Burmese Bloggers w/o Borders

The Undoing of Our Passionate Hearts

2009-02-23T19:09:00.006+06:30

In Oxford dictionary, the word "passion" is defined as strong feeling, example of hate, love or anger.

Passion runs deep in our hearts regardless of the kind of situation we are in: a sports competitions, informal conversations among friends, formal discussions among intellects, etc.

As a young child growing up in Burma, I can vividly recall how we would feel rather strongly about which side we were on whenever we spilt into teams to play games. With high sense of comradeship and strong will to strive our best for our team, we played our games with a lot of passion; through the exchange of opinions on whether it was a fair play, arguments ensued between different teams. Luckily, we were only children whose hearts did not bear grudges for long. So we would make up with each other after a few days of having a cold war.

So, you see, our sense of passion was evident even from such tender ages. It can also be seen in our daily lives.

Whenever a group of people gather in a coffeeshop or at a house, they will discuss about certain topics - be it poetry, politic, education, or any kind of context to their interest - over many pots of Burmese tea (known as Yay-Nway-Chan) for what seems like hours. During their discussions, voices are sometimes raised; aliances are often formed; disagreements can lead to unpleasant consequences at times.

Now, in twenty-first century, we, Burmese, seem to have taken the display of our passionate nature to the next level: blogs.

Recent exchanges between two particular pro-democracy Burmese activists from Singapore and their blog readers (both anonymous and identified) have certainly left me bewildered as to what is the basic reason for all those arguments. Without a doubt, those two Burmese activists have been at the forefront of pro-democracy activities in Singapore. Unfortunately, their passion for their own ego seems as large as their passion for Burma. As a result, in many people's minds (including mine), their admirable passion for Burma has been overshadowed by the display of their unexpected sarcastic retaliations towards criticism (whether constructive or destructive).

During the referendum in Burma, many people who voiced out their opinions on the blogs were spilt as to whether to vote "NO" or not to vote at all. Now that, 2010 election is in the air, many people have also started talking about whether to participate in it or boycott it. For some people, tempers flared and things got heated up.

For both camps of such issues, I cannot tell who is right or wrong: perhaps different approaches, different perspectives, different opinions. One thing in common is that I believe both camps hold on passionately to their own conviction; be it for his own ego or for whatever cause he may be fighting for or for the greater good of Burma.

It is rather sad to see that, passion - something so prevalent in our blood - seems misplaced for many of my fellow countrymen. Many a times, our passion seems to have clouded our judgement from making logical decisions and hindered us from seeing a greater overview of what is really happening.

The more passionate we become, the lesser level-headed we seem to end up as. We lose our composure. We fail to differentiate what are important to hold on to and what are not. We forget to learn to agree to disagree.

For some of us, we may even start to bear grudges. During childhood, grudges can be considered as being cast on the sand; to be easily washed away in a short time. But for adults who have gone through various kinds of experiences in life, grudges can end up being cast upon stone; too difficult to be removed for a long time.

And so, with all those, our unity seems to be far-fetched though many people have repeatedly called for it.

In Oxford dictionary, the word "unity" is defined as harmony or agreement (in aims, ideas, feelings, etc).

Well, in the context for the future of Burma and her people, if we carry on like this, I am beginning to wonder whether one day, our misplaced passion would end up being defined as a form of our own undoing for our unity.

Speak out Loud to Deaf Ears

2009-02-17T14:40:00.002+06:30

Coming back to BB w/o B after such a long silent. Actually the previous post written by Tway Ni provoked my thoughts and moods. Thanks Tway Ni. You did a lot to BB w/o B and shared such a valuable things.
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Yes--- this donation box scandals of the most relic Pagoda, Shwedagon was quickly spread over the internet within last few days , catching much much attention from Burmese people around. One blogger shared her experiences and witnessed how public donation was being managed inappropriately. But there was no response from deaf ears and blind eyes. That's very norm practice, in fact it is getting like a habit in Burma. But New Era Journal had started first move by asking direct questions to one of the Shwdagon's deacons. Instantly, he clearly denied it.

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In that stance, what's the good point is the fact that nothing can hide out. People will speak out . The concerned authority will also have a chance to deny or explain whatever they want to public. That's the beauty of media and internet, more precisely, beauty of blogging. Even though it has some negative side, one thing for sure is some interesting news are brought by citizen journalists and citizen journalists are brought by blog

Simple Loss of Faith

2009-02-16T09:10:00.006+06:30

Recently, there was a rumour about the donation boxes from one of the the holiest pagodas in Burma (Shwe-Da-Gon) being contracted out to certain businessmen at a certain amount of money. The rumour stemmed from a Burmese blogger's sharing of what she encountered at Shwe-Da-Gon Pagoda some time back. Though the person-in-charge at Shwe-Da-Gon Pagoda has denied such allegation, many people have commented under her post of having heard similar schemes being carried out in other well-known pagodas like Golden Rock (Kyite-Htee-Yoe). At the same time, some readers remained unsure - such notion is too incredible for them to believe.

One thing for sure is that the damage has been done. Doubt has been cast over the readers' minds and even the reminder by a senior monk from Rangoon to be cautious about such rumour seems to have fallen on deaf ears. In a country, where the majority of Burmese people are staunch Buddhists, the only reason to justify the existence of such rumour, I think, is our loss of faith in many things happening in our country.

We no longer have faith in the government, the education system and the health-care system, etc. A visit to any government office will require a string of briberies to get things done, starting from the lowest-rank. Many educators and health practitioners have traded in their sense of integrity in exchange for the pursuit of materialistic goals or simply for the need of survival. Schools have lost their essence of education and nurturing. Our educational certificates no longer hold much worth. People no longer have a sense of pride at being "educated". Corruptions and lies have crept into Burma over the decades and slowly but surely, settled into the daily lives of our people.

I have always been proud to know that we, Burmese people, are seen as being kind and helpful. However, my personal experiences during my recent trips to Burma threatened to prove otherwise. Starting from the airport, I could no longer tell whether an airport-attendant was being helpful by offering to collect my luggages - rather an unnecessary task since the trolleys were available and I traveled light most of the time - or simply trying to extort money from me. When I pass by beggars on the streets, I am faced with a dilemma of whether to donate because many people have cautioned me about those beggars being impostors who "rent" babies or children to take advantage of our kind intentions.

How sad it is to doubt my own people! Yet, I can't deny the fact that corruptions and lies clouding over my beloved country have robbed a substantial portion of my faith in Burma.

Related Posts:
New Era Journal - Burmese (http://www.khitpyaing.org/news/February_09/9-2-09d.php)

The need for humanity amidst the need for survival

2008-12-25T09:39:00.006+06:30

My friend's brother once said; "If you were to take pity on anyone in Burma, you would have to extend your sympathy to almost everyone in Burma because they are all struggling just to survive". Such need for survival has unfortunately and probably compelled most of the Burmese people to turn oblivious to those who are worse off than them. That conclusion seems even more probable after I read the Irrawaddy's report on the plight of elderly people on the streets of Burma [Irrawaddy - "Seniors on the streets"].

My friend recounted to me how the eyes of an old lady, begging on the streets of Burma, lighted up brightly when my friend's niece gave her three pieces of 1000 Kyat notes. and how she said a string of well wishes for the girl with so much gratitude. With the black-market rate, this amount will come to not more than around US $3. However, to that old lady, it was a significant amount.

With the kind of government whose focus is just to fill their own pockets as much as possible, and after being hit by the natural disaster like Nargis, Burma has become like an abyss when it comes to donations. Everywhere, everything - be it health care, education, social well-being of the people, political prisoners and their families, etc - is deteriorating and at every turn in the streets, we are faced with the sights of poverty and suffering aplenty. Many people point to the junta as the root cause of all this. That is true. However, I've come to realise that while this junta is still in power, we must find ways to help alleviate the suffering of our people. And money or rather donation has become essential.

As the whole world feels the impact of global economic crisis, donations for Burmese people from NGOs and private individuals will inevitably dip amidst the sense of uncertainty for the future. In addition, a number of Burmese working overseas have to face the retrenchment and among them might include those who have been sending donations for the people in Burma. Moreover, many individuals may have reached a point where their struggle for their own survival seems sufficient enough to justify their own conscious for having to turn a blind eye towards the conditions of people in Burma. Or they may even feel the donation-fatigue syndrome after not being able to see any tangible improvement in the lives of the people.

In fact, I am also hit by such sentiments at times. Whenever that happens, I am reminded of this Burmese proverb which can be translated as; "You do not donate as you do not have the means. You end up not having the means as you do not donate". Because of such belief, Burmese in olden days try their very best to donate within their own means or sometimes even at the expense of their own well-being, to gain merit to have better next lives. It could be as small as just a piece of bread or a bowl of rice. Nowadays, their day-to-day struggle for survival has become so grim that many people can just think of how to get through this life, let alone think about next life.

Such happenings make me wonder whether our sense of humanity will eventually be annihilated in our struggle for survival. If such day were to come, I cannot imagine what might happen to the people in a country - where some people lose their lives or face serious health risks as they have to resort to illegal means of abortion just because there is no proper education and subsidy for family planning methods and they cannot afford to have another child: another mouth to feed [Irrawaddy - "Desperate Decisions"].

Improved Burma for all

2008-11-30T10:41:00.004+06:30

During my recent trip to Burma, a business acquaintance of mine, a foreigner, who has spent the last five years in Burma, commented that the living standard in Burma is improving and Burma is opening up with the booming of five-star hotels, resorts, and restaurants etc. Right after her remark, our car passed by two frail-looking elderly begging on the platform. When we stopped at a traffic light, a couple of boys; young enough to be attending a primary school, appeared besides our car's window hoping to sell some Burmese journals to us.

I turned to look at my acquaintance and said, "I think Burma seems to be improving only for a handful of elites".

Indeed, Burma has improved. Whenever I go back, I see more buildings, more hotels, and more restaurants springing up and with them, came the rising prices as well. One bowl of mont-hin-gar (favourite breakfast dish for Burmese) at an above-average eatery can cost almost 1,000 Kyat and a book by a well-known Burmese author can go up to 3,000 Kyat, etc. With most of the items in the price range of thousands and with the average salary of 40,000 - 50,000 Kyat for a fresh IT graduate at a private company, the locals struggle to survive in Burma. Most of them try to find jobs in foreign companies or NGOs which pay them in US dollars; deemed to be better pay than local terms and better value than local currencies. Such jobs become highly sought after.

The number of expatriates also seems to have grown in Burma. All the hotels and restaurants are mainly filled with foreigners. There is a boom of various types of businesses such as restaurant, spas, saloons, pubs etc, to cater to such circle of people. Having gone there on expatriates' packages, life in Burma seems rather lavish for them; a great distinction from the locals in the country.

Being one of those Burmese, considered to be fortunate enough to have been able to move to another country in search of a greener pasture, I find myself being among the group of people with above-average spending-power whenever I return to my home country for a visit. With the declining value of Burmese currency in the black market, constantly rising prices in Burma fail to cause a big hole in our pockets.

In contrast, with the natural disaster like Nargis, and ruthless junta who only act in their own interest, the lives of my countrymen in Burma seem to have been dragged further down into the poverty. The world is facing a financial crisis and turmoil in various places like Thailand, and Mumbai etc. Amidst all these chaos, Burma may be forgotten once again by the international community. Burma may become once again just a tourist destination, an exotic country with splendid scenery to look forward to.

As we curl ourselves up in our happy cocoons, we sometimes fail to reach out of our comfort-zone. Though I still continue with my necessary expenditures in Burma whenever I go back there, my heart always remains aware of the fact that a large percentage of my people are suffering. I feel that it is of paramount importance for foreigners in Burma; be it expatriates or tourists, to be at least mindful and empathetic of the conditions of the local people.

As my people try hard to remain afloat under dire conditions in life, I can feel their spirits waning. The blood of those who have sacrificed remains dried on the streets of Burma. The souls of those who have sacrificed seem to be forgotten.

Another Christmas is coming. Another year is ending. How many more Christmas will there be before Burma improves for people from all walks of life and not only for the handful of elites?

Myanmar-Bangladesh Energy Crisis

2008-11-08T17:22:00.001+06:30

[News Source: AFP,6Nov, 2008]

Dhaka, (AFP)-A simmering dispute between Bangladesh and neighbouring Myanmar in a hydrocarbon-rich stretch of the Bay of Bengal has highlighted Dhaka's desperate plight over dwindling gas supplies, say analysts.

Bangladesh this week took the unusual step of deploying four naval ships to the disputed waters -- claimed by each nation as their own -- after its southeastern neighbour began gas exploration activities there.

Dhaka says it will take "all possible measures" to protect the zone, about 50 kilometres (30 miles) south of Bangladesh's Saint Martin Island.

The military-backed interim government has meanwhile sought to resolve the dispute diplomatically, dispatching its foreign secretary to Myanmar to hold crisis talks.

A senior official from Myanmar's military government said they were open to discussions, but insisted that oil and gas companies were operating inside their territory and far away from the disputed sea boundary.

Myanmar also insisted that the United States was involved and stirring up trouble -- an accusation denied by Washington.

Regardless of what sparked the face-off, experts say Bangladesh has taken an unusually strong stance, especially towards a country it has generally enjoyed friendly relations with.

"There's a chance we might find gas in the Bay of Bengal. India and Myanmar have already discovered gas there so it's crucial for Bangladesh to assert its territory. A lot is at stake," said energy expert Nurul Islam, from the Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology.

Bangladesh has been facing an acute shortage of gas in recent months with demand outstripping supply by 15 percent thanks to its booming manufacturing sector.

The government has told hundreds of factories they will have to wait until 2011 for new supplies, as years of neglect over exploration have fast depleted gas reserves.

To overcome the crunch, the emergency government earlier this year divided its sea territory into 28 blocks and invited bids from international oil companies for exploration contracts.

Myanmar protested the move, although Bangladeshi officials have said they refrained from awarding contracts for blocks lying in disputed waters.

Security expert Imtiaz Ahmed of Dhaka University said Bangladesh's actions this week were aimed at deterring foreign companies who had been awarded contracts by Myanmar to search for gas in the region.

"The government is trying to send a signal to foreign oil companies and the international community that it would take any drillings in the disputed blocks very seriously," Ahmed said.

"Under international laws, Myanmar cannot drill in disputed waters, which have not been demarcated yet."

Ahmed said all seismic surveys showed huge gas reserves in the Bay of Bengal, which would ensure Bangladesh's energy security for decades.

"It's a matter of our future. We may not be rich now but our economy is growing fast. Soon enough we'll have the capacity to drill in deep sea waters," he said.

DASSK's role in Burma

2008-10-07T10:21:00.004+06:30

After reading Irrawaddy's commentary, "Where would Burma be without Suu Kyi" by Kyaw Zwa Moe, I wondered where Burma would really be without DASSK.

Though DASSK played a significantly large role in bringing about the events mentioned by Kyaw Zwa Moe, I believe that her ability to provide a "human touch in politic" rather than anything else, is what makes her irreplaceable in the history of Buma.

DASSK has sincerely dedicated more than a decade of her life to Burma and in return, we, Burmese people, have given her our utmost faith. Her unwavering stand for Burma has been a source of inspiration for many of us. Without a doubt, we are also full of pride for someone like her who can remain tall among the world leaders.

Although many of us cannot imagine Burma without her, we have to face reality that DASSK cannot defy the natural cycle of life. There will eventually come a day when we will have to carry on our own. When such time comes, it is our responsibility to keep her determination, spirit and dedication (for Burma) resonating in our hearts and souls and act upon those in the same way as she would have done.

Only then, we can say for sure that Burma would never be without DASSK.

2008-09-18T19:02:00.003+06:30

I incur the downfall as the result of lacking concentration through out the previous period at work. Since last September, I have been looking for more on my country than myself.

I woke up with the thought of what happened the previous night to Burma. I ate with the news of arresting, protests, and prediction about Burmese's future. I stared at the computer screen the whole day and thought about what would be right; what would be wrong; which would be the best way; what would be the meaning of the most famous and popular word 'DEMOCRACY' for us; whose words were the most dramatic and realistic way for the freedom of my homeland; how to built a free and equal, develop physically mentally and multinational republic nation along with some kinds of big open and best mind, etcetera etcetera. I did it emotionally, hopefully and enthusiastically. I even dropped some of my long-lost tears for the photo shots and videos of the events. I listened the songs of Ga Bar Ma Khay, Do BaMar, and 8888 with big voraciousness of the freedom for my homeland.

As a young man, my opinion fall onto the area of revolution by any means as our National Father Bo Gyote Aung San did though I still believe in people power as the only possible way so far. I wanted to be a part of it. But I knew that something was not right for me. I didn't have enough courage for going back to the home and doing it. I am sure if I were in Yangon last September, I would be at the front line and no one would be able to predict my life now. I sorrowfully come to know and accept as many young Burmese like myself do not have enough courage or enough knowledge to do it, to risk their life or, more than that to risk their family members life. They also do not believe in the current environment of fighting for democracy. True words hurt us sometime.

"It's not enough to care about the world. Caring and feeling emotions is a waste of time and energy. Unless we get up and do something about the things we care about, it would be irrelevant."
[1997 Nobel Peace Laureate, Jody Williams]

The above words clean me a lot of my confusion. I got this from a famous Burmese blog, The One Whose Name Gyittu's odds and ends. It is absolutely right to me. We may get some advantages for caring others or worrying about them without going through with any exercise. Nobody doubts it will be definitely better and more productive if we exercise it.But knowing and exercising is still a bit, perhaps a big, different to me. I am not a hero. Sadly, I understand that without the young Burmese active efforts there will not be any freedom to our future as the only way to effect change is to participate by all Burmese and I also do feel it like my responsibility though, honestly, I am still afraid of picking it up to my shoulders. At last, I have to accept I am still an ordinary Burmese who does not have anything enough to fight from the front line and being like this is also a main reason of full of oppression in Burma instead of freedom. But I believe strongly that our bad era will surely come to demise one day in which we all boldly united and I am now trying to be there.

Time to consider the most critical objectives

2008-08-21T20:29:00.004+06:30

Today, I read a commentary from Irrawaddy, titled "Danish Viewpoint Merits Debate". It analyses the impact of economic sanctions and tourism boycott on Burma.

This debate on how effective the economic sanctions and tourism boycott against Burma seems to be ongoing for a considerable amount of time without being able to reach to a favorable consensus. I feel that the pros and cons behind such debate are also not as straightforward as the writer has stated in his commentary.

First of all, in such profit-driven world, even the governments which have adopted the universal economic sanctions on Burma, may be unable to persuade their countrymen to do the same. And Burma offers too many lucrative business opportunities to resist for companies driven largely by their profit and loss, rather than by the "humanitarian grounds". The same idea is applicable to those countries in ASEAN as well as China and India, etc. As long as such situation remains, whether we like it or not, I believe trade sanctions will end up as nothing more than just showing support for our democracy movement.

Secondly, though a large pie of revenue from tourism industry goes into the pockets of the junta and their associates, it still seems reasonable to think that many restaurants, guest-houses, hotels, and resorts that sprung up to cater for the tourists, have created a certain number of job opportunities, regardless of how insignificant the number might be, for Burmese people.

Many travelers, being empathetic towards the plight of Burmese people under the hands of repressive junta, have rallied among their own community to stick to private-owned small guest-houses and eateries, etc in the hope of not becoming a contributor towards the pockets of the junta and their associates. Such actions, though arguable at their effectiveness, seem to provide a more down-to-earth approach in supporting the livelihood of some of the common people in Burma.

Having said all this, there will always be two camps to this kind of debate. At the end of the day, we must ask ourselves what is the best practical support for our Burmese people, not forgetting that when a person is suffering in poverty, and dying from malnutrition, the meaning of democracy no longer seems critical to him.

Mr Bush, why only now?

2008-08-14T21:25:00.003+06:30

I was reading this article from Irrawaddy by Aung Zaw about his recent encounter with Bush.

No doubt, to many of us, Bush appears as an amicable man who has genuine interest and concern for Burma and its citizens. In fact, when Bush took up the presidency, I was elated to have someone who seemed prepared to take on a tougher stand against the junta. Now, despite Aung Zaw's generous comments about his "seemingly wonderful" encounter with Bush, I can't help but just to say "talk looks really good on the table".

My question to Bush: Mr Bush, why do you have time for Burma only when your term in office is almost over?

Past is haunting - Present is daunting

2008-07-06T15:56:00.003+06:30

Burma is in fact country of many black historic days. Ceaseless massacres were happened all along under bloody wrong hand. Memorials and anniversaries have to hold year round as many as seasonal festive celebrations of Burma calender. Now on July, two prominent black days are awaiting to haunt recent regime of killer generation. These are 7 July massacre and 19 July Martyrs day.

Notionally, 7 July is a bit different from 19 July, in which, Burma national hero, general Aung San and his cabinet members were assassinated. But, deep in reality, hatred, jealous, shortsightedness, paranoid and inhumane natures were the main causes and rooted in every corner of Burma history. Another difference is that 19 July, Martyr day is official Public Holiday in Burma but 7 July mourning day has yet to be recognized and publicized.

On that July 7, back in 46 years ago, groups of unarmed University students were killed by machine gun on the very spot of historic Rangoon University Compound. And the next day , early in the morning, Burma Student Union Building was abruptly destroyed by the wicked hand of military coup d'etat. The reason was that students were annoying and appeared as destructive elements to them, aired on state owned radio by the then coup leader, General Ne Win. He stressed his speech with unforgettable phrase - " an sword for sword, an spear for spear, we have to fight back" . But this had just been bitterness for people all over the country, as all know who actually use sword and spear.

Coup leaders might think that they could possibly eliminate and conquer any of obstacles just by killing and torturing. 26 years after this incident, however, they had realized that past is still haunting and history is rewound itself. Burma' milestone, 1988 revolution was in fact born again spirits of 7 July students.

1988 revolution and stained blood were passed along 20 years now. But past is still haunting to those who committed massacre. So, what is the present situation in Burma now ? Burmese civilians did try their best whenever the circumstances favored. Then military regime has repeatedly tortured and killed whomever against them. Many families were broken and destroyed under this oppression. Mothers are crying. Sons are dying. Political prisoner are lying in the darkness. Political crisis makes ever-deepening social crisis and in turn it causing political unrest again. Moreover, Nagis cyclone pushes Burma to the edge of worst. Everything seems hopeless and unimaginable what would happen to worrisome and desperate 50 million souls. Will it be another revolution? Will it be another cyclone to make sufferer? Will it be another earthquake to punish dictator? Will it be any betterment? Will it be even worse? One thing for sure is present is daunting.

( 7 July memorial)

All of Burma Is a Prison

2008-07-06T11:52:00.001+06:30

by Min Zin
Posted June 29, 2008
[Source]

Much has been written about Cyclone Nargis and the failure of Burma’s military junta to respond adequately. But what of the hundreds of political prisoners held in Burma, many in areas devastated by the storm? When Cyclone Nargis ravaged Burma in the late night hours of May 2, it did not spare political prisoners. The notorious Insein prison, where hundreds of political prisoners (including my brother) are locked up, was one of the hardest hit places in Rangoon.

Why is my brother in Insein? On Feb. 15, the military raided the offices of the Myanmar Nation and took my brother, the weekly journal’s editor in chief, to jail. His crime? Possession of a U.N. report on the military’s brutal crackdown on last September’s demonstrations by monks and democracy activists—known around the world as the “Saffron Revolution.”

My brother’s name is Thet Zin, and he is one of hundreds of Burmese citizens who struggle to tell the truth about what is happening in their country—whether through traditional forms of journalism or through the Internet—under threat of arrest or worse by the military regime. Along with my brother, his office manager, Sein Win Maung, was also arrested.

When Cyclone Nargis hit, it uprooted trees; rain flooded the prison cells and the power was cut. A fire broke out in one of the prison wards, filling the prison with smoke. The flames triggered a riot. The guards started shooting.

Suffering from asthma, my brother was choking with smoke. His former office manager and fellow inmate, Sein Win Maung, passed out. Some sympathetic prison guards rushed to the cells and managed to push aside fallen trees and move the political prisoners to a prison hospital.

“Many political prisoners in the cells could have died from smoke if the rescue was delayed one more hour,” said Bo Kyi, a former political prisoner who now works with Thailand-based Assistant Association for Political Prisoners (AAPP-Burma).

It is still hard to know how many died or were injured during the havoc. But according to AAPP at least 36 prisoners at Insein were shot to death when the cylcone hit. Some prisoners, like many of their countrymen, lost their entire family to the cyclone. Thiha Thet Zin, a political prisoner in Insein, was informed that eight out of nine of his family members—including his son, his parents, his grandmother, and all his siblings—were swept away by the storm. His wife was the only survivor.

This is hell on earth. Still, Insein prison and the injustices that take place there are but a microcosm of what’s taking place throughout Burma. To paraphrase Shakespeare, all of Burma is a prison.

Cyclone Nargis claimed more than 138,000 lives and left millions homeless. Still, the junta denied millions of Burmese people the basic right to food by blocking foreign aid workers and supplies in the weeks immediately following the storm.

Indeed, the misuse of international aid is by now well documented. Aid supplies ended up in military warehouses, local markets and the homes of police officers and members of pro-government civilian groups instead of reaching starving and disease-stricken survivors. Soldiers even looted jewelries from dead bodies.

Moreover, the junta forced survivors to take part in the reconstruction of military sites and conscripted male orphans into the army, which before the storm was already notorious for its tens of thousands of child soldiers. All of these reports have been confirmed by sources both inside and outside Burma.

Clearly, the junta’s inability and unwillingness to care for the Burmese people is tantamount to “crimes against humanity.” Cyclone Nargis has exposed the failures of the regime and brought forth a defining moment in Burmese history with inevitable, if yet unpredictable, political consequences.

“Things will not return to status quo ante,” says Priscilla Clapp, a U.S. diplomat who served as Chief of Mission in Burma from 1999-2002. Post-cyclone Burmese politics will be a humanitarian politics—pressuring and arguing about mobilizing aid and its delivery. Political goals will be set aside at least for the medium-term, and more consideration will be given to humanitarian works.

The junta continues to ensure that the cyclone will not have an effect on its “Road Map to discipline flourishing democracy.” But there are pressures within the junta itself that could eventually lead to change. “We have heard that there are considerable tensions within the military,” said David Steinberg, a Burma expert from Georgetown University. “But I don’t know whether the tension is strong enough to split the military and at what level it exists, and whether it is at a high enough level to threaten present leadership.”

The Association of Southeast Asian Nations has approved millions in aid for Burma and now has hundreds of aid workers from member countries in storm-stricken areas. This could serve to expose to the outside world the prison state that is Burma. Still, despite a visit last month by U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki Moon and the demands of dozens of heads of state, Nobel Peace Prize winner and leader of Burma’s opposition Aung San Suu Kyi remains under house arrest—long after the May 24 deadline for her release.

What’s most important here is to assure the aid money is not used by the junta to retrench and tighten its grip on the Burmese people. Foreign aid runs the risk of being a “jackpot for the military junta, who will be the sole beneficiary of the international donation in the name of the cyclone victims” says Aung Din, a former political prisoner and director of the U.S. Campaign for Burma.

The outside world must demand more transparency and accountability when it comes to aid money and how it is distributed. So long as the world allows itself to be co-opted and outfoxed by the junta, political prisoners—including Aung San Suu Kyi and those in cyclone-ravaged Insein prison—will continue to languish in Burma’s gulags, and the Burmese people will remain shackled.

Min Zin is a Burmese journalist in exile.

Myanmar politics roiled, but junta's grip remains strong

2008-07-06T11:17:00.003+06:30

DENIS L. GRAY
Published: 07.03.2008
[Source - tucsoncitizen.com]

BANGKOK, Thailand - The cyclone that devastated Myanmar's heartland has also roiled a political landscape dominated by the military for more than four decades.

Buddhist monks are regrouping after the battering they took nine months ago, civil society groups are emerging and foreign aid workers — often agents of political change in the wake of humanitarian crises — are present in unprecedented numbers.

The junta's grip on power remains absolute. But anger against the regime has probably never run so high.
"Perhaps incremental change will emerge from engagement on humanitarian problems," said Joel Charny, vice president of U.S.-based Refugees International who visited Myanmar just before the cyclone struck.

People were already incensed by the brutal suppression last September of anti-government demonstrators, including the country's revered, saffron-robed Buddhist monks.

Then came Cyclone Nargis, exposing the junta as inept and heartless, initially blocking international aid efforts and even now still hampering them.

"The people are blaming the government. They are responsible for many deaths. They don't care about right or wrong and they let people die just to hold onto power," said Aung Myoe, a 32-year-old driver in a comment typical of the mood in Yangon, Myanmar's largest city.

"In the `Saffron Revolution' they lost their Buddhist legitimacy; with the cyclone they lost whatever concept of efficacy they had with the public," said David Steinberg, a Myanmar expert at Georgetown.

Steinberg said the junta constantly trumpet achievements in modernizing the isolated and impoverished Southeast Asian nation formerly named Burma.

Analysts say these passions and emerging trends may in the longer term loosen the junta's grip on power. But for now it's business as usual: dissidents are arrested, a brutal campaign against ethnic minorities rages on and the military strides toward elections guaranteed to perpetuate its control.

But the 500,000-strong Buddhist monkhood, the only viable national institution after the army, is regaining strength and cohesion by assuming a leading role in helping cyclone survivors.

Their work is seconded by quietly burgeoning civil society groups, which Steinberg said could foster pluralism and democracy in the future. These groups include professional guilds, including those of actors and singers, charity organizations and loose associations of like-minded citizens.

So could the influx of foreign aid workers and agencies in what may be the most intense interaction Myanmar has experienced with the outside world since gaining independence from Great Britain in 1948.

The operative word is "incremental." Analysts don't foresee meaningful political changes in the short run, discounting a dramatic turn of events, such as social upheaval in face of cyclone-induced rice shortages, or a split within the military.
The regime will be hard-pressed to provide enough rice to keep its 400,000 troops and their families loyal and ensure that shortages, which could last several years, don't trigger major popular unrest as they have in the past, said Donald Seekins, a Myanmar watcher at Japan's Meio University.

Meanwhile, the junta marches forward along its so-called "road map to democracy." Elections are scheduled in 2010, based on a referendum-approved Constitution which guarantees the military 25 percent of parliamentary seats and power to run the country in event of a national emergency.

The cyclone response, the referendum and the extension of pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi's detention for a sixth year all sparked international outcry, but the absence of U.N. or other foreign action reassured the junta it needn't fear outside intervention.

"The people of Myanmar would have been happy if the United States or France invaded," said Ye Htun, a 30-year-old English teacher. "In Myanmar, the government is too strong and people are too scared. We can't do it alone."

Denis Gray, AP bureau chief in Bangkok, has covered Myanmar since the mid-1970s.

Frustrated Burmese Organize Aid Forays

2008-06-22T10:16:00.000+06:30

Ad Hoc Groups Formed In Cyclone's Aftermath, But Causes May Widen

Washington Post Foreign Service
Saturday, June 21, 2008; A01

RANGOON -- Seven weeks after huge swaths of Burma were savaged by a cyclone and tidal wave, a new and remarkable citizen movement is delivering emergency supplies to survivors neglected by the military government's haphazard relief effort.

The scores of ad hoc Burmese groups, many of them based here in the country's largest city, are not overtly political. But they are reviving a kind of social activism that has been largely repressed by successive military rulers here.

Defying roadblocks and bureaucratic obstruction, volunteers have reached devastated villages in many parts of the Irrawaddy Delta, dropping off food, drinking water and other essentials and bringing back photos that contradict claims in the state media that life is returning to normal.

Some members of the groups say they hope to keep working together when the cyclone damage is finally repaired and turn toward other activities that carry shades of political activism in this tightly controlled state.

With residents' frustration over the official relief effort mounting, pledges of support and donations to the National League for Democracy, the main opposition group in Burma, also called Myanmar, have doubled since the cyclone, according to a student leader of the league.

The storm, which came ashore on the night of May 2-3, killed an estimated 134,000 people and created severe hardship for 2.4 million more. The country's deeply xenophobic junta turned aside many offers of foreign help, agreeing to let in substantial numbers of international aid workers only after U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki-moon flew to the country May 22 with a personal appeal.

By then, however, homegrown groups were already mobilized, working to offset the tragic shortcomings of the government operation.

Down a street lined with gold and ruby merchants, where dealers charm clients over tiny tables set with tea and chess, employees in the back room of a gem shop one recent morning were swapping evidence: photos of rotten government food handouts.

A week earlier, people in the shops said, more than a dozen local jewelers had loaded 100 bags of rice, 20 bags of beans, tarpaulins and blankets onto a truck donated by a supplier and set off at midnight for the storm-ravaged town of Labutta.

They returned with photos of homeless villagers lining up for tins of food at a makeshift camp, a tear-stained boy who, they said, had lost his entire family to the storm's fierce tidal surge, and rotten rice -- yellow, fist-size chunks of it, piled like rocks in bags donated by the government-affiliated Myanmar Red Cross.

"When I saw what they were being fed, I was shaking I was so angry," said a shop assistant, 26, narrating each photo as she passed it to a customer.

The informal organizations are often based on occupation. Artists, doctors, students and the gem dealers have formed separate groups. In other cases, the groups are made up of friends coming together to help.

A 27-year-old lawyer trainee said he and five friends were furious when they tried to distribute supplies around the ruined town of Bogalay about a week after the cyclone but were turned away by local authorities who told them they needed a permit.

"They say they are giving these things to the people, but we know they aren't," he said, pointing at a photo in the state daily newspaper, the Mirror, that showed a relief camp with neat rows of tents and tables laden with food. "We know not to believe them."

In the weeks immediately after the cyclone, a doctor recounted, he closed his private medical clinic for twice-weekly trips to the delta with others. There, they noticed local officials shooing away desperate children, many of them orphaned or suffering storm-related trauma.

So the doctors, four of whom are pediatricians, tried to entertain the children to keep their minds occupied. They held a sanitation workshop after noticing that there were no visible efforts to instruct people in basic hygiene.

"The Ministry of Health is trying, but they're not effective, not organized," the physician said.

Like many other residents, the doctor can't afford to take many more days off work, but he still meets with the group every week. He said he hopes to translate the momentum of its cyclone relief work into other efforts, operating under cover of medicine.

"I'm not political; I'm a community-based activist," the doctor said, when asked how his group could keep working and turn from cyclone relief to other activities, such as organizing debates on health care.

"Now we're seeing the time of civil society. Now thousands of small groups are helping any way they can," said a magazine editor, who pooled funds with other journalists and artists in the hope of purchasing 1,000 shortwave radios so delta survivors could receive uncensored foreign news broadcasts. In the end, the group could afford only 50 but managed to distribute them in villages.

The back page of the Mirror and the New Light of Myanmar daily tells readers that "everybody may make donations freely . . . to any person or any area." But nearly a dozen people interviewed offered firsthand or secondhand tales of confiscation or obstruction by local authorities.

A surgeon said he and his group of medical and psychology students were prevented from handing out food at a monastery near the town of Dedaye to about 1,000 refugees who had been sheltering inside. A general there wanted to be seen to hand out the food first, the surgeon said.

A lawyer said he had set out on a relief trip to the delta town of Kyunpangong with five friends, but every box of goods they brought was opened and searched in front of them.

"If I had the chance, I'd occupy the whole delta and put up a sign to the authorities that reads 'Don't come here,' " said a Rangoon monk who is active in medical work. "So many people are waiting to get aid from the government, but they're having to rely instead on private donors."

In five relief expeditions to the delta or ravaged areas around Rangoon, he said, he saw military troops and police patrolling roads or monitoring checkpoints but not once helping survivors.

Since the cyclone, three people have been arrested on charges of taking photographs of the cyclone-ravaged areas and sending them to foreign news sites, and one person for marching to the offices of the U.N. Development Program to complain about government neglect, according to a lawyer monitoring their cases.

Though some private groups are keeping up their relief efforts, others are running out of steam -- and money.

Under monsoon skies one recent afternoon, porters loaded a boat berthed in Rangoon with rattan baskets of cloth, children's pajamas and bags of rice. It was sailing to the delta under the auspices of a prominent Buddhist abbot. On its previous trip, the owners had offered the boat for free. This time, said a monk directing the loading, the owner was charging.

Nearby, in a single-room apartment, 16 current and former university students crowded around a surgeon who was writing notes on a blackboard in preparation for another crack-of-dawn trip to the delta.

Later the surgeon remarked: "I think the government made a huge mistake. If they were seen to care, people would have forgiven them for the past 20 years."

Firsthand tale of Burma relief frustrations

2008-06-22T08:50:00.000+06:30

Tyche Hendricks, Chronicle Staff Writer
Friday, June 20, 2008

Richard Jacquot describes the cyclone that hit Burma on M... Richard Jacquot points to a place near the township of La...

(06-19) 18:10 PDT -- Nearly two months after Cyclone Nargis slammed into Burma's Irrawaddy Delta, humanitarian relief groups are still struggling to get government permission to deliver life-saving aid to 2 million survivors, said Richard Jacquot, a San Francisco resident and emergency program manager for Mercy Corps.

In a conversation with The Chronicle, Jacquot, who returned Sunday from a month in Burma, detailed the enormous frustrations and the modest triumphs of helping cyclone victims recover under the watchful eye of an authoritarian regime.

Although Burma's military leaders promised U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon a month ago that they would admit aid workers of all nationalities, they continue to restrict aid delivery, he said.

The French-born Jacquot has spent 24 years working in some of the hardest-hit war zones and disaster areas on the planet - from Sarajevo to Sudan and Congo to the Kurdish area of Iraq. He managed Hurricane Katrina recovery for Mercy Corps, an Oregon aid agency working in three dozen countries. Trained in international relations and economic development, Jacquot has worked for several humanitarian organizations coordinating emergency food, shelter, water, sanitation and health care.

The risks of providing aid in the midst of a war are manageable compared to the obstacles he confronted trying to deliver aid in Burma, said Jacquot, 58.

"You have to make contact with all the groups ... it's dangerous but you know the players," he said of his experiences in battle zones.

By contrast, in Burma, renamed Myanmar by the governing junta, "there's no rhyme or reason. You don't know why you can go here today and tomorrow you can't," said Jacquot. "It's the way an authoritarian regime works: It puts you off balance. That's the way it controls its population."

Jacquot spent a month in Rangoon, coordinating with colleagues in the delta town of Laputta over government-issued cell phones. He was not permitted to leave the city and they were unable to travel out of the delta. Satellite phones and Internet access was blocked by the government.

Mercy Corps has only been able to operate in Burma because it affiliated itself with a British medical aid group, Merlin, which had already been working in Burma and had a memorandum of understanding with the government to equip health centers in the Irrawaddy Delta. Like other aid groups, Mercy Corps and Merlin have relied heavily on Burmese staff and associates who have been able to move more freely.

The greatest frustration, said Jacquot, was watching millions of dollars worth of aid and hundreds of skilled relief workers stay bottled up in Rangoon while hundreds of thousands of survivors subsist on almost nothing after the May 3 storm, which took an estimated 134,000 lives.

"Imagine Katrina: it was already a pretty difficult challenge for the U.S. to handle," he said. "Now imagine the government has shut the area completely. No one is allowed inside and no aid is allowed to get in. The result is a population that needs assistance and cannot get it."

Mercy Corps and Merlin managed to install three large barges loaded with supplies on rivers in the delta, then used smaller boats to ferry food, plastic sheeting and other materials from the barges to the villages.

Jacquot's team has employed Burmese health workers to serve the remote communities along the rivers and hired local people to drain salt water and clear corpses out of rainwater reservoirs and prepare them to catch the monsoon rains again for drinking water.

Jacquot said he was moved by the ingenuity and initiative of Burmese people in reaching out to their countrymen in spite of government-erected obstacles.

"One of the side effects of a controlling government is that it triggers human creativity," he said. "What is extraordinary there is the response by local organizations. We have to admire them because they are taking a lot of risk."

The United Nations, along with the Association of Southeast Asian Nations and the Burmese government, is conducting a comprehensive disaster assessment to be complete next month. Early reports indicate that a feared wave of disease and death has not materialized. But that doesn't mean that all is well in the Irrawaddy Delta, where families still huddle in shelters with their livestock and scrounge for food and fresh water, said Jacquot.

"The fact that there isn't secondary death doesn't mean they are not suffering," he said. "You hear people say, 'It's amazing how resilient they are.' But what choice do they have?"

Meanwhile, aid workers like Jacquot debate how best to proceed in the face of continuing government resistance to foreign aid.

"Some say providing a little bit of help is better than no help at all, others say we should challenge the government further," said Jacquot, now back in his San Francisco living room. "I don't know the answer but it's a dilemma everybody has to deal with."

Plight of Burmese people

2008-06-20T11:52:00.003+06:30

Gone with the wind,
Countless numbers of lives.

Numb with tears,
This undescribable feeling of pain.

Faced with fear,
The possibility of lost future.

Grappling with darkness,
A chance to see a glimpse of light at the end.

In Hard Times, Pawnshops Thrive

2008-06-20T11:49:00.001+06:30

By Aung Thet Wine/ Rangoon
[Source - Irrawaddy]

A 13-year-old student wearing a school blouse and a faded green longyi shyly approached the owner of the Yadana Pawnshop on Moe Kaung Street in eastern Dagon Myothit.

Pale and very thin, the girl slowly removed a packet from her ragged school bag and handed it to the woman pawnbroker, who unfolded a tattered, faded, longyi. She inspected it carefully, before speaking.

"300 kyat [0.40 cents]," she said. The girl’s eyes turned sad.

"Aunty, please give me 500 kyat,” she said. “Today I have to pay school fees."

The pawnbroker looked at the girl and then silently began folding the longyi. Finished, she carefully wrote out a receipt.

Through a small window, she handed the student 500 kyat and a crisp, white receipt.

The girl smiled. She put the kyat and receipt into her school bag and walked outside into the rain. She could remain in school for one more term.

The men and women waiting in the pawnshop had watched the exchange with sympathy. They were also customers with hopes of getting a few kyat to meet their immediate needs. Some needed bus fare to get to work; some needed money for rice; some needed medicine.

Many people in Burma go to pawnbrokers each day now carrying clothes or cooking utensils to pawn for enough money to get through the day. They are mostly day laborers who are paid small salaries at each day’s end. Some would return that evening to buy back whatever they pawned in the morning, only to return in a few days’ time to pawn the object again.

"After Cyclone Nargis, the most pawned items are clothes and cooking utensils,” said a pawnshop owner in Hlaing Tharyar Township. “Mostly women’s longyi and cooking pots. Most people who pawn things are daily wage earners with low living standards or civil servants in low ranks." "

“Every morning, I have to find money for bus fares," a mason from Ward 21 in Hlaing Tharyar Township told The Irrawaddy. He was working regularly at a construction site in downtown Rangoon and had to commute to work.

A pawnbroker with a shop near Insein Market, said: "When the houses collapsed in the cyclone and a lot of people lost their jobs, they turned to the pawnshops. I had roughly 60 to 100 customers before, but now about 200 to 300 people come regularly.”

A civil servant at the Defense Textile Mill said, "Twelve days after I’m paid the money runs out, and then I have to run to the pawnshop for daily food.”

Pawnshops are among the most successful businesses in Rangoon, according to an official at the Yangon Municipal Committee. He said Rangoon had 137 registered pawnshops in 2000-2001; 169 in 2001-2002; 162 from 2002-2004; 189 in 2004-2005; 214 in 2005-2006; 250 in 2006-2007; and 256 pawnshops in 2008.

A pawnshop owner must bid for a registration license. Owners say the winners are those who pay the largest bribes.

"The license fee is 5 million kyat [about US $4,237] and the bribe is 2 million kyat [$1,695], so totally it costs about 7 million kyat [$5,929] for a license," said a pawnbroker in Hlaing Tharyar Township.

The license fee varies in each township, rising to around 8 million kyat [$6,776] for a downtown township location, according to owners.

Pawnshop owners say you need about 200 million kyat [$169,500] to start a top-line pawnshop, which essentially functions as a small loan business. Many unlicensed pawnshops are springing up, they say, drawing many regular customers away from registered pawnshops.

But for now—with the Burmese economy reeling from the cyclone’s impact and more people out of work—pawnshops everywhere are thriving with customers trying to get through one more day in a life of unrelieved hardship.

The Imprisoned Voice of Freedom

2008-06-20T11:34:00.001+06:30

By Kyaw Zwa Moe
[Source - Irrawaddy]

Everyone knows where Aung San Suu Kyi is spending her 63rd birthday today. But as millions of her supporters around the world mark the occasion, no one can say when she will be released from the family home that has been her prison for most of the past 19 years.

I still remember a conversation I had with Suu Kyi in late 1999, during one of her brief interludes of freedom. We met at the Rangoon headquarters of her party, the National League for Democracy (NLD). Two youth members of the NLD were also there. We discussed politics and our experiences as political prisoners, as well as our plans for our future education.

I can clearly recall her sobering advice at that time: that we should be prepared for a “lifelong struggle” to restore democracy to Burma.

It already feels like a lifetime has passed since then.

A few months after I met her, she was put under house arrest again. Today, almost a decade later, she is still in detention. She has been a prisoner for nearly 13 of the past 19 years.

On May 27, five years after she was taken into custody following the infamous Depayin massacre that left many of her followers dead, her detention was extended again.

When she will be released is as uncertain as the future of Burma itself. After 46 years of iron-fisted military rule, Burma seems to be perpetually on the verge of collapse. No one knows when the next crisis will strike. But one thing seems certain: The fate of Burma and its most famous prisoner of conscience are inextricably intertwined.

For the moment, the junta still holds the reins. And that means that Suu Kyi will probably not see freedom before 2010, when the regime plans to hold an election that it has no intention of losing. By that time, she will be 65 years old—twenty years older than she was when her party delivered the junta a humiliating defeat in the country’s last general election.

The regime never honored the results of the 1990 election, but it is expected to welcome the outcome of the 2010 vote. As in the constitutional referendum held in May, the junta’s victory is guaranteed.

The draft constitution, which was supposedly supported by 92 percent of the population, sets aside 25 percent of parliamentary seats for military appointees. It is also highly likely that the regime will form a political party and field candidates with strong military backing.

If the junta can achieve its goal of rewriting history—erasing the two decades that it has ruled as a reviled and illegitimate regime and starting afresh with an electoral and constitutional mandate, however dubious—it may see fit to release Suu Kyi.

But this is far from certain. The regime knows from past experience that Suu Kyi’s influence is not easily eclipsed.

When she was released from her first six-year period of house arrest in 1995, crowds flocked to her home each Saturday to hear her speak. Her talks on political subjects threatened to revive the people’s democratic aspirations, and so she was once again removed from the public eye.

In 2002, Suu Kyi was released again. Sure enough, her magnetism proved to be undiminished. Her travels around the country attracted immense attention.

Desperate to contain her popular appeal, the regime masterminded an attack on her motorcade in Depayin, Sagaing Division, on May 30, 2003. She survived the carefully orchestrated assault, but many of her supporters did not.

Even after the regime had shown the extent to which it was willing to go to remove her from Burma’s political equation, Suu Kyi remained firmly committed to dialogue.

In an article written several years later, Razali Ismail, the former United Nations envoy to Burma, recounted a conversation he had with Suu Kyi a few days after the Depayin incident: “She said that she was prepared to turn the page for the sake of the people and reconciliation, saying she was still prepared to talk to the government.”

It is almost bizarre, in light of such evidence of Suu Kyi’s willingness to forgive the regime for the many indignities that it has inflicted upon her over the past two decades, to listen to charges that she has been inflexible in her dealings with the ruling generals.

There are even some who ask if her unwavering principles, determination and courage have become political liabilities for Burma. They seem to imply that the country would be better off with an opposition leader who didn’t make the regime look so nasty and brutish by contrast.

Many of Suu Kyi’s supporters have commented that she has the power to bring out the best in people. Is it possible that she also brings out the worst in her opponents? But it seems almost grotesquely unfair to suggest that she’s to blame for the junta’s poor public image.

What makes Suu Kyi so appealing to many, and so appalling to some, is that she speaks the simple truth. She disarms people with her candor. But the generals know that lies are all they have, so they continue to attack her.

Not everyone who criticizes Suu Kyi is attacking her. But what some of her critics have in common with the regime is that they tend to ignore the facts in favor of a view which suggests that Burma is a permanent basket case, with or without military rule.

Some say that Suu Kyi’s Burman ethnicity, which she shares with most of the ruling generals, makes her equally unfit to rule a country as ethnically diverse as Burma. She herself has never shied away from the complex issue of ethnic politics. Indeed, she has always been clear that talks with the regime should include representatives of Burma’s many ethnic minorities.

Suu Kyi has never spoken of the ethnic issue as if it were a secondary matter, although her energies have always been directed primarily at restoring democracy. Far from treating the ethnic issue as unimportant, she has always envisioned democracy as a means of addressing the legitimate aspirations of various ethnic groups.

In this, she is worlds apart from both the junta and many so-called “Burma experts.” While the regime believes that force is the only way to hold the country together, some academics argue that the country is doomed to fall apart. Suu Kyi rejects both militarism and pessimism as political dead ends.

Is Suu Kyi guilty, then, of unfounded optimism about the future of Burma? Not at all.

In 1990, the NLD won over 80 percent of the seats in parliament. Even more significantly, the party’s support was strong not only in Burman-dominated cities such as Rangoon and Mandalay, but also in ethnic states.

In eastern Karen State, the NLD won 71 percent of seats; in northern Kachin State, it took 73 percent. Southeastern Mon State gave the party 80 percent support. In Shan State, the NLD won over 39 percent, while in Karenni State it won 50 percent. In western Arakan and Chin states, it won over 34 and 30 percent, respectively.

What does this prove? That Burma’s people, regardless of ethnicity, want democracy and see it as a means of improving their lives. That was true in 1990, and it is true today.

But Suu Kyi’s appeal has never been based on false promises, so the people of Burma also know that even if they get what they want most—freedom from a brutal dictatorship—there will still be challenges ahead.

Nearly a decade ago, Suu Kyi warned me that the road ahead would not be easy. Perhaps it wasn’t what I wanted to hear at the time. But now her words ring truer than ever, even though the voice that spoke them has been silenced—for how long, nobody knows.

More local aid workers arrested

2008-06-20T11:30:00.002+06:30

Source: Irrawaddy

Recently, a local volunteer group made headlines when they started collecting the bodies of the Cyclone Nargis victims and gave them a decent burial in a plot of land they had purchased for this purpose. On 14th June, 7 of these volunteers were detained by the government. Out of these 7, 5 of them belong to a group called All Burma Federation of Students' Union (ABFSU).

Those detained include the Myanmar Tribune publishers U Aung Kyaw San and Dr Nay Win as well as ABSU leaders Ko Lin Htet Naing, Ma Hnin Pwint Wai, and Ko Hein Yazar Tun.

One aid worker told Irrawaddy: "They were detained at a checkpoint on our return trip from Bogale to Pyapon. We heard that the detainees were transferred to Yangon. There were about 16 people in the truck but the driver and some other people were allowed to go home."

For security reasons, ABFSU members have been in hiding since September's Saffron Revolution. However, they have been actively involved relief work since Cyclone Nargis hit the Burma's Irrawaddy Delta in early May.

Since the beginning of June, junta has detained over 20 prominent aid workers without any valid reasons. Those under detention include comedian Zarganar and Sports Editor Zaw Thet Htwe.

A spokesman from ABFSU told Irrawaddy,
"(The Junta is angry for several reasons.) For one, they are not getting as much funds as they want from the International Community. Secondly, news continue to leak out even though they are trying hard to control the media. The fact that private aid workers are getting things done while they cant, it is making them lose face. So of course, they take it out on the local aid workers."

Original article: http://www.irrawaddy.org/bur/news2008/June/june_19a_08.html

Detention of private aid workers

2008-06-16T21:01:00.002+06:30

Sources: Myo Chit Myanmar & Irrawaddy

One of the most active private donor groups have stopped distributing aid after two of its leaders were detained. The group, led by comedian-philanthropist Zarganar and Sports Editor Zaw Thet Htwe, said they will stop distributing aid for the time being.

Meanwhile, three other private aid workers were detained last thursday when they went to a pre-arranged meeting with a monk who had asked for donation items. A family member said the authorities searched the houses of one of the detainees and asked the family to produce receipts and other documents related to aid work.

The reason for detention remains unclear.

Reference Articles:
1. http://myochitmyanmar.blogspot.com/2008/06/blog-post_4535.html
2. http://www.irrawaddy.org/bur/news2008/June/june_16d_08.html

Time to ask Ourselves

2008-06-14T19:50:00.003+06:30

The latest news at Mizzima titled "Journalist helping cyclone victims arrested" says:

The crackdown by the Burmese military junta continues unabated, It arrested a journalist, who has been helping Cyclone Nargis victims in Irrawaddy delta this morning, according to sources.

Zaw Thet Htwe, the former Editor-in Chief of First Eleven Sports journal was arrested by the Special Branch of the police this morning.

Another news from Mizzima titled "Junta shuts down pro-opposition monastery" says:

The Burmese military junta authorities sealed a pro-opposition Buddhist monastery in Rangoon yesterday.

The township chairman and security forces arrived at the Sasana Theikpan monastery compound of Chauk Htut Gyi pagoda, Bahan Township on Friday morning and told monks they would close the monastery until an official announcement by the new head of monastery was made.

A few days ago, I read Irrawaddy's interview with a popular Burmese comedian, Zarganar. A couple of days later, I read another news about him being detained for questioning without any valid explanation.

Ban-Ki Moon has come and gone. Than Shwe has fulfilled a tiny fraction of his promise to Ban-Ki Moon by minutely increasing the number of visas issued to aid workers.

US and French warships have returned to their respective countries. Many people expressed disbelief and disappointment at the junta's refusal of aid from those warships. Words of condemnation and even pleas failed to reach out to Than Shwe.

A group of good Samaritans bought a plot of land out of their own money and selflessly went through the sites to find the decomposed bodies and buried them. [Source - Moetheezun's blog]

Other individuals pull together whatever resources they can find to help the cyclone victims. Whenever they talk to the victims, the same stories surface. No visible aid has come from SPDC and the meager rations handed out by the SPDC can hardly sustain for the survival of the victims. Many victims still live in precarious conditions making them vulnerable to contracting diseases and dying from malnutrition. Sometimes, the victims are even subjected to abuse by SPDC's lackeys for not following orders.

After reading all those news in the media depicting the current situations of Burma, I was prostrate with frustration and sadness. Though there is currently no immediate evidence of casualty tantamount to a genocide, waves after waves of repressions by Junta over many decades (since Ne Win took over the power in Burma) have undeniably caused a series of damages equivalent to such.

With more natural disasters and problems happening in the world, the plight of Burmese people may soon be forgotten by many people. Such is an inevitable truth. Hence, I sincerely hope that everyone will see how we need to do whatever we can within our own means to bring the light to the people of Burma. There must come a day when Burma will be known for its natural beauty and mesmerizing culture rather than the devastating and frustrating news like what is happening now.

It is time to ask ourselves .....
What can we do to free Burma?
How will we do what we can do for Burma?
How effective are our actions for Burma?
Until when will we do what we can do for Burma?

And most importantly, we must remember that everyone has a role to play. No matter how tiny it might be.

The real reason behind visa delays

2008-06-08T18:08:00.001+06:30

Source: MMEd Watch

MMEDWatch reported that embassies have been instructed by higher authorities to limit the number of visas issued per week. Sources told MMEDWatch that there were no hard and fast rules on who is allowed entry. For instance, a volunteer was denied visa while an analyst (who supposedly poses more of a threat to Junta) was granted visa.

For the original article in Burmese, please click here.

Homeless cyclone survivors now face monsoon

2008-06-08T10:27:00.001+06:30

Published Date: 08 June 2008
By Pat Wilde
[Source - ScotlandonSunday]

A SEVERE shortage of housing has left hundreds of thousands of cyclone survivors in Burma exposed to heavy rains as the monsoon season begins.

The United Nations and the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies warned there was an "urgent need" for tarpaulins to provide the estimated 1.5 million homeless survivors with temporary shelter. Otherwise, they warned, the threat of hunger and disease could intensify.

"Exposure to the elements five weeks after a disaster of this magnitude has to be a major concern," said John Sparrow, a spokesman for the IFRC. "People are in a weakened condition. They are sick, they are hungry. Without shelter, their whole situation is seriously exacerbated."

The UN estimates a total of 2.4 million people were affected when Cyclone Nargis hit on May 2 to 3, and warns that more than one million of those still need help, mostly in the hard-to-reach Irrawaddy delta.

UN officials and aid groups have criticised the regime for hindering access to the delta, saying it has prevented enough food, water and shelter from reaching desperate survivors.

The top UN humanitarian official said in New York there were now "relatively few people" who have not received any sort of help, but "this aid effort needs to be stepped up further".

"I think people are getting to all the main places, although it's not always as easy as it should be," John Holmes said. "There's no evidence of starvation at the moment, although, as I say, many people are still in significant need of aid."

The UN has said access could be greatly improved if the country's military junta would accept American offers of support, which include the use of 22 military helicopters.

The USS Essex group, which includes four ships, 5,000 US military personnel and the helicopters, on Thursday abandoned plans to deliver aid to the delta after repeated efforts to broker a compromise with the junta failed.

The US military, however, said it was keeping 22 helicopters on standby in case Burma's ruling junta reverses its rejection of such help for cyclone victims, saying the aircraft could reach survivors within three days.

With only seven Burmese government helicopters reportedly flying, relief supplies are mostly being transported along dirt roads and then by boat. International aid agencies say boats able to navigate the delta's canals are scarce and efforts to import vehicles have been hampered by government red tape.

"Of the 1 million or 1.5 million people in need of relief support, we think that between 450,000 and 750,000 are in emergency need," said Lt Gen John Goodman, commander of Marine Forces Pacific and head of the US relief operation for Burma.

They could be reached "over the course of a three-day period" by American helicopters and landing craft, he said in a telephone interview from a temporary US staging area at Utapao, Thailand.

Goodman said the junta was "still considering" the offer, which would include allowing Burma officials aboard all US helicopters to monitor their routes and to unload relief.

The military leaders are particularly reluctant to allow US helicopters into the delta, given that Washington has been a leading critic of the junta for its poor human rights record and refusal to hand power to a democratically elected government.

Those who suffer and Those who enjoy by Nagis Cyclone

2008-06-06T19:16:00.010+06:30

When I read this blog post written by one fellow Burmese, living inside the troubled country, deeply touched and I feel exactly what s/he does. And I started to type and translate to English as s/he requested .

It's really nice to stay here !!

Everything is just perfect..

Nothing was difficult to do aid work...

Such a good generator ! bring it back to army bar....

have to rebuild with whatever we have...

This is school open day ! Which school we have to go then...

No idea what to do !

Nothing but space to sleep

Surviving with makeshift shelter, where is the foreign aid - tent ...

Those who suffer and Those who enjoy by Nagis Cyclone

(I would be much appreciate if anyone could translate and share this post around the internet and spread the words)

Please look these photos thoroughly! You can see who is enjoying the things and stuffs came along with international aid agencies. Earlier, they ( Army staffs and its followers) tried to smuggle these out. Then, when it exposed to the public and not easy to do so, they just keep for themselves and benefited. How they are doing relief and aid works? He is with iron folded uniform and sit back and relax, watching TV, inside the safe and warm shelter of donated new tent. They don't even have such a chance to rest in their military bar.

How dare they ask victims to wash their cloths and get water for them? They think victims are coming around to serve them and beg for. There are hundreds of tents but not for cyclone victims. However, if high rank officials and international agencies come down to see camps, they quickly manage to push in the selected victims inside the tent and force them to witness what they taught. Who can argue seeing these photos?

Everything is happening different with what international expected. The fact is that these aid and donated stuffs are really useful for them. It seems exactly like army was provided by international aid. Herewith we revealed to the international community representing the genuine cyclone victims. They could hardly manage for the space to sleep in. Even so, authorities evict them within three days.

That's why.. Let me say it out. We just try to accept that it's OK even if victims receive 10 pieces out of 100 donated by international community. But in reality, nothing was handed to victims. So, Please don't send any more food and aid stuffs. It seems like things are provided to army exclusively. They will torture and oppress as long as they are provided with such a nice food and good materials. If you want to donate and support to the real victims, please try to find out the right channel to reach victims out.

( Remark by translator- There are many volunteer groups , reaching directly to the devastated area. Cyclone relief is one of them.)

Change We Believe In

2008-06-05T23:00:00.001+06:30

In recent days, I used to hear success stories and news of those I have been following.

Being a loyal fan of Red devils, the name given by media to Manchester United Footballers, I feel astonishingly terrific for winning two major trophies in 2007-2008 season: Premiership Trophy and Champions League Trophy. I had never missed a match of every Premiership soccer matches played by Man U in this season. During Champions League Final, I watched until 5am till the end of deadly penalty kick out and award presenting ceremony. I recalled I had to get up again at 8am to go to work with red and sleepy eyes. Man U Football Club is made up of many talented youth players and they deserve more victories in years to come.

The world renowned American Idol Programme was just over and the winner was David Cook whom my wife and I had been supporting. My favourite songs by David Cook were "Hello", pop song by Lionel Richie, "I don't wanna miss a thing", rock song by Aerosmith and "Hero", a duet song with runner-up David Archuleta. It is originally a soundtrack by Chad Kroeger from blockbuster Spiderman movie. Despite not winning American the Idol, Kristy Lee was the one who sang the song I like most, "God Bless USA", in this year programme. It is about a US civilian being proud of heroes who fight for human rights, freedom and Independence of America. While others are proud of their accomplishments, we Burmese are losing face in International Community because of our inhumane government.

Democrats and Republicans have finally come out with their candidates for upcoming US presidential election. John McCain, a 71 years old Vietnam War veteran, was emerged as the presidential candidate for Republican Party. Democrats' candidate, Barack Obama, an African American senator, is the one I admire and support in this general election. He defeated his rival, Hilary Clinton, the former first lady of US, after their tough battles for five consecutive months. It is very likely he may also overcome his opponent of Republican, John McCain, in the forthcoming presidential election in this year end. The phrase from his inspirational speech of 2004 election campaign exclaims, "There is no liberal America. There is no conservative America. There is only United States of America." The slogan of the election campaign led by Obama is "Change We Believe In". Certainly, Americans are ready for change to disastrous policies of Bush administration.

Being a faithful supporter of our national leader, Daw Aung San Su Kyi, I am eager to make ourselves ready for change to let her take a leadership role in Burmese Government. I sincerely hope and suppose we are going to see her victory against dictators soon before the end of 2008. Her supporters are not divided by fans of Man U, Chelsea, Liverpool or Arsenal. Her followers are not divided by admirers of David Cook, David Archuleta or Jason. Her devotees are not divided by supporters of McCain, Hilary or Obama. Apart from those who fear to lose power and suppress the people, all of us are supporting Daw Su exclusively for her bravery and love towards the people of Burma. Whatever it is, the only unchanged universal truth is the Change in this Changing World. Last but not least, the change we believe in is the change of Democratic Burma from the foolish tyranny.

Nyi Nyi (Thanlwin)

Zarganar detained (again)

2008-06-05T12:05:00.002+06:30

Source: Myo Chit Myanmar

Comedian-cum-volunteer Zarganar was detained last night at 8pm. A group of about 10 special agents and Town Council members visited his home, and mounted a search for over 3 hours. At about 11pm, they took him away on the pretext of questioning, along with some items they found in his home.

Zarganar has been very active in distributing aid to the cylone survivors. He recently gave an interview with the BBC in which he dismissed Junta's claim of survivors being self-sufficient.

The agents reportedly told Zarganar's family not to inform any news agencies of his arrest, and that he would be released after questioning.

For the original article in Burmese, please click here.

Prayer sessions being held in Yangon

2008-06-03T18:42:00.003+06:30

Source: Arzarni.blogspot.com

This afternoon at about 1pm, a crowd of 1400 monks and about 500 people gathered at ShweNyarWah Monastery to hold a prayer session for the cyclone victims. After the session, they plan to take a pilgrimage around the city and chant prayers.

The monastery (and the participants) were surrounded by the army as the news was being reported.

Interview with Burmese famous comedian Zaganar

2008-06-02T14:56:00.004+06:30

This is the interview of Irrawaddy Online Magazine and Myanmar famous comedian” Zaganar

He was jailed many times in Myanmar prison of his political jokes and tortured by military government. Once he lost all his teeth because he was hit in the prison. Now he and some movie stars are helping cyclone refugees in delta area despite of military government’s disturbance. He is very true to Burma.

Q: Ok, let’s talk about from starting until now (31-5-08) what is going on there?

A: We are on the doing since May 7 till this morning. We‘ve been everywhere and every places expect of Ngapudaw, but our men have already reached there. And then we’ve been to other 42 villages where no one ever been there, which is in the Daedayae’ region, a group of three big villages of paddy warehouses and purchasing deports. And then we’ve been another group of three villages in Bogalay region, 42 villages. They haven’t get any aids,not only government’s but also UN’s and NGO’s.

Q: In there what are the things exactly you found out, how many peoples are died, what they’re needing,how big is the destroyed.

A:I can give you an example, there are a thousand homes in Mangae gyi region,700 homes are all disappeared,only about 300 homes, some have floor and some have pillers,221 died and more than 300 are still missing.

Until 22nd May, there are a lot of dead bodies in the creeks, the villagers got 7cans(about 7 cooking cups of rice given by government and a small packet of dried instant noodle, nothing more than that, that was 20 days after cyclone.

At 28th May, we went to the villages named Tin maung chaung, Kyain suu, Htate chaung gyi, Kan suu, Shwe bo suu from the Bogalay. Everyone there haven’t got any aids, nobody been there yet, no cloths on, all children are nicked.

There are altogether 542 families …they‘ve lose their houses .They stay at a place of small pagoda, named Ah Kyut Ah loot. This pagoda is broken by half. They all sleep there squeezed. There‘s no UN, no NGO, no aids. We’re the very first group, we gave them food and others as much as we could. The worse is they don’t have drinking water. The wells are full of bodies. So that they collect the raining water and drink. So we brought 10000 water bottles (20 lits per bottle)

Q: Haven’t they got the aids from government, given by international groups yet?

A: There are only at Lutpoottar and Bogalay, they have a few tents ,4 or 5 per tent , they can eat rice, but very a few tents .Those who are at villages got nothing.

Q: UN said, there are 25% of aids reached there. Is that right?

A: That’s right, definitely. The aids are reached to the villages a little only. There are still islands and villages. Nobody come and bring to a certain places, no transportation, only by small boat. There are lot survivors there.

I want to tell you a sad story. She is very old lady of 11 family members including her. All the other 10 died in cyclone, she is alone now. But she didn’t know they all gone. She even didn’t recognized herself. There are a lot people like that. They are going to be insane, this is a fishing village.

Q: How many more people like that and what are their condition overall?

A: There are three types of peoples; one is very angry and sensitive. They won’t listen anything , all the time they are angry and been rough. The second is kind of sober. They are crying all the time. And the next is a kind of mute , no talk, no movement.

We went and gave rice 10kg per person, beans, blanket and mosquito nets to everybody. They didn’t even take, they have no interested. They said they want to die.

Q: Did you ever see any government’s aids there?

A: No…not at all….just 7 cups of rice and a packet of Mama dried noodles as I said, that was 28th May, until we arrived there.

Q: How do you bring the things there? By small boats?
A: yeah…by small boats.

Q:Just like your group, as other self motivated donor, how much they can do within limitation?

A: At first we forced to let us go in to the places. We faced a bit difficulties against them, for example..They (authorities) asked me, “why you go without permission…you must report us…blur.. blur…”So we talked to them nicely and they said that “we don’t care if you’re in danger”. So I said “we don’t care even we die”
Something like that..

Later after an order out by National Disaster Prevention group, they don’t interfered so much then. “It is good to go the places of difficult transportation and self motivated group can donate as they wish “in that order.

After that order, the traders of the Chinatown and the gold smiths of the Mogol Street are doing some helps out. So the refugees can get more. If they can not go to the far places, we go for them. For example... Bogalay, the donors leave the things at city...We all (film stars) bring t the things o the villages. We have altogether 420 peoples in our groups. We separated to the small groups and go to the different places.

Q: that day in the New light of Myanmar newspaper, they said people can eat frogs and fishes and the delta in the next year will be full of golden paddy fields, It is that so?

A: Ha ..ha…the dream is so good…hee hee..i don’t know weather they can find frogs or fishes, we name the Irrawaddy river and Bogalay river water color is Nargis color, you know why?...the color is whitsh gray….there are many bodies of human, cows and buffalos …some more we call it Nargis flavor…extremely bad….after we come back..this smell follow us .No one can stand it…we all vomit…So who can find the frogs and fishes…better eat the bodies….

Q: how about the bodies? Haven’t they buried them?

A: They even never collected…still in the river. We come back from Bogalay at 28th May. We went to 5-villages. We even could not take photos and videos because too many bodies, at least 40 bodies after the villagers buried more than one thousand bodies. Some donors bring 80 pieces of burning machines and burned. They are from AZG and Christian Missionaries.

Q: How about the Karen tribes who stayed there? Are they most populated?
A: There are many Karen villages in Bogalay and Daydayae distrait, most of them are Christians, and I like them. When we arrived there they come and help us. They have been bringing back to Yangon and do the counseling for them. They will lead reconstructing of the villages.
Firstly they’ve got the construction materials and foods; secondly, today they were giving the vegetable seeds such as watercress, amaranth and Roselle, and then fertilizers which can be used at any type of soil. And they were taught how to use it.

Q: Do you think they can restart the cultivation?

A: Rice cannot…..only some kind of vegetables. They start today …the villagers were taught by the experts.

Q: I heard that they never get aids because they are Karen tribes, is that so?
A: Not only Karen but also Burmese.., nobody got aids. There are only 15 days left to do cultivation paddy fields .Now we discuss with big business companies and Thai technicians to buy the cultivating machines, called “golden buffalo” .It can be finished an acre within half day by using this machine.One machine costs 1.4 millions kyats(1000 US $).We start from ‘kyunn nyo gyi’ township as main region. There are 5514 peoples in this region, 3200 men are able to work .We tried to repair the soil with the help of a Thai technician. Now we can start to cultivate if we got the 18 machines. We have only 10, we still need 8 more machines.

Q: We heard that the health and rescue teams from the neibourhood countries are coming to this area. Did they arrived?

A: No I didn’t see any team, only a Thai woman to research the soil comes together with us. Yesterday she went back to Thai, and she would be right back on Saturday. We will know whether we can cultivate within 15 days or not.

Q: Is it any aids from the northern and upper Burma?

A: Yeah , lately many, for example many big container trucks from ‘Nammatee,Myitkyeenar,Lasho’ came with 200 tanks of cooking oils .They came together with Christian missionaries , altogether 10 container trucks, they are Shan tribes, we just met with them.

Q: how about Yangon?

A: we have to go there as well. This morning we went to the ‘Dala’,’Kunchan gone’,and ‘Nyaung wai ‘which is next river bank to ‘Kyee myin dai’.Ther are not as desperate as Delta. But they lost their homes. We help them too. They still ok (sound mind.)

Q: What you want to talk about foreign groups?

A: There are still many things which are beyond our control .The persons from foreign countries can help lot things such as to rebuild the destroyed villages as soon as possible. For example, at the time of Tsunami, the technicians are arrived and build the houses .We can’t afford it. We are not rich. We also heard that Bill Gate came out with some helps, we have no idea where the aids are going ended?

It won’t cost to build a small house. We hope the internationals come and build for the villages.

We dissatisfied UN. They can’t do anything for us. There are no UN people go to the villages which we’ve gone. They care about the authorities, I don’t like them. To save the poor people, do you need to care them? They even can pass the aids to the people who were going there. There are 4 or 5 groups like us. They just send the things to the some governmental offices. For what?

Q: how about people are starting begging?

A:Off course they are hungry. Who can take it? Don’t you think so? They are really starving.

Q: US said they want to help with some small boats which can go both in water and on the ground .This kind of boats are really can go far. But now almost one month, do you think it still need?

A: Definitely need. We gave them the radios to listen to what the world said; they are hoping and happy to wait for the aids such as ships from American, France and England. Now their hopes are all gone already, they are very very sorrow. They asked me ‘don’t they really come? They don’t really care us? How can we wait for our last minute of life? All the grannies and children are cried.

International Campaign for Food and Freedoms of Burmese People

2008-05-30T08:40:00.003+06:30

Burmese democratic forces and friends of Burma around the world, calling for an immediate international intervention for food and freedoms in Burma

May 29, 2008

Burmese democratic organizations – along with Burma campaign groups – around the world are calling for an immediate international intervention in Burma, reminding the international community that this is the time to bring a change in the military-ruled country.

And they call for formation of a “coalition of the willing” among like-minded counties such as U.S., U.K., French, Canada, and Australia, in order to advance a collective interest in ensuring safe and unhindered humanitarian access, as well as for promotion and protection of fundamental rights and freedoms for Burmese people.

They strongly criticize the United Nations and Association of South East Asia Nations (ASEAN) for their repeated failure to live up to the international community’s expectation in providing food and freedoms for Burmese people, and for falling into trap the Burmese military junta set.

Burmese have suffered again and again under repeated ASEAN and UN's good intentioned but ill fated mediations. ASEAN and UN are simply no match for cunning and cruel Burmese generals who think nothing of breaking their promises. In the past, the end result of the ASEAN and UN failures were only imprisonments of thousands of political activists including our leader Daw Aung San Suu Kyi. Some of those prisoners died in custody. However, the number of deaths from the current crisis will be a thousand times larger than previous crises.

Five days after an apparent agreement by the Supremo General Than Shwe, there is no concrete result on the ground. There are even more restrictions for Burmese donors let alone foreign donors. Even Burmese ex-pat physicians who are planning mercy medical missions using their own resources are subjected to a lengthy visa process.

The regime is using police and armed forces not to help those cyclone victims but to force them back to their villages without any assistance. We know how the regime is going to play the game. There will be more meetings and open up a bit each time just to string along the UN.

More people are dying everyday. This is time for ASEAN and UN to admit its failure and let French, EU, US navy and international aid agencies handle the situation. At this time, the junta has extended the house arrest of Daw Aung San Suu Kyi illegally after they exhausted the five year period. They have not shown any goodwill towards their own suffering citizens, political prisoners or the world community. There is no reason to believe that the junta will start to change as a result of more negotiation. Concrete effective action, whose time is way overdue, is the only recourse left.

We demand that UN and ASEAN stop the mediation NOW.

All the current available information from the international experts indicates that thousands of the cyclone victims are facing the second wave of death due to the outbreak of diseases. UN and ASEAN have clearly demonstrated the world that they were unable to persuade the Burmese military regime to save the lives of cyclone victims. As such, we request the Nations of the International Community willing to act upon the principle of “Responsibility to Protect (R2P)," to proceed with their noble intention to save the thousands of lives before it is too late.

Undersigned:

Dr. Cynthia Maung (Burma Medical Association) Thailand
Win7@loxinfo.co.th
Tel: 66-55-544495

Dr Khin Saw Win (Alice) (Burma Medical Association) Canada
Alice.khin@ualberta.ca
Tel: 780-4924547/780-9529877

Tin Maung Htoo (Canada)
Canadian Friends of Burma www.cfob.org
Tel: 613-237-8056 tinmaunghtoo@cfob.org

Dr. Raymond Tint Way (Australia)
Concerned Burmese Physicians and Professionals www.cmpp-burma.blogspot.com
Mobile 61 0416220208
E mail jostint@hotmail.com

Dr Ko K Lay (UK)
Concerned Burmese Physicians and Professionals www.cmpp-burma.blogspot.com
Tel: 00 44 07790 427271 drkokolay@yahoo.co.uk

Dr. Soe Naung (Jamaica)
Concerned Burmese Physicians and Professionals www.cmpp-burma.blogspot.com
Tel: 876-995-2875 soehtwe@cwjamaica.com

Dr. Aye Min (USA)
Concerned Burmese Physicians and Professionals www.cmpp-burma.blogspot.com
Tel: 804-512-4669 radiomin@gmail.com

Moe Thee Zun (USA)
Democratic Federation of Burma
wefightwewin@gmail.com

Ar Kar Soe (USA)
Anti-Dictatorship People’s Freedom Movement www.adpfmburma.com
arkarsoee@yahoo.com Tel: 301-213-0605

Yin Aye (USA)
Democratic Burmese Students Organization (USA)
yindbso@hotmail.com Tel: 301-905-7591

Tin Maung Thaw (General Secretary) (USA)
Committee for Restoration of Democracy in Burma
703-723-4855 tinthaw@yahoo.com

Min Yan Naing (Burma)
Generation Wave
gwbobmarley@gmail.com

Ko Ko Aung (Japan)
Democratic Federation of Burma (Japan)
Tel: +81-9015062893 kokoaung_dfbjp@yahoo.com

Kyaw Kyaw Soe (Japan)
League for Democracy in Burma (Japan)
Tel: +81-9060314394 sayarkway@hotmail.com

Khin Sandi (USA)
Women on the Move for Burma
Tel: 917 445 9222 freeassk@yahoo.com

Ko Thant Zin Myint (USA)
International Campaign for Burma (New York)
Tel: 347-229-4309 icbnewyork@gmail.com

Ko Myo (USA)
88 Generation Students (Exile)
Tel: 347-668-5046 http://www.pbase.com/komyoe88
E-mail: komyoe_art@yahoo.com

Aung Sa
Oversea Burmese Patriots (Singapore)
aungsayapyi@gmail.com Tel: +65-9487-4413

Taw Thar Gyi (Burma)
Democratic Front of the Patriots (HQ)
Mindfulness07@gmail.com

Shwe Htee (USA)
Nonviolent Empowerment Organization
shwehtee@yahoo.com Tel: 571-235-4035

Dr. Thi Ha (USA)
Burmese Democracy Forum (Fort Wayne - Indiana)
Tel: 260-602-1876
Dong Khup (USA)
Chin Freedom Coalition
Tel: 443-629-3329

Athein & Zaw Min Htwe (88 Generation) (USA)
Walk for Freedom
Tel: 971 285 7399
Athein168@msn.com
Thurasoe2005@yahoo.com

Aung Nyaw Oo (Canada)
Burmese Students Democratic Organization
Tel: 416-262-5447 Aungoo205@yahoo.com

Thway Ni
Burmese Bloggers without Borders (http://bbwob.blogspot.com/)
thwayni@gmail.com

Aung Tin (Canada)
Chairman (NLD-LA Canada)
Tel: 647 343 7871
uaungtin@yahoo.com

Yin Htway (Thailand)
Joint Secretary
Burma Political Prisoner's Union (http://bppuweb.bizhat.com/)
yinhtway@gmail.com
Tel: 0845755416

Guiding Star (Burma)
Contact: nikayman.niknayman@gmail.com
www.nikayman.blogspot.com

Ko Myat Soe (USA)
Justice for Human Rights in Burma ( http://www.jhburma.org/ )
msoe9872@aol.com Tel: 260-615-0575

U Than Aung (Canada)
Burma Watch International
Tel: (780) 439-7555
Cell:(780) 953-9877 www.burmawatch.org

Dr. Win Naing (UK)
Burmese Democratic Community
Tel: 0208 2067340 walaynaing@aol.com

Helpless and Stranded

2008-05-27T18:29:00.001+06:30

By MIN KHET MAUNG / DEDAYE, IRRAWADDY DELTA
[Source - Irrawaddy]

The look on Lei Lei’s face is one of hopelessness.

She takes no notice of the school uniform that a private donor had left for her. Instead, the 12-year-old girl stares ahead at the vehicles passing back and forth along the highway. On her back, her sick sister coughs relentlessly.

Every time a car passes by, Lei Lei raises her hand and shouts, “Please give us some food!”

Children line up to receive water from a local donor on the outskirts of Rangoon. (Photo: AP)
A truck stops a bit farther ahead and Lei Lei’s head swiftly turns in its direction. She sets off running, her baby sister bouncing up and down in the sarong over her shoulder.

Some of her friends are already waiting with hands scratching the air toward the truck drivers. They push and jostle their way closer to the back of the truck where two men are throwing packages down to those desperate souls below them.

After a struggle, Lei Lei emerges with a small pack of steamed rice. She shares some with her sister and eats the rest greedily.

Today was the 19th day that Lei Lei had spent begging for food on the highway—some three weeks since Cyclone Nargis destroyed her family home in Bogalay and killed her father.

She said she does not feel self-pity as all the survivors have to queue in lines all day to get a handout of food and drinking water.

“I feel sad when I hear that other children will go back to school next month though,” she says.

“But for now, I need food, not schooling.”

According to a recent government announcement, all schools in Burma—except in the areas devastated by the cyclone—must reopen on June 2. In the Irrawaddy delta, schools are still a long way from being rebuilt.

UNICEF says up to 90 percent of the schools in the cyclone-affected areas have been damaged or destroyed, totaling some 3,000 primary schools and affecting more than 500,000 students. The academic year for those areas will be delayed at least two months.

In the meantime, the Burmese junta is bargaining with the international community to leave all matters of aid and reconstruction in its hands.

“This time last year, my father took me to Rangoon to buy text books and stationery for school,” Lei Lei recalls tearfully.

She lays her small hand on her sister’s forehead to check her temperature.

“My sister has got a bad cold,” she murmurs. “She has been out in the rain for so long.”

Though they have plastic sheets for shelter at night, they have no protection from mosquitoes.

Like other traumatized survivors, Lei Lei also dreams about the fatal night that swept her father away.

"I cry out at night," she admits.

"My mother cries in her sleep,” she says. “When I ask her in the morning, she says she was thinking about my father.”

"Sometimes, I get involved in quarreling and fighting with other girls my age,” she says. “We are all trying to get as much food as we can.”

On May 16, flocks of cyclone victims rushed to a field where a helicopter was about to land. Fights broke out. Lei Lei says she was pushed aside by the crowd and fell over. Her baby sister was almost trampled.

In the end, no one got any food. The helicopter had only landed to take on more gasoline. The crowd’s fighting had proved futile.

When asked what she expects of the future with regard to education or her dreams, Lei Lei frowns and shakes her head.

"I must be on the side of the road from dawn to dusk every day," she says solemnly.

UN, Please stay away from Burma

2008-05-26T17:39:00.001+06:30

UN and ASEAN deterred all possible means of genuine relief and aid efforts. In the same time, they aborted hopes of million of Burmese people.

let ASEAN be stupid as usual. They are just the breeds of monarch with modern dress.

What's the UN stand for?
Even UNDP staffs from Yangon were suspected to hiding the letters from volunteer groups, which reported the testimonies of real cyclone victims.

Let's get back to recruitment system of UN staffs in Burma. Most of them are cream of society living their life with UN status and hard currency earnings. People who want to work in UN have to pay for lump sum fees to elite local agents, who may have close contacts with UN office or on-job staffs themselves.

So, how can UN staff be able to correct the injustice events?
Then, who dare to expect that UN head office in New York might help out the world from crises. They all , probably may be hypocrites coming from all over the world just to grasp social status and nothing good in their spirits.

Burmese people don't believe either UN or Ban Ki Moon. I, myself don't believe them at all. Now he perform as the greatest cheerleader for fund raising fair for Junta.

So many questions in my mind.
Do they believe that Junta will act on their words to allow all aids in without conditions?
Do they think that they are helping Burmese cyclone victims ?
Do they have confidence enough to be represent world population to do a good deeds?

I burst out .
"UN, go away from Burma "

I cry out.
" Nobody can help Burma without diplomatic words, without meetings, without broken pledge, without self... .. without UN"

What else is there apart from "messages of hope"?

2008-05-25T18:03:00.003+06:30

I refer to the commentaries "Don't hold your breath" by Yeni and "Save the people; Don't protect Generals" by Kyaw Zwa Moe.

Though the news of the junta agreeing to allow "all aid workers" to enter Burma is very encouraging, having seen the kind of deceit and lies that the junta is capable of, I feel reluctant to put faith into such promise from them. If the junta had genuinely wanted to allow "all aid workers" to enter Burma, the implementation would have been swift and immediate as the aid workers have been on standby for the past few weeks waiting for the green light from the junta. However, a day has passed without any visible improvement.

It is also disappointing to note that in the latest remarks to press, UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon has been too quick to paint a rather rosy picture of the likely collaboration between the junta and the international community in the near future [1]. Has he forgotten what happened during the Saffron revolution in September 2007? During that time, when Gambari was having a series of meetings with the junta and releasing public statements about how he felt encouraged by the positive outcomes of his meetings with the junta, the arrests of the monks and the raids at the monastries continued. UN, ASEAN and the various leaders of the international community condemned the junta for their brutal methods of suppression during the Saffron revolution. However, their words failed to put a stop to Than Shwe and his lackeys from having their own ways.

After every uprising in Burma, as time passed by, the atrocities committed by the junta and the images during the uprising would begin to fade in the minds of the international community and the people in Burma were left to continue to struggle on their own for survival. Words without actions from UN and ASEAN have provided little solace for the Burmese people.

Ban Ki-Moon said in his latest remarks to press that "the world is watching, and that the world is with you". How true! The world only keeps on watching and the world is with us only from a distance. Over the past twenty years or so, the world seemed to have given us nothing but just "messages of hope".

References:
[1] UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon's remarks to the press at Hotel Sedona, Yangon, Myanmar (http://www.un.org/apps/news/infocus/sgspeeches/search_full.asp?statID=248)

Process of distributing aid materials to the Nagis Victims

2008-05-25T11:29:00.002+06:30

(source)

Shwe Sea Sar (Yangon)

The victims of the cyclone Nargis in the delta region, Lower Burma are facing problems of lack of food, water, shelter and clothing. They do not receive aid materials sufficiently. Neither do they get treatment for cyclone-borne injury. Also they are suffering from disease relevant to contaminated water resulted from delaying of removing and destruction of the human corpses and dead animals.

Although it is desperately needed to save the people, to cleanse the water by removing dead bodies – or it may effect harmfully the environment – to distribute relieve materials from both national and international communities to the victims, the Junta is deliberately disturbing local aid volunteers and blocking international relieve experts.Not only that Burmese Junta is trying to delay the process of receiving international aid and aid workers, but also that China is opposing in the UN Security Council Meeting against the plan to invade Burma to distribute necessary aid to victims effectively.

Whereas, China received international aid for their victims of recent earthquake that shook in Sichuan Province, central China, only one week after the cyclone Nargis. We are wondering why China is trying to hamper the world’s humanitarian effort towards Burmese people who are under horrendous catastrophic disaster. Why are they supporting inhuman military Government without any regard, any sympathy and any empathy to the Burmese people? What is benefit to them for such evil doing? It is humiliation to our people. Also I think it is a criminal.

Yet they are not shy in the face of international community.Now we have learnt that relieve teams from the UN, US, Britain and France are standing by in the Thailand water that shares border with Burmese territorial water. They are waiting for permission to enter Burmese water. In such a situation of catastrophic disaster, does it necessary to get permission from such useless and illegal Government, the Junta? I think saving peoples’ life is more important than the Junta’s approval.Is the UN a nominal organization without practical work? Is it not a trusty-worthy and dependable organization for all people of the world?

In stead of being an organization to observe justice among member countries and to assist necessarily with humanitarian aid to all people of the world, it is now just hesitating and wavering to walk along the right way. The UN and international community are negotiating with Burmese authority – just time consuming – to save the people while the death toll increasing day by day due to lack adequate aid materials. Useless organization!Objection by China in the UN Security Council Meeting against such a humanitarian relief effort is shameful.

Its donation to Burma is just a couple of million US$ worth; a paltry sum; at near base in the donation graph. Why do they want to interfere into other country’s internal affair which does not concern with politics? All of our people except the malignant Junta and its colleagues want invasion of the US, the UN and international community into the country to save victims.They always use the word “internal affair” over Burmese issue. This is just a pure internal and humanitarian affair. Why did they object the international relief efforts for Burmese catastrophe while accepting donation from abroad for their earthquake disaster? Ridiculous! Two situations are completely contrary. This is Chinese policy revealing low morality, low attitude of it. We accuse the Chinese Government of killing our people together with Burmese slaughter Generals. The Chinese Government also must pay back later for it a lot like Than Shwe and his followers. Who can say there will not be a overwhelm boycott of the world to their 2008 Olympic? This will be under nature’s process. Bad deed begets misery and ruins.

Now, it was more than two weeks away that the cyclone Nargis hit the Delta region. Since then, a considerable amount of relief aid from abroad could not arrive at the hands of the victims. Victim’s situation is deteriorating; more and more people will die under insignificant change of international relief policy. Death toll will, according to the UN and other organizations’ prediction, swell over 220,000 – more than that of Bangladesh cyclone that hit in 1991 losing just over 138,000 lives – and it is the worst devastating situation in Burmese history.

We, Burmese people, ask international community for urgent relief efforts including relief experts and workers to enter Burma so that they can distribute necessary aids effectively and save our people from extremely dangerous situation resulting from a lack of food, clean water, proper treatment, medicine, shelter and clothing. Otherwise, great tragedy will happen in this civilized world because of irrational beings, the Burmese Junta.

Rotten general must be brought to justice for crime against humanity

2008-05-25T01:03:00.005+06:30

Mike Carlton
May 24, 2008
Source : The Sydney Moring Herald

If hell exists, there ought to be an especially fiery corner set aside for Senior General Than Shwe, the pudding-faced thug who heads the junta which controls Burma, or Myanmar as he would like us call his wretched country.

You might have seen him on television this week, ostentatiously dispensing neatly wrapped gift boxes to grateful victims of the cyclone that left who knows how many Burmese dead, injured and homeless. It was a grisly propaganda charade. Sleek in elevated heels and a tailored uniform encrusted with enough medals to embarrass even an old-style Soviet marshal, smiling like an alligator, he posed as the bountiful father of the nation.

The reality is rather different. The medals, we can safely assume, were won waging war on his own people. Than Shwe is a mass murderer. The regime's paranoid refusal to accept vital foreign relief for Burma is a crime against humanity on an epic scale.

To read full article: Click Here

The Cyclone Story ( Local witness)

2008-05-22T21:55:00.002+06:30

( source)

Actually I havn't seen much at Bogalay as the Thidagu monestry is located at the entrance of Bogalay.But it's not on the main road that we have to go about 15min towards the river.The monestry is built on the bank of the river that they distribute all the materials with boats to the affected villages that cannot be reached by cars.

he route is like Nyaung Done---Ma Au Bin---Kyeik Lat----Phyar Bone---Bo Ga Lay. After we passed Kyeik Lat, there are lines of people on both sides of the road hoping for some donations by passing by cars until we reach Bogalay. I think there will be more than 10,000 people.Those people previously lived in the paddy fields on the left and right side of the road. Now their homes were destroyed and the fields were filled by water that it is not even possible to walk through.

So, they move to the road side and some of them could built small tents but some cannot that hv to stand or sleep in the bare land.I saw 6,7 family members tightly sitting under a roof not larger than 4'x4' plastic sheet with 4 posts. Most of their accommodations are not worth to call a tent, it's barely a shelter with a roof with 4 sticks. I can't imagine how they would live when there is rain. Most of them are women and children. They are not begging for money but they are standing there with full of hope who will donate basic needs like food, water, clothes, etc...

I had a chance to ask one of them.The man said they are ashame to stand and hoping for donation while they are still strong and healthy. He said they have no choice cos the whole delta area biz is only farming. Since all seeds for rain crops were destroyed and so no farm owner hire them again. These people are hidden victims of the storm. That means almost all the people in delta region going to be incomeless if we cannot support them to resume farming.

I am wondering how many days we still can donate to those people. After donation ends, how they can live.Some of them will become robbers, some will thieves, some will baggers, women become prostitutes, children will be trafficked and only minority will get a job in town areas. They don't even know they should go to camps so inhumane gov didn't listed them as victims. There are still a lot of people like this around Yangon area like Hlaingthaya, South/North Dagon, Shwe Pauk Kan, Kun Chan Kone whose home and biz were destroyed.

It is not possible to rebuild their home and biz without effective help. And you know I saw so many schools destroyed along the road and they are not repaired yet. So how schools will reopen and even school reopen, who can go to school in such situation. We cannot go further down from Bogalay as it is dead end of the road.We heard there are several camps opened by gov that we are not willing to go there. Thidagu Sayadaw is trying to send those helps to the areas that no gov help can reach. I believe there are still many people surrounded by water who still can't escape who will be dying if no supply reach them.

I saw some victims living near Thidagu camp said water level is higher than the coconut trees and coconut trees are the highest point they can climb up. And there's very high tide coming like a big wave drag drowning all the people. You can hardly find a man who still left his all family members. As you know all villages are built along the river and costal line, you can imaging how those people die similar to tsunami.One of the monestry at Phyar bone, I saw gov officials driving away all those storm victims that the head monk was angrily opposing for what officials did to those people. I regret that I didn't take my camera with me.

Ok, I am planning to donate around the Yangon region and so will post you more abt the worst lifes on the earth. If possible please post above situation on yr blog or anywhere else on the web. You can edit or re-write as you like.(you can left political parts).I would like the world know that the problem is not just simply dying by the tide but there is much much bigger hidden problems ahead concerning with millions of people.

Rgds,
MYO THAW AUNG,YGNCC/AA

Permit to mourn

2008-05-22T10:09:00.002+06:30

Thursday, 22 May 2008
Aung Naing Moe
( source)

THE TAXI, carrying the four of us, had just turned into St. Martin's Drive when the three plain-clothes police officers tried to flag it down. It was almost 6:50pm on Saturday, 17 May 2008."Don't stop," shouted by the four of us almost simultaneously. I was sitting in the front passenger’s seat while my wife Han Thu Lwin, Myo Myint Maung and another Burmese friend were in the back seat, all of us holding flowers in our hands.

To our dismay, the Singaporean taxi driver pulled the taxi over to the roadside gently."Whooi…a long way to go," I sighed. I then started to realize the extent of police dominance in Singapore and the level of obedience shown by the ordinary citizens here. Nowhere else in the world would you find a taxi driver stopping at the flagging of non-uniformed police officers so easily against the wishes of the passengers in his taxi.Showing his badge, one of the three policemen asked, "Are you residents here, sir?"I was secretly amused by the question wondering how a person like me wearing cheap shirts and taking a cab, not driving a good car, could inspire the police to think that I might live in such an affluent district. But, I simply replied, "No, we are not.""Where are you going, sir?""To the Burmese embassy."“Sorry, sir, you can't go there because the Myanmar (Burmese) embassy is already closed.”

I must admit that I was particularly proud to be a Burmese citizen at that moment because our embassy was extraordinarily effective in communicating with us, citizens of Burma, by keeping Singapore police to answer on its behalf about its opening hours at the entrance of St Martin's Drive. Or perhaps it was just that the police underestimated my ability to think for myself. So, the sudden, mistaken pride that came to me out of thin air vanished immediately.

Hey, do you think I am a moron? All Burmese in Singapore know that our embassy is normally closed on Saturdays.Don't worry, please. We are not going inside the embassy. We just want to go in front of the Burmese embassy to mourn for our people who died in the Cyclone Nargis. Anyway, thanks for your information."“No, Sir. You can't go there. We advise you to leave this area immediately.”Oops! Was it because the Cyclone Nargis was now passing through the St Martin's Drive, too? I was starting to worry about the safety of the residents living there.But just in time, to quell my unwarranted anxiety, our old friend Mr Deep Singh from Tanglin Police Station came to the scene and chanted the very much familiar police mantra to our impatient ears.“You can't assemble without a police permit. You are advised to leave.”“But....please wait, wait! There are only four persons on this taxi excluding the driver. How could this become an illegal assembly?”He didn't answer our question.

But he said, “As long as you have intention...”"Oh, my god! Intention to do what? Our intention is just to mourn for our people who died because of the cyclone.”Then he suggested that we should go to the temple to pray and mourn.Please note that these were just advice and suggestions only; they didn't amount to warnings. So, why should we be advised and suggested repeatedly for so long without being allowed to get through? We appreciated his advice and suggestions, of course, because they were free. But, whether we took them or not was solely our own choice. To force us to accept his advice and hamper us from going in was too much for us. It was utterly outrageous.

Myo Myint Maung, who was sitting in the back seat, told the police officers that the only one piece of land in Singapore where we, Burmese, truly had the highest sense of belonging was our Burmese embassy.At last, Mr Singh asked for our particulars, even though the three of us – my wife, Myo Myint Maung and myself – had given our particulars to his department on a few occasions in the past. At first, we argued for some minutes on why we needed to submit our particulars for just going to our embassy and mourning for our people.Then, to our great astonishment, the extremely considerate Mr Singh said, "Please don't waste the time. The taxi driver will lose his valuable time to earn money. Please be considerate."At first, I didn't believe my ears.

During the whole conversation, the taxi meter was ticking and needless to say it was me who had to pay for the fare eventually. The driver was earning his fair income in the whole episode. Furthermore, I can swear that this delay was not caused by us. We were the one who wanted to arrive at our destination as soon as possible.

At last, as it seemed that the police was not going to allow us to go in without showing our particulars, we gave them to the police and proceeded to the embassy where we found a couple who arrived just before us. But, they said that they didn't have to show their particulars. Why was the law applied selectively to us instead of being applied equally to all?Later, I came to know that about 50 Burmese who also came to mourn at the embassy gradually started to gather at the entrance of St Martin's drive. At first, police were busy advising them to go back.

When they refused and continued to hang around there, the police asked them for their particulars. As the crowd gradually grew to about 100 people, the police at last agreed to let us go in groups of four persons to the gate of the Burmese embassy to mourn there for five minutes each. However, it was not before a series of negotiations as well as heated exchanges between the police and the three of us.At the end, the police told us not to hold any hard feelings and apologized individually for the embarrassment caused earlier.

Of course, we forgave them because we understood their position. They were police officers just carrying out their duties. They too are human beings with kind hearts; we believe that. But, we still hope the law will be applied equally to all races, nationalities, and religions, not selectively. Moreover, it should be applied fairly and correctly.We wish Singapore a more vibrant society with more freedom and openness where every resident has the right to life, liberty and pursuit of happiness.

DVB - Interview with survivors

2008-05-20T20:10:00.000+06:30

The Perfect Storm

2008-05-17T06:05:00.001+06:30

By Aung Zaw
[Source - Irrawaddy]

A friend of mine in Rangoon called me this morning. “It’s depressing and upsetting—people in the delta region are desperately scavenging for food and aid,” he said, having just returned from a charity mission to the devastated area.

But he added: “The survivors are coping as best they can. They are very resilient and are putting their own lives back together. They haven’t lost their dignity.”

I was relieved to know that in spite of all the heartbreaking reports and horrific images coming out of Burma, the only one who had lost his dignity was Snr-Gen Than Shwe.

In spite of the woefully slow response from the Burmese military authorities—and the heartless blockade and misappropriation of aid and supplies—the people of the delta are taking matters into their own hands, standing strong, taking care of each other, determined to survive.

The generals are unyielding; the United Nations pathetic.

John Holmes, the UN’s under-secretary-general for humanitarian affairs, whimpered: “The biggest problem we have at the moment is that international humanitarian staff are not being allowed down into the affected area in the delta.”

On Wednesday, UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon held an emergency meeting with select countries, including Asean, India and the five permanent members of Security Council.

Briefing the media afterward outside the UN headquarters in New York, Ban said, “There was some concern expressed that, while this will be a humanitarian crisis, if we are not able to address this issue in a proper way—reaching those people in need—then it may create inevitably some kind of political issue. Therefore, we need to be careful about that.”

The UN, by nature, is careful—often timid in its language—and takes a gentle diplomatic approach to each of its myriad concerns. It has no intention of picking a fight with Burma’s generals. Ambassador after ambassador at the UN emphasized that they didn’t want to politicize the issue.

That’s why, to me, this humanitarian crisis has now become a man-made disaster.

Than Shwe and his clique have failed in every regard—to issue cyclone warnings, to plan an evacuation, to allow aid workers and supplies in, even to the point of stealing the food and water marked for those victims who are dying without it.

Then he turned his back on the horror in the delta and stole the referendum as well.

Rightly so, Than Shwe is now accused of committing crimes against humanity.

Like it or not, this crisis is a political issue and the UN has failed again to grasp its own impotence.

The UN huffs and puffs and “ums” and “ahs” as warships containing hundreds of tons of aid sit unsolicited in international waters, not a day’s sail from the delta. It sits on the fence while its leading members cry out for humanitarian intervention.

With the United Nations apparently unable to move, the spotlight again turns to Than Shwe and his diplomatic chess game.

After declaring a massive turnout and a victory in the referendum, the former psychological warfare officer is now preparing to go on the offensive.

In approving visas for aid workers from Bangladesh, China, India and Thailand, Than Shwe shows he plans to again hide behind his neighbors and allies.

“Even though Burma’s military regime is denying aid to 2 million people facing death, efforts at the UN Security Council to invoke the ‘Responsibility to Protect’ doctrine are dead as a doornail, mainly because of Burma’s ally, China,” said Aung Din, Executive Director of the US Campaign for Burma.

“It is time for countries to stop waiting for the [UN Security] Council to act—which it won’t—and commence immediate delivery of aid to thirsty, starving and homeless Burmese now facing imminent threat of disease in the Irrawaddy Delta,” he pleaded.

But Than Shwe is—if nothing else—consistent. He will not buckle, nor see the light or the error of his ways. He will continue regardless, callous and deceitful as always.

Meanwhile, the so-called civilized world will keep on talking, “moving the process forward,” expressing their concerns and deep frustration.

Thankfully, the brave people in the Irrawaddy delta are not procrastinators by nature. They are survivors. And their dignity will not allow them to sit back and wait while their leaders and the rest of the world abandon them.

‘Humanitarian heroes’ reach out to fellow cyclone victims

2008-05-16T21:01:00.001+06:30

[Source - bostonherald.com]

YANGON, Myanmar - From shopkeepers handing out free rice porridge to medical students caring for the sick, ordinary people in Myanmar are stepping in to help cyclone victims as the military regime severely restricts international aid.

Taxi drivers, factory owners, college students, teachers and other Yangon residents - many of whom lost their own homes - are among those organizing grueling trips into the Irrawaddy delta, the hardest-hit region.

“They are true humanitarian heroes,” said Bridget Gardner, International Red Cross representative in Myanmar, after touring an area where volunteers were giving first aid to the injured.

They are taking up collections at businesses and donating food, clothes and water. Some who are too poor to give money or supplies are offering their labor to help clear debris and rebuild villages leveled by the May 3 cyclone.

“We feel sympathetic to the cyclone victims and want to help them in our own way,” said Daw Mya Win, who runs a small grocery in a northern Yangon suburb where many bamboo shanty houses were destroyed.

The 49-year-old woman cooks rice porridge every day to feed anyone who comes. She also sends pots of the thick viscous mixture of rice, water and seasonings to some of the thousands of homeless who have sought shelter in the country’s Buddhist monasteries.

The U.N. says up to 2 million survivors are still in need of emergency aid. The military junta has restricted most foreign aid workers from entering Myanmar.

Contacts to Help Cyclone Victims

2008-05-16T14:09:00.002+06:30

(click to enlarge)

LOCAL CHARITIES & NGOs

Save the Children (UK)
Contact Number: 241208, 241210, 241211, 248193, 513257

Medecins Sans Frontier’s (MSF (NL))
Contact Number: 534679, 524379

Malteser
Contact Number: 549001/7/710304

Merlin
Contact Number: 511675, 537321

CESVI
Contact Number: 534790

Care
Contact Number: 224647/224507

World Vision
Contact Number: 525191, 527502, 706255, 511265, 510148

International Federation of the Red Cross
Contact Number: 383686, 383682

GRET
Contact Number: 540694/545912

PACT
Contact Number: 538669

OXFAM
Contact Number: 248192 or 525001

Hope
Contact Number: 546829/514650

PSI
Contact Number: 524166/524177

Burnett
Contact Number: 248194/248195

Paung Ku
Contact Person: Justin Corbett
Contact Number: 660446, 241208, 241210, 241211, 248193, 513257

AFXB
Contact Number: 502178

MSI (Marie Stopes International) they have youth centre in Thingankyune and Tharkayta tsps. Contact Number: 544423, 705657

ADRA
Contact Number: 240900, 380419

Generals whose power near absolute

2008-05-15T22:20:00.000+06:30

National Post
Published: Thursday, May 15, 2008

Burma's secretive military junta is the inheritor of rule by the armed forces, which has predominated since 1962 when General Ne Win led a coup d'etat. He was replaced by the State Law and Order Restoration Council (SLORC). In 1989, SLORC declared martial law but allowed free elections in 1990 for the first time in almost 30 years. It reverted quickly to type, annulling the results that would have brought the National League for Democracy of Aung San Suu Kyi to power. In 1992 SLORC was replaced by the State Peace and Development Council in which three men wield almost absolute power.

Senior General Than Shwe, 73

Junta head. Career military man who controls the army. Most hardline leader, strongly opposed to allowing any role for Aung San Suu Kyi. Rumours of his ill health are common and were fuelled last year when he spent two weeks in hospital in Singapore. Although he was supposed to retire at 60, he simply changed the rules and is now expected to rule for life. He was embarrassed when video of his daugher's lavish wedding was leaked to the media. The footage outrage Burmese as it showed the bride dripping with diamonds and pouring champagne beside an ornate gold bridal bed. The day after the cyclone hit, the street in Rangoon on which his wife was staying was cleared of debris and electricity restored. Than Shwe is said to be superstitious and regularly consults astrologers. The capital was moved without warning from Rangoon to Naypyidaw on Nov. 6, 2005, at the astrologically auspicious time of 6:37 a. m.

Vice Senior General Maung Aye, 70

Another career soldier and the second most powerful man in Burma. Believed to have strong ties with drug lords in the Golden Triangle, which led to clashes with then prime minister Lieutenant General Khin Nyunt, who was concerned about the rise of ethnic armies outside the junta's control (Nyunt lost his job). He is reported to be a hard drinker.

General Thein Sein

Replaced Lieutenant General Soe Win (who died in November of leukemia at age 58) as prime minister. Soe Win was a close association of Than Shwe who helped crush the democracy party in 1988 after its elections victory. Represents the country on rare trips abroad, usually to neighbouring countries.

Time for Humanitarian Intervention

2008-05-15T21:22:00.000+06:30

Myanmar military rulers do not hesitate to sacrifice its citizens over their iron-fist policy against US. Even the offer of US President, Bush, to help the people of Myanmar using US navy ships deployed near Thailand was left unanswered. It is out of question that generals in Myanmar are currently living in fear and dilemma. Their confusion and delay over the interest of victims from Cyclone hit areas might further lead to unnecessary death in Myanmar already happening humanitarian crisis. While Foreign aids workers are still waiting to get their visas to reach out to victims, the dying crowds in need of food, water, medicine and shelter are also desperately longing for the International aid. Sorry to the victims. The Junta is blocking their way.

In Myanmar newspaper, government mouthpiece media, it was clearly stated only foreign aids will be allowed and not the foreign aids workers. The helping nations might wonder how the Junta would honestly and effectively hang over the aids to their people. It is still a big question mark following the red tape and mismanagement by Myanmar government. It is the government that turned once a prosperous nation into one of the poorest countries in the world with many people living under poverty line. Again, they are now committing a biggest crime in history by not letting in the International aids workers to help the victims from cyclone-hit devastated areas.

Mostly affected region, Irrawaddy Delta, is the rice bowl of Myanmar and other countries consuming exported rice from Myanmar. Rice prices have been increasingly hike in the World. Myanmar, one of the rice exporting nations, is now facing a crisis in the region of growing rice. Myanmar crisis is no longer an internal problem used to be claimed by the allies of Myanmar. It is the humanitarian crisis where International aids were stopped to distribute to the needy timely.

Thousands of people were dead, millions are homeless and their lives are at stake in Myanmar. Yet, the Junta is giving their priority to their nationwide referendum to approve the constitution. It is not the time to repeat the history again as happened in Rwanda. UN must promptly carry out the “responsibility to protect” doctrine which is to protect the citizens of a country when the government of its own could not able to do so. I strongly support French Foreign Minister urging UN for force aid. UN must not wait for approval to assist the Myanmar disaster from the Junta who care more to hold on power than the lives of its own people.

Let me again urge UN to save Myanmar people from the hands of devil and inhumane government of Myanmar. As our democratic leader, Aung San Su Kyi, once said, “Please use your liberty to promote ours”. We, Myanmar people, are living in the dark. Humanitarian intervention is the only hope and ray of light for hungry souls if the Junta continues to block and delay the International aids. Every dying second counts for the victims in Myanmar. It is now the time for Humanitarian Intervention to Myanmar.

May God bless Myanmar. Those departed may rest in peace.

-Written by Nyi Nyi [thanlwin]

Swept away by sorrow

2008-05-14T20:26:00.000+06:30

Cyclone Nargis is reported to have swept away more than 100,000 people. Its survivors are on the verge of "being swept away" by yet another kind of "cyclone" that has been looming in their lives: the "waves of inhumanity" by the junta.

Day after day, such "waves of inhumanity" by the junta have built up one after another, silencing us with utter disbelief at the possibility of them ever happening. It all started with the junta failing to inform the people about the imminent danger that the cyclone could bring. Neither did they carry out any emergency plan to cushion the impact of the cyclone.

Even when the junta realized the level of devastation left by the cyclone, all they did was to make a fake heartfelt appeal for an international aid. When the international community pledged aid in terms of millions, the junta dropped yet another bomb and said all aid must go through them. While thousands of people were starving and thousands of corpses were left to decompose to unsightly conditions, the junta went ahead with the referendum and shamelessly declared the high percentage of "yes" votes. As the TV media in Burma showed people voting at the polling stations, in places like Irrawaddy delta, the people were barely surviving from the lack of water, food and shelter.

The aid agencies, being left with little choice, finally had to relent and hand over their supplies of aid to the junta. There has been numerous reports in the media about how those aids are being appropriated by the junta and not reaching to the actual victims.

When Indonesia was hit by tsunami, the Indonesian government appealed for help and opened its doors widely to all the humanitarian organizations. But what has the junta done so far? They are practically putting a blockade in front of the international aid agencies by asking them to apply for visa and not allowing them to move freely in all affected areas in Burma.

It is simply beyond my comprehension as to how heartless the junta can be. During the Saffron revolution, we could not believe the atrocities that were committed against our revered monks. Now, the junta has done it again by showing its utter lack of compassion for the states of its own people. Just like during the Saffron revolution, I find myself being swept away by a sense of helplessness at not being able to do more than just blogging about it or donating money for the victims. Similar to the time during the Saffron revolution, we have raised many online petitions. We have written to the relevant authorities in the international community. Many prominent Burmese groups have issued statements of appeal. Nothing ... absolutely nothing has returned any result.

Day after day, only accounts of suffering, misery, death, and inhumanity keep trickling out of Burma in news media. There has been no visible improvement. In fact, lives just seem darker for the victims inside Burma as they keep waiting for help that seems miles away from them. Imagine how hopeless they would feel at being left alone by everyone after such a disaster. When a person has lost everything, sometimes including the whole family, HOPE plays a very important role in helping to keep him alive. But where is their hope?

As the international community, including UN itself, keeps on just condemning the actions of junta, lives are beginning to wither away in Burma. The lack of basic necessities is starting to take its toll on the victims. Many aid agencies have also warned that if help did not reach the victims on time, they, especially children, would succumb to death amidst the devastations of the cyclone's aftermath. Reports by aid agencies and news media all point to the same thing; Humanitarian intervention has become a necessity in Burma.

UN has agreed previously that "they would intervene, forcefully if necessary, if a state failed to protect its own people [1]". What more evidence is needed to prove the junta's lack of concern for its own people, let alone to protect. Will UN be convinced only when the death toll rises further and more lives are wasted unnecessarily?

By that time, beyond doubt, a similar impact of genocide would have occurred in Burma.

Reference:
[1] FRED HIATT, Myanmar needs more than good ideas

Are the generals still indifferent?

2008-05-14T20:11:00.001+06:30

By AUNG ZAW
[Source - Bangkok Post]

Whenever Burma faces a political or humanitarian crisis, Burmese and foreign observers monitor the reclusive military leaders from a distance, trying to gauge their reactions, guessing what shapes their decisions and where possible conflicts within the leadership lie. The question Burma watchers are quietly asking this time is: has the cyclone managed to instil fear in strongman Senior General Than Shwe and his hard-core military cronies? Are they trembling or are they standing firm?

It is easy to imagine the pampered generals running from the storm, boarding themselves in their collective bunker and curling up in terror as the cyclone whipped through the southwest of the country. In the wake of the cyclone, the ordinary people of Burma are braving the elements and starting to put their lives back together. Meanwhile, the cowering junta has been oblivious to the calls to help survivors and allow aid into the affected areas.

Despite the junta's long history of perfidy and brutality, many observers were taken aback by the regime's refusal to allow international aid and foreign aid workers to tend to the cyclone victims in and around the Irrawaddy delta.

Then, over the last week, cracks of dissent within the leadership were detected. Gen Than Shwe and his deputy Vice Snr-Gen Maung Aye reportedly have been at loggerheads since troops opened fire on Buddhist monks and activists on the streets last September.

Now rumours have surfaced that Prime Minister Gen Thein Sein has drawn the ire of the top general for showing a soft side after witnessing the tragedy first-hand while overseeing the delivery of aid to cyclone victims from a helicopter. Apparently distressed by what he saw, Gen Thein Sein urged his boss to permit international aid into the area as quickly as possible.

Reportedly, Gen Thein Sein filed a situation report and was immediately stonewalled. At an emergency meeting in Naypyidaw, Gen Than Shwe is said to have told council members that the country's armed forces could handle the humanitarian crisis and that he would rather concentrate on the referendum.

Gen Thein Sein backed off and returned quietly to Rangoon to oversee the relief effort, which was already falling apart _ ill-prepared, ill-equipped and mismanaged. To his and everyone else's frustration, the doors to large-scale international aid remained closed.

The prime minister reportedly began suffering from stress and told his subordinates that he was looking forward to retiring soon.

This time around, sources in Rangoon say Gen Than Shwe and Gen Maung Aye are hanging tight together. They both were seen on TV at polling stations casting their votes last Saturday.

With Gen Than Shwe determined to focus on the national referendum, calls from UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon to postpone the referendum, and pleas from the international community to allow aid into the delta, fell on deaf ears.

Then, a rumour started circulating among dissidents in exile that Gen Thura Shwe Mann, who is being groomed to take over the armed forces, supports the line of Gen Thein Sein, the prime minister.

Sources say Gen Shwe Mann wanted aid flown in immediately. However, he was apparently unwilling to confront the commander-in-chief, Gen Than Shwe.

Gen Shwe Mann may be acting out of personal concerns. Two of his sons run Ayer Shwe Wah Company, selling fertiliser to farmers in the Irrawaddy delta. They also own a rice mill. Among the Burmese businesses on the United States' sanctions list, the Ayer Shwe Wah Co has approximately 30,000 acres of rice fields in the Irrawaddy delta and is a leading exporter of rice.

Reports from Naypyidaw suggest that Gen Than Shwe doesn't want to hear about the death toll and missing persons in the delta. Some senior officials in the capital have let it leak that Gen Than Shwe's subordinates are afraid to brief him on the horrific figures.

It is a sad irony that it has taken a disaster of such proportions to unmask the true depth of the inhumanity and darkness that resides within the brutal strongman Gen Than Shwe. Perhaps the military leaders closest to him will look into his heart of darkness and see the truth for themselves.

Aung Zaw is Editor of the Irrawaddy magazine covering Burma and Southeast Asia.

Support Volunteer Groups

2008-05-13T22:20:00.002+06:30

A week passed already after Cyclone Nagis in Burma. But aids and relief agency forecast that less than 30 % of victims were reachable and less than 10 % of foods and aids have been distributed. And the rest of the world is still waiting in the gate to donate money and stuffs.

In the mean time, millions of survivors are also still waiting in the flooded swamp with diseases and starvations. More people are dying on the deserted lands, rescuers hard to reach out.

Local volunteer groups are becoming the effective way of helping cyclone victims in such a critical condition. They may be groups of 5 to 6 people. They may small network of friends. They may passionate housewives. They may group of earnest doctors . They may group of celebrities and stars. They may group of teenage Rappers. They are strolling with a bunch of rice pack, cloths and medicines along devastated area. They will be there until the time of effective international aids and rescue teams landed these areas.

We need to support them.
Here is the very new weblog of one volunteer groups working in the ground.

Cyclonerelief weblog

Myanmar needs more than good ideas

2008-05-13T21:57:00.001+06:30

By FRED HIATT
First published: Tuesday, May 13, 2008
[Source - timesunion.com]

When a parent abuses or neglects a child, government steps in to offer protection. But who steps in when government abuses or neglects its people?

Nearly three years ago, the United Nations announced an answer to that question: It would.

At a summit celebrating the organization's 60th birthday, 171 nations agreed that they would intervene, forcefully if necessary, if a state failed to protect its own people. The action was seen as both a sign of remorse for the failure to stop genocide in Rwanda and a rebuke to the United States and its unilateral ways.

"I'm delighted that the responsibility to protect, a Canadian idea, now belongs to the world," said Canada's prime minister at the time, Paul Martin. "The United Nations will not find itself turning away or averting its gaze."

Since then, the United Nations has averted its gaze as Sudan's government continues to ravage the people of Darfur. It has turned away as Zimbabwe's rulers terrorize their own people. Now it is bowing to Myanmar's sovereignty as that nation's junta allows more than a million victims of Cyclone Nargis to face starvation, dehydration, cholera and other miseries rather than allow outsiders to offer aid on the scale that's needed.

In light of America's troubles in Iraq, the pendulum in the United States has swung toward multilateral solutions and international law. All three candidates to replace President Bush have promised to restore alliances and put more faith in allies.

But the stalemate in Myanmar, also known as Burma, shows how difficult it is to translate "responsibility to protect" into action.

It's hard to imagine a government more deserving of losing the national equivalent of its parental rights; yet it seems more likely that hundreds of thousands of people will die needlessly than that the United Nations will act.

Dr. Chris Beyrer, an epidemiologist at Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, has spent years in and around Myanmar. What he has learned, as he said last week, is that "the regime does not have the interest of the people as its fundamental concern."

Almost all its actions before the storm and since can be understood in this light: The junta cares about its own survival, not the survival of its people.

So even before the devastating storm swept in around midnight May 2, the people of Myanmar were vulnerable. One-third of children younger than 5 were undernourished. With 3 percent of government spending going to public health, compared with 40 percent to the military, there was a dearth of doctors and clinics. In many areas, malaria and tuberculosis posed severe threats.

The government failed to warn people of the approaching storm and has failed to help them since. It apparently does not want to risk whatever benefit might rebound to Western countries for deploying the "soft power" of assistance.

On Saturday it deployed its army northward, to beat and browbeat people to vote yes in a phony referendum intended to make military rule permanent, rather than southward, where 1.5 million people were homeless and 65 percent of territory was under water.

Yet when France reminded the United Nations of its "responsibility to protect," China, Russia and their ever-reliable voting partner, Thabo Mbeki's South Africa, slammed the door. So tons of aid float just offshore as Burma's generals sleep comfortably in their remote jungle capital and China's rulers can proudly, once again, take credit for defending the principle of national sovereignty.

Meanwhile, the people of Myanmar themselves do not give up. Small teams of aid workers from persecuted dissident groups are making their way south, offering what little assistance they can, though soldiers at times confiscate their goods.

And in the delta, one Myanmar managed to inform a friend outside, "many people keep looking up to the sky -- literally." A week and a half after the cyclone, they are waiting for helicopters, which for many will appear too late or not at all.

Fred Hiatt writes for The Washington Post.

Is it time to invade Burma?

2008-05-11T22:53:00.003+06:30

Is it time to invade Burma?

Referring this article from Time magazine, we clearly answer this question that YES, Please invade Burma. Invasion is nothing good for one country. No countrymen even think about to be invaded their territory by others.

But things have horribly turned up and down. We can't stay any longer in our own country with our own rulers. It is more obvious now under Nagis Cyclone attack.People didn't get enough warning or evacuation but authorities can manage to move its aircrafts in safe place somewhere . Are they intentionally commit it to let people die under the storm raging between 150 mph to 190 mph ?

Again, cyclone victims are still waiting food and rescue in the midst of flooded water and more people are killing everyday within these 8 days after storm. It seems regimes intentionally commit genocide to its own people. We can't take heart any longer to seeing and hearing these plight and tragic. We have no other choice to rescue millions of helpless people.

We strongly urge you to invade Burma in any channel.

Rumours in Naypyidaw

2008-05-11T20:23:00.004+06:30

Source: Ko Moe Thee

Rumours are rife in Naypyidaw that US armed forces are going to bomb the administrative capital.

Some of the residents (Naypyidaw was once a village named Kyat Pyay) and civil servants have been seen leaving the city. The source of the anxiety? A deathly pale General Than Shwe who was seen casting his vote on National Television at his first public appearance in serveral days. He was said to have looked so ill that he could barely walk. This had led the civil servants to conclude that he was hysterical about an impending attack by the US armed forces, one civil servant reportedly said. He himself had left Naypyidaw for his safety. In Naypyidaw though, there are nightly parties giving the impression that everything was normal.

People have taken to comparing the current situation to that of the era when Burma was invaded by the British. Prior to the invasion, King Sibaw, the last king of Burma, ordered his advisors killed; they had warned him of the invasion. Instead of planning a defence, he had then arranged for parties and festivals in order to distract the population. Shortly after, Burma fell to the British.

For the original article in Burmese, please click here.

My friends are starving, says a survivor

2008-05-11T12:16:00.005+06:30

Source: Mizzima

Days after Cyclone Nargis destroyed the Irrawady Delta, aid has yet to arrive in the most devastated regions.

One survivor from Laputta township told Mizzima, "My friends have nothing to eat or drink. They're starving." Laputta is situated at the mouth of Bay of Bengal.

According to the man, most of the suvivors are now taking refuge in the town of Laputta, in monasteries and schools. He himself made his way to Yangon to in the hope of getting aid from friends there.

He informed Mizzima that survivors themselves have had to carry out rescue operations, including retrieving the bodies of victims. However, constraints in resources meant that many of the bodies are still left in the water. Some villages are also still submerged in water.

The man, who wished to remain anonymous, added:
"We had a small ceremony for my friend's family who perished. But we couldn't find their bodies. I doubt we'll ever find them."

He is one of the luckier ones who managed to escape the cyclone. His whole family survived. The residents, many of whom have lived along the coast all their lives, could not anticipate the magnitude of destuction that the cyclone brought upon them.

"We didn't even have time to run."

He told Mizzima that most of the villages were simply swept away by the cyclone, and many people were still unaccounted for. While he could not gave an accurate number of how many villages are in the area, he estimated that the number could be anywhere from 24 to 50.

"In the next village, only about 200 remain, out of a population of about 5000."

He said that most of his villagers survived the cyclone. However, the cyclone destroyed not only their houses, but also water wells, forcing the survivors to move into nearby towns such as the town of Laputta and Myaung Mya.

"There are corpses in the water wells, so the water is contaminated. And since we have nothing else to eat or drink, we had no choice but to move to the towns."

As the military government is refusing to let foreign aid workers enter the country, international aid agencies are still unable to get a clear picture of the extent of destruction or the aid required.

"We are still trying to see what is needed. We have not started distributing anything yet",said a Burmese aid worker who wished to remain anonymous.

The man, who had just recently returned from the Irrawady Delta region, added that the government was not allowing any foreigners to enter the area.

"They're only allowing local people to go in."

While the international community has sent hundreds of thousands worth of emergency supplies, as of Friday night, any of it has yet to reach the delta, the worst hit region. Distribution channels are already in place in some of the affected regions in Yangon state.

World's Food Programme Spokesman, Mr Paul Risley, told Mizzima on Friday that WFP will distribute 7 tonnes of high energy biscuits.

For the original article in Burmese, please click here.

Collection of interviews/ experiences of Cyclone survivors - Translated from Burmese

2008-05-10T19:29:00.007+06:30

(Translated by Burmese M. Python - BBWOB)

Mizzima reporter interviewed three surviving victims, Ma Eh Lay, Ko Khin Maung and an anonymous person. Here are some snippets.

Ma Eh Lay (12 years) said that she has walked ten miles to Laputta for about 5 days. Both of her parents were dead. She was hung on a tree when she became conscious. She saw a lot of dead bodies on her way to Laputta. She couldn’t even remember her own village because of the flood. The food was scare on the way. She had to eat coconut and drink its juice. When people cooked rice, they had to use coconut juice. The rice was also wet. She felt very sad because her family members were dead.

Ko Khin Maung (40 years) said he was the only one left in the family. Nine of his family members were dead. He did not get the cyclone warning. He said he did not think the cyclone would be this devastating. Cattle from the village were all dead. He arrived in Rangoon on the 8th. He did not see any rescue teams along the way. About 300 villages out of 365 were hit by the cyclone. He heard that 126,000 people died according to the statistics from some people in Laputta. Drinking water was scare along the way, too.

An anonymous Laputta resident said there was acid rain with the storm. He said the acid rain caused a lot of skin problems for many people. The biggest problem right now is not having enough drinking water. He also said the psychological damage was also having an impact on the survivors. In the surge of current, some people lost their family members after the torrent broke their holding hands. The survivors were left with psychologically affected. Laputta’s monasteries and schools were all crowded with survivors. Some people had to sleep on the platforms. The authorities and soldiers were sending survivors to other towns as soon as they arrived at the ports. They were sent to places like Myaung Mya, Bassein and Wah Kher Ma.

.......................................................................................................................................

(Translated by May - BBWOB)

A resident of Laputta town talked to Mizzima about acid rain and the psychological damage that seems to have been inflicted on the survivors as a result of the disaster.

"The acid rain came with the cyclone. Many people had their skin burned by the acid rain. The acid burned through the outer layer of skin. You could see the patches of adipose tissue on their bodies. We tried to drink rain water, but it was salty. So there was no drinking water. It was terrible. There must be hundreds of people who suffered burns as a result of the acid rain."

"The rain water was very acidic. When the rain hit bamboo, we could actually see sparks. Many people are ill. Some are in a daze. They lost their families and it makes them feel helpless because they couldn't save them. Also, they have nothing left, so they are at a loss. They're very traumatised by the experience."

"When the survivors reach the jetties, they're immediately herded up the lorries by the 66th Battalion, to be sent to other towns. They don't let them enter the town of Laputta. They're being sent to Myaung Mya, Basein, and WahKhaeMa."

"Laputta can't accomodate any more people. The 30 monasteries are completely full. People are occupying the moasteries, and some are filling up the roadside platforms. In some places, there is no shade at all. But they have no villages to return to."

For the original article in Burmese, please click here.

................................................................................................................................

(Translated by May - BBWOB)

Firsthand accounts of Cyclone survivors:

Source: Mizzima

Survivor: Ma El Lay, age 12
Chan Tha Gyi Village No 1, Laputta Township

"It took me 4-5 days to reach the town of Laputta. I had to walk about 100 miles. No rescue team came. They wanted to send me to Myaung Mya. The soldiers from Battalion 66 told me they will send me there. They said they would kill me if I tried anything funny."

"I've only been in Yangon for 2 days. So many people perished in one night. It's shocking, and very frightening. Both my parents died. The cyclone whipped off the roof of our house in the middle of the night. I ended up on a tree. When I came to, I saw many corpses in the rice fields. I picked my way around the bodies. The village was beyond recognition. There were only a few trees left, and even those trees had no leaves left."

"I didn't eat anything on the way. There were no shops. The shops along the way were very expensive. Those 4 days were very difficult. I ate coconut and drank the coconut juice. There was no water in the village. I had to use coconut water to cook the damp rice that was left."

"We lived with our extended family that numbered 40. My immediate family has 10 of us. Now my parents and siblings are gone, and I'm very sad and frightened."

Survivor: Ko Khin Maung, age 40
Chan Tha Gyi Village No. 1, Laputta Township

"It's horrible. Our whole village was flattened. I'm the only survivor in my family of 10. We tried to hold on to each other, but we couldn't. They were all taken by the cyclone. I couldn't even retrieve any of their bodies. End of story."

"I have no more relatives in Laputta. They were all swept away by the waves. I have nothing left. We have never had such a storm in this region. We're not in the habit of listening to the radio. The authorities should have warned us, but they did nothing. And now we have all suffered."

"We only knew about the cyclone when the wind picked up. It's never happened before, so we didn't expect things to be this bad. We gathered at houses which we thought could withstand the wind. We also didn't expect the waves to be so high. The waves were too strong. Everything is gone.. the houses, the animals.."

"We arrived in Yangon yesterday, the 8th. We didn't receive any aid along the way. No rescue teams, no help. We had to help ourselves. Laputta township has 56 village clusters, comprising 365 villages. The cyclone destroyed about 300 of them. According to the list compiled by the Traders Association in Laputta, up to 4th May, the death toll is about 126000. It's not complete. There was no aid at all; I didn't even get to drink a drop of water."

"Some of the people in town have donated rice. So we survived on porridge. But water and other food supplies were scarce. The conditions are bad. I had phone contact this morning, and I was informed that three children have died from cholera."

For the original article in Burmese, please click here.

..................................................................................................................................

(Shared by Burmese M. Python - BBWOB)

From Interesting Times blog at the New Yorker.

An account after a tour of the capital:
[In a Hindu temple] there are eight hundred people camped out with less than satisfactory sanitation, diminishing clean water supply, and very little other than rice porridge in the last two days. We headed over to Hlaing Thaya and before we even got to the monastery where we helped outstopped in an elementary school that had around three hundred homeless people with a broken water pump. Across the way, in another temple, another two hundred and fifty or so from the same village where thatch houses had been totally smashed by cyclone Nargis. We then went to the opposite side of the city Shwebaukan to the 11th and 12th quarters. Up to five hundred people in one school being threatened by the local Army guy swinging weight that they could not stay there for long, and further a village of people with NO building for shelter, no clean water, and a foot of flood water beneath/in each more or less roofless house. The regime is busy chopping up fallen trees on roads mostly in rich areas in town and is beginning to work on electric poles in rich areas of town. Survival for the poor or communication with citizenry is not its forte. It even neglects its own As I passed some soldiers cutting trees yesterday, I asked if they’d eaten breakfast. Of course not! So I went back home to get them some bread.

An expatriate living in Burma:
The malevolence of the Burmese government toward its people is incomprehensible. The junta is making it very difficult for foreign relief agencies to get desperately need medical assistance and other supplies to the hundreds of thousands (more likely millions) of victims of the cyclone. International media report that foreign relief workers are not being granted visas. Even if aid personnel can get into the country, existing government regulations are likely to make it difficult for expatriate relief workers to travel very far outside Rangoon. Both the Burmese government restrictions and U.S. economic sanctions make it very difficult to give money to local N.G.O.s directly, but it is possible to support their work by donating to the international groups that have longstanding partnerships with local N.G.O.s and community-based organizations (including churches and monasteries).

Translated News for the day - 10 May

2008-05-10T15:56:00.005+06:30

(Translated by May - BBWOB)

Updated Figures - 10 May
Source: Mizzima News

Death toll released by an international agency:
http://www.mizzima.com/images/Nargis/INGO_Death_Toll.png
Meanwhile, junta gave much lower estimates:
http://www.mizzima.com/images/Nargis/Death_Toll_tn.png

...................................................

Source: Democratic Voice of Burma

Pyi Khaing Kyun and Kyaik Ka Thaung, situated two to three hours' boat ride from Haing Gyi, were also badly affected by Cyclone Nargis, according to a resident from Pyi Khaing Kyun. Kyaik Ka Thaung alone was estimated to have a death toll of about 4000. She told DVB that the cyclone victims were in dire stratis and that no aid has been received so far in these areas.

In an interview with DVB, the source said:
"The situation is terrible. I heard that the death toll is very high, especially in Laputta. In the coastal areas, there are salt farms. Each employs about 1000 people. Out of that 1000, 800 plus perished. Entire families have been wiped out."

"The coastal villages were engulfed by the sea. So the survivors have come into town. The town itself is largely unharmed. But the shop owners have not dared to open their cafes as their business will collapse in one morning since they have no paying patrons."

"Apparently, they received rice for lunch. But in the evening, they were only given porridge (as supplies ran low). But it wasn't enough to fill their stomachs, so I heard they were scavenging for coconuts and mangoes."

"Haing Gyi is about 3 hours away on boat. But we can see them from here. I know for a fact that a navy battalion is stationed there. There must be about 2000 to 3000 houses."

"I also heard that there were corpses floating in the water, with many of them entangled in the undergrowth. People told me the smell is foul. In Kyaik Ka Thaung, there has been an outbreak of diahhorea."

"In one place, the whole village was submerged under water. In another village, the entire population was wiped out save for 3 people. I don't know which one... there are so many little villages here."

"Never in my life, has there been a disaster like this. We had never had a problem with floods, but now, the water level is waist high."

"Some people who came back from Laputta told me that those people seem to be very traumatised by what has happened. They look dazed, and scream if someone touches them."

"They are not only homeless, but they have nothing to eat. Some are taking shelter under trees, without adequate clothing or even footwear."

DVB: Has no rescue teams reached the area?"

"Not to Pyi Khaing. Maybe they are already in Haing Gyi. Maybe they don't know about this area as we are rather remote. Perhaps they will come tomorrow."

"There has been some help (for the victims). This morning, one lady gave out packets of instant noodles. In Kyaik Ka Thaung, I heard that rice was being distributed. Kyaik Ka Thaung is a big village, about 2 hours away. I heard that 4000 people perished."

For the original article in Burmese, please click here.

Are you also going to kill Cyclone victims ?

2008-05-10T15:18:00.001+06:30

UN secretary Ban Ki Moon warned again and again to Burma Regime. We heard that he tried to call directly to Burmese notorious General Than Shwe.

Then what ..

We haven't heard yet any outcomes nor green light ( even a shade ). This morning, Mr Ban again said referendum should be fair and just.

What for ...

We all know that they are taking advantages over cyclone crisis. They can make it any of their likeness. People are powerless, foodless, waterless, speechless and even lifeless. We don't need referendum. We just need to live.

France proposed to act " responsibility to protect" in UN Security Council. It was instantly rejected.

By whom ..

Does it means they don't need to rescue these millions of life? Or they still want to protect these wicked Generals. Or they don't want West to influence their territories.

This is not the matter of national sovereignty. This is not the matter of power polarization. This is not the matter of diplomacy war. This is just the matter of life and death.

LIFE AND DEATH for millions of people.

Surprise that why UN, US, NATO, ASEAN and others are just standing and waiting their permission. Are you still negotiating with these dumb head? Are you still mulling over how to solve it ? Minute by minute, people are dying.

Are you also going to kill these innocent victims ?

DIY

2008-05-10T14:32:00.010+06:30

Photo from LA Times: the aftermath of Cyclone Nargis

LA Times said: MAKING DO: Using basic hand tools, two men in Yangon, like many Myanmar residents, are performing much of the cleanup work themselves for lack of foreign or domestic assistance.

DIY Way of Life

We, the Burmese, are used to solving problems on our own because we all know our government does not care about us. Almost everything in Burma is DIY (Do It Yourself), to borrow a geeky terms.

Electricity

In our town in Southern Burma, the electricity from the government is not reliable at all (We honor Thomas Alva Edison every day by staying in the dark) Guess what the solution of the community is? A well-to-do family would buy a generator and install power line -- only the home-quality one -- to each house in the street, who wants the electricity. The family runs the generator, let's say, from 6:00 PM till 9:00 PM. The family then collects the fees every two weeks, based on the number of fluorescent lamps you have agreed to install in the first place. How democratic and market-oriented our community is! :)

Telecommunication

Burmese migrants in Thailand have been using the family-run telephone exchange in the border area to call their family back home. Here is what you do. You dial a Thailand registered number of the family-owned telephone switch in the border and tell them the number in Burma you are trying to call. The exchange having several phones registered both in Thailand and Burma, can route your call from Thailand's phone system to Burma's. You have just dialed a telephone number in Thailand and yet you are talking to your family in Burma. They collect the fees at the end of the month based on how many minutes you talked (or hours if you talked to your sweethearts :). Well, the Burmese have just installed a home-made telephone switch without any investment from governments or businesses.

Survival of the Fittest

We have learned to survive and live with inefficiencies, thanks to our government. The educated Burmese also acknowledge that this is not good in the long run. But what else can we do, except to live with it? To fight the mighty guns pointing at us is an insurmountable task (at least for me).

Back to Nargis

If the government does not care about the victims, and relief experts cannot get to ground zero in time, we will have to do what it takes to survive. Not a good solution, I agree. But what else can we do? What would you do?

Hope is a floating corpse

2008-05-10T08:28:00.001+06:30

By Ko Hmway

Rotten dead bodies are floating under the sun, ears and hands of some dead bodies were cut off and still lying on the wet ground and no one is going to cerement or bury those. I wonder, their souls, weak and helpless in uncertainty, might be wondering in search of God.

At this very moment, hundreds of thousands of people with empty-stomachs are suffering from fever, diarrhea and various diseases and for those ill-fated fellow countrymen of mine, who once had human dignity, they have been reduced to the states of having no proper place to sleep, having no food to eat and having no hope to pray, but having just a roof called saddening sky hovers above them.

This is not the brilliant production of Hollywood producers. This is not the animal planet Cable TV channel. This is not actually good-to-be true reality TV show.
Indeed, this is really happening in my country.

Without warning, the victims have died helplessly in their sleep while some families were awake and were able to tie their hands together with a rope ensuring themselves that if we must die we will die together before killer typhoon swallowed and blew them away and left their dead bodies shamefully and inhumanely by the curse of demon.
tie their hands together with a rope ensuring themselves

Though international aid groups are humanely seeking to rescue, feed and cure those helpless victims, there has been no plausible progress and the victims have become new victims of another man-made disaster.

What is humane society?What is the meaning of civilized mankind?I doubt there is such things existing for the people of Burma.Burmese people have been ill-treated by military regimes since 1962 and are still suffering badly and will continue this painful reality unless the divine intervention emerges out vigorously for them to escape out from this madness.

Meanwhile, international aid groups have been banned and harassed viciously by Burmese military and members of USDA. In most places, the donations have been seized and taken forcefully by Military and USDA for their own selfish gains of enjoying a good meal using international aid packages.

Other Burmese are also trying to help victims. In Rangoon division, a group of donors have been forced to leave their donation at one local USDA office.
The ration of donations is 200, 00 kyat and a basket of rice for each victim family.
But USDA only distributed 150, 00 kyat and half basket of rice to the victims and the rest have been pocketed and for the USDA members and Army officers, this method is latest get-rich-quick scheme on top of the rotten innocent corpses.

Similar incidents are happening everywhere in Rangoon division, still there is no hopeful news from Irrawaddy region. While, SPDC is kicking out and turning down all well-equipped skillful aid workers and US Navy, they are still insisting that they will only accept money, supplies and foods only.

On the other hand , the ugliest and shameless attempt by the military regime is that all relief packages arriving at Rangoon airport were stamped with the stickers stating: “ "The donation of lieutenant general Myint Swe”". What a shame?Cleary, I remember two particular movies from Hollywood called the planet of the apes and the Independence Day.

In the planet of apes, human are enslaved, tortured, humiliated by apes, in the case of Burmese people human are degraded, tortured, killed and neglected by hyenas and other human being around the world including leaders of the great countries and the leaders of United Nations. All those big powers in the world seem rather powerless in this case and is only able to comment, appeal and say sorry but nothing else and no action have been effectively taken by them for God sake.

On the other hand, in the Independence Day movie, mankind is being attacked and planet earth is badly invaded by alien assault-aircrafts.

In the end, led by veteran president of the United States himself defended for the mankind and the whole world followed his step and won other powerful aliens and the planet earth is saved.

Sadly, even the fate of the Burmese people is still worsening day after day and there is no one with the victory of cigar to save Burmese from this madness.

http://hmway.blogspot.com/

Care2: Help the Burmese People Receive Aid in Cyclone Aftermath

2008-05-09T13:43:00.002+06:30

Sign the petition here

The crisis in Myanmar is growing, and we need your voice today to help get international aid to the Burmese people. Please sign our petition today, and then ask your friends to do the same.

Up to 100,000 people may have been killed in last weekend's cyclone in Myanmar. At least 1.5 million people are homeless or "severely affected." Yet the military junta ruling Myanmar is dragging its feet on allowing international aid and workers into the country to deliver desperately needed food and supplies to the suffering Burmese people.

We can't stand by and watch more people die because their government refuses to act. Urge the Embassies of Myanmar to do everything in their power to allow international aid to reach the Burmese people immediately.

Rebecca Young,
Care2 and ThePetitionSite Team

Hungry Survivors

2008-05-09T12:17:00.006+06:30

I talked to a friend from Burma on gtalk this morning. He said he was fine, but people in his neighborhood were going hungry. He lives in Shwe Pyi Thar township, a poor suburb north of Rangoon.

Mizzima confirmed that some survivors are going hungry with the following news report.

Hungry survivors scare off aid workers

Several aid workers, who went down to Burma's cyclone-devastated Irrawaddy Delta to conduct a needs assessment survey, were forced to flee after they were surrounded by villagers who might have been seeking food, an aid worker said.

The aid worker, who asked to remain anonymous, said the assessment team was in Laputta Township, nearly half of which was submerged by water, when a hundred or more villagers approached.

"The villagers looked pale and hungry," he added. "They might have wanted to ask for food, but the assessment team thought it was dangerous, so they left."

The assessment team returned to Rangoon.

The aid worker, who did not want to name the assessment teams organization, said no material aid has yet reached the Laputta region.

According to the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), 92 percent of houses in Laputta Township were destroyed by the Cyclone Nargis, which swept through the region on Friday and Saturday.

Myaung Mya Helps Cyclone Victims

2008-05-09T08:44:00.004+06:30

Source: Democratic Voice of Burma

Myaung Mya, though in the path of Cyclone Nargis, was not badly affected. The town is currently providing food and shelter to about 15,000 cyclone victims from Labutta. Schools in the town have been converted into temporary shelters for the victims.

For the original article in Burmese, please click here.

Will SPDC show their courage for the sake of people?

2008-05-08T21:35:00.007+06:30

By Yebaw Nyein
Translated by Burmese Bloggers w/o Borders
[Source in Burmese - komoethee blog]

SPDC does not dare to accept the help from the international community and US for the victims of Nargis cyclone.

SPDC is being a coward by doing that. Moreover, there seems to be some other underlying reasons as to why SPDC dares not accept the offer of help from George W. Bush.

If they accepted help from US, the US military would send its troops to carry out rescue missions in Burma. And the timing for all these actions would coincide with the voting of referendum.

If the Burmese people were to feel a glimmer of hope in the presence of the US military in Burma, SPDC feared that the people would become daring enough to protest against the repressions. If such were to happen, SPDC definitely would be cornered by the people as well as by the presence of US military in Burma. They would no longer be able to carry out their brutal acts of suppressions against the people. As such, their control over Burma would be shaken. Knowing this, SPDC hesitates to allow US to enter Burma to provide humanitarian aid to the victims.

Even after Burma has been hit badly by Cyclone Nargis, which happens to be on the scale of worst natural disaster in South-East since four years ago, SPDC seems to be taking things lightly and keeps on putting their emphasis on persuading the people to vote for them in the referendum.

On the other hand, SPDC is also making use of the people’s sympathy for the victims to divert their attention from SPDC’s underhand means of getting votes in the upcoming referendum. Hence, we, Burmese people, should also be aware of such SPDC’s attempts to manipulate the current situations for innocent victims in Burma to their advantage.

This is simply my two cents’ worth of analysis. I am sure that SPDC and its followers would have done a much more thorough planning on this.

Lastly, I would like to ask and urge SPDC with the following:

If you are not cowards who wear the military uniforms just for show, you should also dare to accept the help from the international community and US.

WHO IS REAL CHICKEN ?

2008-05-08T20:41:00.003+06:30

[Source]

Than Shwe and SPDC insulted and spat on US president Gorge W. Bush’s face and challenged the whole United States and its sympathy by denying US ‘s humanitarian offer for the victims. Apparently, over 600,000 human lives have been wasted by deadly typhoon and the lives of survivors are still at stake.

Will the US president George W. Bush ignore Than Shwe’s bitter insult and just wipe off the spit on his face and walk away or else ?

by Ko Hmway

‘We are being Prevented from Talking about Burma at UNSC’: French Ambassador

2008-05-08T19:12:00.003+06:30

From the Irrawaddy:
China and Russia—the two permanent members of the UN Security Council that regularly veto resolutions on Burma—on Wednesday blocked a French move to initiate a discussion on the current humanitarian crisis in Burma following the devastating cyclone last week that killed tens of thousands of people.

On Wednesday morning, Ripert [the French ambassador to the UN] requested a meeting of the Security Council on the subject of Burma and a briefing on the issue from John Holmes, the Emergency Relief Coordinator of the United Nations and Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs.

The French ambassador wants the security council to have a briefing from Holmes because the Burmese government hasn't issued visas for many relief workers who are waiting in Bangkok in neighboring Thailand.

As always, China and Russia vetoed the move. Shame on them!

If you have a choice, please do not buy Chinese products. The Chinese leaders like to dance with wolves and their businesses would do anything to gain profits.

600,000 killed, 100,000 missing in Burma

2008-05-08T16:47:00.001+06:30

Interview with one official

According undisclosed interview with one government official, death toll is reaching 600,000 so far and 100,000 still missing.According his figure, 180,000 killed only Lutbutta township. 90,000 in Phyar Pone Township , 80,000 in Bogalay Township. 50,000 each in KywanGanKone , DayDaYae and MawKyane Township.Authorities ( army and its thugs USDA) are throwing away dead bodies to the nearby river.Even in Ye Way Cemetery in Yangon City, dead bodies are cremated in batch without proper identification.Emphasizing to Phyar Pone Township, authority declare Emergency Act and deter not to go out at night but then they are dumping dead bodies to the river.

Weak planning and slow decision making

2008-05-08T14:17:00.007+06:30

Weather Forecast from the Burmese official newspaper (Photo
taken from
Khin Min Zaw's blog)

The above warning on April 29 in the state-owned newspaper said the storm would not be devastating and the wind would be only 40-45 miles per hour.

Mungpi from Mizzima reported:

Though Burma's Meteorology and Hydrology department posted a warning on its official website on April 27, the information was not widely disseminated. The department said that a cyclone was forming in the Bay of Bengal and was heading towards Burma.

State-run media did not issue a cyclone alert until the afternoon of Friday, May 2. The storm first struck the Irrawaddy Delta in late afternoon Friday and swept into Rangoon early Saturday.

Many Rangoon residents said they missed the announcement, broadcast on state-run TV and radio, which usually runs state propaganda.

If Rangoon residents missed the announcement, the worst hit delta residents would not even get wind of it. Here is Mungpi's report again:

"Though my daughters said they knew about the announcement, I was not aware of the cyclone because I am not interested in watching TV, and there was no public announcement in the locality," said a Rangoon resident whose house was smashed by a falling tree.

A leading Thai meteorological expert said the failure to issue a timely warning may have costs thousands of innocent lives.

Dr. Smith Dharmasaroja, chairman of Thailand's National Disaster Warning Centre, said the Burmese government's response was insufficient.

"The government must issue an early warning and send teams to evacuate villagers in the disaster-prone zones as a preparation for the cyclone," Dr. Smith told Mizzima.

Dr. Smith famously predicted that a tsunami would strike Thailand long before the deadly Indian Ocean waves of December 2004, but was widely ignored.

While it is important for the government to issue an announcement, the warnings must be properly disseminated, Dr. Smith said. The authorities must also take precautionary steps, including relocating villagers in the path of the predicted cyclone to higher ground.

The Burmese officials ignored warnings from Indian Meteorology Department and Asian Disaster Preparedness Center (ADPC) (McCartan, 2008). On a side note, Thai government also ignores Tsunami warning in 2004. (This shows how ASEAN governments do not give planning and decision-making powers to the officials in the field and do not care about the poor and weak).

As of the latest situations, Burmese government is very slow in issuing visas for relief workers (Denby, 2008). They are working at a snail space while people will be left to struggle on their own in the delta areas in Burma.

Holmes [the emergency relief coordinator of the United Nations and under-secretary-general for humanitarian affairs] said that during discussions with Burmese officials, the explanation given for the delay in issuing visas was that it was a question that needed to be decided by higher authorities. (Jha, 2008)

I am sure the officials are covering their asses waiting for the decisions from "higher authorities" at the expense of suffering victims who need help right now.

Source:
Denby, K. (2008, May 7). Burma junta drags its feet over visas for aid workers as cyclone victims suffer. The Times Online. Retrieved May 8, 2008 from http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/asia/article3887278.ece
Jha, L.K. (2008, May 8). UN Frustrated over Visa, Custom Delays The Irrawaddy. Retrieved May 8, 2008 from http://www.irrawaddy.org/article.php?art_id=11837
McCartan, B. (2008, May 7). Myanmar courts political disaster The Asia Times Online. Retrieved May 8, 2008 from http://www.atimes.com/atimes/Southeast_Asia/JE08Ae01.html
Mungpi. (2008, May 6). Burma knew of cyclone nearly a week before it hit. The Mizzima. Retrieved May 7, 2008 from http://www.mizzima.com/nargis-impact/18-nargis-impact/445--burma-knew-of-cyclone-nearly-a-week-before-it-hit

do not need to wait regime's consent

2008-05-08T01:16:00.014+06:30

Nothing left to loss....

Cyclone Nargis hit our country without mercy. It swept off ten of thousands of lives. It even blew away more than 30 villages to the ocean.

We hope that Nargis would be the last thing, rip down Burmese people, who have already been suffered by irresponsive regime for more than three decades. They live their daily life in all and every way of negative sentiments; worry, fear, loss and hatred of course. Seldom to heard of human right in Burma. Social crisis is in everywhere. No human right. No electricity. No good education. No law and order.( Regime can turn it around)

Crisis of crises

Now again, natural disaster pushes Burma to be in ever deepening crisis. Cyclone is coming but not enough warning and evacuation plan. State run media even announced that Cyclone is getting weaker and no need to worry. What's a reckless research data and forecast? People are dying but where is relief efforts. Civilians and monks come down to street and clean the mess, cut the trees. Authority send handful of uniform people on the street without any tools and machine. Road access needs to clear urgently. But where is heavy machinery. It shows very clear that regime is absolutely lack of management skills. Even worse that they took their own picture and propagated in State run TV. What's an inhumane act to take credit in the midst of devastating?

DIY aids

People really don't care about them. They don't rely on them either. People are now giving hands to hands to cope such a horrible aftermath. They manage to use hand held power generator to get water. They share foods. And some oversea Burmese around the world sending money and materials to effected area. But authorities deter not to go direct and ask the things into their hand. It can't find any sensible reason upon that. It indicates that so-called authorities are as stupid as that.

SOS

Time to time, death toll is rising in delta region and likely to rise up ot 100,000. Obvious that it is state of emergency and international community has offered to give relief aids but yet to get clear permission from authorities. Hundreds of international staffs are still waiting to get visa. What regimes waiting for? What makes them difficult?

People are in desperate and frustrate for regimes slow action. While regimes making meeting and thinking and planning, people in delta area are suffering unprecedented consequence, like epidermic, sanitation and drinking water problem. Now international health experts warns that if they can't manage to remove dead bodies and cremate properly, there will be substantial problem in the whole region. Today France foreign minister Kouchner reminds United Nations' "responsibility to protect" that aids should be imposes as soon as possible without consent from authorities even if this meant intervention.

Yes. We are welcome his comments and initiation. International communities do not need to wait for regime answers, please listen to the cries of people.

UNICEF and Direct Relief accepting donations through Google.

2008-05-07T16:13:00.003+06:30

UNICEF and Direct Relief accepting donations through Google.
http://www.google.com/myanmarcyclone/

UN Begins Food Distribution in Cyclone-ravaged Burma

2008-05-07T14:04:00.013+06:30

The agency [the UN's World Food Program] now has more than 800 metric tons of food
stocks in Rangoon, "and will deliver these food resources to all areas in need,"
it said. The agency also plans to airlift additional supplies into Burma,
such as high-energy biscuits, "as soon as possible."
(Higgins, 2008)

I think the response is very slow from authorities concerned regarding the dispatch of rescue teams, experts and food supplies to the most affected areas. Nobody seems to know the exact time when the rescue team will be at ground zero. The locals are left to struggle on their own, which is quite a norm in Asian countries. I hope that food and aids will get there to the locals "as soon as possible", to quote the World Food Program Agency.

According to an email from one of the employees from the World Food Program (WFP), the WFP officials have met with the Burmese Deputy Minister of Social Welfare, Relief and Recovery. The government officials mentioned that the needs for affected areas were:

Shelters (iron sheets, nails, plastic sheets)
Medicine
Water purifying tablets
Drinking water
Hand saws and chain saws

They have set up a distribution channel from the Yangon (Rangoon) International airport to Pathein (Bassein). A liaising team at the airport will accept the donated materials and deliver them by helicopters from Yangon (Rangoon) to Pathein (Bassein). The social welfare department will then deliver the donated materials to the Pathein (Bassein) communities.

I didn't see any mentioning of how to get to the affected villages yet.

Source:
Higgins, A.G. (2008, May 7). UN Begins Food Distribution in Cyclone-ravaged
Burma. The Irrawaddy. Retrieved May 7, 2008 from http://www.irrawaddy.org/highlight.php?art_id=11807

Activists Call for US Government to Provide Emergency Assistance to Cyclone

2008-05-05T21:33:00.000+06:30

Press Release: May 5th
U.S. Campaign for Burma Press Release

Contact: Jeremy Woodrum (202) 246-7924

(Washington, DC) The United States Campaign for Burma today called for the U.S government to respond to a major humanitarian crisis in Burma made by tropical cyclone Nargis, by providing humanitarian assistance to the people of Burma. The military regime has placed disastrous restrictions on humanitarian organizations operating inside Burma, forcing some to stop their operations. During this humanitarian crisis the regime must allow relief organizations to reach the most vulnerable populations. Delivery of assistance must be immediate and unfettered by the authorities.

The Burmese military regime did almost nothing to warn the people of Burma. Instead, the regime's newspapers have been chock-full of propaganda about why the people of Burma should vote "yes" on a referendum that is an attempt to entrench military rule for many years to come.

The junta's security forces and militias, who have been quick to attack and arrest democracy activists, are playing no role in helping the victims of the cyclone. According to Aung Zaw, editor of the respected Irrawaddy magazine based in Thailand, said "People are very angry with the slow response coming from the military government."

In contrast, everyday villagers and citizens are beginning to clear the debris by hand. Buddhist monks, who led nationwide, peaceful protests aimed at ending military rule in Burma last autumn, are now on the streets, cleaning debris together with the people and helping the victims.

Cyclone Nargis devastated major parts of Burma, including major damages in the country's largest city of Rangoon and throughout the Irrawaddy Delta region, Bago (Pegu) Division, Karen State and Mon State. Wind speeds of 120 mile per hour (190 Km/hr) and rain lashed the region from the night of May 2nd to the morning of May 3rd. During over seven hours of turmoil, up to half of the houses in Rangoon were destroyed and many others lost their roofs. Satellite Townships (similar to suburbs) in Rangoon, such as Hlaing
Tharyar, Shwe Pyi Thar, Dagon Myothit North, and Dagon Myothit South were hit hardest. In Irrawaddy Division, two Townships -- Kyaik Lat and Latputda -- were almost completely destroyed. On Heingyi Island, there are nearly 100,000 people without homes or shelter. In Pyinsi Village in Pyar Pone Township, out of 3,000 villagers, at least two thousand are missing. The Burmese military junta claims that 4,000 were dead, but the actual number of deaths is believed to be much higher.

It is estimated that it will take several weeks to restore electricity and telephone communication in Rangoon. The entire city is paralyzed and hundreds of thousands of people are panicking. It is widely expected that the Burmese military regime will make only symbolic efforts to help those affected. Residents of areas hardest hit by the storm have yet to receive assistance and their basic survival needs are in peril.

"We call on the US Government to provide emergency assistance to the Burmese people immediately through humanitarian agencies," said Aung Din, Executive Director of the U.S. Campaign for Burma. "Cyclone Nargis directly hit Burma; its tsunami-like effect requires the United States and the international community to respond immediately or many more people will die."

"It is critical that any aid provided not be delivered through the notoriously corrupt government. The military and the organizations run by
the wives of the Generals will only siphon off money and keep supplies for themselves. Money and humanitarian assistance should only be provided to trusted, international humanitarian organizations who can reach the victims of the cyclone directly," added Aung Din.

Thai PM insults Burma

2008-05-03T21:22:00.007+06:30

Is Samak Sundaravej a Thailand Prime Minister? If it is, what kind of PMs he is.

Burma Junta’s Prime Minister, Lieutenant-General Thein Sein, started a three-day official visit to Thailand at April 29. After a meeting, Mr. Samak said to the media that Burma Generals had no plan to release the detained Democracy Leader Aung San Suu Kyi before or after the constitutional referendum.

“They are not releasing her, but they will not interfere with her. They will put her on the shelf and not bother with her, which is unacceptable to foreigners.”

What did he mean?

He said the Generals would not release Daw Aung San Suu Kyi but he was still saying they would not interfere and bother with her. Does putting an extremely important Burmese Democracy Leader into house arrest for 13 years not mean interfering or bothering? I am wondering how he could become a PM of Thailand. As a very special person of a country he should know better that it is not only bothering Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, but also bothering all the Burmese people. In fact, it means much more than bothering, it is abusing the whole country.

Out of all, his next comment on Burma’s most admired leader made the Burmese people angry and disgusted. Everyone was taken aback by surprise.

“We think it's OK if she is put on the shelf. But others admire her because of it”.

Damn it! Stupid guy says stupid words! He is insulting a Nobel Peace Prize winner. He is insulting us, insulting Burma. He is insulting his neighbour. He is insulting the whole world, all the people who love the truth. What a shame for him as a PM saying this kind of words!

Burmese will not be angry if Samak is not a PM. I really find it hard to believe that these kinds of words are said by a PM, our neighbour’s leader as well. I believe that not only the Burmese but also the Thai people, even their King, and others are disappointed on his senseless comments. They will also feel ashamed by such comments.

Finally, people come to know that he is just a heartless or brainless Prime Minister.

A Burmese.

The rape of Burma: where did the wealth go?

2008-05-03T14:35:00.001+06:30

By SEAN TURNELL
(Source - Japan Times)
2 May 2008

SYDNEY — Burma, once the richest countries in Southeast Asia, today is mired in deep poverty — its economy ruined by nearly 50 years of economic mismanagement under military rule. And yet, over the last few years Burma has also emerged as a significant producer of energy in Southeast Asia. Thanks to large fields of recoverable natural gas located offshore, Burma now earns substantial foreign exchange revenues. At present, most of these revenues ($1 billion to 1.5 billion per year, depending on price fluctuations) come from Thailand. Gas from Burma, piped onshore from the Gulf of Martaban, generates around 20 percent of Bangkok's electricity supply.

If all goes well, new gas fields recently discovered in the Bay of Bengal will provide even more gas for China's Yunnan Province. To get the gas into Yunnan, a much longer pipeline — running the length of Burma — must be built. The project will be as difficult as it will be controversial. But, with no environmental or labor standards to contend with, few doubt that the pipeline will proceed.

So, given its newfound energy riches, one might expect Burma's public finances to be rather flush, with surpluses aplenty to spend on health, education and much else that the country so desperately needs. Alas, almost none of Burma's gas revenues actually feed into its budget, owing to a rather ingenious device employed by the Burmese junta. The device is simple. Like many countries ruled by authoritarian regimes, Burma has a dual exchange rate system. The official exchange rate pegs Burma's currency, the kyat, at a rate of six to one against the U.S. dollar.

The informal or black market exchange rate determines the value of the kyat according to supply and demand in the marketplace. Trading kyat in the black market is formally illegal, but it is the only way that people unconnected to the regime can ever hope to come across foreign currency.

According to the informal exchange rate, the kyat's worth is currently about 1,000 to one against the dollar. Given this dual exchange rate system, hiding Burma's gas earnings becomes easy. By recording earnings at the official exchange rate, they are worth nearly 200 times below what they should be.

Thus, Burma's gas earnings of around $1.2 billion for 2006-07 are rendered into a mere 7.2 billion kyat in the country's public accounts — less than 1 percent of the regime's official public spending. Recorded at the market exchange rate, however, these earnings translate into 1.2 trillion kyat — an amount large enough to eliminate Burma's budget deficit, as well as the destructively inflationary money printing that is the regime's preferred method of public finance.

So where do Burma's generals hide all the money they keep away from the state's budget? No one but the generals knows for sure. An inspection of the vaults of the country's Foreign Trade Bank might be a good place to start, however, as well as those of some accommodatingly unscrupulous banks offshore.

Whatever the precise location of Burma's riches, these hoards enable the junta to spend at its whim. A nuclear reactor, a new capital city, military pay increases — all of these and more have been on the menu of late. The one group that almost certainly will not benefit from any of the largesse is the Burmese people themselves, who are entitled to it and for whom it would mean an end to lives of poverty and want.

Sean Turnell is professor of economics at Macquarie University in Sydney. © 2008 Project Syndicate. www.project-syndicate.org

Atrocities by the military regime

2008-05-03T10:06:00.002+06:30

It has been a few years since these videos were taken. Sadly, nothing much has changed in Burma. In fact, there are now more atrocities being committed against the innocent civilians of Burma by the military regime.

BBC report from Newsnight - June 2005 - details some of the tactics the army in Burma uses against their own people. Concludes with an interview with Labour MP Vera Baird

18 April 2007:
To ACT NOW: www.witness.org/shootonsight. Video advocates BURMA ISSUES travel deep into the jungles of eastern Burma to document one of the world's most urgent and most forgotten emergencies. (The video was co-produced with WITNESS)

The Burmese military has embarked on one of the worst offensives in its 30 year campaign to destabilize the lives of rural ethnic minorities. Half a million live driven from their homes. INTERNATIONAL ACTION IS NEEDED!

Burma: It Can't Wait Campaign

2008-05-03T08:29:00.006+06:30

This is a one-month campaign in support of human rights and democracy where people from all walks of life, including the celebrities, come together to talk about human rights in Burma and her pursuit for freedom from the military regime. The campaign hopes to raise a million voices of support for Burma in 30 days. It was organized by US Campaign for Burma.

They will be posting daily videos on their site here. Let us join them on their journey of 30 days to support for Burma's freedom.

Our Plight

2008-05-01T05:52:00.008+06:30

Recently, I read with much sadness the report of the death of a young man, by the name of Kyaw Zin Naing, who set himself ablaze to protest against the rising costs of living in Burma. He was only 26-years old. After a month of suffering with almost 70 percent burns on his body, he finally succumbed to death. As most of the media is busy covering the news of upcoming referendum in Burma, the desperation of this lone protester seems to have been overshadowed by such news. Nothing was also known about the fate of his family members. I remember reading in one of the very few media reports on him, mentioning that he had a young child. For such sacrifice, which was given very little attention, I wonder how his family will feel. Would they blame him for leaving them to fend for themselves in an already difficult life or would they have been devastated by sheer oblivion of their own Burmese people who seem to be not much impacted by his protest?

Nowadays, whenever I read about various articles on my country, the bulk of them seem to touch upon the poverty, repressions (which are in the form of arrests, and torture, sometimes leading to an eventual death or immense sufferings), and the declining states of health and education for the people. With the GDP growth of only 5.5% (2007 est.) [1] and the majority of the people earning less than US$ 5 per month when the estimated living expenses for a family of five would cost more than US$ 110 per month [2], it seems little wonder that the other side of Burma, well-known for its scenery, rich culture, and ever smiling faces of the people, does not get reported as often in the media.

When I went back to Burma for a visit in the middle of last year, the sights of up-to-international-standard shopping malls, hotels and restaurants were aplenty in Rangoon, the old capital of Burma. So was the number of poor, homeless and starving people. Over the years since the military regime took over control, the gap between the rich and poor in Burma has widened to an unbelievable level. I estimated that only around 20% of the whole population will be able to frequent to the above-mentioned places. So what about the remaining 80% of the population? Many of them make up of working class families struggling to bring two proper meals a day for the whole family, the poverty-stricken and starving people. It was heart-wrenching for me to see my own fellow countrymen, especially very young children, resorting to begging at many tourist attractions. Their need for daily survival has left them with no other choice.

Many of my foreign friends in Singapore commented that almost all the Burmese maids who came to work in Singapore , are degree-holders. They were puzzled as to why a degree-holder would come to another country to work as a maid. Being recorded as one of the countries having the lowest public investment in the world for health and education sectors [3], the dire states of health and education are alarming. Majority of the underpaid teachers seek to find an alternative income by conducting private tuitions to students and giving favor to those who attend their tuitions. The remaining students who could not afford to do so are subjected to a sub-standard level of education system where the teachers are heavily overworked as well. The need to earn enough to make ends meet has driven many of the educators in Burma to resort to accepting briberies from well-to-do students in exchange for better grades. As the military dictators in Burma concentrate in holding onto their power by expanding their military, maintaining a good level of standard in education becomes secondary or rather of little importance to them. So we end up with many young graduates who cannot find a proper job, indicating that the piece of paper with their degree is almost worthless.

The health care in Burma poses an even more serious problem. The overcrowded hospitals, where every patient had to purchase everything including little items like bandages from private medical shops, and the lack of proper medical instruments such as simple things like needles, pose a serious problem with an increasing rate of HIV infections for the patients. Many of them enter the hospital with one ailment and may end up being infected with another due to the deteriorating state of the hospital.

Having to face all these problems every day, many of the Burmese people try to seek greener pasture in other countries. Some of them survived. Some of them had tragic ends like the recent case of 54 people being suffocated to death on their way to Thailand [4]. Even those who had made it to other countries still have to struggle to survive and to fit in the unfamiliar surroundings, and unfavorable conditions.

A lot of focus has been on the political system of Burma. However, I wonder how many of the ordinary people in Burma fully understand the meaning of "democracy". To them, their immediate concern is about their struggle against those things that I mentioned above: poverty, declining rights in health and education, etc. They believe that change in the political system in Burma from military regime to democracy government will alleviate their sufferings. However, they have waited for this change for more than 20 years. Seeing the inability of the international community to intervene and influence the Burmese military regime, the belief and hope of Burmese people have turned into desperation. Such desperation must have led ordinary individuals like Kyaw Zin Naing, who had no association whatsoever with any activists' groups, to commit an attempt of self-immolating himself.

On 11 June 1963, there was a similar protest of self-immolation by Thích Quảng Đức, Vietnamese Buddhist monk, in Saigon (now known as Ho Chi Min City) as a show of protest against a brutal regime that suppressed Buddhist monks and civilians. It was a turning point which led to the change in the regime in Vietnam [5]. Much international coverage was given to this incident with the famous picture of Thích Quảng Đức engulfed in flames.

However, I feel that Kyaw Zin Naing's case has not been portrayed to represent the great significance and seriousness in desperation of the civilians in Burma. It was just a news report, mingled with many other reports out of Burma. Even in the minds of some of my fellow countrymen, it seemed to have been just an isolated case of impulse.

But I sincerely hope that you can put yourself in the shoes of Kyaw Zin Naing to imagine what probably went through his mind before making the decision to douse himself. Was it just suicide? No. He knew for certain that there will be the presence of many worshipers at Shwe Dagon Pagoda on a Full Moon Day and the fact that he chose to commit his act at that particular place simply indicates his hopeful intention to let as many people know of the plight of poverty-stricken civilians in Burma. He probably took it as an act of self-sacrifice since he had to leave his young family behind and anticipated that his sacrifice would ignite something to bring change in Burma, like in the case of Thích Quảng Đứ.

Therefore, I would like to urge my fellow countrymen and the international community not to turn a blind eye to the hidden meaning behind Kyaw Zin Naing's attempt of self-immolation. It is much more than simply an act of one individual's impulse. Let us give him the honor that he duly deserves.

References:
[1] CIA - The world factbook - Burma (https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/bm.html)
[2] World Socialist Website (http://www.wsws.org/articles/2002/may2002/burm-m10.shtml)
[3] DFID (http://www.dfid.gov.uk/countries/asia/burma.asp)
[4] CNN Report (http://edition.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/asiapcf/04/10/thailand.myanmar.ap/index.html)
[5] Wikipedia (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thich_Quang_Duc)

Junta's firm grip gives democracy no chance

2008-04-26T19:08:00.001+06:30

By Kyaw Zwa Moe
[Source - Bangkok Post]

After nearly two decades in power, Burma's ruling junta should be showing signs of wear and tear. Indeed, observers are constantly on the lookout for evidence of a split within the ranks of the regime's top leadership.

Not surprisingly, they often find what they are looking for. But rarely, if ever, do these internal strains signal the sort of real weakness that could undermine the junta's hold on power.

Since it seized power in 1988, the current regime has carried out four significant purges, each time emerging stronger and more united.

In each case, the motive for removing certain high-ranking figures from their positions was personal rather than political. At no point has there ever been any major disagreement among the top generals about what direction the country should take.

The first change to take place in the regime's leadership came in April 1992 when ruling military council head Saw Maung was forced to step down, opening the way for current leader Than Shwe to assume the position of head of state.

Senior General Saw Maung wasn't dismissed because he had shown a willingness to hand over power to the main opposition party, the National League for Democracy. Actually, he refused to recognise the results of the 1990 national elections, which had handed the NLD an overwhelming victory.

The real problem was Gen Saw Maung's health. "He was becoming increasingly erratic and his public speeches were incoherent and rambling, covering subjects such as dying tomorrow and sightings of Jesus in Tibet," wrote journalist Bertil Lintner in his book Burma in Revolt. Finally, he had a nervous breakdown and his tenure as Burma's supreme leader came to an abrupt end.

In 1997, several junta members and senior ministers, including Trade and Commerce Minister Lt-Gen Tun Kyi, Hotels and Tourism Minister Lt-Gen Kyaw Ba and Agriculture Minister Lt-Gen Myint Aung were purged. All three had previously been regional commanders notorious for abuse of power in their respective regions of Mandalay Division, Kachin State and Irrawaddy Division. They were removed from their ministerial posts on charges of corruption.

In 2002, Secretary 3 Lt-Gen Win Myint and Minister for Military Affairs Lt-Gen Tin Hla were sacked because "they violated state policy". There was no evidence that political rivalry had played any part in their ouster.

The most interesting and controversial purge happened in 2004 when Khin Nyunt, the prime minister and chief of intelligence, was dismissed and arrested on charges of corruption. Gen Khin Nyunt, who for many years was one of the most influential figures within the junta, is currently under house arrest, with a suspended prison sentence of 44 years.

Some foreign observers regarded Gen Khin Nyunt as a "moderate" military officer who had shown some willingness to move the country towards a political transition. However, Burmese dissidents dubbed him the "Prince of Evil," as the person primarily responsible for the arrest and torture of thousands of political prisoners.

The 2004 purge was due to Senior General Than Shwe's suspicion of the military intelligence apparatus, which had been under Gen Khin Nyunt's control for two decades. Gen Than Shwe ordered the dismantling of the military intelligence services, but Gen Khin Nyunt's political legacy _ the so-called "road map to democracy" _ remained in place even after he was neutralised.

Since last September's monk-led protests, there have been persistent rumours of discontent among field generals who disagreed with the top generals' orders to shoot monks and other peaceful protesters.

However, no evidence of a serious rift within the junta has yet emerged over its handling of the demonstrations.

Instead, the current 11 members of the State Peace and Development Council (the military regime's official name) and its powerful regional commanders seem to be more unified than ever, especially since the Feb 9 announcement of a constitutional referendum slated for May 10.

It is, in fact, very difficult to imagine military officials wanting a radical political shift. They know that it is in their own interests to stick together in order to hold on to their privileges. No high-ranking military leader is going to put the good of the country ahead of his family's well-being.

There may well be a handful of far-sighted military officials who realise that the current situation cannot continue forever. But these individuals are in no position to seriously influence the country's political direction. The only choice before them is to obey and hopefully work their way up the ranks, where they might be able to do some good. But the odds are strongly against it.

Anything is possible, but there is little point in daydreaming that Burma's long overdue revolution could come about through a transformation within the junta.

Unfortunately for the Burmese people, the regime's ability to manage its internal conflicts probably means that it will see no need to respond to external pressures for some time to come.

-----

Kyaw Zwa Moe is managing editor of "TheIrrawaddy" magazine based in Chiang Mai.www.irrawaddy.org

Myanmar's awful choice

2008-04-23T21:30:00.001+06:30

Apr 23rd 2008
[Source - Economist.com]

A referendum its people cannot win

IN EMBASSIES abroad, voting has already begun in the referendum on Myanmar’s new constitution, which will be held in-country on May 10th. The ruling junta advertises it as an important step forward on its “roadmap” to democratic, civilian rule. If only.

Rather the referendum is, in the words of Paulo Sergio Pinheiro, the United Nations’ special rapporteur on human rights in Myanmar, a “ritual without real content”.

Or perhaps it is even worse than that: a ritual with content, symbolising and confirming the sheer misery of Myanmar’s plight and threatening to make it permanent. A junta-appointed committee took 15 years to draft the constitution, which offers nothing close to democracy.

It gives the army chief the power to intervene in politics at will. Several cabinet seats would be reserved for army officers, as would 25% of seats in both houses of parliament.

A bizarre clause is apparently tailor-made to bar Aung San Suu Kyi, the detained opposition leader, from elected office. When Myanmar last held elections, she was banned because of her foreign connections: she was married to a foreigner and had spent much of her life abroad.

Her husband has since died, and she has been in Myanmar without interruption—mostly under lock and key. Now, however, those whose “children or their spouses” are foreign are excluded. Miss Suu Kyi’s two sons are British, having been deprived of their Burmese citizenship.

Despite all this, some of the regime’s critics used to think the constitution worth voting for: it is, after all, the only chance of change that is on offer. And it does envisage some sort of political process, with a parliament, which implies debate and even, perhaps, disagreement.

To be blithely optimistic, this process might gather a momentum of its own. It might, for example, expose the undoubted rifts within the junta.

And, by bringing in the “ceasefire groups”—representatives of ethnic insurgencies that are at present quiescent—it would bring a formal end to some of the world’s longest-running armed conflicts.

Now, however, it is hard to find anyone outside the junta itself who favours a “yes” vote. There are two main reasons for this. The first is the junta’s brutal suppression of last autumn’s monk-led protests. A much feared and loathed regime proved itself even more hateful.

Second is the strengthening of provisions in the draft designed to make it hard to change it in future. Amendment will require at least 75% of the votes in parliament—ie, including those of some of the soldiers—and 50% of eligible voters in a subsequent referendum.

So the constitution seems a way of entrenching eternal military domination.

Any hint of a campaign for a “no” vote in Myanmar has been suppressed—those caught scrawling graffiti face long jail sentences; T-shirts bearing the word “Nobody”, which were made in Thailand and which Burmese had taken to wearing in discreet protest, are being removed from shop shelves.

With no independent poll-monitors, even if there is a “no” vote, we might never know. The generals will surely remember the embarrassment of being thrashed in the election they held in 1990.

So the looming vote evokes in some activists not the hope of change, however imperfect, but desperation over its impossibility. In that sense, it is comparable to the role of the Beijing Olympics in Tibet—almost a last chance to make a futile protest heard.

In a rare (if minor) incident of terrorism in Myanmar, two small bombs exploded in the centre of Yangon on Sunday April 20th. The government has blamed a group of exiled dissidents. But the one thing Myanmar is not short of is angry, desperate people.

GMC student speaks out against Burma's corruption

2008-04-20T17:48:00.002+06:30

(source)
April 18, 2008

They were called volunteers, but if they didn't work they could be arrested. Wai was still in high school when she saw her parents and sister forced into labor by the government.Wai's family has a long history of political involvement. Her grandfather was part of the communist party in Burma, eventually getting arrested and given the death sentence by the government for his political choices.

After four years in jail awaiting his sentence he was given amnesty.He passed his political passion onto Wai's father, who has been a part of antigovernment groups his entire life.Wai's father, brother and sister have all been arrested for participating in various political demonstrations against the government, and their house in Burma still serves as a meeting place for political discussions where people gather secretly at night.For Wai, getting involved in her country's politics was second nature.

After high school she became a journalist to help expose the Burmese government, which, among other corrupt practices, forces people to build dams, highways and military facilities unpaid and unfed.She took risks during her investigating, including possible jail time, because she believed strongly in the transparency of government politics.The government censored her work and never allowed the articles to be published. Although her stories never became public, her reporting brought attention to the subject, and eventually the government responded by cutting down on forced labor, although it has not stopped completely.

In 2006, Wai halted her journalism career to join an educational program that would eventually bring her to America. Today, she studies communications at Green Mountain College in Poultney.Attendees will have the chance to hear more of Wai's story during Green Mountain College's spring play, "Speak Truth to Power," at 7 p.m. April 25-26.The play by Ariel Dorfman is a collection of monologues representing human rights activists from around the world. Personal stories from international students at the college have been incorporated into the script to make it more engaging.Wai from Burma, Teep from Uganda, Peter from Sudan — these students at Green Mountain College have traveled far, experienced a lot and have stories to share.

The monologues will be a reminder of human rights violations that happen every day, as well as the heroes like Wai that are helping make positive changes.Wai is a petite young lady with a great big laugh. She was given the prestigious Make-a-Difference-Scholarship at Green Mountain College, awarded to students who have made positive changes for their communities. Wai was chosen because of her willingness and devotion as a journalist, covering forced labor by the Burmese government.Wai made the decision to risk her career when she began covering the forced labor issue.

In 2003, during a New Year festival in her village, a large portion of the villagers had to stop their celebrations because they had been chosen by the government to help in a construction project. The Village Head approached Wai secretly, giving her information about the project, and asked her to write an article about it.Wai was nervous — if she wanted to write a good article she knew she must talk to the International Labor Organization, which is a U.N. agency.However, in Burma it is against the law to talk to the United Nations, so Wai had to be careful. Her father told her to take the risk.

A few nights after Wai's village had been forced into labor, she decided to travel to the capital to talk with the ILO officer."I was really worried the government would find out," she said. "But it was the only way to do it."Wai told the officer her story — about how her village was celebrating the New Year until the government came and said the villagers must work for them. The ILO officer contacted the military commission chief, but he denied the government still used forced labor.The truth was that the forced labor was now called "volunteer" work."Burmese people normally love to give volunteer work," Wai said. "We're really happy to do it, but this is not volunteer work, this is forced labor. They don't provide you with food or a house or salary."She said that people have died during projects because of the horrible working conditions.After getting enough reports from Wai and others, the ILO began working with the government to stop forced labor.

Wai said that in 2005, cases of it seriously subsided, although it's still going on today in small Burmese villages where it's less likely to be discovered.News is hard to come by in the country because the government has control over the media. Wai has seen many of her friends fired because the government did not like articles they published."People in Burma don't even know forced labor is still happening," said Wai, and when they do hear stories, "people don't know what to deny or to accept."Wai has adapted well to America. She has continued her journalism career here by writing for the college newspaper, focusing on both local and global news.

But despite the dangers and oppressions she will face, Wai wants to go back to Burma when she graduates."I feel that the U.S. has many intelligent people already, so the U.S. doesn't need me. My country needs me," she said.Wai said that by going back to Burma and sharing her experiences, she can teach her people about the outside world and the rights and freedoms that are possible."I can show them that change can happen," she said.Although Wai's story is marked with suffering, a feeling of hopefulness carries it.She is a strong woman that has risked a lot and helped make big changes for her country.

There are others out there that are also standing up. A voice from "Speak Truth to Power," says: "I know what it is to wait in the dark for torture and what it is to wait in the dark for truth. I did what I had to do. Anything else would have tasted like ashes."

Burma: Life in Insein Prison

2008-04-19T22:48:00.001+06:30

2008.04.14
[Source - RFA]

Burmese politician Daw Nan Khin Htwe Myint represents Pa-An township in the country’s parliament. She was one of three female university students jailed for their part in political activism around 1975. She became a well-known political prisoner while serving her sentence in Rangoon’s notorious Insein Prison, a period she still remembers with pain. Now she has dedicated her political life to Burma’s opposition National League for Democracy (NLD). She spoke recently to RFA’s Burmese service about the hard times, and about her hopes for Burmese women in politics:

“I’ve encountered many difficulties. When I was a student, I started to be become interested in politics without fully understanding what was involved. The difficulty I had then was that in a family, when a son goes to prison, the family says, ‘Oh, he’s a son. He can take it.’ However, when a young daughter goes to prison, the parents think, ‘Oh, my young daughter must be suffering a lot. She must be experiencing hardship,’ and the parents themselves have to suffer. That was a problem for our family.”

“When I was actually in prison, the difference between male and female political prisoners was this: When I was in Moulmein prison there wasn’t any place for female political prisoners. There was a separate place for male political prisoners. There were many male political prisoners. In Moulmein prison, for example, there were about 54 male political prisoners. I was the only female political prisoner. Since there wasn’t a separate place for me, I was kept next to the criminals. When I had to live with all kinds of people, I started to suffer. There is companionship if you are with people who are at the same level with you and with whom you can have a conversation. But I had no one.”

“They didn’t understand these things. I was all by myself and so I became lonely. My life was really empty. I was alone. I was there for years. As I lived by myself for longer and longer, I started to talk to myself. I wanted to talk. Then I started to enjoy talking to myself. I started asking myself questions, and would answer myself a lot. I was winning in these conversations. I became mentally weak. I lasted this long only because I had a great conviction and a strong belief in religion. An ordinary person can go crazy in this situation—after being alone for a long time. So male and female political prisoners go through the same thing, suffer the same thing. Both go to prison for six years each, but these six years that women go through are harsher than the men’s.”

Sacrifices for the future

“My husband understands my participation in politics. But we don’t have any children. I feel that if we have a child, what if I have to go to prison while I’m pregnant? I won’t feel good at all. There’s no way I’m going to take my child to prison. If I’ve already given birth and have to leave my child outside while I’m in prison—since I would be a very loving mother, there’s no way I can leave my child outside and go to prison.”

“So the two of us always have this problem of whether to have a child or not. He wants children. I would also like to have our own child very much. This is quite a big problem for the two of us. When women participate in politics, we have to risk a lot and sacrifice a lot. I would love to see a peaceful child, a child in my bosom, a child nursing, but I can’t enjoy this. I have to make a sacrifice. This is a problem in my family.”

“I feel that now I’m suffering all by myself, but there’ll be many children for the future, and we will have to sacrifice and do these things for them. We can do these things only when there’s no attachment. So I’ll have to stop my attachments. Only when I do this will I be able to continue. No one can work with these attachments. For the good of the people, I decided to let go of these things for myself.”
Kitchen, politics 'related'

“There are many women in Burma. Even though people are saying that we don’t have much political knowledge, actually, the kitchen and politics are directly related. We should participate in politics and be active. We, the women and the mothers should bravely go to the referendum and vote ‘No’ [to the military junta’s draft constitution enshrining its continuing rule] for the future of our kids and watch when they count the votes.”

“We should not be too scared to speak up when we see injustice. For the future of our children, we have to speak up, object, and demand things bravely and clearly.”

Ashin Kovida's speech in US congress on 10 April 2008

2008-04-19T22:40:00.002+06:30

Expand & Read More ...

Reporters Without Borders pays tribute to Burmese journalist and writer Ludu Daw Amar

2008-04-14T22:13:00.004+06:30

(redistributed from Reporters without Borders, 11 April, 2008)
Reporters Without Borders pays tribute to Burmese journalist and writer Ludu Daw Amar, called “the mother of Burmese journalists,” who died on 7 April, aged 93, in a Mandalay hospital.
“All her long life, she resisted the pressure of the military and fought for freedom of expression for journalists and the Burmese people,” the organisation said. “Our thoughts are with her family, friends and admirers who traditionally gathered each year in Mandalay to mark her birthday. Journalists made the occasion into a symbol of resistance to the military dictatorship. We also think of her friend Win Tin, who is still being held at Rangoon’s Insein prison and was not allowed to go to her funeral.”

Ludu Daw Amar helped set up Mandalay’s first publishing house in the 1940s and got the nickname "Ludu" (“of the people”) because of her commitment to the poor in the paper she edited, Ludu Daily News, which was closed in the 1960s for its liberal views.

"She always criticised the government and was like the mother of all Burmese journalists,” Burmese commentator Win Min told Agence France-Presse news agency. “She was a moral symbol and the people were proud of her.”
( Ludu Daw Amar and opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi )
Nearly 4,000 people attended her funeral on 9 April, including many of the country’s journalists, writers and cultural figures. Her ashes were cast into the Irrawaddy River. Opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi, who is under house arrest, sent a bouquet of flowers.

Keeping the flame alight

2008-04-11T17:55:00.002+06:30

Apr 10th 2008
From The Economist print edition
[Source]

Two ways to repair China's image: end the torch relay and take a lead over Myanmar

WERE shooting oneself in the foot an Olympic event, China would surely be well placed for a gold. The Beijing 2008 Olympic Torch Relay, taking the flame around the world before the games begin in August, was always a risk. Of course the flame would draw protesters like moths. But the suppression of riots and protests in Tibet has ensured the torch's progress has graduated from minor diplomatic embarrassment to full-scale public-relations disaster (see article).

An exercise intended to flaunt the new, outward-looking and confident China has displayed its dark side: nervous, repressive, prickly and stubborn. That stubbornness may rule out the obvious remedy: calling the whole farce off before someone is badly hurt. At least the International Olympic Committee should have nothing more to do with it. Protests this week in London, Paris and San Francisco were ill-tempered enough. The passage through Delhi on April 17th could be uglier. India is home to some 100,000 Tibetans. The only stop on the torch's world tour sure to be trouble-free is Pyongyang. As for its proposed procession through Tibet in June, it is hard to imagine a more provocative or insensitive gesture.

To accuse China's critics of “politicising” a sporting event is nonsense. What has the relay to do with sport? It is not some timeworn practice integral to the games. Rather, the idea of a relay from Greece to the Olympic venue was revived by the Nazis for the 1936 Berlin Olympics, which is hardly a precedent China wants to advertise. The first “global” relay only took place for the most recent Olympics, in Athens in 2004. But that was not such a circus. China's pride may preclude any concession, however face-saving, on Tibet, or on human-rights abuses in general. But it is also facing criticism for its foreign policy—its links with the governments of Sudan and Myanmar in particular. Here, in theory, it can do something to show that it is indeed a responsible international “stakeholder”, with diplomatic maturity as well as economic clout.

Take Myanmar. After the bloody quelling of the “saffron revolution” last September, the ruling junta threw a few sops to international opinion. It accepted visits from a United Nations envoy, opened talks with the detained opposition leader, Aung San Suu Kyi, and gave a timetable for a political transition. China deserves some credit for forcing the junta's hand. Myanmar's generals are nobody's puppets. But China, with its big commercial interests in the country, and its support in the UN Security Council, is now the junta's best friend.

It is time to use that position again. Confident that the outside world's focus on their misdeeds has shifted elsewhere, the generals have stalled on dialogue both with their opponents at home and the UN's envoy. The plight of their country remains desperate (see article). The political “process” has degenerated into a drive to impose a constitution entrenching military rule. A referendum on this solution will be held on May 10th in a climate of vicious intimidation.

Members of the Security Council are mulling a new statement, calling for some of the minimum reforms needed for a credible vote—such as the release of opposition leaders, including Miss Suu Kyi. The first thing China can do is to allow the statement to be issued in the name of a united outside world. More than that, China could help resolve the sterile debate that has raged for two decades over “engagement” or “isolation”. Isolation has never worked, because China, India and South-East Asian countries see too much commercial and strategic benefit in links with the junta. But nor has “engagement”, since Western countries have imposed sanctions of varying severity, and the junta has little interest in engaging anyway.

Nobody wins gold for sitting on a fence

Despite this, there is a broad consensus about the need for reform in Myanmar. With anti-Chinese feeling mounting in Myanmar, it is not in China's interests to be perceived as the prop that always holds up a loathed regime. It could take the initiative in forming a contact group to engage the junta in talks on economic co-operation and political reform. Even if it excluded Europe and America, such a group, of China, India, some South-East Asian countries and Japan, could help show the generals that they cannot forever survive in the cracks of other countries' disagreements. And it could help show that China is not always, unequivocally, on the side of the thugs.

Spring postponed

2008-04-11T17:50:00.003+06:30

Apr 10th 2008 | YANGON
From The Economist print edition
[Source]

AS DUSK shrouds the Sule pagoda in central Yangon, the dazzling neon haloes behind many of the Buddhas' heads flash brighter. Before them the devout, kneeling in their sarongs, murmur prayers, light joss-sticks and touch their foreheads to the marble floor. Outside, traffic roars on the city's busiest roundabout. The shrine, housing a hair from the Buddha's head, is one of Myanmar's holiest and some 2,000 years old. But Burmese temples are all works in progress. This one gleams with fresh white paint and gold leaf. In contrast, over the road, the dirty-yellow façade of City Hall is a study in crumbling neglect.

Even in the commercial heart of its largest city, religion remains central to life in Myanmar. Many Burmese felt the country's thuggish junta crossed a line last September, when its soldiers opened fire on monks leading protests against its rule—including some beside the Sule pagoda. It seemed proof that a regime fond of numerology and superstition ruled neither by divine right nor by popular acquiescence, but by force. Nobody knows how many were killed as the protests were quashed; much of Myanmar remains an information chasm. A United Nations rapporteur has said at least 31 died. In Yangon many believe, probably wrongly, that hundreds or thousands did. Suppressing the truth lets all sorts of rumours flourish.

As in 1988, when thousands did die as an anti-government uprising was put down, there was international outrage, followed by fresh sanctions last autumn. A United Nations envoy, Ibrahim Gambari of Nigeria, was sent to Myanmar to convey concern, and thousands joined protest marches round the world. But a few months on, the generals appear as immovable as ever. Indeed, diplomats who have visited them in the remote mountain fastness of their new capital, Naypyidaw, say they are even more confident. A squall has been weathered, and they can return to what they do best: wrecking their country and making a good living out of it.

Over a pricey cappuccino in Mr Brown's, a café just behind City Hall, in a dingy first-floor lounge favoured by courting couples, a young man discusses the protests. He took part in the previous round with a scarf covering his face. But the time, he says, is not right to take to the streets again. He cannot afford to. Many others say the same. He works as a house-painter, earning about $30 a month, and lives in a Yangon suburb with his parents, landless farmers who make about $20 a month each. During the protests he went five days without work or pay. Like almost all his contemporaries, his ambition is to find a job abroad. He could get one in Singapore but would need to pay $3,000 for the privilege, an unimaginable fortune.

Yet, quietly, low-level protests continue. In late March many monks boycotted annual state-run examinations in Buddhist literature. Soldiers have been, in effect, excommunicated. Monks refuse to accept alms from them, denying them karma-enhancing “merit”. And such is the thirst for revenge of many in Yangon that renewed protests are possible at any time. Cloistered in Naypyidaw, the junta may be caught unawares again. “They live in a bubble when they're out,” says one diplomat, “and a bunker when they're not.”

Repression continues, too. Many monks are still in their villages, where they were sent after the unrest. At a monastery in Pakokku, where the beating of monks last September played a big part in fanning the flames of protest, more than a third have yet to return. Some of those locked up during the protests are still detained—perhaps 1,000, alongside 1,100 long-term political prisoners. Others are still being arrested. On March 29th six young people were detained for staging a peaceful rally against the draft constitution the junta wants to foist on Myanmar. Another protester, Ohn Than, who was arrested last August while staging a silent sit-in to protest against fuel-price rises, was sentenced this month to life imprisonment. Some protest leaders are still in hiding, planning the next round. Others have fled to Thailand.

The official press remains laughably propagandist. (“Commander, Minister view thriving mung, sunflower plantations” was one recent front-page story in the New Light of Myanmar, the junta's English-language daily.) Access to foreign news is limited. But a threat this year to ban satellite dishes by imposing extortionate licence fees was not carried out. Perhaps the generals feared that losing the right to watch English football—a tea-shop passion—would have been the final straw.

Internet connections are at best patchy, and almost non-existent at times of tension, such as during last month's visit to Yangon by Mr Gambari. Foreign journalists are not allowed into the country, unless they pretend to be tourists. A number do. After a purge of the intelligence services in 2004, the immigration authorities appear to have mislaid their files.

A vote the army cannot lose

Tension will mount again next month. In its one gesture to political reform, the junta has said it will hold a referendum on the new constitution. This week it announced the date—May 10th—and published the draft, putting copies of the 194-page document on sale. If the vote goes ahead, and the draft is approved by 50% of voters, the junta says multiparty elections would follow in 2010. On “Armed Forces Day”, March 27th, Than Shwe, the senior general in the junta, promised he would then hand over power to a civilian government. The regime is waging a propaganda campaign to promote a “yes” vote. In big letters, as if speaking slowly to a classroom of dim children, the New Light pointed out that, if the draft is not approved by 2010, elections will be delayed. “If so, it will take longer for the nation to exercise democracy.”

Not, of course, that democracy is really on offer. “Guidelines” agreed after 14 years of aimless rumination by a committee appointed to take the generals' dictation appeared last September. They made clear that some of the main features of military dictatorship would persist. The army chief would have the power to intervene in politics at will and several ministries would be reserved for army officers, as would 25% of seats in both houses of parliament. Aung San Suu Kyi, the detained opposition leader, would be excluded from politics, as the widow of a foreigner. The generals seem to have retreated, however, from a provision in an earlier version of the draft in which any amendment of the constitution would need 75% of the votes in parliament. Instead, it would have to be approved by 50% of the popular vote.

“The issue”, says Mark Canning, Britain's ambassador in Yangon, “is not Clause A, B or C. It's the whole superstructure of intimidation that hangs over it.” There is no dialogue with the opposition, whose most important members are locked up. And, under the law, criticising the convention that drafted the constitution is punishable by up to 20 years in jail.

Miss Suu Kyi's party, the National League for Democracy, has called for a “no” vote. Exiled activists and monks advocate a boycott. Many critics of the regime who used to think any change was better than none have changed their minds since last September's violence. However, a resounding “yes” vote seems inevitable. The junta surely will not repeat the mistake it made in 1990, when it held an election and was astonished to be routed. Miss Suu Kyi was already in detention. Yet the League won more than 60% of the votes and 80% of the seats, even doing well in areas dominated by soldiers.

The League fears that, before or after the referendum, it might be banned. Already its organisation has been whittled down to little more than a head office in Yangon. The parliament that emerges in 2010 may include a handful of token opposition politicians. But it will probably be dominated by soldiers, by the junta's cronies—urban businessmen and rural landowners—and by members of a new political party the junta is planning to form. Its nucleus would be the “Union Solidarity and Development Association” (USDA), a pro-junta group formed in 1993. USDA is one of a number of ill-defined “mass social organisations” that claim over 20m members—presumably by pressganging students, civil servants and others to join up. It is best known for a hard core of white-shirted thugs, used for pro-junta rallies.

The parliament would also include representatives of the “ceasefire groups”, the dozen or so ethnic insurgencies on Myanmar's borders with which the junta has reached truces. Some groups, such as the Karen National Union, fight on. These wars have dragged on since independence in 1948. In his book on Myanmar, “The River of Lost Footsteps”, Thant Myint-u argues that the West tends to see the country as the seat of a thwarted Eastern European-style people-power revolution. But it is in fact a war-torn disaster area, like Afghanistan or Cambodia. The constitution, he says, would at least formalise a sort of peace with some of its insurgents.

It would be wildly optimistic to hope that creating a parliamentary system of the sort the junta seems to envisage might, over time, bring pluralism. But the process does at least imply some change in Myanmar's predicament. And, as Miss Suu Kyi used to say, Myanmar is like a frozen river: it looks still, but who knows what turbulence is roiling the waters under the ice?

Jatrophied

For most Burmese, the predicament is economic as well as political. Freedoms have been trampled on for decades. And making a living is actually getting harder. Last year, as in 1988, it was an economic grievance—an increase in the fuel price as subsidies were slashed—that sparked political unrest. It is not that the economy is on the point of collapse. It collapsed long ago. Those eking out a living in the rubble are still vulnerable to aftershocks.

Collapse is not immediately evident in Yangon. There are ugly shanty towns and slums. But busy streets, a few swanky hotels and shops, advertisement-filled business journals and some palatial mansions in the leafy hills testify to a thin but not insignificant layer of middle-class comfort—and a rare splash of grotesque wealth. Until the 1990s, Yangon seemed frozen in its colonial past. Almost the only cars on its broad avenues were ancient, patched-up sedans. Ne Win, the dictator who led the army into power in 1962, pursued a “Burmese Road to Socialism” of autarky, isolation and utter stagnation. After the 1988 uprising the generals allowed a partial opening up, and a minority has prospered.

Unbidden, a taxi-driver takes a detour to drive past the high gates of a palace he says belongs to Tay Za, the regime's most prominent business crony. Beyond the reinforced grille half-a-dozen shiny new sports cars can be glimpsed. “Dirty money,” snarls the driver, alleging it comes from Myanmar's big drugs trade (mainly, these days, methamphetamines rather than heroin). But when it tightened sanctions on Mr Za in February, America's Treasury called him just an “arms dealer and financial henchman” of the junta.

Underpinning the wealth of the elite is more than drugs and guns. Its biggest legal export is of natural gas to Thailand. India and China are also hungrily eyeing other oil and gas reserves, and already the generals can relish the prospect of a windfall from a planned pipeline to China. The Thai sales earned an estimated $2.7 billion last year, 45% of total exports. But this neither trickles down nor creates many jobs. The junta spends the money on itself, its arsenal and its absurd new capital. By contrast, a small garment-export industry has been destroyed by Western government sanctions and consumer boycotts, putting an estimated 100,000 people out of work.

So, beyond agriculture, there are few jobs. And in the countryside life is ever grimmer. A survey late last year by the government and the United Nations Development Programme found that of a population of about 53m, 30% lived below the poverty line. Infant mortality rates were high, at 76 per 1,000 live births. The UN's World Food Programme (WFP) says that 32% of children under five are malnourished. Of children enrolled in primary school, 57% drop out.

Feeding itself should be the least of Myanmar's problems. Burma, as it was until the junta renamed it in 1989, was once the ricebowl of Asia. Even today, and with rice in shorter supply across the continent, it produces a national rice surplus. Yet many of its 14 states or divisions have deficits. In northern Rakhine food shortages are perennial and malnutrition rife. There are also deficits in the “Central Dry Zone” and in Shan state, where the eradication of opium-poppy fields has impoverished farmers. Rice distribution is disrupted by pigheaded divisional commanders clinging on to their surpluses, and by army restrictions on internal traffic. So, in what one development worker calls a “heresy”, the WFP is helping feed Myanmar.

Alarmingly, despite agricultural plenty, Myanmar has the classic conditions for a famine: acute poverty, poor or non-existent flows of information and crazy policies. In one cackhanded intervention in agriculture, the junta in 2006 ordered every farmer with an acre (0.4 hectares) of land to plant “physic nuts” (jatropha) around the edge of his plot. It was so keen on the crop that it also set up special plantations. The idea was to make biofuels to meet Myanmar's energy shortage—even much of Yangon spends most evenings in darkness. But Myanmar lacks the refineries to turn the plants into fuel. The policy has been cited by many refugees pitching up at the Thai border as one reason for their flight: typically, the junta has been dragooning farmers into working for no pay in its jatropha plantations, so it becomes even harder to make a living.

Where Myanmar boils over

Burma was a crossroads of Asia. Myanmar's isolation is a new phenomenon, and its borders still provide a safety valve of sorts. That is especially true of Thailand, which has absorbed perhaps as many as 2m Burmese immigrants. Some analysts suggest that a sharp downturn in the Thai economy, closing that valve, might cause an explosion in Myanmar.

Even if economic hardship provokes another outburst of popular unrest, however, there is little reason to think the junta cannot handle it. It has about 500,000 soldiers, twice the number in 1988, despite the subsequent ceasefires in many of the insurgencies it was fighting. And the army has so far proved willing to shoot civilians—even monks—if ordered to.

Before the purge in 2004 of Khin Nyunt, the intelligence chief who was then prime minister, it was possible to perceive policy rifts in the junta's ranks. Some seemed to favour a cautious opening to the West, even if it meant talking to Miss Suu Kyi. Some analysts believe the junta is still divided: over the succession to Than Shwe, said to be ill, though he looked hale in March; over the alleged rivalry with his number two, Maung Aye; and over the transition to “civilian rule”. This seems plausible. But to hope for a mutiny, or self-destruction by the army, is wishful thinking. Its generals are probably too afraid of hanging separately not to hang together.

Some of the students who fled to the Thai border in 1988 expected to return, like Aung San, Miss Suu Kyi's father and Burma's liberation hero, as part of a conquering foreign army. One theory to explain the junta's bizarre move to Naypyidaw in 2005 is that, after the war in Iraq, it too feared invasion.

Now, veterans of the exile movement have almost given up hope of concerted diplomatic pressure, let alone military action, against the regime. People power, says one, is the only hope. At present that suggests only failure and bloodshed. And the outside world is certainly in disarray. The West favours sanctions and punishment; but Myanmar's fellow members of the Association of South-East Asian Nations (ASEAN), as well as India and, above all, China, hope their continued engagement with the junta will win them influence. China did indeed seem to persuade the generals to receive Mr Gambari and institute a dialogue with Miss Suu Kyi.

Than Shwe, however, would not even meet Mr Gambari on his most recent visit, last month. The West, meanwhile, has few levers of influence left. In part this is a result of having followed Miss Suu Kyi's own wishes. In the late 1990s, when the conditions of her detention were briefly eased and she could talk to the world, she favoured using sanctions and boycotts, including even of tourism, to put pressure on the junta. It is assumed she still does.

The Nobel peace-prize-winner's undoubted moral authority and courageous perseverance give her stance considerable weight. So does her huge electoral mandate. It may be old, but no one has a better one. Some Western policymakers now see Miss Suu Kyi as part of the problem. But that is daft. Without her, the opposition would lose not just a figurehead, but perhaps the last flicker of hope in Myanmar's political darkness.

WITNESS: Death in the streets of Yangon

2008-04-10T18:28:00.001+06:30

Tue Apr 8, 8:13 AM ET
[Source - Yahoo News]

Adrees Latif, a Reuters photographer who has won the breaking news photography Pulitzer Prize for his coverage of anti-government protests in Myanmar last year, worked for Reuters in Houston and Los Angeles before taking up his post in Bangkok in 2003. In the following story, he tells the story behind the picture that won him the prize.

By Adrees Latif

BANGKOK (Reuters) - I landed in Yangon with some old clothes, a Canon 5D camera, two fixed lenses and a laptop.

For four days in September last year, I went to the city's historic Shwedagon Pagoda and waited for the Buddhist monks who gathered there to lead the biggest protests against Myanmar's military rulers in 20 years.

Since I was at the same pagoda every day, dozens of people, including monks, asked me who I was and what I was doing.

Not knowing who I could trust, my replies were guarded.

Barefoot in maroon robes and ringed by civilians, the monks chanted and prayed before starting their two-km march to the Sule Pagoda in central Yangon, formerly known as Rangoon.

Each day their numbers grew, from hundreds to tens of thousands.

The first small protests in August, against a sharp spike in fuel prices, had ballooned into street marches in Yangon and other cities against more than 40 years of military rule and economic hardship.

By September 27, the city was packed with troops. Soldiers and government agents stood at street corners. The crackdown was underway.

Finding Shwedagon sealed off, I went to the middle of town to find groups of young people taunting soldiers at Sule.

Within minutes, the crowd swelled from hundreds to a few thousand. The soldiers threw barbed wire coils across the roads.

Knowing that hundreds of people were gunned down in similar circumstances in a 1988 uprising, I climbed an old crosswalk directly overhead, to get to one of the few spots offering a clear view.

Below me, protesters were singing and waving flags. Young men were thrusting their pelvises at the soldiers in an act of defiance.

Then two dark green, open-top army trucks approached, followed by dozens more packed with riot police.

They were hit by a barrage of water bottles, fruit and abuse from the crowd.

I had already locked on my 135mm lens and set my camera shutter speed to 1,000, aperture to F/7.1 and ISO at 800.

With the camera on manual, I wanted to freeze the action while offering as much depth-of-field as possible.

Two minutes later, the shooting started.

My eye caught a person flying backwards through the air. Instinctively, I started photographing, capturing four frames of the man on his back.

The entry point of the bullet is clear in the first frame, with a soldier wearing flip flops standing over the man and pointing a rifle.

In the second frame, the man is reaching over to try and film.

More shots rang out.

I flinched before getting off two more frames -- one of the man pointing the camera at the soldier, and one of his face contorted in pain.

Beyond him, the crowd scattered before the advancing soldier.

The whole incident, which went on to reverberate around the world, was over in two seconds.

I kept low on the bridge, capturing some more images from among a crowd taking cover. But with soldiers firing shots and smoke grenades below, I had to get off the bridge.

Adrenaline pumping through my body, I put my camera in my bag and followed the protests for another hour and a half. Then I made my way back to my hotel through backstreets and along a railway line.

My initial caption read: "An injured man tries to photograph after police and military officials fired upon and then charged a crowd of thousands protesting in Yangon's city centre September 27, 2007."

Initially, I thought he was trampled. I had no idea he had died.

Two of the frames showed the man's face. A few hours later his colleagues in Japan had identified him as Japanese video journalist Kenji Nagai.

The images dominated front pages around the world, playing a role in the public outrage at the crackdown which the United Nations said killed at least 31 people.

(Editing by Darren Schuettler and Sara Ledwith)

Where next for Burma?

2008-04-10T18:25:00.001+06:30

Carole Reckinger
Published 08 April 2008
[Source - Newstatesman]

Six months ago the world watched a courageous attempt led by Buddhist monks to replace military dictatorship with democracy. But what's the situation in Burma today?

In recent days much of the world's attention has been firmly fixed on Tibet and the plight of the Burmese people seems to have been all but forgotten.

And yet things are not improving in that country. Far from it. According to one renowned Buddhist leader, the situation is deteriorating six months on from the bloody military crackdown against the pro-democracy movement.

Many monks have been forced to cross into Thailand and Malaysia because of political persecution. There are widespread allegations of disappearances, murder and torture by the dictatorship.

All this seems to be continuing despite an announcement by the military junta that next month a national referendum will be held on a new constitution with elections following in 2010.

The state media reported that "the time has now come to change from military rule to democratic civilian rule". Considering the junta’s numerous broken promises, the announcement to restore democratic civilian rule has been at best received with scepticism.

The constitution drafting process has been carefully engineered since 1993 and unsurprisingly contains no input from the public instead being drawn up by a handpicked assembly, without the participation of the country's main democratic opposition and its leader Aung San Suu Kyi.

In fact draft constitution will bar her from holding government office because she was married to a foreigner. It is already clear that the constitution will ensure the military retains a stronghold on power in Burma and 25 per cent of the seats in the new parliament will be reserved for the armed forces.

Civilians will be permitted to enter parliament, but only if they show due deference to the military leaders. It furthermore allows stringent restrictions on any activities deemed "inimical to national unity" which covers a wide range of criticism and dissent.

Indeed, criticism of the draft constitution is punishable with up to 20 years behind bars, and criticising the referendum with up to three.

The question of how a free vote will take place in such a climate remains something of a riddle, and - unsurprisingly - the draft constitution has been denounced by critics as a ruse to consolidate the junta’s power. The rejection of an UN offer to send international monitors has only heightened these suspicions.

Than Shwe, Burma’s 75 year old leader, declared before an audience of diplomats that the military regime that has ruled Burma for 45 years had now "a sincere aim for developing the country without any cravings for power".

He however, made no reference to the bloody oppression his regime is still perpetrating and one wonders who he can fool with this statement.

The world still remembers when thousands of Burmese took to the streets making a variety of demands reflecting the widespread dissatisfaction with the continued military rule and the policies of the ruling State Peace and Development Council.

At least 227 distinct protests in 66 towns were staged which resulted in the deaths of officially 15 people (independent estimates state at least twice this number). Approximately 6,000 people were arrested, including as many as 1,400 monks. It is estimated that at least 700 protesters and monks remain in detention.

The ruling 'State Peace and Development Council' has denied any knowledge of the majority of those it killed during the protests. No attempts have been made to identify the dead, return the bodies to the families or even give the dead the minimum Buddhist funerary rites.

Instead, numerous testimonies have revealed a strategy in which bodies were removed systematically to cover up the extent of the violence. The Human Rights Documentation Unit of the National Coalition Government of the Union of Burma refers in Bullets in the Alms Bowl to persistent reports testifying to the fact that Ye Way Crematorium in North Okkalapa Township was operated from the 27th to the 30th of September by security forces to dispose most probably of the bodies of those killed.

By cracking down on monks, the junta took a calculated risk when violence against the country’s spiritual leaders was bound to inflame popular sentiments. Burmese monks are highly revered in Burmese society.

Considered to be ‘Sons of Buddha’ they represent the strongest institution in Burma after the military. Although according to the Buddhist monastic code, monks are not supposed to involve themselves in mundane politics, they have played an important social and political role in history.

Throughout British rule for instance, the so called ‘political monks’ played an important role in mobilising opposition to colonial excesses. After independence, monastic organisations pushed the new leaders to make Buddhism the state religion.

Attempts in the 1960s and 70s to bring Buddhism under tighter control was met with fierce resistance and Burma’s young and active Buddhist community of about 300,000 has had an uneasy relationship with the ruling generals.

During the 1988 democracy marches, the independent monks union emerged to support the students. The regime responded by issuing decrees to keep the monks in line and banning all independent Buddhist organizations.

Over the last two decades, the monks have observed a religious boycott of the regime and have refused alms from the military regime or simply overturned their bowls instead of collecting food and donations. By ruthlessly keeping monastic involvement in politics to a minimum since 1988, the role of the monks at the head of the recent protests took many, including the Government, by surprise.

Burma specialist Michael Charney points out that although it may appear that the State has successfully cowed the monks into submission, they have in the past survived more serious episodes of persecution.

“Given their importance in Burmese society and their resilience in past periods of political turmoil, it would be foolish to assume that they will not rebound from current setbacks,” he argues.

The authorities have resolutely tried to snuff out dissent and intelligence officers have systematically detained thousands of people believed to have participated in the protests.

Anger is still floating beneath the surface, and this is even the case for many people who were previously apolitical.

The crackdown has altered dynamics inside Burma and the country’s future is still unknown. The level of fear, but also anger is unprecedented.

More importantly, following international outrage over the brutal behaviour of the military regime, there were indications that differences have grown within the military itself.

Every government in Burma, going back to monarchical times has sought legitimacy through the Buddhist Sangha. Many within the military feel guilt-ridden and ashamed of their role in beating and killing monks.

There are no open splits yet, but there have been rumblings of mismanagement and corruption. The younger generation of generals is slowly beginning to realise change is inevitable.

When that change will actually come is harder to gauge.

Temporary ID for voters living in outskirts of Burma

2008-04-07T22:34:00.007+06:30

Please take a look at the photo.

(courtesy of Vimutti blog )

It is a temporary Identification card for those people living in outskirts of Burma. They are tribal Karen, Chin, Shan, etc who do not pocess Burmese citizenship identification card.

Now, they can own the temp. card which has validity of only six months only meant to participate during voting process of the draft constiution. After six months, we don't know the government will issue an actual nationality identification card. Since they participate in the voting process, they should be allowed myanmar citizenship.

In the card, It is clearly written in Remarks No. (2) :

With this card, it cannot identify which nationality at all.

For safety, we have erased the particulars of the owner of the card.

So, with this sentence, we don't know what this card is for. If somebody out there understands, please tell us. Do we need to issue temp. card just to participate in voting for the possible vote rigging?

If possible, please help us carry this new to the news agency.

With Rgds,

Burma’s NLD Calls for a Referendum “No” Vote

2008-04-03T07:39:00.000+06:30

Burma’s NLD Calls for a Referendum “No” Vote

Source : Irrawaddy News Agency

Burma’s main opposition party, the National League for Democracy (NLD), called on the electorate for the first time on Wednesday to cast a “No” vote in the constitutional referendum in May.

The party, headed by pro-democracy icon Aung San Suu Kyi, said a “No” vote was necessary because the proposed constitution had not been written by elected representatives of the people but by “hand-picked puppets” of the regime.

The draft constitution, drawn up by the regime-constituted National Convention, and a general election to be held in May are the fourth and fifth steps of the junta’s seven-step “road map to a disciplined democracy”.

The NLD’s announcement on Wednesday said the proposed constitution broke a basic principle of democracy, under which authority had to come from the people. It also failed to guarantee democratic values and human rights.

By voting against the draft constitution, the people would be practicing their rights, said NLD spokesman Thein Nyunt. The state powers being exercised by the regime had not originated with the people, he told The Irrawaddy —“Therefore it is the responsibility of all citizens to take back people-power.”

The NLD had been criticized for failing to take an early stand on the referendum. Aung Naing Oo, a Burmese political commentator based in Chiang Mai, northern Thailand, welcomed the NLD’s call now for a “No” vote and said it increased the party’s credibility.

Another Burmese political analyst, Htay Aung, said that dissidents inside Burma had called for a “No” vote, and predicted a “confrontation” ahead of the referendum.

Several activists had been attacked in Rangoon because of their views, he said—“These violent acts by the security forces and thugs backed by the junta don’t seem to stop,” he said.

Fourteen members of the Committee Representing the Peoples’ Parliament (CRPP), which was formed by successful candidates in the 1990 election, have also called for rejection of the proposed constitution by the Burmese people as well as internationally.

The document had been written without the participation of the NLD or ethnic party representatives and without meeting the expectations of ethnic nationalities, the CRPP members said.

They described the draft constitution as “a sham,” and said they expected the junta to claim a referendum victory “by cheating and fraud.”

What is left for forgiveness?

2008-04-02T22:37:00.004+06:30

I refer to Wai Moe's article, A Monk's Tale, in Irrawaddy Magazine.

It seems almost unthinkable that the intelligent military officers, who are no doubt Buddhists, could bring themselves to torture, humiliate and imprison the monks, sons of the Buddha, in those manners. Our sacred grounds, such as monastries and pagodas, have been turned upside down into almost like battlefields with the presence of soldiers. Under this military regime, such things have sadly become reality in Burma, which is a country known for its rich culture and values in Buddhism.

One monk mentioned to me once that if they just wish to reflect upon the meanings of Buddha's scriptures and gain merit for themselves, they can simply retreat to a faraway place and detach themselves from the social issues of the people. However, like U Pyinnya Jota, he feels that he cannot bring himself to neglect the hardship of the people and sees the need to do his part to alleviate their sufferings. Many, including some monks, have raised concern over the conflicting nature of the monks' involvement in politic as Buddhism advocates loving-kindness and forgiveness.

However, as a Buddhist, I simply wonder how we can bring ourselves to forgive those dictators who possess such brutality and disregard against our most revered religion beyond our wildest imaginations.

Constitutional Conundrum

2008-04-02T21:34:00.002+06:30

By Kyaw Zwa Moe
APRIL, 2008 - VOLUME 16 NO.4
[Source - Irrawaddy]

As analysts and activists debate how to respond to the regime’s draft constitution, others ask if it will cement the generals’ hold on power or trigger a popular uprising

FOR the generals who rule Burma, it is a step closer to the coveted goal of permanent military control of the country’s politics. For its detractors, it is a potential lightning rod for decades of pent-up discontent. But for most, it is still a mystery, as they wonder if this is really a distant light at the end of the tunnel or the headlights of an impending disaster.

The Burmese regime’s draft constitution, which Burmese voters will be asked to endorse or reject in a referendum in May, has drawn many reactions from people both inside and outside the country.

Although there is little consensus on the constitution, which was 14 years in the making, few doubt that the referendum, if it actually goes ahead, will be the junta’s most significant political move since elections in 1990, when voters unequivocally signaled a desire for an end to military rule.

For dissidents in Burma, that desire has only grown stronger over the past 18 years. They see the referendum as an opportunity to let the junta and the world know that that it is time for the generals to go.

“This is not a referendum,” said Tun Myint Aung, a leader of the 88 Generation Students group. “This is a chance to vote against military rule.”

“The regime has given us two choices—‘yes’ or ‘no.’ But the only real choice is, should we vote ‘no’ or just boycott?” he added.

Calls for a referendum boycott have been growing, but Tun Myint Aung, who spoke to The Irrawaddy by phone from a hiding place in Burma, insisted that only a vote “No” would send a clear message.

“It doesn’t matter what people think of the constitution,” the prominent activist said. “They will just be voting to express the anger that has been accumulating over the past 20 years.”

The Tatmadaw Chapter

Of all the people The Irrawaddy has spoken to about the referendum since it was announced on February 9, few have expressed any interest in the actual contents of the constitution, which was released by the junta in March. In the absence of public debate on the constitution, most discussion among exiles and dissidents has focused on ways to effectively turn the referendum against the junta.

The draft constitution does not fundamentally differ from a version of the “principles” of the constitution released by the Ministry of Information in August 2007, one month before the National Convention formally completed its work on the charter.

The draft contains an entire chapter spelling out the precise powers of the military. This chapter, entitled “Tatmadaw”(Burmese for armed forces), is something new in Burma’s constitutional history and represents the first explicit attempt to enable the armed forces to “participate in the national political leadership role of the State”—one of the stated goals of the first chapter of constitutional “principles.”

In concrete terms, this means that 25 percent of the seats in both the upper and lower houses of parliament would be filled with military appointees selected by the Tatmadaw commander in chief. That is, 110 members of the 440-seat lower house, or People’s Parliament, and 56 members of the 224-seat upper house, or National Parliament, would be selected from within the ranks of the armed forces.

The powers of the commander in chief also extend to the selection of the president and two vice presidents. Each of these positions would be filled by individuals selected by the People’s Parliament, the National Parliament and a committee of military officials appointed by the commander in chief, ensuring that a member of the armed forces would occupy at least one of these top government positions—most likely the presidency, since the Tatmadaw exercises considerable influence over both houses of parliament. The commander in chief, meanwhile, would possess powers equal to those of the two vice presidents.

While all of these measures are intended to give the military considerable power over the government, there would also be guarantees that this influence doesn’t go in both directions. Parliament would not be permitted to discuss or interfere in military affairs, including defense spending. Under the new constitution, “The Tatmadaw has the right to independently administer all affairs concerning the armed forces.”

No Room to Maneuver

Critics of the constitution say that it will only serve to legitimize military rule, while reducing parliament to a toothless institution with no more power than the hand-picked National Convention which drafted it.

“Parliament will become a rubber stamp to endorse the commander in chief’s proposals,” said Aung Din, the executive director of the Washington, DC-based US Campaign for Burma, in an open letter calling on the Burmese people to reject “the military regime’s sham constitution.”

Others say that giving the ruling generals the powers they want will only embolden them to step up their oppression.

“Right now, they are ruling the country without any legal authority, and yet they treat citizens and religious leaders brutally,” said Ashin Pyinnya Jota, a leading member of the All Burma Monks Alliance. “If the constitution comes into force, it will only make them worse.”

But others ask what the alternatives are. Some argue that it would be better to accept the constitution and use it as a basis for future democratic changes. This is a position taken both by apologists for the junta and by pragmatists who point out that 20 years of resistance to the regime have yielded little in the way of progress.

One outspoken advocate of the constitution is Dr Nay Win Maung, a member of the so-called “Third Force” group founded during an international Burma conference in Singapore in 2006. This group, which claims to be neither pro-junta nor pro-opposition, has called for more engagement with the regime and an end to sanctions.

In an open letter obtained by The Irrawaddy, Nay Win Maung called on National League for Democracy (NLD) leader Aung San Suu Kyi to endorse the constitution and focus on elections to be held in 2010. This is the only way to ensure that the party is not disenfranchised, he said.

“This time, Burmese people should be smart enough and set their emotions aside, so as not to [create] another deadlock,” he wrote, adding that whatever the outcome of the referendum, it was certain that the constitution would ultimately be rectified at a later day.

In response to the letter, Aung Naing Oo, a Burmese political commentator based in Thailand, agreed that it was time to take a more forward-looking approach. “We have to stop living in the past. It only prolongs the deadlock and conflict,” he said.

However, others say it is naïve to believe that the regime is offering the country a way forward.

“The junta just wants to be old wine in a new bottle,” said Win Min, a Thailand-based Burmese political analyst. “If the junta wants the opposition to endorse their rule, they must compromise for national reconciliation.”

Win Min points to clauses in the constitution that effectively block future changes as the greatest hurdle to acceptance.

“If we cannot modify the constitution, democratization in Burma cannot grow,” he said.

Under Section 4 (a) of Chapter 12, “Amendment of the Constitution,” any suggested change would need to be sponsored by at least 20 percent of parliament members. This would be followed by a parliamentary vote, which would require over 75 percent support before the proposed amendment could be put to a national referendum. More than fifty percent of voters would have to approve of the amendment before it could come into effect.

With 25 percent of seats going to the military, it would be effectively impossible to pass any amendments that the commander in chief did not approve of. Moreover, in the chapter on the powers of the Tatmadaw, the armed forces bear responsibility for “safeguarding the State Constitution.” This principle can be invoked at any time to prevent amendments that the military sees as inimical to its interests.

At this stage, debate about how the constitution can be reconfigured to make it more democratic is still largely academic. It is also, in the view of some exiled opposition activists, irrelevant.

“Some experts think endorsing the constitution is better than nothing. But people will not see it like this,” said Aung Moe Zaw, a secretary of the exiled opposition’s umbrella group, the National Council of the Union of Burma. “People want to see a long-term guarantee for their future—real democracy and freedom.”

“If the NLD endorses this unjust constitution, people in Burma will object. People will go their own way,” he added.

Even setting aside the question of whether the opposition would be able to alter the constitution to meet the democratic needs of the people, it remains unclear how civilians would function within a military-dominated parliament. Even the normal functions of a parliamentary opposition party could be regarded as hostile to national unity and thus subject to draconian restrictions.

Another concern of the opposition is that the constitution effectively bars Aung San Suu Kyi from occupying a leadership position. As the widow of British scholar Michael Aris and mother of two sons who are British citizens, Suu Kyi would have no right to lead Burma, according to the draft constitution, which states that “the President of the Union himself [and his] parents, spouse [and] children … shall not owe allegiance to a foreign power, shall not be a subject of a foreign power or citizen of a foreign country.”

Ethnic opposition groups also have cause for concern, as their claims to autonomy would also be severely constrained. As Aung Din of the US Campaign for Burma noted, ethnic state legislatures would also have military appointees occupying 25 percent of seats.

“The expectations of ethnic nationalities to obtain the right of self-determination will never be realized, as unelected military officials will effectively intervene in their State affairs,” said Aung Din. “This sham constitution systematically denies equality among all ethnic nationalities and self-determination, demanded by all ethnic groups for a long time.”

World Opinion Divided

As Burmese debate the pros and cons of the constitution, the international community also remains divided over the junta’s latest attempt to set the terms of political change in Burma. While neighboring countries broadly support the constitutional referendum as a step forward, Western critics of the regime, particularly the United States, have dismissed it out of hand.

“It has to begin somewhere and now it has a clear, definite beginning,” said the chief of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean), Surin Pitsuwan, soon after the referendum was announced. “I think it is a development in the right direction.”

A “Vote No” rally in front of the NLD headquarters in Rangoon on March 27.
The United Nations, which has attempted to mediate between the regime and the democratic opposition, was more guarded in its assessment. In a statement, UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon urged the Burmese junta to “make the constitution-making process inclusive, participatory and transparent in order to ensure that any draft constitution is broadly representative of the views of all the people of Myanmar [Burma].”

The US, which has long been the regime’s most outspoken critic, was more explicit about the shortcomings of the constitution-making process, drawing attention to the ongoing suppression of democratic rights in Burma.

In a statement released after the regime declared its intention to hold a referendum, Sean McCormack, a US State Department spokesperson, said, “No referendum held under these conditions—a pervasive climate of fear in which virtually the entire population, including Aung San Suu Kyi, is under detention, and the Burmese people not being allowed to participate in or even discuss the drafting of a constitution—can be free, fair or credible.”

In late February, in a move that confirmed suspicions that the junta intended to stage manage the referendum, its top leader, Snr-Gen Than Shwe, signed into effect a law that threatens dissenters with heavy penalties for opposing the referendum. Under the Referendum Law for the Approval of the Draft Constitution, anybody who publicly criticizes the referendum faces a fine and a three-year prison sentence.

Thein Nyunt, a lawyer in Rangoon, remarked that the current law is even more severe than similar legislation enacted ahead of a referendum in 1973. “Under the previous law, anyone who was against the referendum could be sentenced to one year’s imprisonment. But now people can receive three years’ imprisonment under the terms of the present law.”

A Final Showdown?

Against this backdrop of deepening repression and a mixed international response, many activists suspect that the real referendum will take place not in the polling booths, but on the streets.

“We don’t see it as a final battle, but it will reach that point,” said student activist Tun Myint Aung, who noted that the last constitution drafted under military rule was ultimately scrapped under pressure from the popular uprising in 1988.

In a sign of growing frustration in Burma, in late March a 26-year-old man set himself on fire at Rangoon’s famed Shwedagon Pagoda, a religious site that has often served as a focal point of political protests. Reports suggested that he was acting out of desperation over economic hardships and political frustration.

Observers of Burma’s economy have noted that conditions have only gotten worse since a drastic hike in fuel prices triggered protests last year. Although the regime has put a lid on dissent since its crackdown on monk-led demonstrations in September, it remains vulnerable to economically inspired unrest, which could easily assume a more political nature amid the push to strong-arm the population into endorsing an unpopular constitution.

The lack of leadership from the NLD and disappointment with the international response to the junta’s brutal crackdown, have led many to the conclusion that people power is the only remaining option.

“In the entire history of the world, there has never been a dictator who willingly gave up power once he had it firmly in his hands,” said respected Burmese journalist Ludu Sein Win in a recorded message released in March. “And there are no countries in the world which have gained liberation through the help of the United Nations.”

“Don’t waste your time dreaming about dialogue and considering help from the UN Security Council,” the 68-year-old journalist and former political prisoner added. “We already have the power to force out the military dictatorship. That power is the force and strength of every Burmese citizen.”

Whether the regime’s exercise in manipulating public opinion succeeds or seriously backfires may prove more important than its efforts to enshrine its control through a new constitution.

In the end, the junta may find that its efforts to control the will of the people could unleash a political firestorm.

Right thinking must lead to action on Burma

2008-03-31T20:01:00.001+06:30

By THAUNG HTUN
Special to Globe and Mail Update
March 27, 2008 at 8:10 PM EDT
[Source - Globe and Mail]

It was Hannah Arendt who wrote that "Under conditions of tyranny, it is easier to act than to think." While none would accuse Burma's Saffron Revolution of being unthinking, the sense of those words hold true. There is a time when thoughts must give way to action.

Yet, just as this notion holds truth, so too does its reverse. That is to say, without the conditions of tyranny, it is easier to think than to act. This appears to be the position of many around the world, who have the privilege of remaining disengaged while seeing images of violence at a distance.

The historic events that continue unfold in Burma today, evolving from peaceful demonstrations late last year, have been detailed in a new report "Bullets in the Alms Bowl," produced by the Human Rights Documentation Unit of the National Coalition Government of the Union of Burma, the country's government in exile.

No one can read this report and not feel their very humanity challenged by the presence of the brutality it documents. No one can say, "We were unaware." No one has an excuse not to act.

In asking for peace and dialogue toward a political settlement of the problems confronting this country, members of Burma's Buddhist community, the Sangha, have spoken for all their country and touched the whole world. They have galvanized world opinion and spoken to the very soul of our global community. All must hear them.

All must hear how the Burmese military government suppressed a peaceful movement centred on monks, a movement that carried no weapons but the firmness of convictions and courage.

The HRDU report documents the murders, the tortures, the late-night abductions, the house detentions, the arrest of family members of accused demonstrators, the list of actions designed to break the population, to discredit their agendas and to hold an ever tenuous grip on power.

There are given names, dates and times. Personal experiences are painstakingly unfolded. The gaps left by the dead, the detained, the damaged and the broken are poignantly identified.

The struggle of the Sangha and the Saffron Revolution is imbued with the deepest, resonant significance. Here is an outbreak of peace in the face of so much violence, an embodiment of hope in the face of hopelessness, a surge of spiritual values at a time of the most crushing assault on the human heart.

The world cannot ignore these cries and still maintain its sense of dignity and trust, nor can we as the world family maintain our hold on truth and freedom if Burma's peoples continue to be so ill-treated and oppressed.

In Burma, as in South Africa near the end of the apartheid era, a moment has arrived. It is a moment when the clock stops ticking, when the air stops moving, where sound is muffled, and where the mind stops spinning. This is a moment of clarity, a moment when the uncertainty of daily life disappears and a clear message overwhelms the senses. A moment when history stands still, awaiting the inevitable truth.

It is our duty, and that of the global community, to ensure that this moment is not lost. This is not a time for empty politics or grandiose schemes designed to divert the attention and reverse the momentum.

There are roles here for the United Nations (especially as another visit by its special envoy comes and goes without result), for the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, for specific countries such as China, India and the United States — for all interested in promoting the rule of law and human rights for all. The NCGUB has detailed these agendas and will continue to articulate them.

The Free Burma movement is not in victim mode, nor are we devoid of intent. Our goal is clear. But we cannot work alone and we call on the global community to read this report and to ensure that what it documents is consigned to Burma's past, not allowed to be a template for the future.

This is a time to realize our hopes and enact our dreams, for an oppressed Burma rests on all our shoulders, challenging and burdening the world. This is the time for a free Burma to be reborn, on the foundation of peace and forgiveness laid by its Sangha.

It is indeed Burma's moment. But it is also one for all peoples.

Dr. Thaung Htun is the representative for United Nations affairs with the Burma UN Service Office, National Coalition Government of the Union of Burma.

Slain Karen leader: Rebel effort is self defense

2008-03-31T19:47:00.001+06:30

By Anna Sussman
For CNN
[Source - CNN]

A Myanmar rebel leader killed in February said that his group is fighting for the preservation of the ethnic Karen minority, and for greater freedom throughout the southeast Asian nation.

Pa Doh Mahn Sha, the secretary-general of the Karen National Union (KNU), spoke in an interview three weeks before his death. He talked about his group's battle against Myanmar's military government.

"Our struggle is to protect ourselves from the military regime," he said. "They always attack our villages, burn down our villages, burn our food supplies. We want to stop fighting but we have no choice."

The government of Myanmar has blamed the KNU for waging attacks to destabilize the military junta.

Mahn Sha was shot and killed at his home in Thailand on February 14, a KNU official said. During one of the last interviews Mahn Sha granted to international journalists, he posed in front of the Karen national flag hanging in his living room, and talked about the future of the Karen people and the KNU's fight for autonomy.

He said the KNU's fighters would continue to battle the military junta in self-defense. "Our struggle is the same struggle as the monks who protested in September, the same struggle as [pro-democracy activist] Aung San Suu Kyi," he said. "Only in a different form, ours is a violent struggle, and we cannot give up until we have won."

The 64-year-old Mahn Sha was shot and killed in Mae Sot, Thailand, just across the border from Myanmar, a KNU official said. As Thai police investigate his killing, speculation has varied on how the Karen leader was killed.

There have been suggestions the killing may have been the result of internal differences within the rebel group. But some Karen blame Myanmar's military junta. The government has not commented.

The killing came just days after Myanmar announced plans for a referendum on a new constitution, to be followed by a general election in 2010 as part of its "road map to democracy." The plan has been denounced by pro-democracy opposition leaders.

A charismatic leader mourned

Mahn Sha was the KNU's third in command, but widely respected as the group's acting leader, said KNU Foreign Affairs spokesperson David Taw. His death is viewed by many as a major setback for the already struggling resistance movement.

"Mahn Sha [was] the strong guiding light," said Oscar Baaye, an ethnic Karen from the United States who was living with Mahn Sha prior to the rebel leader's death.

Mahn Sha had been described as a skilled mediator between different Karen factions, as well as other ethnic groups in the region and those working for democracy in Myanmar.

"Mahn Sha's assassination was a blow to the entire democracy process," said Aung Zaw, editor of the Irrawaddy magazine. "A lot of people saw him as a potential figure to work on national reconciliation. He was able to connect the Karen struggle to the bigger picture," he said.

"He built bridges between all groups, that was one of his strengths," said Phil Thornton, author of Restless Souls, who has been reporting on the Karen for seven years and lives in Mae Sot.

Young Karen, in particular, said they felt inspired by Mahn Sha's approach to the democracy movement in Myanmar. "He had a very clear vision of our struggle," said Nicky Zaw, who attended Mahn Sha's funeral.

Dwindling numbers

The KNU's military, a ragtag group of soldiers who often wield World War II weaponry, has come under criticism, accused of recruiting child soldiers and carrying on what many have called an unwinnable war in civilian-occupied territory. The KNU has denied using child soldiers.

In his interview, Mahn Sha said that the KNU had the support and backing of the villagers who are caught in the middle of this conflict.

"The military regime might have big numbers, but they don't have the support of the people," he said, claiming that for every KNU soldier there are at least 25 government soldiers. "We can protect them because we have their support," he said.

Still, humanitarian groups such as the Free Burma Rangers regularly report attacks in Karen villages by the military regime carrying out counterinsurgency operations. Thousands have fled the fighting.

Prior to his death, Mahn Sha had just returned from a Karen Unity Seminar, in which Karen from around the world gathered at a secret headquarters in Myanmar to discuss the future of their movement and their people.

The KNU has been fighting the government of Myanmar for about 60 years, since shortly after the departure of the British from the country then known as Burma in 1948. It is one of the world's longest-running insurgencies.

But during the past decade, their troop numbers have dwindled from 20,000 to a mere 4,000, said David Taw. The KNU has suffered huge losses as members tire of war and resettle in places such as Europe and the United States, he said.

The group also still suffers from crippling infighting and another splinter group, a faction commonly called the Karen National Union Peace Council, recently broke ranks to sign a peace agreement with the government of Myanmar-- like many other groups.

While KNU leaders have been clear that they will continue their battle against Myanmar's military regime, they say the loss of Mahn Sha was a huge blow for the movement.

At Mahn Sha's funeral, more than 1,000 mourners gathered in the jungle inside Myanmar, including representatives from nearly every regional ethnic group and Aung San Suu Kyi's National League for Democracy party.

Asia’s Growing Buddhist Activism

2008-03-31T19:28:00.000+06:30

By DENIS D GRAY / AP WRITER / BANGKOK
[Source - Irrawaddy]

Tibetan monks hurling rocks in bloody protests against the Chinese and even Buddhist clergy peacefully massing against Burma’s military can strike jarring notes.

These scenes run counter to Buddhism’s philosophy of shunning politics and espousing loving-kindness toward even bitter enemies which the faith has adhered to—with some tumultuous exceptions—through the 2,500 years of its history.

But political activism and occasional eruptions of violence have become increasingly common in Asia’s Buddhist societies as they variously struggle against foreign domination, oppressive regimes, social injustice and even climate change.

The change has seen more monks and nuns moving out of the seclusion of their monasteries and into slums and rice paddies—and sometimes into streets filled with tear gas and gunfire.

“In modern times, preaching is not enough. Monks must act to improve society, to remove evil,” says Samdhong Rinpoche, prime minister of the Tibetan government-in-exile and a high-ranking lama.

“There is the responsibility of every individual, monks and lay people, to act for the betterment of society,” he told The Associated Press in Dharamsala, India, discussing protests, initiated by monks, in Tibet’s ancient capital of Lhasa and elsewhere this month.

In widespread protests over the past three weeks, angry crimson-robed monks—some charging helmeted troops and throwing rocks—have joined with ordinary citizens who unfurled Tibetan flags and demanded independence from China. Beijing’s official death toll from the rioting in Lhasa is 22, but the exiled government of the Dalai Lama says 140 Tibetans were killed there and in Tibetan communities in western China.

Bloodshed also stained last fall’s pro-democracy uprising in Burma, dubbed the “Saffron Revolution” after the color of the robes of monks who led nonviolent protests against the country's oppressive military regime.

In Thailand, the Dharma Army, followers of a Buddhist sect, took part in street demonstrations which led to the ouster of Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra two years ago.

In Sri Lanka, the ultra-nationalist Jathika Hela Urumaya party, led by monks, has pushed for use of brute force against the country’s Tamil rebels. Buddhist involvement in politics is nothing new in Sri Lanka—in 1959 a monk assassinated Prime Minister S.W. Bandaranaike amid public protests against a law that gave some protection to the Tamil language.

Indeed, the activism by monks reflects another side of Buddhist history. Despite the faith’s image of passivity, an aggressive strain has long existed, especially in the Mahayana school of Buddhism, practiced in Japan, Korea, China and Tibet.

Monks in Japan, the sohei, fought pitched battles with one another and secular clans for over 600 years until around 1600. China’s Shaolin Temple, a martial arts center to this day, was allowed to retain warrior monks from the 7th century by emperors who sometimes called on their services to put down rebellions and banditry.

In more recent times, the monk Saya San became a national hero in the 1930s in Burma by leading a revolt against the British colonials who hanged him after fielding 12,000 troops to suppress his peasant army.

The self-immolation of monk Thich Quang Duc in the streets of Saigon became one of the iconic images of protest against the Vietnam War.

Before China’s take-over of Tibet in 1959, warrior monks sometimes wielded more power—and weaponry—than the army. Lhasa’s Sera monastery, one of the hotbeds of the recent protests, was particularly noted for its elite fighters, the “dob dobs,” who in 1947 took part in a rebellion that took 300 lives.

“Use peaceful means where they are appropriate, but where they are not appropriate, do not hesitate to resort to more forceful means,” said the previous, now deceased Dalai Lama when Tibet fought the Chinese in the 1930s.

But Christopher Queen, an expert on Buddhism at Harvard University, noted that the new Buddhist activism also means some among the world’s 350 million faithful are expanding the traditional focus on individual spiritual liberation to attack problems that affect whole communities or nations such as poverty and the destruction of the environment.

Examples include Sri Lanka’s Sarvodaya Shramadana, or “Mundane Awakening,” movement which provides everything from safe drinking water to basic housing in more than 11,000 poor villages, and Buddhist groups in India that are fighting for the rights of “the untouchables,” or outcasts.

Loosely affiliated but global, originating at the grass roots rather than atop religious hierarchies and more muscular than meditative, this movement is widely known as Engaged Buddhism.

“Engaged Buddhists are looking at the social, economic, and political causes of human misery in the world and organizing to address them. The role of social service and activism is clearly growing in all parts of the Buddhist world,” Queen said in an interview.

Given the religion’s deeply rooted peaceful doctrine, scholars are doubtful that the new activism will spill over into terrorism or violence other than occasional spontaneous outbursts.

While not immune to spilling blood, Queen says “the Buddhist tradition is rightly known for the systematic practice of nonviolence.”

Proponents like to say that, unlike Christianity, Buddhists have not waged Crusades and burned heretics at the stake, tried to institute anything akin to today’s radical Islamic states or used force to spread their faith like Christians and Muslims.

Although one Chinese Communist Party leader called the Nobel Peace prize laureate “a wolf in monk’s clothes,” the Dalai Lama has decried the recent violence while supporting peoples' rights to peaceful protest.

“If (monks) want to fight, they have to disrobe and join the fighters,” Samdhong said.

Still, Tibetan Buddhist monks are regarded as perhaps the most potent and organized anti-regime force.

“Under China they came to be the only force that represents the interests of the community, of the nation,” said Robbie Barnett, a Tibet expert at Columbia University. “Monks and nuns have acquired this heroic status of representing the nation in its most difficult times.”

We will never forget you, Nay Phone Latt

2008-03-29T13:03:00.003+06:30

It has been two months since our fellow blogger, Nay Phone Latt, was detained in Burma. Though I hear news that he seems to be doing relatively alright in the prison, many of us, especially his close friends, feel bad at not being able to do more for him and his release. All we can do is to keep remembering him and his spirit.

It has been almost six months since the Saffron Revolution. So many monks, student leaders, activists and patriotic youths like Nay Phone Latt have been detained, and tortured. Some have even lost their lives. Just recently, there has been a crackdown on journalists. Just as the military regime announce the upcoming referendum, the suppressions continue. I wonder how many more like Nay Phone Latt will lose their freedom, or even their lives. I begin to imagine the military regime as a big tiger preying on us, and devouring us one by one. If we don't unite against such ruthless beast, we will only have ourselves to blame for further loss.

My feelings on 63rd Anniversary of Burmese Armed Forces Day

2008-03-29T09:06:00.002+06:30

I refer to "How will Burmese Armed Forces vote in the referendum?" and "Burmese Armed Forces Day to mark Decades of Military Rule" by Min Lwin, Irrawaddy.

The Burmese Armed Forces Day seemed to have come and gone without making much impact in the minds of Burmese people. In the past, probably a long time ago, we used to hold the army in great esteem. In fact, many young people aspired to become military officers, seeing it as a prestigious duty to serve their own country. How times have changed. How such aspirations have dwindled to nothing more than just contempt and fear against the army. All these changes would not have become reality if not for a group of power-hungry military dictators who, over the decades, have crippled Burma to what it is today.

If we look back at our history, there are mainly three societies who are capable of stirring the hearts of Burmese people: Sanga, students and soldiers. So far, Sanga and students have been seen as playing a crucial role in democracy movements. What about the soldiers in the army? During 1988 uprising, the military personnel, especially from Air Force, protested alongside the people, Sanga, and students. Such show of courage and patriotism is still strongly embedded in our memories. We, Burmese people, have always hoped that we will not see the alienation of soldiers from the people when we pursue our path for Burma's freedom from a handful of dictators.

I once asked a friend, a military officer, about his opinion. Like many of the people interviewed in Min Lwin's reports, he revealed his dismay at the actions that the dictators have taken against the people. My subsequent question to him was: then why do they still dance to the tunes of dictators and accept being made use of as weapons of SPDC? He cited the nature of army as having to obey orders and also said that with all the restrictions that have been imposed on the soldiers, he did not believe that they can do much for the sake of people at this moment. Upon hearing his answers, I wondered how many more soldiers have the notion like him. Though I must admit that I feel rather disappointed at his answers, at the same time, I can empathize with their predicament. There is not a single doubt that ruthless dictators have done whatever they can to instill fear in the army as much as the way they have done towards the people.

Whenever I see ex-soldiers, who have lost part(s) of their body in the battles, having to struggle by themselves with the meager pension given by the government, I feel sorry for them. We all know for a fact that discrimination and abuse of power by those who are in favor, are widespread in the army. Apart from a favored few, majority population of the army is also struggling in their own ways for their own survival.

It has been 63 years of history for the army. How our future generations will remember the army in many years to come, depends solely upon the army. As an ordinary citizen of Burma, I would like to remind those in the army of the brutalities that the dictators have unleashed upon monks; sons of our revered Buddha, students and the people.

I would like to urge them not to allow SPDC to use them as weapons of mass destruction upon their own people, to stand in front of us and to bring back the light that has been fainting in Burma over the decades. It is time to write their own history and bring back the glory of army for the people.

Human Rights Activist Attacked in Rangoon

2008-03-29T08:29:00.001+06:30

By Wai Moe
Friday, March 28, 2008
[Source - Irrawaddy]

A leading human rights activist has been attacked by two unidentified men in Rangoon, according to dissident sources.

Myint Aye, 54, the founder of the Human Rights Defenders and Promoters (HRDP) was attacked and beaten in Sanchaung Township, Rangoon on Thursday evening. He was admitted to Rangoon General Hospital.

Myint Aye told The Irrawaddy by phone on Friday that two men had attacked him and beat him about the head with batons at about 9 p.m. On Thursday evening while he was walking home. “I don’t know who did it, because I couldn’t see,” he said. “I don’t have any personal problem with anyone. I just promote and defend human rights in my country.”

“If I was attacked because I believe deeply in human rights, I would like to say to my attackers that I will not give up my stand,” he added.

Myint Aye reported the assault to the township court in Sanchaung.

In an incident last year, two other members of HRDP, Myint Naing and Maung Maung Lay, were brutally attacked by members of the junta-backed Union Solidarity and Development Association. The two activists were seriously injured and hospitalized at the Rangoon General Hospital in critical condition. Myint Naing was later sentenced to eight years imprisonment for reporting the crime under the State Emergency Act.

Than Lwin, an elected representative in the 1990 election and member of the National League for Democracy (NLD), was also attacked by pro-junta thugs wearing steel knuckledusters in June 2007 as he returned home from a pagoda in Madaya Township, where he had been praying for the release of NLD leader Aung San Suu Kyi.

Than Lwin and some of his family members were later imprisoned because they complained to the authorities about the attack. Than Lwin is currently in Mandalay prison. One of his eyes has been damaged by an infection resulting from the attack, according to one of his family members.

“The latest attack on a human rights activist, U Myint Aye, shows there is not real law enforcement in the country,” said Bo Kyi, joint secretary of the Assistant Association for Political Prisoners-Burma, a Burmese human rights group in exile.

“Not only U Myint Aye, but other human rights and democracy activists have been attacked previously,” he said.” These kinds of situations are unacceptable.”

Silencing Burma's 'Saffron Revolution'

2008-03-25T19:09:00.001+06:30

Silencing Burma's 'Saffron Revolution'
by Min Zin

On Feb. 15, the military stormed the offices of the Myanmar Nation and took my brother, the weekly journal's editor in chief, to jail. His crime? Possession of a United Nation’s report on the ruling junta’s brutal crackdown on last September’s demonstrations by monks and democracy activists—the so-called Saffron Revolution.

My brother's name is Thet Zin, and he is one of hundreds of Burmese citizens who struggle to tell the truth about what is happening in their country—whether through traditional forms of journalism or through the Internet—under threat of arrest or worse by the military regime.
Indeed, even as the Burmese military promises the United Nations it will implement its "Roadmap to Democracy," the generals are stepping up their crackdown on the media. News of my brother's arrest was painful, but I should have been prepared for it. This kind of brutal repression and disregard for freedom of speech is the defining phenomenon of daily life in Burma.

The irony here is that my brother, who was a political prisoner in 1988, has not been involved in clandestine political activities or activist groups since he began working as a reporter and editor for several legally published weekly journals in the early 2000s. He founded Myanmar Nation Weekly, where he worked as editor in chief until his arrest, in 2006.

When the military raided the offices of Myanmar Nation, they discovered video footage of last September's Buddhist monk-led protests, a copy of the aforementioned report by U.N. Special Rapporteur Paulo Sergio Pinheiro, and a book about federalism written by a veteran Shan ethnic leader. Along with my brother, his office manager, Sein Win Maung, was also arrested. The authorities confiscated mobile phones and computer hard-drives during the raid.

In early March, both were charged under section 17/20 of the Printers and Publishers Registration Law. The court cited the U.N. report as evidence of possessing "illegal material" in order to set up a case against my brother. If found guilty, they could serve up to seven years' imprisonment. The publication of Myanmar Nation has also been suspended since their arrest.

Sadly, my brother's case is not uncommon. In the wake of last September's protests, the military has stepped up its crackdown on the media and severely curtailed freedom of expression. At least 20 journalists have been arrested in the past six months, although many were released after severe interrogations. According to Reporters Without Borders, 11 journalists are known to be imprisoned in Burma, including 78-year-old U Win Tin, who has been in jail since July 1989.

The exile-based Burmese Media Association (BMA), however, places the number of imprisoned writers—including journalists, poets, fiction writers, etc.—at 30. These journalists, writers and poets, who exercise their free speech as a birthright, add to the more than 1,800 political prisoners who, according to Human Rights Watch, are still behind bars.

Since the Buddhist monk-led protests of September last year, about a dozen publications in Burma have been banned or suspended for allegedly failing to follow the directives of the regime’s censorship board.

Burma, which enjoyed perhaps the liveliest free press in Southeast Asia until the 1962 military coup, is now facing some of the severest media repression in the nation’s history. The Burmese military launched a "fight media with media" campaign in 2005 in order to "rebuff the unfair and baseless news produced by the Western media." The junta's notorious censorship board has imposed ever more stringent restrictions on private publications. Journalists are pressured to write articles in line with the regime's views and policies. Journals and magazines are forced to print an increasing number of "planted" pro-junta articles.

"The situation is now getting worse and very rigid," says Zaw Thet Htwe, a well-known journalist inside Burma, who himself received the death penalty in 2003 for sending reports to the outside world, a sentence which was later reduced to three years imprisonment due to international pressure. "The news journals are increasingly facing a hard time due to the whimsical regulations. The atmosphere of fear and pressure for self-censorship has been growing."

Thankfully, the Burmese people's main sources of information remain free from the military's abuses. They are the daily Burmese language radio broadcasts from abroad by the BBC (Burmese Service), Voice of America (Burmese Service), Radio Free Asia, and the Democratic Voice of Burma (DVB).

At the height of the protests last year, large numbers of people (including military personnel) relied on these broadcasts for information. The regime’s anger was apparent in state-controlled newspapers and TV announcements that described the radio broadcasters as "killers on the airwaves" and "saboteurs" who were "airing a sky full of lies." In addition to radio, DVB launched a new Burmese language TV broadcast in May 2005 that can be received via satellite in Burma. The TV broadcast was a main source of news during the September protests.

Now, a new generation of Burmese has found another means of defying the junta's thought police: the Internet. Although less than 1% of the total population has access to the Internet in Burma, that 1% generally has access to cell phones, digital cameras and memory sticks and can disseminate information widely. During last September's protests, these "cyber dissidents"—citizen reporters and bloggers—posted hundreds of images and eyewitness accounts of the Saffron Revolution and the regime's brutality on the Internet.

Unlike the 1988 pro-democracy uprising—when the killing of at least 3,000 unarmed demonstrators received little international attention—images of violence against last fall's protestors, including the killing of Japanese journalist Kenji Nagai, spread fast throughout the world and helped ignite international outrage.

The regime, of course, responded by hunting down and arresting those who posted the images, and by further limiting access to the Internet. Internet café owners are now reportedly forced to install spy software provided by military intelligence officials that take automatic screen shots of user activity every five minutes. The monitoring results then have to be delivered to the military for surveillance.

Meanwhile, the military promises the outside world that it is marching toward "democracy" with its constitutional referendum in May and new elections in 2010. But nearly all observers agree that the military’s constitution won't lead to legitimate political freedom or national reconciliation. Violations of human rights are expected to continue, as are repression and censorship of the media.

"Though the military promises reform by holding a constitutional referendum in May," says Maung Maung Myint, chairman of the Burmese Media Association, “the arrest of journalists and constraints on the free flow of information clearly demonstrate that the regime discourages any informed public debate on their draft constitution."

Clearly, my brother and other recently detained journalists are being held by the junta in an effort to spread fear among Burma’s defiant media in the run-up to the constitutional referendum. Without outside pressure, the sad fact is these tactics will likely succeed—and the Burmese people will continue to suffer under a repressive military dictatorship, and those brave journalists and writers willing to challenge Burma's censors will be silenced.
Min Zin is a Burmese journalist.

copied from http://www.feer.com/features/2008/march/the-second-coming-of-taro-aso