News & Articles on Burma-30-JUNR-2011

News & Articles on Burma
Wednesday/Thursday 29-30 June, 2011
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Burma's junta warns Suu Kyi's party to cease its 'agitation'
US nominee to seek coordination with China, India on Myanmar
Myanmar tells Suu Kyi to stay out of politics
Suu Kyi warned on planned tour
Screw turned on Suu Kyi
NLD Pressured to Cease Political Activities
Tatmadaw Commanders Discuss Recent Ethnic Conflicts
Bombs Hit Taungoo and Thanbyuzayat
Burma govt ups pressure on Suu Kyi ahead of tour
Farmers' Loan Scheme Rife With Bribery
Verdict due in Burma for Aussie news man
US nominee concerned over Burma Asean chair
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Burma's junta warns Suu Kyi's party to cease its 'agitation'
By Andrew Buncombe, Asia Correspondent
Thursday, 30 June 2011
AP

Burma's military rulers are worried about a planned tour of the country by Aung San Suu Kyi. The democracy leader wants to meet 'ordinary people' and hear their concerns


Burma's main opposition party has vowed to continue its struggle for democracy despite a demand from the authorities to cease political activities.

Several of the country's state-owned newspapers yesterday published details of a letter the Burmese Home Affairs Ministry sent to Aung San Suu Kyi and her National League for Democracy (NLD). It called on the party to end "illegal activities", including its agitation and opposition to the recently elected parliament. The letter said the NLD had been formally dissolved in September last year when it voted to boycott a controversial election, held at a time when Ms Suu Kyi and up to 2,000 other political prisoners remained behind bars.

Last night, a senior member of the NLD, Win Tin, confirmed the party had received the letter and said it would be writing back to the Home Ministry. He said Ms Suu Kyi had requested a meeting with officials to discuss the allegations of illegal activity.

Speaking from Rangoon, Win Tin, who spent almost 19 years in jail before being released in September 2008, said: "We are going to make our political activities as normal.

"In the coming days we are going to do our political works... we are living according to the law."

The commentary, which appeared in three state-controlled publications, quoted the letter from the Home Ministry as saying of the NLD: "If they really want to accept and practice democracy effectively, they are to stop such acts that can harm peace and stability and the rule of law as well as the unity among the people including monks and service personnel." It also raised concerns about Ms Suu Kyi's plans to tour Burma in order to meet ordinary people and hear their concerns. When she last carried out such a trip in 2003, dozens of her supporters were attacked and killed by militias that support the military authorities. The 66-year-old herself narrowly escaped with her life.

"We are deeply concerned that if Aung San Suu Kyi makes trips to countryside regions, there may be chaos and riots, as evidenced by previous incidents," the letter said.

"The government has said that Aung San Suu Kyi is just an ordinary public member, so it will not restrict her from travelling and doing things in accordance with the law, but she shall honour the laws for the rule of law."

The warning comes as Ms Suu Kyi and her party have become increasingly active after her release from more than seven years of house arrest last November. Her release house arrest came after a controversial election that saw a party backed by the military junta gain the most seats.

The junta claims to have stood back from politics and allowed a civilian administration, headed by President Thein Sein, to take over. The claim is questioned by many observers.

Mark Farmaner, of the Burma Campaign UK, said: "Today's threats will dash the hopes some still held that there could be change coming in Burma. Burma's new dictator, Thein Sein, has revealed his true colours with these threats. He is emerging as even less tolerant of dissent than Than Shwe." News of the warning from the authorities comes a day after it emerged that actress Michelle Yeoh, who plays Ms Suu Kyi in a forthcoming film, had been deported from Rangoon's airport last week. http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/asia/burmas-junta-warns-suu-kyis-party-to-cease-its-agitation-2304504.html
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US nominee to seek coordination with China, India on Myanmar
Washington, Jun 30 (PTI)

US President Barack Obama's nominee to become his point man on Myanmar, Derek Mitchell intends to strengthen policy coordination with key players like India, China and Japan to achieve the global objectives in the Southeast Asian nation.

Mitchell, who has been nominated by Obama to be the first US Coordinator for Policy on Burma, told his confirmation hearing in the US Congress that Myanmar was a source of concern and political instability in the region.

Contending that the policy of pressure and engagement alone has not worked in that country, he said he would seek "direct and candid" talks with Myanmar's leaders and suggested that the US should "respond flexibly and with agility to opportunities as they arise."

Mitchell said he hoped to coordinate policy with key players like China, India, Japan, South Korea and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN).

"To date, in my view, the inability of key members of the Burma-interested community around the world to coordinate their approach to Burma has only undermined the effective realisation of shared objectives," he said.

With a government that has chosen to distance itself from the outside world, Myanmar is now the poorest country in Southeast Asia and "a source of great concern and potential instability in the region", he said.

Though rich in natural resources, nearly a third of its population lives in poverty and thousands are forced to seek asylum in neighbouring countries due to "systemic repression" of the ethnic-minorities, he said.

He said though the Myanmar government has claimed a successful transition to a disciplined democracy, a political system that exhibits anything close to recognisable standards of representative democracy remains to be seen. http://www.deccanherald.com/content/172622/us-nominee-seek-coordination-china.html
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Myanmar tells Suu Kyi to stay out of politics
by Hla Hla Htay, Agence France-Presse
Posted at 06/30/2011 9:13 AM | Updated as of 06/30/2011 10:39 AM

YANGON - Myanmar's regime told pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi Wednesday to halt all political activities and warned her planned first national tour since being freed could spark riots and chaos.

Official media said the home affairs ministry had written to the Nobel Peace Prize winner, who spent most of the past two decades locked up at the hands of the junta, to state that her party's activities had broken the law.

It is the first time since she was released last year that the authorities have explicitly warned Suu Kyi to stay out of politics.

She replied that she had no intention of canceling the planned tour.

"We cannot stay away from the people when doing politics," she told a meeting of youth members of her National League for Democracy (NLD) party.

Suu Kyi held an hour of talks Wednesday with a senior Japanese diplomat, saying afterwards that politics were discussed.

Asked by AFP about the tour, she said, "I will go," while adding: "We have to wait for the right weather conditions."

No schedule has been announced for the democracy icon's trip around Myanmar, also known as Burma.

Security is a major concern as Suu Kyi's convoy was attacked in 2003 in an ambush apparently organized by a regime frightened by her popularity.

A political tour would be a test of both the 66-year-old's popularity following an election that left her sidelined from politics, and of her ability to travel around the country unhindered by official intervention.

The state-run New Light of Myanmar reported that the home affairs ministry had informed Suu Kyi her party was breaking the law by maintaining party offices, holding meetings and issuing statements.

"If they really want to accept and practice democracy effectively, they are to stop such acts that can harm peace and stability and the rule of law as well as the unity among the people including monks and service personnel," it said.

The democracy icon was freed in November after seven straight years of house arrest, less than a week after an election in Myanmar that critics said was a charade aimed at preserving military rule behind a civilian facade.

Her party won a landslide election victory in 1990 that was never recognized by the junta.

The NLD was disbanded by the military rulers last year because it boycotted the November poll, the first in 20 years, saying the rules were unfair.

The New Light, a mouthpiece for the regime, also warned Suu Kyi against launching a political tour.

"We are deeply concerned that if Daw Aung San Suu Kyi makes trips to countryside regions, there may be chaos and riots, as evidenced by previous incidents," a commentary in the newspaper said.

"The government has said that Daw Aung San Suu Kyi is just an ordinary public member, so it will not restrict her from traveling and doing things in accordance with the law, but she shall honor the laws for the rule of law."

Renaud Egreteau, a Myanmar expert at the University of Hong Kong, said the warning illustrated the regime was worried about the freed democracy leader's plans.

"The authorities are doubtless uneasy with the idea of Suu Kyi testing her popularity in the country, especially if she goes to NLD strongholds like Mandalay to rally support," he said.

In a BBC lecture broadcast on Tuesday, Suu Kyi said the recent uprisings in the Middle East had given fresh hope to people in her country.

"The universal human aspiration to be free has been brought home to us by the stirring developments in the Middle East," she said.

"Do we envy the people of Tunisia and Egypt? Yes, we do envy them their quick and peaceful transitions. But more than envy is a sense of solidarity and of renewed commitment to our cause, which is the cause of all women and men who value human dignity and freedom," Suu Kyi added.

Pro-democracy protests in 1988 and 2007 were brutally crushed by the military rulers of Myanmar.

Suu Kyi held a meeting Wednesday with Japan's Parliamentary Vice Foreign Minister Makiko Kikuta where they agreed on the need to build goodwill between the two states.

Expressing "concern" for Suu Kyi's safety and security, Washington on Wednesday urged Myanmar to respect the democracy icon's freedom to travel and engage in political activities.

State Department deputy spokesman Mark Toner added "it is the responsibility of the Burmese authorities in fact to ensure her safety and that of Burma's citizens."

Earlier the nominee to be US pointman on Myanmar, Derek Mitchell, said the White House would seek a positive relationship with the secretive nation but hoped the regime would address human rights issues and a lack of democracy.
http://www.abs-cbnnews.com/global-filipino/world/06/30/11/myanmar-tells-suu-kyi-stay-out-politics
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Suu Kyi warned on planned tour

June 30 2011 at 01:01am
Associated Press

Myanmar's pro-democracy icon Aung San Suu Kyi (right) and Japanese Parliamentary Vice Foreign Minister Makiko Kikuta pose after their meeting at the National League for Democracy Party headquarters in Yangon, Myanmar. Their meeting came as Myanmar's state media warned Suu Kyi over her plans to travel outside Yangon to meet supporters.

Yangon - A possible tour of Myanmar by pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi could cause riots, state media warned on Wednesday, implying she would be responsible for her own safety.

Nobel Peace Prize laureate Suu Kyi is planning her first trip outside the former capital Yangon since she was freed from home detention last year after elections to end army rule.

The military still effectively controls the government in the Southeast Asian country formerly known as Burma.

“Her followers and supporters are gushing that the icon must keep in touch with the public. They seem willing to exploit the public. They also propagate that the government is responsible for security of Daw Aung San Suu Kyi on her trip,” a commentary in all three official newspapers said.

“We are deeply concerned that if Daw Aung San Suu Kyi makes trips to countryside regions, there may be chaos and riots, as evidenced by previous incidents,” it added.

“Daw” is an honorific in Myanmar for women.

In Washington, the US State Department said it was concerned about the warning and that it was up to Myanmar's government to ensure that Suu Kyi is free to travel, express her views and fully participate in the political process.

“We remain concerned for her safety and security. And it is the responsibility of the Burmese authorities, in fact, to ensure both her safety and that of Burma's citizens,” department spokesperson Mark Toner said.

In 2003, in an episode now known as the Depayin Massacre, Suu Kyi's motorcade was attacked by pro-junta thugs and 70 of her supporters died in what was seen as an assassination attempt.

“The government has said that Daw Aung San Suu Kyi is just an ordinary public member, so it will not restrict her from travelling and doing things in accordance with the law, but she shall honour the laws for the rule of law,” the commentary read.

Suu Kyi, 66, has not announced any dates for the tour, nor an itinerary.

Her party, the National League for Democracy (NLD), was officially dissolved last year when it refused to register for elections held in November. Suu Kyi was released from seven years of house arrest a week after the vote.

Official media, a mouthpiece for the government, also said on Wednesday the government had warned the NLD “not to harm peace and stability” and to respect the law.

“If they really want to accept and practice democracy effectively, they are to stop such acts that can harm peace and stability and the rule of law as well as the unity among the people including monks and service personnel,” the letter said, according to state media.

NLD spokesman Nyan Win confirmed a letter had been received. “We got that letter yesterday but we still have not talked it over and decided what to do about it,” he said.

The newspapers said the letter accused the party of keeping its headquarters and various offices open and organising meetings even through it had been dissolved.

“Such acts are not only against the law but also tantamount to opposing the Hluttaws (legislature),” they said. - Reuters
http://www.iol.co.za/news/world/suu-kyi-warned-on-planned-tour-1.1090961
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Screw turned on Suu Kyi

Thursday, June 30, 2011

Burma's new military-backed government has reportedly warned pro- democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi and her party to halt all political activities.

The home affairs ministry has written to the Nobel Peace Prize winner saying her party is breaking the law by maintaining party offices, holding meetings and issuing statements, the state-owned New Light of Myanmar newspaper reported.

"If they really want to accept and practice democracy effectively, they are to stop such acts that can harm peace and stability and the rule of law as well as the unity among the people including monks and service personnel," it said.

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Suu Kyi was freed in November after seven straight years of house arrest, less than a week after an election in Burma that critics said was a charade aimed at preserving military rule behind a civilian facade. Her National League for Democracy party was disbanded by the military rulers last year because it boycotted the poll, saying the rules were unfair.

The paper said the party could transform into a social organization provided it obtained permission from the authorities. The English-language daily, a mouthpiece for the regime, also warned that a planned political tour by Suu Kyi could lead to turmoil.

"We are deeply concerned that if Daw Aung San Suu Kyi makes trips to countryside regions, there may be chaos and riots, as evidenced by previous incidents," the newspaper said.

No schedule has been announced for the trip. Security is a major concern as her convoy was attacked in 2003 in an ambush apparently organized by a regime frightened by her popularity.

A political tour would be a test of both the 66-year-old's popularity following an election that has left her sidelined from politics, and of her freedom to travel around the country unhindered by the authorities.

In 1990 she led her party to a landslide election win that was never recognized by Burma's military rulers.

AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE http://www.thestandard.com.hk/news_detail.asp?we_cat=6&art_id=112637&sid=32884046&con_type=1&d_str=20110630&fc=7
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NLD Pressured to Cease Political Activities
By THE IRRAWADDY Wednesday, June 29, 2011

The actions of the National League for Democracy (NLD), led by Nobel Peace Prize laureate Aung San Suu Kyi, are unlawful and against the state and could harm Burma's peace, stability and rule of law, according to the state-run New Light of Myanmar newspaper on Wednesday.

The newspaper reported that the Ministry of Home Affairs sent a letter to Suu Kyi and Aung Shwe, the chairman of the NLD, on Tuesday urging them to stop engaging in unlawful activities in opposition to the new Parliament and government.

It also noted that the party was dissolved on Sept. 14, 2010, for refusing to take part in last year's election, but continued to run its headquarters and branch offices around the country.

The newspaper quoted the letter as saying: “If they really want to accept and practice democracy effectively, they are to stop such acts that can harm peace and stability and the rule of law as well as the unity among the people including monks and service personnel.”

Asked about the legal implications of the letter, Aung Thein, a Rangoon-based lawyer, said that it could signal government plans to crack down on the party.

“The government may use the fact that the NLD was dissolved as an excuse to increase restrictions on its political gatherings in the near future,” he said.

This latest pressure on the NLD comes soon after Suu Kyi expressed support for calls to establish a UN Commission of Inquiry (CoI) on crimes against humanity and war crimes in Burma in video testimony to the US House Committee on Foreign Affairs.

In her message, Suu Kyi made clear that the purpose of the CoI is to determine the extent of human rights violations in the country, not to prosecute the perpetrators.

However, in its letter, the Home Ministry said that the NLD's actions could “lead to more difficulties in national reconsolidation.”

The Irrawaddy was unable to reach the NLD for comment on Wednesday due to technical problems in contacting the party's headquarters.

Besides boycotting the elections held last year on Nov. 7, the NLD has also called for amendments to the new Constitution approved through a controversial referendum in 2008. The NLD lodged an appeal to the Supreme Court to protect the party's legal status, but it was turned down in November. http://www.irrawaddy.org/article.php?art_id=21594
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Tatmadaw Commanders Discuss Recent Ethnic Conflicts
By WAI MOE Wednesday, June 29, 2011

Commanders of the Tatmadaw (Burma’s armed forces) held their latest four-monthly meeting last week where “limited operations� in ethnic areas were discussed as well as intelligence reform.

Recent military operations in Kachin, Shan and Karen states were examined following unexpected government casualties amounting to 30 dead including 10 officers—one Lieutenant-Colonel and two Majors amongst others—in Kachin State alone this month, according to intelligence sources.

President ex-Gen Thein Sein’s new military-backed government came to office on March 30, but regional stability has suffered with armed conflicts spreading from Karen ethnic areas to ceasefire regions in Shan and Kachin states near the Sino-Burmese border.

Citing weekly military reports from regional military commands to the War Office in Naypyidaw, sources said that skirmishes and casualties were reported in Karen National Union (KNU) areas from Tenasserim Region to Karen State after March 30.

“There have been red remarks (government troop casualties) in reports on skirmishes in KNU areas every week during the past three months,� said a military source that spoke on condition of anonymity.

He added that, unlike last year, government troops are currently taking part in two other armed conflicts—in Kachin and Shan states—and said that most of the recent casualties were through ambushes and snipers.

On June 9, fierce fighting broke out in Kachin State, near the Sino-Burmese border in northern Burma, after nearly 17 years of ceasefire between the regime and the Kachin Independence Organization (KIO).

Earlier, government troops skirmished in Shan State with the Shan State Army (North) ceasefire group. Fighting with the SSA-North took place in both northern and southern Shan State with the cooperation of the non-ceasefire Shan State Army (South).

Tension between Naypyidaw and ethnic ceasefire groups began in April 2009 when the military junta, the State Peace Development Council (SPDC), forced ceasefire armed groups to transform into Border Guard Forces (BGF) under the commander-in-chief of the Tatmadaw.

Many ethnic armed groups—including the influential United Wa State Army (UWSA) and KIO—rejected the BGF saying it involved disarming without any political guarantees.

From April 2009 to August 2010, Lt-Gen Ye Myint, then chief of the Military Affairs Security (MAS) and now Mandalay Region’s chief minister, served as the main negotiator between Naypyidaw and ethnic ceasefire groups over the BGF.

However, Naypyidaw has not held any main negotiator with ethnic armed groups since Ye Myint was replaced in the chief MAS post by Maj-Gen Kyaw Swe, formerly the commander of Southwest Regional Military Command, in August 2010.

“During ongoing armed conflicts with Kachin Independence Army (KIA) troops, former minister of Telecommunications, Post and Telegraphs U Thein Zaw came for negotiations as a member of Parliament—but no one from the military commanders [turned up],� said an intelligence officer with the KIA from Laiza who spoke on condition of anonymity.

“It means negotiations came from former generals or the Parliament, rather than from the military. It is quite odd as there is no guarantee from military commanders,� he added.

Another highlighted issue at the commanders’ four-monthly meeting last week was reportedly reform of intelligence, particularly collaboration between the government secret services under a main body. The regime has attempted since early this year to replace the National Intelligence Bureau (NIB) which was abolished in late 2004.

A Burmese intelligence report suggests that a new collaboration called the “National Defense and Security Force� will oversee military intelligence bodies such as the Military Affairs Security and other secret agencies including Special Branch (SB) and the Bureau of Special Investigation (BSI) under the Ministry of Home Affairs, even though there has been no official confirmation.

Brig-Gen Soe Shane—General Staff Officer at the War Office and a senior figure regularly beside former junta chief Snr-Gen Than Shwe during trips at home and aboard—is tipped to head the new national intelligence collaboration, according to sources. In the past Soe Shane studied counter intelligence with the Military Intelligence Service, which was abolished in 2004.

Aung Lynn Htut, a former counter intelligence officer and ex-Burmese deputy chief of mission to Washington, said he also heard reports about Naypyidaw’s reform for intelligence collaboration under the military-backed new administration.

“Intelligence collaboration like the NIB will be more powerful under the new administration while MAS is under the commander-in-chief,� he said. “If Brig-Gen Soe Shane becomes the national intelligence collaboration’s director, Snr-Gen Than Shwe and his family will be safer as Gen Min Aung Hlaing is commander-in-chief of the defense services and Brig-Gen Soe Shane is intelligence chief.�

Meanwhile, former deputy chief of Military Intelligence Maj-Gen Kyaw Win visited Thailand’s northern capital of Chiang Mai—where many Burmese dissidents are based—in early June, the same time as government troops were battling the KIA in northern Burma.

Although the purpose of Kyaw Win’s trip is undisclosed, a Thai intelligence source said he went back to Burma by Air Bagan on June 12. Kyaw Win was one of the key players for securing ceasefire agreement with ethnic armed groups. He is also one of two Military Intelligence senior officers who were not imprisoned during the Burmese Army’s crackdown on former colleagues in October 2004.

Copyright © 2008 Irrawaddy Publishing Group | www.irrawaddy.org http://www.irrawaddy.org/article.php?art_id=21593
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Bombs Hit Taungoo and Thanbyuzayat
By LAWI WENG and WAI MOE Wednesday, June 29, 2011

A bomb blast shook Pegu Region’s key town of Taungoo—base of the Burmese government's Southern Regional Military Command headquarters—while there was a second explosion and two buses set on fire in Mon State.

The latest unrest comes after three bombs ripped through Naypyidaw, Mandalay and the military town of Pyin Oo Lwin on Friday.

Witnesses in Taungoo said the bomb exploded in front of Kha Paung Hall early Wednesday afternoon, but no casualties have so far been reported. “The blast made a huge hole in front of the hall. Shortly after the blast, security forces came to view the site and blocked access to the area,” said a local physician in the town.

Due to the Southern Regional Military Command base, Taungoo is a strategic town situated en route to the regime capital Naypyidaw in the north and another key town in Pegu Region, Prome, to the west. It is also on the road east towards Karani State’s Loikaw and Karen State’s Than Daung.

On June 18, an unknown group of armed men launched a rocket propelled grenade attack on a hydropower project only 14 miles from Taungoo.

Meanwhile a bomb went off behind the township authority office in Thanbyuzayat, Mon State, at 12:30am on Wednesday morning.

“It was only one bomb and did not cause any causalities or damage,” a resident told The Irrawaddy by phone on Wednesday.

But the bomb blast was not the only recent trouble to have occurred in Mon State. Local sources revealed that an unknown armed group also torched two buses at Thar Yar Aye village between Thanbyuzayat and Lamine townships.

The vehicles from Yar Zar Min and Shwe Lee Yadanar companies were set on fire at around 9 am on Wednesday, according to an eyewitness who was a passenger on one of the buses.

“They stopped around 20 buses at the same time and set fire to two of them. They took away six people—some of whom were bus drivers. I did not dare to look at their faces and don't know why they shot the buses and burned them,” he said.

These latest bomb attacks come soon after the National League for Democracy revealed that their leader Aung San Suu Kyi had planned travel outside of former capital Rangoon this week, but has since postponed visiting regional areas until July.

Regarding Friday's three explosions in upper Burma, the state media has accused three men with ethnic Shan names of being the bombers. “Sai Kyaw Myint Oo, Sai Hsam and Sai Aik rented houses and bought a cheap car without a license with the intention of detonating bombs in Naypyidaw, Mandalay and Pyin Oo Lwin simultaneously,” The New Light of Myanmar said on Wednesday. http://www.irrawaddy.org/article.php?art_id=21596
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Burma govt ups pressure on Suu Kyi ahead of tour
By Zin Linn Jun 30, 2011 1:08AM UTC

The military-backed Burmese government has warned Aung San Suu Kyi, General Secretary of the National League for Democracy, to stop political activities including meetings and delivering statements, the state-run New Light of Myanmar said on Wednesday.

The Wednesday newspaper raised the issue in a commentary under the caption of “Right to make choice still in the hand” by Pyae Sone Aung, a ghost-writer. In one paragraph, the commentary says, “From the point of law, NLD is defunct. The Union Election Commission issued Announcement (18/2010) dated 9-4-2010 reminding the 10 political parties that still met Article 25 of Political Parties Registration Law at that time that they could apply within 60 days for continued existence as political parties. However, only five of them did so. It is common knowledge that the five political parties did not include NLD.”

It also underlines that the NLD has been removed from the list of political parties and has been dissolved according to Announcement 97/2010 dated 14-9-2010 by the Union Election Commission.
Aung San Suu Kyi

Aung San Suu Kyi. Pic: AP.

The commentary also predicted that it was “deeply concerned” that Suu Kyi’s tours would be met with “chaos and riots.”

Here is an Excerpt from the commentary: “It is said that Daw Aung San Suu Kyi will soon make a tour of the country. Her followers and supporters are gushing that the icon must keep in touch with the public. They seem willing to exploit the public. They also propagate that the government is responsible for security of Daw Aung San Suu Kyi on her trip. We are deeply concerned that if Daw Aung San Suu Kyi makes trips to countryside regions, there may be chaos and riots, as evidenced by previous incidents.”

According to the state-media, the government has said that Daw Aung San Suu Kyi is just an ordinary public member, so it will not restrict her from travelling and doing things in accordance with the law, but she shall honour the laws for the rule of law.

Although no schedule has been announced for the trip, her supporters and the NLD members are worried about the trip. Safety measures of Suu Kyi is a major concern as her convoy was under a attack on 30 May 2003. In fact, it was an premeditated ambush apparently organized by the military regime displeased by her charismatic reputation.

The commentary says in a clause that the Lady may choose a different method to defy the current government. It says, “ A broadcast aired on 23 June morning by BBC says that Daw Aung San Suu Kyi lives in non-violence policy, but she can practice alternative policy if necessary.”

However, the NLD Executive Committee immediately released a statement on Wednesday saying it has never breached the existing laws. To solve out this misunderstanding, the party asked the home minister to give an appointment to discuss the matter.

Burma or Myanmar had its first general election in nearly 20 years in last November; declaring it would allow civilian participation in the country’s political affairs. The international election watchdogs said the election was a festival of vote-rigging by the military-backed party.

Suu Kyi was freed from house arrest last year, where she spent 15 of the past 21 years in detention, shortly after the November election.

The NLD headed by Aung San Suu Kyi won a landslide victory in 1990 elections which the military authorities never honored the outcome. Suu Kyi has constantly argued the dissolution of the NLD by the current election commission from the law points after boycotting the 2008 constitution and the 2010 election. http://asiancorrespondent.com/58782/burma%E2%80%99s-new-government-challenges-aung-san-suu-kyi-for-her-activities/?utm_source=Asian+Correspondent&utm_campaign=26778d3203-DAILY_RSS_EMAIL_CAMPAIGN&utm_medium=email
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Farmers' Loan Scheme Rife With Bribery
By KHIN OO THAR Wednesday, June 29, 2011

The Voice Weekly online, a news journal in Burma, reported in its June 16 issue that President Thein Sein has established model farms for agriculture and animal husbandry, and has, in fact, been conducting his own research by tilling the soil by hand.

"Even though he is a president, he worked on the farm," The Voice quoted Thein Aung, the Prime Minister of Irrawaddy Region, as saying at a ceremony. "Based on his findings, he laid down guidelines on how to improve the farmers' situation."

Days after his inauguration as president, Thein Sein formed an advisory board consisting of three committees—political, economic and legal—for his new government. He also formed an anti-poverty committee with economists and assigned them to collect related papers and organize discussions.

"The agricultural sector is the key to Burma's economic structure. A good agricultural foundation will benefit the country," wrote economist Dr. U Myint, the current head of the President's Economic Advisory Committee, in his paper regarding anti-poverty programs.

In official speeches, Thein Sein said he will prioritize the farming sector as over 70 percent of the country's population are farmers, and agricultural loans will be given out to farmers at low interest rates.

Many farmers, however, have said that although the Myanmar Agricultural Development Bank, which is under control of the Ministry of Agriculture and Irrigation, has offered more loans than in previous years, lower level staff and local authorities often deny farmers loans for petty or often trivial reasons.

"I had to sign for a 70,000-kyat [US $90] loan, but I was only given 50,000 kyat [$64]," said a farmer from Shwenyoma Village in Kyaukpyu Township in Arakan State. "When I asked about the rest of my loan, I was told that I had to give it as commission to the township authorities and the bank manager."

In particular, farmers in cyclone-affected areas of Irrawaddy Division and Arakan State have reportedly encountered bureaucratic hurdles when applying for agricultural loans from the government.

In first first presidential address to parliament on March 30, Thein Sein called for a "clean" government.

“The most important task of the new administration is to work together to create good governance and clean government,� Thein Sein was reported as saying by The New Light of Myanmar, a state-run newspaper.

However, since the new government was sworn in, bribery and illegal taxation have reportedly increased across the country.

"Responsible persons at different levels [of government] need to practice their performances in accordance with the president's speech,� said Ba Shin, an elected MP representing the Rakhine Nationalities Development Party (RNDP) in Kyaukpyu. “Because bribery and forced taxation is on the increase at township and village levels these days.�

A legislator in Naypyidaw, who is a member of the new parliament's bill-drafting committee, told The Irrawaddy that the ongoing parliamentary sessions in the capital have touched on farmers' affairs, but no effective action has come of it.

"Discussions on agriculture-related issues took place in the parliament, but legislators were not allowed to speak about the real needs and difficulties," said the parliamentarian who requested anonymity.

Nay Myo Wai, the chairman of the Peace and Diversity Party, said he shared a similar view.

"Some laws related to farmers need to be amended, but I haven't heard any discussion about them in the current parliamentary meetings,� he said. “The new parliament is quiet and not dissimilar from the one during the era of the Anti-Fascist People's Freedom League in the 1940s.�

Khin Su Su Aung, a party candidate for the National Democratic Front who contested the election last November in Irrawaddy's Bogale Township, said farmers in the Delta areas have had to endure land confiscations carried out by the local Forest and Land Records Department, as well as being subject to manipulation and exploitation by their village headmen.

"There are many farmers whose lands were confiscated by the Forest Department at the time loans were being offered. More and more farmers are in big trouble now," she said.

Many farmers from Cyclone Nargis-affected areas in the delta told The Irrawaddy that although agricultural loans have been available for several weeks now, they are not sufficient to meet the farmers' needs for rice cultivation.

Consequently, although rice season has arrived, many farmers are not sowing a crop this year.

"No matter how many acres of farmland we own, each of us received only 200,000 kyat [$255] on loan,� said Win Maung, a local farmer from Poenyo Village in Bogale. “We have to spend about 95,000 kyat [$121] per acre. Out of the loan, about 7,000 kyat [$9] was deducted to cover administration costs.�

He said most of the farmers in Nargis-affected areas own at least 10 acres of farmland and the current financial predicament was leading to a heavy impact on rice production and quality.

Local farmers in Tharyawaddy District in western Pegu Division also said that those who wanted agricultural loans had to bribe their village heads and other authorities.

Dr U Myint, however, said the huge recovery costs for shelters and livelihoods in Nargis-affected areas reinforce the fact that many people are in need of loans and, therefore, the government should pay particular attention to ensure that these farmers receive agricultural loans.

He wrote in his paper that the government should prioritize its incentives to farmers, offering consistent agricultural loans couple with systematic procedures whereby farmers can pay off their loans and help to improve Burma's farming sector and rice production.

Apart from governmental support, he said, the private sector, social organizations and non-governmental organizations also need to participate in these endeavors.

He also said that governmental assistance to farmers had lessened since Burma declared independence. The country exported 3.3 million tonnes of rice in 1938-39, the highest amount of exports in the world at that time. However, the amount of rice export in 2007-08 had declined to just over 300,000 tonnes, the economist said.

Copyright © 2008 Irrawaddy Publishing Group | www.irrawaddy.org http://www.irrawaddy.org/article.php?art_id=21597
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Verdict due in Burma for Aussie news man
June 30, 2011 - 10:54AM
AAP

A Burmese court is due to hand down its verdict in the case of an Australian publisher charged with assault and immigration violations.

Ross Dunkley, 55, co-founder of the Myanmar Times newspaper, is facing charges of assault and administering drugs to a Burmese woman as well as immigration breaches.

Executives backing Dunkley's media company in Burma are hopeful a judge will clear the Australian when the verdict is handed down at the Kamaryut Township court near Rangoon on Thursday.
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At a court hearing earlier this month, Dunkley denied all criminal charges and immigration violations.

Dunkley was arrested on February 10 in Rangoon and spent several weeks detained at the notorious Insein Prison before being released on bail on March 29.

Dunkley has previously told the court the Burmese woman involved in the case, Khaing Zar Lin, had been at his residence on January 19.

But he told the court he had not given the woman drugs nor had he assaulted her.

Dunkley also pleaded not guilty to breaches of the Emergency Immigration Act of 1947.

Zar Lin, who is eight months' pregnant, had applied to have the charges withdrawn but the request was rejected by police prosecutors.

News agency reports said the public prosecutor, Mone Mone, had asked the court to hand down an appropriate punishment, without setting down any specific sentence.

Dunkley, a long-time publisher in Asia, together with Australian mining magnate Bill Clough and Bangkok-based Post Media holds a 49 per cent stake in Myanmar Consolidated Media, publisher of English and Burmese language versions of The Myanmar Times and Burmese language magazines.

Along with the The Myanmar Times, Myanmar Consolidated Media publishes two Burmese language magazines and employs more than 350 people.

Dunkley is also publisher of the Cambodia-based Phnom Penh Post after purchasing the paper in 2008.
http://news.theage.com.au/breaking-news-world/verdict-due-in-burma-for-aussie-news-man-20110630-1grue.html
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US nominee concerned over Burma Asean chair

Published: 30/06/2011 at 10:31 AM
Online news: Asia

The nominee to be US pointman on Burma said he would seek greater global coordination to push for democracy and voiced concern that the Asean bloc was considering the regime as its head.

File photo shows Myanmar Buddhist nuns walking along a road in Yangon. The nominee to be US pointman on Myanmar said he would seek greater global coordination to push for democracy and voiced concern that the ASEAN bloc was considering the regime as its head.

Derek Mitchell, a veteran policymaker on Asia, was nominated to be the first US coordinator for policy on Burma as President Barack Obama's administration pursues an engagement drive with the country also known as Burma.

In his Senate confirmation hearing, Mitchell said he would seek "direct and candid" dialogue with Burma's leaders and that the United States should "respond flexibly and with agility to opportunities as they arise."

"The United States still seeks a peaceful, prosperous, open and democratic Burma that respects the rights of all its citizens and that adheres to its international obligations," said Mitchell, now a senior Pentagon official.

"The United States remains prepared to establish a positive relationship based on mutual respect and mutual benefit with a Burmese leadership that adheres to and advances these principles."

Mitchell was testifying just as the regime stepped up pressure on pro-democracy icon Aung San Suu Kyi, warning her not to embark on her first national tour since she was released from house arrest in November.

The State Department responded with concern, and deputy spokesman Mark Toner urged authorities to ensure the Nobel Peace Prize winner was "free to travel, free to express her views and to fully participate in political activities."

Mitchell said he hoped to coordinate policy with key players, including the European Union, China, India, Japan, South Korea and especially Asean, the Association of Southeast Asian Nations of which Burma is one of 10 members.

In the clearest comment yet from a senior US official, Mitchell expressed concerns that Asean was considering Burma to chair the economically dynamic bloc in 2014.

"I think, frankly, where Burma is today, Asean recognizes that Burma is an outlier and is somewhat of an embarrassment to the organization," he said.

"I think Burma has some work to do in order to make Asean nations comfortable with that -- and the rest of the international community."

US officials have previously declined to state opposition publicly, saying 2014 was a long way off and that Asean's chairmanship was a decision for the bloc itself, which includes Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore and Thailand.

The Obama administration launched talks with Burma in 2009, concluding that the previous Western policy of isolating the state had been unsuccessful. The European Union and Japan have also stepped up diplomacy, with a senior Japanese official meeting with Suu Kyi on Wednesday.

China traditionally has been Burma's main source of support, while India -- in one of its main foreign policy divergences with the United States -- has also developed stronger relations with the military-backed government.

Asean has long struggled with how to deal with Burma. Asean nations called for a lifting of Western sanctions after Burma held elections last year.

The United States and opposition groups have rejected a letup in pressure, saying that the political transition has been purely cosmetic.

But Senator Jim Webb, a longtime advocate of engaging Burma who chaired the hearing, urged the United States to consider easing sanctions, saying there was a window of opportunity.

Webb pointed to the regime's release of Suu Kyi and the participation of other opposition parties in the election, saying: "I believe these changes yield promise for improving accountability and transparency in Burma."

However, many US lawmakers strongly support sanctions on Burma, in part due to concerns for Suu Kyi's safety.

Senator John Kerry, the head of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, said Burma needed to show its sincerity about dialogue by releasing political prisoners and easing restrictions on the media.

"Southeast Asian countries can send a message about their own expectations by linking Burma's chairmanship of Asean in 2014 to tangible political progress," Kerry said. http://www.bangkokpost.com/news/asia/244746/us-nominee-concerned-over-burma-asean-chair