News & Articles on Burma-Monday, 28 March, 2011

News & Articles on Burma
Monday, 28 March, 2011
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The Man Who Foresees Storms
Ministry hatches plan to import more labour
Burma’s Censor-Board plays tricks on media personnel
MATRADE To Lead Business Delegation To Myanmar
Sports, supernatural bypass censor board
Parliament snubs ethnic harmony bill
Aid agencies update Myanmar quake casualty count
Aid to earthquake victims remains in high need
Relief teams pick through Shan rubble
Burma Marks Unusually Low-key Armed Forces Day
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The Man Who Foresees Storms
Monday, March 28, 2011

An apocalyptic series of earthquakes, cyclones, tsunamis and floods in the region has spooked everyone. Many people have turned to soothsayers and astrologers for advice about any impending natural disasters.

But rather than consult the Mayan calender or a fortune-teller, The Irrawaddy reporter Min Naing Thu interviewed Dr Tun Lwin, the former director-general of Burma's Department of Meteorology and Hydrology (DMH).

Since his resignation from the DMH in 2009, Tun Lwin has served as a technical adviser to the Regional Integrated Multi-hazard Early Warning System (RIMES) at the Asian Institute of Technology in Thailand. He also served as a consultant to the Myanmar Red Cross Society, CARE Myanmar, Action Aid Myanmar and Myanmar Egress's Network Activities Group. He has also been involved with the International Centre for Water Hazard and Risk Management (ICHARM), Myanmar Egress, World Vision Myanmar, Global Green and other organizations, focusing primarily on climate change and how to minimize damage caused by natural disasters.

Tun Lwin posts many of his articles concerning meteorological issues on his website, Myanmar Climate Change Watch.

U Tun Lwin
Question: What is the difference between presenting weather reports at the DMH and now?

Answer: It's very different. When I was a civil servant with the DMH, I had to follow regulations and had to seek permission or approval from my seniors before doing something. Now that I am working on my own I am free to do what I like. The main difference is freedom.

Q: What kind of references and tools do you use to predict weather conditions?

A: Basically, I use my experience combined with the meteorological knowledge I gained at Florida University. The only tool I have for my work is the Internet. Based on sources of information from various websites I predict what will happen in Burma.

Q: In a recent article, you said Burma needs radar equipment to measure and analyze rain clouds, tornadoes and tropical storms. You also said the DMH has been trying to procure the necessary tools and equipment since 1997. Why has it not happened?

A: In terms of tools and equipment, we just need a meteorological radar station [radar dish and antennae]. There are different types of radar and based on their capacity we can even see every little thing within range.

We don't have a good radar station. We used to have one in Kyaukpyu, but it was manufactured in 1974 and, I think, the radar was installed around 1976. We, the personnel at the DMH, used it frequently. However, with time it became worn out and needed to be repaired. The problem was that we couldn't find spare parts to fix it as it was an old model. Since then, we have been trying to get a new radar station. We asked the World Meteorological Organization, but it didn't transpire. We simply couldn't find any donors.

Q: How much would it cost to install a competent radar station?

A: The cost depends on what kind of radar station we are talking about. We have calculated that if we reinstall a radar dish in Kyaukpyu together with a monitoring station and staff quarters, it will cost about US $7 million.

Q: Internet users in Burma often complain about inefficient speed and service, and say that it crashes regularly. You said you use the Internet exclusively in your work to forecast meteorological conditions. How does this affect you?

A: Of course, I have found it difficult using the Internet [in Burma] as its speed is inconsistent. It makes it difficult for me to collect the information I need or to update my site. The best time to use the Internet here is when others are not using it. Sometimes I sit up all night because it has a faster connection. Sometimes, I go to high-speed Internet cafés. I have tried my best to update the weather forecasts in time, but if there is no Internet access then I can't do anything.

Q: Climate change in Burma has become worse lately. What do you think should be done?

A: It is not quite so easy—the whole world's climate has changed for the worse. But that doesn't mean that we have to give up. What we can do is prioritize reforestation.

A study has been made with regard to global climate change. It has shown that agriculture, industry, deforestation, population growth and a few other factors are the main effect on the global climate.

After examining the impact of these different sectors on climate change, the latest study shows that climate change within a country is mainly related to its GDP.

Q: People have alleged that, in the past, smugglers and those involved in illegal shipping paid off staff at the DMH in order to get them to release false reports about potential storms at sea, thereby deterring government patrol boats from going out and clearing the way for smugglers to land. Can you comment?

A: This is not true at all. There was no such case. There is no way the DMH could act like that. It was all just speculation by people who are unaware of DMH procedures. At that time, the weather forecasts were issued by the DMH headquarters in Rangoon. No individual person could release an independent news report.

Q: How do you feel when you think of Cyclone Nargis?

A: I have many suppressed feelings connected with Cyclone Nargis, because we knew about five days in advance that it would strike the country.

I don't want to blame anyone in particular, but we have paid a high price for not having the experience to deal of this kind of natural disaster. We underestimated it.

The only thing I have in my head now is never to let anything like that happen again. To do this, we have to add, fix and improve our system wherever possible. Taking our lesson from Nargis, we need to be fully prepared.

Copyright © 2008 Irrawaddy Publishing Group | www.irrawaddy.org
http://www.irrawaddy.org/article.php?art_id=21021
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Ministry hatches plan to import more labour
Bangladesh, Indonesia targetted by ministry

Published: 28/03/2011 at 12:00 AM
Newspaper section: News

The Labour Ministry plans to import workers from Bangladesh and Indonesia as Thailand cannot get enough legal workers from nearby countries such as Burma, Laos and Cambodia.

Permanent secretary of the ministry, Somkiat Chayasriwong, said the ministry's committee on alien workers wants to bring in Bangladeshi workers to replace illegal workers from Burma, Laos and Cambodia who fail to register.

Bangladeshi workers will be another option for Thai operators who need more labour and to help solve security problems in the country where there is a growing number of illegal alien workers.

Mr Somkiat said the legal import of workers from Burma, Laos and Cambodia is subject to complicated procedures and regulations in their countries.

Bangladesh is more ready to supply labour as the country exports as many as 10 million workers.

The panel plans to import labourers, construction workers and maids from the country.

Thailand informed Burma that it wanted 100,000 workers but the country could supply only 1,803 workers. He said the supply was meagre compared with the demand.

Mr Somkiat said the alien labour committee would propose the import of workers from Indonesia later.

Regarding about 200,000 alien workers who failed to register for their work permits, the Labour Ministry had already asked relevant authorities to arrest them, he said.

Meanwhile, Adisorn Kerdmongkol, of the Action Network for Migrants, said alien workers were normally placed in fishery and related jobs and the labour import from Bangladesh would not serve local demands because people from that country "did not like jobs" in the fishery business. He suggested workers from Indonesia and southern China suit fishery and related jobs.

Setting aside the origins of workers, Mr Adisorn said Thailand needed a clear strategy to solve the problem of illegal immigrant workers.

Regarding the 200,000 alien workers who failed to register within the deadline at the end of February, he said that was a normal problem and that there were in fact about 1 million illegal immigrant workers in the country.

He said when people shifted to a new employer their old employer would often seize the worker's ID card. The registration of alien workers that happens only once every two years is a complicated procedure and the process can drive some alien workers out of the legal system.

The labour activist also proposed that the Labour Ministry clearly study the businesses that needed to hire alien workers and determine the exact number of workers they required. http://www.bangkokpost.com/news/local/228920/ministry-hatches-plan-to-import-more-labour
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Burma’s Censor-Board plays tricks on media personnel
By Zin Linn Mar 28, 2011 7:52PM UTC

After freshly selected president Thein Sein and his 30-member cabinet sworn in, a few restrictions might become softer in the printing and publishing industries, according to a latest notice on last Friday.

Although such as political, economic, social and literary journals and magazines will not be permitted publishing without undergoing the censorship or the Press Scrutiny and Registration Division (PSRD), sport, entertainment, aesthetic, health, children’s literature, general knowledge, supernatural and technology publications will be allowed evading the PSRD.

There are more than 350 journals and magazines publishing in Burma. In contrast, roughly 200 publications bring out as sport and entertainment periodicals. The risky periodicals on politics and economics are the smallest number in military ruled Burma.

According the new instruction dated 25 March from Information Ministry, over half of Burma’s journals and magazines – mostly sport and entertainment journals – will get exemption to keep away from the infamous censor board or PSRD prior to publication.

Some cronies of the junta who invested in media industry said that the press freedom will come gradually and this might be a first step. But, most of the media related persons deem that the move seems to be trickery to pretend as if the new semi-civilian regime starts allowing press freedom. If the regime wants allowing press freedom honestly, they should let all periodicals and publications. Instead, the regime gives permission only on some selected issues and most influential journals have to maintain status quo under PSRD.

Before 1962 military rule, the then Prime Minister U Nu’s government had no literary censor board office similar to PSRD. Even the journalists and reporters were allowed to enter the PM office and parliament without any limitation. But, the current military rulers did not allow the media personnel entering into the parliamentary sessions to hear what the newly representatives-elect discussed about.

It is a remarkable move that did not allow freedom to every media related person. So, the writers and journalists have to carry on practicing self-censoring to escape severe jail-terms.

Journalists in Burma have received draconian jail sentences for reporting information challenging to the regime. In January 2010, DVB reporter Ms. Hla Hla Win received a 20-year sentence for violating the Electronic Act, and now in jail serving 27 years; her helper, Myint Naing got seven years.

Burma was at the vanguard of press freedom in Southeast Asia before the 1962 military coup. The country then enjoyed a free press; censorship was something unheard of. As many as three dozen newspapers, including English, Chinese and Hindi dailies, existed between 1948 and 1962.

On the contrary, Burma stands demoted from a free state to a prison state. All news media in Burma is stringently censored and tightly controlled by the military – all daily newspapers, radio and television stations are under control of the junta.

Critics disbelieve over the regime’s words that Burma is changing into a civilian government but it looks like merely an exterior change, not an essential one. Actually, the regime is attempting to quiet down denunciation of its press freedom records.

Analysts said the move was likely aimed at countering the flow of independent media, particularly social networking, that has spread as more Burmese log on to the internet.

The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) released a press release on February 11 stating, “Burma’s new government under Prime Minister Thein Sein must put an end to the former military junta’s despicable policy of imprisoning independent journalists. The most recent case to come to light is the 13-year sentencing of Maung Maung Zeya in a trial held within Insein Prison on February 4.”

The court’s verdict remarkably came on the same day the junta-backed president Thein Sein was sworn into office.
http://asiancorrespondent.com/51318/burma%E2%80%99s-censor-board-plays-tricks-on-media-personnel/
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MATRADE To Lead Business Delegation To Myanmar

KUALA LUMPUR, March 28 (Bernama) -- The Malaysia External Trade Development Corporation (MATRADE) will lead a 11-member marketing mission to Yangon, Myanmar, from March 28 to 30, led by its Deputy-Director of Professional and Business Services Section Haridass Nagalingam.

Malaysian companies, representing a wide range of Malaysian products and services, would also participate in the three-day mission which would include pre-arranged business matching sessions.

The mission will also include plant visits to Malaysian companies in Myanmar, a presentation by the Secretary-General of the Union of Myanmar Federation of Chambers of Commerce and Industry and a talk by the President of the Malaysia Myanmar Association.

There were over 40 Malaysian companies operating in Myanmar covering the oil and gas, automotive, palm oil, household products, processed food and building materials sectors, Haridass said in a statement on Monday.

In 2010, Malaysia's bilateral trade with Myanmar was valued at US$630 million (US$1.00 = RM3.02) with Malaysia's exports to Myanmar valued at US$390 million and imports from Myanmar valued at US$240 million.

The strong export performance was driven mainly by Myanmar's strong demand for palm oil, petroleum products, chemical and chemical products, iron and steel, machinery and processed food.

In January 2011, Malaysia's total exports to Myanmar increased 84.7 per cent to US$44 million, from US$23.4 million, registered in January 2010.

-- BERNAMA http://www.bernama.com/bernama/v5/newsbusiness.php?id=574251
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Sports, supernatural bypass censor board
By AHUNT PHONE MYAT
Published: 28 March 2011

More than half of Burma’s journals and magazines will no longer be forced to go via the country’s draconian censor board prior to publication, according to a new ruling that however maintains a tight clamp on political reporting.

Nearly 200 of Burma’s 350-odd journals and magazines will be subject to the easing of stringent laws surrounding publication, which is expected to take effect from the beginning of April when the new government is officially sworn in.

But only publications focusing on entertainment, general knowledge, sport, aesthetic, health, children’s literature, supernatural and technology will be allowed to bypass the Press Scrutiny and Registration Division (PSRD), which resides over some of the world’s harshest media laws. Anything deemed politically sensitive by the board – and the criteria surrounding that is highly arbitrary – will continue to be cut.

It bears resemblance to the system that was in place prior to the 1962 military coup, said prominent magazine editor, Hein Latt. Then, journalists weren’t forced to submit material to the censor board, but could still be punished if their writing angered the government.

He said that with the new ruling, “writers will have to take responsibility for what they write” – a case of self-censoring to avoid legal action and possible imprisonment.

More than 20 Burmese journalists are currently behind bars, some serving sentences of up to 27 years. The military-ruled nation consistently ranks at the tail-end of international press freedom indexes

Critics of the ruling junta have poured doubt over its claim that Burma is transitioning to civilian rule and would likely attack this ruling as merely a cosmetic change – given the strict rules that still surround so-called sensitive topics – aimed at appeasing condemnation of its media freedom record.

Ross Dunkley, the detained former editor of the Myanmar Times, the only newspaper in Burma with foreign funding, has said in the past that some 20 percent of its articles submitted to the censor board are rejected,

Yesterday the regime launched The Myawaddy, bringing to four the number of daily newspaper published in the country. Running the newspaper will be the Directorate of Public Relations and Psychological Warfare, which comes under the responsibility of military intelligence.

Analysts said the move was likely aimed at countering the flow of independent media, particularly social networking, that has spread as more Burmese log on to the internet.
http://www.dvb.no/news/sports-supernatural-to-bypass-censor-board/14983
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Parliament snubs ethnic harmony bill
Published: 28 March 2011

Burma’s parliament has voted against a proposal that would urge the new government to work towards building stronger relations with the country’s marginalised ethnic groups.

The Union Solidarity and Development Party (USDP) will head the government, due to be officially instated on 1 April, but the overwhelming presence of former military generals and a very much pro-junta ideology has begged the question of whether it will break with a past in which ethnic minorities have faced rampant state-sanctioned persecution.

“When the parliament speaker asked whether to approve [the proposal] or not, there were both agreements and disagreements among the MPs,” said Hpone Myint Aung, a parliamentary representative for the National Democratic Force (NDF). “So they decided to vote, and the turnout was 106 votes in favour and 520 against.”

He added that of those who voted on Friday last week, “only around 100 [were] non-military representatives”. The USDP, whose senior ranks include powerful former junta ministers such as Thein Sein, Shwe Mann and Htay Oo, swept around 80 percent of the vote in last November’s elections and, added to the more than 300 pre-appointed army officials, leads an overwhelmingly military-dominated parliament.

Burma is home to around 135 different ethnic minorities, largely grouped in the country’s seven border states where conflict has stretched over decades. The regime’s war with the Karen National Union in the country’s east has lasted more than 60 years and is thought to be the world’s longest-running.

Attempts last year by the government to assimilate the 18 or so ethnic armies that agreed to ceasefire deals into the Burmese army has largely met with failure. Only a small handful have agreed to become Border Guard Forces, while those that refused have been the target of threats and small-scale skirmishes with the Burmese army.

But it is the civilians in these areas that take the brunt of the predominantly Burman junta’s attempts to rout ethnic armies, and perhaps the ethnic minorities themselves: what appear to be state-sanctioned abuses such as rape by Burmese troops of ethnic women, as documented by various rights groups, has led some observers to accuse the regime of an attempted ‘Burmanisation’ of the minorities.

Conflict in the volatile border regions had led to the internal displacement of more than half a million in the country’s east alone, while close to 150,000 refugees, mostly Karen, live in camps along the Thai border.

The parliamentary proposal was submitted by Banya Aung Moe, an MP from the All Mon Regions Democracy Party, one of 22 ethnic parties that competed in the elections. Another MP who voted in favour of the motion said that it’s rejection means there “will be no chance to discuss the issue of peace with ethnic armed groups”.

Meanwhile, the parliament also voted to make official its denouncement of international sanctions on Burma, with USDP members claiming that the policy of a number of Western nations was behind the country’s slow development.

The prospect of an amnesty of political prisoners to appease the international community was mooted by some opposition MPs but made no ground against opposition from the USDP.

Burma’s Minister of Finance and Revenue, Hla Htun, said the country was losing some $US2.5 billion every year to sanctions, which necessitated the need to sell its vast reserves of gas to neighbouring states, despite only 20 percent of the country having access to electricity. Critics have said however that the vast majority of the finance generated from energy sales have gone towards lining the generals’ pockets.
http://www.dvb.no/news/parliament-snubs-ethnic-harmony-bill/14991
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Aid agencies update Myanmar quake casualty count

Mar 28, 2011, 11:19 GMT

Yangon - A consortium of UN and other aid agencies said Monday the official number of casualties from last Thursday's earthquake in the Shan State of eastern Myanmar stood at 74 deaths and 125 injuries.

The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs said the magnitude-6.8 quake damaged 305 structures, including some government buildings, 31 religious buildings and 11 schools.

'There have been reports of sporadic disruption of basic facilities, including electricity, water supply and telecommunications in the affected areas,' the consortium's report said.

A total of eight aftershocks were reported between Thursday and Sunday night, and the threat of landslides remained high, the report added.

The report also described coordination between local authorities and agencies as efficient.

This was in stark contrast to the Myanmar government's reaction to the much bigger disaster of Cyclone Nargis in 2008 that claimed up to 140,000 lives in the Irrawaddy Delta.

Following Thursday's quake the government dispatched a team of doctors to the area and invited foreign aid agencies to assist the victims of the quake.

World Vision and other relief agencies such as Paris-based Doctors Without Borders were allowed immediate access to the area.

http://www.monstersandcritics.com/news/asiapacific/news/article_1629135.php/Aid-agencies-update-Myanmar-quake-casualty-count
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Aid to earthquake victims remains in high need
Monday, 28 March 2011 16:54 Hseng Khio Fah

Hundreds of victims affected by Thursday’s ( 24 March) earthquake of magnitude-6.8 in Talerh (Talay) and Mong Lane (Monglin) village tracts of Shan State East’s Talerh sub-township, Tachilek district, are still reportedly lacking access to food and aid even though relief supplies are being distributed from local and international communities everyday, according to local sources.

Everyone is told to line up in queue to wait for food and medicine from the local authorities as supplies were controlled by the local authorities and were only given at the junta run relief center. Nevertheless, supplies are only being distributed in very small amounts although lots of support was pouring from several places and neighborhood, said a 65-year old elderly person from Talerh who went to ask for food on 26 March at the relief shelter.

“They [military junta] told us to go and sit in a line. Then they took our photos. Afterwards, we had to be in line at the relief center everyday from 8AM to 3 PM. But it was just a waste of time because we just received only one bag of instant noodles and a bottle of water each. No more than those,” he said.

Food and supplies like blankets, mats and tarpaulins for impacted villagers mainly come from people in Tachilek and Mae Sai, and some from Keng Tung. In addition, those impacted villagers are still living in tents in front of their damaged and collapsed houses.

Nang Lao from the same village also shared her experience that she had to wait for almost a day to receive the food until the ‘Phu Yai (superiors)’ came to give permission. “We had to wait for a long time for nothing, while worrying about more damage after the aftershocks.”

An aid worker from an NGO also told SHAN that they were not allowed to hand relief supplies directly to the villagers. They were only asked to drop their things at the junta’s relief shelters.

“We have to pile up all our supplies and donations at the aid centers and have to wait for ‘permission’ before delivering them to the villagers,” she said.

“Villagers are suffering as they do not have enough to eat or drink. Some family received only 2 bags of instant noodles. We know that it was not enough for them. But we could do nothing except tell them to share with each other,” she added.

There were only three relief centers being set up in the area: one in Mong Lane and two in Talerh, where hundreds of people are expected to have lost their lives under their collapsed buildings.

“One of the aid centers in Talerh is located at the head of the bridge (before crossing to Ta Lerh), opposite an army camp. There are a lot of security armed guards at the bridge, who have been temporarily repairing the damaged road, but causing traffic hold-ups for people bringing donations from Tachilek. Thus everyone has to leave their donations at the aid center before the bridge,” said the aid worker.

Apart from the local communities, even UN and NGO aid must be piled at the aid center even though they got permission from high level authorities. UNICEF and Myanmar Red Cross have provided support both in Mong Lane and Ta Lerh.

However, up to date, an accurate data of the deaths have yet been known as equipment to search for the dead bodies are insufficient. Currently, the death toll from the areas could rise to hundreds, approximately at least about 200, according to local relief workers who are currently still in the area.

But the official announcement from MRTV4, the junta-run television station only said that only 74 died and 125 injured.

The latest report from Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) which is in collaboration with humanitarian groups said that since the earthquake struck and as of 27 March evening, a total of eight aftershocks have been reported and the affected areas remain in the risk of landslides. And the number of damaged houses has increased from 224 to 305 including a number of government buildings.

The Talerh based Relief and Resettlement Department has estimated the damage of the earthquake approximately at Kyat 3 billion (US$ 3.6 million), the report said.
http://www.shanland.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=3546:aid-to-earthquake-victims-remains-in-high-need&catid=93:general&Itemid=291
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Relief teams pick through Shan rubble
By AFP
Published: 27 March 2011

Rescue teams struggled Sunday to reach those affected by a powerful earthquake that struck Burma’s east three days ago, as aid workers feared the death toll would increase.

Officials say 75 people were killed by the 6.8 magnitude quake that hit near the borders with Thailand and Laos late on Thursday, reducing homes and government buildings to rubble and affecting thousands of people.

“As we learn more it appears that the casualty figures will continue to increase,” an aid worker in the country told AFP, asking not to be named.

Tachileik town and nearby Tarlay and Mong Lin in Burma’s Shan state appeared to have been most severely affected by the quake, which was felt as far away as the Vietnamese capital Hanoi.

“We don’t know how many people were affected yet. We are still trying to get the figures,” a Burmese official said on Sunday.

“Transportation is difficult. We still haven’t reached some areas, we still don’t know what happened to them and we don’t know how many people are living in these mountainous areas,” he added, declining to be named.

An unnamed Red Cross worker in Tachileik told exile news group the Irrawaddy that at least 150 people had been killed, but the official said there was no confirmed increase from Friday’s toll of 74. One woman was also killed in Thailand.

The charity World Vision believes around 15,000 people may have been affected in the worst-hit areas.

“One of the things that’s really emerging is water as a critical need. That’s the immediate challenge in addition to temporary shelter,” said Chris Herink, the charity’s Burma country director in Rangoon.

The group, in partnership with the health ministry, is sending in tens of thousands of water purification tablets along with first aid kits and emergency shelter.

The affected region was already difficult to reach before the quake, while access to the area by foreigners is restricted and the military-dominated government tends to keep a tight grip on information.

The ruling junta was widely criticised for refusing foreign assistance for weeks after cyclone Nargis wrought devastation across the Irrawaddy delta in May 2008, leaving more than 138,000 people either killed or missing.

But Herink has said his organisation, which is working in the affected areas with the Myanmar Red Cross and UNICEF, had found the government had been proactively cooperating.

He said a report by authorities assessed the estimated financial damage in Tarlay alone at $US3.5 million.

Sunday’s state New Light of Myanmar newspaper detailed the official relief effort on its front page, after various ministers travelled to Tachileik from the capital Naypyidaw on Saturday.

“They comforted earthquake-hit victims and presented cash assistance to them,” the English-language paper said.

But many have been getting their news from Thai radio rather than sources in Burma, and one Tachileik resident, posting anonymously on Saturday on an internet forum, lamented the lack of “concrete assistance from authorities”.

In Tarlay, as strong aftershocks continued on Saturday, a few rescue teams were seen picking through the rubble of buildings, a bridge was destroyed and roads were riven with huge cracks.

“The whole village is gone,” said Nan Myint, tearfully explaining that she had lost her father, nephew and sister-in-law in the quake, which took place while she was in Rangoon.
http://www.dvb.no/news/relief-teams-pick-through-shan-rubble/14976
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Burma Marks Unusually Low-key Armed Forces Day
By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS Monday, March 28, 2011

RANGOON — Burma's military government on Sunday held an unusually low-key ceremony marking Armed Forces Day, as anticipation mounts that it will soon turn over power to a nominally civilian administration.

The holiday commemorates the day when the army rose up against Japanese occupation forces 66 years ago. It is usually is observed on a grand scale with a military parade and a speech by the country's military leader in the capital, Naypyidaw.

There was no explanation given for why the ceremony was cut back for the first time since the junta took power in 1988.

However, the move comes as rumors swirl that a military-dominated civilian government formed after elections last year will soon be officially sworn in, perhaps in the next few days.

The state-run media gave the holiday normal treatment. They printed the speech that junta chief Snr-Gen Than Shwe gave at last year's commemoration, and an editorial in The New Light of Myanmar newspaper praised the military—known as the Tatmadaw—for "leading the nation and the people to the way to democracy by serving as a major national force."

The opposition led by Nobel laureate Aung San Suu Kyi, whose father Gen Aung San led the uprising against the Japanese, held its own ceremony for the holiday, which it refers to by its old name, Resistance Day. The name was changed in 1974 to avoid offending Japan, Burma's top aid donor in the 1970s.

Her National League for Democracy party issued a statement urging that a "dialogue be held urgently to eliminate the misunderstandings between the democratic forces and the Tatmadaw" and that political prisoners be released.

Suu Kyi's party boycotted last year's elections, saying they were being held under unfair and undemocratic conditions. The vote and a constitution pushed through by the military ensure that the army will hold ultimate authority over the government.

Asked if the rocky relationship between her party and the government will change when a new civilian administration takes power, Suu Kyi replied: "I don't know but we always want good relations with the government. I wish that the relationship will improve."

"Only they (the new government) will know how they intend to treat us but we will work for good relations," she said.
http://www.irrawaddy.org/article.php?art_id=21019

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