Wednesday, 23 November 2011
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ASIA TIMES ONLINE: Southeast Asia
Nov 24, 2011
US-Myanmar: A convergence of interests
By David I Steinberg
WASHINGTON - The announcement that United States Secretary of State Hillary Clinton will visit Myanmar in December 2011 is a bold and welcome move by the administration of President Barack Obama . The fruit of growing realizations by both states of the need for improved relations for their national interests, it is the product of internal and external stimuli in both countries.
The Obama administration, when first it took office, inherited the Bill Clinton-George W Bush policy of advocating "regime change" in Myanmar. It dropped that objective and explored the possibility of improving relations and encouraging reforms through dialogue with the previously isolated country.
Signals were sent by both sides. Mid-level American diplomats had access to Myanmar cabinet-level officials for the first time, and the US signed the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Treaty of Amity and Cooperation, which Washington had not signed because of Myanmar's entry into the grouping in 1997.
Neither, however, was sufficient. The US wanted the release of opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi from house arrest and the release from prison of political prisoners, while the Myanmar government wanted the elimination of the severe sanctions regimen that the US had serially imposed.
With the inauguration of the new, civilianized government in the spring of 2011 after flawed but significant elections, the President of Myanmar, former prime minister and general Thein Sein, began a series of moves that were unprecedented in a half-century, when the last civilian government existed in 1962. Critics charge that there were other modest attempts at change in the past that were still-born, but the scope and magnitude of the present changes are unprecedented.
Ranging from presidential admissions of neglect in the social sectors, the high incidence of poverty, corruption, and release of some political prisoners, the proposed changes involve the formation of a human-rights commission, new more liberal labor laws, less press censorship, and a reaching out to former dissidents. Political party registration laws have been amended to allow the opposition National League for Democracy (NLD) to register, and Suu Kyi to run for a parliamentary seat.
Critics ask why these changes now? A case can be made that they were instituted at least in part to ensure that Myanmar will chair the ASEAN summit meeting in 2014, which has just been formally approved by the group. Or perhaps they were engendered to improve relations with the US in an attempt to balance over-reliance on China.
The unprecedented stoppage of Chinese construction of the highly controversial Myitsone Dam in the Kachin State, after Thein Sein declared that he was responding to the people's will, together with the opening to the US may signify an attempt to balance Myanmar foreign relations - a hallmark of its foreign policy since independence in 1948.
The Myanmar military, in spite of their negative portrayal in the external media, are highly patriotic and do not want to be the pawn or client state of any external power. The regime seeks also additional legitimacy beyond the borders of ASEAN and East and Southeast Asia.
This new move by the Obama administration is politically astute on two levels. It shows Myanmar that the US is serious and positively applauds their reforms, while still calling for additional liberalization. It therefore reinforces the position of the reformers, who have many internal high-level opponents, by demonstrating that the reforms have already had a positive impact on the world.
It thus makes the reforms so far more difficult to be rescinded. The Obama policy called for "pragmatic engagement" after a thorough review: dialogue has been enhanced while sanctions have continued. This was pragmatic in terms of the US political scene, where sanctions and Suu Kyi had strong bipartisan support, and she has continued her approval of sanctions.
With this new move, the Obama administration can rightly claim that the policy of dialogue has been extended to an even higher level, the issue of sanctions has been for the moment set aside although they continue, while Suu Kyi has personally approved of Secretary of State Clinton's visit.
It has taken half a century for Myanmar to embark on this important new path, for at that time the country was thought to become the wealthiest and most developed in Southeast Asia. Instead, after nearly five decades of consecutive military rule, it has become the poorest.
It has also taken the US two decades to realize that isolation and calls for "regime change" would not work. The interests of both countries have now become intertwined to a degree hitherto unrecognized but had always been there. We can only hope that this innovative initiative will improve relations, leading to the enhanced living standards of the impoverished Myanmar peoples.
David I Steinberg is Distinguished Professor of Asian Studies, School of Foreign Service, Georgetown University. His latest volume is Burma/Myanmar: What Everyone Needs to Know Oxford University Press). http://www.atimes.com/atimes/Southeast_Asia/MK24Ae01.html
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ST.Breaking News
No easing of Myanmar sanctions in Clinton trip: US
Published on Nov 23, 2011
WASHINGTON (AFP) - A senior United States official said on Tuesday that the time was not right to ease sanctions on Myanmar despite Secretary of State Hillary Clinton's plans for a groundbreaking visit next week.
Ms Clinton will seek progress on human rights, including on the treatment of ethnic minorities, but it is 'premature' to discuss lifting sweeping sanctions on the military-backed government, White House official Ben Rhodes said.
'The secretary's visit is in part to add momentum to what's taken place and to explore what's going forward but there are no plans right now to lift sanctions,' Mr Rhodes, the deputy national security adviser for strategic communications, told reporters.
President Barack Obama announced last week at an East Asia Summit in Bali that Ms Clinton would become the first US secretary of state to visit Myanmar in 50 years after the country's government undertook reforms. http://www.straitstimes.com/BreakingNews/SEAsia/Story/STIStory_737099.html
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Bloomberg
Myanmar's Good Deeds Are No Guarantee of Lasting Freedoms: View
By the Editors Nov 23, 2011 7:01 AM GMT+0700
Last year, the military-dominated nation held its first election in two decades, placing a civilian, Thein Sein, in the presidency. Democratic opposition leader and Nobel laureate Aung San Suu Kyi, who boycotted the vote, will re-enter electoral politics, her party announced. The junta recently pardoned more than 6,300 prisoners, many of them political detainees. The state has begun liberalizing the economy and lifted some Internet and press censorship. And on Sept. 30, the government suspended construction of a Chinese-financed dam on the Irrawaddy River after protests by Burmese citizens over its likely social and environmental effects.
The regime has been swiftly rewarded for this apparent loosening of control. The Association of Southeast Asian Nations agreed to let Myanmar take over the group's rotating chairmanship in 2014; Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak insists that the military rulers are "on the road to greater democratization and are also being more inclusive"; and, citing "flickers of progress," U.S. President Barack Obama is sending Secretary of State Hillary Clinton to Myanmar early next month.
Time for a reality check. The shiny new capital city of Naypyidaw is an Orwellian Oz, and the man behind the curtain is Senior General Than Shwe, who has been the top man in the junta since 1992 and remains so despite his official resignation as head of state in March.
Hardly a Democracy
The 2010 election was hardly democracy in action, with independent observers citing widespread intimidation and bribery by the government and its supporters, who emerged with more than 80 percent of the parliament's seats. The U.S. and European Union condemned it as neither free nor fair. And in any case, the military appoints all top ministers and judges and controls the state budget. President Thein Sein is a former general himself, and giving up his military status for appearance's sake should be seen as a prime example of civilian obeisance to the military regime.
According to the human-rights group Assistance Association for Political Prisoners (Burma), there are at least 2,000 political prisoners still being held in the nation's 42 prisons and 109 labor camps. The dam controversy, which is being seen by many as the Burmese bucking their longtime financial supporters in Beijing, was really a pragmatic move of domestic politics. (The government has for years been battling ethnic militias in the northern region where the dam was located and was probably spooked by civilian protests there.)
The regime's supposed moves toward liberalization occurred just as the Obama administration was beginning to see its strategy of engagement with Myanmar -- in a complete reversal of the George W. Bush approach -- as a failure. According to a Congressional Research Service report, U.S. diplomats found their Burmese counterparts "relatively unresponsive in the high-level meetings, preferring to confine discussion to the exchange of formal statements that avoid or evade the issues raised by U.S. officials." One State Department officer, Joseph Y. Yun, told Congress this year that "we are disappointed by the lack of any results from our repeated efforts at dialogue."
If the Obama administration -- and its Western and Asian allies -- has new hopes for dialogue, they are welcome to give it a try. But there should be no concrete policy concessions. While the International Monetary Fund finds that the near- blanket sanctions imposed by the U.S. (as well as Canada and Australia) have not been a significant factor in Myanmar's economic troubles, they are an important moral statement. (The same can be said about infusions of humanitarian aid during crises such as Cyclone Nargis in 2008.)
Economic Disaster Zone
Some argue that increased economic engagement could blunt Chinese influence in Myanmar and the region. That seems unlikely. The economy is a disaster -- commercial banks can lend for a period of no more than a year; mortgages are unheard of; farmers, who make up the majority of the population, are kept out of private credit markets -- and the country will long be dependent on the region's dominant power. And if economic competition is needed, India is poised to provide it.
Looking ahead, the West should consider what to do should the regime's talk of change prove a cover for the status quo. Perhaps the European Union might be moved to emulate the stricter U.S. sanctions approach. Officials in Washington could also consider some new steps: banning imports of products manufactured elsewhere using Burmese teak, say, or barring federal contracts to companies doing business in Myanmar.
We all hope that one of the world's most repressive states is on the path to freedom. And Suu Kyi's decision to re-enter the electoral fray gives a hint that she, at least, thinks the junta might be beginning to get serious. But nothing the Myanmar regime has done so far merits any major change to how it is treated on the global stage.
To contact the Bloomberg View editorial board: view@bloomberg.net. http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2011-11-23/myanmar-s-good-deeds-are-no-guarantee-of-lasting-political-freedoms-view.html
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Myanmar through a glass brightly
By Kamrul Idris is NST deputy group editor
kamrul@nst.com.my | 0 comments
At last, some reasons to be cheerful about the oppressed country
MARTY Natelagawa looked like he had never found it easier to smile as he left a meeting with Aung San Suu Kyi in Yangon at the end of last month.
The Indonesian foreign minister joined a growing list of notables to have broken the endless succession of po-faces that had characterised the pilgrimages to the Myanmar democracy doyen before. Only a narrow range of grave expressions availed themselves in the changeless circumstances of her eternity under house arrest.
It was an emblem of the country as a whole. Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak called for her release as often as he could -- pushing the unanimity in Asean and elsewhere that Myanmar could never be taken seriously with Suu Kyi all but locked up in a dilapidated mansion with only a short-wave radio for company.
Then the wish came true. It was not quite believed that so wicked a regime could ever do such a thing. A year later, she is still free and the international community is being challenged to respond.
First off the blocks, not surprisingly, was Asean. The grouping of Myanmar's neighbours is most invested in constructive engagement -- and most embarrassed by its persistent lack of result. Asean has thus been stalking Naypidaw intimately since elections -- the first in 20 years -- were held last November.
The vote was widely considered to be a stitch-up, a re-clothing of the military junta in civilian garb. In the six months afterwards, the inauguration of President Thein Sein and convening of Parliament did nothing to disabuse doubters that the generals' "discipline-flourishing democracy" was a charade.
However, as soon as the new administration dug in (perhaps against its own reactionaries), the reforms came thick and fast.
Asean moved with a haste that was just shy of indecency.
Foreign ministers meeting in July announced that chair Indonesia had accepted an invitation to see for itself. "We consider positively the willingness and readiness of Myanmar to take the chairmanship of Asean in 2014, based on its firm commitment to the principles of Asean," they said.
Although Natelagawa's inspection tour admitted some reservations, the regional diplomacy behind him had effectively made up its mind.
Back in Bali for the Asean Summit last Friday, he and his colleagues formally accepted Myanmar's accession to the rotating chair in three years.
Asean officials were not the only ones appearing pleased. Britain's International Development Secretary Andrew Mitchell beamed as he accompanied Suu Kyi for a pep talk to her adoring people last week. On camera, it was clear who he was speaking for when he repeated the rote remark that "more must be done" by the Myanmar government.
Suu Kyi's all-or-nothing centrality in the world's opinion of her country was proved, if any were needed, when President Barack Obama phoned to ask if it was okay to send Secretary of State Hillary Clinton for a visit next month -- the first by such a senior American personage in half a century.
(That was a big advance from the previous position. The last time Myanmar eyed its turn at the chairmanship in 2006, Clinton's predecessor, Condoleezza Rice, threatened a US walkout.)
The Lady herself has been careful in her statements. At this fragile bend in Myanmar's historic inflexion point, its politics can be more about gesture than plain words. Suu Kyi has communicated by evasion as much as judgment.
She has preferred obliqueness, describing Thein Sein as a "good listener" and developments so far as "positive". She has even evinced the slightest irritation when Western reporters (allowed in for the first time in years) pressed for more.
But the shift in tone was evident in the speed with which her National League for Democracy decided to register for upcoming by-elections last Friday.
In the weeks before last November, the party had agonised over whether to boycott the polls in protest at the strictures imposed on it.
The tight focus on Suu Kyi is understandable, and not just because of her starring role in Myanmar's tragic drama. Obtaining an accurate picture of the country is difficult. The generals had closed down the former British colony of Burma and replaced its true condition with the hyper-reality of propaganda.
The subject of Myanmar is thus more stricken by bias than that of other countries emerging from darkness.
"This has not only left the Myanmar debate in a polarised state, but more importantly has hindered the sort of clear, objective assessment on which the right human rights and other policy decisions depend," wrote Benjamin Zawacki, Amnesty International's Myanmar researcher and a member of the US Council on Foreign Relations, in Asia Times Online on Nov 7.
Among the few to have attempted such impartiality is the International Crisis Group, which has honed an exceptional acuity from its contacts in the country.
In a detailed report in September, it described what was happening in Myanmar as "remarkable". The "completely new character of governance suggests it could be the beginning of a process of fundamental political change".
As imperfect as they may be, the signs are unmistakeable.
"Those who deny this are simply not paying attention or are allowing their personal, political or institutional agendas to get in the way," Zawacki said.
Even the human rights hard core is starting to favour a reciprocal loosening of sanctions in tandem with Naypyidaw's liberalising steps. Gross violations remain to be answered, such as in the tribal conflict zones, and the motives behind the regime's conversion are still obscure.
But the aim of bringing in Myanmar from the cold for the sake of its long-suffering population can benefit from not asking too many questions at the present time.
Read more: Myanmar through a glass brightly - Columnist - New Straits Times http://www.nst.com.my/opinion/columnist/myanmar-through-a-glass-brightly-1.9688#ixzz1eWHikIdj
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Protest bill readies for final hurdle
By SHWE AUNG
Published: 23 November 2011
Burma's president Thein Sein speaks at an union parliament meeting hall in Naypyidaw August 22, 2011 (Reuters)
A bill that would enshrine into law the right of Burmese to peacefully protest has been passed by the country's upper house, and is en route to the president for final approval.
If it gets the nod, the Peaceful Gathering and Procession Bill will make protests legal in Burma for the first time in nearly half a century. It would also have weathered criticism from hardline MPs who claim the country is not yet ready for such freedoms of expression.
Still, however, the proposed bill carries a number of restrictions. Thein Nyunt, a minister in the lower house, told DVB that those wanting to demonstrate would need to seek approval from authorities a week in advance, and hand over the organisers' personal details.
"One also needs to provide a reason, route and date for the protest and [concerned officials] will decide whether to approve or reject it."
Some opposition MPs say these regulations should be eased to allow greater mobility for activists, although a military-aligned faction in parliament says conflict in the border regions must be settled before Burmese are allowed to organise.
One potentially significant concession on the protest law was made by the Bill Committee, which is two-thirds comprised of ruling Union Solidarity and Development Party (USDP) members: it allowed a proposal made by Thein Nyunt to drop a ban on the chanting of slogans during rallies to go through.
Curtailment of the freedom to demonstrate in Burma was aggressively ramped up following the September 2007 uprising. In the weeks after the bloody crackdown by police and army, the government banned gatherings of more than five people in public.
But with the arrival of a nominally civilian government in March, several laws restricting the rights of Burmese, including the freedom to form labour unions and a ban on accessing independent news websites, have been eased.
MPs have also reported a more open debating arena in parliament, despite both houses being dominated by pro-military ministers. http://www.dvb.no/news/protest-bill-readies-for-final-hurdle/18880
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Mon party to decide whether it will re-register in December
Wednesday, 23 November 2011 12:17 Kun Chan
Chiang Mai (Mizzima) -- The Burmese Mon National Democratic Front (MNDF) says it will wait until after U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton's visit to Burma in December to decide whether it will re-register as a political party.
Officials said they wanted to see if more political changes and the release of political prisoners would take place.
"We will have doubts until it [the government] releases all the political prisoners. So, we will wait until after Hilary Clinton's visit," said MNDF General-Secretary Dr. Min Soe Lin.
"Khun Tun Oo and Sai Nyunt Lwin [ethnic leaders] have not been released from prisons. We cannot ignore that. We need to give attention not only to the [government's] offensive actions against the Mon people, but also its offensive actions against others. We cooperate with them as a member of the United Nationalities League for Democracy [UNLD] andthe United Nationalities Alliance [UNA]," Dr. Min Soe Lin said.
On Sunday, more than 100 MNDF members attended a ceremony to reform the party held in Mawlamyine. In the meeting, the party will make a decision on December 22, when the party's central committee will meet.
The MNDF has not made any comment on the NLD decision to re-register as a political party.
"The day after the NLD made its decision to re-register as a political party, President Thein Sein said there are no prisoners of conscience in Burma. That means he fails to recognize politicians," Dr. Min Soe Lin said.
During its recent meeting, the party discussed combining with the All Mon Region Democracy Party in order to create a single Mon political party. Moreover, the MNDF reorganized its leadership and added more central committee members.
It replaced elderly party chairman Nai Tun Thein, 95, with Nai Ngwe Thein, 89. Nai Tun Thein was named an honorable patron of the MNDF.
According to the MNDF organization structure, there are 45 central committee members including 21 central executive committee members. At the ceremony, the MNDF added seven leaders including five retired leaders of the New Mon State Party to the vacant seven positions on the MNDF central executive committee.
The MNDF was formed on October 11, 1988. Nineteen MNDF candidates contested in the 1990 general elections and five won seats. The former junta refused to recognize the 1990 elections results. In 1991, a number of MNDF leaders were arrested and the former junta dissolved the party on March 19 [Mon State Day], 1992.
The MNDF is a member of the Committee Representing People's Parliament, the UNLD and the UNA. http://www.mizzima.com/news/inside-burma/6214-mon-party-to-decide-whether-it-will-re-register-in-december.html
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BANGKOK POST
Burma talks with rebels
Published: 23/11/2011 at 04:32 AM
Online news:
Burmese leaders have begun a new round of peace talks with several ethnic groups fighting a long-running struggle for autonomy and rights, a major rebel organisation said Tuesday.
Burmese President Thein Sein (C) arrives at Bali on Nov 16, to attend the Asean Summit.
The move comes as the army-dominated country seeks to improve its standing internationally and prepares for a landmark visit by US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, who has called for an end to the ongoing conflicts.
Government minister Aung Min met delegates from some of the country's ethnic groups on Saturday near the Thai-Burma border, said Colonel James Lum Dau of the Kachin Independence Organisation, one of the groups attending.
Since Burma gained independence in 1948, conflict between the army and rebels from various minority ethnic groups has seen decades of violence, allegations of grave human rights abuses and the displacement of tens of thousands of people.
"This was preliminary talks between the government and ethnic armed groups," Lum Dau, who is based in Bangkok, said on Tuesday. "This was an introduction for talks in the future," he said, adding that the meeting was a "good sign".
He told AFP that fighting was currently "very very serious" in northern Kachin state, one of the regions of most concern. "Every day we are killing each other," he said.
Saturday's meeting, which included groups representing the Kachin, Karen and Shan minorities, came at the end of a key week for Burma, which won Southeast Asia's approval to chair the region's political bloc in 2014 and a nod from the United States with the announcement that Clinton would visit.
While the new nominally civilian government that took power this year has won praise for some surprising reformist moves, concerns remain about relations with ethnic minorities, who make up more than a third of the population.
Speaking to Burmese journalists at a summit in Indonesia on Saturday, President Thein Sein said his government was in talks with seven out of eight active insurgent groups.
He said the government was trying to "build trust" but the groups would "have to promise not to try to secede from the country", according to the Myanmar Times.
"We will look to implement more projects to raise their living standards while at the same time negotiate with them. If it works they will not be holding weapons in the future."
Clinton, who will become the first US Secretary of State to visit Burma in 50 years next month, raised the issue in an interview with Fox News on Friday after her visit was announced.
"We'd like to see an end to the conflicts, particularly the terrible conflicts with ethnic minorities," she said.
Democracy icon Aung San Suu Kyi, whose opposition party decided last week to rejoin the mainstream political process after boycotting last year's polls, called earlier this year for an end to the conflict.
Despite her status and expressed desire for peace, Suu Kyi has not traditionally had a close relationship with rebel groups in her struggle for democracy.http://www.bangkokpost.com/news/asia/267502/burma-government-holds-talks-with-ethnic-rebels
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US Still Not Lifting Burma Sanctions
By LALIT K JHA Wednesday, November 23, 2011
Washington DC---Next week's visit to Burma by Secretary of State Hillary Clinton will help maintain the momentum of changes in the country, a top Obama aide said on Tuesday. However, he ruled out the US lifting its current economic sanctions against the Burmese regime.
"I think the Secretary's trip is in part to add momentum to what's taken place and to explore what's going forward, but there are no plans right now to lift sanctions," National Deputy Security Advisor Ben Rhodes told foreign journalists.
Clinton will be the first US Secretary of State to travel to Burma in 50 years. Last week, the US president, Barack Obama, announced that Clinton would be travelling to Burma to meet with the leaders of the new Burmese government and pro-democracy leaders, including Aung San Suu Kyi.
"I think it's premature to discuss lifting of sanctions," Rhodes said in response to a question at the Washington Foreign Press Center. Rhodes said Clinton would assess the progress that's been made while she is in Burma.
"There have been some positive responses from the Burmese government to the president's announcement, as there have been positive responses from Aung San Suu Kyi, for instance, whose party has come into the system," he said.
The White House official said that the goal of the visit is going to be to try to continue the momentum toward greater respect for human rights, greater movement on political reform in Burma, and also, critically, greater respect for ethnic minorities in the context of national reconciliation.
Last week in various interviews to different American news channels, Clinton too ruled out lifting sanctions against Burma, noting that the country still has to take some concrete steps.
"We're not ending sanctions. We are not making any abrupt changes," Clinton told Fox News.
"They have to release all political prisoners ... They need to begin to look at how they resolve these ethnic conflicts that have driven tens of thousands of Burmese of different ethnicities into refugee status. They have to have a real electoral system with an open door to political parties and free expression. I mean, this is about whether they are on a path to democracy," Clinton told MSNBC in another interview.
In an interview to CNN, Clinton said she is going to Burma to test the waters there. "One of the reasons that I'm going is to test what the true intentions are and whether there is a commitment to both economic and political reform," she said. http://www.irrawaddy.org/article.php?art_id=22520
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Burma: To continue ethnic war or political reforms?
By Zin Linn Nov 23, 2011 4:31PM UTC
Burma's new Thein Sein government looks as if on the point of a historic move as democracy icon and key opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi recently decided to take part in the country's official political arena and President Obama declared plans sending the US Secretary of State to Burma for the first time in half a century.
In an interview with Fox News, the US Secretary of State Ms. Clinton said there were specific steps she expected from Burma. According to Ms. Clinton, the US desires to see more political prisoners released and to see a real political process and genuine elections. In addition, US wants to see an end to the conflicts, particularly the terrible conflicts with ethnic minorities, the US Secretary of State said.
Since the US has clearly called for an end to the war against the ethnic people, the Thein Sein government appears to open a first phase of cessation of hostilities plan.
For instance, U Aung Min, union minister of railway transport and special representative of President Thein Sein, met delegations from Shan, Karen, Karenni, Chin and Kachin armed ethnic groups at a secret location on the Thai-Burma border on November 19, as said by Shan Herald Agency for News (S.H.A.N.).
Restoration Council of Shan State (RCSS), Karen National Union (KNU) and Chin National Front (CNF) had reportedly agreed to sign ceasefire accords with respective state governments after preparatory meeting with U A ung Min.
However, at the same time, the war against the Kachin rebels has been going on with heavy casualties. On 21 November, 37 soldiers belonging to a Burmese Army's company died in action in N'Tap Bum war zone in Kachin State, northern Burma. The news was confirmed by a porter who escaped from the clutches of the said Burmese Army's company. He ran away from the Burmese military column and escaped to the KIA controlled area.
According to the porter, the soldiers were killed in the combat with Kachin Independence Army (KIA) soldiers in different places in the N'Tap Bum mountain range, about 8 miles southeast of KIA headquarters Laiza, near the Sino-Burma border, Kachin News Group reported.
Greater than 1,000 Burmese troops have been secretly deployed in the strategic mountain range since mid-October aiming to capture Laiza, KIA officials in Laiza said. On November 17, the Kachin armed forces successfully pushed back Burmese troops deployed in the mountain range and lots of arms and ammunition were seized by Kachin soldiers, said KIA officials.
However, skirmishes continue between KIA soldiers and the remaining Burmese troops in the mountain range, said KIA officers on the frontline.
Meanwhile, there was a peculiar yellow rain that fell in Mai Ja Yang town in war zone Kachin State on Sunday. The yellow rain fell there in three different places in the town. The dark yellow rain fell from black clouds just like rain, according to residents there. The same yellow rain also fell in Mai Ya Yang on 21 November, as said by residents.
As a result, children in Mai Ja Yang and those of people in refugee camps are suffering from common cough, said a health volunteer in the town. The reason of the cough was not known so far. Almost all children suffering from coughing had oral drought and continuing cough.
Till now, the KIO authorities and residents have no idea about the yellow rain. The rain fell like paste unlike common rain-water, said eyewitnesses. They are extremely worried, wondering whether it is acid rain or chemical rain, a resident told Kachin News Group on Monday.
Most residents believe it could be end result of the poison gas used by Burmese Army fighting against KIO troops near Mai Ja Yang. Burmese soldiers had attacked KIO with chemical weapons earlier this month, a victim of the chemical weapon said.
This act violates the Geneva Protocol which banned use of chemical and biological weapons in both civil and foreign conflicts. President Thein Sein's government has to take responsibility for the use of such chemical weapons.
In brief, while other ethnic groups are on the way to negotiation, Kachin group has been under government's severe offensives. The government should not differentiate KIO from other groups.
If the President Thein Sein really sought after a democratic reform in Burma, all the wars with respective ethnic rebels including KIA must be stopped immediately.
President Thein Sein should not say poverty alleviation or good governance while he has been continuing civil war against ethnic groups that make the country underprivileged in the ASEAN region. http://asiancorrespondent.com/70360/burma-to-continue-ethnic-war-or-political-reforms/
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Jailed DVB reporter wins top artists' prize
By FRANCIS WADE
Published: 23 November 2011
Win Maw, one of DVB's 14 jailed journalists, has won the Freedom to Create award (DVB)
A video journalist imprisoned for his work for Democratic Voice of Burma has been awarded this year's prestigious Freedom to Create award for jailed artists.
Win Maw, also a prominent Burmese singer/songwriter, is currently serving a 17-year sentence in Kyaukphyu prison in westernmost Burma. In awarding the 2011 Imprisoned Artist Prize, the Singapore-based Freedom to Create group praised the 49-year-old's courage and influence over young Burmese.
"He expresses the political views of the Burmese people with his music, which provides a rallying point for the masses during the numerous political upheavals in Myanmar [Burma]," a statement on group's website said.
"He is a leading exponent of artists giving voice to democratic movements for social change. Despite the risks to his personal safety, Win Maw continues to inspire young artists with his music even from prison."
He was jailed in November 2008 on charges of breaching the Immigration Act and Electronics Act, which has been used by the government on numerous occasions to target journalists feeding footage to foreign and exiled media organisations.
Burmese opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi hailed the decision to honour Win Maw with the award, but said that it was nonetheless "a matter of sadness for us because it means that our artists are in prison for their beliefs and their conscience.
"Artists help to create more beauty in this world, to open our eyes to aspects of our life that otherwise we may not have noticed ... I know Ko Win Maw personally, and I've always appreciated his dedication to music."
That sentiment was echoed by Ge'raldine May, who runs the Free Burma VJ campaign advocating for the release of Win Maw and DVB's 13 other journalists behind bars. She said that while the award was a powerful recognition of the impact of his work, the international community must apply more pressure on the government to release Win Maw and all of Burma's estimated 1,700 political prisoners.
"Hillary Clinton is due to arrive in Burma next week, and UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon shortly after that," she said. "Both the US and UN have called for press freedom in Burma and elsewhere, so they should use their visits to make clear demands of the government that they free these journalists.
"Burma will struggle to pass itself off as an emerging democracy until independent journalism, and indeed criticism of the government, is allowed to flourish."
Yesterday it was reported that a senior government advisor had pledged an end to censorship in Burma, long derided as a press freedom black spot. http://www.dvb.no/news/jailed-dvb-reporter-wins-top-artists%E2%80%99-prize/18875
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Burma's NLD decision to campaign welcomed
Friday, 18 November 2011 21:24 Myo Thant
Chiang Mai (Mizzima) -- Burma's opposition political parties including the National Unity Party [NUP], a former rival of the NLD, welcomed the NLD decision to re-register as a party and contest in the next by-election.
National Democratic Force policy leader Khin Maung Swe Photo: Mizzima
National Democratic Force policy leader Khin Maung Swe. Photo: Mizzima
Khin Maung Swe, the leader of the policy affairs committee of National Democratic Force (NDF), said recently that his party wants to cooperate with the NLD in Parliament.
A former NLD central executive committee member, he said, "We are ready to cooperate. All we need is that they want to work together, too. If they want to cooperate with us, there is no reason we should refuse. Whatever Daw Suu [Aung San Suu Kyi] wants to do, we are ready to lend her a hand."
Khin Maung Swe used a metaphor that Aung San Suu Kyi is the burning torch of Burmese politics. He said that he supported Suu Kyi because he believed that if she is in the Parliament, useful laws would be approved and enacted.
NUP spokesman Han Shwe said that the NLD registration was "the first step for national reconciliation."
Toe Kyaw Hlaing of the 88-generation students group said the decision reflected the desire of the Burmese people.
"We believe that the NLD's decision is based on the desires of most of the NLD members," Toe Kyaw Hlaing said.
The NLD central committee meeting was held on Friday at NLD headquarters in Rangoon to decide whether the NLD would register or not. In the meeting, 106 central committee members from states and regions across the country unanimously decided to register, according to NLD spokesman Ohn Kyaing. http://www.mizzima.com/news/inside-burma/6204-burmas-nld-decision-to-campaign-welcomed.html
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November 22, 2011
Burmese President Welcomes US Engagement
Daniel Schearf | Bangkok
President Barack Obama, left, stands with Myanmar President Thein Sein at the East Asia Summit in Bali, Indonesia, November 19, 2011.
Photo: AP
President Barack Obama, left, stands with Myanmar President Thein Sein during a group photo session at the East Asia Summit in Bali, Indonesia, November 19, 2011.
Burma's President Thein Sein has welcomed engagement by the United States and pledged to work with democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi.
The president also acknowledged the demand for more reforms but refused to admit his government jails political prisoners.
In his first news conference since becoming President of Burma in March, Thein Sein welcomed President Barack Obama's plan to send the U.S. secretary of state, Hillary Clinton, on an official visit next month.
Speaking on the sidelines of meetings of the Association of Southeast Nations in Bali, Indonesia, he told journalists Saturday the visit would be what he called a blessing for his country.
He said President Obama acknowledged political developments in Burma. On the other hand, he added, Mr. Obama said what is happening in Burma is not perfect yet. He says Mr. Obama encouraged Burma to do more to reform and that the U.S. will watch closely to monitor the situation.
ASEAN leaders at the summit voted to allow Burma to host the annual meetings in 2014 after previously skipping it because of its human rights record.
Clinton's trip will be the highest level visit to Burma by a U.S. official in half a century and comes after the military-backed government made a series of steps to liberalize.
Authorities relaxed their tight grip on the media, allowed labor unions, suspended an unpopular China-backed hydropower dam, released over 200 political prisoners and held direct meetings with opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi.
Aung San Suu Kyi and her National League for Democracy (NLD) last week announced they would re-enter politics in upcoming by-elections.
Kelley Currie researches human rights and democracy in Burma for the Project 2049 Institute in Washington D.C. She says the NLD's participation in elections brings credibility to the government's claims to reform.
"It's very significant and it shows her level of support for what's going on with the regime and that she has a certain level of confidence in this process, Currie says. "I don't think she would put herself and her party out there if she didn't have some degree of confidence that they were going be given the opportunity to compete, fairly. And, I think that's something that the United States and other countries that support democratization in Burma should be really looking at carefully."
But Currie and other analysts caution the steps made so far could be reversed as they have been in the past and that the government's actions must be watched closely.
They also point out there are still hundreds of political prisoners in jail in Burma. Many of them were involved in democracy protests that were brutally crushed by the military.
President Thein Sein, himself a former general, refuses to acknowledge any political prisoners.
He says they have released almost 20,000 prisoners as part of general amnesties. However, he says they do not accept that any of them were prisoners of conscience. He says they were arrested and sentenced because they breached existing laws.
President Thein Sein's government took office in March after nationwide elections that were criticized as a sham designed to keep the military in power.
Even before the vote, the military-drafted constitution guaranteed it a quarter of all seats in parliament.
David Steinberg, a Burma analyst at Georgetown University in Washington D.C., says the military has no intention of giving up power but could lose its grip like past military governments in Indonesia and South Korea.
"The problem is a basic one and that is all the avenues of social mobility in that society are controlled by the military and when that changes, and it will take basically a generation to change, so that you can rise through politics, through economics, through education, through civil society, when these things happen then the role of the military becomes less."
Steinberg says there is a growing realization in Burma that decades of military rule have turned it from one of the richest countries in the region to the poorest.
He says hosting ASEAN in 2014 will serve to deepen internal pressures to continue reforms.
http://www.voanews.com/english/news/usa/Burmese-President-Welcomes-US-Engagement-Pledges-Cooperation-with-Opposition-134314048.html
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ASIA TIMES ONLINE: Southeast Asia
Nov 24, 2011
US-Myanmar: A convergence of interests
By David I Steinberg
WASHINGTON - The announcement that United States Secretary of State Hillary Clinton will visit Myanmar in December 2011 is a bold and welcome move by the administration of President Barack Obama . The fruit of growing realizations by both states of the need for improved relations for their national interests, it is the product of internal and external stimuli in both countries.
The Obama administration, when first it took office, inherited the Bill Clinton-George W Bush policy of advocating "regime change" in Myanmar. It dropped that objective and explored the possibility of improving relations and encouraging reforms through dialogue with the previously isolated country.
Signals were sent by both sides. Mid-level American diplomats had access to Myanmar cabinet-level officials for the first time, and the US signed the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Treaty of Amity and Cooperation, which Washington had not signed because of Myanmar's entry into the grouping in 1997.
Neither, however, was sufficient. The US wanted the release of opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi from house arrest and the release from prison of political prisoners, while the Myanmar government wanted the elimination of the severe sanctions regimen that the US had serially imposed.
With the inauguration of the new, civilianized government in the spring of 2011 after flawed but significant elections, the President of Myanmar, former prime minister and general Thein Sein, began a series of moves that were unprecedented in a half-century, when the last civilian government existed in 1962. Critics charge that there were other modest attempts at change in the past that were still-born, but the scope and magnitude of the present changes are unprecedented.
Ranging from presidential admissions of neglect in the social sectors, the high incidence of poverty, corruption, and release of some political prisoners, the proposed changes involve the formation of a human-rights commission, new more liberal labor laws, less press censorship, and a reaching out to former dissidents. Political party registration laws have been amended to allow the opposition National League for Democracy (NLD) to register, and Suu Kyi to run for a parliamentary seat.
Critics ask why these changes now? A case can be made that they were instituted at least in part to ensure that Myanmar will chair the ASEAN summit meeting in 2014, which has just been formally approved by the group. Or perhaps they were engendered to improve relations with the US in an attempt to balance over-reliance on China.
The unprecedented stoppage of Chinese construction of the highly controversial Myitsone Dam in the Kachin State, after Thein Sein declared that he was responding to the people's will, together with the opening to the US may signify an attempt to balance Myanmar foreign relations - a hallmark of its foreign policy since independence in 1948.
The Myanmar military, in spite of their negative portrayal in the external media, are highly patriotic and do not want to be the pawn or client state of any external power. The regime seeks also additional legitimacy beyond the borders of ASEAN and East and Southeast Asia.
This new move by the Obama administration is politically astute on two levels. It shows Myanmar that the US is serious and positively applauds their reforms, while still calling for additional liberalization. It therefore reinforces the position of the reformers, who have many internal high-level opponents, by demonstrating that the reforms have already had a positive impact on the world.
It thus makes the reforms so far more difficult to be rescinded. The Obama policy called for "pragmatic engagement" after a thorough review: dialogue has been enhanced while sanctions have continued. This was pragmatic in terms of the US political scene, where sanctions and Suu Kyi had strong bipartisan support, and she has continued her approval of sanctions.
With this new move, the Obama administration can rightly claim that the policy of dialogue has been extended to an even higher level, the issue of sanctions has been for the moment set aside although they continue, while Suu Kyi has personally approved of Secretary of State Clinton's visit.
It has taken half a century for Myanmar to embark on this important new path, for at that time the country was thought to become the wealthiest and most developed in Southeast Asia. Instead, after nearly five decades of consecutive military rule, it has become the poorest.
It has also taken the US two decades to realize that isolation and calls for "regime change" would not work. The interests of both countries have now become intertwined to a degree hitherto unrecognized but had always been there. We can only hope that this innovative initiative will improve relations, leading to the enhanced living standards of the impoverished Myanmar peoples.
David I Steinberg is Distinguished Professor of Asian Studies, School of Foreign Service, Georgetown University. His latest volume is Burma/Myanmar: What Everyone Needs to Know Oxford University Press). http://www.atimes.com/atimes/Southeast_Asia/MK24Ae01.html
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ST.Breaking News
No easing of Myanmar sanctions in Clinton trip: US
Published on Nov 23, 2011
WASHINGTON (AFP) - A senior United States official said on Tuesday that the time was not right to ease sanctions on Myanmar despite Secretary of State Hillary Clinton's plans for a groundbreaking visit next week.
Ms Clinton will seek progress on human rights, including on the treatment of ethnic minorities, but it is 'premature' to discuss lifting sweeping sanctions on the military-backed government, White House official Ben Rhodes said.
'The secretary's visit is in part to add momentum to what's taken place and to explore what's going forward but there are no plans right now to lift sanctions,' Mr Rhodes, the deputy national security adviser for strategic communications, told reporters.
President Barack Obama announced last week at an East Asia Summit in Bali that Ms Clinton would become the first US secretary of state to visit Myanmar in 50 years after the country's government undertook reforms. http://www.straitstimes.com/BreakingNews/SEAsia/Story/STIStory_737099.html
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Bloomberg
Myanmar's Good Deeds Are No Guarantee of Lasting Freedoms: View
By the Editors Nov 23, 2011 7:01 AM GMT+0700
Last year, the military-dominated nation held its first election in two decades, placing a civilian, Thein Sein, in the presidency. Democratic opposition leader and Nobel laureate Aung San Suu Kyi, who boycotted the vote, will re-enter electoral politics, her party announced. The junta recently pardoned more than 6,300 prisoners, many of them political detainees. The state has begun liberalizing the economy and lifted some Internet and press censorship. And on Sept. 30, the government suspended construction of a Chinese-financed dam on the Irrawaddy River after protests by Burmese citizens over its likely social and environmental effects.
The regime has been swiftly rewarded for this apparent loosening of control. The Association of Southeast Asian Nations agreed to let Myanmar take over the group's rotating chairmanship in 2014; Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak insists that the military rulers are "on the road to greater democratization and are also being more inclusive"; and, citing "flickers of progress," U.S. President Barack Obama is sending Secretary of State Hillary Clinton to Myanmar early next month.
Time for a reality check. The shiny new capital city of Naypyidaw is an Orwellian Oz, and the man behind the curtain is Senior General Than Shwe, who has been the top man in the junta since 1992 and remains so despite his official resignation as head of state in March.
Hardly a Democracy
The 2010 election was hardly democracy in action, with independent observers citing widespread intimidation and bribery by the government and its supporters, who emerged with more than 80 percent of the parliament's seats. The U.S. and European Union condemned it as neither free nor fair. And in any case, the military appoints all top ministers and judges and controls the state budget. President Thein Sein is a former general himself, and giving up his military status for appearance's sake should be seen as a prime example of civilian obeisance to the military regime.
According to the human-rights group Assistance Association for Political Prisoners (Burma), there are at least 2,000 political prisoners still being held in the nation's 42 prisons and 109 labor camps. The dam controversy, which is being seen by many as the Burmese bucking their longtime financial supporters in Beijing, was really a pragmatic move of domestic politics. (The government has for years been battling ethnic militias in the northern region where the dam was located and was probably spooked by civilian protests there.)
The regime's supposed moves toward liberalization occurred just as the Obama administration was beginning to see its strategy of engagement with Myanmar -- in a complete reversal of the George W. Bush approach -- as a failure. According to a Congressional Research Service report, U.S. diplomats found their Burmese counterparts "relatively unresponsive in the high-level meetings, preferring to confine discussion to the exchange of formal statements that avoid or evade the issues raised by U.S. officials." One State Department officer, Joseph Y. Yun, told Congress this year that "we are disappointed by the lack of any results from our repeated efforts at dialogue."
If the Obama administration -- and its Western and Asian allies -- has new hopes for dialogue, they are welcome to give it a try. But there should be no concrete policy concessions. While the International Monetary Fund finds that the near- blanket sanctions imposed by the U.S. (as well as Canada and Australia) have not been a significant factor in Myanmar's economic troubles, they are an important moral statement. (The same can be said about infusions of humanitarian aid during crises such as Cyclone Nargis in 2008.)
Economic Disaster Zone
Some argue that increased economic engagement could blunt Chinese influence in Myanmar and the region. That seems unlikely. The economy is a disaster -- commercial banks can lend for a period of no more than a year; mortgages are unheard of; farmers, who make up the majority of the population, are kept out of private credit markets -- and the country will long be dependent on the region's dominant power. And if economic competition is needed, India is poised to provide it.
Looking ahead, the West should consider what to do should the regime's talk of change prove a cover for the status quo. Perhaps the European Union might be moved to emulate the stricter U.S. sanctions approach. Officials in Washington could also consider some new steps: banning imports of products manufactured elsewhere using Burmese teak, say, or barring federal contracts to companies doing business in Myanmar.
We all hope that one of the world's most repressive states is on the path to freedom. And Suu Kyi's decision to re-enter the electoral fray gives a hint that she, at least, thinks the junta might be beginning to get serious. But nothing the Myanmar regime has done so far merits any major change to how it is treated on the global stage.
To contact the Bloomberg View editorial board: view@bloomberg.net. http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2011-11-23/myanmar-s-good-deeds-are-no-guarantee-of-lasting-political-freedoms-view.html
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Myanmar through a glass brightly
By Kamrul Idris is NST deputy group editor
kamrul@nst.com.my | 0 comments
At last, some reasons to be cheerful about the oppressed country
MARTY Natelagawa looked like he had never found it easier to smile as he left a meeting with Aung San Suu Kyi in Yangon at the end of last month.
The Indonesian foreign minister joined a growing list of notables to have broken the endless succession of po-faces that had characterised the pilgrimages to the Myanmar democracy doyen before. Only a narrow range of grave expressions availed themselves in the changeless circumstances of her eternity under house arrest.
It was an emblem of the country as a whole. Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak called for her release as often as he could -- pushing the unanimity in Asean and elsewhere that Myanmar could never be taken seriously with Suu Kyi all but locked up in a dilapidated mansion with only a short-wave radio for company.
Then the wish came true. It was not quite believed that so wicked a regime could ever do such a thing. A year later, she is still free and the international community is being challenged to respond.
First off the blocks, not surprisingly, was Asean. The grouping of Myanmar's neighbours is most invested in constructive engagement -- and most embarrassed by its persistent lack of result. Asean has thus been stalking Naypidaw intimately since elections -- the first in 20 years -- were held last November.
The vote was widely considered to be a stitch-up, a re-clothing of the military junta in civilian garb. In the six months afterwards, the inauguration of President Thein Sein and convening of Parliament did nothing to disabuse doubters that the generals' "discipline-flourishing democracy" was a charade.
However, as soon as the new administration dug in (perhaps against its own reactionaries), the reforms came thick and fast.
Asean moved with a haste that was just shy of indecency.
Foreign ministers meeting in July announced that chair Indonesia had accepted an invitation to see for itself. "We consider positively the willingness and readiness of Myanmar to take the chairmanship of Asean in 2014, based on its firm commitment to the principles of Asean," they said.
Although Natelagawa's inspection tour admitted some reservations, the regional diplomacy behind him had effectively made up its mind.
Back in Bali for the Asean Summit last Friday, he and his colleagues formally accepted Myanmar's accession to the rotating chair in three years.
Asean officials were not the only ones appearing pleased. Britain's International Development Secretary Andrew Mitchell beamed as he accompanied Suu Kyi for a pep talk to her adoring people last week. On camera, it was clear who he was speaking for when he repeated the rote remark that "more must be done" by the Myanmar government.
Suu Kyi's all-or-nothing centrality in the world's opinion of her country was proved, if any were needed, when President Barack Obama phoned to ask if it was okay to send Secretary of State Hillary Clinton for a visit next month -- the first by such a senior American personage in half a century.
(That was a big advance from the previous position. The last time Myanmar eyed its turn at the chairmanship in 2006, Clinton's predecessor, Condoleezza Rice, threatened a US walkout.)
The Lady herself has been careful in her statements. At this fragile bend in Myanmar's historic inflexion point, its politics can be more about gesture than plain words. Suu Kyi has communicated by evasion as much as judgment.
She has preferred obliqueness, describing Thein Sein as a "good listener" and developments so far as "positive". She has even evinced the slightest irritation when Western reporters (allowed in for the first time in years) pressed for more.
But the shift in tone was evident in the speed with which her National League for Democracy decided to register for upcoming by-elections last Friday.
In the weeks before last November, the party had agonised over whether to boycott the polls in protest at the strictures imposed on it.
The tight focus on Suu Kyi is understandable, and not just because of her starring role in Myanmar's tragic drama. Obtaining an accurate picture of the country is difficult. The generals had closed down the former British colony of Burma and replaced its true condition with the hyper-reality of propaganda.
The subject of Myanmar is thus more stricken by bias than that of other countries emerging from darkness.
"This has not only left the Myanmar debate in a polarised state, but more importantly has hindered the sort of clear, objective assessment on which the right human rights and other policy decisions depend," wrote Benjamin Zawacki, Amnesty International's Myanmar researcher and a member of the US Council on Foreign Relations, in Asia Times Online on Nov 7.
Among the few to have attempted such impartiality is the International Crisis Group, which has honed an exceptional acuity from its contacts in the country.
In a detailed report in September, it described what was happening in Myanmar as "remarkable". The "completely new character of governance suggests it could be the beginning of a process of fundamental political change".
As imperfect as they may be, the signs are unmistakeable.
"Those who deny this are simply not paying attention or are allowing their personal, political or institutional agendas to get in the way," Zawacki said.
Even the human rights hard core is starting to favour a reciprocal loosening of sanctions in tandem with Naypyidaw's liberalising steps. Gross violations remain to be answered, such as in the tribal conflict zones, and the motives behind the regime's conversion are still obscure.
But the aim of bringing in Myanmar from the cold for the sake of its long-suffering population can benefit from not asking too many questions at the present time.
Read more: Myanmar through a glass brightly - Columnist - New Straits Times http://www.nst.com.my/opinion/columnist/myanmar-through-a-glass-brightly-1.9688#ixzz1eWHikIdj
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Protest bill readies for final hurdle
By SHWE AUNG
Published: 23 November 2011
Burma's president Thein Sein speaks at an union parliament meeting hall in Naypyidaw August 22, 2011 (Reuters)
A bill that would enshrine into law the right of Burmese to peacefully protest has been passed by the country's upper house, and is en route to the president for final approval.
If it gets the nod, the Peaceful Gathering and Procession Bill will make protests legal in Burma for the first time in nearly half a century. It would also have weathered criticism from hardline MPs who claim the country is not yet ready for such freedoms of expression.
Still, however, the proposed bill carries a number of restrictions. Thein Nyunt, a minister in the lower house, told DVB that those wanting to demonstrate would need to seek approval from authorities a week in advance, and hand over the organisers' personal details.
"One also needs to provide a reason, route and date for the protest and [concerned officials] will decide whether to approve or reject it."
Some opposition MPs say these regulations should be eased to allow greater mobility for activists, although a military-aligned faction in parliament says conflict in the border regions must be settled before Burmese are allowed to organise.
One potentially significant concession on the protest law was made by the Bill Committee, which is two-thirds comprised of ruling Union Solidarity and Development Party (USDP) members: it allowed a proposal made by Thein Nyunt to drop a ban on the chanting of slogans during rallies to go through.
Curtailment of the freedom to demonstrate in Burma was aggressively ramped up following the September 2007 uprising. In the weeks after the bloody crackdown by police and army, the government banned gatherings of more than five people in public.
But with the arrival of a nominally civilian government in March, several laws restricting the rights of Burmese, including the freedom to form labour unions and a ban on accessing independent news websites, have been eased.
MPs have also reported a more open debating arena in parliament, despite both houses being dominated by pro-military ministers. http://www.dvb.no/news/protest-bill-readies-for-final-hurdle/18880
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Mon party to decide whether it will re-register in December
Wednesday, 23 November 2011 12:17 Kun Chan
Chiang Mai (Mizzima) -- The Burmese Mon National Democratic Front (MNDF) says it will wait until after U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton's visit to Burma in December to decide whether it will re-register as a political party.
Officials said they wanted to see if more political changes and the release of political prisoners would take place.
"We will have doubts until it [the government] releases all the political prisoners. So, we will wait until after Hilary Clinton's visit," said MNDF General-Secretary Dr. Min Soe Lin.
"Khun Tun Oo and Sai Nyunt Lwin [ethnic leaders] have not been released from prisons. We cannot ignore that. We need to give attention not only to the [government's] offensive actions against the Mon people, but also its offensive actions against others. We cooperate with them as a member of the United Nationalities League for Democracy [UNLD] andthe United Nationalities Alliance [UNA]," Dr. Min Soe Lin said.
On Sunday, more than 100 MNDF members attended a ceremony to reform the party held in Mawlamyine. In the meeting, the party will make a decision on December 22, when the party's central committee will meet.
The MNDF has not made any comment on the NLD decision to re-register as a political party.
"The day after the NLD made its decision to re-register as a political party, President Thein Sein said there are no prisoners of conscience in Burma. That means he fails to recognize politicians," Dr. Min Soe Lin said.
During its recent meeting, the party discussed combining with the All Mon Region Democracy Party in order to create a single Mon political party. Moreover, the MNDF reorganized its leadership and added more central committee members.
It replaced elderly party chairman Nai Tun Thein, 95, with Nai Ngwe Thein, 89. Nai Tun Thein was named an honorable patron of the MNDF.
According to the MNDF organization structure, there are 45 central committee members including 21 central executive committee members. At the ceremony, the MNDF added seven leaders including five retired leaders of the New Mon State Party to the vacant seven positions on the MNDF central executive committee.
The MNDF was formed on October 11, 1988. Nineteen MNDF candidates contested in the 1990 general elections and five won seats. The former junta refused to recognize the 1990 elections results. In 1991, a number of MNDF leaders were arrested and the former junta dissolved the party on March 19 [Mon State Day], 1992.
The MNDF is a member of the Committee Representing People's Parliament, the UNLD and the UNA. http://www.mizzima.com/news/inside-burma/6214-mon-party-to-decide-whether-it-will-re-register-in-december.html
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BANGKOK POST
Burma talks with rebels
Published: 23/11/2011 at 04:32 AM
Online news:
Burmese leaders have begun a new round of peace talks with several ethnic groups fighting a long-running struggle for autonomy and rights, a major rebel organisation said Tuesday.
Burmese President Thein Sein (C) arrives at Bali on Nov 16, to attend the Asean Summit.
The move comes as the army-dominated country seeks to improve its standing internationally and prepares for a landmark visit by US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, who has called for an end to the ongoing conflicts.
Government minister Aung Min met delegates from some of the country's ethnic groups on Saturday near the Thai-Burma border, said Colonel James Lum Dau of the Kachin Independence Organisation, one of the groups attending.
Since Burma gained independence in 1948, conflict between the army and rebels from various minority ethnic groups has seen decades of violence, allegations of grave human rights abuses and the displacement of tens of thousands of people.
"This was preliminary talks between the government and ethnic armed groups," Lum Dau, who is based in Bangkok, said on Tuesday. "This was an introduction for talks in the future," he said, adding that the meeting was a "good sign".
He told AFP that fighting was currently "very very serious" in northern Kachin state, one of the regions of most concern. "Every day we are killing each other," he said.
Saturday's meeting, which included groups representing the Kachin, Karen and Shan minorities, came at the end of a key week for Burma, which won Southeast Asia's approval to chair the region's political bloc in 2014 and a nod from the United States with the announcement that Clinton would visit.
While the new nominally civilian government that took power this year has won praise for some surprising reformist moves, concerns remain about relations with ethnic minorities, who make up more than a third of the population.
Speaking to Burmese journalists at a summit in Indonesia on Saturday, President Thein Sein said his government was in talks with seven out of eight active insurgent groups.
He said the government was trying to "build trust" but the groups would "have to promise not to try to secede from the country", according to the Myanmar Times.
"We will look to implement more projects to raise their living standards while at the same time negotiate with them. If it works they will not be holding weapons in the future."
Clinton, who will become the first US Secretary of State to visit Burma in 50 years next month, raised the issue in an interview with Fox News on Friday after her visit was announced.
"We'd like to see an end to the conflicts, particularly the terrible conflicts with ethnic minorities," she said.
Democracy icon Aung San Suu Kyi, whose opposition party decided last week to rejoin the mainstream political process after boycotting last year's polls, called earlier this year for an end to the conflict.
Despite her status and expressed desire for peace, Suu Kyi has not traditionally had a close relationship with rebel groups in her struggle for democracy.http://www.bangkokpost.com/news/asia/267502/burma-government-holds-talks-with-ethnic-rebels
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US Still Not Lifting Burma Sanctions
By LALIT K JHA Wednesday, November 23, 2011
Washington DC---Next week's visit to Burma by Secretary of State Hillary Clinton will help maintain the momentum of changes in the country, a top Obama aide said on Tuesday. However, he ruled out the US lifting its current economic sanctions against the Burmese regime.
"I think the Secretary's trip is in part to add momentum to what's taken place and to explore what's going forward, but there are no plans right now to lift sanctions," National Deputy Security Advisor Ben Rhodes told foreign journalists.
Clinton will be the first US Secretary of State to travel to Burma in 50 years. Last week, the US president, Barack Obama, announced that Clinton would be travelling to Burma to meet with the leaders of the new Burmese government and pro-democracy leaders, including Aung San Suu Kyi.
"I think it's premature to discuss lifting of sanctions," Rhodes said in response to a question at the Washington Foreign Press Center. Rhodes said Clinton would assess the progress that's been made while she is in Burma.
"There have been some positive responses from the Burmese government to the president's announcement, as there have been positive responses from Aung San Suu Kyi, for instance, whose party has come into the system," he said.
The White House official said that the goal of the visit is going to be to try to continue the momentum toward greater respect for human rights, greater movement on political reform in Burma, and also, critically, greater respect for ethnic minorities in the context of national reconciliation.
Last week in various interviews to different American news channels, Clinton too ruled out lifting sanctions against Burma, noting that the country still has to take some concrete steps.
"We're not ending sanctions. We are not making any abrupt changes," Clinton told Fox News.
"They have to release all political prisoners ... They need to begin to look at how they resolve these ethnic conflicts that have driven tens of thousands of Burmese of different ethnicities into refugee status. They have to have a real electoral system with an open door to political parties and free expression. I mean, this is about whether they are on a path to democracy," Clinton told MSNBC in another interview.
In an interview to CNN, Clinton said she is going to Burma to test the waters there. "One of the reasons that I'm going is to test what the true intentions are and whether there is a commitment to both economic and political reform," she said. http://www.irrawaddy.org/article.php?art_id=22520
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Burma: To continue ethnic war or political reforms?
By Zin Linn Nov 23, 2011 4:31PM UTC
Burma's new Thein Sein government looks as if on the point of a historic move as democracy icon and key opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi recently decided to take part in the country's official political arena and President Obama declared plans sending the US Secretary of State to Burma for the first time in half a century.
In an interview with Fox News, the US Secretary of State Ms. Clinton said there were specific steps she expected from Burma. According to Ms. Clinton, the US desires to see more political prisoners released and to see a real political process and genuine elections. In addition, US wants to see an end to the conflicts, particularly the terrible conflicts with ethnic minorities, the US Secretary of State said.
Since the US has clearly called for an end to the war against the ethnic people, the Thein Sein government appears to open a first phase of cessation of hostilities plan.
For instance, U Aung Min, union minister of railway transport and special representative of President Thein Sein, met delegations from Shan, Karen, Karenni, Chin and Kachin armed ethnic groups at a secret location on the Thai-Burma border on November 19, as said by Shan Herald Agency for News (S.H.A.N.).
Restoration Council of Shan State (RCSS), Karen National Union (KNU) and Chin National Front (CNF) had reportedly agreed to sign ceasefire accords with respective state governments after preparatory meeting with U A ung Min.
However, at the same time, the war against the Kachin rebels has been going on with heavy casualties. On 21 November, 37 soldiers belonging to a Burmese Army's company died in action in N'Tap Bum war zone in Kachin State, northern Burma. The news was confirmed by a porter who escaped from the clutches of the said Burmese Army's company. He ran away from the Burmese military column and escaped to the KIA controlled area.
According to the porter, the soldiers were killed in the combat with Kachin Independence Army (KIA) soldiers in different places in the N'Tap Bum mountain range, about 8 miles southeast of KIA headquarters Laiza, near the Sino-Burma border, Kachin News Group reported.
Greater than 1,000 Burmese troops have been secretly deployed in the strategic mountain range since mid-October aiming to capture Laiza, KIA officials in Laiza said. On November 17, the Kachin armed forces successfully pushed back Burmese troops deployed in the mountain range and lots of arms and ammunition were seized by Kachin soldiers, said KIA officials.
However, skirmishes continue between KIA soldiers and the remaining Burmese troops in the mountain range, said KIA officers on the frontline.
Meanwhile, there was a peculiar yellow rain that fell in Mai Ja Yang town in war zone Kachin State on Sunday. The yellow rain fell there in three different places in the town. The dark yellow rain fell from black clouds just like rain, according to residents there. The same yellow rain also fell in Mai Ya Yang on 21 November, as said by residents.
As a result, children in Mai Ja Yang and those of people in refugee camps are suffering from common cough, said a health volunteer in the town. The reason of the cough was not known so far. Almost all children suffering from coughing had oral drought and continuing cough.
Till now, the KIO authorities and residents have no idea about the yellow rain. The rain fell like paste unlike common rain-water, said eyewitnesses. They are extremely worried, wondering whether it is acid rain or chemical rain, a resident told Kachin News Group on Monday.
Most residents believe it could be end result of the poison gas used by Burmese Army fighting against KIO troops near Mai Ja Yang. Burmese soldiers had attacked KIO with chemical weapons earlier this month, a victim of the chemical weapon said.
This act violates the Geneva Protocol which banned use of chemical and biological weapons in both civil and foreign conflicts. President Thein Sein's government has to take responsibility for the use of such chemical weapons.
In brief, while other ethnic groups are on the way to negotiation, Kachin group has been under government's severe offensives. The government should not differentiate KIO from other groups.
If the President Thein Sein really sought after a democratic reform in Burma, all the wars with respective ethnic rebels including KIA must be stopped immediately.
President Thein Sein should not say poverty alleviation or good governance while he has been continuing civil war against ethnic groups that make the country underprivileged in the ASEAN region. http://asiancorrespondent.com/70360/burma-to-continue-ethnic-war-or-political-reforms/
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Jailed DVB reporter wins top artists' prize
By FRANCIS WADE
Published: 23 November 2011
Win Maw, one of DVB's 14 jailed journalists, has won the Freedom to Create award (DVB)
A video journalist imprisoned for his work for Democratic Voice of Burma has been awarded this year's prestigious Freedom to Create award for jailed artists.
Win Maw, also a prominent Burmese singer/songwriter, is currently serving a 17-year sentence in Kyaukphyu prison in westernmost Burma. In awarding the 2011 Imprisoned Artist Prize, the Singapore-based Freedom to Create group praised the 49-year-old's courage and influence over young Burmese.
"He expresses the political views of the Burmese people with his music, which provides a rallying point for the masses during the numerous political upheavals in Myanmar [Burma]," a statement on group's website said.
"He is a leading exponent of artists giving voice to democratic movements for social change. Despite the risks to his personal safety, Win Maw continues to inspire young artists with his music even from prison."
He was jailed in November 2008 on charges of breaching the Immigration Act and Electronics Act, which has been used by the government on numerous occasions to target journalists feeding footage to foreign and exiled media organisations.
Burmese opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi hailed the decision to honour Win Maw with the award, but said that it was nonetheless "a matter of sadness for us because it means that our artists are in prison for their beliefs and their conscience.
"Artists help to create more beauty in this world, to open our eyes to aspects of our life that otherwise we may not have noticed ... I know Ko Win Maw personally, and I've always appreciated his dedication to music."
That sentiment was echoed by Ge'raldine May, who runs the Free Burma VJ campaign advocating for the release of Win Maw and DVB's 13 other journalists behind bars. She said that while the award was a powerful recognition of the impact of his work, the international community must apply more pressure on the government to release Win Maw and all of Burma's estimated 1,700 political prisoners.
"Hillary Clinton is due to arrive in Burma next week, and UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon shortly after that," she said. "Both the US and UN have called for press freedom in Burma and elsewhere, so they should use their visits to make clear demands of the government that they free these journalists.
"Burma will struggle to pass itself off as an emerging democracy until independent journalism, and indeed criticism of the government, is allowed to flourish."
Yesterday it was reported that a senior government advisor had pledged an end to censorship in Burma, long derided as a press freedom black spot. http://www.dvb.no/news/jailed-dvb-reporter-wins-top-artists%E2%80%99-prize/18875
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Burma's NLD decision to campaign welcomed
Friday, 18 November 2011 21:24 Myo Thant
Chiang Mai (Mizzima) -- Burma's opposition political parties including the National Unity Party [NUP], a former rival of the NLD, welcomed the NLD decision to re-register as a party and contest in the next by-election.
National Democratic Force policy leader Khin Maung Swe Photo: Mizzima
National Democratic Force policy leader Khin Maung Swe. Photo: Mizzima
Khin Maung Swe, the leader of the policy affairs committee of National Democratic Force (NDF), said recently that his party wants to cooperate with the NLD in Parliament.
A former NLD central executive committee member, he said, "We are ready to cooperate. All we need is that they want to work together, too. If they want to cooperate with us, there is no reason we should refuse. Whatever Daw Suu [Aung San Suu Kyi] wants to do, we are ready to lend her a hand."
Khin Maung Swe used a metaphor that Aung San Suu Kyi is the burning torch of Burmese politics. He said that he supported Suu Kyi because he believed that if she is in the Parliament, useful laws would be approved and enacted.
NUP spokesman Han Shwe said that the NLD registration was "the first step for national reconciliation."
Toe Kyaw Hlaing of the 88-generation students group said the decision reflected the desire of the Burmese people.
"We believe that the NLD's decision is based on the desires of most of the NLD members," Toe Kyaw Hlaing said.
The NLD central committee meeting was held on Friday at NLD headquarters in Rangoon to decide whether the NLD would register or not. In the meeting, 106 central committee members from states and regions across the country unanimously decided to register, according to NLD spokesman Ohn Kyaing. http://www.mizzima.com/news/inside-burma/6204-burmas-nld-decision-to-campaign-welcomed.html
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November 22, 2011
Burmese President Welcomes US Engagement
Daniel Schearf | Bangkok
President Barack Obama, left, stands with Myanmar President Thein Sein at the East Asia Summit in Bali, Indonesia, November 19, 2011.
Photo: AP
President Barack Obama, left, stands with Myanmar President Thein Sein during a group photo session at the East Asia Summit in Bali, Indonesia, November 19, 2011.
Burma's President Thein Sein has welcomed engagement by the United States and pledged to work with democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi.
The president also acknowledged the demand for more reforms but refused to admit his government jails political prisoners.
In his first news conference since becoming President of Burma in March, Thein Sein welcomed President Barack Obama's plan to send the U.S. secretary of state, Hillary Clinton, on an official visit next month.
Speaking on the sidelines of meetings of the Association of Southeast Nations in Bali, Indonesia, he told journalists Saturday the visit would be what he called a blessing for his country.
He said President Obama acknowledged political developments in Burma. On the other hand, he added, Mr. Obama said what is happening in Burma is not perfect yet. He says Mr. Obama encouraged Burma to do more to reform and that the U.S. will watch closely to monitor the situation.
ASEAN leaders at the summit voted to allow Burma to host the annual meetings in 2014 after previously skipping it because of its human rights record.
Clinton's trip will be the highest level visit to Burma by a U.S. official in half a century and comes after the military-backed government made a series of steps to liberalize.
Authorities relaxed their tight grip on the media, allowed labor unions, suspended an unpopular China-backed hydropower dam, released over 200 political prisoners and held direct meetings with opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi.
Aung San Suu Kyi and her National League for Democracy (NLD) last week announced they would re-enter politics in upcoming by-elections.
Kelley Currie researches human rights and democracy in Burma for the Project 2049 Institute in Washington D.C. She says the NLD's participation in elections brings credibility to the government's claims to reform.
"It's very significant and it shows her level of support for what's going on with the regime and that she has a certain level of confidence in this process, Currie says. "I don't think she would put herself and her party out there if she didn't have some degree of confidence that they were going be given the opportunity to compete, fairly. And, I think that's something that the United States and other countries that support democratization in Burma should be really looking at carefully."
But Currie and other analysts caution the steps made so far could be reversed as they have been in the past and that the government's actions must be watched closely.
They also point out there are still hundreds of political prisoners in jail in Burma. Many of them were involved in democracy protests that were brutally crushed by the military.
President Thein Sein, himself a former general, refuses to acknowledge any political prisoners.
He says they have released almost 20,000 prisoners as part of general amnesties. However, he says they do not accept that any of them were prisoners of conscience. He says they were arrested and sentenced because they breached existing laws.
President Thein Sein's government took office in March after nationwide elections that were criticized as a sham designed to keep the military in power.
Even before the vote, the military-drafted constitution guaranteed it a quarter of all seats in parliament.
David Steinberg, a Burma analyst at Georgetown University in Washington D.C., says the military has no intention of giving up power but could lose its grip like past military governments in Indonesia and South Korea.
"The problem is a basic one and that is all the avenues of social mobility in that society are controlled by the military and when that changes, and it will take basically a generation to change, so that you can rise through politics, through economics, through education, through civil society, when these things happen then the role of the military becomes less."
Steinberg says there is a growing realization in Burma that decades of military rule have turned it from one of the richest countries in the region to the poorest.
He says hosting ASEAN in 2014 will serve to deepen internal pressures to continue reforms.
http://www.voanews.com/english/news/usa/Burmese-President-Welcomes-US-Engagement-Pledges-Cooperation-with-Opposition-134314048.html
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