen Buddhist Army (DKBA) are blocking their way.

The villagers are fleeing an offensive against Brigade 7 of the Karen National Liberation Army (KNLA) that began nearly two weeks ago. Civilians are routinely targeted by Burmese troops as part of the regime’s efforts to cripple KNLA resistance.

Karen sources on the border said that refugees who have reached Thailand since the recent fighting began are now seeking shelter in Noh Bo, Oo Thu Hta and Mae Salit, in the district of Tha Song Yang in Thailand’s Tak Province.

According to the sources, Burmese troops are still shelling areas under the control of KNLA Brigade 7. They added that about six mortars have landed in Thai territory.

On Friday, a mortar landed near the village of Mae Salit in Tha Song Yang, putting local villagers on alert against the possibility of further cross-border attacks by the Burmese troops.

Schools in Mae Salit were also temporarily closed as a precaution, as villagers stand ready to evacuate, according to a Karen news organization known as Kwe Ka Lu.

Due to the ongoing attack, about five KNLA soldiers have been hospitalized in the Thai border town of Mae Sot, said officials from the Karen National Union (KNU), the political wing of the KNLA.

KNU officials claimed that the fighting had killed about 20 soldiers from the combined Burmese and DKBA force, while around 50 others had been injured. Some local reports put the total number of dead and wounded at around 100.

Meanwhile, a couple of DKBA soldiers were also reportedly found in Thailand, according to KNU sources.

One DKBA soldiers from Battalion 555 was arrested on Friday after crossing the Moei River separating Thailand and Burma. He has been taken into custody and is being questioned by the Thai army, sources said.

The joint force of Burmese and DKBA troops has been attacking the area controlled by KNLA Brigade 7 since the first week of June. The combined force has launched few grounds attacks, fearing landmines planted by the KNLA, relying instead on heavy mortar shelling.

On Friday, fighting at the frontline increased in areas where KNLA Battalion 21 is based, according to the Free Burma Rangers, a relief group that assists civilian victims of the fighting deep inside the conflict zone.

The Burmese army also fired about 20 mortars into KNLA Brigade 7 areas on Friday, according to the KNU’s joint secretary (1), Maj Hla Ngwe. Further attacks and more refugees are also expected, he added.

Also, Burmese military sources reported that about 10 Burmese battalions under Military Operation Command 4 based in Phugyi, Rangoon Division, recently arrived in southern Karen Sate as reinforcements.

A source close to the Thai army said that the buildup is in preparation for a planned escalation of attacks on the KNLA. A major battle could take place within the next two days, he added.

irrawaddy

Joint Forces Concentrate on Mortar Attacks against KNU

2009-06-12T05:06:00.000+06:30

Burmese and Democratic Karen Buddhist troops (DKBA) have fired more than 200 mortar rounds in clashes with the Karen National Liberation Army (KNLA) Brigade 7 in Pa-an District in southern Karen State since early June, according to Karen sources.

The Burmese army fired six mortar rounds on Thursday morning, at least 19 rounds on Wednesday and about 30 rounds on Tuesday, sources said.

About 100 soldiers from joint Burmese and DKBA forces have been killed or injured in the fighting while two soldiers from the KNLA were injured, according to a Karen relief group. The KNLA is the military wing of the Karen National Union (KNU).

David Takapaw, the vice chairman of the KNU, said that about 20 soldiers from the joint force have been killed and about 40 injured. “The more they [DKBA soldiers] come, the more they die. The Burmese army is just firing mortar rounds,” he said.

Sources said the joint force has not launched ground attacks because of extensive KNL landmines around their positions.

Poe Shen, a field director for Karen Human Rights Group, said dead and injured soldiers from the joint force were mostly DKBA soldiers forced to fight in the frontline positions while the Burmese army stays behind and fires mortars.

About 10 Burmese battalions—numbering about 2,000 soldiers—under Military Operation Command 4 based in Rangoon Division’s Phugyi recently arrived in southern Karen Sate as reinforcements, according to Burmese military sources.

One Karen source close to the DKBA said that more troops from the Burmese army are coming. He said DKBA soldiers have arrested civilians traveling along the Moei River near the combat zone and forced them to serve as porters and soldiers.

The mortar attack is designed to weaken KNLA forces and will likely be followed by a ground attack, said a source close to the DKBA.

The joint force plans to attack KNLA Brigade 7 until it has removed it from the area it controls. One source said the joint force is prepared to lose 500 soldiers in the operation before it seizes the KNLA area.

Due to the clashes, an estimated 4,000 to 6,000 Karen villagers have been displaced, with many arriving in Thailand as refugees. Many villagers are also hiding in the jungle in Karen State, according to Karen relief groups.

Sally Thompson, the deputy executive director for the Thailand-Burma Border Consortium that assists refugees, said, “The people want to able to return to their villages as soon as possible. But, we don’t know if the situation would allow it or not. There is no ground attack at the moment. But, there is still shelling in the areas.”

The most recent attacks were being launched by Burmese battalions under Light Infantry Division 22 and DKBA battalions 999, 555 and 333. The force is reportedly about 9,000 soldiers strong, according to Karen sources.

Meanwhile, Kyaw Ye Min wrote in an article in a state-run newspaper, The New Light of Myanmar, on Thursday that the regime has managed to make peace with other ethnic armed groups for national reconciliation, but KNU troops have showed no sign of wanting peace with the government.

The writer said, “There remains only a handful of KNU remnants, and they are taking shelter at the refugee camps in Thailand. Then, they frequently leave their camps, secretly enter Myanmar, and wage guerrilla attacks.”

“However, the government has still opened the peace door to the remaining groups. This has been said again and again,” the writer said.

The newspaper rebuked the Thai government for its recent criticism of the trial of the Burmese opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi. It said the Thai government is not a good friend and is interfering in Burma’s internal affairs.

“If you cooperate with us with genuine goodwill and consider yourself as a good friend, there will be no burden or threats at your border due to [the] internal affairs of Myanmar [Burma],” the article said.

irrawaddy

Serious Violations against Children in Burma: Ban

2009-06-11T01:16:00.000+06:30

WASHINGTON — UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon on Tuesday reported grave violations against children in Burma including credible reports of recruitment and use of children by some government military units and several ethnic armed groups.

Expressing serious concern over the plight of Burmese children, the secretary-general in a report to the UN Security Council urged the Burmese military government to put into place a tighter mechanism to prevent the military recruitment of children.

Ban also urged the junta to demobilize unconditionally all children who participated in any capacity in its armed forces, in coordination with the UN country task force on monitoring and reporting.

“The secretary-general stresses the need for the governments concerned to facilitate dialogue between the United Nations and the Karen National Union and Karenni National Progressive Party for the purposes of signing an action plan in accordance with [relevant] Security Council resolutions,” Marie Okabe, deputy spokesperson for the secretary–general, told reporters at UN headquarters in New York.

In the report, Ban urged Burmese authorities “as a matter of priority” to “redress the prevailing culture of impunity, to launch investigations into all incidents of recruitment and use of children, and to prosecute people responsible for such acts under the Penal Code.”

“Building on the limited progress thus far, the government should, with immediate effect, cease the arrest, harassment and imprisonment of children under the age of 18 for desertion and/or attempting to leave the army and continue to work with the country task force to monitor such cases and to ensure the swift and unconditional surrender of children,” Ban said.

Besides government military units, the secretary-general identified several ethnic armed groups involved in recruitment of children: the Democratic Karen Buddhist Army, Kachin Independence Army, Karen National Liberation Army Peace Council, Karen National Liberation Army, Karenni Army, Karenni National People’s Liberation Front, Myanmar National Democratic Alliance Army, Shan State Army-South and Shan National Population Liberation Organization and United Wa State Army.

Ban noted in the report that there was a continued lack of humanitarian access to Burma, particularly in conflict zones and ceasefire areas, was an impediment to providing much needed humanitarian assistance. He urged the junta to ensure full, unhindered and safe access for children and to allow free passage for the delivery of UN humanitarian assistance in all parts of the country.

irrawaddy

Mortar Bombs Hit Ler Per Her IDP Camp – Up To 200 Used As Slave Labour

2009-06-09T04:12:00.000+06:30

The British government and United Nations have remained silent about a new military offensive in Karen State, Burma, which has forced around 4,000 people to flee their homes.

There are now almost 1,500 soldiers from the Burmese Army and its allies, the Democratic Karen Buddhist Army (DKBA), involved in the new offensive in the Pa’an district of Karen State, on the Thailand Burma border. The Burma Campaign UK has visited the camp twice this year, hearing first hand testimony of abuses committed by the regime.

According to Burma Campaign UK sources, three mortar bombs have hit the Ler Per Her camp for Internally Displaced People. The camp was evacuated on Friday. The camp is two miles from the nearest Karen National Liberation Army base.

The Burmese Army are firing up to fifty 81mm mortar bombs a day into territory controlled by the Karen National Liberation Army, the armed wing of the Karen National Union, a pro-democracy organisation resisting the rule of the dictatorship. Some mortar bombs have also landed across the border in Thailand.

Eye witnesses who have escaped from territory taken over by the Burmese Army and DKBA reported that between 150 and 200 villagers have been taken as slave labour by the DKBA. They are being forced to carry military equipment, including into areas where the attacks are taking place. Some have not been given food for five days and are forced to sleep in the open in the rain.

“Once against the international community is looking the other way while my people are attacked and forced to run for their lives,” said Zoya Phan, International Co-ordinator at Burma Campaign UK. Zoya Phan has twice been forced to flee her village after it was attacked by Burmese Army troops. “Why hasn’t a single government called for an end to these attacks? Why isn’t there any effort to secure a global arms embargo? The British government must push for a UN Commission of Inquiry into these crimes against humanity being committed by the dictatorship.”

burmacampaignUK

Warning to members is a threat to party: Win Tin

2009-06-09T03:52:00.000+06:30

New Delhi (Mizzima) - The National League for Democracy (NLD) is faced with a new threat with the ruling junta having warned and restricted it from issuing statements, an executive member of the party said on Monday.

Win Tin, a veteran journalist and Central Executive Committee (CEC) member of the NLD, said the junta’s warning to party leaders and youths came in the wake of a statement issued last week by the Youth Working Group. It is a new threat to the party and also signals an increasing crackdown on party activities.

The NLD Youth Working Group on June 2 issued a statement condemning the ongoing trial of party leader Aung San Suu Kyi saying that the junta is applying an ineffective law of the 1974 constitution to sue her and to continue to detain her.

The youth group also said that the trial was not free and fair as the defendant was only allowed one witness while the prosecution presented 14.

In a vindictive response to the statement, the junta authorities on Friday summoned the NLD CEC members along with leaders of the Youth Working Group and warned them. They made them sign a pledge not to repeat such accusations.

The junta, in its mouthpiece newspaper, the New Light of Myanmar, on Saturday said the statement by the NLD youth was “misleading and was disturbing the court’s proceedings,” in Aung San Suu Kyi’s trial.

“It is a threat to us as our members, including youths, have been warned about issuing statements, which we as a legal political party used to issue and have the right to,” Win Tin said.

“It is also a restriction of freedom of expression,” Win Tin added.

On June 4, the authorities called members of the NLD youth wing Hla Thein, Myo Nyunt, Hla Oo and Aye Tun and on June 5 called CEC members Than Htun, Nyunt Wei, Hla Phe and Soe Myint and warned them against issuing statements.

“When we were summoned, they read out a paper the content of which was similar to the context in the newspaper. They said, we had broken the law,” a youth member told Mizzima.

“After they finished reading, they told us to sign the paper as a confession that we had committed a crime,” he added.

Thousands of Refugees Flee Ler Per Her Camp as Burma Army Attack Begins

2009-06-08T04:13:00.000+06:30

Some 3,295 people have fled Ler Per Her camp as Burma Army and Democratic Karen Buddhist Army soldiers started the bombardment of the camp at 11.30am on June 6.
Hundreds of soldiers surround the camp which is on the Thai/Burma border north of Mae Sot and refugees are crossing the border into Tha Song Yang district in Tak province, Thailand, to escape the attack. Those in the camp had already fled attacks from the Burma Army in eastern Karen State numerous times and had established homes there, which now have to be abandoned.

Since October 2008 over 60 families have arrived in Ler Per Her, 40 of those from within the last week from Htee Per village. They fled because of Burma Army/DKBA activity and because the Burma Army was looking to recruit over 800 soldiers from the area. Soldiers have already arrested and forced villagers from Pa-an District and Myawaddi Township to porter supplies for this campaign. The attack is being led by Light Infantry Battalions 81, 201, 202 and 205, supported by some 300 soldiers from DKBA 999.

Those who have fled across the border are in Mae U Su, Noh Bo and Mae Salik and are in urgent need of shelter, medical assistance, food and clothing. An FBR team in association with Partners Relief and Development are bringing desperately needed supplies. So far PRAD has delivered 30 pots, 25 large tarps, mosquito repellant, food, rolls of plastic sheeting, two trucks of clothing and medicines for 200 cases of each of the following illnesses: malaria, diarrheal diseases, respiratory illnesses, wound care and painkillers. The leader of the camp confirmed that women and children had left the camp by June 5 leaving the older people and men. He asked for prayer for his people.

FBR/BNN

Health Problems Increasing for Political Prisoners

2009-06-05T04:13:00.001+06:30

Increasing numbers of Burma’s political prisoners are suffering ill health, according to their families and the Thailand-based Assistance Association for Political Prisoners (AAPP).

Many of them are serving long sentences in remote prisons, far from their families, who have difficulty maintaining contact.

They include several women, including Nobel Aye, known as Hnin May Aung, who is reportedly ill with jaundice in Shwe Bo Prison, Sagaing Division, where she is serving an 11 year sentence.

Kyi Than, a teacher from Henzada Township, Irrawaddy Division, was transferred from Pyarpon Prison, Irrawaddy Division, to Rangoon’s Insein Prison for treatment of a skin disease. Kyi Than was arrested in August 2007 for his involvement in political activities and was sentenced to nine years imprisonment.

One inmate of Insein Prison is reportedly being refused medical treatment for injuries he received while being arrested. Zaw Nyunt was beaten up by members of the pro-regime Union Solidarity and Development Association and paramilitary Swan Ar Shin when demonstrating at Insein market on May 28.

A source close to Insein Prison authorities said Zaw Nyunt suffered mouth injuries. “He has not been allowed visits by his family and the prison authorities refuse to treat him because he was injured outside the prison,” the source said.

The AAPP reported in May that at least 127 political prisoners are in poor health. Nineteen of them require urgent medical treatment, including Aung San Suu Kyi, comedian Zarganar, female labor activist Su Su Nway and 88 Generation Students leader Min Ko Naing.

AAPP Joint Secretary Bo Kyi said systematic torture, long-term imprisonment, transfers to remote prisons and denial of medical treatment took its toll on the prisoners’ health.

An AAPP report said more than 350 activists have been sentenced since October 2008, and the majority of them have been transferred to remote jails away from their families. However, the prison transfers make it difficult for family members to visit and provide essential medicine.

Since November 2008, at least 228 political prisoners have been transferred to remote prisons across the country away from their families. The long-term consequences for the health of political prisoners recently transferred would be very serious, said the report.

There are 44 prisons in Burma, and at least 50 labor camps. Not all have hospital facilities and at least 12 do not even have a resident doctor.

irrawaddy

Burmese Army on High Alert After Unidentified Reconnaissance Plane Spotted

2009-06-03T01:53:00.000+06:30

Buthidaung : The Burmese army in the Buthidaung cantonment has been put on high alert after an unidentified reconnaissance plane was spotted taking photos of military bases in the area last week, said a source close to the army.

The source said, "An unidentified reconnaissance plane flew over Buthidaung last week secretly snapping photos but the authorities knew a plane intruded into Burma's airspace on that day."

After the incident took place, high army authorities put security forces in the area on high alert.

The town of Buthidaung, 80 miles north of Sittwe, is the largest military base in western Burma, with at least 15 army battalions, including an artillery battalion, stationed there. A brigade, called Sakakha 15 in Burmese, and the military operation planning bureau are also stationed in the area.

The source reported that a military official said, "The Burmese army officials suspect the reconnaissance plane was from the US Air Force, but have not officially disclosed that this happened."

The Burmese military authorities in the area are anxious about the unidentified plan intruding into their territory.

It has also been learned that Kha Kha Kyi, the defense bureau in Burma's new capital Naypyidaw, also knew of the incident and some high technical officials from the air defense force have been sent to Buthidaung to investigate the incident.

narinjara

Bomb alert in Arakan State

2009-06-03T00:55:00.000+06:30

Dakha (Mizzima) – Authorities in Arakan State in western Burma have alerted government offices of possible bomb attacks by foreign-based armed groups.

Authorities have alerted Border Security Forces in the Maungdaw and Budithaung District and Township Council offices, Immigration offices, Post & Telegraph offices and local banks of a possible bomb attack, ordering government employees to guard the targeted locations, local residents said.

“The order was given by the command of the Border Security Force. They said they have received information that government offices in Maungdaw and Budithaung will be targeted for bomb attacks,” a clerk at the Maungdaw Township Peace and Development Council office told Mizzima.

Reportedly, government employees have been ordered to group into fours and asked to guard the offices from six p.m. to six a.m., with Police and Immigration heads also requested to join the vigil in addition to police and soldiers patrolling roads in the towns.

Several ethnic armed rebellion groups, including the Chin National Front and Arakan Liberation Party in addition to Rohingya armed groups, are fighting for self-determination in the region and have been known to operate along the Burma-Bangladesh border.

But Major Khine Myo Min, General Secretary of the Arakan Liberation Party, said, “The ALP has never set off any explosions. Especially we have never bombed or targeted civilians. If we ever have plans to do it [carry out bombings], we will target military buildings, military barracks and places concerned with defense affairs. We will avoid any actions that could hurt people and would avoid civilian casualties as much as possible.”

mizzima

Police warn locals to stay silent about pagoda victims

2009-06-03T00:51:00.000+06:30

(DVB)–Burmese government troops in Rangoon’s Dala township deployed to maintain security after a ancient pagoda collapsed on Saturday have warned locals not to talk about victims of the accident.

The 2,300-year-old Danok pagoda mysteriously collapsed whilst construction workers were carrying out renovation work, with various sourcing estimating up to 20 deaths. It stands at over 50 metres and is said to hold two Buddha relics.

A local in Dala, south-west of Rangoon, said police and military security was tight around the pagoda following its collapse.

“There are about 60 to 70 soldiers in the pagoda’s premises and they are telling people to say no one was killed or hurt when someone asks,” he said under condition of anonymity.

“About fifty people are still trapped underneath the debris.”

Most of the people trapped are navy soldiers who were volunteering in the renovation.

Locals said the army was using bulldozers to clear the debris yesterday while family members of the missing awaited news about their relatives.

Reporting by Khin Hnin Htet

End Burma’s System of Impunity

2009-05-29T05:05:00.001+06:30

SAO PAULO, BRAZIL — The Nobel Peace Prize laureate, Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, has spent 13 years under house arrest in Myanmar. This week, the Burmese junta is likely to extend her detention for up to five years under the trumped-up charge of allowing a visitor into her compound.

During eight years as United Nations Special Rapporteur on Myanmar, I repeatedly called on the Burmese junta to release Mrs. Aung San Suu Kyi and Burma’s 2,100 other political prisoners, to no avail. It is imperative that she be released immediately for the country’s process of reconciliation to move forward.

But while Suu Kyi has deservedly received a great deal of international attention over the past two decades, Myanmar’s ethnic minorities — more than one-third of the population — have suffered without international outcry. For Myanmar’s process of national reconciliation to be successful, the plight of the minorities must also be addressed.

Over the past 15 years, the Burmese Army has destroyed over 3,300 villages in a systematic and widespread campaign to subjugate ethnic groups. U.N. reports indicate that Burmese soldiers have frequently recruited child soldiers, used civilians as minesweepers and forced thousands of villagers into slave labor.

An official policy of impunity has empowered soldiers to rape and pillage. According to one account, in December 2008 a Burmese soldier marched into an ethnic Karen village in eastern Myanmar and abducted, raped and killed a 7-year old girl. Authorities refused to arrest the soldier; instead, officers threatened the parents with punishment if they did not accept a cash bribe to keep quiet.

In 2002, I received a report about 625 women who were systematically raped in Myanmar ’s Shan State over a five-year period. There was not a single account of successful prosecution.

I repeatedly documented the military’s many abuses in reports to the U.N. General Assembly and the U.N. Commission on Human Rights. My work is only one example of U.N. efforts in Myanmar — since 1990, U.N. representatives have visited the country 37 times in an attempt to facilitate dialogue and promote human rights.

They have exhausted all domestic and diplomatic remedies without achieving human rights protection and national reconciliation in Myanmar. And while the U.N. General Assembly and the U.N. Human Rights Council have passed over 35 resolutions regarding Myanmar, the U.N. Security Council has yet to pass a single one. The United Nations will not be successful until the Security Council acts to directly address our stagnant efforts.

It is clear that the attacks in Myanmar will continue. It is equally evident that the country’s domestic legal system will not punish those perpetrating crimes against ethnic minorities.

It is time for the United Nations to take the next logical step: The Security Council must establish a commission of inquiry into crimes against humanity and impunity in Myanmar. The Security Council took similar steps with regard to Rwanda, Bosnia and Darfur. The situation in Myanmar is equally as critical.

Creating a commission of inquiry will accomplish three important goals:

First, it will make the junta accountable for its crimes with a potential indictment by the International Criminal Court. Second, it will address the widespread culture of impunity in Burma. Third, it has the potential to deter future crimes against humanity in Myanmar.

For two decades, ethnic minorities in Myanmar have suffered while our diplomatic efforts failed to bear fruit. The time has come for the Security Council to act.

Paulo Sergio Pinheiro was the United Nations special rapporteur on human rights in Myanmar from 2000 to 2008.

nytimes

Frequency of rape by Burmese army appalls researchers

2009-05-26T20:50:00.000+06:30

(DVB)–Rape of women by Burmese soldiers in Kachin state is common, and could be part of a campaign of ethnic cleansing by the Burmese army, a group investigating human rights abuses in northern Burma has found.

Despite a ceasefire agreement in 1994 between the Burmese army and the Kachin Independence Organisation (KIO), human rights violations remain very serious, said Christian Solidarity Worldwide (CSW) who recently conducted a three-week research trip in Kachin state.

“We heard many stories of land confiscation, religious discrimination, human trafficking and various other violations,” said Benedict Rogers, South Asia’s Advocacy Officer for CSW.

Rogers was particularly appalled by the frequency of rape. In the CSW report, a Kachin claims that Burmese army soldiers raping Kachin women is a deliberate policy aimed at “mixing blood”, designed to achieve “ethnic cleansing”, although the report acknowledge the difficulty in verifying this accusation.

Earlier this month, however, a group of British MPs urged the United Nations to investigate “a campaign of ethnic cleansing Burma’s military regime is carrying out against its ethnic nationalities,” including use of “rape as a weapon of war”.

The report highlighted the impunity which the Burmese army can operate under, documenting cases of rape and human trafficking that went ignored by authorities.

“We met for example a 21-year-old woman who had been raped just a few months ago. She had been getting off a train on her way to her village to visit her mother,” he said.

“Two soldiers had approached her, raped her and then strangled her and left her for dead.”

Like many others, she has filed complaints to the authorities but the perpetrators have not been punished.

Another threat to Kachin women is human trafficking. The report states that since 2006, there have been 138 documented cases of human trafficking in Kachin state.

The cases have primarily involved women between the ages of fifteen and 30 years who are usually trafficked to China and sold as wives to local men. Many of them have been sold multiple times.

The tense situation in Kachin state has been compounded since the Burmese regime asked the KIO to disarm and turn into border guards, which the KIO seem unlikely to accept, say CSW.

Reporting by Rosalie Smith

Junta’s violations severe in Northern Burma: CSW

2009-05-26T04:07:00.001+06:30

New Delhi (Mizzima) – The Christian Solidarity Worldwide, an advocacy group, said human rights violations continue to be grave in areas where ethnic minorities live and have come out with fresh accounts of violations during their field trip to Northern Burma.

CSW, in a report released after their three-week field trip to Kachin state in northern Burma, said they heard horrifying testimonies from victims of human rights violations committed by the ruling junta’s army.

“The situation in Kachin State is bad, we found first hand evidence of rape, religious discrimination, land confiscation and human trafficking,” Benedict Rogers, CSW’s South Asia Advocacy officer, told Mizzima.

He said, during their trip, they were able to meet victims of rape, religious discrimination and people whose land were confiscated by the army.

During the trip, from the end of April to the first week of May, 2009, the CSW team was also able to meet the Kachin Independent Organization, an armed rebel group fighting for self-determination but which has a ceasefire pact with the junta.

Rogers, who was the team leader visiting Burma, said they have seen ethnic Kachin people living under constant fear, especially women, as they fall easy prey to Burmese soldiers and no one dares to intervene as they are scared of the Burmese soldiers.

“Despite the ceasefire, human rights violations continue and people suffer,” said Rogers, referring to the more than one decade old ceasefire agreement between the KIO and the Burmese junta.

The KIO in 1994 entered into a ceasefire agreement with the ruling junta on grounds that continued war had devastated the people. But their expectations were belied because the pact turned out to be worse than the people expected as the junta’s army slowly expanded in the areas, which were earlier controlled by the rebel group.

The KIO was officially banned from making fresh recruitments.

During their visit, Rogers said, he met a 21-year old Bible school student, who narrated her experience of being raped by two Burmese soldiers, and how she is left helpless.

The girl apparently did not get any compensation and the perpetrator went unpunished.

“Every woman should be careful. My experience is an example for other girls … I want justice to be done,” the CSW quoted the girl as saying in its press release on May 22.

The girl did file a case at three different military courts and requested for investigations but there hasn’t been any action or compensation except 100,000 Kyats she received for medical care, a rice bag and cooking oil, she said.

“Many rape cases in Kachin State go unreported because victims are afraid and to ashamed to report it. There are many more cases we don’t know about,” said Rogers.

“No women are safe in Kachin State,” he added.

Rogers said, even the KIO, cannot provide protection to their people except within their controlled areas, said Rogers.

In July last year, Burmese soldiers reportedly raped and murdered a 15 year old girl, Nhkum Hkawn, from the Din Nam Sai villiage in Kachin State but the army closed the case after paying the girl’s parents of 500,000 Kyats (US$ 500) as compensation and took no action against the accused soldiers.

Awng Wa, Chairman of the Kachin Development Networking Group (KDNG), which is working inside Burma said, human rights abuses such as rape, torture, forced labour and land confiscation are common and are not strange in Kachin State.

“You can hear of rape cases everywhere, if there is a military camp set up. But no one dares to complain because they are afraid that it could create a backlash with more repression,” said Awng Wa.

“Instead of getting support or action, the authorities usually punish the complainants. So many cases have gone under reported,” he added.

He said, before the ceasefire between the military government and the Kachin Independent Organization and its armed wing the Kachin Independent Army(KIO/A), which represent the Kachin people, there were human rights violations of the highest order within the ethnic people and after ceasefire abuses continue.

“Land confiscation and forced labour are common too,” said Awng Wa. He said, forced labour, however, changes during war into use of porters but during peace, people have been forced to cultivate physic nut trees.

The report also talks about the plight of Chin refugees. Rogers, who had also visited Malaysia and met Chin refugees, said life of Chin refugees is not favourable as they live and work in deplorable conditions.

“The situation in Northern and Western Burma of Kachin and Chin State, have gone unknown and are ignored by many in the world,” said Rogers.

“It is time that their voices were heard, and that the international community responded to the political, social, humanitarian and environmental disaster in northern and western Burma,” said Rogers in the press statement.

“The international community needs to know that the ceasefire areas are not really in peace. People in ceasefire areas are really suffering seriously,” Rogers told Mizzima.

mizzima

Ban Ki-moon must ensure Suu Kyi's freedom: Analysts

2009-05-24T20:11:00.000+06:30

New Delhi (Mizzima) – If UN General Secretary Ban Ki-moon is to visit military-ruled Burma in the near future, the release of Burmese pro-democracy icon Aung San Suu Kyi should be mandatory, a Burmese analyst in exile said.

“If he is to visit Burma, he should try to ensure the release of Aung San Suu Kyi during his stay in the country,” Nyo Ohn Myint, in-charge of the National League for Democracy (Liberated Area) in exile, told Mizzima on Friday.

“He should not return until the junta releases her,” Nyo Ohn Myint said.

He said that Ban should also try to build mutual trust between Aung San Suu Kyi and Than Shwe, the Burmese junta supremo.

“He should also try to build trust between Aung San Suu Kyi and the Junta as is necessary,” Nyo Ohn Myint said.

“He also needs to make sure that Aung San Suu Kyi will not be a threat for them [military generals] as you know, they are so afraid of her,” he continued.

Nyo Ohn Myint’s comment came after Ban told CNN that he would go to Burma as soon as possible, to push the Burmese regime to free detained Aung San Suu Kyi and other political prisoners in the country.

“I am deeply concerned about what has been happening in Myanmar, in terms of democratization and I am going to urge for the release of political prisoners, including Aung San Suu Kyi, again,” CNN quoted Ban Ki-moon as saying.

He also said that the imprisonment of Aung San Suu Kyi was “unacceptable.”

Noble Peace Laureate Aung San Suu Kyi was put on trial as she was accused of harbouring US citizen, John William Yettaw, who swam to her lakeside home on May 3, and stayed there for two nights.

Aung San Suu Kyi spent over 13 of her 19 years in Burma, under house arrest. Her detention term will expire on 27 May 2009.

The Burmese regime charged Aung San Suu Kyi with violating the terms of detention and accepting Yettaw and providing him with food. If she is convicted, she is likely to face up to five years in prison.

Along with Aung San Suu Kyi, her two house maids and Yettaw have also been arrested and put on trial.

The close-door trial against Suu Kyi entered the fifth day on Friday, in the premises of Burma’s notorious Insein prison. The junta did not allow foreign diplomats and journalists to access the court on Wednesday.

Although Ban is preparing to fly to Burma on a mission to rescue Aung San Suu Kyi, it is still not clear whether the regime will allow him to enter the country.

Meanwhile, speaking to Mizzima, another Burmese political analyst Aung Naing Oo, asked that if the junta was willing to permit the UN General Secretary his proposed visit to Burma, what sort of problems would he be able to address to usher in change in Burma.

“If the junta allows him to go there, I would like to ask him what he can do for change in Burma?” Aung Naing Oo said. “I would like to ask if he can do anything for the immediate release of Aung San Suu Kyi?” he added.

Aung Naing Oo said it is very premature to say that Ban will be able to press the military government to release Aung San Suu Kyi and also to usher in political change in Burma. His last visit to Burma, last year had made the junta relax the restriction on foreign aid workers in the Cyclone Nargis hit delta region.

“It is too early to say that though he plans to press the regime to release Aung San Suu Kyi, whether the regime will listen to what he asks them to do, like they lifted the restriction on humanitarian aid during his visit last year,” he said.

However, Aung Naing Oo said, “This is the right time for him to visit Burma”.

Earlier, the UN General Secretary’s spokesperson had said Ban would not visit Burma again, if there was no political progress in Burma.

mizzima

Burmese FM Says Yettaw Visit Part of Opposition Plot

2009-05-24T19:54:00.000+06:30

John W Yettaw’s visit to the home of Aung San Suu Kyi was part of a Burmese opposition plot to intensify international pressure on the government, according to Burmese Foreign Minister Nyan Win.

The state-own daily newspaper The New Light of Myanmar reported on the fifth day of Suu Kyi’s trial on Friday that Nyan Win made the claim in a telephone conversation on Monday with his counterpart in Japan, Hirofumi Nakasone.

The report said Nyan Win believed the incident was probably "trumped up to intensify international pressure on Myanmar [Burma], by internal and external anti-government elements" at a time when the US, Japan and some European countries were reviewing their policies toward the military-ruled country.

Hirofumi told Nyan Win that his government was concerned about the legal action now being taken against Suu Kyi, saying it may impact international views on Burma as well as the general election in 2010.

Political observers are now asking whether the Burmese regime is trying to make up its own story, depicting Yettaw as a foreign spy for domestic and foreign opposition groups.

The Associated Press said that at Wednesday's hearing before the special court in Insein Prison, two black cloaks or robes described as being of a type worn by Muslim women, along with scarves to cover the face, two long skirts, and sunglasses, were presented as evidence.

Implying that they could be used in an escape attempt, the prosecutor asked the police officer who seized the items: "If a person wears this woman's Muslim dress and sunglasses, will you be able to identify the person?" The officer replied "No," the AP reported.

Yettaw also asked his lawyer to question a policeman who was testifying whether the officer had been told by Suu Kyi that he said to her, "In my vision, Daw Aung San Suu Kyi will be assassinated, so I came here." The lawyer asked permission to pose that question, but the court declined to allow it.

Meanwhile Burma’s Consul-General in Hong Kong, Ye Myint Aung, suggested in a letter posted on the consulate’s Web site that Yettaw could have been "a secret agent" or Suu Kyi’s "boyfriend."

Many Burmese political observers believe the bizarre case of the American intruder who managed to enter the highly restricted property of Suu Kyi was the work of Burmese regime and that security authorities were definitely involved.

Aung Lin Htut, a former military intelligence officer and deputy ambassador to the US who is currently living in Washington, told The Irrawaddy that it was unlikely that Yettaw simply outwitted security personnel by swimming to Suu Kyi’s lakeside home.

"There’s always tight security around Inya Lake," he said, pointing out that the area is also home to many other VIPs. "Without help from security personnel, there’s no way you could just swim across the lake."

One Burmese opposition blog site, www.niknayman-niknayman.co.cc, posted a video clip of an interview with a taxi driver in Rangoon, saying he drove Yettaw from Rangoon's airport and contending that the American in fact walked into Suu Kyi’s compound after he dropped him in front of Suu Kyi’s home.

According to the video clip, the taxi driver alleges that Yettaw walked into the compound after he showed a red card to the guards in front of the democracy leader’s house.

Yettaw, a Mormon, reportedly does not hold strong political views. He receives disability payments from the US Veteran’s Affairs office for Vietnam War-related injuries and has pursued studies in psychology.

irrawaddy

NLD youths demand an open court for Aung San Suu Kyi trial

2009-05-21T19:30:00.001+06:30

Members of the National League for Democracy (NLD) Youth wing on Thursday called on the government to conduct the trial of party leader Aung San Suu Kyi in an open court, where the public can have access.

The NLD Youth (working group) made the demand in a statement, which also called on the government to allow international legal experts to observe the trial.

Meanwhile, in a separate statement released by the Humanitarian group of the Rangoon division NLD along with the Rangoon division NLD youths, said Daw Aung San Suu Kyi is honourable and a person who is essential who cannot be excluded out of the process of national reconciliation and transition to democracy.

mizzima

Testimonies of witnesses on Wednesday’s hearing

2009-05-21T19:28:00.001+06:30

The state-run newspaper, New Light of Myanmar, on Thursday carried a report detailing the testimonies of witnesses during Wednesday’s court hearing in Aung San Suu Kyi’s trial.

On Wednesday morning Police Captain Sa Kyaw Win of the Special Investigation Department (Foreign Affairs Division) was the first witness to testify in court, the paper said.

According to his testimony, he had conducted an investigation at the Beauty Land Hotel (2), where the American John William Yettaw had stayed, on May 6 at 1:5 a.m. (local time) and found a rucksack containing 61 items.

But after Yettaw told them that he had left three currency notes of USD 100 in the telephone directory in the room, he along with witnesses searched the hotel room for the second time and found three currency notes of USD 100, the newspaper said.

On Wednesday afternoon, witness Police Captain Tin Zaw Tun, head of Bahan Township Police Force was examined. He testified that together with Nga-htet-kyi Ward (West) PDC of Bahan Township Zaw Tin and Kyaikkasan Ward PDC Khin Nyunt went to the residence of Daw Aung San Suu Kyi at 54/56 on University Avenue of Shwedaunggya Ward, Bahan Township at 7.20 am on May 7, with a search warrant issued by the judge of Bahan Township court, the newspaper said.

He said Daw Aung San Suu Kyi admitted knowing John William Yettaw, when he showed her his photograph and also said Yettaw had arrived in her house on May 4 morning and left on May 5 evening.

The witness also said, Daw Aung San Suu Kyi showed him the things that Yettaw had left one by one and he listed them. Yettaw also left two black chadors usually worn by Muslim women, the newspaper added.

mizzima

Swan Arrshin members hired for 3,000 kyat a day

2009-05-21T19:26:00.000+06:30

Burmese military junta authorities are reportedly looking for more members of Swan Arrshin, a pro-junta group, and are hiring them for 20,000 kyat (USD 20) per day for security during the trial of Aung San Suu Kyi.

Swan Arrshin members are to be positioned at main junctions in Rangoon and the surroundings of Insein prison. They are reportedly being paid 3,000 kyat (USD 3) per day in a normal situation but have been promised 20,000 kyat per day if there is any anti-government protest, which they will have to suppress.

In some townships and quarters, the number of Swan Arrshin members remained short, forcing the authorities to offer them more.

Though a number of armed uniformed policemen and soldiers are visible in Insein Township, the number is less in other townships of Rangoon.

In most crowded junctions, members of Swan Arrshin, plainclothes policemen and Military Affairs Security personnel are visible.

During the September 2007 monk-led protests, sources said members of Swan Arrshin were hurriedly recruited and were given 3,000 Kyat, with free lunch and a packet of cigarettes as a bonus per person per day to be used in cracking down on protestors.

mizzima

Aung San Suu Kyi late for court session

2009-05-21T19:25:00.000+06:30

Aung San Suu Kyi on Thursday was reportedly brought to the court later than the scheduled time. It is still not clear why she arrived late.

Meanwhile, near the Insein Bazaar, Central Committee member of the National League for Democracy Win Tin and party members gathered to demonstrate their support for party leader Aung San Suu Kyi and in protest against the trial.

In an interview with Mizzima, Win Tin said they are gathering near the Insein bazaar as a demonstration of their solidarity with Aung San Suu Kyi and in protest of her trial.

Members of Swan Arrshin, a pro-junta civilian group, have increasingly become emboldened and were seen checking people with cameras and for journalistic identification.

Main roads to Insein prison remained close on Thursday, but a small lane for by-passers and for vehicles was kept opened.

Shops near the Insein prison reportedly saw a drastic drop in customers.

mizzima

Swan Arrshin members used for security in Insein

2009-05-21T19:24:00.000+06:30

Observers said, security forces have been drastically reduced around Insein prison, but members of the Swan Arrshin – a pro-junta civilian outfit – are seen increasingly around the area. They are being used by the authorities as informers to check on peoples’ movements.

mizzima

Security beefed up in few towns in Rakhine State

2009-05-21T19:23:00.001+06:30

Dhaka (Mizzima) – The Burmese military junta authorities have tightened security in Sittwe and Tungup towns in Western Burma where anti-regime protests took place in the recent past.

Two days after Aung San Suu Kyi was transferred to Insein prison on May 14 to face her trial, the police in Sittwe were deployed at crowded places in Sittwe, the capital of Rakhine (Arakan state) - such as near the Town Hall, around the University, Atulamarazein and Ye Kyaw Thu pagodas, Vaishali stadium, U Ottama Park and Lawkananda pagodas.

"There are 300 police personnel deployed here. They are standing by, a local resident from Narzi Ward told Mizzima.

Similarly, police personnel have been patrolling Tungup in southern Rakhine State, since May 17.

"About 100 policemen are patrolling the town in three police patrol cars. The local authorities are closely monitoring the situation in the backdrop of Daw Suu's trial," the local resident from Tungup said.

A youth from Tungup National League for Democracy (NLD) said that the local people are disenchanted with the transfer of Aung San Suu Kyi to Insein prison to face trial.

"We are also watching the situation very closely. We will launch a movement if necessary," he said.

Sittwe and Tungup are the places where political protests and movements have taken place and demonstrations were staged during the 2007 September saffron revolution.

Commentary: The brief charade of an open trial

2009-05-21T19:21:00.000+06:30

Francis Wade

(DVB)–Yesterday, as diplomats and journalists caught a rare glimpse into the notoriously secretive Burmese judicial system, there was the briefest glimmer of hope that international pressure had finally worked its way to the heart of Burma’s ruling junta.

With growing numbers of world leaders, including the normally reluctant Association of Southeast Asian Nations bloc, adding their voices to calls for an open and fair trial for opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi, it seemed the generals’ stubbornness had momentarily wavered.

In a surprise announcement yesterday, 10 journalists from both domestic and international agencies were allowed to enter Insein prison, accompanied by 30 foreign ambassadors. To add a further lick of paint, three ambassadors were then allowed to meet with Suu Kyi in person following the close of hearings.

Few outsiders are permitted to enter such bastions of Burmese military autocracy as Insein prison, let alone witness the trial of such a high-profile political prisoner in Burma. Newspapers across the world tentatively heralded what they saw as the results of mounting pressure on the regime, which had thus far brushed off repeated accusations of a “bogus” trial and a “mockery” of judicial law and kept the door firmly shut.

Yet one of the diplomats allowed inside the courtroom, Britain’s Mark Canning, took no time in quashing expectations.

"The access we had today was welcome, but doesn't change the fundamental reality," he told the BBC yesterday.

"All the paraphernalia of the courtroom was there, the judges, the prosecution, the defense. But I think this is a story where the conclusion is already scripted."

And the feedback received from yesterday’s observers would confirm this. Most of the 30 diplomats who observed the hour-long hearing were left twiddling their thumbs, with no-one present to translate what was being said. Only the US consuls were given language aid, while the Chinese, Japanese and North Korean officials had a basic grasp of the Burmese language. That left 25 forced to accept that they had fallen for the generals’ tricks. While their appearance no doubt gave the slightest of cosmetic lifts to the trial, the substance of their presence could only benefit those behind the controls.

According to reporters, Yettaw looked nervous as he sat alone in the courtroom. Suu Kyi on the other hand remained composed, the superficiality and futility of the situation all too familiar. At the close of hearings she thanked the observers for attending, and hoped that they would meet “in better days”.

Then came the next act in the generals’ diplomatic performance. Suu Kyi was ushered out at the close of court and into the company of three of the diplomats. That those chosen were from Russia, Thailand and Singapore, three of the handful of countries that remain close to the regime, signals the extent that Burma will go to answer to its critics.

A Thai foreign ministry official said on Tuesday that it “will not use strong measures or economic sanctions against [Burma] because it is not an appropriate resolution for the current problem”, despite expressing “grave concern” for Suu Kyi’s situation. In other words it will go no further than rhetorical condemnation: water off a duck’s back for the junta.

Singapore have been slightly more venomous in their condemnation of the trial, expressing “dismay” and warning of a setback to Burma’s national reconciliation, but as a key member of ASEAN, and therefore subject to its policy of non-interference epitomized by Thailand’s stance, it is unlikely to go further.

What must have been the ultimate kick in the teeth for Suu Kyi was the presence of Russia, one of Burma’s key allies and leading supplier of military equipment to those holding her in detention. The technology used by the government to monitor and charge members of Suu Kyi’s National League for Democracy (NLD) party is provided largely by Russia. Indeed, many government intelligence officials are graduates in Defense Electronic Technology at the Moscow Aviation Institute.

Little is known of the talks, and nothing seems to have been achieved. After this rare fling with the outside world, Suu Kyi, her two caretakers, and the US citizen John Yettaw are back behind closed doors, the gates to Insein once again barred.

One can safely assume that the conclusion of the trial is foregone: indeed the bulk of the script for this episode was written long before Yettaw arrived on the scene, decades ago when Suu Kyi channeled Burma’s discontent with military rule right to the voting booths. The junta will have found a way to keep her behind bars - the threat of not doing so too great for the paranoid generals - but Yettaw provided a perfectly tangible excuse, whether legitimate or not, to bring her to court.

A renowned former political prisoner at Insein and pivotal member of the NLD, Win Tin, summarised the charade that this trial has already, all too predictably, turned out to be.

“This [the diplomats allowed into the courtroom] doesn’t mean the trial has been transformed to be free and fair,” he said.

“This is merely a thing the government does similar to when they invite foreign diplomats to events where they destroy confiscated drugs.

“It’s a gesture to convince them they are doing things properly.”

Court access for diplomats merely ‘a gesture’

2009-05-21T19:16:00.000+06:30

(DVB)–Burma opposition party, the National League for Democracy, have said that allowing diplomats to observe Aung San Suu Kyi’s trial was merely a “gesture” and still falls short of making it an open trial.

In a statement released yesterday, the NLD, whose leader Suu Kyi is facing charges of breaching conditions of her house arrest, denounced the trial and said that proceedings were not consistent with the regulations of the court.

NLD Central Executive Committee Member Win Tin added that allowing journalists and diplomats into the courtroom did not make it a free and fair trial.

“This is merely a thing the government do similar to when they invite foreign diplomats to events where they destroy confiscated drugs in a gesture to convince them they are doing things properly.”

Similarly, the secretary of the Committee Representing the People’s Parliament said that it was a superficial move aimed only at convincing people that the trial is fair.

“In reality, the court should let the NLD and the family members of [Suu Kyi], and reporters from the media inside and outside of the country to enter it and study its procedures, in order to make it an open trial,” said Aye Thar Aung.

One of the diplomats allowed inside the courtroom yesterday, Britain’s Mark Canning, told the BBC that the move was welcomed but did little to alter the reality of the situation.

"All the paraphernalia of the courtroom was there, the judges, the prosecution, the defense,” he said.

“But I think this is a story where the conclusion is already scripted."

Reporting by Aye Nai

If The Lady is Jailed

2009-05-21T19:12:00.000+06:30

On Wednesday, Burma's ruling generals opened the iron gate to Rangoon’s notorious Insein Prison allowing 10 reporters and 30 diplomats to enter for a few hours to bear witness to the criminal trial against democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi.

It appears that the regime relented to the global outrage against the Nobel Peace Prize laureate’s arrest and international diplomatic pressure.

Three of the diplomats were allowed to meet Suu Kyi briefly at the conclusion of Wednesday’s proceedings: Ambassador of Singapore Robert Chua, who is doyen of the diplomatic corps in Burma, and senior Russian and Thai diplomats. The Russian ambassador had reportedly been invited because his country is currently president of the UN Security Council, while Thailand has the chairmanship of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean).

However, Debbie Stothard, coordinator of the regional human rights group Alternative Asean Network on Burma, told The Associated Press that Wednesday's move “was definitely a stunt by the regime to stave off pressure so they can proceed with their kangaroo court to jail Suu Kyi.

“They wanted to say they are not ill-treating her, so go away! You don't need to see the rest,” she said. “It also means the regime doesn't have a strong case against Suu Kyi and has no grounds to proceed.”

For 63-year-old Suu Kyi, who has spent 13 of the past 19 years under house arrest, the charges of harboring a foreigner at her house come less than two weeks before she was due to be released.

Now, many observers question whether she will ever see the light of day again.

British Ambassador to Burma Mark Canning, who was one of the diplomats at the trial on Wednesday, also said that he thought Suu Kyi would be incarcerated by the junta.

“The outcomes in these sorts of trials—and don’t forget we’ve seen over 1,000 political prisoners locked away over the past 16 months—tend to be pretty predictable, sadly,” he said.

Assuming that Suu Kyi’s fate is already assured by the junta’s ruthless consistency at these farcical summary trials, draws attention to those who have endured similar convictions since the 2007 popular uprising known as the Saffron Revolution.

Last year, dozens of leading activists from the 88 Generation Students group, including Min Ko Naing, were given draconian sentences of up to 65 years and sent to prisons in remote rural areas. Many of those imprisoned were middle-aged; if they are forced to serve their full sentences, many will die in prison.

There are now more than 2,000 political prisoners being held in gulags and labor camps across the country.

The harsh sentences are, of course, designed to discourage dissent. Furthermore, under the current judicial system, there is little chance of a fair trial; even the lawyers who represent dissidents have been reprimanded and, in several cases, charged with contempt of court and disbarred.

The latest case involved two of Suu Kyi’s lawyers, Aung Thein and Khin Maung Shein, who had already served time in prison and who were on Friday dismissed from the bar.

Most of these summary proceedings take place far from the public eye and out of sight of the international community. Not even the International Committee of the Red Cross sees political prisoners nowadays after it was forced to suspend prison visits in 2006.

A report entitled "Silent Killing Fields," published last week by the Thailand-based Assistance Association for Political Prisoners-Burma (AAPP), paints a horrific, case-by-case picture of systematic abuse behind bars, including torture, deaths in custody, denial of medical assistance and a deliberate policy of transferring prisoners to remote regions to prevent families’ access and support.

According to the report, more than 350 activists have been sentenced since October, and the majority of them have been transferred to remote jails far from their families. Due to the lack of proper healthcare in Burma’s jails, political prisoners rely on their families for medicine and food.

At least 127 political prisoners are in poor health, according to the report, and 19 of them require urgent medical treatment.

In the report, the mother-in-law of activist leader Nilar Thein, who is being held at Thayet prison in Magwe Division, said, "We could not meet her for nearly two months.

Now we are worried about her health after hearing she is vomiting almost daily. She is said to have a peptic ulcer and is in solitary confinement."

According to AAPP, since 1988 at least 139 political prisoners have died in detention, as a direct result of severe torture, denial of medical treatment, and inadequate medical care.

"The situation for Burma’s political prisoners is dire. Not only are there more political prisoners than ever before, they are facing harsher sentences," Bo Kyi, the joint-secretary of AAPP, said. "Leading activists have been transferred to the most remote prisons, where there are no prison doctors, and they are more likely to contract diseases like malaria and tuberculosis. This is a new cruel and inhumane strategy by the regime."

Shortly before her arrest, it was reported that Suu Kyi had been suffering from low blood pressure, dehydration and had trouble eating. At 63 years of age, the democracy icon—who was brought up in relative comfort—would most likely suffer more bouts of ill-health is she is kept incarcerated in Insein Prison.

Of course, a weak Suu Kyi means a weakened NLD and this is exactly what Snr-Gen Than Shwe and his oligarchy want. Make no mistake, the stakes are high. Any prospects of democracy and stability in Burma in the near future are drastically diminished if Suu Kyi is thrown in jail.

irrawaddy

UWSA Leaders Reject Border Guard Offer

2009-05-21T19:03:00.000+06:30

Burma’s most powerful ethnic ceasefire group, the United Wa State Army (UWSA), this week rejected an offer from Burmese military authorities that it reassign its soldiers to duties as border guards under joint-command of the Burmese army, according to sources at the Sino-Burmese border.

Leaders of the UWSA—which has some 20,000 troops in strength—personally responded to Burmese Military Affairs Security Chief Lt-Gen Ye Myint that they can not accept the offer and that the Wa rebel army would maintain its current ceasefire status. According to sources, the Wa leaders said the junta’s offer will be reconsidered in the future, but did not mention when.

The move came one month after Lt-Gen Ye Myint met for talks with a delegation of UWSA representatives in Tang Yan, eastern Shan State.

“Ye Myint was very angry after he received the response from the UWSA,” said Aung Kyaw Zaw, a military analyst at the border.

He said that Ye Myint phoned the Wa leaders accusing them of looking out for only the interests of the central committee and of ignoring the will of their soldiers.

“Ye Myint warned the Wa leaders that this was a final offer and a very good opportunity for them,” said Aung Kyaw Zaw.

The Burmese security chief also said that he will conduct a survey among UWSA soldiers by himself to monitor the personal opinions of the Wa troops.

Aung Kyaw Zaw said that so far there have been no signs of tensions between the Burmese army and UWSA troops.

The military analyst said that the Burmese regime would not take any direct action against the UWSA at the moment as they are under heavy pressure by the international community with respect to the ongoing trial of pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi.

Sources at the Sino-Burmese border speculated that Burmese army leaders were pressuring the UWSA to disarm and to withdraw from strategic positions in southern Shan State along the Thai-Burmese border. However, to date there is no sign that the UWSA will withdraw its troops, they said.

Sources speculated that the most probable reason for rejecting the border guard offer was that the UWSA did not want to be subservient to Burmese command.

Seventeen insurgent groups have signed ceasefire agreements with the ruling generals since 1989, according to official Burmese reports.

irrawaddy

Canal dam breaks, flooding villages

2009-05-20T17:39:00.001+06:30

Chiang Mai (Mizzima) – The left canal of Kinda dam in Myitha Township, Mandalay Division, cracked on the 16th of May, inundating 12 villages.

Incessant heavy rainfall is thought responsible for the collapse.

Following the break, four-foot high water cut off communication to the villages and damaged roads. Only after three days of the incident, was relief work able to commence.

People in Myitha have started providing relief materials such as food parcels and rice, but the exact amount of damage caused by the dam breaking has not been ascertained.

"We have started sending rice bags today but they have not yet reached the flooded villages. We are sending these rice bags via three-hand tractor trailers. Some villages are accessible but some as yet are not," a local resident told Mizzima.

On the same day a pond used by villagers from Nyaungbin village, in Nahtogyi Township near Myitha, overflowed its banks.

The overflowing of the pond flooded some villages in Nahtogyi Township and damaged roads in the area, preventing any relief efforts to date.

The left Kinda dam canal, which became operational in 1985, is a major hydroelectric, multi-purpose canal.

mizzima

Surveillance stepped up outside Insein

2009-05-19T19:40:00.000+06:30

(DVB)–Security outside Insein prison, where Aung San Suu Kyi is facing the second day of court hearings, has increased, with reports that officials are photographing supporters of Suu Kyi waiting outside the gates.

According to an anonymous source outside the prison, members of the government-affiliated Union Solidarity and Development Association (USDA) have joined police and militia groups to monitor crowds.

“Today, there are more security forces than yesterday including members of the special police branch in plain clothing,” said the source.

“They and some USDA members are taking photographs of every single person who came to gather near the prison gates, who are mainly National League for Democracy members and university students.

More and more people were arriving outside the prison, he said, adding that shops at Insein market, which had been closed yesterday on the first day of the trial, were now open.

Similarly, a roadblock on a bridge near to the prison was now allowing some container trucks leaving Rangoon to pass through.

Reporting by Naw Say Phaw

Prosecutor makes some concessions on Suu Kyi

2009-05-19T19:33:00.000+06:30

(DVB)–The first witness called in the prosecution of Aung San Suu Kyi yesterday acknowledged that she had not violated a condition under which she is forbidden to make contact with an external political body.

Speaking to DVB, Suu Kyi’s lawyer, Kyi Win, said that the first day of the trial yesterday against the Burmese opposition leader had heard a statement from prosecutor, Lieutenant Colonel Zaw Min Aung.

“We read out the restriction order against Daw Suu, which pointed out that she is prohibited from meeting with foreign diplomats and people with links to political organizations, to [Zaw Min Aung] and asked him if that would be correct to say she didn’t violated this prohibition, and he said that was correct,” said Kyi Win.

Suu Kyi is on trial for allegedly breaching conditions of her house arrest following the intrusion of US citizen John Yettaw, who stayed at her compound earlier this month where she has been detained for 13 of the last 19 years.

If convicted she could be imprisoned for up to five years.

“Then we continued to ask him, based on accusations that Daw Suu had violated a restriction against her from making contacts with the outside world such as talking to people on the phone, if he knew her phone line has been cut off since 2003,” said Kyi Win.

“He didn’t give a clear answer on that.”

The trial is being held behind closed doors in a special court inside Rangoon’s Insein prison. Kyi Win said their request to the court to open the trial for the public was rejected.

Many Burmese in exile have vented their anger at Yettaw, who swam across Inya Lake on the night of 3 May and stayed at Suu Kyi’s compound. It has transpired that he made the same trip last year.

“When [Yettaw] showed up at Daw Suu’s house, she told him to leave at once.,” said Kyi Win.

After complaining of muscle cramps, Suu Kyi allowed him to sleep on the ground floor of her house.

“She also had to feed him, because [it is a tradition] even to feed a stray dog who shows up at your door, and this time we are talking about a human,” said Kyi Win.

The trial continues.

Reporting by Naw Say Phaw

Open Letter Gordon Brown to Aung San Suu Kyi

2009-05-19T19:19:00.001+06:30

The Prime Minister has released an open letter to Burmese pro-democracy activist Aung San Suu Kyi.

Dear Daw Suu

The Burmese regime continues to resist the righteous clamour from your people and from the international community for your release. As you and the Burmese people are denied your democratic rights and freedoms the only way for me to communicate with you is through this open letter.

I wanted to publish it to let you know that you are not alone - that people are standing with you not just here in Britain, but everywhere that democracy and freedom are upheld.

We are heartened by your tremendous courage, your inspirational leadership, and by the knowledge that no oppression is so great that the forces of liberty cannot prevail The history books are full of stories of injustice. But they are also full of stories of hope, resistance and the victories that satisfy the deep human yearning to be free. I am confident that your story will stand prominently among those that show that from
the deepest wells of despair can come the greatest triumphs of human endeavour.

Inspired by and in solidarity with you, the British Government will continue to work with our international partners to support Burma’s path to stability, peace and economic recovery. The UN Security Council has set out the steps necessary for a return to democracy in Burma. I have worked with our partners in the EU to maintain sanctions that are tough and targeted against those individuals who wish to deny the Burmese people their rights. And I will continue to press your neighbours in Asia to work even harder for your release and that of all political prisoners in Burma.

My message to the Burmese regime is clear the people of Burma have suffered nearly half a century of conflict and isolation, it is time to embrace a new beginning. So I say to the Generals who imprison you: the time for a transition to democracy is now. By excluding you from that future, by silencing and imprisoning you, they condemn your country to
further decades of poverty and exclusion.

Your continued imprisonment reminds all of us that we should not take for granted the institution of democracy for which you campaign That we should not rest until you are able to play your rightful role in a free and secure Burma. And that our place is alongside all those who face imprisonment, repression and despair in their battle to build democracy, confront poverty and protect human rights. Daw Suu I want you to know: you are not alone.

Yours sincerely

Gordon Brown

number10.gov.uk

"The regime hates the world's attention,trial could last for three months

2009-05-19T03:09:00.001+06:30

Brave Suu Kyi supporters keep vigil for trial

As the trial of Aung San Suu Kyi opened in Rangoon today, dozens of her supporters braved razor wire barriers, road blocks and paramilitary intimidation outside Rangoon's notorious Insein prison, where the trial is taking place, to show their solidarity with her.

The democracy leader is accused of violating the terms of her house arrest by allowing her unwelcome guest, John Yettaw, an American citizen who swam across the lake to the family villa where she is confined, to stay. If found guilty she could be jailed for five years.

Win Tin, a member of her party, the National League for Democracy (NLD), who spent 19 years in isolation in the jail as a political prisoner, was one of the protesters. In a telephone interview with The Independent he said the trial was simply a ploy to extend her detention, which is about to expire.

"They are using this to extend her house arrest and to avoid her being present during the elections," said the 79-year-old former journalist. "[That way,] she cannot meet the people, she cannot say anything against the election. She will be absent." Elections under a new, widely criticised constitution are scheduled for next year.

British ambassador Mark Canning and other senior foreign diplomats tried to enter the prison to attend the trial but were turned back at a road block.

The closed court inside the high-security prison heard Lt Col Zaw Min Oo, chief prosecutor, accuse Ms Suu Kyi of being "in breach of discipline" for failing to turn Mr Yettaw over to the police who guarded her house.

But Nyan Win, one of Ms Suu Kyi's three lawyers, rejected the charges. Speaking to The Independent outside the court, he said, "It is ridiculous to say it was a breach of discipline when this man was an intruder, she did not invite him there." He added that the trial could last up to three months.

Ms Suu Kyi, 63, will plead not guilty, but observers fear that the outcome of the trial - a guilty verdict - is not in doubt. Her supporters believe the regime may use the case as a pretext for extending her latest six-year term of detention ahead of a 2010 general election which the military hopes will entrench its dominance under a new, much criticised constitution.

Mr Yettaw, a Mormon and Vietnam veteran whose motives are still unclear, swam more than a kilometre across Rangoon's Inya Lake to Ms Suu Kyi's home in early May. Ms Suu Kyi pleaded with him to leave, her lawyers say, but allowed him to stay the night when he complained of cramp and exhaustion. The 53-year-old American, who was arrested as he swam away from the house, is charged with immigration offences and entering a restricted zone.

Belying reports of fragile health, the opposition leader, dressed in an elegant Burmese outfit - a sky blue fitted jacket and matching long skirt - was in good spirits, according to Nyan Win.

"She asked me to give a message to all her friends and supporters that her health is good and that she is as alert and focused as ever," he said.

Ms Suu Kyi was first put under house arrest almost 20 years ago, in July 1989, as her party was campaigning in Burma's first general election since a coup d'etat ushered in military rule in 1962. She was still being held incommunicado when the triumphant results were published. But the military regime refused to honour the victory, arresting and killing many of the party's supporters and MPs and driving many more into exile.

Ms Suu Kyi's last, brief interlude of freedom ended with a regime-sponsored attempt on her life in July 2003. She was briefly incarcerated in Insein Prison before being once again locked up in her decaying lakeside villa.

Since then her conditions of imprisonment have been far harsher than before. She has no telephone and cannot receive letters. In that sense, her arrest has brought a welcome breath of fresh air and solidarity from the outside world. "We were able to inform her of the support of the international community," said Nyan Win, referring to calls by world leaders such as Gordon Brown for her release. "She has no radio or TV so she is really heartened to hear these things."

Ms Suu Kyi is being held in the grounds of the prison, which is notorious for its squalid conditions and the abuse suffered by inmates. She was reported as saying her accommodation was “comfortable.” Mr Yettaw and Ms Suu Kyi’s two housekeepers and companions, a mother and daughter who have lived with her since 2003, are being tried together with her.

Nyan Win said the trial could last for three months. A diplomat commented: "The regime hates the world's attention on this so they will try to kick it into the long grass and hope the interest fades."

independent uk

3000 people outside the Insein prison Rangoon

2009-05-18T15:29:00.000+06:30

Interview with Nyo Ohn Myint, in-charge of the Foreign Affairs Committee of the National League for Democracy – Liberated Area (NLD-LA) in exile.
Monday, 18 May 2009 01:35

“As far as I have heard, British diplomats tried to enter Insein prison but they were not allowed. Outside the prison, there are about 3000 people but we are not sure. What is certain is that NLD youths and members are angry. So, the situation is tense. The junta wants to conclude the trial as soon as possible. That means they will sentence and imprison her.”

“So, the tension between both sides is increasing. Currently, the junta is blocking roads. And the people want to know more. And given the situation, there are groups, who want to start protesting.”

“As for Dr. Tin Myo Win, we heard that he was released on health grounds. But he is not involved in politics.”

mizzima

European diplomat from the United Kingdom, Italy, Germany, France and Australia tried to enter Insein prison

2009-05-18T15:26:00.000+06:30

An European diplomat, who along with Ambassadors from the United Kingdom, Italy, Germany, France and Australia tried to enter Insein prison, told Mizzima that they wanted to show support and solidarity for Aung San Suu Kyi but were barred from entering.

“I wanted to show my support to Aung San Suu Kyi and her lawyers and the ambassadors wanted to do so as well. I don’t think they would have allowed us inside the prison but we wanted to be outside the prison,” the diplomat, who wished not to be named, told Mizzima.

The diplomat said, “The general feeling is that we are disturbed about what is happening and what the consequences of the trial might be,” the diplomat said.

mizzima

Youth distributing ribbons arrested

2009-05-18T15:23:00.000+06:30

Monday, 18 May 2009 12:04

A youth member of the National League for Democracy (NLD) from Shwe Pyithar Township, who was distributing black ribbons near Insein bazaar was arrested by police on Monday morning.

mizzima

Foreign envoys barred from entering Insein prison

2009-05-18T15:22:00.000+06:30

Monday, 18 May 2009 12:02

Ambassadors and diplomats from the Rangoon-based British, French, German, Italian and Australian embassies have been barred from entering Insein prison, where a special court will conduct a trial against Burmese democracy icon Aung San Suu Kyi, reports said.

mizzima

Telephone lines cut-off

2009-05-18T15:21:00.001+06:30

Monday, 18 May 2009 12:00

Rangoon-based journalists said several telephone lines have been cut-off since Sunday night, and outgoing calls can be made only from a few mobiles phones.

As roads to Insein prison remain closed, vehicles coming to Insein township are forced to make a detour from the Minglardon-Pyi Road.

mizzima

Youths versus pro-junta group members

2009-05-18T15:17:00.001+06:30

Monday, 18 May 2009 11:11

Despite road blockades several people gathered near the notorious Insein prison and about 30 youths were able to reach near the jail.

But about 50 members of the pro-junta civilian group, the Union Solidarity and Development Association (USDA), lay in wait for the youths. Reportedly internet connection in Rangoon was cut earlier this morning.

mizzima

Burma government ‘responsible’ for Yettaw incident

2009-05-18T15:08:00.000+06:30

(DVB)–A renowned former Burmese political prisoner has pinned the blame for the United States’ citizen who entered Aung San Suu Kyi’s compound on 4 May squarely on the government, and has labelled today’s trial “bogus”.

U Win Tin, a journalist and member of the National League for Democracy’s central committee, was released last September after spending 19 years in prison, including spells at Insein prison where Suu Kyi is being held.

“The government has control over all the security measures in the country and it’s completely up to them to whether or not to give the American a chance to enter her house,” he said.

“So the government is responsible for what happened.”

Suu Kyi, her two caretakers, and the US citizen John William Yettaw, all face trial today at a court hearing inside Insein prison.

Yettaw faces charges related to trespassing and breaching of immigration laws, while Suu Kyi has been accused of breaching conditions of her house arrest by allowing Yettaw to stay at her compound, where she has been held under house arrest for the past six years.

“There are about 250 security personnel around Daw Suu’s house, including three outposts guarding the neighbourhood, the road at the front and Inya lake,” said exiled former Burmese ambassador to the United States, Aung Linn Htut.

“It is no way possible for someone to infiltrate such heavy security.”

Meanwhile, journalist and Burma expert Larry Jagan said that the Burmese junta may not have been prepared for the outcry from the international community over Suu Kyi’s trial.

“I think that the leaders of the Burmese junta must be surprised at the international reactions to what they have done,” he said.

“And I think that the junta are going to realize that if they pursue this avenue they are going to become increasingly isolated not just from the West but also from their Asian neighbours.”

He added that should Suu Kyi be found guilty, people may take to the streets again, as they did in September 2007.

“There's already pent up anger because of the 2007 crackdown on the monks,” he said.

“We've seen local communities invigorated and empowered by their efforts, their own efforts to help people during and in the aftermath of the cyclone.

“This is a different Burma than it was two years ago and I think that the generals have miscalculated and I think the Burmese people, if she is sentenced to five years, will vent their anger on the street.”

Reporting by Htet Aung Kyaw

Myanmar junta frees Suu Kyi's doctor

2009-05-17T17:42:00.000+06:30

YANGON, Myanmar (AP) — Myanmar's military rulers have released the personal doctor of jailed opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi, who goes on trial Monday for allegedly violating terms of her house arrest, a family member of the doctor said.

Authorities accuse Suu Kyi, a Nobel Peace Prize laureate, of harboring an American man who swam secretly across a lake to her house earlier in the month.

Her personal physician, Tin Myo Win, was taken from his home by police on May 7, a day after American John William Yettaw was arrested near Suu Kyi's lakeside residence, where she has been detained for more than 13 of the last 19 years.

On Sunday, a family member said the doctor had come home.

"He is fine," said the family member, who spoke on condition of anonymity, fearing reprisals by authorities.

Suu Kyi, 63, was charged Thursday with violating her house arrest by sheltering Yettaw, reportedly a Vietnam War-era veteran, who will also be tried along with two female assistants who have been with Suu Kyi since 2003.

It is not known why Tin Myo Win was arrested. A spokesman for Suu Kyi's National League for Democracy earlier said the doctor's detention may have been related to the American swimmer, who has been labeled a "fool" by the pro-democracy movement.

Suu Kyi had been scheduled to be freed May 27 after six consecutive years of house arrest but now faces up to five years in prison if convicted.

Her latest arrest has sparked a storm of international appeals to Myanmar's government to free her and to restore democracy in the country, which has been under military rule since 1962.

In unusually sharp criticism from a Southeast Asian nation, Philippine Foreign Affairs Secretary Alberto Romulo said Sunday that his government was "deeply troubled and outraged" over "trumped up charges" against Suu Kyi.

"We urge the government of Myanmar to resolve the matter speedily and to release Aung San Suu Kyi immediately and unconditionally," he said.

Normally, members of the 10-country Association of Southeast Asian Nations, which includes Myanmar, refrain from criticizing one another.

Suu Kyi's lawyer, Kyi Win, was allowed to meet privately with her Saturday at Insein prison, where the four are being held.

"Daw Suu recounted the events from the time that fellow (Yettaw) came into the house and how she had asked him to leave the house," Kyi Win said Sunday. Daw is a term of respect used for older women in Myanmar.

"After listening to the sequence of events, it is very clear that there is no breach of conditions of her restrictions," Kyi Win said.

Kyi Win will be one of several lawyers defending Suu Kyi.

On Saturday, Aung Thein, a lawyer known for defending political activists, said he was dismissed from the country's Bar Council after he had applied to represent Suu Kyi.

Exactly why Yettaw, of Falcon, Missouri, swam across the lake to see Suu Kyi remains unclear. After leaving, he was fished out of the lake about 1.2 miles (two kilometers) from her residence and taken into custody.

His wife, Betty Yettaw, described her husband as eccentric but peace-loving and "not political at all."

According to his ex-wife Yvonne Yettaw, he said he went to Asia to work on a psychology paper about forgiveness.

She described him as a "charmer," but said he suffered from post-traumatic stress disorder and a head wound during his military service as a "very young" man.

While Yettaw was in Thailand, "Myanmar caught his attention," she said. "There really is not politics behind this. He does not have a political agenda and meant her absolutely no harm."

His former wife said Yettaw belongs to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, commonly known as the Mormons, adding that it was unlikely he was in Southeast Asia to proselytize for the church or convert the Nobel laureate.

But a police report on the case against Suu Kyi said that on another secret visit to Suu Kyi last November, he left a Book of Mormon, the religion's sacred text, in her compound "with intention for her to read (it)."

The report, made available by the Washington-based activist group U.S. Campaign for Burma, said that on Yettaw's latest visit May 3, Suu Kyi allowed him to stay at her residence until the night of May 5, speaking with him and providing him with food and drinks.

Defence lawyer’s licence revoked in Daw Aung San Suu Kyi case

2009-05-16T19:08:00.000+06:30

[Mae Sot, Thailand] The Assistance Association for Political Prisoners (Burma) has learned that lawyer U Aung Thein has had his licence to practise law revoked by the authorities, on grounds that he was not abiding by professional ethics.

U Aung Thein is one of the lawyers in Daw Aung San Suu Kyi’s National League for Democracy legal advisory team. Together with her lawyers U Kyi Win and U Nyan Win, members of the NLD legal advisory team are currently preparing the defence case for Daw Aung San Suu Kyi and her two live-in party members, Daw Khin Khin Win and her daughter Daw Win Ma Ma.

The revoking of his licence to practise law is a blatant attempt by the regime to damage the defence for Daw Aung San Suu Kyi and her two live-in party members. U Aung Thein’s close associate U Khin Maung Shein - not directly involved in Daw Aung San Suu Kyi’s case - has also had his lawyer’s licence revoked. This is yet another example of the regime’s harassment of lawyers who choose to defend pro-democracy activists. There are currently 11 lawyers in prison.

Background

During the trials in October and November last year, lawyers U Aung Thein and U Khin Maung Shein were defending leading members of the 88 Generation Students group, as well as other high-profile activists like labour activist Su Su Nway, Cyclone Nargis relief volunteer Zarganar and monks’ leader U Gambira. In agreement with their clients, they withdrew their legal representation in protest at the grossly unfair way in which the courts were handling the proceedings. On 7 November 2008 they were sentenced to four months’ each under Section 3 of the Contempt of Court Act. The charges were announced on 30 October 2008. The lawyers appeared in court on 6 November, but were not in court to hear the sentence handed down to them on 7 November.

Speaking from his home to the Democratic Voice of Burma whilst waiting for the authorities to take him to jail on 7 November 2008, U Aung Thein said, “Our clients verbally notified Hlaing township judge that they have no faith in the court proceeding and do not want to be tried anymore. He [the judge] insisted that the defendants must not communicate with him directly but through their lawyers. So we just said to him what our clients asked and withdrew our representation. If we are held responsible for this, we have to stick our heads out. I have no plan to counter argue or appeal against the sentence. This kind of thing will continue to happen now and in the future. Most lawyers make a living by conventional means but new lawyers will emerge to defend political activists…. There will always be defenders of the truth. If I don’t do it, other people who do will emerge.”

Both U Aung Thein and U Khin Maung Shein were released on 6 March 2009 after completing their sentences. Since then, they had resumed their legal duties.

fbppn

Listen to the BNN radio station for Burma on the internet

2009-05-15T17:45:00.001+06:30

Listen to the BNN radio station for Burma on the internet now on air

Mingalaba Show, brought to you by Burma Democratic Concern. Produced especially for the people in Burma and the Thai/Burma border.

The Mingalaba Show on http://www.pheonixradio.net/, 6 pm to 10 pm Rangoon Time, Fri-Sat

BNN/pheonixradio

Suu Kyi insists she is innocent

2009-05-15T16:04:00.000+06:30

Burma's jailed pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi has insisted she is not guilty of violating the terms of her house arrest, her lawyer said.

He said Ms Suu Kyi was being held in a "guest room" at the top security Insein jail in Rangoon, but seemed physically well and was "mentally strong".

Western governments were quick to condemn the new charges against Ms Suu Kyi and call for her immediate release.

She faces trial on Monday over an apparently uninvited visit by a US man.

"Suu Kyi said that she believes that she will be found 'not guilty' over her connection with the American intruder," her lawyer Kyi Win told the Thailand-based independent Burmese publication, Irrawaddy.

Reports say Ms Suu Kyi was charged under the country's Law Safeguarding the State from the Dangers of Subversive Elements.

The charges carry a maximum jail term of five years, which would stretch her detention past its supposed expiry date on 27 May and beyond the 2010 elections.

World leaders and human rights groups have denounced the move as a pretext for Burma's military regime to silence its chief opponent ahead of next year's election.

'Uninvited guest'

The charges follow an incident in which an American man swam across a lake to her home and stayed there secretly for two days. His motives remain unclear.

Ms Suu Kyi's lawyer said the American, John Yettaw, had not been invited and that she had tried to send him away.

He is expected to be tried on immigration and security offences, although the charges are yet to be confirmed by the government.

The Burmese authorities have described the American as a 53-year-old Vietnam war veteran and resident of the state of Missouri.

Ms Suu Kyi was detained after her party's victory in a general election in 1990 and has been under house arrest for much of the past 19 years.

'Tenuous pretext'

US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon have demanded her immediate release.

British Prime Minister Gordon Brown earlier said that if "the 2010 elections are to have any semblance of credibility, she and all political prisoners must be freed to participate".

Thailand's prime minister also expressed concern on behalf of the Association of South East Asian Nations (Asean), one of the few groups that allow Burma as a member.

Singapore called the new charges "a setback for the national reconciliation process".

Ms Su Kyi's party, the National League for Democracy (NLD), which won a landslide election victory in 1990 only to be denied power by the military, "strongly condemned" the charges, which come two weeks before her latest detention was due to expire.

bbc

Myanmar's Suu Kyi reported to face new charges

2009-05-14T18:33:00.000+06:30

YANGON (Reuters) - Myanmar opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi will be charged in connection with an alleged visit by an American man to the Yangon home where she is under house arrest, a spokesman for her party said on Thursday.

Nyan Win of the National League for Democracy (NLD), quoting her lawyer who visited Suu Kyi on Wednesday, said the Nobel Peace laureate would be moved to Yangon's Insein Prison later on Thursday.

(Reporting by Aung Hla Tun; Writing by Darren Schuettler; Editing by Valerie Lee)

Lawyers accuse junta of war crimes

2009-05-11T18:12:00.000+06:30

(DVB)–An exiled Burmese lawyers group recently ruled illegal by the Burmese government have said that the extent and severity of crimes committed by the junta warrant accusations of war crimes and genocide.

A conference yesterday convened by Thailand-based Burma Lawyers’ Council (BLC) and umbrella organisation, Human Rights for All (FIDH), discussed the government’s indifference to international pressure on human rights violations.

“There are crimes committed in Burma including war crimes, genocide and massacre that are untouchable by the courts inside the country due to a breakdown of judicial system,” said Thein Oo, chairman of BLC.

The judicial system in Burma is under the direct jurisdiction of the ruling State Peace and Development Council (SPDC), and lawyers representing activists and opposition members are regularly intimidated.

The Assistance Association for Political Prisoners-Burma (AAPP) puts the number of lawyers currently serving prison sentences at 16.

“During the seminar, we discussed finding a way to bring the Burmese regime to the International Criminal Court,” said Thein Oo.

“There was the Depayin massacre in 2003 and protests in September 2007, followed by cyclone Nargis a year later, and so many lives were lost during these events.

“If we fail to take action on the Burmese government, such events will continue.”

The statement echoes a claim made last month by former senior legal adviser to the International Criminal Court, Morten Bergsmo, that the Burmese army’s use of child soldiers could constitute a war crime.

Reporting by Naw Say Phaw

US Man Arrested for Entering Suu Kyi Home

2009-05-11T17:58:00.001+06:30

RANGOON — Police tightened security around Burma's detained opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi on Thursday after an American man was arrested for allegedly swimming across a lake and sneaking into her lakeside home.

The Myanma Ahlin newspaper reported that authorities fished the man out of Rangoon's Inya Lake early Wednesday while he was returning from the visit to Suu Kyi's home. The report identified the man as John William Yeattaw but gave no details of his motives.

It would be the first time anyone has sneaked into Suu Kyi's compound or swam across the lake in an attempt to get there.

More than 20 police entered Suu Kyi's compound Thursday morning, according to neighbors who spoke on condition of anonymity for fear of reprisals in the military-ruled country. Despite police checkpoints and barbed-wire barricades outside the home, police rarely enter Suu Kyi's compound, where she has been kept under house arrest for more than 13 of the past 19 years.

The newspaper report said the American man had confessed to swimming across the lake Sunday evening, sneaking into Suu Kyi's residence and then swimming back late Tuesday before being spotted by police and arrested early Wednesday.

"He secretly entered the house and stayed there," the newspaper reported, saying that he swam with an empty 5-liter plastic water jug, presumably to use as a float. "Further investigation is under way to find out his motive for secretly entering the restricted area."

Police confiscated the man's belongings, which included a US passport, a black backpack, a pair of pliers, a camera and two US 100 dollar bills, the newspaper reported.

A spokesman from the US Embassy in Yangon said consular officers were "seeking access" to the man as is routine in any case of an American citizen arrested overseas.

"Right now we don't know anything more than what is generally known, that this man was arrested for swimming across the lake and wound up being at Aung San Suu Kyi's house," said spokesman Richard Mei, who said he could not immediately confirm the man's identity or spelling of his name.

Suu Kyi's home is tightly guarded and she is not allowed visitors, aside from her doctor. Swimming in Inya Lake in the vicinity of Suu Kyi's compound is not allowed.

Nyan Win, spokesman for her National League for Democracy party, said he had no information about the American visitor aside from what he had read in the state-controlled newspaper. But he said it was worrisome how easily the man accessed the tightly guarded home.

"We are very much concerned of Daw Aung San Suu Kyi's security. What happened shows a security lapse," Nyan Win said. "Daw" is a term of respect in Myanmar.

Suu Kyi has been held without trial for leading an internationally hailed movement for democracy in Myanmar, which has been ruled by the military with an iron fist since 1962.

Her party won Burma's last elections in 1990, a result the military junta never recognized.

Earlier this week, the junta rejected an appeal to free Suu Kyi, whose most recent period of detention is due to expire May 27, according to the party spokesman.

irrawaddy

Food crisis reported in two states

2009-05-07T05:34:00.001+06:30

(DVB)–A United Nations body has begun to establish aid programmes for villages in Burma’s Chin state to tackle the ongoing famine there, whilst a human rights group has issued a report about a serious food crisis in Karen state.

Chin state in northwest Burma has been suffering from famine since 2007. The trigger was the mass flowering of bamboo, which occurs roughly every fifty years, and attracts hordes of rats which feed on bamboo seeds before moving on to crops and stored grains.

Now, the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) will hand out rice to nine villages in Matupi township, Chin state.

Similarly, the World Food Programme has launched a “Food plus Cash for Work” assistance program in six townships, focusing on developing food security in the area through agricultural land development, road construction, and projects earmarked by the communities.

Meanwhile, a report released last week by the Karen Human Rights Group (KHRG) highlighted the food crisis in Burma’s eastern Karen state, which is reported as being a direct result of excessive military demands in the area.

Government troops in Karen state are encouraged to be ‘self-sufficient’.

Villagers’ food stocks are often destroyed or confiscated by the army, and restrictions of movement prevent villagers from buying supplies.

The current economic crisis, along with the rising food prices and climate change, add to the problem, KHRG reports.

In both states, people are reported to be suffering from malnutrition and potentially fatal as a result of food shortages.

Reporting by Beth Macdonald and Rosalie Smith

Myanmar should release aid workers: rights groups

2009-05-02T17:52:00.000+06:30

BANGKOK (AFP) – Human rights groups on Friday urged Myanmar’s government to release more than 20 aid workers they said were imprisoned for making donations to cyclone victims and insulting authorities a year ago.

New York-based Human Rights Watch said the ruling junta had unfairly jailed at least 21 volunteers, including locally well-known comedian Zarganar, for helping some of the 2.4 million people affected by Cyclone Nargis, which hit May 2-3 last year.

The storm left 138,000 people dead or missing and, one year on, aid agencies estimate half a million people remain without adequate shelter.

“Donors and friends of the military government, such as China, should press Burma’s generals to free activists like Zarganar who helped the survivors,” said the organisation’s deputy Asia director Elaine Pearson, using the country’s former name.

The Thailand-based Assistance Association for Political Prisoners called on regional bloc the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and the United Nations to pressure the regime to release the volunteers.

“Their punishment is completely unacceptable. Their ‘crimes’ were to help people and tell the truth about the situation,” said the group’s secretary Tate Naing.

Myanmar’s junta was heavily criticised in the aftermath of the cyclone last year for the slow pace at which it organised aid to the worst-hit Irrawaddy delta region and for not allowing international relief agencies access.

Authorities initially denied visas to foreign humanitarian aid workers and refused permission to nearby naval vessels from the United States, the United Kingdom and France to offload aid supplies.

In late May UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon brokered a deal that allowed a tripartite group of officials from the UN, Myanmar’s government and ASEAN to coordinate aid deliveries to the delta.

But several individuals who distributed aid independently to victims were arrested by the authorities, including Zarganar who was arrested in June 2008 on various charges, including causing “public mischief”.

The country’s most famous comedian, Zarganar was sentenced to 59 years in prison, since reduced to 35 years, and was moved to a remote prison far from Yangon.

On Friday his sister told AFP Zarganar was undergoing tests for suspected heart disease after falling unconscious for more than two hours on April 16.

Ma Nyein said blood tests had been sent to a laboratory in the central city of Mandalay and she would be appealing for Zarganar’s release to ensure he receives full medical treatment.

Human Rights Watch in their statement also urged international donors to ensure their money reached the most vulnerable cyclone victims and for the Myanmar government itself to provide more funds for survivors.

fbppn

Unidentified disease kills pigs in Burma

2009-05-01T04:06:00.001+06:30

New Delhi (Mizzima) - At least 100 pigs have died of an unidentified disease since April 26, said residents in Twante Township in Rangoon division, raising apprehensions following the outbreak of Swine Flu in Mexico.

About 25 pigs from piggeries in Thakhundine and Zeephyukone villages in Rangoon division’s Twante Township died since Saturday, local residents said.

“Before the pigs died, they showed symptoms of poisoning. The bodies of the animals shook. And about two hours later they fell dead,” a local resident of Twante town told Mizzima.

“When we took the meat of the dead pigs the colour was dark and it looked as if it was dehydrated. And when people ate the meat, they started feeling dizzy. Some had to contend with loose motion,” he added.

The locals said, with little knowledge about the disease that the pigs were afflicted with, farm owners buried the pigs in the fields.

After the death of the animals came to the notice of local authorities, a doctor from the Twante hospital along with several officials from the health department came for inspection. But they failed to diagnose the disease that killed the pigs, he added.

“The doctors told us to keep them informed if more pigs died in other villages,” he said.

Piggery owners, who built the piggeries on fish ponds, usually sell their pigs to restaurants and to butchers.

A local resident of Zeephyukone village told Mizzima that many people in the village have piggeries and supply local meat shops as well as restaurants.

“I know one owner of a piggery, who had about 50 pigs in his farm, but since they died one after another only 22 are left. He did not bury the dead pigs but sold the meat to restaurants,” he added.

While the going price of a healthy pig in the market is about Kyat 4,500 (USD 3.75) per viss, the meat of dead pigs was sold only at Kyat 1,500 (USD per 1.25) per viss.

The strange death of pigs in Twante town comes even as the world anxiously watches the outbreak of Swine Flu that has already claimed over 100 lives and caused illness to more than one thousand.

Countries across the globe including Japan, China, South Korea, Thailand and Singapore and India, have become cautious and are conducting medical check-ups at international airports.

The World Health Organization (WHO) on April 26, issued a statement “Public Health Emergency of International Concern” warning the people of the outbreak of Swine Flu.

Similarly, Burma’s military authorities also issued orders on April 27 to check all entry points to the country such as airports, sea ports, and border check-points. But locals in the areas said, there has been no implementation of the order.

mizzima

Burmese, Thai Troops Clash on Border

2009-04-29T05:23:00.000+06:30

Two Thai soldiers and one civilian were injured and hundreds of villagers were evacuated as soldiers of the Burmese army and the Democratic Karen Buddhist Army (DKBA) launched a cross border attack along the Thai-Burmese border on Monday, according to Thai media.

The Thai News Agency (TNA) reported that two Thai soldiers and one villager were injured in the border skirmish as more than 200 Burmese troops and DKBA guerrillas engaged in a joint assault on a base of the Karen National Union (KNU) on the Burmese side of the border.

The joint operation against the KNU occurred opposite a Thai village in Phop Phra District in Tak Province near the border. During the operation, Burmese troops crossed into Thailand.

Col Padung Yingpaiboonsuk, the commander of a special task force of the 34th Infantry Regiment of the Royal Thai Army, said at least three mortar shells landed on Thai territory, and the Burmese and DKBA troops clashed with Thai troops near the border, according to the TNA report.

The TNA said that about 200 Thai villagers near the skirmish area were temporarily evacuated to a Buddhist temple.

KNU sources said that since earlier April, Burmese troops along with the DKBA have undertaken a major assault on Valeki, a Burmese camp of the Karen rebel military wing, the Karen National Liberation Army (KNLA).

More than a dozen persons have reportedly died in the clashes, including a KNLA colonel identified as Saw Jay.

Last week, a rumor of a potential attack by the Burmese army and the DKBA spread through Karen refugee camps along the border.

During a visit by the Thai foreign minister to Burma in March, Burmese officials asked Thailand to serve in a mediation role in peace talks with Karen officials. The KNU has fought for Karen autonomy for more than six decades.

On April 6, a meeting in Burma between the Thai foreign minister and KNU representatives occurred in which a letter from Prime Minister Gen Thein Sein was given to the KNU, offering to meet for peace negotiations.

The KNU said at the meeting that any peace talks should be held in a third country.

KNU sources said that the offer could be related to the 2010 Burmese elections in an effort to give more legitimacy to the junta’s election in the eyes of the international community.

However, the KNU said in a statement on Sunday that the election would not be free or fair and renewed its call for the release of all political prisoners and the halt of all military offensives against ethnic minorities.

“We are working for a peaceful, stable, federal Burma,” said the KNU statement. “We stand ready to enter into a genuine tripartite dialogue, as facilitated by the United Nations at any time.”

irrawaddy

Burma on alert over swine flu

2009-04-27T19:10:00.001+06:30

New Delhi (Mizzima) – The Burmese Ministry of Health, as a precautionary measure, is issuing an alert to the people regarding Swine Flu.

An official at the Department of Health in Naypyitaw said they are issuing an alert to hospitals and piggeries regarding a potential outbreak of Swine Flu. This follows an outbreak in Mexico where 103 people have died and 1,614 people have fallen ill.

“So far there is no sign of any Swine Flu in Myanmar [Burma]. But we are taking precautions and are prepared to conduct medical check-ups at the international airports,” the official, who declined to be named, said.

Villagers Forced to Act as Minesweepers as Abuses Continue in Northern and Central Karen State, Eastern Burma

2009-04-23T02:02:00.003+06:30

KEY DEVELOPMENTS;
The Burma Army continues to oppress people across Burma, with this oppression being the most violent in areas under direct attack. In areas such as Tantabin Township of Toungoo District, where more than 8,000 villagers have been displaced since 2006, the violence is both constant and brutal.

.Displaced villagers forced to act as minesweepers
.Three Karen villagers arrested and held in pit
.Karen civilian injured in fighting between Burma Army and DKBA
.Continued extortion

(Burma Army soldiers stands guard as prisoner porters depart on logging truck)

Villagers captured and forced to act as minesweepers as others are arrested and forced into a pit in Toungoo District, northern Karen State.

On April 2, 2009, the Burma Army from Play Hsa Lo forced villagers in the relocation site there to carry food and walk in front of a bulldozer. The Burma Army often forces villagers to do this in order to explode any mines which may have been placed in the road and to discourage the local Karen resistance troops from attacking.
Similarly, on March 23, the Burma Army arrested four villagers from the Maw Thay Der area. The villagers were forced to walk in front of the patrolling Burma Army troops in order to check for landmines. On March 25, these villagers were then forced to register with the Burma Army and ordered to move to a relocation site. The villagers were from Keh Der, Ler Kla Der, Hu Mu Der and Klaw Mee Der villages in Tantabin Township.

On March 29, the Burma Army went into the area of Kaw Thaw Kho village and burned down a field hut.

On April 3, the Burma Army arrested three villagers, tying them up during the day and putting them in a pit at night. Such arbitrary arrests and torture often are an effort to convince villagers to withdraw their support of Karen resistance troops.

(Prisoner porters perform forced labor in Toungoo District)

Villager injured in clash as Burma Army and DKBA continue to expand control and extort from villagers in Dooplaya District, central Karen State.

A firefight between the DKBA and the Burma Army on April 1 has left one Karen villager injured. The exchange of fire was reportedly started by the DKBA in Aju village, Kawkareik Township in Dooplaya District, central Karen State. Mu Eh Chaw, 22, was injured. The DKBA is a proxy army of the SPDC and it is unusual for the two armies to fight each other.
On March 30, DKBA and Burma Army soldiers went to Htee Kuh (name changed) village, also in Kawkareik Township, and arrested a 40-year-old villager whose name is withheld for security reasons. He was badly beaten and forced to pay 400,000 Kyats (about US$ 317) before being released.

The Burma Army carries out this extortion at will throughout areas it controls. For example, in March, the villages of Tha May Do, Ku Neh and Wa Ka in Kru Tu Township, Dooplaya District, were each required to supply the Burma Army with a thousand sets of roofing leaves.

On March 15, the Burma Army came to Ta Ku Htee village in Waw Raw Township, Dooplaya District with a bulldozer to make a car road from Ta Ku Htee to Kya In Seik Gyi. Once built, roads allow the Burma Army to more effectively launch attacks and re-supply forward camps, move troops, control the movement of villagers and extort property from them.

The Burma Army has also demanded that eight villages in Waw Raw Township organize defense militias. This requires at least 20 people per village to stand guard in their area, meaning that for set times during the week they are unable to farm their crops.

(BNN/FBR)

Leader of ethnic ceasefire group assassinated

2009-04-20T21:52:00.000+06:30

Chiang Mai (Mizzima) – A leader of the New Mon State Party (NMSP), an ethnic armed rebel group that has a ceasefire agreement with Burma’s ruling junta, was assassinated on Saturday by an unidentified gunman, party sources said.

Dr. Min Naung (a.k.a. Naing Min Naung), age 40, a member of the NMSP’s district committee, was shot dead while on his way to buy rations for the party after withdrawing 18 million kyat (approximately US$ 16,360) from a bank in Moulmine, capital of Mon state in Southern Burma.

“He was shot dead in the evening while returning from the bank. He was shot from behind and his chest was wide open. But his money was not taken. The police had confiscated the money,” an office worker at the NMSP office in Moulemine told Mizzima.

The staff member said Min Naung was shot from behind with a pistol while driving his motorbike as he returned to Kamarwut village from Moulmine.

The identity and motivation of the gunman remain unknown.

Nai Rarjar, in-charge of the NMSP office in Rangoon, said, “He [Min Naung] died while buying rations for the party before the monsoon. He died while serving the party. We are still investigating into the assassination.

“So far we don’t know who the gunman is and which organization is behind the incident,” he added.

According to the Independent Mon News Agency (IMNA), Naing Min Naung was a native of Kamarwut village in Mudon district of Mon state. He was a student at Yesin University in central Burma when he joined the NMSP in 1992.

After serving as a Military Intelligence officer in the NMSP, he was promoted to the district committee during the seventh party conference where he was elected as secretary of the NMSP’s central committee on relief and development. He was shot dead while buying food, mainly rice, for displaced Mon villagers, according to the IMNA.

Naing Rarjar said that looking at the evidence, particularly the bullets, indications are the weapon used by the gunman came from neighboring Thailand.

“It is a great loss for us. It also threatens us from moving around. We don’t know who did it and the reason for doing it. And this has left us worried,” he added.

Meanwhile, a NMSP party member, who declined to be named, told Mizzima that Naing Min Naung could have been assassinated by a drug syndicate, as he had effectively worked toward the elimination of drug trafficking while serving as NMSP secretary of Three Pagoda Pass township.

He further said the assassin obviously had greater reasons than monetary ones for the attack, as the 18 million kyat he was carrying was left untouched.

The money and motorbike were reportedly taken to Moulmine police station, while Naing Min Naung’s body was cremated at Moulmine Cemetery.

Thousands flee as cyclone nears Bangladesh

2009-04-17T19:29:00.001+06:30

DHAKA (AFP) — Weather forecasters in Bangladesh said a tropical cyclone would hit the country's southern coast late Friday, as thousands of people in the path of the storm were evacuated from coastal areas.

Cyclonic Storm Bijli was expected to intensify in the Bay of Bengal before making landfall near the southern port city of Chittagong.

"We have told everyone living in low lying areas to head to their nearest cyclone shelter," said Mohammad Manzoor Alam Bhuiyan, an administrator of one of the affected districts along the 300-kilometre (186-mile) coast.

Alam expected the more than 500 cyclone shelters in his region, which have a collective capacity of 500,000 people, to be full before the end of the day.

"We have arranged dry food and clean drinking water. There is a medical team on standby."

Boats had been brought to shore and fishermen were urged not to sail. Flights to and from Cox's Bazar and Chittagong were also suspended.

More than 3,500 people were killed during Cyclone Sidr in November 2007, the second-strongest storm recorded in Bangladesh.

In 1970, some half a million people died when a cyclone hit the impoverished country, while an estimated 138,000 people died as a result of a cyclonic surge in 1991.

The lower death tolls in 1991 and 2007 were attributed to a network of cyclone shelters and a warning system introduced after the 1970 disaster.

In neighbouring Myanmar, the military-run government's meteorological service urged residents of the country's western coastal region to stay away from the sea for two days until Bijli had passed.

"All vessels... in Myanmar waters along the Rakhine coast are advised to take precautionary measures by navigating away from the area exposed to the threat from rough seas and strong winds until 18 April 2009," it said.

In April last year Myanmar was hit by Cyclone Nargis, which left an estimated 138,000 people dead or missing and affected some 2.4 million people, mostly in its southwest delta region.

CYCLONE WARNING FOR BURMA / BANGLADESH

2009-04-17T00:29:00.001+06:30

Tropical Cyclone Bijli (01B) is gathering strength as it churns through the northern Bay of Bengal.

Located approximately 350-400 mph south-southwest of Kolkata, India, Bijli will continue to move in a northeasterly motion and eventually a more easterly track Friday and Saturday. On this track, Bijli will encounter a favorable environment for further strengthening prior to making landfall late Saturday or Saturday night near the border of Myanmar and Bangladesh. Winds could become sustained at hurricane strength (75 mph) at the time of landfall.

Outer rain bands are currently impacting eastern India, southern Bangladesh and western parts of Myanmar. Conditions will continue to deteriorate across southern Bangladesh and Myanmar as Bijli approaches.

In addition to the flooding rainfall of 10 inches or more and strong winds common with tropical cyclones, a dangerous storm surge is expected across western Myanmar prior to and during landfall.

Myanmar was struck by powerful Cyclone Nargis on May 2, 2008, resulting in the worst natural disaster in Myanmar's recorded history. Nargis struck the Irrawaddy Delta, an area farther south than where Bijli is expected to make landfall. While Bijli is not expected to be as strong as Nargis, devastating flooding is expected later this weekend, lasting into early next week.

Story by AccuWeather.com Senior Meteorologist Rob Miller

Vast rubber plantation causing human rights abuse

2009-04-15T03:45:00.000+06:30

In Burma’s Eastern Shan State, local people have so far endured unprecedented air pollution, land confiscation, forced labor and forced relocation for rubber plantation, according to a new report released Thursday, 9 April, by indigenous researchers.

“Lands have been confiscated by the military, village, or town authorities. They announce that the land must be developed for the country, and then they take it,” said a retired Akha soldier from Tachilek Township.

His land was also confiscated by the Light Infantry Battalion 571 based in Ta Lerh km north of Tachilek and it militia group. He tried again and again to get back the land but in the end he got back just 10% of his land.

“In 2007, a Chinese company called Hongyu got license from SPDC to plant rubber in Tachilek Township. Since then, the business craze and rubber craze started to speed up rubber plantations,” said Lahu National Development Organization (LNDO)’s director Japhet Jakui.

The aim of planting rubber has been cited as an effort in drug eradication, but local say it is being used as a front for poppy plantation.

“They plant a lot of rubber beside the main road to hide what they are planting in the interior and most of the farms are owned by militias and local authorities,” he added.

In Wa controlled areas, where leaders are pressured to prove that they are not involved in opium cultivation, rubber has become quite popular as substitution crop to clear their name, according to sources.

As China has become the world’s biggest rubber consumer, more and more rubber was needed to import from its neighboring countries. It serves as a reason for Burma army and local militias to force people to grow rubber to prove that they are not involved in opium cultivation.

“Rubber is easy to plant. It is hard to die and will be producing juice after 7 or 8 years, but if planting and care is not in the right way and the quality is low, then it will not produce a lot of rubber juice,” said Japhet.

In some areas cutting down trees for farming was banned but cutting them down for rubber planting is allowed.

“We have no chance to survive in spite of growing rubber for Chinese bosses. The military orders us ‘not to cut one tree’ ‘but cut as much as you can’. We don’t have any money to buy food but we have to wait 7 to 8 years to get benefit from rubber. There is too much hardship for us,” a villager from Keng Larb Township was quoted in the report as saying.

Undercurrents issue3 also includes other topics like drugs, animal trafficking and mining.

Junta rely on drug money to stay in power

2009-04-12T20:28:00.001+06:30

(DVB)–Profits from Burma’s opium trade are working their way into the pockets of local government authorities, claims a report which found an increase in poppy cultivation last year across Burma’s northeastern Shan state.

Increased numbers of poppy farms and comparatively healthy crops occurred throughout Shan state last year, resulting in a 15 per cent drop in the price of opium, said the Lahu National Development Organisation.

The report discovered that village authorities and militia heads continue to collect a tax from opium farmers, suggesting that capital from the opium trade is reaching local, if not senior, government.

“Each house had to pay two tical (32.66 grams) of opium to a local authority,” said the report.

“Depending on the area, this could be a militia chief, a village headman, or a “middle-man”, all of whom then pass the tax to a local Burma Army battalion or township authority.”

The pro-government armed group United Wa State Army control the majority of the opium trade in Shan state, placing restrictions on who traffickers can sell the drug to.

The report said no progress had been seen in the fight against the opium trade because of the government’s hand in it.

“The ruling military clique has been relying on drug money to run businesses and stay in power,” it said.

It added that the government’s claims of success in eradicating poppy cultivation were in order to receive international assistance.

Burma is second to Afghanistan in global opium production according to the United States.

Reporting by Francis Wade

Burma VJ Film About Underground Reporters Captures Top Honors

2009-04-08T20:13:00.000+06:30

A film about underground reporters who risk their lives to document political repression in Burma has turned out to be the big winner at the Full Frame Documentary Film Festival in the southeastern U.S. state of North Carolina.

Burma VJ - Reporting from a Closed Country - won in three categories at the festival, the most for any entry.

Burma VJ, which was directed by Andreas Ostergaard, captured the "Grand Jury Award." The film also won the "Center for Documentary Studies Filmmaker Award" and the "Full Frame/Working Films Award" at the three-day festival that ended on April 5

The film festival, in the city of Durham, is an annual international event. Organizers say it is dedicated to the theatrical exhibition of non-fiction cinema.

voa

Doctor says Burma ignores HIV/AIDS threat

2009-04-07T02:47:00.000+06:30

(DVB)–A Burmese doctor has said that the country’s leaders are ignoring the threat posed by HIV/AIDS in the hope that it will go away of its own accord.

The comment came following yesterday’s New York Times report which claimed that the epidemic in Burma was worse than in any other Southeast Asian country, and that the main providers of anti-retroviral treatment for the illness were overseas aid organisations.

“From a medical point of view this is very alarming and dangerous,” said Dr Thiha Maung, director of the Thai-based National Health and Education Committee.

“This is not an issue that should be put on the shoulders of foreign aid,” he added.

The report cited Medicins Sans Frontieres statistics that nearly 25,000 HIV-positive people die each year in Burma. A total of 240,000 people are living with HIV and 76,000 are in urgent need of antiretroviral access.

MSF runs 23 medical clinics in Burma and is the primary source of treatment for HIV/AIDS, the report said.

“[The government] don’t want to confess we have this problem,” said Dr Maung. “They think that if they ignore the problem, it will take care of itself.

“They want to eliminate the people carrying the disease,” he added. “They want to let them die.”

Currently, Burma ranks internationally as one of the lowest recipients per capita of overseas aid.

Reporting by Rosalie Smith