News & Articles on Burma-Thursday, 01 September, 2011-UZL

News & Articles on Burma
Thursday, 01 September, 2011
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Husbands at the front, women guard rear bases
Regime adopts alternative approach to Wa, Mongla
KNU still investigating Karen leader’s mysterious disappearance
Myanmar parliament approves "peace committee" for ethnic conflicts
Parliament Approves 'Peace Committee'
Parliament Gets Down to Details
Burma to Lease State-Run Industries
Bluegrass Band to Tour Burma
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Husbands at the front, women guard rear bases
Thursday, 01 September 2011 16:58 Hseng Khio Fah

Since clashes broke out between Burma Army and armed groups in northern Shan State and Kachin State, almost all of the Burmese soldiers were deployed to the frontline leaving behind their wives and family members who were assigned to provide security of the rear bases, according to local sources.

The Burma Army has been since March launching military offensives on the ceasefire armed groups: Shan State Progress Party (SSPP) and Kachin Independence Army (KIA) following their rejection of Naypyitaw’s Border Guard Force (BGF) program. Thousands of Burma Army soldiers, local militia men and prisoners were regularly deployed to the frontline since the fighting began.

“There are few soldiers to provide security of the rear base. So their wives were assigned to guard the base. In some places, they [the women] were assigned to guard together with local militia units, ’said a local woman who was a friend of a solider family in Kyaukme township, State State North.

The incidents took place in bases located in Kyaukme and Mongmit townships where fighting between the SSPP/SSA and the Burma Army often breaks out. Units based in Kyaukme township are Light Infantry Battalion (LIB) # 501 and 502 and in Mongmit are LIB # 348, Infantry Battalion (IB) # 223 and IB # 276.

‘How can we protect the base even if they [the rebels] come to attack the base since we are not used to handling guns and have no military training,’ complained a housewife of the Burma Army soldier from Kyaukme base.

Some bases in Mongmit are empty during the night time because the Burma Army’s family members are afraid to stay at the base and go to stay outside the base instead, said a source from Mongmit.
‘They [the family members] often go to sleep at the monastery at night and come back to take guard duty at the base in the day time. Some go to stay at their relative’s homes,” she said.

In addition, in some bases, some soldiers including high ranking officers had committed suicide as they were certain most of them would not be returning from the frontline.
For instance, a major from LIB 348 recently committed a suicide. “Before his death, he [the major] said he did not want to die at a place where his family could not see him,” the source added.

“Therefore some family hold farewell parties for their husbands before going to the frontline. They [the family] would go along until half way to the frontline because they believed that most of them would not come back,” she said.

Soldiers from Mongmit bases were sent to war zones opposite KIA controlled areas while soldiers from Kyaukme were deployed to SSPP/SSA areas. Fighting between the Burma Army and the armed groups are still reported everyday since March, leaving hundreds of soldiers and local people dead and injured. http://www.shanland.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=4003:husbands-at-the-front-women-guard-rear-bases&catid=86:war&Itemid=284
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Regime adopts alternative approach to Wa, Mongla
Thursday, 01 September 2011 11:29 S.H.A.N.

Naypyitaw recently sent two letters to specified areas under the United Wa State Army (UWSA) and the National Democratic Alliance Army (NDAA) inviting them for peace talks, according to sources on the Sino-Burma border.

One letter was addressed to Hsaleu, headquarters of the NDAA’s 369th Brigade and the other to Mongpawk, headquarters of the UWSA’s 468th Brigade. Hsaleu and Mongpawk are part of Mongyang township, according to regime set-up.

The letters were reportedly forwarded to Mongla and Panghsang on 29 August and 30 August respectively. “The letter that reached Hsaleu told officials there to contact Mongyang authorities for peace talks and for any problems they would like to address,” said a high official in Mongla, the NDAA’s main base opposite China’s Daluo. “I believe the letter to (the Wa’s) Mongpawk is essentially saying the same thing.”

The local source in Panghsang, confirming the arrival of the letter, however was unable to describe the content. “My friend (in the Wa leadership) just told me the letter was a big disappointment,” he recounted. “And that it would only serve to widen the gap between the two sides.”

Both sources say it is highly unlikely Panghsang and Mongla would be giving up Mongpawk and Hsaleu, not only because the two areas have been under their control for so long, but also because giving them up would mean geographical separation between the two allies which would only make it easier for Naypyitaw to destroy them one after the other.

Radio Free Asia reported earlier that Khun Tun Lu, Naypyitaw-appointed Chairman of the newly formed Wa Self Administered Division’s Leading Body, based in Hopang, had contacted the UWSA by phone on 20 August. (Hopang, Pangwai, Mongmai aka Mongmau, Napharn, Panghsang and Markmang aka Metman have been collectively designated as Wa Self Administered Division by the regime’s 2008 constitution. Only Hopang and Markmang are under the Burma Army control.)

“He told Wa authorities that he had been appointed as head of the Wa region,” the source close to the leadership told SHAN. “But he would like to visit them just as a friend and as a brother.”

According to RFA, Panghsang had not bothered to reply because there was no official letter to back up Khun Tun Lu’s request.

As to the latest letters that have reached their hands, there would be no replies either, according to the Mongla official. “The regime is trying to divide us,” he said. “But we know our people in Hsaleu will do nothing until we ask them to.”

Since the November elections, the semi-civilain government in Naypyitaw has opened three new fronts in Kachin, Shan and Karen states against the Kachin Independence Army (KIA), State State Army (SSA) “North” and Democratic Karen Buddhist Army (DKBA), all groups that had concluded ceasefire pacts with the Burma Army. Earlier, it was fighting mostly against the Karen National Union, Karenni National Progressive Party and the Shan State Army (SSA) “South”. http://www.shanland.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=3998:regime-adopts-alternative-approach-to-wa-mongla&catid=85:politics&Itemid=266
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KNU still investigating Karen leader’s mysterious disappearance
Thursday, 01 September 2011 21:23 Ko Pauk

New Delhi (Mizzima) – KNU leader Mahn Nyein Maung’s one-month disappearance is still under investigation by the Karen National Union (KNU), officials said, and the cause of his absence since late July is was still unknown.

KNU officials said Mahn Nyein Maung’s visas for both Thailand and China had expired and after he was denied entry to both countries, he vanished from the Kunming Airport.

“Thailand deported him back to China because his visa for Thailand had expired,” said KNU Major Saw La Ngwe. “He was denied entry at Kunming Airport to China too. He then disappeared from Kunming Airport without a trace. The airline company said they didn’t know anything.

“We don’t have any reliable information about his disappearance, and we don’t know where he is. We're still investigating,” said Saw La Ngwe.

Meanwhile, word has spread that Mahn Nyein Maung may have been deported to Burma by Chinese authorities. However, the KNU said that information couldn’t be confirmed.

Mahn Nyein Maung had taken leave from the KNU on a personal matter more than eight months ago, and he had lost connections with the KNU. The trip to China was a private trip and had nothing to do with the KNU, officials said.

While some rumours said Mahn Nyein Maung had been arrested by the Burmese government, others said he was still in China, said Saw La Ngwe.

“The situation is still unclear,” he said. “We think he may be in China but if we report about that, he may encounter problems. On the other hand, if the Burmese government has arrested him and we do not report that, he could be severely tortured and leave no trace. We need to be balanced between the two possibilities.”

Mahn Nyein Maung was arrested by former dictator Ne Win’s government in 1967 as a Karen youth leader and was sent to a prison camp on Koko Island. He and two prison mates tried to flee by boat, but were captured. Later, under the pen name “Yebaw Shaung,” he wrote about his adventures in the book “Against the storm, Across the Sea.” http://www.mizzima.com/news/inside-burma/5872-knu-still-investigating-karen-leaders-mysterious-disappearance.html
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Myanmar parliament approves "peace committee" for ethnic conflicts
Sep 1, 2011, 9:41 GMT

Yangon - Myanmar's parliament approved the establishment of a 'peace committee' to deal with the country's ongoing conflicts with its ethnic minority groups, some of whom have been fighting the government for six decades, sources said Thursday.

The upper house, meeting in the capital, Naypyitaw, approved the committee Wednesday and was asked to consider including opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi as one of the peacemakers, sources said. 'Aye Maung from the Rakhine State Party suggested that Aung San Suu Kyi should be considered as a member of the peace committee,' a member of parliament who requested anonymity said.

The upper house, which is dominated by the pro-military Union Solidarity and Development Party, did not decide on whether to include Suu Kyi.

'Parliament just approved the principle of the formation of the peace committee, but it was not clear whether Suu Kyi will be allowed to participate in the committee or even whether Suu Kyi herself wanted to join or not,' the legislator said.

One of the key threats to Myanmar's stability is its ethnic minority problems.

The government has faced a dozen insurgencies as minorities fight for the autonomy of their traditional territories since independence from Britain in 1949.

Suu Kyi has made known her interest in participating in the reconciliation process with the ethnic groups.

'On my part, I am prepared and pledge to do everything in my power towards the cessation of armed conflicts and building peace in the union,' Suu Kyi said in an open letter to President Thein Sein and ethnic groups last month.

The suggestion to include Suu Kyi, the 1991 Nobel Peace Prize laureate, in the reconciliation process with minority groups came at a time of seeming rapprochement between the democracy icon and the new government.

Suu Kyi met with Thein Sein for the first time August 19 at his personal invitation.

The two leaders reportedly discussed the need to cooperate. Suu Kyi later described the meeting as a 'positive step.'

Suu Kyi, the daughter of independence leader Aung San, had spent 15 of the past 21 years under house arrest. She was released from her latest period of detention in November, six days after polls that brought the current pro-military government to power.
http://www.monstersandcritics.com/news/asiapacific/news/article_1660367.php/Myanmar-parliament-approves-peace-committee-for-ethnic-conflicts
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Parliament Approves 'Peace Committee'
By SAW YAN NAING Thursday, September 1, 2011

Burma's parliament on Thursday approved the formation of a “peace committee” to mediate with the ethnic groups which are engaged in armed conflict against government forces, according to Arakan MP Aye Maung.

He said the committee has been named the “Committee for Forever Stability and Peace in the Union of Burma.”

Aye Maung, who is the chairman of the Rakhine National Development Party, told The Irrawaddy on Thursday that the plan to form such a committee was approved by the Upper House at a parliamentary meeting in Naypyidaw on Wednesday.

It is unknown when the committee will be formed and whether it will include opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi who was proposed by Aye Maung at the parliamentary session.

In an open letter sent by Suu Kyi to President Thein Sein and the ethnic groups last month, Suu Kyi said that she is ready to become involved and use her influence to help end the conflicts and build peace in the nation.

There are a dozen groups of ethnic insurgents that have been fighting for autonomy since Burma gained independence from Britain in 1949. Tensions have boiled over into bloody clashes in recent months, most notably between the Burmese army and the Kachin Independence Army, the Karen National Union and the Democratic Karen Buddhist Army. http://www.irrawaddy.org/article.php?art_id=22003
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Parliament Gets Down to Details
By KO HTWE Thursday, September 1, 2011

While national parliaments are typically meant to be the place where issues and policies of national importance are introduced, discussed and debated, since reconvening on August 22, much of the current session of Burma's new Parliament has been taken up by the introduction of local matters.

“The issues they are raising are not important. MPs should know which issues should be raised in Parliament. If they don't know, then Parliament can become a comedy show,” said Phyo Min Thein, a Rangoon based politician.

For example, issues raised by MPs during the current session include such local matters as whether there is a plan for the Rangoon-Bagan Express train to stop over at Taikkyi Station for 2 minutes and whether there is a plan to place new lamp posts in Rangoon's Thakayta Township. They also included matters such as whether there is a plan to hire experienced international coaches to train Burma's athletes for the SEA Games in 2013.

Some MPs, however, argue that they are forced to raise such minor issues at the national level because they cannot get any cooperation from government officials at the local level.

“The lack of cooperation from ward, township and district level authorities force MPs to raise such small issues in the Parliament. They don't respect MPs. The State and Region minsters themselves don't settle the regional issues so we raise them in Parliament,” said Pe Than, a Lower House MP from the Rakhine Nationalities Development Party.

In the Lower House, most proposals by opposition MPs have been opposed by MPs from the majority Union Solidarity and Development Party, and much of the discussion has been prohibited by Shwe Mann, the speaker of the Lower House, because it has related to personal attacks on MPs.

“I don't wish to waste time with unnecessary words that can ruin respect and confidence between us. The cost for convening Parliament comes from the public. And I don't wish to waste public money,” said Shwe Mann.

However, there have been issues of national concern raised in Parliament.

Lower House MP Nan Wah Nu of the Kunhein Constituency in Shan State raised the questions of national reconciliation and talks between the new government and ethnic armed groups.

Thein Nyunt, from the Thingangyun Constituency, proposed that Parliament request the president to issue general amnesty orders, requested that the Emergency Act of 1950 be revoked and introduced a bill for a Prisons Act which is in keeping with 21st century prison standards and guarantees human dignity.

The request for general amnesty received support from two delegations of military MPs, which gave the matter a significant chance of being raised at the level of the National Defense and Security Council. But the proposal to revoke the Emergency Act of 1950, which is used to imprison democracy activists, was shot down.

In response to the proposal for the adoption of a humane Prisons Act, Union Minister for Home Affairs Lt-Gen Ko Ko said that conditions for prisoners are already good, because by being assigned to labor camps such as agricultural and livestock breeding, the prisoners' energy is not wasted in a cell and they are able to earn wages that are given to them when they are released. In addition, he said that prisoners are also treated well inside the prisons.

“Family members are allowed to visit and stay with them and hospitals, clinics and schools are set up for them. Besides, if they wish to live in the new life camps when they are released, the ministry provides them with homes, land for farming, farming equipment, free loans and help so they can live with dignity in society,” said Ko Ko.

Bo Kyi, the joint secretary of the Thailand-based Assistance Association for Political Prisoners, said that some of the facts in Ko Ko's reply may be true in places such as the three Bawa Thit labor camps, which are for prisoners from the military and rich families who can bribe authorities to allow them to live separately from normal prisoners, but not in most prisons.

“Prisons are not good living places like they mentioned. The condition of prisons is still like a human hell. Prisoners who have no wish to work are also forced to work.
Wages for prisoners are just policy and the wages they earn are not enough,” he added, saying many prisoners who have been sent to labor camps have died.

There were also proposals by Upper House MP Tun Lwin of Kachin State Constituency No.9 to form a standing committee for ensuring eternal peace and stability in Burma and by Thein Win of Sagaing Region Constituency to reset the amount of kyat equivalent to US $1, which are appealing to many people.

“The discussion in Parliament and approval should take place immediately or support will weaken,”said Phyo Min Thein.

The suggestion by Aye Maung, an Upper House MP, that pro democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi be member of the committee for ensuring eternal peace and stability in Burma was not published in the state media.

While state media reports on the machinations of Parliament, such as questions raised and answered, proposals discussed and bills submitted and approved, it does not report on sensitive or controversial issues such as the fact that Burma will run a deficit of about 2.2 trillion kyat (US $3.2 billion) in the 2011-2012 fiscal year. In addition, the state censorship board does not allow these types of facts to be reported in private journals.

Burma's second parliamentary session convened in Naypyidaw on Monday.

The fact that parliamentary rules require MP proposals to be submitted to the house speaker at least 15 days in advance of the session is a hindrance to MPs's ability to raise sensitive issues, said an observer.

Under Burma's 2008 Constitution, 110 seats in the Lower House of the Union Parliament, 56 in the Upper House and 222 in the State and Regional Parliaments are reserved for military appointees selected by the country's armed forces chief.
http://www.irrawaddy.org/article.php?art_id=22002
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Burma to Lease State-Run Industries
By THE IRRAWADDY Thursday, September 1, 2011

Naypyidaw—The Burmese government is to allow private companies to lease and run for profit a number of state-run industries on long-term contracts, according to Minister for Industry No 1 and Industry No 2 Soe Thein.

“We will lease a large number of state-run industries within 10 years,” Soe Thein said at an economic forum held at Myanmar Convention Centre in Naypyidaw on Aug. 19.

According to the Soe Thein, the Ministry of Agriculture and Irrigation has already agreed to rent five state-owned factories—four sugarcane refineries and a whisky distillery—for a total of 1,050 million kyat (US $1.4 million) per annum to private enterprises on 30-year contracts.

According to a source within the industry ministry, several well-known Burmese private sector companies, including Yuzana Co. Ltd, International Gate Ways Co. Ltd, and Delicious Food Co. Ltd, have consolidated long-term contracts to lease seven state-owned factories—all sugarcane refineries and whisky distilleries—in Pyinmana and Mandalay in central Burma.

But according to a businessman in Rangoon, none of the state-ownded enterprises will be sold to the private sector as they are too expensive and the risk of loss too high.

“In fact, private businessmen don’t want to buy companies like these,” he said. “They would prefer to lease them on a long-term basis.”

The privatization plan was announced by Soe Thein during an economic development workshop in Naypyidaw with Burmese opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi in attendance. http://www.irrawaddy.org/article.php?art_id=22001
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Bluegrass Band to Tour Burma
By LALIT K JHA Thursday, September 1, 2011

WASHINGTON—The US State Department has announced it will send a popular American bluegrass band on a multi-city five-day tour of Burma, along with several other countries in the region, as part of its effort to generate interaction.

Bluegrass is a genre of American country music that has roots in Scots/ Irish folk music, but has been influenced more recently by jazz.

Even though the Burmese authorities are yet to grant visas to the members of popular Earth Stringband for their tour of the country from September 21 to 25, officials of the US State Department are encouraged by the two successful prior tours of other bands.

“Next month, the bluegrass group Earth String Band, will travel to Asia for a five-country tour that includes stops in Laos, Thailand, Timor-Leste, and South Korea,” the State Department said in a written response to a question asked at its daily news conference on Tuesday. “Pending the Burmese government’s approval of visas, the band will also stop in Burma.”

This is the third time the State Department has sent Rhythm Road musicians to Burma—The Student Loan visited Burma in 2009, and the Maya Azucena Band visited in 2008, it said.

The Rhythm Road: American Music Abroad program uses music and culture as diplomatic tools to bring people together and foster mutual understanding, the State Department added.

To date, 155 musicians from 40 ensembles have toured with The Rhythm Road: American Music Abroad program visiting more than 100 countries on five continents. While on tour, these Rhythm Road musicians conduct public concerts, master classes, workshops, jam sessions, and collaborate with local musicians and communities.

Meanwhile, Andy Reiner from the Earth Stringband said its members are excited to travel to Burma and other Southeast Asian countries. “We’re all beyond excited to travel to Southeast Asia,” he said. http://www.irrawaddy.org/article.php?art_id=21998
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