News & Articles on Burma-Sunday, 11 December 2011-uzl

News & Articles on Burma Sunday, 11 December 2011 ------------------------------------------- Generals open door as opportunity knocks Burma: Cyclones affect more and more Women Old warrior says give peace a chance Democracy's prolonged war with Corruption YEARENDER: Myanmar starts to march to a different beat Realpolitik and the Myanmar Spring Shanmugam to visit Myanmar Burma eases censorship for some: local media Thai police arrest five in huge methamphetamine bust China starts joint patrols Mekong River with Laos, Myanmar ---------------------------------------------- Bangkok Post: Spectrum Generals open door as opportunity knocks Hillary Clinton's recent visit might have put the regime a step closer to rejoining the international community, but real reforms need to happen before that can take place Published: 11/12/2011 at 12:00 AM Newspaper section: Spectrum Way back in 1998, a visiting Burmese journalist was asked by his Thai colleagues about the state of the economy in his country. He beckoned them to look at a large group of migrant workers on their way to a seafood packing factory in the coastal town of Mahachai, about an hour's drive from Bangkok. "They would not be here if they could find jobs in their hometowns or in Rangoon," he said. The fate of these migrant workers and ethnic groups still at war with the Burmese government did not gain front-page prominence during US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton's historic visit to Burma last week, but it cannot be separated from the thorny issues of democratisation and human rights in the country. As a next-door neighbour, Thailand is in a position to help Burma continue its political reforms. Knowledge sharing in technology, business, agriculture and transport will benefit both countries. But this cooperation will only function well under a stable and open political system. The Obama administration may have to balance its strategic goals against the risk of rewarding a regime that has yet to win international acceptance. But the momentum for change is already there. "President Thein Sein is right in describing Mrs Clinton's visit as a milestone that would open a new chapter in relations. There were no proper relations between the two countries before. Now their relations have started to become friendly and they expect to harvest more advantages from this," said U Aye Saung, vice-chairman of the Democratic Alliance of Burma. "For Thein Sein, Mrs Clinton's visit is like having a free makeover. The regime has long dreamed of being honoured by the US, hoping that the whole world will believe that they are no longer thugs like before," he said. But Thein Sein can only go as far as the powerful National Defence and Security Council allow him. "He is carrying out orders given by the council," said U Aye Saung. "Now that his performance is bearing fruit, he should be able to stay in his chair unless there are any major problems, such as a mass uprising. "He was hand-picked by his senior commanders, and he will never be secure from the threat of [former junta leader] Than Shwe and the Security Council, which is not under the country's constitution or his power." Still, some in the opposition also worry that Washington is cosying up to Rangoon prematurely. "The Burmese government must first prove its sincerity by letting the people, including all ethnic groups, enjoy the full benefits of economic development, not just relying on the Myanmar Trade Union, which now controls all aspects of the national economy, including the exploitation of natural resources," said Timothy Laklem, head of foreign and public relations of the Karen National Union/Karen National Liberation Army Peace Council. He says the government must recognise the rights and territorial sovereignty of all ethnic groups, stop all acts of violence and declare ethnic states demilitarised zones, while allowing the UN and NGOs to freely visit and help needy people in the ethnic states. It is also imperative that the government include ethnic leaders in its national policy-making procedure and allow direct foreign investment in the ethnic states. "This will be a win-win situation for all sides," said Mr Laklem. "The government will earn more tax revenue, while the ethnic people can protect their cultural heritage and natural resources." THE US MATRIX Visiting Australia and Indonesia in November, President Barack Obama pledged to enhance US political and military engagement in the Asia-Pacific region as the post-Sept 11 "war on terror" winds down. He announced plans to deploy 2,500 US marines in northern Australia, and sought to unite the US and regional allies through a free-trade agreement. A reformed Burma will also help bolster Asean as a bulwark against China's growing influence in the region, according to a Thai security official, who spoke on condition of anonymity. Burma and the US have a long history of bilateral cooperation. "Both countries conducted joint narcotic suppression operations for many years, with officers from the US Drug Enforcement Agency working alongside their Burmese counterparts," he said. When Cyclone Nargis hit the mouth of the Irrawaddy River Delta region on May 2, 2008, Thailand conveyed the US offer of aid to the Burmese government. On May 11, the first US aid plane left U Tapao Airport in Sattahip, Thailand for Rangoon. On May 13, the Burmese government authorised five more US flights to land in the country with needed aid for the survivors of the cyclone. A new US relationship with Burma could also create opportunities for American companies eager to tap into Burma's abundant mineral resources, he said. Washington is also keen to negotiate a US-Asean free trade agreement, after a similar deal was signed between China and Asean. Speaking at the Asean Business and Investment Summit in Bali on Nov 18, former US ambassador to Thailand and Indonesia Ralph Boyce called on the Obama administration to articulate the goal of negotiating a US-Asean free trade agreement (FTA). "American trade negotiators rightly point out that negotiating a US-Asean FTA now would be nearly impossible given US sanctions on Burma and the vastly different levels of development among Asean countries," Mr Boyce said at the business forum in Bali. "But setting the FTA as a goal makes economic and geo-strategic sense. It underlines long-term US commitment to work with Asean to get the right conditions when a negotiation would be viable." His view is shared by the Thai security official, who stressed that events of the last year _ including a new constitution, an elected parliament, a more reform-minded president and greater demands by political groups _ would make it difficult for the Thein Sein government to roll back the changes. For her part, Mrs Clinton said in the Burmese capital of Naypyidaw on Dec 1 that it would "be difficult to begin a new chapter" until Burma began forging peace with ethnic groups and started allowing humanitarian organisations, human rights monitors and journalists into conflict areas. CHINA AND THAILAND To some Asian analysts, Burma has already acquired a foothold for returning fully to the international community through its designation as Asean chair in 2014. Its economy having stagnated under military rule, Burma is the poorest member of Asean. "If it can make the best possible use of the opportunity to serve as chair, Burma should be able to persuade the United States and European countries to lift their economic sanctions, thereby encouraging the inflow of foreign capital," said the Thai security official. America's inroads into Burma have drawn some criticism from the Chinese media. But U Aye Saung of the Democratic Alliance of Burma believes that Beijing will do nothing at the moment. "China already has its own economic investments and supporters in Burma. The US is also not willing to make any great sacrifices to promote democracy and human rights for the benefit of the people in Burma," said the alliance's vice-chairman. "I believe that the US and China may have an understanding among themselves to do business together in Burma. "I don't think China is worried about its economic interests in Burma," he said. "But it may be worried about the growing activism to promote democracy and human rights." Nonetheless, Thailand's role is important in the process of democratisation in Burma. "At the moment, Thailand should find friends both in the government and the opposition and seek to carry out economic investments without supporting the regime in the oppression of its own people," said U Aye Saung. "This is because human rights are the issue of today." Sharing the same view, Kuensai Jaiyen, senior editor of the Shan Herald Agency for News, said real reform and democratisation in Burma will encourage migrant workers in Thailand to return home and help develop the country. "The Shan people working in Thailand and elsewhere are longing to come home," said Mr Kuensai. "I think the Burmese government is well aware of it." http://www.bangkokpost.com/news/investigation/270256/generals-open-door-as-opportunity-knocks ------------------------------------------ Burma: Cyclones affect more and more Women Nava Thakuria - 12/10/2011 Even as the military rulers of Burma (Myanmar) completed a general election in November 2010 and a new so-called democratic regime is installed in the poverty stricken country, millions of Burmese are still living in terrible conditions in the cyclones Nargis and Giri affected areas, with many without pure drinking water and food or proper shelter. The lives of hundred thousand poor Burmese women have not changed though there are some plastic changes like the release of pro-democracy icon Aung San Suu Kyi from house arrest and many other from jails, regular sittings of parliamentarians in their new capital Nay Pyi Taw and so on. Burma receives international media headlines with the flawed constitution and electoral laws that finally prevented the pro-democracy icon Suu Kyi to take part in the November 2010 polls. Her party National League for Democracy, which recorded massive victory in the last general election in 1990- but denied power by the junta- even faced forced dissolution as it did not register with the election commission as a mark of protest. The recent visit of Burmese President Thein Sein to India on October 12 -15, 2011 was an attempt to improve its tie with the largest democracy of the globe and also enhance the Southeast Asian country's image as a welfare nation. But the ground reality remains almost the same. Since the day when the devastating tropical cyclone Nargis struck Burma (Myanmar) on May 2, 2008, the women survivors remain worst sufferers. Despite the fact that three full years passed since fateful night, the relief from international agencies, originally blocked by the then military regime, remains sporadic, paltry and tragically late, those all compiled to the continued agony for the poor Burmese people primarily women and children. The cyclone, originating in the Bay of Bengal, ripped a trail of destruction across the Irrawaddy and Rangoon divisions and also ravaged parts of the Bago, Mon and Kayin regions. A water wall of four meters high is said to have rolled some 25 miles inland across the Irrawaddy River Valley, flattening everything in its path. Although the military government reported the final death toll as 84,537, with 53,836 missing, independent estimates are that 140,000 were killed and tens of thousands more have never been found. The cyclone devastated the already spavined social infrastructure, and wiped out paddy fields, which at the time were being readied for the country's primary rice crop. Even one of latest reports of Human Rights Watch, New York reveals that the Burmese government continues to deny basic freedoms and place undue restrictions on aid agencies despite significant gains in rehabilitating areas devastated by the cyclone Nargis. Mentionable is that the then Burmese group of generals named State Peace and Development Council initially did not allow international aids to its own people initially and thus they received condemnation and brickbats from the international community for their callous and cruel attitude. "For nearly five decades, Burma's military rulers had systematically undermined the interests of their own citizens. It wasn't until days into the tragedy, goaded by international criticism, that the SPDC chief senior general Than Shwe found the time to visit the destroyed areas," said in the report. The then military chief Than Shwe and his company later softened following a personal visit of the UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon in the middle of May 2008. Slowly communications between the local government and the international agencies began to improve. Visas and travel permits were made a little easier and faster for the foreign aid workers. The officials of Human Rights Watch however claim that the local aid workers still feel the brunt of continued repression by the military authorities. The report quoted many woman survivors of Cyclone Nargis to narrate the tale of awfulness. One May Khin, a middle aged woman from Laputta township described her pain, "Nargis was the worst experience of my life. The last thing I remember is the lightning coming together with a strong wind and later a giant wave covered my daughter and me while we were running to the monastery. Then we were separated. I was washed away by the wave and became unconscious. When I came to, there were no clothes on my body and I could not walk as I had no strength. Beside me there was a dead body." The International Organization for Migration claimed that nearly 400,000 people in Burma were still living without a proper home after a devastating cyclone. It also disclosed that the government while failed to provide adequate food, water and shelter to the survivors, shamefully continues violating the rights of the victims as well as the local relief workers. Quoting the officials and aid workers, The Myanmar Times, a semi-government weekly newspaper published from Rangoon, reported that even after 'three years after Cyclone Nargis thousands remain in need of shelter assistance'. "This is an area where there are still huge needs," said Arne Jan Flolo, first secretary of the Norwegian embassy in Bangkok. Even the UN Human Settlements Program estimated that some 375,000 people still need housing, 36 months after the worst natural disaster that stroke Burma. If Nargis was of higher intensity, the Cyclone Giri struck the Arakan coast with comparatively lower magnitude. The category 4 cyclone hit the western coast of Burma on October 22, 2011 affecting the whole province. Over 100 people were killed and nearly one million Burmese were affected by the cyclone. According to the UN, over 70,000 people were left homeless by the disaster. Quoting the Arakan League for Democracy, the Narinjara news, a pro-democracy portal, reported that villages like Kyuntharyar, Pyintharhtwatwa, Taungpaw, Angu, Ywathikay, Taungnyo, Kangyemaw, Dagon, Kanthar were severely affected where the people are still running out of safe drinking water. "There is a shortage of drinking water. In the contaminated wells and ponds, saltwater sinks and the freshwater stays atop. So people collect and use the water sitting at the top portion of the well. But it is not that safe to drink. Some people still use water contaminated with saltwater. Some use the water from the well that is full with garbage," the ALD source claimed. Responding to this writer's queries, a Rangoon based UN official argues that Nargis was a tragedy that every one has learnt bitter lessons from. So the large scale deaths could have avoided in the time of Giri with more awareness and early warning efforts. Putting his individual view, Aye Win, an official of United Nations Information Centre at Rangoon said, "The earthquake in Tachilek, tragic though it was, brought a greater closeness of cooperation between the humanitarian community and the authorities. The importance of disaster risk reduction was recently underscored by the visit of the Special Representative of the Secretary General on DRR, Margareta Wahlstrom, to Myanmar in early October. There is now greater awareness, and more importantly, greater political willingness to approach DRR holistically because of its long term impact." Talking to this writer from New Delhi, Thin Thin Win, an exile Burmese lady claimed that the regime had done very little for the rehabilitation for the cyclone victims and they turned out to be inhuman for the women and children. Form the ground reality, it is understood that it would take few more years to completely rehabilitate the affected people in the cyclone affected areas of Burma, she asserted. The hapless situation has compelled the poor Burmese, mostly young girl and women to fall in trap of traffickers, the fact admitted by the UN official. The US Campaign for Burma stated in a report that the underdeveloped country emerges as a source place for women, and children who subjected to sex trafficking in other countries. Burmese children are forced to labor as hawkers and beggars in Thailand. Many Burmese men, women, and children who migrate for work in Thailand, Malaysia, China, Bangladesh, India, and South Korea are subjected to conditions of forced labor or sex trafficking in these countries. The Rangoon UN official agrees that trafficking in Burma is an important issue to deal with. It will continue to be as long as the grass is continued to be perceived as greener on the other side. The driving force therefore is poverty. The issue of poverty is now publicly and openly acknowledged, a first step on a journey of perhaps a thousand miles, to quote Confucius, Aye Win concluded. The US Campaign for Burma also added in the report, "Military and civilian officials subject men, women, and children to forced labor, and men and boys as young as 11 years old are forcibly recruited to serve in the Burma army as well as the armed wings of ethnic minority groups through intimidation, coercion, threats, and violence. Some observers estimate that thousands of children are forced to serve in Burma's national army as desertions of men in the army continue." Nava Thakuria is the editor of News Network Television, a local news channel of Assam in Northeast India. He also contributes articles to The Statesman (Kolkata), Eastern Panorama (Shillong) and The Independent (Dhaka). Nava Thakuria is an engineering graduate (Bachelor of Engineering from Assam Engineering College under Gauhati University) in Mechanical Branch. http://www.globalpolitician.com/27220-burma-weather-women ---------------------------------------------------- Old warrior says give peace a chance Published: 11/12/2011 at 12:00 AM Newspaper section: Spectrum The Burmese government has stated that it would have no objection if the Shan State Army wants to set up a political party. This was among the peace overtures Rangoon made to the armed ethnic group at a recent meeting between the two sides. WEAPONS DOWN: Col Yodsuek, chairman of the Shan State Army, agreed to a ceasefire with the Burmese government that went into effect on Wednesday. SSA leader Col Yodsuek told Spectrum it was ''a good start''. The Shan leader was strongly criticised by his supporters here and abroad when he took part in a peace negotiation on Nov 19 with a Burmese delegation led by Railways Minister U Aung Min. ''They all said that I had betrayed them, that I am already rich and so do not care about them any more. I understand their feelings. We have been fighting for nearly 60 years, and they are afraid that I would be deceived [by the Burmese government],'' said Col Yodsuek. At the Nov 19 peace talks, held in Chiang Rai, Minister U Aung Min welcomed the SSA's request to take part in national politics. Rangoon will also have no objection if the SSA wants to set up a political party, he told Col Yodsuek. ''After the meeting, both sides signed an agreement to hold further talks on this matter,'' said Col Yodsuek. ''It will take time, but our people are happy with this development.'' A ceasefire agreement was later signed, effective from last Wednesday. The armed clashes that took place between Burmese and SSA soldiers during the peace talks were due to the SSA soldiers' ''miscommunication'' with their leaders, said Col Yodsuek. ''The ceasefire is in place now.'' The Shan leader declined to comment on the prospects of peace in Kachin State and areas controlled by the Karen National Union. ''As I understand, the Burmese government prefers to negotiate with each ethnic group, rather than with all ethnic groups on one side,'' he said. The Chiang Rai peace talks will benefit Thailand as well. If there is no fighting along the border, people on both sides can resume trade and business activities. Drug trafficking would also decrease and Thai authorities would be able to deal more effectively with gangs that smuggle migrant workers into Thailand, he said. According to Col Yodsuek, the SSA and the Burmese government have been holding talks for a long time. He welcomes Thailand's role in these negotiations, as peace will benefit everyone, especially people living along the common border. ''The world needs peace,'' he said. ''But each country must have peace first.'' http://www.bangkokpost.com/news/investigation/270257/old-warrior-says-give-peace-a-chance --------------------------------------------- Sunday December 11, 2011 Democracy's prolonged war with Corruption The Nation By Tulsathit Taptim BANGKOK: The line between good and evil can move back and forth all the time. That's a fact everybody knows but hates to accept. The real taboo, however, has to do with the answer to the question, "Why?" Most people will never agree that "Good" can be very pretentious while "Evil" is straightforward. Even more people will never come to terms with the suggestion that Good is a mere version of Evil getting bored of itself and trying to be different for a change. In his prolonged war with "Corruption", "Democracy" has been resisting the former's push for a pact. The Angel has not lost himself, but he has been losing ground. The "line" is constantly edging into his territory. Even good people do bad things, Democracy is being told by his enemy. Why not accept this so that everyone can move forward and leave the ruins of an abstract showdown behind? The world is grey, Corruption says. If you don't sign a treaty with me, somebody else will, and if that ever happens, don't complain. Dictators love me to bits, and them with me will make everything go unchecked, unquestioned and unresisted. You don't want that to happen, do you? If you embrace me, we will prosper together. You help rebrand me and I'll give you plenty. Some oil, maybe. The argument makes Democracy wonder. That's what Asean has been saying about Burma, isn't it? Isolate the junta and some of their nasty neighbours will be smiling. Constructive engagement should be the way to go and blah blah blah. "But why now?" a soul-searching Democracy wants to ask himself. He probably isn't sure whose initiative it was. Is it a triumph of good virtues over an evil empire in Burma, or is someone being lured into a trap here? Nobody's trapping anybody, Corruption assures Democracy. You scratch my back and I'll scratch yours. It's as simple as that. Recognising Burma is the right thing. Look at the countries where you are rigid and uncompromising. They are war wrecks, aren't they? So, drop your meek defence in Thailand, Corruption tells Democracy. Let's get the amnesty thing over with and everyone will live happily ever after. It's ridiculous to have a People's Alliance for Democracy and a United Front for Democracy Against Dictatorship going after each other, both claiming they do it for the good of mankind. Make me an integral, official part of yours, and there will be no more coups or pouring of blood in front of a prime minister's house. Better still, Corruption adds, an amnesty will be viewed by much of the world as "your" triumph over me. Best part is, I don't care if you are to get all the credit. How cool a deal is that? It will be hailed as something forged by 15 million votes. If the "majority" wants something, it has to be good, right? That's your original commandment, to begin with. "Don't you see how inseparable we are already?" Corruption continues. Take a look at that move to annul all the legal consequences of the 2006 coup. Did it come from you or from me? Even the newspapers are giving different answers. Who can blame them? I don't think anybody on this planet can say it one way or the other without being bombarded by critics. You are fooling yourself that you exist "as you are", Corruption says. Truth is, you exist as I am. Without me, you are just an "ideal", which in my book means you are too good to be true. I'm the ultimate reality. For you to really be, we have to reconcile. You pretend less, I pretend more, and that's a win-win. Our pact will give you some peace of mind. As for me, I'll get some more freedom. I'm a sincere man, you know. I hate wearing a mask all the time, wherever I go. I don't want to be your goddamned passport, Democracy replies, again with a high degree of self-doubt. He is wondering if he does have any choice now that things have come this far. It began simply enough, with him wanting to put Corruption in limbo. That turned into the need to "constructively engage" his enemy, who is now invading all his territories with extreme aggression. It doesn't matter when the "line" was moved. What matters is that the line is now behind him, all of a sudden, and the world, heaven and hell will have to keep holding their breath. http://thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2011/12/11/asia/10063101&sec=asia --------------------------------------------- YEARENDER: Myanmar starts to march to a different beat By Peter Janssen Dec 11, 2011, 2:06 GMT Yangon - The not-so-democratic regimes of Cambodia, Laos and Vietnam must be worried. Myanmar has started to shed its regional status as everyone's favourite whipping boy for human rights abuses and undemocratic rule this year, as the government elected in 2010 started to make some changes. There is still far to go for the former pariah state, but human rights and pro-democracy groups may need to refocus their campaigns on less obvious targets next year, which is bad news for the region's more modest offenders. Against all expectations, the pro-military government that won last year's general election has pushed through both political and economic reforms, maybe minor ones by international standards but massive by Myanmar's. The Arab Spring no doubt offered some inspiration, as did the sharp appreciation of the kyat currency, but some of the motivation appears to have come from within. President Thein Sein, an ex-general with an unusually clean track record for a military man, started the reforms rolling in mid-August when he invited opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi up to the capital Naypyitaw for private talks. Such a meeting was unthinkable under former junta chief Senior General Than Shwe. Than Shwe, now retired, allegedly anointed Thein Sein for the post of president, but observers are not ruling out the possibility that the latter is nonetheless his own man. 'If Thein Sein was not in a position to move freely, he would not have met with Aung San Suu Kyi, because Than Shwe hated her,' said Kwin Maung Swe, a leader of the National Democratic Force, a breakaway faction from Suu Kyi's main opposition party. No one can be certain what words passed between Thein Sein and Suu Kyi on that historic day, but the meeting signalled the regime's acknowledgement that they needed Myanmar's Nobel laureate on board. 'During that first meeting with Aung San Suu Kyi, Thein Sein told her, 'We understand that you are the heart of the people,'' said Nyan Win, a spokesman for Suu Kyi's National League for Democracy (NLD) party. Such words from the president would be well-chosen, as he is desperate to get the West's economic sanctions on Myanmar lifted. Since August, Thien Sein and Suu Kyi appear to have followed a well-planned script. Suu Kyi demanded that political prisoners be released before she plays ball. The regime released more than 200 prisoners on October 12, leaving an estimated 600 to 1,600 behind bars. The NLD demanded that the party registration act, which prevented it from contesting last year's polls, be amended. Parliament pushed the amendment through on November 5. Last month, the NLD applied to reregister as a legitimate political party to contest a by-election for 48 vacant seats, scheduled some time next year. Approval is pending. Suu Kyi, 66, will contest the polls, and will probably win, earning herself a seat in Parliament where she will no doubt become the country's legitimate opposition leader. The West has watched all these developments with cautious optimism, rewarding the new government with a flurry of high-profile trips, topped on December 1-3 with the visit of US Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton. Clinton promised to match further reforms from the regime with rewards such as increased support to the government from multinational agencies, including the United Nations. The main prize will be lifting economic sanctions, but Clinton insisted that will require more releases of political prisoners and sincere efforts to end Myanmar's civil wars with its ethnic minority insurgencies that have been going on for six decades. The country is home to a wide variety of ethnic groups in addition to the majority Burmans. Many groups resent the exploitation of their regions' rich natural resources by the central state. In the light of improving inter-ethnic relations in the country, the European Union is to decide in April whether to renew its own sanctions on Myanmar. If Suu Kyi is ensconced in parliament by then, the argument for sanctions to support her struggle will have lost some weight. Some progress is already evident in the complex ethnic minority question. On November 19 the government initiated ceasefire talks with four of the rebel groups. On December 3, the last day of Clinton's visit, a tentative truce was signed with the Shan State Army, one of the strongest and longest-running insurgencies. 'I think since the November 19 initiative the trust has been building,' said Kuensai Jaiyen, editor of the Shan Herald News Agency, a rebel publication. Significantly, the ceasefire talks were led not by the Myanmar Army but by Rail Transportation Minister Aung Min, a close associate of Thein Sein's. 'He seems to be getting along quite well with the non-Burman leaders,' Kuensai said. http://www.monstersandcritics.com/news/asiapacific/news/article_1680085.php/YEARENDER-Myanmar-starts-to-march-to-a-different-beat ----------------------------------------------- Realpolitik and the Myanmar Spring By Bertil Lintner Secretary of State Hillary Clinton is in Myanmar, on a trip that is being hailed as a stunning breakthrough in bilateral relations and a sign that the Southeast Asian pariah state may finally be ready to rejoin the international community after two decades of isolation. It is a victory, analysts say, for the long-suffering forces of good and democracy over a brutal and self-serving military junta. But the truth is far more complicated. According to the conventional wisdom in the Western media, Myanmar's Nov. 2010 elections may have been rigged and flawed, but nevertheless led to unprecedented policy changes and new initiatives. The new president, Thein Sein, has even been dubbed "Myanmar's Gorbachev" for his seemingly daring moves toward openness and respect for (at least some) democratic values. He has held talks with pro-democracy icon Aung San Suu Kyi, political prisoners have been released, and censorship of the media has been relaxed. Consequently, Clinton has saidthat the time is right to visit the country to "promote further reform." But the secretary's visit has as much to do with Myanmar's relations with China and North Korea as with its tentative progress on democracy and human rights. If Western observersare to be believed, recent developments in Myanmar reflect a power struggle between "reform-minded moderates" and "hardliners" within the government and the military that still controls it. The political reality is far more convoluted. In August and September of 1988, Myanmar saw the most massive and widespread pro-democracy demonstrations in recent Asian history. Strikes and protests were held in virtually every city, town, and major village throughout the country against a stifling military dictatorship that has held Myanmar in an irongrip since the army seized power in 1962 and abolished the country's democratic constitution. Suu Kyi, the daughter of Myanmar's independence hero Aung San, happened to be in the country at that time (she then lived in England) and people turned to her for leadership. She then emerged as the main leader of the country's pro-democracy movement. But the government didn't fall. It retreated into the background, and on Sept. 18, 1988, the military moved in, not to seize power --- which it already had --- but to shore up a regime overwhelmed by popular protest. The result was a brutal massacre. Thousands of marchers were mowed down by machine-gun fire, protesters were shot in custody, and the prisons were filled with people of all ages and from all walks of life. Not surprisingly, Western countries, led by the United States, condemned the carnage. Later, sanctions were imposed on the regime, but they were always half-hearted and had little if any effect in terms of foreign trade. Still, sanctions turned Myanmar into an international outcast and prevented it from having full access to U.N. funding and international monetary institutions. China, which long had coveted Myanmar's forests, rich mineral and natural gas deposits, and its hydroelectric power potential, took full advantage of the situation. In fact, it had already made its intentions clear in the Sept. 1985 edition Beijing Review, an officially sanctioned news magazine and a mouthpiece of the government. An article titled "Opening to the Southwest: An Expert Opinion," written by Pan Qi, a former vice minister of communications, outlined the possibilities of finding an outlet for trade for China's landlocked southern provinces of Yunnan and Sichuan through Myanmar to the Indian Ocean. It also mentioned the Burmese railheads of Myitkyina and Lashio in the north and northeast, and the Irrawaddy River as possible conduits for Chinese exports. It was the first time the Chinese outlined their designs for Myanmar, and why the country was so important to them economically. Until then, China had supported the Communist Party of Myanmar and other insurgent groups, but after the death of Mao Zedong in 1976 and Deng Xiaoping's ascendance to poswer, Beijing's foreign policy shifted from supporting revolutionary movements in the region to promoting trade. This was the first time this new policy towards Myanmar was announced, albeit rather discreetly, by the Chinese authorities. The first border trade agreement between Myanmar and China was signed in early August 1988, days before the uprising began in earnest. After the movement had been crushed and sanctions were put in place, China moved in and rapidly became Myanmar's most important foreign trade partner. It helped Myanmar upgrade its antiquated infrastructure --- and supplied massive amounts of military hardware. In the decade after the massacres, China exported more than $1.4 billion worth of military equipment to Myanmar. It also helped Myanmar upgrade its naval facilities in the Indian Ocean. In return, the junta gave Beijing access to signals intelligence from key oil shipment sealanes collected by the Burmese Navy, using equipment supplied by China. The strategic balance of power in the region was being upset in China's favor. But the real resource play came later, and in spades. A plan to build oil and gas pipelines was approved by China's National Development and Reform Commission in April 2007. In Nov. 2008, China and Myanmar agreed to build a $1.5 billion oil pipeline and $1.04 billion natural gas pipeline. In March 2009, China and Myanmar signed an agreement to build a natural gas pipeline, and in June 2009 an agreementto build a crude oil pipeline. The inauguration ceremony marking the start of constructionwas held on Oct. 31, 2009, on Maday Island on Myanmar's western coast. The gas pipeline from the Bay of Bengal to Kunming, in China's Yunnan province, will be supplemented with an oil pipeline designed to allow Chinese ships carrying fuel imports from the Middle East to skirt the congested Malacca Strait. And in September of last year, China agreed to provide Myanmar with $4.2 billion worth of interest-free loans over a 30-year period to help fund hydropower projects, road and railway construction, and information technology development. Western sanctions did not cause Myanmar's economic --- and strategic ---push into "the hands of the Chinese," as many foreign observers have argued. But Western policies certainly made it easier for China to implement its designs for Myanmar. This has, in return, caused the West to rethink its Myanmar policy --- at the same time as the country's growing dependence on China has caused considerable consternation within Myanmar's military leadership. U.S. strategic concerns were outlined as early as June 1997 in a Los Angeles Times article by Marvin Ott, an American security expert and former CIA analyst. "Washington can and should remain outspokenly critical of abuses in [Myanmar]. But there are security and other national interests to be served...it is time to think seriously about alternatives," Ott concluded. But the turn took some doing. When it was revealed in the early 2000s that Myanmar and North Korea had established a strategic partnership, Washington was alarmed. North Korea was providing Myanmar with tunneling expertise, heavy weapons, radar and air defense systems, and --- it is alleged by Western and Asian intelligence agencies --- even missile and nuclear-related technology. It was high time to shift tracks and start to "engage" the Burmese leadership, which anyway seemed bent on clinging on to power at any cost, no matter the consequences. The 2010 election in Myanmar, no matter how fraudulent it was, was just the opportunity that Washington needed. Myanmar suddenly had a new face and a country run by a constitution, not a junta. It was the perfect time for Myanmar's generals to launch a charm offensive in the West, and for the United States and other Western countries to begin the process of de'tente --- and of pulling Myanmar from its uncomfortable Chinese embrace and close relationship with North Korea. Hardly by coincidence, Clinton visited South Korea before continuing on to Myanmar. For more than a year, it has been known in security circles that the United States wants South Korea to lure Myanmar away from its military cooperation with North Korea. The much richer South would be able to provide more useful assistance to Myanmar than the North, the argument goes. At the same time, many staunchly nationalistic Burmese military officers have become dissatisfied with their country's heavy dependence on China as well as uncontrolled immigration by Chinese nationals into the north of the country. The first blow against China came in Oct. 2004, when the then-prime minister and former intelligence chief Lt.-Gen. Khin Nyunt was ousted. The Chinese at first refused to believe that their man in Myanmar, Khin Nyunt, had been pushed out. How could the generals dare to move against a figure so key to the relationship? Nevertheless, both sides managed to smooth over the incident, and bilateral relations appeared to be returning to normal. Then, in 2009, Burmese troops moved into the Kokang area in the northeast, pushing more than 30,000 refugees --- both Chinese nationals and local, ethnic Chinese --- across the border back into China. Still, China did not get the message --- until Sept. 30 of this year, when Thein Sein announced that a China-sponsored, $3.6 billion hydroelectric power project in the far north of the country had been suspended. The dam was going to flood an area in Myanmar bigger than Singapore, and yet 90 percent of the electricity was going to be exported to China. Now, China has threatenedto take legal actions against the Burmese government for breach of contract. This was the final straw. Today, it is clear that Sino-Burmese relations will never be the same. To strengthen its position vis-a`-vis China, Myanmar has turned increasingly to its partners in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), which it is due to chair in 2014. Even more significantly, when Gen. Min Aung Hlaing, who was appointed commander-in-chief of Myanmar's military in March, went on his first foreign trip in mid-November, he did not go to China --- but instead to China's traditional enemy, Vietnam. Myanmar and Vietnam share the same fear of their common, powerful northern neighbor, so it is reasonable to assume that Min Aung Hlaing had a lot to discuss with his Vietnamese hosts. But the strategic change in Myanmar didn't happen overnight. In the same year as Khin Nyunt was ousted, an important document was compiled by Lt. Col. Aung Kyaw Hla, a researcher at Myanmar's Defense Services Academy. His 346-page top secret thesis, titled "A Study of Myanmar-U.S. Relations," outlined the policies which are now being implemented to improve relations with Washington and lessen dependence on Beijing. The establishment of a more acceptable regime than the old junta provided has made it easier for the Burmese military to launch its new policies, and to have those taken seriously by the international community. As a result, relations with the United States are indeed improving, exactly along the lines suggested by Aung Kyaw Hla in 2004. While paying lip service to human rights and democracy, there seems to be little doubt that Sino-Burmese relations --- and North Korea --- will be high on Clinton's agenda when she visits Myanmar this week. On a visit to Canberra in November, President Barack Obama stated that, "with my visit to the region, I am making it clear that the United States is stepping up its commitment to the entire Asia-Pacific region." The United States is a Pacific power, Obama said, and "we are here to stay." But he was quick to add: "The notion that we fear China is mistaken. The notion that we are looking to exclude China is mistaken." That statement was about as convincing as Thein Sein's assurance that he had suspended the dam project in the north because he was concerned about "the wishes of the people." The two old adversaries, Myanmar and the United States, may have ended up on the same side of the fence in the struggle for power and influence in Southeast Asia. Frictions, and perhaps even hostility, can certainly be expected in future relations between China and Myanmar. And Myanmar will no longer be seen by the United States and elsewhere in the West as a pariah state that has to be condemned and isolated. Whatever happens, don't expect relations to be without some unease. Decades of confrontation and mutual suspicion still exist. And a powerful strain in Washington to stand firm on human rights and democracy will complicate matters for Myanmar's rulers --- who are still uncomfortable and unwilling to relinquish total control. And last of all, there's China. Myanmar may be pleased that the reliance on a dominant northern neighbor might be lessened shortly, but with so many decades of ties and real, on-the-ground projects underway, the relationship with Beijing isn't nearly dead yet. (courtesy: Foreign Policy Magazine) http://ifp.co.in/imphal-free-press-full-story.php?newsid=3401&catid=1 ------------------------------------------------- Shanmugam to visit Myanmar Posted: 11 December 2011 1943 hrs SINGAPORE: Minister for Foreign Affairs and Law K Shanmugam will make an introductory visit to Myanmar from Monday to Wednesday at the invitation of Myanmar Foreign Minister U Wunna Maung Lwin. During the visit from 12-14 December, Mr Shanmugam will meet President U Thein Sein and Upper House Speaker U Khin Aung Myint. He will also meet Foreign Minister U Wunna Maung Lwin, Attorney-General Dr Tun Shin, as well as Union Solidarity and Development Party Secretary-General U Htay Oo. During the visit, Mr Shanmugam will hand over a tube well in the Kawhmu Township to Yangon Region Chief Minister U Myint Swe. The tube well is one of 385 tube wells built with funds from the Singapore government's US$5 million post-Cyclone Nargis humanitarian assistance pledge, in partnership with Mingalar Myanmar, a local non-government organisation. Kawhmu Township was one of the townships most affected by Cyclone Nargis in the Yangon region. Mr Shanmuagm will also meet the Singaporean community in Myanmar over a dinner reception, as well as members of the Presidential Advisory Board in Yangon. - CNA/ir http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/singaporelocalnews/view/1170704/1/.html ------------------------------------------- Burma eases censorship for some: local media Published: 11/12/2011 at 02:32 PM Online news: Asia Burma has loosened restrictions on dozens of business and crime publications, local media reported, but kept news titles in the grip of strict censorship rules. A local newspapers' vendor is pictured here at her stall in central Yangon. Myanmar has loosened restrictions on dozens of business and crime publications, local media reported, but kept news titles in the grip of strict censorship rules. A total of 54 journals, magazines and books will no longer have to submit their content to censors before publication, according to a report in the Burma Times, after changes introduced on December 9. News media will continue to be subject to pre-publication censorship that is criticised by press freedom groups as among the most restrictive in the world, although officials told the newspaper that this would ease in time. Burma's army-dominated government, which came to power after a controversial November 2010 election, has launched a series of reformist moves in an apparent move to end its international isolation, and welcomed a landmark visit from US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton earlier this month. Measures have included dialogue with democracy icon Aung San Suu Kyi, whose picture is now permitted to be printed in the media. Publishers were told in June that sports journals, entertainment magazines, fairytales and the winning lottery numbers would not need to have prior approval from the information ministry. According to the Burma Times, Tint Swe of the country's Press Scrutiny and Registration Department said that news, education and religious titles would also shift to "self-censorship" before a new media law is enacted -- without giving a timeframe or details of the legislation. An executive editor from 7-Day News told the Burma Times that he was disappointed that the changes had not gone further, but welcomed the relaxation on business publications. "As our country is implementing economic reforms, it's crucial that we have the freedom to write and criticise freely," he said. A report in the state-run New Light of Burma on Sunday said that Minister for Information and Culture Kyaw Hsan had suggested film and video censorship would also be relaxed, without indicating when this would happen. In September, Burma's Internet users were able to see banned media websites for the first time, including the BBC and exiled media organisations such as the Democratic Voice of Burma (DVB). But the move, which was not officially announced, came in the same week that a court added an extra decade to the sentence of a journalist jailed over his work for DVB. He now faces 18 years in prison. http://www.bangkokpost.com/news/asia/270294/burma-eases-censorship-for-some-local-media ------------------------------------------------ Thai police arrest five in huge methamphetamine bust Dec 11, 2011, 9:47 GMT Bangkok - Thai police have arrested five men and seized 500 million baht (16.6 million dollars) worth of methamphetamine drugs smuggled from the country's northern border with Myanmar, media reported Sunday. National Police Chief Priewpan Danapong said the huge drug haul included 40 kilograms of ?ice,? or crystal methamphetamine, and 1.7 million methamphetamine pills. Priewpan was quoted by the Bangkok Post website as saying the drugs were discovered at 11pm (1600 GMT) Saturday after police received a tip-off and stopped and searched a passenger bus in Ayutthaya province, 80 kilometres north of Bangkok. The drugs, with an estimated street value of 500 million baht, were found after a search of five suitcases belonging to three bus passengers, he said. The three suspects told police they had been hired for 300,000 baht to deliver the drugs from Mae Sai district of Chiang Rai province, on the Myanmar border, to two accomplices in Ayutthaya's Bang Pahan district. The two alleged accomplices were arrested shortly afterwards. Thai and Western enforcement officials say the highly addictive crystal methamphetamine, produced at clandestine laboratories near the Thai-Myanmar border, has become the new drug of choice for many gangs previously specializing in opium and heroin. http://www.monstersandcritics.com/news/asiapacific/news/article_1680113.php/Thai-police-arrest-five-in-huge-methamphetamine-bust --------------------------------------- China starts joint patrols along Mekong River with Laos, Myanmar and Thailand (Xinhua) 09:45, December 11, 2011 Representatives of police officers take part in the launching ceremony of the joint patrol of police force from China, Laos, Myanmar and Thailand along the Mekong River in Guanlei Port in Dai Autonomous Prefecture of Xishuangbanna, southwest China's Yunnan Province, Dec. 10, 2011.(Xinhua/Wang Xiaoxue) Chinese police Saturday started joint patrols with their counterparts from Laos, Myanmar and Thailand to maintain security along the Mekong River, a major transport passage in the region. The joint patrol marked the restoration of international shipping services on the Mekong River that had been suspended since deadly attacks on Chinese cargo ships on Oct. 5. http://english.peopledaily.com.cn/90883/7672222.html