News & Articles on Burma-Wednesday, 22 February 2010-uzl

News & Articles on Burma Wednesday, 22 February 2010 ----------------------------------------------- Talk of a Power Struggle in Naypyidaw KNU Calls for Govt Troops in Ethnic Areas to Withdraw First priority cease-fire, then dialogue: KNPP Myanmar's parliament chief rebukes "sluggish" govt China-Burma Pipeline Makes Significant Progress Burma Ready to Begin Preparing for 2014 ASEAN Chairmanship Tantalized but Cautious, Filmmakers Capture Myanmar Drug use unstoppable in Shan State North Burmese narco-battalion fights KIA in Shan State Burma 'needs more funds to fight Aids'By Jonah Fisher Report: 85,000 people in Myanmar desperately need HIV treatment Festival Returns to Burma's Shwedagon Pagoda Dissidents' New Fear in Myanmar: Irrelevance ------------------------------------------------ Talk of a Power Struggle in Naypyidaw By BA KAUNG / THE IRRAWADDY Wednesday, February 22, 2012 Assumptions have arisen over the past few months about the existence of reformers and hardliners in nominally democratic Burma. Now another scenario is unfoldingthis time in the form of a power struggle between the Parliament and the government, though both are dominated by former army generals. And it is no other than Thura Shwe Mann himself, the former top army general and now the speaker of the Lower House of Parliament, who confirmed the existence of such an internal conflict. Shwe Mann answered yes when he was asked by reporters in Naypyidaw on Monday if there exists any sort of power struggle between the country's parliament and the government. The question mainly stemmed from a current parliamentary debate over Shwe Mann's proposal on Feb. 7 that the country should increase the salaries of state employees in an effort to tackle corruption and to implement the new government's slogans of clean government and good governance. Though his proposal was unanimously approved in Parliament on that day, three government ministers led by Minister of Finance Hla Tun later dismissed it in a parliamentary briefing on the grounds that the move would worsen the country's currency inflation and budget deficit which the government announced stands at more than US $2 billion. The bicameral Parliament is dominated by former military generals such as Shwe Mann who represent the ruling Union Solidarity and Development Party (USDP), and by military representatives who are appointed into a quarter of the seats. On Tuesday, Shwe Mann pressed again in the Parliament for the minimum monthly wage for state employees to be increased to no less than 100,000 kyat ($120), pointing at the fact that even a manual construction laborer in Naypyidaw now earns the same salary every month. Shwe Mann also suggested that to implement his proposal, the government should suspend or cancel state-funded industrial projects including the construction development project for Naypyidaw and other unnecessary state projects. The parliament is responsible for having to check on state projects that can be costly and less beneficial to the public, Shwe Mann said, urging MPs to be responsible for their legislative duties by ensuring that the executive branch does not waste state funds. As if to emphasize the point, Shwe Mann, the former third-ranking army general in the previous military regime, called a press briefing in Rangoon on Wednesday morning and proclaimed that he would continue to make unflinching efforts to bring about a salary increase for state employees. He added that those who want to share their views on this issue can bring suggestions to him. Shwe Mann urged the public to fearlessly air their views over his salary increase proposal, saying that the country is moving toward a democratic state. But he denied he was merely campaigning for the April elections, insisting that he was just working for the welfare for the general public. At the press conference, Shwe Mann stated that his important parliamentary speech on Feb. 7 calling for a reduction in state bureaucracy was censored by all organs of the state-media. Asked by the local press if this means the Executive Branch is infringing on the constitutional rights of the citizens, Shwe Mann cryptically replied that the answer is easily understandable to our rational and experienced media. Parliamentary MPs said that Shwe Mann's second effort to push through the proposalwhich he read out in a letter to the Speaker of the Union Parliament on Tuesdayessentially meant that the government has no choice but to raise state employees' salaries. The deal is done because the constitutional mandate states that the executive branch must implement the proposals occasionally made by the Parliament, said opposition MP Thein Nyunt who pointed out that Parliament is equally important as the government because it has passed important bills such as the amnesty for political prisoners, supporting freedom of assembly and the formation of labor unions. It was in this context that Shwe Mann admitted a power tussle between the Parliament and the government led by reformer President Thein Sein, explained Khaing Maung Yi, an opposition MP from the National Democratic Force. Debates in Burma's parliamentary sessions are mostly mundane affairs with a majority of the MPs from the ruling USDP reported to be less than enthusiastic about the political and economic reforms much touted by the nominally civilian government that took office last year. But could it be that the current debate suggests the emergence of a check-and-balance system between the parliament and the government? Or is it just merely a manipulated attempt to project that image in the eyes of the Burmese public and the international community because the two structures are no different from each other, both being dominated by former army generals like Thein Sein and Shwe Mann? Some observers view Shwe Mann's move as having something to do with the coming parliamentary by-elections in which Suu Kyi's National League for Democracy (NLD) is contesting 48 vacant seats with the USDP running as its main rival. Last month, Shwe Mann, the vice-chairman of the USDP, told party members at a recent conference that the by-elections are a major test between the USDP and the NLD, and that the USDP must make an all-out effort to beat Aung San Suu Kyi's party. But opposition MPs in the parliament said that they see no hidden agenda behind the moves of Shwe Mann, because, they said, he is a genuine reformist leader who they can rub shoulders with and share different views. "I don't think Thura Shwe Mann is playing any sort of PR game to project the image of checks and balances between the parliament and the government," said opposition MP Khaing Maung Yi, a former political prisoner who spent seven years in jail. Khaing Maung Yi said that while many USDP MPs show no strong desire to push for reforms in the country, and they generally keep aloof in the Parliament from opposition MPs like him. He said that Shwe Mann, on the other hand, makes friends with everyone in the Parliament and is always open to different views. "There is a sort of tension between Parliament and the government," he said. "But in my view, both President Thein Sein and U Shwe Mann are genuine reformists, even though there are many who may not like them." http://www.irrawaddy.org/article.php?art_id=23081 ----------------------------------------- KNU Calls for Govt Troops in Ethnic Areas to Withdraw By SAW YAN NAING / THE IRRAWADDY Wednesday, February 22, 2012 Burma's oldest ethnic army, the Karen National Union (KNU), has called for the immediate withdrawal of government troops from ethnic areas and a lasting ceasefire through a four-stage peace roadmap. The rebel group made the statement during a press conference in a KNU-controled area of Pa-an District, in Karen State, on Wednesday. The KNU called on the Burmese government to immediately reduce troop numbers and cease sending re-enforcements and supplies to ethnic areas, as well as releasing all remaining Karen political prisoners and ceasing military operations in all active war zones, including Kachin areas. And then the four-stage roadmap laid out essential stages to achieve genuine and sustainable peace in Burma, including an end to hostilities in war-torn Kachin State in Burma's northeast. The plan comprises a preliminary and then durable ceasefire stage, initial political dialogue, resolution of underlying political problems with national reconciliation, and finally political participation. After a Naypyidaw peace delegation agreed a ceasefire with KNU representatives in Karen capital Pa-an on Jan. 12, rebel-affiliated sources said that government troops have been allowed to receive supplies and rations in Karen State. This lead some grassroots and relief groups in Karen State to worry that Burmese troops will launch a series of attacks to wipe out Karen National Liberation Army (KNLA) bases once they stock up on rations, supplies and manpower. In the past, Karen guerrillas have been largely successful in cutting government supply lines in their own territory. Saw Hla Ngwe, Joint General Secretary-1 of the KNU, said in the statement, "The Burmese government must acknowledge the Karen people's right to effective participation in decisions that affect them. "This is fundamental and essential for the realization of their right to self-determination and the development of an inclusive and just society," he added. The KNU said it strongly believes politics will be key to enduring peace. Such peace will be achieved only through genuine dialogue between the United Nationalities Federal Council---which includes representatives of 11 different ethnic groups---and the Burmese government, according to the KNU statement. http://www.irrawaddy.org/article.php?art_id=23081 ------------------------------------ First priority cease-fire, then dialogue: KNPP Wednesday, 22 February 2012 16:39 Kyaw Kha . Chiang Mai (Mizzima) During the first week in March, the Karenni Nationalities Progressive Party (KNPP) will meet with the government peacemaking team to talk about a cease-fire. If successful, a political dialogue will follow. KNPP Secretary 1 Khu Oo Reh said the government and KNPP peace delegations would meet again at Loikaw in Karenni State to talk about defining the control areas, liaison offices and the basic needs of Karenni troops. As a first step, both sides will exchange information about their troops, Khu Oo Reh said. Especially, we will talk about our troop locations and control areas. In early February, a peace delegation led by Rail Transportation Minister Aung Min and KNPP leaders met in Chiang Mai in northern Thailand and agreed to meet again in the first week of March. On February 16, Minister Aung Min told Reuters news agency that the KNPP would sign a deal on March 1. Aung Min said that, but we think that he trumped it up because the [Burmese] government wants international countries and organizations to think their efforts are fruitful. Hes just trying to get credit. In our first meeting with them, they did not fix a date. He told them that without informing us, Khu Oo Reh said. The KNPP will also discuss future business deals and development projects in Karenni State and the plight of up to 150,000 Karenni war refugees who want to return to their homes and find productive work. Karenni refugees began leaving the state in the 1990s. Many found refuge at two camps in Mae Hong Son Province in Thailand. Khu Oo Reh said that since February 20, KNPP leaders have provided refugees with counseling related to returning to Burma. We gave refugees advice, including not to return home until there are reliable guarantees. The leaders explained that they dont know if peace talk would be fruitful or not. And there are still landmines planted by both sides in the area, he said. In the meeting held at Chiang Mai, the KNPP urged the government to stop confiscating farmland in Karenni State and to suspend dam building without residents consent as conditions before a political dialogue can begin. The KNPP was formed in 1957 as the political wing of the Karenni Army. It is the only armed Karenni group that still fights against the Burmese government. Many of its Karenni fellow groups including the Karenni Nationalities Peoples Liberation Front and the Karenni National Defence Army have become members of the governments Border Guard Force, and are now under government control. When Burma gained independence from Britain in 1948, Karenni State was included in Burmas territory, but the armed groups rejected the inclusion. On August 9, 1948, during the government of Prime Minister U Nu, troops attacked the main office of the Karenni National Organization, which triggered the Karenni revolution. http://www.mizzima.com/news/inside-burma/6633-first-priority-cease-fire-then-dialogue-knpp.html ------------------------------------------ Myanmar's parliament chief rebukes "sluggish" govt By Aung Hla Tun YANGON | Wed Feb 22, 2012 3:51pm IST YANGON (Reuters) - A senior figure in Myanmar's parliament on Wednesday described recent reforms in the country as "sluggish and unsatisfactory" and urged the civilian government to act faster to push through legislation for the benefit of the public. Thura Shwe Mann, the lower house speaker and former third-in-command of the junta that ceded power last March, criticised President Thein Sein's administration for not accepting a bill to raise civil service salaries and suggested further reforms might take time. "If those who have to move do not move, those who have to push will have to push," Shwe Mann told a forum of businessmen and economists attended by journalists. "At this rate, matters to review and amend existing laws and enact new ones will not be accomplished during the five-year term of the present parliament." The comments by Shwe Mann, a former four-star general regarded by the West as a key reformer in Myanmar's new political system, were the first public rebuke of the government by a top official in a country where criticism of those in power was for decades brutally suppressed. Despite his position as a parliament speaker, Shwe Mann is seen by analysts and diplomats as having a pivotal role as the new administration tries to prove its democratic credentials in a bid to gain international acceptance and have Western sanctions lifted. The criticism by Shwe Mann comes a week after members of a European Union delegation urged him to ensure parliament not only debated legislation but scrutinised the government. "ACT WITH COURAGE" Shwe Mann, 65, said members of parliament should be brave enough to openly criticise those in power. "Instead of blaming for past mistakes, we need to learn lessons from them and act accordingly with courage," he said. "It is important that laws that will be conducive to and will also protect the interests of the people and the country must emerge as soon as possible." Myanmar's cabinet, led by Thein Sein, who was less senior than Shwe Mann in the old regime, has embarked on a wave of reforms since coming to office on March 30 last year. Among the surprising changes have been the release of more than 600 political prisoners, an easing of media censorship, laws allowing protests and trade unions and ceasefire deals with ethnic minority rebel groups that government negotiators say could be concluded within three months. All those changes have been demanded by the West in order for sanctions to be lifted, which would allow Myanmar to normalise trade relations with the European Union and United States and could lead to a flood of Western investment in the resource-rich country. Another requirement that would strengthen the case for easing embargoes is fair by-elections in April for 48 legislative seats, polls being contested by Nobel laureate Aung San Suu Kyi and her National League for Democracy party after two decades in the political abyss. "I have promised to foreign dignitaries including (U.S. Secretary of State) Hillary Clinton that the by-elections will be free and fair," Shwe Mann said. "And it is up to the responsible people to make it free and fair." However, some of those attending the briefing were sceptical about Shwe Mann's comments, given his ties with Thein Sein and his position as deputy chairman of the powerful Union Solidarity and Development Party (USDP), which was formed by the junta and controls 76 percent of the legislature. "In my eyes, all of them are the same even though they are representing different organs of power," said one businessman, who asked not to be identified. "I wonder how they talk about these things at party meetings. Frankly, I just cannot understand what is happening." (Writing by Martin Petty; Editing by Alan Raybould and Robert Birsel) http://in.reuters.com/article/2012/02/22/myanmar-politics-idINDEE81L0AU20120222 ------------------------------------------ February 21st, 2012 8:56pm Posted In: Pipelines, Natural Gas, News By Country, China China-Burma Pipeline Makes Significant Progress China National Petroleum Corporation (CNPC) has said that Irrawaddy river directional drilling crossing project, the key project of China-Burma oil and gas pipeline, had been completed successfully. The company said successful completion of the Irrawaddy River project has paved way for the smooth completion of the China-Burma oil and gas pipeline. The China-Burma oil and gas pipeline is a key part of China's four energy strategic channels, which are China-Russia crude oil pipeline, China-Kazakh crude oil and China-Central Asia natural gas pipeline, China-Burma oil and gas pipeline and offshore channel. http://www.naturalgasasia.com/china-burma-pipeline-makes-progress-4688 -------------------------------------------- Burma Ready to Begin Preparing for 2014 ASEAN Chairmanship VOA: Posted Wednesday, February 22nd, 2012 at 1:45 am Burma says it is eager to begin planning to assume the chair of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations in 2014. The regional bloc says Burmese Foreign Minster Maung Lwin described the preparations as a major task for his country during a meeting Wednesday with ASEAN Secretary-General Surin Pitsuwan in the capital of Naypyitaw. Maung Lwin told Surin he will dispatch surrogates to the ASEAN Secretariat and send teams to study this year's meeting in Cambodia as part of Burma's preparations. ASEAN leaders awarded Burma the 2014 chair during their annual summit in Bali, Indonesia, last November. Surin told Maung Lwin that Burma's year in the rotating position will be a critical landmark in ASEAN's history, as it transitions to the ASEAN Community the next year. Burma was forced to relinquish its turn as ASEAN's rotating chairman in 2006 after strong criticism of its human rights record. But ASEAN leaders acknowledged Burma's steps towards democratic reforms under the new military-backed civilian government that took power last year from the decades-long military junta. Burmese President Thein Sein told Surin Tuesday his country will seriously consider allowing an ASEAN team into the country to observe by-elections scheduled for April 1. http://blogs.voanews.com/breaking-news/2012/02/22/burma-ready-to-begin-preparing-for-2014-asean-chairmanship/ ------------------------------------------------ Tantalized but Cautious, Filmmakers Capture Myanmar By STEVEN LEE MYERS Published: February 21, 2012 Robert H. Lieberman arrived in Myanmar, formerly known as Burma, for the first time in December 2008. It was another dark period after the crushing of popular protests by monks the year before in the countrys long history of repression and isolation. He could have no idea how serendipitous his timing would turn out to be. A novelist, filmmaker and physics lecturer at Cornell University, he went to the capital, Yangon, to teach film and make public-service ads as part of the Fulbright Specialist Program, one of the few American aid efforts in a country on which the United States has imposed heavy sanctions. Early on he was admonished not to film. It was, he said, a proverbial red flag for a filmmaker. And so he filmed, not quite clandestinely, but cautiously enough to avoid mostly attention in a place where photographing government buildings, military bases, bridges and even certain streets is grounds for arrest. During that trip, and three more over the next two years, he recorded 120 hours of video documenting life in a beautiful but oppressed and impoverished country, just as the stirrings of political change were beginning to appear. The result, edited to 88 minutes, is They Call It Myanmar: Lifting the Curtain, a documentary produced by Deborah C. Hoard and edited by David Kossack that will be seen in New York at the Landmark Sunshine Cinema on Monday and Tuesday (with Mr. Lieberman on hand to answer questions) as part of a gradual release nationwide; it will also have a screening at Lincoln Center in April. Mr. Lieberman completed the film last year, just as Myanmars new government elected in a vote universally denounced as undemocratic began to open up, making it a timely exposition of a little-known country now in the headlines. In December, Hillary Rodham Clinton became the first American secretary of state to visit since 1955, and last month the United States moved to restore full diplomatic relations for the first time since 1990. My ultimate goal was to bring Burma into the Western consciousness, Mr. Lieberman, 71, said in one of several telephone interviews from his home, on a farm near Ithaca, N.Y. I wanted to put a human face on the country. He added, Up until Hillarys visit, it was really one of the most isolated countries on the planet. Myanmar is also getting a lot of attention from filmmakers drawn by its mystery and the heroic struggle of its democratic movement, led for the last quarter-century by Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, a winner of the Nobel Peace Prize. Luc Besson, the French director, has completed The Lady, a biopic about Ms. Aung San Suu Kyi, who is by far the countrys best-known figure. The Lady, starring Michelle Yeoh, which had an Oscar-qualifying run in Los Angeles, will be released in major American markets on April 11. (Mrs. Clinton watched an advance copy on her flight to Myanmar, where she met Ms. Aung San Suu Kyi for the first time.) Theres definitely a fascination about Burma, Derek Mitchell, the special American envoy to Myanmar, said in an interview at the State Department. What is important is for people to understand the full breadth and complexity of the place. The Lady was filmed mostly in Thailand, given the restrictions inside Myanmar, and Mr. Besson and the screenwriter Rebecca Frayn recreated Ms. Aung San Suu Kyis life without having the opportunity to meet her. She was released from house arrest in November 2010, shortly after Mr. Lieberman thought he was finished. He returned to Myanmar in February 2011 for the fourth time and arranged to interview her. No personal questions, Mr. Lieberman recalled her telling him at the outset, a stipulation that complicated the interview, which unfolded awkwardly and yet revealingly. In the film she reflects on the country, its colonial history and her father, Aung San, the revered revolutionary general who led it to independence from Britain, only to be assassinated by rivals in 1947, when she was just 2. Only an exceptional 2-year-old could have remembered a father lost at that age, she says, poignantly revealing that her father was, for her, as mythical a figure as he has been for her fellow citizens. Hers is the most famous voice, but only one among dozens of people Mr. Lieberman interviewed some shown with their faces obscured, almost all left unidentified on screen. I think a firm, strong, authoritarian hand cannot create unity, she says in the film, explaining the mind-set of the military rulers up to the election of the new, apparently reform-minded president, U Thein Sein. It can only give the appearance of unity. The film, made with a Sony camcorder (all the better to tuck away when necessary), unfolds as an episodic travelogue, interspersed with historic footage and explanatory narration (on subjects like why the country is known both as Myanmar and the old colonial name, Burma). Some scenes shot from Mr. Liebermans commercial flight from Thailand or from the window of a moving car reflect the limitations of trying to film in a police state. With Mr. Lieberman as the garrulous narrator, it includes clips that would not be out of place in a homemade vacation video, but also interviews that show, indirectly at times, the social and economic conditions of a country that closed itself off from the world for decades. Some of those interviewed speak openly, even candidly. Thinking is not an option, one woman says, describing the Orwellian nature of the place; she is not shown on screen. In an extended section on education, Mr. Lieberman shows boys at a village school singing a nationalistic song. The lack of enthusiasm on their faces is palpable as they intone this agitprop about fighting the fascist threats to the country. I tried to make a movie that was not political, said Mr. Lieberman, whose previous films include Last Stop, Kew Gardens, about Jewish ?migr?s in Queens, but of course, that was impossible in the end. Over the course of his visits he sensed the political changes under Mr. Thein Sein, but except for the presence of Ms. Aung San Suu Kyi, the film does not delve into the possibility of democratization or potential political and economic motives for it. Most Burmese remain skeptical and still afraid, Mr. Lieberman explained, adding, One of my friends said, Theyre moving like a snail. http://www.nytimes.com/2012/02/22/movies/in-aung-san-suu-kyis-myanmar-two-new-films.html?_r=1 ------------------------------------------- Drug use unstoppable in Shan State North Wednesday, 22 February 2012 14:25 S.H.A.N. Residents of the town of Mong Yaw, 25 miles northeast of Lashio and its 17 surrounding villages, are finding it hard to prevent their youth from using drugs, according to concerned parents there. "They are even selling yaba at school," said a mother. "Now we can't keep anything of value at home unless we lock it up where they can't easily take it away and sell to buy drugs." Yaba, high quality, is 4,000 kyat ($ 5) per pill and yaba, low quality, is 1,700 kyat ($ 2.13) per pill in Mong Yaw. Among the users are women too. The town has Ma Htu Naw's KDA (Kachin Defense Army, ceasefire army turned-militia) in the north and Bo Mon's Manpang People's Militia Force (PMF) in the south, both known for their heavy involvement in drug production and trade. It also has a police station and a Burma Army unit, usually Lashio-based Infantry Battalion (IB) # 41 or 68. "The police do nothing," said a townsman, "and the army is satisfied if there are a civilian truck and villagers taking turns each day to work at the command post." One of the counter measures generally used by the populace is to send their children away to Thailand where it is more difficult to buy drugs. The travel fare from Mong Yaw to Thailand (a distance of about 714 km) is around 300,000 kyat ($ 375). At the same time, a large number of migrant workers from the kingdom are returning to Burma for the seasonal opium harvest which ends this month. The KDA and Manpang-controlled areas are known to be major opium producers. According to Shan Drug Watch report 2011, only 12 out of 55 townships are considered opium free, 8 of which are townships under the control of ceasefire armies. Others, most of them under the control of the Burma Army and its PMFs and BGFs (Border Guard Forces) had increased production during the last season. SHAN is working to publish the Shan Drug Watch report 2012 in June. http://www.english.panglong.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=4436:drug-use-unstoppable-in-shan-state-north&catid=89:drugs&Itemid=286 ------------------------------------------------- Burmese narco-battalion fights KIA in Shan State Category: News Created on Wednesday, 22 February 2012 14:18 Published Date Written by KNG KIA soldiers who are resisting against Burma government troops in Northern Shan State. MONGKOE, Burma --- Kutkai Township in Northern Shan state saw heavy fighting Tuesday between the Kachin Independence Army and troops from a Burmese army battalion know for its involvement in the narcotics trade. Villagers from Pang Huk told the Kachin News Group that throughout the day Tuesday a group of about 60 soldiers from Infantry Battalion No. 239 fought with troops from the KIA's Battalion 38 based in Munggu (or Mongkoe). The fighting began at about 5 AM when a column of Burmese troops accompanied by members of the pro-government Mong Hawm and Kutkai militia groups was attacked near Pang Huk. According to a local opium farmer the Burmese convoy was carrying 160 Kg of opium which had just been collected as a tax from farmers in the Pang Huk area. Soldiers from the Infantry Battalion No. 239 responded to the attack by killings a number of pigs owned by Pang Huk villagers, according eye witnesses. Most of the residents of the predominately ethnic Chinese village fled during the fighting leaving their livestock open for the taking. Last November troops from Infantry Battalion No. 239 were sent to the Munggu area taking positions near KIA bases. The Battalion also has bases at Narli and Laogai in the Kokang area. According to local area residents the battalion regularly receives a percentage of the region's opium harvest as a form of tax. The battalion works closely with the Mung Hawm and Kutkai militia groups who are also well known for their involvement in northern Shan State's narcotics trade. In addition to opium production these militias are said to be heavily involved in the manufacturing and distribution of methamphetamine tablets also known as Yaba. In an apparent effort to counter reports that elected representative in both Burma's federal parliament and the Shan state legislature from the ruling military backed Union Solidarity and Development Party (USDP) are heavily involved in Shan State's drug trade, President Thein Sein's government with the assistance of the United Nations Office of Drugs and Crime (UNODC) recently staged an "anti narcotics" tour for visiting journalists from the Reuters news agency. UNODC's activities in Burma have been heavily criticized by observers including respected Burma expert author Bertil Lintner, as deliberately ignoring the role of the army and other state backed groups in the country's profitable narcotics trade. Date for future KIO government talks still not set Officials at the Kachin Independence Organization's (KIO) Laiza headquarters say that a new date for the recently postponed peace talks has yet to be set. A meeting between the two sides was supposed to be held last week however this meeting was canceled after the Burmese negotiating team refused to travel to China. http://www.kachinnews.com/news/2241-burmese-narco-battalion-fights-kia-in-shan-state.html ---------------------------------------------- 22 February 2012 Last updated at 09:28 GMT Burma 'needs more funds to fight Aids'By Jonah Fisher BBC News, Bangkok Medical charity Medecins Sans Frontieres (MSF) has called on international donors to make more money available to treat HIV/Aids in Burma. Peter Paul de Groote, MSF head in Burma, told the BBC that the current situation was dire. He said more than 15,000 Burmese die of HIV/Aids every year because they do not have access to anti-retroviral drugs. The prevalence rate of the disease is at 0.67% - relatively low by international standards. However, years of international isolation and sanctions have left Burma with a threadbare healthcare system. At the launch of a new report called Lives in the Balance, MSF said that only a quarter of the estimated 120,000 people living with HIV and Aids were receiving treatment, and that it was turning people away from its clinics. "It's an unacceptable decision that our doctors have to make on a day to day basis," Mr de Groote said. "We have to prioritise those who are sickest and will die soon to save their lives. Other people we have to turn away and say come back when you are sicker." Curtailed plans Last year, plans were made for a massive scaling up in the provision of anti-retroviral drugs in Burma, with MSF and its partners hoping to reach 100,000 people. But those proposals were shelved after the Global Fund, a public-private initiative that provides the bulk of money to fight Aids worldwide, said a drop in donations meant it no longer had the resources to support new projects. Burma spends a quarter of its budget on the military and only a fraction of that on health, but Mr de Groote said his organisation had not asked the army-backed authorities to reassess their priorities. "We are not politicians, but we do hope the health sector will receive more money over time, and there are some indications that this will happen," he said. MSF's new report comes amid continuing signs of political reform in Burma. Hundreds of political prisoners have been freed and Nobel laureate Aung San Suu Kyi's political party, the National League for Democracy, will contest in April its first elections since 1990. If that vote is seen as being free and fair, then Western sanctions could be loosened or lifted and developmental assistance stepped up. http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-17123212 -------------------------------------------- Report: 85,000 people in Myanmar desperately need HIV treatment; funding cuts increase need By Associated Press, BANGKOK Some 85,000 HIV-infected people in Myanmar are not getting treatment due to a lack of funding, despite renewed international engagement with the government amid a wave of political reform, according to a report released Wednesday. The humanitarian group Doctors Without Borders warned that the situation in Myanmar could worsen after the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria was forced to cut worldwide funding due for release this year because of a shortfall in contributions pledged by donors. .The money was expected to provide HIV drugs for 46,500 people in Myanmar, along with treatment for another 10,000 people sicken by drug-resistant tuberculosis in the country, it said. Tuberculosis cases in Myanmar a major killer of HIV patients are nearly triple the global rate, as difficult to treat forms of the disease that do not respond to common treatment continue to surge. In 2009, the U.N. estimated 240,000 people were infected with HIV and about 18,000 were dying from it annually in Myanmar, which has one of the worlds worst health systems. Doctors Without Borders provides anti-retrovirus therapy drugs to about 23,000 people at 23 clinics nationwide, funding more than half of all HIV treatment being provided to nearly 40,000 patients, said Peter Paul de Groote, who heads the organizations Myanmar operation. The country receives a fraction of the international assistance provided elsewhere, largely because many nations did not support the former reclusive military government that ruled for nearly half a century. But last year, a nominally civilian government took office and launched unexpected sweeping reforms that have been applauded by the international community. Regardless of what is happening in the country, the people that are in need of treatment, need treatment, de Groote said. Of course, we all hope that the developments as they seem to be going in that direction will lead to more money into the country, but, in general, I think this money should be coming in regardless of what the situation is. Copyright 2012 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/asia-pacific/new-report-says-85000-in-myanmar-desperate-for-hiv-treatment-funding-cuts-increase-need/2012/02/22/gIQAvj3hSR_story.html ------------------------------------------------ Festival Returns to Burma's Shwedagon Pagoda February 22, 2012 Buddhist devotees prepare to cerebrate the 2,600 anniversary of Burma Buddhist devotees prepare to cerebrate the 2,600 anniversary of Burma's land mark Shwedagon Pagoda's establishment in Yangon, Burma on Tuesday. Vast crowds were gathering on Wednesday at Burma's most sacred Buddhist shrine to celebrate a festival banned for more than 20 years under the former military government. (AP Photo/Khin Maung Win) Yangon, Burma. Gongs chimed as thousands of people in ceremonial costumes walked barefoot on Wednesday through the marble walkways of Burma's most sacred Buddhist shrine in an annual festival that was banned for more than 20 years under the former military government. The celebrations at the gold-plated, diamond-studded Shwedagon Pagoda in Yangon mark the 2,600-year anniversary of the Buddha's enlightenment. The fact that authorities are allowing it to be held at all this year is the latest sign of new freedoms trickling into this long-repressed country. Shwedagon has been used before as a rallying point for anti-government protesters, and the former junta feared large groups gathering in the streets, even when they were not demonstrating. "There is a hunger for the Shwedagon Pagoda festival. This was banned for 20 years and it's starting again now," said Khin Maung Aye, a Buddhist scholar and an organizer of the event. He expects a massive tide of pilgrims. "I have dreamed of this for many years, but I dared not think it would be so big." Perched on a hilltop, the Shwedagon Pagoda dominates the Yangon skyline, and is especially prominent at night when floodlights make the golden temple glow brightly. According to legend, it was built more than 2,500 years ago and houses eight strands of the Buddha's hair and other holy relics. It was against the backdrop of Shwedagon's towering golden spires that Aung San Suu Kyi electrified a crowd of half a million people in 1988 with a speech that launched her career as opposition leader and Burma's icon of democracy. After that, the ruling junta halted big pagoda festivals for what they called "security reasons," said Khin Maung Aye. Among the regime's many rules was a ban on gatherings of more than five people. "My son is 22. He was born in 1989, and he has never witnessed the real Shwedagon Pagoda festival," he said. The festival at the sprawling temple compound opened with saffron-robed monks beginning a 15-day chant and a visit by government officials. Entertainment will include Burmese puppet shows and traditional dancers. Smaller pagoda ceremonies that focused on religious rituals were allowed by the defunct military regime, but larger festivals, particularly at Shwedagon, were seen as holding potential for trouble in this devoutly Buddhist country, where religion and politics have often mixed. Yangon's two most significant Buddhist shrines --- Sule Pagoda and Shwedagon --- were central gathering points for the monk-led pro-democracy uprising in 2007 that army quashed with deadly force. For nearly half a century, the country was ruled by a reclusive, xenophobic military regime that cracked down on any perceived dissent. The junta ceded power last year to a nominally civilian government that has surprised critics with an unexpected wave of reforms --- allowing Suu Kyi to run for parliament in April, freeing political prisoners and relaxing strict media censorship. Associated Press http://www.thejakartaglobe.com/international/festival-returns-to-burmas-shwedagon-pagoda/499701 ---------------------------------------- The New York Times Dissidents' New Fear in Myanmar: Irrelevance By THOMAS FULLER Published: February 21, 2012 MAE SOT, THAILAND --- Pity the Burmese dissident in exile. For more than two decades they were symbols of defiance against Myanmar's military dictatorship, campaigning tirelessly in foreign countries for regime change. Now that the Myanmar government is earning plaudits for its program of reforms, hundreds of dissidents living abroad may need career counseling. "It's becoming difficult to find things to complain about," said Aung Naing Oo, deputy director of the Vahu Development Institute, a Thailand-based organization formed by Burmese student activists who fled Myanmar in the late 1980s. Such exiles, as they are known, watched from afar in recent months as Myanmar released hundreds of political prisoners, media censorship was relaxed, and the icon of Burmese democracy, Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, began campaigning for elected office. "Things are moving on the inside," said Mr. Aung Naing Oo, who traveled back to Myanmar in early February. "Everyone is basically hoping that they can go back." During the years of military rule and diplomatic isolation, Burmese exiles were key liaisons between Myanmar and the outside world. They successfully lobbied Western governments to punish Myanmar's government with sanctions. A range of exile publications supplied opinionated but often valuable news and intelligence from sources inside the country. A diplomatic cable written by a U.S. diplomat in Bangkok in 2008 estimated that there were 200 Burmese exile organizations in Thailand alone. But the global Burmese-dissident business may soon be out of business. Funding for seminars is drying up, and foreign diplomats would rather fly into Myanmar than have lunch with exiled dissidents, as former President George W. Bush did during a visit to Thailand in 2008. If the changes in Myanmar have surprised many observers of the country, they have been particularly bewildering and disorienting for exile groups, many of which are based here in Mae Sot, a Thai city on the Myanmar border that became a sort of headquarters for Burmese dissidents living abroad. "I've spent half of my life with the revolution," said Myat Thu, a former student activist who came to Thailand more than two decades ago. He lit a cigarette and recounted his escape through the jungles of eastern Myanmar after the military quashed a popular uprising in 1988. He and his Thai wife, Khemitsara Ekkanasingha, run a cafe adorned with "Free Burma" stickers and pictures of Ms. Aung San Suu Kyi. Last year, before many of the reforms in Myanmar were announced, Ms. Khemitsara introduced a campaign for the release of female political prisoners in Myanmar, printing postcards and organizing marches and vigils. Of the 200 women she campaigned for, all have been released. Ms. Khemitsara said she was now considering championing other causes, mentioning the inequalities of the global market economy. "We are going to put up a new banner," she said, pointing to the wall. "Stop the dictatorship of capitalism!" Other dissidents here say they want to continue working on Myanmar-related issues --- many have a lingering mistrust of the government --- but they are not sure how long they can stay in exile. Naing Aung, a former student activist, helps run the Forum for Democracy in Burma, a group partly funded by the U.S. government that in recent years had held seminars on democracy and human rights. Now long-term funding for such meetings looks uncertain, he said. "Donors are saying, 'If you are just doing seminars in Thailand and printing publications, we won't finance you,"' he said. Life is comfortable for many dissidents living in Thailand, Mr. Naing Aung said, and it's hard to imagine leaving. "People have children and mortgages," he said. The Burmese diaspora spans the globe. In addition to Mae Sot, the northern city of Chiang Mai is home to many dissident organizations. Other prominent dissident groups are based in London, Washington and New Delhi. The Democratic Voice of Burma, an organization that was instrumental in illicitly gathering and broadcasting images of the 2007 military crackdown in Myanmar, is headquartered in Norway. Some journalists working undercover for the group inside Myanmar were imprisoned (and have since been released). Now, Aye Chan Naing, the organization's executive director and chief editor, says he is negotiating with the government about opening an official branch office inside the country. "I think within one or two years, if things keep moving in this direction, a lot of dissidents will move back, and the funding will dry up," he said. "Some groups have been warned that this is their last year of funding." The government of President Thein Sein has been trying to lure exiles back. Aung Min, a government minister, traveled to Thailand earlier this month to woo dissidents, according to Mr. Aye Chan Naing, who met with him. "Ultimately if you're an activist, you want to be where the action is," said Mr. Aung Naing Oo of the Vahu Development Institute, which is based in Chiang Mai. "If that action is not where you are, you have to move." But a number of dissidents say they are unconvinced by the changes and are not considering returning home. "I don't believe," said U Bo Kyi, the co-founder of an association based in Mae Sot that keeps a database of political prisoners. Mr. Bo Kyi, who fled Myanmar 13 years ago, says he is waiting for Myanmar's leaders --- many of whom were top generals during the days of military rule --- to acknowledge and make amends for imprisonments, torture and many other abuses. "We do not want revenge," he said. "But we need recognition and reparations by the government." He is, above all, looking for an apology. "Confession is very important for national reconciliation," he said. http://www.nytimes.com/2012/02/22/world/asia/dissidents-new-fear-in-myanmar-irrelevance.html?_r=1&emc=tnt&tntemail1=y