News & Articles on Burma-Sunday, 06 November, 2011-uzl

News & Articles on Burma Sunday, 06 November, 2011 ------------------------------------------ Myanmar clears path for Suu Kyi's return to politics Burma's opposition to consider registering as political party Burma: Government paves the way for Suu Kyi into its parliament -- Why? Myanmar clears path for Suu Kyi's return to politics Myanmar opposition to consider registering as political party Trouble with the neighbours Myanmar eases limits on political parties Iron Fist in a Velvet Glove: Burma's ethnic cleansing continues ------------------------------------------ THE CHINA POST: Sunday, November 6, 2011 0:14 am TWN, YANGON, AFP Myanmar clears path for Suu Kyi's return to politics YANGON -- Myanmar's president has approved changes to a law on political parties, paving the way for democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi's opposition party to re-register, state media said Saturday. The revisions to the political party registration law appear to be the latest effort by the military-dominated regime to reach out to opponents, amid tentative signs of change in the repressive state. A key amendment endorsed by President Thein Sein on Friday removed the condition that all parties must agree to "preserve" the country's 2008 constitution, the state-run Myanmar Ahlin newspaper said. The wording has now been changed to "respect and obey", it said, a small difference in nuance but one that would allow Suu Kyi's National League for Democracy (NLD) party to criticize or suggest changes to the constitution. The revised law also removed a contentious clause that said prisoners could not be party members. NLD spokesman Nyan Win said the party welcomed the changes but he refused to be drawn on whether it meant it would re-register and contest a by-election expected around the end of the year. "We like the amended law as it amended the facts that should be amended," he told AFP. "We will discuss and negotiate what to do and how to continue on Monday when the office opens." The NLD boycotted Myanmar's historic elections last year, largely because of rules that would have forced it to expel imprisoned members --- including leader Suu Kyi who was still under house arrest at the time. As a result it was delisted as a political party by the regime. Myanmar's new nominally civilian government said in September it was ready to work with Suu Kyi and her party if they officially re-entered the political arena. In response, the Nobel Peace Prize winner, freed from detention last November after seven years of house arrest, said she would discuss the issue of re-registering with senior party members based on political developments. The amendments to the party registration law came hot on the heels of high-profile visits to Myanmar this week by senior officials from the United Nations and the United States, who said they were encouraged by nascent reforms in the country. A recent prisoner amnesty by the new government, however, failed to free most key dissidents, disappointing those who had hoped the country would release all its roughly 2,000 political detainees.http://www.chinapost.com.tw/asia/other/2011/11/06/322073/Myanmar-clears.htm ------------------------------------------ Burma's opposition to consider registering as political party November 6, 2011 4:05 am Rangoon - Burma's main opposition group will meet this week to decide whether to re-register as a party after the government amended political legislation, sources said Sunday. President Thein Sein on Friday endorsed an amendment that would allow the National League for Democracy (NLD), led by Nobel laureate Aung San Suu Kyi, to register as a legal party before an upcoming by-election. "All amendments in revised political parties' registration law met our requirements," NLD spokesman Nyan Win said. "We will hold a meeting on Tuesday to decide whether NLD would re-register or not, but there is a high possibility for re-registration." The amendment was one of several priorities of the international community to gauge the government's sincerity in democratic reform. Thein Sein has in recent months initiated talks with Suu Kyi and pushed through a series of legislative changes that have raised optimism that the country, long ruled by the military, is inching towards a more democratic system. Progress under the new government was welcomed by German Minister of State Werner Hoyer who visited Myanmar last week. "We have a feeling that everything should be done to encourage those who are taking rather bold decisions in order to bring Myanmar back to the international community," Hoyer told dpa in Bangkok. "When we're talking about economic cooperation, I think we can do more than we did before and we are ready to do so," Hoyer said, noting that the director-general of the German Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development would probably visit soon. Hoyer cautioned that the improvements might prove "reversible," and said Western democracies were awaiting more reforms, such as the release of all political prisoners and an assurance that the upcoming by-election was "free and fair." //DPA http://www.nationmultimedia.com/breakingnews/Burmas-opposition-to-consider-registering-as-polit-30169323.html -------------------------------------------- Burma: Government paves the way for Suu Kyi into its parliament -- Why? By Zin Linn Nov 06, 2011 1:52AM UTC Burma's President Thein Sein has signed an amendment law on political parties in a noticeable effort to persuade National League for Democracy party led by democracy icon Aung San Suu Kyi to reregister as a party recognizing the new political structure. President Thein Sein signed the amendments to the Political Party Registration Law on Friday as senior US diplomats and a special UN envoy were ending their visits pushing his government to drive forward with democratic reforms. Burma's state-run TV and newspaper publicized on Friday that President Thein Sein has signed a law that amends three key areas of the Political Party Registration Law. Both houses of the Burmese Parliament had earlier endorsed the amendments. In the previous law the wording said that all political parties must "protect" the State's Constitution. In the amendment law the word "safeguard" was changed to "respect and abide" the Constitution. According to the new law, previous two clauses were also changed. One clause said that serving prisoners are restricted from being a member of a political party and another clause said that a political party needs to contest in three parliamentary seats at least in an election. Many analysts believe that the aim of amending the law is to pave a way for the National League for Democracy reregistering as a legal party. If so, the NLD may take part in the upcoming by-elections that would be the first electoral contest of its public reputation within a two-decade time. Thein Sein government seems to take advantage of bringing Suu Kyi's party back into the current parliamentary structure which would make the government healthier authenticity at home and overseas. At the same time, Burma is expected to release at least 600 political prisoners in the coming days, government and opposition sources said, as part of an amnesty program by President Thein Sein's nominally civilian government. A top government official, who asked to remain anonymous told Radio Free Asia (Burmese Service) in an interview Thursday that the release would likely come next week. "I expect the release date will be Nov. 10, which is the important Buddhist Full Moon holiday," he said. "Student leaders Min Ko Naing and Ko Ko Gyi, and Shan Nationalities League for Democracy (SNLD) leader Kun Htun Oo are on the list. The list of those to be released has been submitted to the National Defense and Security Council by the president," the source said. Another official, also speaking anonymously, said he believed the release would "benefit national reconciliation." The opposition National League for Democracy (NLD) claims that several hundred political prisoners are yet to be freed. Suu Kyi and Labor Minister Aung Kyi have met several times to talk about the political prisoner situation. Tin Oo, vice chairman of the NLD, told RFA that the two sides had been making considerable steps forward in resolving their differences, indicating that releases were expected the coming week. The government visible moves -- amending the party registration law, planning to free more political prisoners and some soft stances on media freedom -- are believed to be a step ahead toward change. But, there are many unconvinced dissident groups inside and outside of the country. According to those groups, Burmese government eagerly wants lifting of Western sanctions, financial assistance from monetary institutions and supporting of ASEAN Chairmanship in 2014. So, to fulfill its needs in a short period, there is no other way except to persuade Suu Kyi joining on its boat. Sources close to the NLD also predicted that Suu Kyi and some of her party members are expected to take part in the upcoming by-election with full strength. The NLD spokesman Nyan Win said the party was likely to get re-registered under an amended party registration law that removed clauses the NLD had pointed out as inappropriate and undemocratic. In an interview with Radio Free Asia (Burmese Service), Nyan Win said that he considers she may stand in a by-election if the law was amended. "I personally want her to do so," he added. Even though, if she would decide to stand in the by-election after the law was amended, she may need to have the consent of the NLD Central Executive Committee. The next by-elections seem to be held belatedly this year. According to some analysts, the government's reforms, including a rare meeting between Aung San Suu Kyi and President Thein Sein and the recent release of over 200 political prisoners, are intended for shedding Burma's friendless situation and giving it some consistency with the international community. However, there are many democracy-supporters who dare not believe the Thein Sein government's current steps forward as real change. Because, the civil war in Kachin State has been going on under full-scaled offensives and government's soldiers are still abusing basic human rights widely. Besides, there are more than 20,000 war-refugees and IDPs along Sino-Burma border without having any humanitarian assistance due to brutal attacks by government's soldiers. http://asiancorrespondent.com/68967/burma-government-paves-the-way-for-suu-kyi-into-its-parliament-%E2%80%93-why/ --------------------------------------------- Myanmar clears path for Suu Kyi's return to politics (AFP) -- 23 hours ago YANGON --- Myanmar's president has approved changes to a law on political parties, paving the way for democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi's opposition party to re-register, state media said on Saturday. The revisions to the political party registration law appear to be the latest effort by the military-dominated regime to reach out to opponents, amid tentative signs of change in the repressive state. A key amendment endorsed by President Thein Sein on Friday removed the condition that all parties must agree to "preserve" the country's 2008 constitution, the state-run Myanmar Ahlin newspaper said. The wording has now been changed to "respect and obey", it said, a small difference in nuance but one that would allow Suu Kyi's National League for Democracy (NLD) party to criticise or suggest changes to the constitution. The revised law also removed a contentious clause that said prisoners could not be party members. NLD spokesman Nyan Win said the party welcomed the changes but he refused to be drawn on whether it meant it would re-register and contest a by-election expected around the end of the year. "We like the amended law as it amended the facts that should be amended," he told AFP. "We will discuss and negotiate what to do and how to continue on Monday when the office opens." The NLD boycotted Myanmar's historic elections last year, largely because of rules that would have forced it to expel imprisoned members -- including leader Suu Kyi who was still under house arrest at the time. As a result it was delisted as a political party by the regime. Myanmar's new nominally civilian government said in September it was ready to work with Suu Kyi and her party if they officially re-entered the political arena. In response, the Nobel Peace Prize winner, freed from detention last November after seven years of house arrest, said she would discuss the issue of re-registering with senior party members based on political developments. The amendments to the party registration law came hot on the heels of high-profile visits to Myanmar this week by senior officials from the United Nations and the United States, who said they were encouraged by nascent reforms in the country. A recent prisoner amnesty by the new government, however, failed to free most key dissidents, disappointing those who had hoped the country would release all its roughly 2,000 political detainees. http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5iNg-Fy-jGEnu4x_nwhr1x2xuV5mw?docId=CNG.dba16b6f31b0699f781ef352ab4c228e.471 ------------------------------------------- Asia-Pacific News Myanmar opposition to consider registering as political party Nov 6, 2011, 6:26 GMT Yangon - Myanmar's main opposition group will meet this week to decide whether to re-register as a party after the government amended political legislation, sources said Sunday. President Thein Sein on Friday endorsed an amendment that would allow the National League for Democracy (NLD), led by Nobel laureate Aung San Suu Kyi, to register as a legal party before an upcoming by-election. 'All amendments in revised political parties' registration law met our requirements,' NLD spokesman Nyan Win said. 'We will hold a meeting on Tuesday to decide whether NLD would re-register or not, but there is a high possibility for re-registration.' The amendment was one of several priorities of the international community to gauge the government's sincerity in democratic reform. Thein Sein has in recent months initiated talks with Suu Kyi and pushed through a series of legislative changes that have raised optimism that the country, long ruled by the military, is inching towards a more democratic system. Progress under the new government was welcomed by German Minister of State Werner Hoyer who visited Myanmar last week. 'We have a feeling that everything should be done to encourage those who are taking rather bold decisions in order to bring Myanmar back to the international community,' Hoyer told dpa in Bangkok. 'When we're talking about economic cooperation, I think we can do more than we did before and we are ready to do so,' Hoyer said, noting that the director-general of the German Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development would probably visit soon. Hoyer cautioned that the improvements might prove 'reversible,' and said Western democracies were awaiting more reforms, such as the release of all political prisoners and an assurance that the upcoming by-election was 'free and fair.' The NLD boycotted the November 7 polls rather than submit to the previous party registration act that would have forced it to drop Suu Kyi as a member. That law excluded people serving prison terms from belonging to political parties. Suu Kyi was released from seven years of house arrest term on November 13, six days after the general election. The amended registration law was also a priority for visiting UN special envoy Vijay Nambiar, who met with Thein Sein last week. 'At this juncture, it is of crucial importance, for Myanmar's regional and global standing, to maintain the positive momentum that these initiatives have generated,' Nambiar said after a five-day visit. In October, Myanmar released 200 political prisoners, but an estimated 1,900 remain in jails throughout the country. http://www.monstersandcritics.com/news/asiapacific/news/article_1673454.php/Myanmar-opposition-to-consider-registering-as-political-party -------------------------------------------- Bangkok Post Trouble with the neighbours Burma's decision to halt the Myitsone dam and the murder of 13 Chinese sailors on the Mekong point to how Beijing's relations with its regional allies have taken a rocky turn for the worse Published: 6/11/2011 at 12:00 AM Newspaper section: News China's "good neighbour" policy is under unprecedented pressure; indeed, it is at its nadir since the end of the Cold War. One after another, frictions with neighbouring countries have recently arisen. From the territorial disputes with Vietnam and the Philippines in the South China Sea to tensions with Burma and Thailand, relationships that were sound, if not always friendly, have now soured. Burma's decision to shelve the Chinese-backed Myitsone dam project shocked China. Likewise, the killing of 13 Chinese boat crewmen on the Mekong River in October serves as a stark reminder that China's southern land border, which has been untroubled for nearly 20 years, is today a more hostile territory. (Editor's Note: At the end of October, nine Thai soldiers surrendered to police for questioning in connection with the murders.) China's people and government are especially dismayed by the Mekong killings, which seemed to demonstrate, once again, the government's inability to protect its citizens from being murdered abroad, despite the country's newfound global status. As a result, two compelling questions have arisen: Why do China's neighbours choose to neglect its interests? And why, despite China's rise, do its authorities seem increasingly unable to secure Chinese lives and commercial interests abroad? Chinese anxiety about these questions forms the atmosphere shaping Chinese policy. With Moammar Gadhafi's fall from power in Libya, Chinese companies lost investments worth roughly US$20 billion (616 billion baht), which Libya's new government has implied are unlikely to be recovered. Many Chinese were disquieted by their government's decision to evacuate China's citizens from Libya, and would have preferred a bolder effort to protect the countries' commercial assets there. Similarly, the Chinese government's later, and quite sudden, about-face in recognising the rebel Transitional National Council as Libya's government aroused considerable sneering at home. After all, China spent valuable political capital to oppose Nato's airstrikes at the beginning of the intervention, only to end up backing the forces that Nato helped bring to power. This was China's utilitarian, commercially driven diplomacy at its most transparently hollow. For most Chinese, Libya is a far-away and out-of-reach country, owing to China's limited capacity to project power. So the emphasis on restoring Chinese commercial interests is accepted reluctantly if not completely understood. But Burma and the other Mekong River countries are supposed to be the country's "good neighbours", and are completely within reach of Chinese power, so public anger over threats to the country's interests in these places is intense. Those interests include a new oil pipeline linking Burma to Kunming, the provincial capital of Yunnan province. China is also working on "connectivity" projects _ namely, a rail and highway network _ aimed at boosting economic and social ties between China and the Asean countries. The Myitsone and Mekong incidents have now cast a shadow over these projects, fuelling fear of a chain reaction that could wreck China's 20 year effort to achieve deeper regional integration. Obviously, Burma's new government does not want to aggravate sentiment in its already-unstable border areas, where rebel groups were using the dam project to rally new supporters. The new government's effort to share power with political forces in Burma's volatile regions, and thus weaken local warlords, clearly contributed to the decision to halt construction. The dam's Chinese investors, for their part, relied too heavily on the depth of the two countries' bilateral ties, and so heavily discounted the project's political risks. Their behaviour also reflects the implied guarantee of official government mercantilism, as well as the complacency of China's state-owned enterprises, which account for most Chinese overseas investment. Operating on the assumption that the government will back them _ or bail them out if they fail _ they can afford to be cavalier. The Mekong incident tells another grim story. The river, which links five countries, has been long famous as a setting for trans-national crimes such as drug trafficking, gambling and smuggling. China's booming economy has brought growing interaction between China and the Mekong's underground economies. The killing of the 13 Chinese boat crewmen was linked to this trend. China can best avoid similar tragedies not by flexing its muscles, but by building greater multilateral cooperation to combat transnational crime along the Mekong. The Myitsone and Mekong episodes highlight China's suddenly edgy relations with its southern neighbors. Its good-neighbour policy, it turns out, has steered China's regional diplomacy into uncharted waters. Indeed, China's neighbours will not be reliably good to Chinese interests unless and until China begins to provide essential public goods _ not just commerce, but also full-fledged regional governance based on the rule of law, respect for human rights, and regional economic growth. Otherwise, ruptures such as those at sone and along the Mekong will recur, deepening China's sense of isolation and panic. Zhu Feng is deputy director of the Centre for International and Strategic Studies, Peking University. Project Syndicate, 2011, www.project-syndicate.org. http://www.bangkokpost.com/news/local/264939/trouble-with-the-neighbours ------------------------------------------- CBSNEWS: November 5, 2011 9:50 AM Myanmar eases limits on political parties YANGON, Myanmar - Myanmar's president has signed a revised law on political parties in an apparent attempt to encourage Nobel laureate Aung San Suu Kyi's National League for Democracy to accept the political system and reregister as a party. President Thein Sein signed the amendments to the Political Party Registration Law on Friday as senior U.S. diplomats were ending a visit to encourage his government to push forward with democratic reforms. A U.N. envoy has also been visiting. If the National League for Democracy reregisters as a legal party, it could join upcoming but still unscheduled by-elections that would be the first electoral test of its popularity in more than two decades. Bringing Suu Kyi's party back into the fold would also give the government greater legitimacy at home and abroad. The group was delisted as a political party last year after it refused to register for November 2010 elections, saying they were being held under undemocratic conditions. The amendments of the party law signed by Thein Sein alter three areas of the law to accommodate Suu Kyi and the National League for Democracy. The law, originally enacted in March last year by the previous military junta, prohibited anyone who has been convicted of a crime from being a member of a political party. Suu Kyi had been convicted on a trumped-up charge, and would have had to leave the party she helped found. The clause has now been dropped, clearing the way for former political prisoners to engage in politics. Another article was amended to say that registered parties shall "respect and abide" by the constitution rather than "safeguard" it. The change was evidently made to accommodate criticisms of the charter by Suu Kyi's group without making them illegal. The third amendment says that any party that registers after the general election must run candidates in at least three constituencies in by-elections to remain legally registered. The original law said a party had to stand at least three candidates in the general election, which would have been an impediment to Suu Kyi's party, since it boycotted the 2010 polls. "Now that the law has been passed, we will hold a meeting to decide whether or not we will register," the spokesman of Suu Kyi's group, Nyan Win, told The Associated Press. Nyan Win said the amendments were in line with the group's wishes. The junta that ruled Myanmar until handing over power to the current elected military-backed government in March this year enacted a constitution and other laws with provisions aimed at limiting Suu Kyi's political activities, fearing her influence. Her party overwhelming won a 1990 general election, but the army refused to had over power, instead repressing Suu Kyi and other democracy activists. The U.S. and other Western countries imposed political and economic sanctions against the junta for its failure to hand over power and its poor human rights record. The elections last November gave an army-backed party a huge majority in Parliament, and the constitution contains provisions that ensure the continued domination of the armed forces. However, Thein Sein, who was the junta's prime minister, has instituted a series of small reforms to encourage political reconciliation, including an easing of censorship and the opening of a dialogue with Suu Kyi. At the same time, the Obama administration has sought to engage the government, shifting away from the previous U.S. policy of shunning it. U.S. special envoy to Myanmar Derek Mitchell told reporters in Yangon on Friday that Thein Sein's government has taken positive steps and that Washington views the release of political prisoners and bringing the National League for Democracy into the political system as necessary reforms. "We are thinking very actively about how we can support reform by our actions as we see the government taking those concrete steps," he said. He said the U.S. "would love to respond in kind" and was consulting closely with the government. The U.S. could gradually ease its sanctions against Myanmar and allow aid from multilateral lending institutions such as the World Bank, over which it has exercised a veto. Vijay Nambiar, a special adviser to U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, also concluded a visit Friday and added his voice to those encouraging further reforms. "An important purpose of my visit was to directly relay to the Myanmar leadership and other stakeholders the secretary-general's encouragement of the important steps taken in recent months to advance the reform agenda led by President Thein Sein, as well as the significant efforts made by all concerned to advance national dialogue and reconciliation," he said in a statement. "At this juncture, it is of crucial importance, for Myanmar's regional and global standing, to maintain the positive momentum that these initiatives have generated." http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-202_162-57319174/myanmar-eases-limits-on-political-parties/ ----------------------------------------- Iron Fist in a Velvet Glove: Burma's ethnic cleansing continues Posted on | november 4, 2011 | Much has been made of late of the 'concessions' by the Burmese regime to dialogue and possible political liberalization that began with the release from house arrest of opposition figure, and Nobel Peace Prize winner, Aung San Suu Kyi. Indeed while such moves should be applauded and welcomed one cannot help but wonder if they are little more than a cynical public relations exercise by the country's military leadership to curry international support for an easing of sanctions against the regime. The strongest evidence that the new 'civilian' (sic) government of President Thein Sein is little more than an iron fist in a velvet glove comes from the continuing offensives by the Burmese military against ethnic minorities such as the Kachin and Karen. Indeed Derek Mitchell the new US special envoy for Burma confirmed on October 17th that there were credible reports of human rights abuses by the military against women and children including murder and rape. More recently allegations have been made that the Burmese Army, the Tatmadaw, has used mortar rounds that have contained poisonous gas in attacks on fighters of the Kachin Independence Army in three war zones: Ga Ra Yang village, Shwe Nyaung Pyin village and Waingmaw Township. On October 30th the Kachin News Group stated that soldiers from the KIA reported that black smoke billowing from areas where the mortar shells landed had left victims dizzy, struggling to breathe and vomiting for several hours. While there is no independent verification of the alleged use of chemical weapons if true such attacks would be in violation of the 1925 Geneva Protocol that prohibited the use of chemical and biological weapons. These attacks are only the latest in an intensification of hostilities against ethnic groups that have occurred in recent months despite calls by President Thein Sein for national reconciliation. Criticism has also come from Burma's neighbors. On October 29th Indonesia's foreign Minister Marty Natalegawa urged Burma's leaders to make concrete steps towards reconciliation while earlier this year in July Aung San Suu Kyi issued an open letter to the President in which she called for an urgent ceasefire and offered to act as a mediator. Besides the KIA the Burmese Army continues to be engaged in offensives against other armed ethnic groups including the Karen National Union and the Shan State Army. While the Burman (Bamar) constitute about two-thirds of the country's population Burma nevertheless is one of the most ethnically diverse countries in the world with 135 distinct official ethnic groups recognized by the government itself. Many of the country's most important ethnic minorities (the Kachin, Karen, Shan etc) are located on the country's mountainous borders and have been in conflict with the central authorities for over four decades. While full autonomy for the Frontier Areas, including a Kachin State, was agreed in the historic Panglong Agreement signed in February 1947 by Aung San Suu Kyi's father, Aung San, the agreement was effectively scuttled following his assassination and the creation of irregular militia under the command of Ne Win who would later overthrow the democratic government of Burma in 1962. Following the establishment of his own personalized Burmese Road to Socialism Ne Win launched a brutal policy against ethnic and political rebels known as the 'Four Cuts'. The policy was designed to cut the four main links of food, funds, intelligence, and recruits between insurgents, their families and local villagers and largely consisted of a policy of forced relocation and ethnic cleansing. Opponents of the regime internally and externally fear that the military is using the latest concessions to political opponents to deflect attention from the renewed offensives. Whether this is the case or not, what the incidents reveal is that gross abuses of human rights continue in Burma on an almost daily basis and that an investigation of the latest claims of the use of chemical weapons is urgently needed. AUTHOR: Dr. Jason Abbott URL: http://profjabbott.blogspot.com E-MAIL: jason.abbott [at] louisville.edu http://www.nl-aid.org/continent/south-east-asia/iron-fist-in-a-velvet-glove-burma%E2%80%99s-ethnic-cleansing-continues/