News & Articles on Burma
Monday, 25 July, 2011
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Aung San Suu Kyi meets government minister Aung Kyi
Activists warn against foreign investors in Myanmar
Suu Kyi Sends Condolences to Norway
Activists protest Indian arms sales to Burma during ethnic wars
More Refugees Flee to Border Fearing War
Burma: A true dialogue or a trick to ease international pressure?
Suu Kyi first talk with new Burma govt
AFP to question for Brisbane man over 'death squad' claims
Blood donation group volunteer unable to appear at court hearing
Murder suspect claims Burma police links
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Aung San Suu Kyi meets government minister Aung Kyi
25th July 2011
Burmese pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi is holding her first meeting with a minister of the army-backed government
Just days after the US called for 'concrete' progress towards democracy, Suu Kyi began talks with the government's Labour minister, Aung Kyi.
The official talks are taking place in a state guest-house in Burma's capital city Ragoon, however no agenda has been made public.
The meeting comes a month after Aung San Suu Kyi was warned to stop all political activity and cautioned not to leave Ragoon. However, Ms Suu Kyi recently went ahead with a trip to the town of Bagen and has continued interviews with international media.
Suu Kyi's party was disbanded by the military regime last year, after she was released from house arrest, because it boycotted the latest vote.
Opposition groups and Western nations are sceptical as to whether anything substantial will come out of the talks or whether it, “turns out to be another carefully choreographed piece of window-dressing much in the manner of the Burma of old.” said BBC South East Asia correspondent, Rachel Harvey.
“The mere fact that the government has renewed direct contact, using a minister who performed the same role under the previous military government, has raised hopes that perhaps the door to negotiation has been reopened,” she added. http://www.wanderlust.co.uk/magazine/news/aung-san-suu-kyi-meets-government-minister-aung-kyi
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Activists warn against foreign investors in Myanmar
AFP
BANGKOK (AFP) – Environmental groups called on Monday for an end to foreign investment in projects exploiting Myanmar's natural resources, accusing such activities of sparking conflict in ethnic minority areas.
While foreign direct investment has "skyrocketed", for example through large dams financed by neighbouring China, India and Thailand, there are no decent frameworks to protect Myanmar's environment and communities, they said.
This investment is "concentrated in energy and extractive sectors and often results in militarization and displacement," said a new report from the Burma Environmental Working Group (BEWG), a network of activist organisations.
"Control over natural resources is a major cause of conflict in ethnic areas, where the majority of Burma's resources remain," the report said, using the former name of Myanmar.
Heavy fighting between the rebel ethnic Kachin and Myanmar's state army took place last month in the far north of the country around a dam financed by China, with authorities saying they acted to defend the plant from attacks.
"The renewed war in Kachin state is an example of what Burma can continue to expect as foreign direct investment increases," said Paul Sein Twa of the BEWG.
The group's report said an estimated 48 hydropower projects were currently being planned, constructed or already existed on Myanmar's rivers.
But up to 90 percent of the power they generate is destined for other countries, "instead of supplying local populations who face serious ongoing energy shortages".
The activists called for new and existing investment in sectors that exploit the environment to cease, until the new measures are brought in to ensure sustainable development and multi-ethnic participation.
The new government under President Thein Sein "is failing to make progress on that front," said Paul Sein Twa.
Myanmar's military junta handed power to a nominally-civilian administration earlier this year after elections in November, which the army's political proxies won by a landslide amid allegations of cheating.
The country has been plagued by decades of civil war with armed ethnic minority militias since independence in 1948. http://old.news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20110725/wl_sthasia_afp/myanmarenvironmentethniceconomy
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Suu Kyi Sends Condolences to Norway
By THE IRRAWADDY Monday, July 25, 2011
Burma's pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi and other opposition leaders have sent letters of condolence to Norway in mourning the deaths of more than 90 people in the wake of a deadly bombing and a massacre in the capital Oslo on Friday.
Suu Kyi, the 1991 recipient of the Noble Peace Prize from Norway, on Saturday sent a letter of condolence to the Norwegian ambassador in Bangkok and expressed her deep sorrow for the victims.
Norway has been active in its support of Burma's democracy movement; the only exiled Burmese television station, Democratic Voice of Burma (DVB), is based in Oslo.
DVB director Khin Maung Win said that like many other foreigners in Norway he was initially alarmed by the fact that Friday's atrocities were committed by a right-wing Norwegian national with professed anti-immigrant sentiment.
However, he said that the vast majority of Norwegian nationals do not share this kind of sentiment and that he is not fearful for the security of immigrants in Norway which includes many Burmese exiles and refugees.
Aung Moe Zaw, the chairman of the exiled Democratic Party for a New of the Union of Burma party, said that Friday's victims included youth members of the ruling Labor Party which has long supported his party based in Thailand.
“We have sent a letter of condolence to Norway,” he said. “This kind of terrorism is totally unacceptable. The rise of right-wing extremists in Europe bodes ill for Europe and the world as a whole.”
Anders Behring Breivik, 32, who has admitted carrying out Friday's twin terror attacks in Norway, is due to make his first appearance in court on Monday afternoon. Breivik reportedly described his actions as “cruel but necessary” during the weekend police interrogation.
Breivik expressed his desire for a public hearing, but a judge ruled the hearing should be behind closed doors. http://www.irrawaddy.org/article.php?art_id=21759
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Activists protest Indian arms sales to Burma during ethnic wars
Monday, 25 July 2011 12:55 Tun Tun
New Delhi (Mizzima) – Indian and Burmese pro-democracy forces have urged the Indian government not to sell arms and ammunitions to the Burmese government because of its widespread offensives against ethnic groups in eastern Burma.
Protestors in New Delhi on Friday urged he government not to sell arms and ammunitions to Burma. Photo: BCD
Protestors in New Delhi on Friday urged he government not to sell arms and ammunitions to Burma. Photo: BCD
More than 100 people representing 46 Indian civil society organizations, and 24 Burmese organizations staged a demonstration in downtown New Delhi on Friday.
“We don’t want the Indian government to supply arms to Burma because they are killing innocent people,” Burma Centre Delhi coordinator Alana Golmei told Mizzima.
“[India is] supplying weapons and conducting joint military exercises leading to systematic human rights abuses and criminal hostilities against ethnic groups, political activists, journalists and civilians,” said a joint statement issued at the demonstration.
“You see that they are still willing to give or sell everything that the Burmese government wants in consideration of their national interests. They will continue to give political support and diplomatic protection to the Burmese government as they have done continually in the past,” National Coalition Government of Union of Burma (NCGUB) exile government Information Minister Dr. Tint Swe told Mizzima.
Fifty-two Burmese military trucks carrying weapons from India reportedly crossed the border in Moreh, Manipur State, into Tamu in Burma on July 7 this year, according to the Burmese activists. However, Mizzima was unable to independently verify it.
“If India really sent arms supplies to Burma, it is wrong because the Burmese army is launching military offensives against ethnic organizations in at least three states.” Tint Swe said.
He said India, which is the largest democracy in the world, is a country that upholds the non-violence principle, and a country where Buddhism flourished and it should approach Burma with these values and principles.
“They can sell arms anywhere but they should uphold their own values of non-violence and religious teachings in relations with other countries. I mean Indian should use its own value system and principles in their foreign relations to fulfill their national interests,” he said.
In the past, the Indian government has sold arms and ammunitions to the Burmese government to fight against Indian separatist rebels based on Burmese soil. At that time, Burmese pro-democracy forces protested against the arms sale. Indian Foreign Minister Pranab Mukerjee denied the arms sale to Burma at the press conference held in Washington D.C. in March 2008 during his tour of the US.
According to researcher Siemon Wezeman of the Sweden- based SIPRI, the Indian government has supplied 75 mm and 105 mm artillery pieces, T55 tanks, armoured personnel carriers, trucks and helicopters to Burma. The sale was also mentioned in Wikileak cables but independent verification is not available.
0digg
Last Updated ( Monday, 25 July 2011 14:55 ) http://www.mizzima.com/news/regional/5659-activists-protest-indian-arms-sales-to-burma-during-ethnic-wars.html
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More Refugees Flee to Border Fearing War
By SAW YAN NAING Monday, July 25, 2011
Hundreds of Kachin people have fled to the Sino-Burmese border by Laiza and Majayang villages fearing that the current Kachin State conflict will escalate further as three military ships arrived in Bhamo Township, northern Burma.
Around 2,000 residents from at least seven villages in Bhamo Township have fled since mid-July, after three ships carrying plain clothes men were spotted approaching the settlement. Local people are worried that fighting between government troops and ethnic armed group the Kachin Independence Army (KIA) will intensify, said relief worker Mai Ja.
La Nan, joint-secretary of the KIA’s political wing the Kachin Independence Organization (KIO), said that the Burmese authorities ordered villagers from some 1,000 households in Kala Yang, Kazue and Tapant villages to flee their homes by July 25.
He also said that the KIO is worried that the government might launch a full-scale offensive against the KIA base in Laiza, northern Burma.
Residents of Bhamo Township dare not remain in their villages any longer and have joined more than 16,000 refugees on the Sino-Burmese border. Aid groups in Laiza estimate the number of refugees may now have reached 20,000.
Last week, the KIO said that more Burmese Army trucks and military river vessels were headed toward its bases following rumors that government troops would attack the KIO’s headquarters in Laiza.
On the night of July 21, Burmese government troops from Infantry Battalion 142 fired 20 mortars, including 81 mm shells, at the KIA’s Battalion 24 which operates under Brigade 5.
La Nan also said that the government sent a letter to the KIA on July 23 suggesting a ceasefire in Kachin State, but not in all ethnic regions. The KIA recently called for ceasefire talks which involved representatives of all ethnic armed groups.
“It seems [the government] has moved away from our proposed aim of a nationwide ceasefire agreement. They want to make peace in Kachin State first and think about ceasefires in other parts of other ethnic regions later,” said La Nan.
Humanitarian groups have also said that aid supplies are needed for the growing refugee crisis on the Sino-Burmese border.
“Food is not sufficient for refugees now. We haven't receive aid from international aid agencies. Only local religious community groups currently contribute aid to the refugees,” said Mai Ja.
In early July, local humanitarian groups and relief agencies appealed to international aid groups regarding the rising need for emergency food, shelter and medical care, as well as schooling for children on the Sino-Burmese border. http://irrawaddy.org/article.php?art_id=21758
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Burma: A true dialogue or a trick to ease international pressure?
Mon, 2011-07-25 01:21 — editor
News Comments
By - Zin Lin
Pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi will meet with Labour Minister Aung Kyi, the first rare meeting between the Nobel laureate and the new army-backed government, quoting an official Reuters News said on Sunday.
Aung San Suu Kyi has time and again called for dialogue with the government since her release from house arrest a week ahead of November election, which was tarnished by alleged of vote-rigging and the exclusion of her party.
"Aung San Suu Kyi and Aung Kyi will meet at Sein Lei Kan Tha state guest house on Monday afternoon. It will be the first meeting between them after the new government was formed," a Burma government official told AFP, without elaborating.
Ohn Kying, the NLD’s Central Executive Committee member confirmed the meeting arranged by the government to engage with Aung San Suu Kyi at 1 pm Monday.
At the offer of the army-backed Burmese civilian government, Burma’s Nobel laureate would meet on Monday with Labour Minister Aung Kyi, who stands for the ruling generals in earlier talks with the democracy icon.
On the other hand, the Burmese government has warned pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi and her National League for Democracy (NLD) to end "illegal activities", including its agitation and opposition to the newly elected legislative body.
A letter signed by the Home Minister and send to Suu Kyi’s party in June said the NLD had been officially dissolved in September last year. Because, the NLD preferred to boycott election held in last November, while Suu Kyi and two thousands political prisoners were in prison.
The 30 June state-owned newspaper raised the issue in a commentary under the caption of “Right to make choice still in the hand” by a ghost-writer.
In one paragraph, the commentary says, “From the point of law, NLD is defunct. The Union Election Commission issued Announcement (18/2010) dated 9-4-2010 reminding the 10 political parties that still met Article 25 of Political Parties Registration Law at that time that they could apply within 60 days for continued existence as political parties. However, only five of them did so. It is common knowledge that the five political parties did not include NLD.”
It also underscored that the NLD has been removed from the list of political parties and has been dissolved according to Announcement 97/2010 dated 14-9-2010 by the Union Election Commission.
The home minister’s letter also spotlighted that the government was deeply worried that if Aung San Suu Kyi makes political tours to rural parts of the country, there may be anarchy and unrest, as experienced by prior incidents in 2003.
It is not known whether the meeting will be a flexible gesture in stance by the latest government, which is led by members of the junta that controlled the country for decades. The ex-generals in this government were strongly opposed to Suu Kyi and her party, the National League for Democracy (NLD).
A government official, who asked not to be named, told Reuters the meeting would take place early Monday afternoon at a state guesthouse close to Suu Kyi's residence. In his former part as liaison officer for the junta, Aung Kyi met Suu Kyi 10 times while she was under house arrest.
In frequent media interviews, Suu Kyi expressed her aspiration to hold talk with the new government to press for some changes to help people of Burma. The government did not respond.
In its Martyrs’ Day statement, the NLD says, “We have repeatedly said that the NLD is ready to negotiate flexibly for the beneficial results of the people of Burma. But the dialogue should not aim for the benefit of the NLD nor the benefit of the authorities, but for the benefit of the Burmese people. Therefore the authorities should create the fair political conditions by holding meaningful political dialogue towards national reconciliation and releasing unconditionally all the political prisoners.”
Meanwhile, U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton on Friday called on Thein Sein government to free political prisoners, address non-proliferation concerns and start a dialogue with pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi. Clinton, speaking at a regional security forum of the Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN) in Bali, said Burma (Myanmar) was a major challenge to the regional group and would have to be addressed.
Aung Kyi is regarded as a moderate minister in military-dominated government, and this will be his first meeting with the democracy icon as labor minister in the new government.
Analysts say it is expected Burma's rulers are aware of Suu Kyi's influence on the international community and realize her involvement as a necessity to do away with Western sanctions since 1988.
Some analysts also concerns about the meeting on Monday as they have experienced in the past that the consecutive military regimes typically arrange such show to mislead the international community.
Many people supporting political changes in Burma dare not believe on the reported meeting whether the nominally civilian government is attempting to alleviate tensions with the Western governments.
- Asian Tribune - http://www.asiantribune.com/news/2011/07/24/burma-true-dialogue-or-trick-ease-international-pressure
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BANGKOK POST:
Suu Kyi first talk with new Burma govt
Published: 25/07/2011 at 02:32 PM
Online news:
Aung San Suu Kyi met with a minister of Burma's new government for the first time on Monday, raising tentative hopes of sustained dialogue between the opposition icon and authorities.
Myanmar democracy icon Aung San Suu Kyi (C) is greeted by a supporter in the country's ancient temple city of Bagan. Aung San Suu Kyi has met a minister of Myanmar's new government for the first time Monday, raising tentative hopes of sustained dialogue between the opposition icon and authorities.
Just days after the US called for "concrete" progress towards democracy, Suu Kyi -- who was released from house arrest soon after a controversial election in November -- began talks with labour minister Aung Kyi in Rangoon.
"They are meeting now," a government official told AFP without offering further details, as reporters waited outside the venue -- a state guesthouse in Burma's main city.
Suu Kyi has frequently urged dialogue with the government since her release, but the authorities' decision to hold talks met with a mixed reaction from observers, with some seeing it as aimed at gaining concessions from the international community.
Details of the meeting's agenda were not clear, Suu Kyi's National League for Democracy (NLD) party spokesman Nyan Win told AFP on Sunday, but he earlier said a meeting between the two sides would be "good".
Aung Kyi was in charge of relations between the military junta and Suu Kyi under Burma's previous regime, but this was to be the first meeting between them since the new government was formed, an official told AFP at the weekend.
The dialogue is due to take place in the early afternoon at a state guesthouse. The pair have met before on several occasions, including in late 2009 while Suu Kyi was still under a seven-year period of house arrest.
The 66-year-old democracy champion was freed shortly after elections that were won overwhelmingly by the military's political proxies. The polls were marred by claims of cheating and the exclusion of Suu Kyi from the process.
The government has since warned her to stay out of politics.
News of the planned meeting with Aung Kyi emerged on Saturday, the same day that US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton urged Burma's rulers to have "meaningful and inclusive dialogue" with the opposition.
A US official travelling with Clinton also said the Burma government's bid for the chairmanship of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) in 2014 would be in doubt unless it reformed its ways.
The timing of the meeting was therefore significant, said political analyst Pavin Chachavalpongpun of Singapore's Institute of Southeast Asian Studies.
"They could have done it any week, so why this week?" he said, adding that the talks had "symbolism" and showed "both sides are trying to do some kind of constructive engagement".
Suu Kyi has spent much of the last 20 years as a prisoner in her Rangoon home, and some observers believe the government would be quick to limit her freedom again if she is perceived as a threat to their rule.
Renaud Egreteau, a Burma expert at Hong Kong university, said it was likely the talks were happening because "the regime wants to get something from the international community".
The US House of Representatives on Wednesday approved a renewal of sanctions that ban the import of goods from Burma, including lucrative gems, and restrict visas issued to government officials.
Suu Kyi has said international sanctions should be maintained, at least until Burma's more than 2,000 political prisoners are released.
She has tested the boundaries of her freedom this month, in particular with her first visit outside Rangoon since her release, when she refrained from any overt political activities that might have antagonised the government.
Suu Kyi's party, which won a landslide election victory two decades ago that was never recognised by the junta, was disbanded by the military regime last year because it boycotted the latest vote, saying the rules were unfair. http://www.bangkokpost.com/news/world/248721/suu-kyi-holds-first-talks-with-new-burma-govt
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AFP to question for Brisbane man over 'death squad' claims
Dan Oakes and Jessica Marszalek
July 25, 2011
Criminal Clearance within 72 hours Remove of old SA Criminal Records
Htoo Htoo Han, a Burmese refugee, holds up a 1988 photo which he say shows him (right) posing as a student leader while working as a lieutenant in Burma's military intelligence.
Htoo Htoo Han, a Burmese refugee, holds up a 1988 photo which he say shows him (right) posing as a student leader while working as a lieutenant in Burma's military intelligence. Photo: AAP Image/Patrick Hamilton
Federal police will question a Burmese-born Brisbane man who claims to have murdered dozens of political activists while working undercover for the military regime.
Htoo Htoo Han used the media last week to confess to the killing of at least 24 people in the wake of a pro-democracy uprising in Burma in 1988. He posed as a student activist, but was in fact the commander of a military intelligence death squad.
He subsequently claimed that eight other members of his squad — responsible for killing up to 150 people in total — are also living in various states around Australia after successfully requesting political asylum.
Advertisement: Story continues below
Mr Han, a 44-year-old Australian citizen and father of three, confirmed to Fairfax yesterday that the federal police had contacted him last week and suggested he retain a lawyer, as they would be questioning him this week over the claims.
Meanwhile, a second Burmese man has come forward to confess to a secret military past, saying he caused the deaths of up to 50 people in Burma.
Moon Hsar, 44, says he worked as a secret agent for the Burmese military from within the Karen revolutionary army between 1984 and 1987, having been seduced by its power and wealth.
He claims it was his job to incite conflict between his own Karen people and other ethnic groups by rumour-mongering and blaming innocent parties for others' deeds.
He would also pass intelligence back to the junta via the animal trade.
"There was a lot of fighting. Three years is a long time," he said through an interpreter.
"Forty to 50 people (died) because of me, because of order from military government.
"I feel guilty, very guilty. I feel like they use[d] me as a knife to kill my own people."
Mr Hsar, a father of five, said while his own situation was unrelated to that of Mr Han, he too wanted to get the secrets plaguing him off his chest.
The low-ranking sergeant said he stopped working for the military when he saw soldiers punishing a Karen-controlled village in about 1987.
"The army come in, they rape[d] the women, everything, I see this woman being raped . . . I very, very angry so I cut it off," Mr Hsar said.
"They kill[ed] really all woman, children, they kill[ed] them all."
An Australian citizen, Mr Hsar came to Australia five years ago after leaving the Karen army in 1998 and staying at a refugee camp on the Thai-Burma border.
He indicated there may be more like him living in Australia, now willing to confess their pasts after reading Mr Han's story.
Attorney-General Robert McClelland last week ordered the federal police to investigate Mr Han's claims.
Read more: http://www.brisbanetimes.com.au/queensland/afp-to-question-for-brisbane-man-over-death-squad-claims-20110725-1hw2b.html#ixzz1T70EI5Mj
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Blood donation group volunteer unable to appear at court hearing
Monday, 25 July 2011 13:14 Te Te
New Delhi (Mizzima) – Nay Myo Zin, a leading volunteer of a blood donation group and a former military officer, who is being tried in a special court inside Insein Prison in Rangoon, has not appeared at hearings because of a lower back injury, according to his wife and lawyer. He was charged under the Electronics Act for sending an e-mail to a friend that discussed national reconciliation.
Nay Myo Zin, a former Burmese captain and an active volunteer in a blood- donor group, has been unable to attend his trial in Insein Prison because of a bone injury. Photo: Youth Network For People
Nay Myo Zin, a former Burmese captain and an active volunteer in a blood- donor group, has been unable to attend his trial in Insein Prison because of a bone injury. Photo: Youth Network For People
Because of a back injury sustained when he fell, he was unable to appear at hearings on July 14 and July 21.
“The last time we saw him was July 7 at a hearing. At lunchtime, he was not able to sit so he lay on his back. Although he was receiving medical treatment, there’s been no improvement,” his wife, Zin Myo Maw, told Mizzima.
“If he does not receive good medical treatment, he could suffer from paraplegia so we are very worried,” Zin Myo Maw said. She said that the last time she visited the prison her husband was not able to meet with her because of the injury.
According to an X-Ray, one of his lumbar vertabrae bones was cracked and the doctor said that he needed to have a CT scan and medical treatment from a specialist, Nay Myo Zin told his family on July 7.
Nay Myo Zin applied for bail to get medical treatment at a special clinic outside the prison, but the court refused the request on July 14. Hla Myint, his lawyer, said that the prison hospital refused to give the medical records to Nay Myo Wai, and the court cited that in not granting him bail.
“We found that non-political prisoners could get their medical records. We did not receive the medical records, so we asked for the prison doctor to testify at court but the court rejected our plan. It is unjust,” Hla Myint said.
He sent an appeal letter to the Directorate of Prison on July 21, saying Nay Myo Zin needed to receive medical treatment outside the prison.
Nay Myo Zin was arrested on April 2 under the Burmese Electronics Act for sending an e-mail to a friend in a foreign country about “national reconciliation,” according to family members. In Burma, the Electronics Act does not allow the defendant to be granted bail.
Nay Myo Zin, 35, resigned from the army as a captain in 2005, after serving nearly 10 years. He was an active volunteer in a blood donation group affiliated with the National League for Democracy and a social group that gives help to storm victims. http://www.mizzima.com/news/prisoner-watch/5660-blood-donation-group-volunteer-unable-to-appear-at-court-hearing.html
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Murder suspect claims Burma police links
By SHWE AUNG
Published: 25 July 2011
A man who stabbed to death a woman last week in Mandalay city claims he was paid a fee by a senior-ranking drugs enforcement officer to kill the victim, allegedly a wife of the police commander.
The incident took place around 6.30pm on 19 July in the city’s Thirimalar ward. The suspect was apprehended by locals after hearing the woman scream.
Police in Mandalay have refused to comment on the matter, but eye-witnesses claim the man confessed in court to being paid one million kyat ($US1,250) by Than Soe, a commander in the northern Mandalay district’s narcotics bureau, to carry out the hit.
Than Soe is currently being held by police in Mandalay pending investigation. One source said that the commander had fathered a child with the woman, but refused to pay child support fees.
Another source has claimed the woman had also been a police officer but was sacked after she became pregnant with Than Soe’s child.
The woman had reportedly travelled from Bhamo, in Kachin state, to Mandalay to confront Than Soe, and demanded 20 million kyat from him. He offered to pay only five million kyat, which she refused.
It was then that he hired a hitman to carry out the killing.
The murder suspect has also being detained at a police station in Mandalay.
http://www.dvb.no/news/murder-suspect-claims-burma-police-links/16707
Tuesday, July 26, 2011
News & Articles on Burma-Monday, 25 July, 2011
Monday, July 25, 2011
News & Articles on Burma-Sunday, 24 July, 2011-UZL
News & Articles on Burma
Sunday, 24 July, 2011
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Burma must start a true talk, not a ploy
SSA Ethical Stand against Burma Army Barbarian Acts
Myanmar opposition leader to meet government liaison officer
Refugee admits to secret military past
Second Myanmar refugee admits to killings
Refugee admits to secret military past
Clinton urges Indonesia to be role model for democratic transition in Myanmar
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Burma must start a true talk, not a ploy
By Zin Linn Jul 24, 2011 10:30PM UTC
Pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi will meet with Labour Minister Aung Kyi, the first rare meeting between the Nobel laureate and the new army-backed government, quoting an official Reuters News said on Sunday.
At the behest of namesake Burma civilian government, Burma’s Nobel laureate would meet on Monday with Labour Minister Aung Kyi, who stands for the ruling generals in earlier talks with the democracy icon.
However, the Burmese government has warned pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi and her National League for Democracy (NLD) to end “illegal activities”, including its agitation and opposition to the newly elected legislative body.
A letter signed by the Home Minister and send to Suu Kyi’s party in June said the NLD had been officially dissolved in September last year. Because, the NLD preferred to boycott election held in last November while Suu Kyi and two thousands political prisoners were in prison.
The 30 June state-owned newspaper raised the issue in a commentary under the caption of “Right to make choice still in the hand” by a ghost-writer.
In one paragraph, the commentary says, “From the point of law, NLD is defunct. The Union Election Commission issued Announcement (18/2010) dated 9-4-2010 reminding the 10 political parties that still met Article 25 of Political Parties Registration Law at that time that they could apply within 60 days for continued existence as political parties. However, only five of them did so. It is common knowledge that the five political parties did not include NLD.”
It also underscored that the NLD has been removed from the list of political parties and has been dissolved according to Announcement 97/2010 dated 14-9-2010 by the Union Election Commission.
The home minister’s letter also spotlighted that the government was deeply worried that if Aung San Suu Kyi makes political tours to rural parts of the country, there may be anarchy and unrest, as experienced by prior incidents in 2003.
It is not known whether the meeting will be a flexible gesture in stance by the latest government, which is led by members of the junta that controlled the country for decades. The ex-generals in this government were strongly opposed to Suu Kyi and her party, the National League for Democracy (NLD).
A government official, who asked not to be named, told Reuters the meeting would take place early Monday afternoon at a state guesthouse close to Suu Kyi’s residence. In his former part as liaison officer for the junta, Aung Kyi met Suu Kyi 10 times while she was under house arrest.
According to one NLD spokesman, the party has had no knowledge of the meeting, but welcomed the government’s move to engage with Aung San Suu Kyi.
In frequent media interviews, Suu Kyi expressed her aspiration to hold talk with the new government to press for some changes to help people of Burma. The government did not act in response.
Meanwhile, U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton on Friday called on Thein Sein government to free political prisoners, address non-proliferation concerns and start a dialogue with pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi. Clinton, speaking at a regional security forum of the Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN) in Bali, said Burma (Myanmar) was a major challenge to the regional group and would have to be addressed.
Aung Kyi is regarded as a moderate minister in military-dominated government, and this will be his first meeting with the democracy icon as labour minister in the new government.
Analysts say it is expected Burma’s rulers are aware of Suu Kyi’s influence on the international community and realize her involvement as a necessity to do away with Western sanctions since 1988.
Some analysts also concerns about the meeting on Monday as they have experienced in the past that the consecutive military regimes typically arrange such show to mislead the international community. http://asiancorrespondent.com/60777/burma-must-start-a-true-talk-not-a-ploy/
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SSA Ethical Stand against Burma Army Barbarian Acts
Sunday, 24 July 2011 18:00
By: Sai Wansai
Maj Gen Pang Fa, general secretary of the Shan State Progress Party (SSPP) and Commander of the Shan State Army (SSA) “North”, issued a directive on 19 July prohibiting his troops from emulating the Burma Army which he said was ordered on 14 July “to kill every man and rape every woman in the war zone.” On the contrary, Shan troops were told:
Not to kill people from any nationality
Not to commit human rights abuse on people from any nationality
Not to take any property belonging to the people without payment
To avoid becoming a burden for the people
Brigade 1, led by Maj Gen Pang Fa, is the strongest of the SSA-North's three brigades, with an estimated 3,000 troops. The former cease-fire group's other two brigades, 3 and 7, have joined a Border Guard Force (BGF) under Burmese military command, but Brigade 1 refused to accede to the plan and have been fighting a defensive war since last four months.
By doling out such orders, Maj Gen Pang Fa is literally trying to show the people in general that the Shan resistance fighters are on a much higher moral or ethical ground than the intruding Burma Army.
While the Burma Army has been trying to portray the recent ethnic conflict as being horizontal or wider racial conflict of one ethnic group going all out to eliminate the other, similar to Rwanda, the real nature of conflict is a top-down, vertical one, which means that the Burmese government military apparatus is ruthlessly oppressing a chosen ethnic group, through genocide and using rape as a weapon of war.
In other words, the non-Burman ethnic groups are not against the Burman or Bama and there have been no racial hatred or conflict, but are only fighting a defensive war against the Burma Army onslaught, to restore their rights of self-determination, human rights, equality and democracy.
In contrast, the troopers of Burma Army have been indoctrinated to believe that the non-Burman ethnic groups are sworn enemies and they are allowed to lay waste in their areas of operation, which could be translated “to kill, rape, loot and burn”.
According to Myo Myint, in the documentary video titled “Burma Soldiers”, released early this year, commanders were said to have “brainwashed” the soldiers into committing gruesome attacks like torching homes to the ground and using unarmed villagers as human shields. On top of that the soldiers were told that “the ethnic armies and the democracy protestors are enemies of the state [and] killing them is your duty,”
In the same vein, as the recent SSA directive, one could read the civilized treatment of the Kachin Independence Army fighters on Burma Army’s prisoners of war in Kachin State, where the Burma Army offensive is in full swing.
To sum up, the Burma Army’s calculation of igniting a full fledge racial conflict like in Rwanda is not working for the ethnic resistance armies are not walking into the trap to fuel the tension. As the saying goes, “One couldn’t make noise by clapping with one hand.” Instead they are revealing the real nature of Burma Army’s top brass evil intention by making an ethically, correct moral stand for all to see.
But whether the Burma Army will become humane and refrain from using this ancient doctrine of incentive to benefit from the spoils of war is the question only the Burmese generals can answer.
The author is General Secretary of the exiled Shan Democratic Union.
http://www.shanland.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=3874:ssa-ethical-stand-against-burma-army-barbarian-acts&catid=opinions&Itemid=308
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Myanmar opposition leader to meet government liaison officer
Jul 24, 2011, 4:26 GMT
Yangon - Myanmar opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi was scheduled to meet this week with the government's chief liaison officer for the first time since it took power, sources said Sunday.
Labour Minister Aung Kyi, who was the chief liaison officer between Suu Kyi and the previous military junta that ruled Myanmar, was scheduled to meet with the Nobel laureate on Monday, government sources said.
'He continues to carry out the role of liaison minister in the new government' said the official, who requested anonymity.
It would be the first such meeting between Aung Kyi and Suu Kyi since the new government took power in April this year.
Yangon-based local and foreign media were invited by the information ministry to be present at the meeting in Yangon, but Suu Kyi's National League for Democracy (NLD) opposition party said they had not been informed of the pending talks.
'We do not know about this,' said Nyan Win, an NLD executive.
Suu Kyi, who was released from a seven-year house detention term on November 13, met with Aung Kyi at least ten times during her incarceration, but the talks did not lead to any breakthroughs in Myanmar's political impasse.
Western powers have urged the new government to open a dialogue with Suu Kyi to tackle Myanmar's ongoing problems that continue to earn it pariah status among democracies.
Suu Kyi's NLD won an earlier general election in 1990 but was denied power by the military for two decades. The stage-managed November 7 polls has brought to power a pro-military regime that is unlikely to push through democratic and economic reforms, which are deemed crucial to Myanmar's acceptance by the world community.
Among other issues, western leaders have demanded that the new government release an estimated 2,100 political prisoners and open a dialogue with Suu Kyi if they wish to see economic sanctions against the country eased.
http://www.monstersandcritics.com/news/asiapacific/news/article_1652845.php/Myanmar-opposition-leader-to-meet-government-liaison-officer
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Refugee admits to secret military past
Jessica Marszalek
July 24, 2011 - 12:49PM
AAP
A Brisbane refugee has come forward to confess to his secret military past, saying he caused the deaths of up to 50 people in Burma.
Moon Hsar, 44, says he worked as a secret agent for the Burmese military from within the Karen revolutionary army between 1984 and 1987, having been seduced by its power and wealth.
He claims it was his job to incite conflict between his own Karen people and other ethnic groups by rumour-mongering and blaming innocent parties for others' deeds.
Advertisement: Story continues below
He would also pass intelligence back to the junta via the animal trade.
"There was a lot of fighting. Three years is a long time," he told AAP through an interpreter.
"Forty to 50 people (died) because of me, because of order from military government.
"I feel guilty, very guilty. I feel like they use me as a knife to kill my own people."
It is the second time in two weeks a former junta functionary has come forward to clear his conscience.
Australian citizen Htoo Htoo Han last week confessed to executing 24 anti-government protesters and student leaders as an officer in Burmese intelligence from 1988.
Mr Han, who came to Australia as a refugee in 1996 and has since been involved in campaigns aimed at highlighting human rights abuses in Burma, said he was also indirectly involved in at least 100 other murders.
He said nine others from his group were now lived in Australia.
He is now being investigated by the Australian Federal Police and wants to go to jail for his crimes.
Mr Hsar, a father of five, said while his own situation was unrelated to that of Mr Han, he too wanted to get the secrets plaguing him off his chest.
The low-ranking sergeant said he stopped working for the military when he saw soldiers punishing a Karen-controlled village in about 1987.
"The army come in, they rape the women, everything, I see this woman being raped ... I very, very angry so I cut it off," Mr Hsar said through the interpreter.
"They kill really all woman, children, they kill them all."
An Australian citizen, Mr Hsar came to Australia five years ago after leaving the Karen army in 1998 and staying at a refugee camp on the Thai-Burma border.
He indicated there may be more like him living in Australia, now willing to confess their pasts after reading Han's story.
© 2011 AAP http://news.smh.com.au/breaking-news-national/refugee-admits-to-secret-military-past-20110724-1huxh.html
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STRAITS TIMES: Jul 24, 2011
Second Myanmar refugee admits to killings
SYDNEY - A SECOND refugee from Myanmar now living in Australia has admitted to being involved in killings in his homeland, saying he was responsible for the deaths of 40 or 50 people, a report said on Sunday.
The 44-year-old man told Australian news agency AAP through an interpreter that he had acted as an undercover agent for the military between 1984 and 1987, giving them intelligence on ethnic Karen fighters.
'Forty to 50 people (died) because of me, because of orders from military government,' he said.
'I feel guilty, very guilty. I feel like they use me as a knife to kill my own people.'
The admission is the second in a fortnight to the Australian media from someone claiming to be a former Myanmar military operative.
It follows statements from another long-time Australian resident and citizen originally from Myanmar that he shot dead 24 anti-government protesters in his former homeland in the late 1980s. -- AFP
----------------------------------------------
Refugee admits to secret military past
Jessica Marszalek
July 24, 2011 - 12:49PM
AAP
A Brisbane refugee has come forward to confess to his secret military past, saying he caused the deaths of up to 50 people in Burma.
Moon Hsar, 44, says he worked as a secret agent for the Burmese military from within the Karen revolutionary army between 1984 and 1987, having been seduced by its power and wealth.
He claims it was his job to incite conflict between his own Karen people and other ethnic groups by rumour-mongering and blaming innocent parties for others' deeds.
Advertisement: Story continues below
He would also pass intelligence back to the junta via the animal trade.
"There was a lot of fighting. Three years is a long time," he told AAP through an interpreter.
"Forty to 50 people (died) because of me, because of order from military government.
"I feel guilty, very guilty. I feel like they use me as a knife to kill my own people."
It is the second time in two weeks a former junta functionary has come forward to clear his conscience.
Australian citizen Htoo Htoo Han last week confessed to executing 24 anti-government protesters and student leaders as an officer in Burmese intelligence from 1988.
Mr Han, who came to Australia as a refugee in 1996 and has since been involved in campaigns aimed at highlighting human rights abuses in Burma, said he was also indirectly involved in at least 100 other murders.
He said nine others from his group were now lived in Australia.
He is now being investigated by the Australian Federal Police and wants to go to jail for his crimes.
Mr Hsar, a father of five, said while his own situation was unrelated to that of Mr Han, he too wanted to get the secrets plaguing him off his chest.
The low-ranking sergeant said he stopped working for the military when he saw soldiers punishing a Karen-controlled village in about 1987.
"The army come in, they rape the women, everything, I see this woman being raped ... I very, very angry so I cut it off," Mr Hsar said through the interpreter.
"They kill really all woman, children, they kill them all."
An Australian citizen, Mr Hsar came to Australia five years ago after leaving the Karen army in 1998 and staying at a refugee camp on the Thai-Burma border.
He indicated there may be more like him living in Australia, now willing to confess their pasts after reading Han's story.
© 2011 AAP http://news.theage.com.au/breaking-news-national/refugee-admits-to-secret-military-past-20110724-1huxh.html
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Clinton urges Indonesia to be role model for democratic transition in Myanmar
By Associated Press, Updated: Sunday, July 24, 3:52 PM
BALI, Indonesia — U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton is urging Indonesia to promote democracy in Myanmar and countries in the Middle East and North Africa in the throes of upheaval. She says its successful transition from dictatorship and status as a vibrant Muslim-majority democracy make it an ideal role model for both Myanmar and the Arab world.
In meetings with senior Indonesian officials on Sunday in Bali, Clinton said the country’s recent history “provides an example for a transition to civilian rule and building strong democratic institutions.” She said Indonesia has made significant strides toward democracy and shown that Islam and democracy can co-exist.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/middle-east/clinton-urges-indonesia-to-be-role-model-for-democratic-transition-in-myanmar-middle-east/2011/07/24/gIQA36PPWI_story.html
__._,_.___
Sunday, July 24, 2011
News & Articles on Burma-Saturday, 23 July, 2011
News & Articles on Burma
Saturday, 23 July, 2011
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'Reforms Needed Soon'
China limits border crossings after Burmese mortar fire on the KIO capital
AIPMC urges ASEAN to review Burma issue cautiously
Suu Kyi to meet Myanmar minister: official
Canada opens relations with Burma, sanctions continue
Canada Begins Engagement With Myanmar: Foreign Affairs Minister John Baird
Suu Kyi to meet Myanmar minister
Academics: Thailand doesn’t need Burma’s coal
Despite gold price rise globally, Burmese traders can not increase price
----------------------------------------------------
'Reforms Needed Soon'
2011-07-21
In her latest weekly conversation with listeners, Aung San Suu Kyi assesses the first 100 days of the new government.
Q: How do you assess the work of U Thein Sein’s government during its first 100 days in office in Burma? Do you see that it is moving toward change in the country?
A: I have not been able to gauge yet whether the government of U Thein Sein has had any intention of moving toward change, based on their first 100 days in office. A hundred days is not a very long period, but if they really want change there are things that can be done to show that they want change. I think that it would be in the best interest of the country if they do the things that need to be done as soon as possible. I would like to urge them to do those things accordingly.
Q: The deputy foreign minister of Japan visited Burma recently and met with the government of U Thein Sein, as well as with yourself. What are your thoughts with regard to the attitude of Japan toward Burma? What do you think the role of Japan should be in the struggle for democracy in Burma?
A: Since Japan’s position in Asia as well as in the world is important, many assume that Japan will have a sense of responsibility when forming its political policies. The National League for Democracy believes that with regard to Burma, Japan should—with a sense of responsibility and a long-term view—support the emergence of a political system that will benefit the people of Burma. When we met with the group from the Japanese foreign ministry, we conducted our discussions based on that belief.
Q: Some groups in France who are working for Burma’s democracy, as well as others who are interested in Burma, have been asking about the NLD’s May 20 statement regarding tourism in Burma. Does that statement rescind the NLD’s previous boycott on tourism? Or does it allow tourism with certain restrictions? And if so, what would these restrictions be? Also, many travel agencies operating abroad are now doing business directly with companies in Burma that are connected to the generals. What effect will this NLD statement have on the sanctions imposed by the U.S. and Europe on the generals and the companies connected with them?
A: The answers to all your questions are included in the NLD report on tourism. The website where you can obtain the report is www.nldburma.org.
Q: How can the monks living in Burma help to support your travels around the country to make speeches and gather support from the people? I would also like to know what you expect and wish for from the people during your travels.
A: We believe that getting in touch with the people is an important part of the National League for Democracy’s political activities. That is why we plan to travel around the country and get in touch with the masses. In our meetings with the people during the last 20 years or so, I have never encountered any riots or disturbances. The only groups that have disturbed the peace and stability of the country are those groups that have systematically planned to disrupt our tours by harshly attacking us in an uncivilized manner. That is why we would like to respectfully submit to the venerable monks that they teach and guide the people so that they may enthusiastically support our efforts.
Q: Some time ago, at a seminar held in Naypyidaw, the economist Professor U Myint submitted a paper on poverty eradication. Could you explain to us your thoughts on that paper?
A: Just as the Internet carries comments on and analyses of Dr. U Myint’s paper, it also carries Dr. U Myint’s responses. There are usually different views on papers dealing with academic thoughts and ideas. Dr. U Myint’s paper is 20 pages long, so it would take a long time for different views concerning it to be discussed. If I were to explain my own view in a simple manner, I would say that we have to examine to what extent such theories can actually be put into practice. It will not be enough to write just one paper to cover all the problems in our country and analyze them, let alone propose the necessary changes. That is why I think there have to be more wide-ranging discussions.
Q: The government of U Thein Sein is soliciting advice from experts for the benefit of the rural population. My opinion is that if advice is taken from real farmers who are actually doing the farmwork, then the farmers will truly benefit. What do you think of my idea?
A: Not long ago, an education program for farmers was held at the headquarters of the National League for Democracy. At that three-day training course, the experts who conducted the course gained a lot of knowledge from the farmers who attended. That is why I can say that what you have said is true, based on our experience.
Program broadcast in Burmese on July 15, 2011.
Copyright © 1998-2011 Radio Free Asia. All rights reserved. http://www.rfa.org/english/women/conversation-aungSanSuuKyi/conversation-07212011163619.html
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Saturday, 23 July 2011 07:00
China limits border crossings after Burmese mortar fire on the KIO capital
Kachin News Group [KNG]
China limited the hours for crossing at its key border gate at Laiza, the capital of the Kachin Independence Organization (KIO), beginning July 22, after the Burmese Army fired mortar rounds at KIO positions in the area, residents said.
Residents of the KIO capital have been prohibited from crossing into the Chinese-controlled area of Laiza by Chinese border authorities between 6 p.m. and 6 a.m., according to Laiza residents.
The Burmese Army’s Dawhpumyang-based Infantry Battalion No. 142 fired about 20 rounds from 120 mm mortars at the Alaw Bum-based Kachin Independence Army (KIA)’s Battalion No. 24, near Laiza, on July 22 between 8 p.m. and 9 p.m.
Laiza residents believe China is trying to block the movement of Burmese refugees into its territories by limiting the hours of crossing at the border gate.
Both Burmese and Chinese citizens in Laiza have been fleeing to Chinese territory after the mortar fire by Burmese troops, said witnesses.
Over 16,000 refugees have fled to KIO areas near the China border in eastern Kachin State because of the escalation of the two-month old civil war.
Currently, China has not accepted Kachin refugees and refugee camps on its soil.
http://www.kachinnews.com/news/1993-china-limits-border-crossings-after-burmese-mortar-fire-on-the-kio-capital.html
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AIPMC urges ASEAN to review Burma issue cautiously
By Zin Linn Jul 23, 2011 9:17PM UTC
The ASEAN Inter-Parliamentary Myanmar Caucus (AIPMC) released a press statement yesterday on Current Military Offensive and Rights Abuse by the Myanmar or Burma Army in Ethnic Areas -Monitor recent rape cases, reject Myanmar’s bid to chair ASEAN and cut financial lifelines for despots, AIPMC urges ASEAN.
The AIPMC highlighted about atrocities against civilians during Burma Army offensives against ethnic armed groups in Shan State and Kachin State. It also denounced Burmese soldiers’ sexual violence against women and girls, including gang-rape by order of high level officials.
The statement continues revealing warfare in North and Eastern Burma which has been worsening since last year’s election. Almost two-decade long ceasefire with the Shan State Army-North (SSA-N) and the Kachin Independence Army (KIA) have already been broken by the Burma Army.
According to Shan community based organizations, the statement says, 65 battles have taken place in Shan State over the last three weeks and now thousands people are displaced inside northern Shan State.
In Kachin State, more than 16,000 refugees fled to China from escalating fighting across ten townships since early June, according to the Kachin Women’s Association Thailand (KWAT). In both areas, Burmese soldiers committed systematic sexual violence against women and girls, quoting local sources AIPMC said.
AIPMC also underlined the main cause of the combating in those ethnic areas. The ongoing battles are closely linked to the Burmese government’s economic interests in the resource rich ethnic areas, including hydropower dams on the Salween and Irrawaddy Rivers and trans-national oil and gas pipelines across northern Shan State, the statement criticizes.
It needs to clear out resistance forces and seize control of these areas to proceed with these projects. AIPMC pointed out that Burma has had no mechanism prepared to watch the impact of such projects for local people. Instead, they have taken control over ethnic areas and get rid of ethnic armed groups, rather than seeking a solution to essential political problems in the country.
Severe human rights violations have already occurred concerning these projects, including forced labor, land confiscations, torture, murder and rapes, causing an influx of refugees to neighboring countries, AIPMC said.
“Only the military rulers of Myanmar and their business cronies will benefit from these projects, which are built on the lives, blood and tear of ordinary civilians”, said Kraisak Choonhavan, AIPMC Senior Advisor in Thailand.
The current civil war comes on top of an already critical political situation in Burma. There has been no meaningful political progress since the elections. Besides, 2,000 political prisoners continue to languish in notorious prisons of Burma.
“We call on the Myanmar Army to immediately end rights abuses, particularly the systematic use of rape as a weapon to suppress ethnic women and to urgently engage in peace talks with ethnic armed groups”, said Eva Kusuma Sundari, Member of Indonesian Parliament and President of the AIPMC.
“The challenge is on ASEAN to live up to its responsibilities to protect the people of Myanmar. A meeting between the ASEAN Foreign Ministerial Meeting and the UN is needed to stop this human rights crisis and its negative impacts on neighboring countries and regional stability. The international community should press upon ASEAN the urgency of such a meeting”, she emphasizes.
AIPMC calls on the ASEAN Intergovernmental Commission on Human Rights (AICHR) to monitor these rape cases closely, and ASEAN and its member states must turn down Burma’s application to be the bloc’s chair in 2014, until and unless the government takes genuine steps towards ending human rights violations in the country.
Hence, AIPMC warns that ASEAN members states need paying attention to the repeated calls by the UN Special Rapporteur on human rights in Burma (Myanmar), Tomas Ojea Quintana, for the creation of a UN-mandated Commission of Inquiry (CoI) in Burma.
It also reminds that prodemocracy icon Aung San Suu Kyi has already supported CoI and altogether sixteen countries have already endorsed the establishment of such a CoI.
Finally, AIPMC calls Thailand and other investors to reassess their investments in Burma and discontinue financial lifelines that keep brutal and self-serving despots in power.
http://asiancorrespondent.com/60739/aipmc-urges-asean-to-review-burma-issue-cautiously/
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STRAITS TIMES: Jul 23, 2011
Suu Kyi to meet Myanmar minister: official
YANGON - MYANMAR'S democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi will meet a minister on Monday in her first dialogue with the country's new civilian leadership, a government official told AFP on Saturday.
Ms Suu Kyi has frequently called for dialogue with the government since her release from house arrest just days after last year's November elections, which were marred by claims of cheating and the exclusion of her party.
'Aung San Suu Kyi and Aung Kyi will meet at Sein Lei Kan Tha state guest house on Monday afternoon. It will be the first meeting between them after the new government was formed,' a Myanmar government official told AFP, without elaborating.
Mr Aung Kyi, who is currently Myanmar's labour minister, was in charge of relations between the military junta and Ms Suu Kyi under Myanmar's previous regime.
The pair - who are not related - have met on several occasions, including in late 2009 when the Nobel Peace Prize winner was still under house arrest.
Ms Suu Kyi's National League for Democracy (NLD) were unable to confirm the meeting on Saturday. 'We have not been told anything yet,' spokesman Nyan Win told AFP. – AFP http://www.straitstimes.com/BreakingNews/SEAsia/Story/STIStory_694004.html
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Canada opens relations with Burma, sanctions continue
The Canadian Press
Date: Saturday Jul. 23, 2011 11:09 AM ET
TORONTO — Canada has begun a strategic engagement with Myanmar that includes an exchange of ambassadors, but Ottawa has no plans to lift the economic sanctions imposed against the country anytime soon, Foreign Affairs Minister John Baird said Saturday.
Baird, speaking from Bali, Indonesia, where he attended a regional security forum this week, said the "limited engagement" was focused exclusively on human rights.
He said he raised the issue during a meeting with Myanmar's foreign minister in Bali and that he had urged the government to release thousands of political prisoners from jail.
Canada imposed economic sanctions against Myanmar, also known as Burma, in 2007 because of its complete disregard for human rights.
Myanmar held elections late last year, officially handing power to a civilian administration after a half-century of military rule.
Pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi was released from house arrest. But many see the changes as cosmetic and believe the army will continue to hold sway.
"I underlined the significance concern that the government of Canada and Canadians have with Aung San Suu Kyi's ability to be mobile in the country and highlighted the ongoing concerns about her safety and her security," Baird said.
The minister also held talks with his Australian and New Zealand counterparts.
The three foreign ministers reaffirmed the long-standing relations between their countries and committed to enhanced co-operation across the full range of international challenges.
"I raised the human rights situations in Burma and North Korea with my counterparts," Baird said.
"We also looked at human smuggling and illegal migration and reaffirmed that we remain committed to combatting these and other abuses of our respective immigration systems."
http://www.ctv.ca/CTVNews/Politics/20110723/canada-opens-burma-diplomatic-relations-110723/
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Canada Begins Engagement With Myanmar: Foreign Affairs Minister John Baird
First Posted: 7/23/11 10:48 AM ET Updated: 7/23/11 10:54 AM ET
THE CANADIAN PRESS -- TORONTO - Foreign Affairs Minister John Baird says Canada has begun a strategic engagement with Myanmar that includes an exchange of ambassadors.
He says the "limited engagement" is focused exclusively on human rights and that Ottawa is urging the government to release thousands of political prisoners from jail.
But the minister ruled out an early end to the economic sanctions imposed against Myanmar, also known as Burma, in 2007.
Baird was speaking from Bali, Indonesia, where he attended a regional security forum this week.
The minister says he raised the issue of human rights during a meeting with his counterpart from Myanmar.
Myanmar held elections late last year, officially handing power to a civilian administration after a half-century of military rule.
http://www.huffingtonpost.ca/2011/07/23/canada-begins-engagement-_n_907664.html
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Suu Kyi to meet Myanmar minister
AFP – 39 mins ago
Myanmar's democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi, seen here on July 19, will meet a minister on Monday in her first dialogue with the country's new civilian leadership, a government official told AFP
Myanmar's democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi, seen here on July 19, will meet a minister …
Myanmar's democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi will meet a minister on Monday in her first dialogue with the country's new civilian leadership, a government official told AFP on Saturday.
Suu Kyi has frequently called for dialogue with the government since her release from house arrest just days after last year's November elections, which were marred by claims of cheating and the exclusion of her party.
"Aung San Suu Kyi and Aung Kyi will meet at Sein Lei Kan Tha state guest house on Monday afternoon. It will be the first meeting between them after the new government was formed," a Myanmar government official told AFP, without elaborating.
Aung Kyi, who is currently Myanmar's labour minister, was in charge of relations between the military junta and Suu Kyi under Myanmar's previous regime.
The pair -- who are not related -- have met on several occasions, including in late 2009 when the Nobel Peace Prize winner was still under house arrest.
Suu Kyi's National League for Democracy (NLD) were unable to confirm the meeting on Saturday.
"We have not been told anything yet," spokesman Nyan Win told AFP.
Journalists have been invited to cover some parts of the meeting, but will not be present during the talks themselves.
Suu Kyi has this month tested the boundaries of her freedom, with her first visit outside Yangon and, after her return, leading hundreds of supporters in memorials for her father, Myanmar's independence hero General Aung San.
News of the talks comes on the same day that US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton urged Myanmar's rulers to make "concrete, measurable progress" towards meeting the international community's demands for reform.
In an address to foreign ministers at an Asian security forum in Indonesia, Clinton suggested first steps should include "meaningful and inclusive dialogue" with the opposition and the release of more than 2,000 political prisoners.
The US House of Representatives on Wednesday approved a renewal of sanctions on Myanmar, first passed in 2003 in response to alleged rights violations and failure to adopt democratic reforms.
Suu Kyi's party, which won a landslide election victory two decades ago that was never recognised by the junta, was disbanded by the military rulers last year because it boycotted the latest vote, saying the rules were unfair.
http://news.yahoo.com/suu-kyi-meet-myanmar-minister-144435225.html
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Academics: Thailand doesn’t need Burma’s coal
Friday, 22 July 2011 12:02 S.H.A.N.
Academic activists at yesterday’s public forum in Chiangrai to discuss social and environmental impacts coming from the Mongkok lignite coal mines and a lignite-fired powerplant there across the border said Thailand could do without resorting to coal for its much needed electric power.
Supakij Nantaworakarn from Bangkok-based Healthy Public Policy Foundation argued, “With ample and practical options to use power from the sun, wind and biogas, Thailand doesn’t need Mongkok.”
If the projects were allowed to go on, he said, the people on this side of the border can expect 1,500 tons of dust, 102 kg of mercury, 29 million tons of greenhouse gas and megatons of sulpha dioxide and nitrogen dioxide each year destroying their environment especially the Kok river, which originates in Burma’s Shan State but flows through Thailand’s Mae Ai and Chiangrai’s Mueng districts before draining itself in the Mekong.
“We won’t drink mineral water (from the Kok)” is the slogan of the public campaign led by elected local administrative organizations.
Saraburi Coal, a subsidiary of Thailand’s construction giant Italian-Thai, received a 30 year concession in 2008 from Burma to mine for lignite in Mongkok subtownship of Monghsat township, opposite Chiangrai’s Mae Fa Luang district. It later received approval to develop coal-fired power plant in Mongkok for export of 369 MW of electricity to Thailand.
“Let us not celebrate the 750th anniversary of the founding of Chiangrai (in 2012) by drinking mineral water (from the Kok),” said Montree Chantawong, known environmentalist, after explaining how mercury would seep through the earth to wells used by the communities.
He was supported by Dr Kan Thongkaem na Ayuddhaya from Chiangrai’s Prachanukhroa Hospital.
The public meeting held at Chiangrai’s Wat Jed Yod temple was presided by Ms Tuenjai Deetes, another known environmentalist and politician.
More than a thousand people at the project site have been removed by military authorities after giving them 20,000 kyat ($25) per acre for their land. Villagers say it would take 3 years to develop a new paddy field. “Elections have brought us nothing,” complained a farmer who, like many others, has decided to seek his future in Thailand.
The Thai campaign against the project began in July 2009 when a group of Thai villagers on the border wrote a complaint letter to the Thai National Human Rights Commission and Thai Lawyers’ Council. A year later it was joined up by community leaders across Chiangrai who protested against the project. http://www.shanland.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=3871:academics-thailand-doesnt-need-burmas-coal&catid=90:environment&Itemid=287
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Despite gold price rise globally, Burmese traders can not increase price
Friday, 22 July 2011 21:59 Te Te
New Delhi (Mizzima) – An order by the Burmese government is preventing gold traders from speculating despite record high prices on the global market, gold merchants in Rangoon said.
Previously, the gold price in Burma depended on the price fluctuations in the global market.
Gold traders in Burma are not able to speculate based on global prices because of an order by the government, according to traders. Photo: Mizzima
Gold traders in Burma are not able to speculate based on global prices because of an order by the government, according to traders. Photo: Mizzima
However, in early July the gold price on the global market was US$1,480 per ounce (1 ounce= 1.76 ticals); on July 19, the price reached a record high of US$1,602. Since then, the Burmese government has forbidden gold merchants from speculating on gold prices.
The current gold price in Burma, 662,500 kyat (about US$ 828) per tical (about 16 grams), is 10,000 kyat lower than the price on the global market. If the Burmese government had not forbidden gold merchants from speculating, the gold price could reach 680,000 kyat per tical, according to estimates by gold merchants in Rangoon. Now, despite the stable price, gold trading is sluggish, according to sources.
“Earlier when the price in the global market was increased, the price in the local market was increased too. Now the merchants can not increase,” said a gold shop owner from Shwebontha Road in Pabedon Township. “To control the price, the authorities do not allow 'laypakkar' [‘Laypakkar’ is a method for speculation in which gold brokers and merchants estimate the possible fluctuation of local gold prices based on the possible fluctuations in the gold price in the global market and then buy gold by making a promise that they will make payment later]. Because Myanmar [Burma] currency is strengthening, people do not want to buy gold.”
On July 21, 7 Day News reported that Rangoon Region gold businessmen’s association secretary Win Myint said that the authorities told gold merchants not to make “laypakkar” and speculate in the local gold market. Mizzima tried to contact the association, but could get no response.
A member of the gold businessmen’s association said on the condition of anonymity:
“If there is ‘lakpakkar,’ there will be considerable fluctuations. If the price in the global market is likely to be increased, the price is usually increased in our trading, too. The speculators often trade about several viss (1 viss = nearly 1.6 kg) of gold and they often pay the following morning,” the member said.
He continued, “The price increase is not just because of 'lakpakkar' (speculation); it is also because of fluctuations in the dollar price and gold price in the global market. If the gold price on the global market is increased, nothing can control the local price not to be increased. Otherwise, people will sell gold (to other countries) via border areas.”
The gold price on the global market was US$1,588 on Friday. In Burma, the high quality gold price is 664,500 kyat per tical; the lower quality gold price is 663,000 kyat per tical.
Now, the exchange rate for one US dollar has fallen to below 800 kyat per dollar, which is another reason that the gold price in the Burmese market did not increase. Because of the relatively low gold price in Burma, it is likely that some people sell gold to neighbouring countries, especially China, through border areas, traders said.
On Friday, the currency exchange rate was 785 kyat per 1 US dollar. http://www.mizzima.com/business/5655-despite-gold-price-rise-globally-burmese-traders-can-not-increase-price.html
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Saturday, July 23, 2011
News & Articles on Burma-Friday, 22 July, 2011-UZL
News & Articles on Burma
Friday, 22 July, 2011
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Burma Ruled by a Brutal Government: Congressmen
Chiang Mai Office of Ethnic Armed Groups Shut Down
Burmese Military Reinforces Troops near KIO Bases
Don’t Tread on the KIA
Steven Law’s Rising Empire
Does Burma launch colonial war in Kachin state?
Bridges blown, army shells Kachin base
Thai rescue team locates downed helicopter in Myanmar; all dead
Hillary Clinton: ASEAN must push Myanmar on reforms
Clinton warns Burma of sanctions
Chinese FM meets with counterparts, ASEAN secretary-general on cooperation
Myanmar, Japan to promote tourism in face of arrival drop
Myanmar Currency Crunch Cripples Exporters, Risks Crisis
Egat urged to scrap Burma project
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Burma Ruled by a Brutal Government: Congressmen
By LALIT K JHA Friday, July 22, 2011
WASHINGTON—Despite the formation of a new civilian government after last year’s elections, recent developments in Burma only indicate that the country continues to be ruled by one of the world’s most brutal regimes, several influential US lawmakers have said in arguing for increased sanctions on this Southeast Asian nation.
“The sanctions are critically important to keeping the pressure on the Burmese junta. The government continues to have one of the worst human rights records in the world and routinely violates the rights of Burmese citizens, including the systematic use of rape as a weapon of war, extrajudicial killings, arbitrary arrests and detention, torture and child labor,” New York Congressman Pete King said on the floor of the House.
“Moreover, the Burmese regime has more child soldiers than any other country and has destroyed more than 3,700 ethnic villages, displaced approximately 2,000,000 people, more than 600,000 of which are internally displaced, and has taken nearly 2,000 political prisoners,” he argued during a discussion on Burma in the US House of Representatives on Wednesday.
King also urged the Obama administration to call for a UN Commission of Inquiry on Burma to investigate war crimes and crimes against humanity. “This Commission is necessary to prevent further killings and to encourage a meaningful political dialogue,” he said.
New Jersey Congressman Rush Holt said in the years following the coup in the early 1960s, the authoritarian regime impoverished the nation and brutalized its people, a pattern that persists today.
“For more than 20 years, the United States government has sought to use its influence to try to create conditions for a restoration of democracy and the rule of law in Burma. One tool has been the use of sanctions,” he said.
“Last November, Burmese elections were clearly illegitimate and not a free expression of the will of the Burmese people. But the continuing international pressure on and scrutiny of the junta may be having some tangible effects,” Holt said.
“As the International Crisis Group noted earlier this year, two senior junta leaders have resigned since the elections, and there is some evidence that pressure has eased on some of the minority ethnic groups in the country,” he said.
There is no question that Burma is ruled by one of the world’s most brutal governments, said Congressman Joe Crowley. “Over the past year, we have seen ongoing abuses committed by the Burmese military, including rapes, torture and killings,” he said.
Just last week, Human Rights Watch released a report documenting how villagers are subjected to summary executions, torture and being used as human shields during conflict. “The women in Burma live in constant fear of rapes by soldiers of their own military. For the leaders of the Burmese military, rape is a tactic of war—one used to torment and to intimidate entire populations, not just their immediate victims,” Crowley said.
“In fact, just two weeks ago, on July 5, the Burmese soldiers carried out four more rapes against ethnic civilians. The innocent victims were of all different ages. One of those victims was as young as 12 years of age. That’s right. A 12-year-old girl was raped by a member of the Burmese military. As a result of thousands of brutal rapes and other abuses, Burmese villagers continue to flee their homes into the jungle where they live as refugees or internally displaced people,” Crowley said.
Observing that the plight facing the people of Burma remains terrible, Congressman Joe Pitts from Pennsylvania said the ruling party in Burma continues to use the rule of law and government apparatus to deprive minority groups of their human rights and their lives, and it does so with impunity.
“The regime’s human rights violations continue to be horrific. The regime in Burma is responsible for committing virtually every human rights violation imaginable. The atrocities perpetrated by the regime range from the use of rape as a weapon of terror, the recruitment of child soldiers, ethnic cleansing, forced labor, political detention, and the list goes on,” he said.
Pitts said he has received firsthand reports in which detail the dictatorship’s use of ethnic minorities as human landmine sweepers. “Over 1 million refugees and 500,000 internally displaced peoples have been forced to flee their homes, and 750,000 of the country’s inhabitants remain stateless.
Indicative of the times, the regime has now turned to censorship of the Internet, as well as that of individual e-mail accounts and social networking sites, to block the dissemination of evidence related to the atrocities,” he said.
“The Burmese government must realize that such attempts to hide its record of abuse, as well as its dishonest elections and mock constitutional reforms, cannot cover up the junta’s war against its own people. Such a record only demonstrates the regime’s illegitimacy,” Pitts said.
Congressman Jim McDermott said that in light of the unchanged political reality in Burma, the renewal of America’s ban on Burmese imports could not be more urgent. “We must send a message to Burma’s new rulers, who turned out to be the same old rulers, that empty promises of democratic reform are unacceptable,” he said.
“Now, there are some who question whether we should maintain our import ban following Burma’s election and the formal dissolution of the military junta. Even our European allies have begun to rethink their strategy as EU travel and financial restrictions have been lifted on certain officials in the new government,” McDermott said.
“The problem with that approach, Mr. Speaker, is that meaningful reform has yet to take place in Burma. By opening our borders to Burmese imports, we would only strengthen and enrich the same old regime that maintains a stranglehold on civic and family life in Burma. According to the UN, the new government has failed to make any significant progress on land confiscation, forced labor, the internal displacement of people, extrajudicial killings, and sexual violence against women. The Obama administration affirms this view,” the Congressman said.
“Burma’s regime is one of the world’s most repressive and continues to oppress democratic movements and humanitarianism,” alleged Congressman Charles Boustany. “The recent election does not represent any kind of shift in domestic Burmese politics. In fact, the political situation in Burma and for the Burmese people has not changed at all,” he said, adding that the human rights situation is no better.
http://www.irrawaddy.org/article.php?art_id=21740
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Chiang Mai Office of Ethnic Armed Groups Shut Down
By LAWI WENG Friday, July 22, 2011
The Chiang Mai, Thailand office of the United Nationalities Federal Council (UNFC), a 12 member association of Burma’s ethnic armed groups, has been shut down after Thai authorities ordered it closed in early July.
“A dozen Thai officials came to our office while we were having lunch. They included police, immigration and military intelligence,” said an ethnic Mon leader who is a UNFC official. “They ordered us to shut down the office, and we have been closed since then.”
“We believed that pressure came from the Burmese government,” he said. “We were almost arrested when the authorities were at the office. Fortunately, we called some military intelligence officers who we knew, and then they did not make trouble for us.”
In the almost twenty days the office has been closed, the ethnic leaders have been forced to stay at an alternate base, according to another source.
Previously, the ethnic armed leaders from the Kachin Independent Organization (KIO) and the New Mon State Party (NMSP) worked mostly at the office, while leaders from the other ethnic groups were based along the border. Together, they were attempting to develop a plan for a future federal army.
The UNFC is an umbrella group of Burmese ethnic armed groups, which include major ethnic armed groups such as the Karen National Union, the KIO, the Karenni National Progressive Party, the NMSP, the Shan State Army and the Chin National Front.
The UNFC was formed early this year and the office was set up afterward.
The ethnic armed leaders said that it is difficult for them to travel in Thailand while the new government is being set up.
Early in May, Thailand's National Security Council banned a Burmese pro-democracy event in Chiang Mai following a complaint from Naypyidaw, according to Burmese pro-democracy activists.
Other Burmese events in Chiang Mai, including a celebration of Aung San Suu Kyi's birthday on June 19, have also been banned by the Thai authorities.
Burmese exile groups have enjoyed relative freedom in Chiang Mai in recent years, but there was reported harassment and repression under the administration of former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra in the early 2000s. http://www.irrawaddy.org/article.php?art_id=21744
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Burmese Military Reinforces Troops near KIO Bases
By SAW YAN NAING Friday, July 22, 2011
The Kachin Independence Organization (KIO) said that more Burmese army trucks and military river vessels were headed toward its bases following rumors that the government troops would attack the KIO’s headquarters in Laiza.
La Nan, the joint-secretary of the KIO, told The Irrawaddy on Friday, “We can say it is a risky condition. We heard many army trucks were headed to Momauk Township. Military vessels on the Irrawaddy River are also headed to Bhamo Town.”
Last night, Burmese government troops from Infantry Battalion 142 fired 20 mortars, including 81 mm mortars, at the Kachin Independence Army’s (KIA) Battalion 24 under Brigade 5. The KIA is the military wing of the KIO.
To cut off government troop supplies, the KIA troops destroyed a 60-foot-long bridge in Waingmaw Township two days ago.
La Nan said that he heard that Burmese air force preparations and exercises are taking place in Myitkyina, the capital of Kachin State, adding that tanks are also patrolling the capital.
The Thailand-based Kachin News Group (KNG) reported that the government is preparing to begin a full-scale offensive against KIA bases located in Kachin State and northern Shan State.
Fuel, arms and ammunition have been stockpiled at the Northern Regional Military Command, located in Myitkyina, after being transported from Mandalay by boat and train, according to the KNG report.
Meanwhile, the Burmese government, along with its Karen Border Guard Force, launched attacks, which included 81 mm mortar shelling, against the Democratic Karen Buddhist Army (DKBA), a renegade Karen armed group, in Myawaddy Township in southern Karen State on Thursday.
Local villagers are worried about further fighting between the government troops and the DKBA, which has the backing of the Karen National Union (KNU), in southern Karen state.
“The fighting is likely to escalate,” said Brig-Gen Johnny, the commander of Brigade 7 of the Karen National Liberation Army, the KNU’s military wing. http://www.irrawaddy.org/article.php?art_id=21746
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Don’t Tread on the KIA
By BA KAUNG Friday, July 22, 2011
KIA representatives during a peace talk. (Photo: The Irrawaddy)
LAIZA, Kachin State – “When we were young, we stepped on jade stones when we walked, found gold nuggets when we panned the rivers and saw tall teak trees when we passed by the forests,” said the Rev Lazum Tuja, a middle-aged ethnic Kachin and Christian priest, in a March sermon.
“But now, all of this is gone from Kachin State, mostly to China,” he told his congregation. “Since we are being looted of all our possessions, this is the dark age of the Kachin people.”
Lazum Tuja’s emotional sermon reflected the frustrations of his flock in the resource-rich Kachin State of northern Burma. Over the past two decades, the Kachin people have seen the depletion of their natural resources due to the growth of massive development projects conducted by Chinese companies with the support of the Burmese government. They have also experienced the consequent displacement of large numbers of local people and negative environmental impact on their communities.
Most of this has occurred since 1994, when the Burmese army signed a ceasefire agreement with the Kachin Independence Army (KIA), the second strongest ethnic armed group in Burma with an estimated 4,000 troops. The KIA has been engaged in an armed struggle for Kachin autonomy since 1961.
During the ceasefire, the Kachin Independence Organization (KIO), the political wing of the KIA, put its emphasis on infrastructure development in Kachin State and temporarily set aside its aspirations for autonomy at the request of the former military regime, which argued that political issues could be resolved once the new “civilian” government was in place.
On the surface, the ceasefire brought relative peace to a region previously scourged first by fighting between the Allied forces and the Japanese Imperial Army during World War II, and later between the Burmese army and the Kachin rebels, who are renowned in Burma for their fighting skills.
But it was peace without a meaningful political solution, and so the Kachin people were in a powerless position when the Burmese government began forcing them to relocate en masse without any proper compensation—leaving behind their livelihoods, culture and ancestral homes—to make way for Chinese state-owned companies such as China Power Investment to build massive hydropower dams across Kachin State. To make matters worse, much of the electricity generated from these dams will not be for the consumption of the Kachin people, but for export to neighboring China, and the revenues from the projects will to go into Naypyidaw’s coffers.
As a result, there has been widespread local resentment against the Chinese-led dam projects in Kachin State, the most prominent being the Myitsone Dam—one of the largest hydropower dam projects in the world which is currently under construction at the confluence of the Irrawaddy River. To add fuel to the fire, there has was has been escalating tension between the Burmese army and the KIA since 2009, when Naypyidaw issued its order for the KIA to join the government’s Border Guard Force (BGF).
The BGF plan was intended to place ethnic militias like the KIA and the United Wa State Army (UWSA), the country’s strongest ethnic armed group, under the central command of the Burmese army. The Burmese government set a number of deadlines for the KIA and UWSA to accept the BGF, but each repeatedly rejected the plan.
In Kachin State, the expiration of the BGF deadlines loomed large not only on the military front, but also on the political front. Kachin political parties were banned from joining the election on grounds that their leaders were linked with the KIA, whereas the ethnic political representatives from Shan, Mon and Arakan States were allowed to participate and won seats in the new Parliament.
When the election brought forth a “civilian” government led by former military generals, it was clear to the Kachin leaders that the new government would not make the political compromises that the former junta chiefs had led them to expect. In addition, the mostly Christian Kachin population were saddled with a Buddhist Kachin chief minister in their state, a man who represents the government-backed United Solidarity Development Party that controls Parliament.
Soon after the election, the Burmese government ratcheted-up the pressure on the KIA, forcing it to shut down its liaison offices in urban areas in Kachin State and then ordering the withdrawal of KIA troops from the area near the hydropower plant that Chinese interests are constructing on the Tapaing River, a tributary of the Irrawaddy, in Bhamo District bordering China’s Yunnan Province. KIA officials were indignant about being ordered to leave areas where they have been active for decades, and took it as a sign that the Burmese army was poised to launch an all-out offensive against its troops.
On June 9, after the KIA refused to move away from the areas near the hydropower plant—which is also only a short distance from China’s strategic oil pipeline running from the Bay of Bengal to Yunnan Province—the two sides exchanged gunfire near the plant, effectively ending the 17-year-old ceasefire and forcing Chinese workers to return home. Further armed clashes ensued in the following days, with bomb explosions reported in major towns in Kachin State.
Analysts believe, however, that this latest conflict—which occurred only a couple weeks after Burma and China announced the establishment of a “comprehensive strategic cooperative partnership” during Burmese President Thein Sein’s visit to Beijing in March—could not have come as a shock to China, as happened in 2009 when the Burmese government launched a surprise offensive against a small Kokang ethnic militia that drove at least 30,000 war refugees into China.
In 2009, there were not many Chinese investments in the Kokang area and China publicly reprimanded Naypyidaw for creating instability at its border. But this time, China seemed almost looking for a fight, or at least was not adverse to one, and a week after the conflict began it merely called for “restraint on both sides.”
Dr. Zarni, a Burmese visiting fellow at the London School of Economics, described the conflict as “a war of business which transcends ethnicity.”
“This has very much to do with territorial expansion and development projects by China and the Burmese army, which only represents the Burmese ruling elite, not the Burmese public,” he said.
This piece is a summary of Ba Kaung’s article that appears in The Irrawaddy’s latest e-magazine. To read the full version visit: http://issuu.com/irrawaddy/docs/irr_vol.19no2_june2011_issuu/10?viewMode=magazine&mode=embed
http://www.irrawaddy.org/article.php?art_id=21743
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Steven Law’s Rising Empire
By WAI MOE Friday, July 22, 2011
Chinese businessmen are currently the richest in Burma—a fact that obviously doesn't sit well with the Burmese business community.
In a recent interview with an Italian journalist, Tay Za, one of Burma’s US-sanctioned tycoons, complained that “Too many Chinese have taken our citizenship and are now boasting they are the richest. But they’re not pure Burmese.”
One of Tay Za’s leading rivals is Tun Myint Naing, also known as Steven Law, 53, who has also been a target of US sanctions since early 2008.
Rangoon businessmen say that Law, a Kokang Chinese, has even surpassed Tay Za as Burma's wealthiest man thanks to his involvement in a number of mega projects run by the Chinese state-owned corporations, including a Sino-Burmese oil and gas pipeline project, a deep-sea port in Kyaukpyu, and the Myitsone and Tasang hydro-power dams.
Most notably, Law’s Asia World Company has been working closely with Chinese companies that own an 80 percent share of of Burma’s hydro-power projects. The Myitsone project alone is estimated to be worth US $3.6 billion. Total Chinese total investment in Burma since March 2010 is $8.17 billion, much of it connected in some way to Asia World.
Law did especially well when Vice President Tin Aung Myint Oo was the chairman of Burma’s Trade Policy Council, a body that has been disbanded since a new government was formed in March. The two men have been close since the mid-1990s, when then Brig-Gen Tin Aung Myint Oo was commander of the Military Operations Command 1 in Kyaukme, Shan State.
According to intelligence officials, the relationship between the two men began during the construction of the Mandalay-Kyaukme-Lashio-Muse road. At the time, military officials described Law’s family as “good givers”.
Law's father, drug kingpin and militia leader Lo Hsing Han,76, played a key role in cementing ties between Law and the Burmese generals.
“Among his children, Lo Hsing Han said that Steven Law was the best at doing business. That's why he chose him to deal with the ruling generals and to run the family's business interests in the cities. However, the other sons are also involved in secret businesses,” said a former Burmese intelligence officer who knows about the family's files, speaking on condition of anonymity.
“Lo Hsing Han is still well respected in the Kokang-Chinese business community. His other sons are reportedly based in Thailand, Singapore and Taiwan doing business. In accordance with Chinese tradition, Lo Hsing Han is seen as the godfather of the family business,” he added.
Law's involvement with the Burmese generals has not been limited to doing business, however. He also acted as a broker during ceasefire talks between the Burmese junta and Chinese-backed Kokang commanders of the Communist Party of Burma in 1989, when ethnic commanders revolted against the party.
Two decades later, Law continues to act as an important intermediary for Burma's generals. Because of his close ties to Chinese officials in Beijing, he accompanied President Thein Sein and his delegation to China in late May.
A Burmese official on the trip said that during the China visit, Law was often beside Thein Sein, chatting with the Burmese president. He added that Law sometimes acted as an interpreter between Thein Sein and Chinese officials, even when there were official interpreters present.
According to the Kachin Independence Army (KIA), a former ceasefire group that resumed fighting with the Burmese army in June, Law has paid a handsome price to earn the generals' trust.
“Based on our information from businessmen, Snr-Gen Than Shwe and Tin Aung Myint Oo receive 25 and 20 percent, respectively, of Asia World’s broker fees from Chinese companies in the hydro-power project deals in Kachin State,” said La Nan, joint-secretary of the KIA's political wing, the Kachin Independence Organization .
Law also enjoys other privileges, including occasional appearances in Burma's state-run media, often in the presence of Tin Aung Myint Oo.
Most recently, he was seen in a photo that ran alongside a report on the visit of Laotian Prime Minister Thongsing Thammavong to Rangoon's Ahlone Port on July 13. The port, built by Asia World, was showcased during the visit, giving Law a chance to build commercial ties not only with Naypyidaw and Beijing, but also with Vientiane.
http://www.irrawaddy.org/article.php?art_id=21748
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Does Burma launch colonial war in Kachin state?
opednews.com/ July 21, 2011 at 12:03:08
By Zin Linn
The fighting between Burma's armed forces and the Kachin Independence Army (KIA) increased soon after the Kachin people abandoned new ceasefire talks with the government at Laiza on July 12 and 13.
All at once, the war has gradually broadened in three main areas in Kachin State, the Sinbo area in Mohnyin Township, Manmaw (Bhamo) District and Waingmaw Township, referring local people Kachin News Group said.
On July 16, when government troops tried to penetrate into Laiza, the KIA's restricted area, the fighting broke out. It was the largest battle of the week, said the Kachin News Group's reporter in Laiza.
KIA captured seven Burmese soldiers, including a captain after two days of fighting at Hka Ya, near the Kachin headquarters at Laiza, in Burma's Northern Kachin State. The captive soldiers are from Infantry Battalion No. 21, based in Myitkyina. They were captured with 19 weapons, including two machine guns, a 60 mm mortar and the main military communication device, according to KIA officials in Laiza.
Fighting has happened in another location in Kachin State close to the Shan State border since July 16, a local resident said. A Burmese Army deputy battalion commander and three soldiers were killed during the conflict with the KIA in Manje Township, in Manmaw District, in Kachin State, KIA officials said.
The Burmese soldiers were from the Light Infantry Battalion No. 348 based in Mong Mit. They were killed during fighting with the KIA Battalion 12, led by Major Zau Gam, which is based in Manje (Mansi) Township, southern Manmaw (Bhamo) District, according to KIA officials in Laiza headquarters. The KIA also captured three guns carried by dead soldiers, KIA officials said.
A KIA soldier was killed yesterday by Burmese troops led by the dead-deputy commander, after the KIA fighter was captured with his gun, according to KIA Battalion 12.
Besides, the Burmese government has been driving a wedge into ethnic factions. The government deploys quite a lot of Kachin soldiers from pro-government militias and its Border Guard Force (BGF), in the civil war against the KIA in Kachin State and Northern Shan State, sources from Kachin militias and the BGF said.
Sixty militiamen from the Rebellion Resistance Force (RRF), based in Hkawng-lang-hpu, in Puta-O District, led by Tanggu Dang, a.k.a. Ah Dang, have been deployed to KIA strongholds near the China border, in eastern Kachin State, since June, sources close to the militia group said.
According to sources close to the Burmese Army, the Burmese government is going to start a full-blown maneuver against the minority Kachin army in the country's north after losing recent battles.
In Myitkyina, the capital of Kachin State, tanks and war planes are preparing for the offensive against the KIA, which has bases around Kachin State and Northern Shan State, said Myitkyina residents. Fuel, arms and ammunition have been stockpiled at the Northern Regional Military Command, according to local military observers.
Burmese troops are currently in action in eight townships - Mohnyin, Myitkyina, Waimaw (Waingmaw), N'mawk (Momauk), Manje (Mansi), Sumprabum, Hpakant and Danai - said KIA officials in Laiza headquarters.
The KIA's 4th Brigade and its five battalions are based in Muse, Kutkai and Lashio In Northern Shan State. Burmese troop has been reinforcing significantly in KIA 4th Brigade's area since early July, as said by local witnesses.
According to Burmese military sources, on July 18, high level military summit was held in Naypyidaw, Burma's capital, followed by a regional military meeting at Northern Regional Command, in Myitkyina, the next day.
The key agenda of discussion in the two meetings concentrated on the offensive against the KIA and all remaining minority armed groups which rejected transforming into the government- controlled Border Guard Force (BGF), added the sources. It was alleged that the war plan was ordered by two top military leaders, Senior General Than Shwe and Vice-Senior Maung Aye.
In hope of setting up political dialogue, the KIO signed a ceasefire agreement with the then junta on February 24, 1994 and supported the military-favored 2008 constitution. However, no political dialogue happened in the 17-year ceasefire time and the KIO was squeezed transforming into the government-controlled Border Guard Force (BGF) before the November 7 election.
The latest series of armed clashes in Kachin state have prompted observers to believe that purposeful war in the border regions may not be avoidable.
The Thein Sein government seems to be unenthusiastic to end political and civil contradictions in ethnic regions. So, it is clear that Thein Sein government is not heading toward democracy. Instead it is attempting to colonize the ethnic states ferociously.
http://www.opednews.com/articles/Does-Burma-launch-colonial-by-Zin-Linn-110721-53.html
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Bridges blown, army shells Kachin base
By DVB
Published: 22 July 2011
Refugees are seen fleeing their homes near the China border shortly after fighting broke out in Kachin state in early June (Reuters)
Fighting near the Laiza headquarters of the Kachin Independence Army (KIA) has intensified overnight following warnings yesterday that Burmese troops were closing in on the group’s stronghold on the China border.
Yesterday evening a volley of artillery was fired at a hill around a mile from Laiza where a KIA battalion is based. Reports earlier on Thursday said that a column of Burmese soldiers had reached a village some four miles from the headquarters, but that distance now appears to have lessened.
Sources in Laiza told DVB that around 20 shells were fired in a 10-minute burst beginning just after 8pm yesterday, and continued into the night. Locals are said to be preparing makeshift bomb shelters, reportedly following a warning from Chinese officials to Kachin families living along the border that air strikes by the Burmese army may be on the cards.
A Laiza resident said that people “have already begun to flee or are preparing to flee [the town] in case the shells land there”.
Another bridge along the highway connecting the Kachin state capital of Myitkyina to Bhamo, where the KIA has a strong presence, was blown yesterday, the latest in a series of attacks on key infrastructure across Kachin state since fighting began in early June.
“The bridge outside Gadaryang [village] was blown up with mines at midnight, completely stopping transportation between Bhamo, Myitkyina and Laiza,” an eye-witness said.
It is unclear who was behind the attack, but both sides have carried out similar acts aimed at thwarting supply routes and hemming troops in.
Intense clashes have erupted across areas of Kachin state over the past two months, forcing thousands of refugees to Laiza and into China. Refusals from a multitude of armed ethnic groups to become government-controlled Border Guard Forces have led to parts of Burma’s northern and eastern border regions being engulfed in violence.
The Kachin Women’s Association of Thailand (KWAT) issued a statement on 19 July saying that a humanitarian crisis was looming for the 16,000 refugees sheltering in makeshift camps along the China-Burma border, who are “urgently in need of aid”.
http://www.dvb.no/news/bridges-blown-army-shells-kachin-base/16671
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Thai rescue team locates downed helicopter in Myanmar; all dead
Jul 22, 2011, 6:54 GMT
Bangkok - A rescue team on Friday found the wreckage of a Black Hawk helicopter that crashed this week in mountainous terrain on the Thai-Myanmar border where it had been sent to recover bodies from another chopper crash.
All nine people on board the helicopter died in the crash, Thai television reports said.
Lieutenant General Udomdej Sithabhut, commander of the 1st Army Region, said there was no evidence that the Black Hawk had been shot down.
The military helicopter crashed on Tuesday during a rainstorm in the mountainous Kaeng Krachan National Park area, 165 kilometres south-west of Bangkok near the Thai-Myanmar border. It was on a mission to retrieve the bodies of the victims of a Huey helicopter crash at the weekend.
'The Black Hawk crash site was inside Myanmar, about 200 metres away from Huey crash site,' Udomdej said.
A joint team of Thai and Myanmar soldiers was sent to the double crash site to check for survivors and retrieve the bodies.
There were nine people on board the Black Hawk, the highest ranking of whom was Major General Thawan Reungsri. The only civilian passenger was a journalist for Channel 5 TV.
The mission that crashed on June 16, killing all five on board, had been sent to the Kaeng Krachan park to pick up officials dispatched to the park on July 11 to arrest suspected illegal loggers, but had been stranded in bad weather.
http://www.monstersandcritics.com/news/asiapacific/news/article_1652510.php/Thai-rescue-team-locates-downed-helicopter-in-Myanmar-all-dead
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Hillary Clinton: ASEAN must push Myanmar on reforms
07/22/2011 | 02:13 PM
BALI, Indonesia - U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton on Friday called on Myanmar to free political prisoners, address non-proliferation concerns and start a dialogue with pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi, saying its refusal to do so threatened the cohesion of Southeast Asia.
Clinton, speaking at a regional security forum of the Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN) in Bali, said Myanmar was a major challenge facing the regional grouping and would have to be addressed.
"The choice is clear. They can take these steps and gain back the confidence of their people and the trust of the international community. Or they can continue down the path they've been on," Clinton said.
U.S. President Barack Obama in 2009 launched a new policy of engagement with Myanmar, hoping to coax the reclusive military leadership to relax its nearly 50-year grip on power over the country formally known as Burma.
The junta made way for a civilian government in March following elections late last year that were widely dismissed as a sham, and most analysts say the military continues to call the shots in the jungle capital of Naypyidaw.
The restructuring of power has thrust the issue of Western sanctions back into the spotlight as the former British colony seeks to attract investment and boost economic ties with countries willing to do business there.
Clinton said the impasse in Myanmar represented a challenge the "cohesion and future" of the 10-member ASEAN bloc, long dismissed by many in the West as a talking shop which fails to put vows into action.
"We need ASEAN's help to persuade Naypyidaw to take reciprocal steps to seriously engage with the international community and address its concerns," Clinton said.
"We look to the government to unconditionally release the more than 2,000 political prisoners who continue to languish in prison; to conduct meaningful and inclusive dialogue with the political opposition and ethnic minorities, including Aung San Suu Kyi," Clinton said.
Suu Kyi spent seven years in detention until her release last November.
Clinton said Myanmar must also address "growing concerns" over non-proliferation following reports which have linked Myanmar to banned trade with nuclear renegade North Korea.
ASEAN, also criticised for inaction in reining in Myanmar, has said it would have no objection to Myanmar assuming chairmanship of the organization in 2014 as long as it continued to make progress towards democracy -- a move that Clinton suggested could be a mistake.
"The United States respects ASEAN's decision-making process for selecting its chair. And we trust that ASEAN members will gauge whether a potential chair can advance the organization's credibility and leadership role."
U.S. officials have said Clinton is not scheduled to have any meetings with Myanmar Foreign Minister Nyan Win while in Bali, but that he had met the State Department's top diplomat for Asia, Assistant Secretary Kurt Campbell. — Reuters http://www.gmanews.tv/story/227078/world/hillary-clinton-asean-must-push-myanmar-on-reforms
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2011 irishtimes.com
Clinton warns Burma of sanctions
US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton the East Asia Summit Plenary Session, held alongside the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) meetings in Nusa Dua, Bali, today.
US secretary of state Hillary Clinton has called on Burma (Myanmar) to improve relations with the US and the international community or face the possibility of 'punitive' action.
The US wants Burma to release more than 2,000 political prisoners and begin meaningful dialogue with minorities and the political opposition including Aung San Suu Kyi, Mrs Clinton said today at a meeting of the 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations.
"The choice is clear," Mrs Clinton said.
"They can take these steps and gain back the confidence of their people and the trust of the international community. Or they can continue down the path they've been on."
The US reserves the right to take punitive steps if Burma doesn't make progress, a US administration official told reporters today in Bali, Indonesia, where the Asean meeting is taking place.
Mrs Clinton said that her country had taken Asean's advice and engaged directly with Burma's government, a step that "helped lower one of the more significant stumbling blocks in the US-Asean relationship."
The US will also demand that Burma, immediately stop any trade with North Korea that violates a United Nations Security Council resolution extending an arms embargo against the country, according to the US official.
Mrs Clinton is at the Asean meeting as part of a 12-day around- the-world trip to consult with allies on issues ranging from the unrest in Libya and Syria to trade with India and strategic issues in Asia. http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/breaking/2011/0722/breaking23.html
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Chinese FM meets with counterparts, ASEAN secretary-general on cooperation
10:40, July 22, 2011
Chinese Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi met with his counterparts of Indonesia, Laos, Myanmar and South Korea as well as ASEAN secretary-general in Bali Thursday to promote bilateral relations.
Yang met with his Indonesian counterpart Marty Natalegawa on the sidelines of the ASEAN Foreign Ministers' Meeting. Both sides shared the same view that the two countries should implement the consensus reached by both leaders on further promoting bilateral relations and boost pragmatic cooperation in all sectors.
The two sides believe that the China-ASEAN agreement on the guidelines of implementing the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea (DOC) sends a positive signal and the next step is to speed up pragmatic cooperation. Yang also praised the positive role that Marty plays as Indonesia is the rotating chair of ASEAN.
During a meeting with Lao Foreign Minister Thongloun Sisoulith, Yang said the two countries should enhance high-level exchanges, deepen cooperation in economy and trade, and boost China-Laos bilateral relations to a new level.
Thongloun agreed with Yang and thanked China for its long-term help and support.
During Yang's meeting with Myanmar Foreign Minister Wunna Maung Lwin, the two sides agreed to work on a plan on strengthening China-Myanmar comprehensive strategic partnership, expand the size of economic and trade cooperation, enhance people-to-people interaction and step up support and cooperation with each other in international and regional affairs.
While meeting with ASEAN Secretary-General Surin Pitsuwan, Yang praised the agreement on the guidelines of implementing the DOC, saying this is conducive to increasing mutual trust and calling for initiating pragmatic cooperation as soon as possible.
Surin said the agreement, which is of historical significance, proves to the world that the two sides are able to manage and control disparities.
Yang and South Korean Foreign Minister Kim Sung-Hwan satisfied with the development of the bilateral relations in all fields, saying both countries will commit to strengthening strategic cooperative partnership.
As to the situation in the Korean Peninsula, the two sides stressed the importance of dialogue and consultation, hoping every party should make joint effort to safeguard peace and stability of the peninsula.
Yang said the six-party talks and the dialogue between South Korea and the Democratic People's Republic of Korea can complement with each other.
South Korea appreciated China's effort in safeguarding the stability of the peninsula, Kim said.
Source: Xinhua http://english.people.com.cn/90001/90776/90883/7448405.html
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Myanmar, Japan to promote tourism in face of arrival drop
10:29, July 22, 2011
Myanmar and Japan will jointly promote tourism this year in the wake of a drop in tourist arrivals in Myanmar from Japan, a local media reported Thursday.
Due to the mega earthquake and tsunami that struck Japan in March, tourist arrivals from Japan have decreased despite its upward trend since late 2006.
Visitors from Japan stood third in Myanmar's tourist arrivals and their travel destinations mainly cover Yangon, Bago and Bagan, said the Popular News.
Nearly 17 million Japanese travel worldwide annually, of which about 4 million travel to ASEAN countries.
According to statistics, the number of tourist arrivals in Myanmar reached over 140,000 in the first four months of 2011, up from over 109,000 in 2010 correspondingly.
Meanwhile, the tourism authorities are making efforts to promote its international tourism market in cooperation with international and domestic airlines, hotels, tour operators and travel agencies.
Myanmar's tourism season, which falls in the open season, runs from October to April.
Source:Xinhua http://english.people.com.cn/90001/90777/90851/7448380.html
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Myanmar Currency Crunch Cripples Exporters, Risks Crisis
Published: Friday, 22 Jul 2011 | 2:31 AM ET
By: CNBC.com
Promises of economic development and pro-business reforms from Myanmar's new civilian government ring hollow for entrepreneur Tin Maung, a fisheries exporter whose once-thriving firm is now on the brink of bankruptcy.
Myanmar's kyat currency has appreciated 20 percent in the past year, more than any other Asian currency that Reuters monitors daily, squeezing traders and exporters like Tin Muang, who are struggling to break even as inflation pushes up costs and the new government does nothing to tame the currency's rise.
The strong kyat and high food and fuel prices are a major test for the four-month-old government, not just economically, but politically, and analysts warn its failure to tackle bread and-butter issues may anger the public and lead to its downfall.
The biggest and bloodiest uprisings against military rule, in 1988 and 2007 were sparked by discontent over soaring inflation and fuel prices respectively, and former government officials say more of the same could be on the way.
"It's a political time bomb for the government," said a retired senior government official. "It was livelihood issues, not a thirst for democracy that pushed people onto the street before and things couldn't be worse now."
Dollars are pouring into Myanmar's fragile and largely opaque economy, with foreign investors keen to tap its vast resources and visiting traders buying up gemstones. But most of that money ends up lining the pockets of cronies of the military dictators who controlled the country for decades.
The government's inaction over the kyat's strength and rising food costs is alarming exporters, farmers and employees earning dollar-pegged salaries. Businesses are closing, salaries are cut and jobs are being lost as production costs rise.
Exporters who hoped for better times are hurting badly, with the kyat currently trading at around 785 to the dollar on the black market — which covers nearly all transactions — compared with more than 1,000 a year ago.
"We're in a real dilemma. We're fighting a losing battle because of the soaring costs," said Tin Muang, 42, who reckons more than 20 farms and processing plants in the fisheries sector alone have closed in recent months.
"We've had to sell all we were breeding in the local market at low prices. It will have a very negative impact on our traditional export market."
The government has made no public acknowledgement of its currency crisis and its cut in export tax from 10 to 7 percent, effective this month, is a measure seen as too little, too late.
"I don't think the government is much interested in the worsening situation with the kyat," said a retired commerce ministry official, who requested anonymity.
"They seem complacent and focused on the huge proceeds from gems emporiums and foreign investment."
Private economists point to the dollar's weakness as the main driver of the kyat's appreciation but say many other factors have come into play, including increased inflows from timber and energy exports, mainly to China and Thailand, which is boosting demand for kyat.
Gems such as jade, rubies and sapphires worth $5.7 billion were sold at three emporiums in the past eight months alone.
Dollar inflows also increased with the repatriation of funds held offshore by wealthy Burmese to buy up state assets and property in a mass pre-election sell-off last year.
Sean Turnell, an expert on Myanmar's economy at Australia's Macquarie University, said another major contributor to the kyat's strength was sales of illicit opium and methamphetamine, of which Myanmar is one of the world's biggest producers.
Intervention Unlikely
Drug money was converted into kyat to pay opium growers and workers in illegal drug factories, he said. The rest was laundered through banks and businesses or put into Myanmar's booming real estate market, with transactions paid in kyat.
The lack of reliable data or transparency in Myanmar's economy and banking system allows Burmese tycoons — many of whom are targeted by Western sanctions due to their alliances with former junta leaders — to continue to boost their wealth.
Economists see no signs that policy makers with a history of fiscal mismanagement will take any action to intervene in the currency.
"In other countries, the central banks normally intervene, but we can't expect this sort of thing to happen here," said Maw Than, a retired rector of Yangon's Institute of Economics.
"Unless effective measures are taken immediately, it will have widespread negative impacts on the economy."
Myanmar's government wants to boost exports but that is being inhibited by the kyat's appreciation.
Rice shipments, for example, dropped by almost two-thirds in 2010 despite increased production of the grain, mostly because the strength of the currency made it uncompetitive.
One exporter said 25 percent broken rice fetched $390 per tonne, but after tax and transaction fees his income was just $2 dollars per tonne higher than the local price, so exporters in various sectors were selling off stocks on local wholesale markets to try to keep their businesses afloat.
"It's already had a grave impact on us, from the primary producers and exporters to consumers," said Hla Maung Shwe, a prominent businessmen and vice-chairman of the Myanmar Federation of Chambers of Commerce.
"The more we sell, the more we lose."
Foreign direct investment in Indonesia surged 21 percent in the second quarter of 2011 from a year earlier, as strong commodity prices attracted investors into the mining sector in the world's top exporter of thermal coal and tin.
Direct and portfolio investment has quickened into Southeast Asia's largest economy in recent months, though analysts warn the country needs to overhaul and expand its infrastructure in coming years to keep attracting firms and to overcome the sprawling archipelago's Achilles' heel — inflation.
For now things look rosy: FDI totals $9.6 billion so far this year, on track for its highest ever in 2011, while foreign investment in government bonds and the stock market are both at records.
"I'm very bullish," said Gita Wirjawan, the country's investment chief and a former investment banker. "Traditionally, investment quickens in the third quarter."
Worries over eurozone and U.S. debt and slower growth in China mean Indonesia is now seen as a relative safe haven, though that could change once the West recovers or if runaway inflation returns to erode a rupiah at seven-year highs .
FDI from April to June was 43.1 trillion rupiah ($5 billion), spread across the country. In a quarter when gold [XAU= 1584.80 -3.10 (-0.2%) ] and tin prices hit records , mining led the way with $1.5 billion, followed by chemicals, machinery, electronics and transport.
"FDI will continue coming because of strong economic fundamentals and the appreciating rupiah...the main concern with long-term investment is poor infrastructure conditions and inflation," said Eric Sugandi, economist at Standard Chartered in Jakarta.
While inflation is within the central bank's 4-6 percent target now, economists say inflationary pressures will pick up again and lead to interest rate rises by mid-2012 that could slow growth.
Poor infrastructure, from roads to ports, means higher distribution costs that create both a structural inflation problem and cut into companies' profit margins. Previous bouts of high inflation have led to investor outflows.
The government is relying on private investors for two-thirds of its $15 billion infrastructure needs, though Japan, China and India have all made big commitments this year.
Yet progress on the ground in its traffic-logged cities and overwhelmed ports remains to be seen, while corruption is rife.
"This is still Indonesia. Everyone wants something for nothing," said the Australian manager of a road building firm.
Roads Not Supplied
Infrastructure is seen as an investment opportunity if the government can speed up land acquisition in the next year, with many investors forced to build their own roads, rail and ports.
Wirjawan did not mention specific firms, though in recent months officials and executives have said Coal India, Procter & Gamble [PG 64.49 0.29 (+0.45%) ] and Hyundai Motor are planning investments, while dozens of others from Google [GOOG 606.99 11.64 (+1.96%) ] to Peabody Energy [BTU 61.22 0.24 (+0.39%) ] are eyeing the country.
Neighbouring Singapore, a home for many Indonesian tycoons, was the top foreign investor in Q2, followed by former colonial ruler the Netherlands and then the United States, underlining growing interest from Western investors who in recent years lagged Asian firms because of worries over corruption.
South Korea and India are expected to be leading investors in the future, the investment agency said, with LG Electronics eyeing expansion to tap consumer demand from an emerging middle class in the world's fourth largest population.
India's state-run National Aluminium Co Ltd (NALCO) is in talks to invest in an aluminium smelter, the investment agency said on Thursday, joining other Indian firms looking to buy coal mines and develop power or cement plants.
The investment board is targeting 156 trillion rupiah of FDI this year. Last year foreign investment into Indonesia reached a record 148 trillion rupiah.
External Risks
Analysts say the country ticks along at 6 percent annual economic growth despite the government and shabby bureaucracy .
Fitch Ratings said in March it could lift Indonesia's sovereign rating to investment grade within 12 months, though weak infrastructure was the key risk to any upgrade.
"A lack of infrastructure remains one of the biggest constraints to boosting Indonesia's growth potential. Significant improvements to the regulatory framework are needed to support infrastructure spending and public-private projects," said Milan Zavadjil, the IMF's representative in Indonesia, adding it had to overcome inflation from cutting fuel subsidies.
Still, compared to much of the world, Indonesia's financial situation looks strong, with a budget deficit seen at 2.1 percent of GDP this year, and record foreign currency reserves of about $120 billion to stabilise the rupiah currency in the event of any sudden fund outflows.
Economists say this could happen once a global economic recovery leads Western countries to start normalising rates.
"We see fears from investors from the end of the low interest rate era in countries such as the United States, Europe, and Japan. Once the Fed increases its benchmark... a large sudden reversal might occur in the Asia region," said Juniman, an economist at Bank International Indonesia in Jakarta.
"Another risk is the threat from a sovereign debt default in Europe and that it could spread to the U.S. That will cause global economic instability and the world will fall into recession, eventually. FDI would stop, to wait and see."
© 2011 CNBC.com http://www.cnbc.com//id/43851119
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Egat urged to scrap Burma project
By The Nation
Published on July 22, 2011
A network of environmentalists and villagers based in Chiang Rai are campaigning against a power plant project in Burma, and demanding that joint developer Electricity Generating Authority of Thailand (Egat) withdraw from it.
At a meeting yesterday, representatives of hilltribe people in Burma said the Bt270billion project, involving a lignitefired power plant, had forced 3,000 people out of 20 villages and put them at risk of abuses by rival minority groups.
The groups demanded that Egat withdraw from the plan to jointly develop the MaiKok project in Burma and later purchase power produced by it for 15 years. They said Egat was also planning to jointly develop another power plant in Burma, from which it would buy electricity for 25 years.
Activist Montree Janthawong said the plants would probably emit toxic fumes and discharge harmful chemicals. Despite a request for information from a Thai coalmining company taking part in the projects, he never received answers.
http://www.nationmultimedia.com/2011/07/22/national/Egat-urged-to-scrap-Burma-project-30160856.html
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