Burma’s state-run press on Tuesday attacked an exile group’s campaign to have the UN declare the newly approved constitution illegal and unseat the military government from the international body.
The New Light of Myanmar published an article about Maung Maung, the secretary-general of the National Council of the Union of Burma (NCUB) and other groups in exile that do not recognize the Burmese government as a legitimate member of the United Nations.
The newspaper said, “Some politicians of the Western bloc” and “some follower groups” were asking the UN to not recognize the junta-backed constitution, which was approved in a May referendum. The government announced that elections would be held in 2010.
“In respect to the sovereignty of a nation, neither international organization nor government has the right to interfere in the approval of a constitution that has been drawn in conformity with the nation’s prevailing conditions,” the newspaper said.
Burma’s political, economic and military affairs have never constituted a threat to the stability of the international community, neighboring countries or the region, the article said.
The article also blasted an open letter released by a group of politicians who won seats in Parliament in Burma’s 1990 election. The letter called the junta’s constitution illegal and urged the junta open a dialogue with opposition groups. The junta did not recognize the results of the 1990 election.
Gen Tamalabaw, the chairman of the NCUB, said in a July 18 letter to the US branch of the National League for Democracy(NLD) in exile that the NUCB was preparing a campaign to publicize crimes committed by the junta.
The NUCB Web site said it plans to challenge the credentials of the Burmese government at the 2008 United Nations General Assembly session and object to its right to represent Burma at the UN.
Nyo Ohn Myint of the NLD in exile, who is close to Maung Maung, said, “The NCUB’s agenda at the UN is to push the junta into a dialogue path.”
However, there is disagreement within Burma’s exiled opposition movement over the NCUB’s agenda, particularly within the National Coalition Government of the Union of Burma (NCGUB), the Burmese government in exile, formed in 1991.
San Aung, a member of the NCGUB, told The Irrawaddy on Wednesday that the government in exile didn’t agree with Maung Maung’s agenda because it had little chance of success and did not come from a collective leadership.
“At the last UN general assembly, 40 countries abstained in a vote on the Burmese junta’s human rights violations while 60 countries voted ‘yes’ against the junta and 20 countries voted ‘no’,” said San Aung. “I think a campaign to unseat Burma would be difficult.”
Thursday, July 31, 2008
Tuesday, July 29, 2008
Kachin Leaders to Form Political Party
Leaders of ethnic Kachin ceasefire groups have formed an umbrella group to lobby Kachin people to cooperate in creating a new political party, according to sources in Burma’s northernmost state.
The group includes leaders of the Kachin Independence Organization (KIO), the New Democratic Army-Kachin (NDA-K) and the Kachin Consultative Committee (KCC). The group was formed in July and is led by Tu Ja, deputy chairman of the KIO, said sources.
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| Kachin Independent Army soldiers patrolling their own administered territory inside Hukawng Valley in Kachin State. (Photo: Steve Winter / National Geographic Image Collection) |
However, the group is not yet sure that it will be permitted by Burma’s ruling junta to form a political party to contest the general election scheduled to take place sometime in 2010.
The group currently has at least 50 members, with the KIO and NDA-K represented by 10 members each, said Zau Seng. The remaining members are from the KCC or are civilians unaffiliated with any group. The new group has not yet been named.
“If we are able to form a political party, the name of the group will be officially given,” said Zau Seng.
The group plans to appeal to Kachin people to be unified and support the formation of a political party. The members will perform their duties through a transition period which will last from now until the formation of the political party.
The Kachin leaders introduced the umbrella group on July 23 in Laiza, a town near the border with China. About 800 people, including civilians and members of the KIO, NDA-K and KCC, attended the meeting.
Ma Grang, who was present at the meeting, said he didn’t think that the group would easily succeed in its efforts to win popular support for a new political party.
Ma Grang, who is close to KIO leaders, said that they raised the possibility of forming the group in May. However, many lower-ranking members of the KIO and the Kachin Independence Army, the military wing of the KIO, expressed opposition to the proposal.
Due to the disagreement, the KIO leaders are seeking an alternative way to form a political party, said Ma Grang.
The KIO, founded in 1961, was one of 17 ethnic armed groups that signed a ceasefire agreement with the ruling junta in 1990s.
Burmese military authorities have been urging the ceasefire groups to surrender—in effect, lay down their weapons—and form political parties. An alternative option for the ceasefire groups would be to enlist their troops as special combat police, said sources.
However, most of the ethnic ceasefire groups are undecided as to whether they should disarm and form political parties to contest the Burmese general election.
Monday, July 28, 2008
Burmese Women Hit Worst by Cyclone Nargis
BANGKOK — Nearly three months after the powerful Cyclone Nargis tore through Burma’s Irrawaddy Delta, it has emerged that the majority of those who died in the devastated area were women.
Sixty one percent of those who died were female, reveals the Post-Nargis Joint Assessment (PONJA), a report released by the tripartite group set up to respond to the humanitarian crisis in military-ruled Burma, or Myanmar. "In some severely affected villages, twice as many women aged 18-60 died as men," the report said.
The same pattern was also evident in the deaths of children in the 5-12 age group and the among the children below five years, where there was a noticeably higher number of young girls who died when Nargis struck than young boys, adds the 187-page report, released last week.
But this report stuck to the official death toll that was released in the weeks after Nargis struck on the night of May 3. "The official death toll stood at 84,537 with 53,836 people still missing and 19,359 injured," it notes. "Assessment data shows that some 2.4 million people were severely affected by the cyclone, out of an estimated 7.35 million people living in the affected townships."
Yet other estimates have put the human toll much higher, with possibly close to 300,000 people being killed and some 5.5 million people affected.
The tripartite group is made up of officials from the Burmese government, the United Nations and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean), the 10-member regional bloc of which Burma is a member. Asean took the lead in this initiative, helping to create a "humanitarian bridge," since Burma’s military regime appeared averse to opening the country to post-disaster foreign assistance, including aid workers, and foreign donors being reluctant to pour funds into a country ruled by an oppressive and notoriously corrupt regime.
"The recovery period is still with us. We are not going into any long-term planning," said Surin Pitsuwan, secretary-general of Asean, at a press conference Friday in Bangkok. "Cyclone Nargis was one of the most horrific natural disasters that ever visited Southeast Asia, following the (December 2004) tsunami."
"The damage of the cyclone was enormous and it will have long-range consequences," added Dan Baker, UN humanitarian coordinator in Burma, who was the world body’s representative in the group that produced PONJA. "Nearly 75 percent of all health facilities were destroyed or damaged."
The report also shed light on the economic and social cost of the natural disaster. "Nargis struck just as the Delta’s paddy farmers were at the very last stage of harvesting the so-called 'dry season' crop, which accounts for about 25 percent of the annual (rice) productions in the affected area, and destroyed several rice warehouses and their stocks," it reveals. "A million acres of farmland were inundated with seawater, causing serious death and destruction to humans, livestock, farm animals, infrastructure, and means of production and livelihoods."
"The devastation caused by Nargis has impacted heavily on the availability of food stocks, as well as seeds and tools for the June-July (main) planting season," it states. "Over all, only 25 percent of the affected areas reported having enough seeds."
The damage to the homes of the largely poor communities that lived in the Delta was as severe. "Nargis affected approximately 800,000 housing units: around 450,000 units are estimated to have been totally damaged and around 350,000 unites were more lightly damaged," states the report. "Before the cyclone, it is estimated that 50 percent of all housing unites were built of wood and bamboo with wood or bamboo floors on stilts."
Looking ahead, the PONJA notes that assistance is needed for safe drinking water and safe excreta disposal for 1.4 million affected people through April 2009, and "the rehabilitation of traditional ponds and rainwater harvesting systems by September 2008."
The area around Rangoon, the former capital, which also took a beating, is in dire need for aid, too, since the storm "affected four million people, causing damage to 486.539 homes, over 7,900 factories and commercial establishments," states PONJA. "Moreover 300,713 acres of farmland were flooded."
But the report has not been received with universal approval. Groups familiar with the iron grip with which Burma’s military leaders have ruled the country for the past 46 years were skeptical.
"We are supposed to believe the official story because it reads nice and looks nice. We are supposed to believe that the report of the international community, the UN is correct," said Jody Williams, the 1997 Nobel Peace laureate, who was in Bangkok. "But the assessment team included representatives of the Burmese junta who went from village to village.
Friday, July 25, 2008
US Calls Burma's Promise of Democracy a 'Mockery'
SINGAPORE — The United States blasted the Burmese junta's oft-repeated promise to democratize as a "kind of mockery" Thursday, while Asia-Pacific countries urged the generals to take bolder steps to meet international demands.
US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice delivered a stinging rebuke to Burma before attending a security conference hosted by the Association of Southeast Asian Nations.
Burma is a member of the 10-nation Asean, whose foreign ministers meet every year with counterparts from 17 Asia-Pacific countries for the Asean Regional Forum.
In comments to reporters before the meeting, Rice noted the Asean charter aspires to the rule of law, human rights and the development of more pluralistic political systems.
"Burma is out of step, badly out of step," she said.
The foreign ministers attending the forum were to express their exasperation over the junta's unfulfilled promise to reform under a "roadmap to democracy" and free Nobel peace laureate Aung San Suu Kyi.
Burma should "take bolder steps toward a peaceful transition to democracy in the near future," the ministers said in statement, a final draft of which was obtained by The Associated Press.
The statement also urged the ruling generals to ensure general elections in 2010 are free and fair.
Rice renewed criticism of Burma for initially refusing international help in the aftermath of Cyclone Nargis in May, when several countries including the United States were "sitting literally offshore" with ships loaded with aid.
"When you have a situation (with) the junta refusing to let people in need be helped, you wonder how can the international community stand by and allow that to happen," she said.
She praised Asean for persuading Burma to accept help eventually.
Asean should find a way to move the country toward political reforms that would "make something of what is right now a kind of mockery, which is this roadmap to democracy which is going nowhere," she said.
Asean, which has been taken to task for not doing enough to pressure Burma's junta, held back its criticism after Nargis struck, fearing it would complicate efforts to convince the ruling generals to allow the entry of outside aid.
US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice delivered a stinging rebuke to Burma before attending a security conference hosted by the Association of Southeast Asian Nations.
Burma is a member of the 10-nation Asean, whose foreign ministers meet every year with counterparts from 17 Asia-Pacific countries for the Asean Regional Forum.
In comments to reporters before the meeting, Rice noted the Asean charter aspires to the rule of law, human rights and the development of more pluralistic political systems.
"Burma is out of step, badly out of step," she said.
The foreign ministers attending the forum were to express their exasperation over the junta's unfulfilled promise to reform under a "roadmap to democracy" and free Nobel peace laureate Aung San Suu Kyi.
Burma should "take bolder steps toward a peaceful transition to democracy in the near future," the ministers said in statement, a final draft of which was obtained by The Associated Press.
The statement also urged the ruling generals to ensure general elections in 2010 are free and fair.
Rice renewed criticism of Burma for initially refusing international help in the aftermath of Cyclone Nargis in May, when several countries including the United States were "sitting literally offshore" with ships loaded with aid.
"When you have a situation (with) the junta refusing to let people in need be helped, you wonder how can the international community stand by and allow that to happen," she said.
She praised Asean for persuading Burma to accept help eventually.
Asean should find a way to move the country toward political reforms that would "make something of what is right now a kind of mockery, which is this roadmap to democracy which is going nowhere," she said.
Asean, which has been taken to task for not doing enough to pressure Burma's junta, held back its criticism after Nargis struck, fearing it would complicate efforts to convince the ruling generals to allow the entry of outside aid.
Thursday, July 24, 2008
UN Security Council to Discuss Burma
NEW YORK — As the United Nations plans to send special envoy Ibrahim Gambari to Burma in September and the Security Council prepares to discuss Burma on Thursday, the US says it will push for a “focused” political approach on Burma.
"The political track needs to be focused on now, front and center, with regard to Burma," said US Ambassador to the UN, Zalmay Khalilzad.
Khalilzad stressed the "process" adopted by the military junta to get a new constitution approved was "very much flawed." A group of five Burmese parliamentarians on Monday sent a letter to UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon and the five Permanent Representatives on the Security Council urging the UN to declare Burma’s new constitution illegitimate.
A UN spokesperson said that Gambari intends to discuss such concerns during his visit to Burma next month.
Khalilzad said the referendum on the draft constitution did not meet the standards of the Security Council and its presidential statement which the council outlined before the referendum.
The council’s UN presidential statement asked for the release of all political prisoners including Aung San Suu Kyi, and for a free, fair and transparent process surrounding the referendum. The Burmese junta went ahead with a referendum in the immediate aftermath of Cyclone Nargis that killed more than 130,000 people. Led by the US, the international community called it a sham referendum.
"That's why we have been of the view that the international system and the UN needs to focus on the political track once again in Burma," Khalilzad said.
"Because of the terrible humanitarian situation in the aftermath of the cyclone, there was less attention paid to the political process," Khalilzad said. "We think that's vital, and that's why we have been urging the secretary-general to send his special envoy back and to achieve specific progress."
Under Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator John Holmes arrived in Burma on Tuesday for a three-day visit to assess progress in the aid relief and recovery operations.
Holmes visited several affected communities in the Irrawaddy delta on Tuesday during a helicopter tour.
"He noted that significant progress has been made since his last visit (in May),” said a UN spokesperson. “The focus now needs to be on reaching the most vulnerable communities in remote areas."
Holmes planned to meet the humanitarian community and donors in Rangoon on Wednesday. He also planned to travel to Naypyidaw, the capital, on Friday for consultations with Burmese officials.
"The political track needs to be focused on now, front and center, with regard to Burma," said US Ambassador to the UN, Zalmay Khalilzad.
Khalilzad stressed the "process" adopted by the military junta to get a new constitution approved was "very much flawed." A group of five Burmese parliamentarians on Monday sent a letter to UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon and the five Permanent Representatives on the Security Council urging the UN to declare Burma’s new constitution illegitimate.
A UN spokesperson said that Gambari intends to discuss such concerns during his visit to Burma next month.
Khalilzad said the referendum on the draft constitution did not meet the standards of the Security Council and its presidential statement which the council outlined before the referendum.
The council’s UN presidential statement asked for the release of all political prisoners including Aung San Suu Kyi, and for a free, fair and transparent process surrounding the referendum. The Burmese junta went ahead with a referendum in the immediate aftermath of Cyclone Nargis that killed more than 130,000 people. Led by the US, the international community called it a sham referendum.
"That's why we have been of the view that the international system and the UN needs to focus on the political track once again in Burma," Khalilzad said.
"Because of the terrible humanitarian situation in the aftermath of the cyclone, there was less attention paid to the political process," Khalilzad said. "We think that's vital, and that's why we have been urging the secretary-general to send his special envoy back and to achieve specific progress."
Under Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator John Holmes arrived in Burma on Tuesday for a three-day visit to assess progress in the aid relief and recovery operations.
Holmes visited several affected communities in the Irrawaddy delta on Tuesday during a helicopter tour.
"He noted that significant progress has been made since his last visit (in May),” said a UN spokesperson. “The focus now needs to be on reaching the most vulnerable communities in remote areas."
Holmes planned to meet the humanitarian community and donors in Rangoon on Wednesday. He also planned to travel to Naypyidaw, the capital, on Friday for consultations with Burmese officials.
Wednesday, July 23, 2008
Victory! Congress Bans Gem Imports from Burma
Victory! Congress Bans Gem Imports from Burma
Dear U Myat,
We are pleased to write to you with major news: last night the U.S. Congress passed new, enhanced sanctions legislation banning the import of gems from Burma. We want to thank the thousands of you who telephoned, emailed, and met with your members of the House of Representatives and Senate. We also want to acknowledge the hard work carried out by the members of the House and the Senate -- as well as their staff members -- who led this effort.
What Does the Legislation Do?
- This new law closes a gaping loophole in the Burmese Freedom and Democracy Act that had previously allowed Burmese gems to be sold in the United States, even though most all other imports are banned. The Burmese regime's sale of rubies and jade brings them upwards of $300 million per year -- much of that from unsuspecting American consumers. Now, that will come to an end!
- The law also creates the position of a U.S. "Special Coordinator" for Burma, whose job will be to reach out to other countries to build support for Burma's human rights activists and ultimately seek a peaceful transition to democracy in the country.
Why The Legislation Is Important and Next Steps
- Similar to how "conflict diamonds" help prop up a civil war in Africa, the sale of Burmese rubies and jade funnelled hundreds of millions of dollars to Burma's military dictatorship, financing their reign of terror.
We still have much more work to do -- the Burmese Freedom and Democracy Act must be renewed and gems weren't the only source of funds for the military regime -- but for one day we want to pause and celebrate an important step forward.
THANK YOU.
We are pleased to write to you with major news: last night the U.S. Congress passed new, enhanced sanctions legislation banning the import of gems from Burma. We want to thank the thousands of you who telephoned, emailed, and met with your members of the House of Representatives and Senate. We also want to acknowledge the hard work carried out by the members of the House and the Senate -- as well as their staff members -- who led this effort.
What Does the Legislation Do?
- This new law closes a gaping loophole in the Burmese Freedom and Democracy Act that had previously allowed Burmese gems to be sold in the United States, even though most all other imports are banned. The Burmese regime's sale of rubies and jade brings them upwards of $300 million per year -- much of that from unsuspecting American consumers. Now, that will come to an end!
- The law also creates the position of a U.S. "Special Coordinator" for Burma, whose job will be to reach out to other countries to build support for Burma's human rights activists and ultimately seek a peaceful transition to democracy in the country.
Why The Legislation Is Important and Next Steps
- Similar to how "conflict diamonds" help prop up a civil war in Africa, the sale of Burmese rubies and jade funnelled hundreds of millions of dollars to Burma's military dictatorship, financing their reign of terror.
We still have much more work to do -- the Burmese Freedom and Democracy Act must be renewed and gems weren't the only source of funds for the military regime -- but for one day we want to pause and celebrate an important step forward.
THANK YOU.
Tuesday, July 22, 2008
Burma Cyclone Damage Estimated at $4 Billion
SINGAPORE — A new UN-led report says the damage from Burma's Cyclone Nargis in May is estimated to be US $4 billion.
The report released Monday says this includes $1.7 billion in damage to assets and $2.3 billion from loss of income of the victims. Nargis devastated much of the Irrawaddy delta and Rangoon, leaving at least 85,000 people dead and about 50,000 missing.
The report, prepared by the UN, the Association of Southeast Asian Nations and the Burmese regime, is the first comprehensive assessment of the damage caused by the cyclone in May.
Asean secretary-general Surin Pitsuwan said the survivors need at least $1 billion over the next three years so that "we can help them recover back on their feet as soon as possible."
The report released Monday says this includes $1.7 billion in damage to assets and $2.3 billion from loss of income of the victims. Nargis devastated much of the Irrawaddy delta and Rangoon, leaving at least 85,000 people dead and about 50,000 missing.
The report, prepared by the UN, the Association of Southeast Asian Nations and the Burmese regime, is the first comprehensive assessment of the damage caused by the cyclone in May.
Asean secretary-general Surin Pitsuwan said the survivors need at least $1 billion over the next three years so that "we can help them recover back on their feet as soon as possible."
Monday, July 21, 2008
Police Bars Some Press Photographers from Martyrs’ Day Ceremonies
Several local press photographers were prevented by police and security guards from taking pictures of an official ceremony in Rangoon marking this year’s Martyrs’ Day.
The authorities sealed off the Martyrs’ memorial, near the famous Shwedagon pagoda, and this year no foreign diplomats were invited to attend Saturday’s ceremony.
Security was also increased at the Shwedagon pagoda and the offices of the opposition National League for Democracy.
Several photographers who tried to approach the memorial were challenged by police and plainclothes guards, who seized the cameras and press cards of some of the media representatives.
One journalist was briefly detained by police. A photographer said he was physically attacked.
“The police asked me to destroy all the pictures I had taken,” said one Rangoon-based photographer. “They took my name and also took a picture of me.”
Saturday’s ceremony, which included a wreath-laying, marked the 61st anniversary of the assassination of Burma’s independence hero Gen Aung San and eight of his comrades.
The authorities sealed off the Martyrs’ memorial, near the famous Shwedagon pagoda, and this year no foreign diplomats were invited to attend Saturday’s ceremony.
Security was also increased at the Shwedagon pagoda and the offices of the opposition National League for Democracy.
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| Burmese officials and soldiers gather for Martyrs' Day ceremonies on July 19, at the Martyrs' Mausoleum in Rangoon. Martyrs' Day is held annually in memory of the assassination of the country's national hero the late Gen Aung San and eight others, who were gunned down during a cabinet meeting in 1947. Gen. Aung San is the father of detained pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi. (Photo: AP) |
One journalist was briefly detained by police. A photographer said he was physically attacked.
“The police asked me to destroy all the pictures I had taken,” said one Rangoon-based photographer. “They took my name and also took a picture of me.”
Saturday’s ceremony, which included a wreath-laying, marked the 61st anniversary of the assassination of Burma’s independence hero Gen Aung San and eight of his comrades.
Friday, July 18, 2008
Burmese Walking Across US for Human Rights
Burmese Walking Across US for Human Rights
Global Day of Action for 8.8.08 Update: We are a few weeks away from our Global Day of Action on 8.8.08. There will be actions for Burma in a dozen cities around the world. Check out the 8.8.08 page of our website for a list of events as well as action tools to help you spread the word. Want to get your city involved - contact us today!
We want to spotlight some strong activists who have been engaged in an amazing feat to spread word in America about their home of Burma.On March 1, 2008, two men set out on an extraordinary journey to help free Burma. Athein and Zaw Min Htwe set out on a rainy morning from Portland, Oregon, with plans to walk on foot to the United Nations offices in New York city. Taking turns walking, together they have already walked over 2,000 miles through rain, snow, mountains, and deserts. They are not marching for fame or glory, but to raise awareness of the plight of the Burmese people, and to demand change.
Along their march, Athein and Zaw Min Htwe are speaking to the people they meet about Burma and collecting signatures on a petition calling for freedom and liberty in Burma. On August 8, 2008 - the day of the opening ceremony for the Beijing Olympics and the 20th anniversary of the 8-8-88 protests in Burma - they will present their petition to representatives at the UN headquarters in New York.
Athein and Zaw Min Htwe are marching for all the people of Burma, but they can't do it alone.
You can show your support and follow the Walk for Freedom at the blog, http://88portland.wordpress.com/. For more information on how you can support the Walk, or to see if Athein and Zaw Min Htwe will be passing through your town, please email freedom@solidarityprojects.org
Thursday, July 17, 2008
UN Humanitarian Chief to Visit Burma Next Week
The United Nations’ top humanitarian relief official, John Holmes said on Wednesday that he would visit Burma next week to assess the progress of humanitarian relief work in cyclone-affected areas of the country.
“I will be there next week,” Holmes told reporters at the UN headquarters in New York.
Besides the situation in the Irrawaddy delta, which bore the brunt of the damage inflicted by Cyclone Nargis when it hit Burma on May 2-3, Holmes said he would also look into the issue of aid money going into the pockets of the ruling generals through a skewed currency exchange mechanism.
“I will try to get this point clarified,” Holmes said in response to a question about relief funds being lost in the conversion of US dollars into government-issued Foreign Exchange Certificates (FECs), which are officially on par with the dollar but worth substantially less when converted into kyat.
Holmes said would stay in the country for three days. Details of his itinerary are being worked out. He will visit Burma after attending a meeting in Singapore on July 21 to take part in the release of the Post-Nargis Joint Assessment Report with the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) and the Burmese regime.
Explaining the purpose of his visit to Burma, Holmes said: “It is essentially to reassess the situation there for myself. Of course, I will be going to the Irrawaddy delta. I do not know exactly where I will be going there.”
The chief UN humanitarian official said he would be meeting top Burmese officials, possibly including Prime Minister Gen Thein Sein, as well as humanitarian actors in the region.
“By and large, as we heard last week, the problems have not entirely disappeared, but they are containable for the moment. I want to make sure that it stays that way,” he said.
When asked about the FEC problem, which has become an issue of concern among humanitarian relief workers and agencies, Holmes said: “I do not think we are losing significant amounts of money on that exchange rate issue. We can talk about it when I return to see if there really is a problem.”
He added: “My impression from what I heard is that there is not a significant problem. There may be moments when the difference between the dollar and FEC is significant, but by and large it is not.”
Holmes is currently the highest-ranking UN official in charge of humanitarian relief work in Burma and is in contact with leaders of the ruling military junta. Last week, he issued the second flash appeal for Burma, increasing the amount of money needed for relief work in country by nearly $300 million.
Next week’s visit will be his second to Burma, and the first by a top-level UN official since Secretary General Ban Ki-moon briefly visited the country in May.
Meanwhile, the UN Security Council will discuss Burma at its meeting on July 24, the council president for the month of July, Ambassador Le Luong Minh of Vietnam, said on Wednesday.
Le Luong Minh told reporters at the UN headquarters in New York that a consensus has been reached among the 15 members of the body about holding a “consultation” on the current situation in Burma. At the start of the month, when the agenda for July was being discussed, the members had failed to reach a consensus on the exact date of the debate on Burma.
“There was an agreement that a consultation would be scheduled by the end of the month. We intend to schedule it for July 24,” Minh told reporters in response to a question.
The decision by the Security Council comes a day after the spokesperson for the UN secretary general said that the Burmese government had invited Ibrahim Gambari, the UN envoy to Burma, to visit for consultation in mid-August.
“I will be there next week,” Holmes told reporters at the UN headquarters in New York.
Besides the situation in the Irrawaddy delta, which bore the brunt of the damage inflicted by Cyclone Nargis when it hit Burma on May 2-3, Holmes said he would also look into the issue of aid money going into the pockets of the ruling generals through a skewed currency exchange mechanism.
“I will try to get this point clarified,” Holmes said in response to a question about relief funds being lost in the conversion of US dollars into government-issued Foreign Exchange Certificates (FECs), which are officially on par with the dollar but worth substantially less when converted into kyat.
Holmes said would stay in the country for three days. Details of his itinerary are being worked out. He will visit Burma after attending a meeting in Singapore on July 21 to take part in the release of the Post-Nargis Joint Assessment Report with the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) and the Burmese regime.
Explaining the purpose of his visit to Burma, Holmes said: “It is essentially to reassess the situation there for myself. Of course, I will be going to the Irrawaddy delta. I do not know exactly where I will be going there.”
The chief UN humanitarian official said he would be meeting top Burmese officials, possibly including Prime Minister Gen Thein Sein, as well as humanitarian actors in the region.
“By and large, as we heard last week, the problems have not entirely disappeared, but they are containable for the moment. I want to make sure that it stays that way,” he said.
When asked about the FEC problem, which has become an issue of concern among humanitarian relief workers and agencies, Holmes said: “I do not think we are losing significant amounts of money on that exchange rate issue. We can talk about it when I return to see if there really is a problem.”
He added: “My impression from what I heard is that there is not a significant problem. There may be moments when the difference between the dollar and FEC is significant, but by and large it is not.”
Holmes is currently the highest-ranking UN official in charge of humanitarian relief work in Burma and is in contact with leaders of the ruling military junta. Last week, he issued the second flash appeal for Burma, increasing the amount of money needed for relief work in country by nearly $300 million.
Next week’s visit will be his second to Burma, and the first by a top-level UN official since Secretary General Ban Ki-moon briefly visited the country in May.
Meanwhile, the UN Security Council will discuss Burma at its meeting on July 24, the council president for the month of July, Ambassador Le Luong Minh of Vietnam, said on Wednesday.
Le Luong Minh told reporters at the UN headquarters in New York that a consensus has been reached among the 15 members of the body about holding a “consultation” on the current situation in Burma. At the start of the month, when the agenda for July was being discussed, the members had failed to reach a consensus on the exact date of the debate on Burma.
“There was an agreement that a consultation would be scheduled by the end of the month. We intend to schedule it for July 24,” Minh told reporters in response to a question.
The decision by the Security Council comes a day after the spokesperson for the UN secretary general said that the Burmese government had invited Ibrahim Gambari, the UN envoy to Burma, to visit for consultation in mid-August.
Burmese Opposition Group in Exile Opposes Constitution Plan
A group of Burmese opposition members in exile in Thailand has dismissed regime plans to resume drafting a constitution later this week, saying that the finished document would not deliver promised democratic reforms nor protect minority groups.
Speaking at a press conference in the northern Thai border town of Mae Sot, six Burmese leaders said Sunday that they initially took part in the National Convention to draft the constitution believing it was the best hope for democracy.
However, they said they became disenchanted over concerns that the junta—known officially as the State Peace and Development Council—was using the convention to remain in power, so they fled to Thailand.
"This is a sham constitution because only 12 of the convention representatives are elected members of parliament. The rest were hand-picked by the SPDC," said Myint Tun, a member of the country's opposition National League for Democracy who left the convention in 2005 and fled to Thailand. "They are just trying to gain the upper hand so the army can continue ruling the country."
Another convention delegate, Shay Rae, said he was forced by the junta to take part and was called on to represent farmers even though he was a teacher. He abandoned the convention seven years ago and also fled to Thailand.
Most of the six are members of the National Council of the Union of Burma, an exiled pro-democracy group based in Thailand which routinely criticizes the junta. All but Myint Tun have been in Thailand for several years.
A government spokesman could not be immediately reached for comment.
The attack is likely to rattle the junta, as it comes before the National Convention is set to resume drawing up guidelines for the constitution this week. The junta has not said when it will be finished nor when a vote will be held on the document.
The junta says the convention is the first of seven steps on a "roadmap to democracy" which is supposed to culminate in free elections. The junta hand-picked most of the convention's 1,000 delegates.
Critics say the proceedings have been manipulated and should not be taken seriously because opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi is under house arrest and cannot attend. Her National League for Democracy party has boycotted the convention to protest her detention and that of other NLD leaders.
Nobel Peace Prize laureate Suu Kyi has been in prison or under house arrest for more than 12 of the past 18 years.
Burma has been without a constitution since 1988, when its 1974 charter was suspended.
The junta first convened the convention in 1993, but it was aborted in 1996 after NLD delegates walked out in protest, saying it was undemocratic and the military was manipulating the proceedings. The convention was resurrected in 2004.
Speaking at a press conference in the northern Thai border town of Mae Sot, six Burmese leaders said Sunday that they initially took part in the National Convention to draft the constitution believing it was the best hope for democracy.
However, they said they became disenchanted over concerns that the junta—known officially as the State Peace and Development Council—was using the convention to remain in power, so they fled to Thailand.
"This is a sham constitution because only 12 of the convention representatives are elected members of parliament. The rest were hand-picked by the SPDC," said Myint Tun, a member of the country's opposition National League for Democracy who left the convention in 2005 and fled to Thailand. "They are just trying to gain the upper hand so the army can continue ruling the country."
Another convention delegate, Shay Rae, said he was forced by the junta to take part and was called on to represent farmers even though he was a teacher. He abandoned the convention seven years ago and also fled to Thailand.
Most of the six are members of the National Council of the Union of Burma, an exiled pro-democracy group based in Thailand which routinely criticizes the junta. All but Myint Tun have been in Thailand for several years.
A government spokesman could not be immediately reached for comment.
The attack is likely to rattle the junta, as it comes before the National Convention is set to resume drawing up guidelines for the constitution this week. The junta has not said when it will be finished nor when a vote will be held on the document.
The junta says the convention is the first of seven steps on a "roadmap to democracy" which is supposed to culminate in free elections. The junta hand-picked most of the convention's 1,000 delegates.
Critics say the proceedings have been manipulated and should not be taken seriously because opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi is under house arrest and cannot attend. Her National League for Democracy party has boycotted the convention to protest her detention and that of other NLD leaders.
Nobel Peace Prize laureate Suu Kyi has been in prison or under house arrest for more than 12 of the past 18 years.
Burma has been without a constitution since 1988, when its 1974 charter was suspended.
The junta first convened the convention in 1993, but it was aborted in 1996 after NLD delegates walked out in protest, saying it was undemocratic and the military was manipulating the proceedings. The convention was resurrected in 2004.
Wednesday, July 16, 2008
61st Anniversary of Burma's Martyr Day (19th, July 2008)
July 19th 2008.
Burma's Martyr Day.
The Day that All the Burmese People Should Not Forget.
Tuesday, July 15, 2008
Thai Embassy Raises the Bar for Burmese Seeking Visas
The Royal Thai Embassy in Rangoon has made it more difficult for Burmese nationals to visit Thailand, say recent visa seekers.
“It is difficult for first-time applicants,” said one Burmese man who recently applied for a visa. “They have to submit information about everything they own—their homes, their cars, even their phones.”
In the past, applicants only had to show that they had US $600; now, he said, “If you want a Thai tourist visa, you have to show that you have assets valued at 1.8 million kyat ($1,525) or more.”
A Burmese national who recently arrived in Thailand confirmed that the embassy was not readily accepting visa applications, and was penalizing those who used fake documents by making them wait several months before they could reapply.
“Nowadays very few people are applying for Thai visas—far fewer than before Nargis,” she said, referring to the devastating cyclone that hit Burma on May 2-3. “When I went the Thai embassy, I saw just two people waiting for visas.”
According to other recent applicants, there have been long delays in the visa-issuing process for new applicants since the first week of May.
Rangoon travel agencies said that it was unclear if the problems reflected a shift in Thai foreign policy or were simply the result of a decision by embassy officials.
Monsak Jangariyawong, the first secretary of the Royal Thai Embassy in Rangoon, told The Irrawaddy on Monday that there has been no change in tourist-visa policy for new applicants.
“We haven’t changed any practice since Nargis,” he said. “When new applicants apply for Thai tourist visas, they are required to submit financial documents as before. We have been doing this for the past few years.”
Some Burmese observers have suggested that the Thai government may be worried about a possible influx of Burmese seeking employment due to the economic impact of Cyclone Nargis.
Meanwhile, the Bangkok Post reported last week that of the 298,847 Burmese nationals who had entered Thailand over the Friendship Bridge in Mae Sot on one-day border passes in the first half of this year, 86,517 had not returned to Burma.
The paper said that there are an estimated one million Burmese nationals working in Thailand, which offers a limited number of work permits to migrant laborers from neighboring countries.
“It is difficult for first-time applicants,” said one Burmese man who recently applied for a visa. “They have to submit information about everything they own—their homes, their cars, even their phones.”
In the past, applicants only had to show that they had US $600; now, he said, “If you want a Thai tourist visa, you have to show that you have assets valued at 1.8 million kyat ($1,525) or more.”
A Burmese national who recently arrived in Thailand confirmed that the embassy was not readily accepting visa applications, and was penalizing those who used fake documents by making them wait several months before they could reapply.
“Nowadays very few people are applying for Thai visas—far fewer than before Nargis,” she said, referring to the devastating cyclone that hit Burma on May 2-3. “When I went the Thai embassy, I saw just two people waiting for visas.”
According to other recent applicants, there have been long delays in the visa-issuing process for new applicants since the first week of May.
Rangoon travel agencies said that it was unclear if the problems reflected a shift in Thai foreign policy or were simply the result of a decision by embassy officials.
Monsak Jangariyawong, the first secretary of the Royal Thai Embassy in Rangoon, told The Irrawaddy on Monday that there has been no change in tourist-visa policy for new applicants.
“We haven’t changed any practice since Nargis,” he said. “When new applicants apply for Thai tourist visas, they are required to submit financial documents as before. We have been doing this for the past few years.”
Some Burmese observers have suggested that the Thai government may be worried about a possible influx of Burmese seeking employment due to the economic impact of Cyclone Nargis.
Meanwhile, the Bangkok Post reported last week that of the 298,847 Burmese nationals who had entered Thailand over the Friendship Bridge in Mae Sot on one-day border passes in the first half of this year, 86,517 had not returned to Burma.
The paper said that there are an estimated one million Burmese nationals working in Thailand, which offers a limited number of work permits to migrant laborers from neighboring countries.
Friday, July 11, 2008
Junta Media Accuses Western Politicians, Media of Cyclone Opportunism
Burma’s state-run The New Light of Myanmar on Friday accused unnamed western politicians of making political capital out of the Cyclone Nargis disaster.
In a commentary that also slammed the western press coverage of the catastrophe, the official daily said: “In truth, some politicians from the countries of the west bloc exploited the sufferings of storm victims for political gain.”
Two US newspapers, The New York Times and The Washington Post, and The Times of London were accused of irresponsible and untruthful reporting.
They and other western publications had concocted false stories and photos, “stolen news stories” and carried “mock interviews,” the newspaper charged. The reports weren’t believed by most Burmese but still impacted on the goodwill of aid donors, it complained.
The New York Times was singled out for allegedly “creating” stories about starving farmers in the cyclone-devastated areas. Western press reports had also claimed cyclone victims were despairing and without hope, although that wasn’t the case, The New Light of Myanmar said.
The newspaper’s commentator recalled the case of a Washington Post report in 1981 about a heroin victim. The report was disclosed as a fabrication after winning the writer, Janet Cooke, the Pulitzer Prize, the commentator said.
The New Light of Myanmar also questioned the amount of aid “powerful countries” were offering Burma in comparison with the “hundreds of billions of dollars” spent on military engagement in Iraq and Afghanistan.
In a commentary that also slammed the western press coverage of the catastrophe, the official daily said: “In truth, some politicians from the countries of the west bloc exploited the sufferings of storm victims for political gain.”
Two US newspapers, The New York Times and The Washington Post, and The Times of London were accused of irresponsible and untruthful reporting.
They and other western publications had concocted false stories and photos, “stolen news stories” and carried “mock interviews,” the newspaper charged. The reports weren’t believed by most Burmese but still impacted on the goodwill of aid donors, it complained.
The New York Times was singled out for allegedly “creating” stories about starving farmers in the cyclone-devastated areas. Western press reports had also claimed cyclone victims were despairing and without hope, although that wasn’t the case, The New Light of Myanmar said.
The newspaper’s commentator recalled the case of a Washington Post report in 1981 about a heroin victim. The report was disclosed as a fabrication after winning the writer, Janet Cooke, the Pulitzer Prize, the commentator said.
The New Light of Myanmar also questioned the amount of aid “powerful countries” were offering Burma in comparison with the “hundreds of billions of dollars” spent on military engagement in Iraq and Afghanistan.
Thursday, July 10, 2008
Top UN Relief Official Plans to Visit Burma
John Holmes, the UN Under Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator, may soon visit Burma to review the humanitarian relief operation in the Irrawaddy delta, devastated by Cyclone Nargis in early May.
Holmes said: "It is possible I may go back [to Burma]… before too long to see how the operation is proceeding."
No date has been set, but Holms told reporters, "It would be in near future."
Holmes remarks follow the announcement that UN Special Envoy on Burma, Ibrahim Gambari, will visit Burma this month. No date has been announced.
Holmes told reporters that substantial progress has been made in the humanitarian relief work in the Irrawaddy Delta.
Holmes said: "It is possible I may go back [to Burma]… before too long to see how the operation is proceeding."
No date has been set, but Holms told reporters, "It would be in near future."
Holmes remarks follow the announcement that UN Special Envoy on Burma, Ibrahim Gambari, will visit Burma this month. No date has been announced.
 |
| John Holmes, United Nations Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator. (Photo: AP) |
"The relief operation is proceeding,” he said. “The access for international humanitarian relief workers has improved markedly over the last six weeks, though we are still working on that. But, I think, we have made distinct progress."
When a reporter said humanitarian relief workers are still not being given access to the entire delta area, he said: "You are wrong, conditions have changed a lot. They have granted access—not unlimited as we would like—but it is improving all the time."
Holmes said between 250 and 300 people from the UN have had short-term and long-term access and also NGOs are receiving greater access to the cyclone-stricken area.
"The access is improving and is being made easier," he said. Referring to the recent joint assessment report by the UN, Asean and the Burmese regime, Holmes said it was clear that there are unmeet needs, and refugees need further assistance.
"We have not had the second wave of deaths that people feared, a catastrophe following the first, but there are many continuing needs there for relief operations for the next few months," he said.
Meanwhile, the leaders of the world's wealthiest nations meeting at the G8 summit in Japan expressed concern over the political situation in Burma, the White House said on Tuesday.
The G-8 leaders called on the Burmese authorities to release all political detainees including Aung San Suu Kyi, the pro-democracy leader who is under house arrest.
G-8 leaders also called upon the Burmese junta to foster a transition to a legitimate, democratic, civilian government.
The White House said the G-8 leaders expressed their commitment to ensure that aid reaches those affected by Cyclone Nargis. The leaders called on the Burmese government to lift all remaining restrictions on access for foreign aid workers, the White House said.
Monday, July 7, 2008
Chevron's dilemma over its stake in Burma
Ever since Burma's leaders engaged in a bloody crackdown on pro-democracy protests last fall, Congress has pushed to tighten sanctions against the country's ruling generals. And that's put Chevron Corp., the largest U.S. investor in Burma, in the crosshairs.
The San Ramon-based energy giant has a 28 percent stake in the Yadana natural gas field and pipeline, which feeds Asia's growing energy appetite but also helps prop up the Burmese junta. In December, the House passed a bill by the now-deceased Rep. Tom Lantos, D-San Mateo, that would have revoked a tax benefit for Chevron to pressure the company to divest from Burma.
"This legislation will turn off a huge cash spigot for the thuggish Burmese regime," Lantos said last year.
But Chevron now appears to have caught a break: As House and Senate negotiators put the final touches on the Burma Democracy Promotion Act, their aides and human rights groups say they plan to drop the provision, which was not in the Senate version of the bill. The legislation will instead focus on slashing the leadership's revenue from its trade in gemstones and timber and establishing a new position of U.S. envoy for Burma.
In place of the House-passed Chevron measure, lawmakers are pushing compromise language that would encourage Chevron to voluntarily divest from Burma. It would be a slap on the wrist from Congress, one unlikely to sway Chevron executives.
The battle over the Chevron provision has been the last sticking point to passing a bill that has broad support on Capitol Hill. Lawmakers of both parties were shocked by the scenes of monks being beaten in the streets of Rangoon. The junta's refusal to accept foreign aid after a deadly cyclone in May only reinforced the efforts to put the squeeze on the leadership.
The measure by Lantos, who died of esophageal cancer in February, sought to pressure Chevron by revoking its ability to deduct from its U.S. taxes the tax payments it makes to the Burmese junta as part of the Yadana project. The goal was to make it more costly for the firm to do business with Burma - or Myanmar, as its military rulers call it. Congress used the same tactic in the 1980s to battle apartheid in South Africa, and some U.S companies divested.
But Chevron is only a minority stakeholder in the Yadana project, which is managed by France's Total, which holds a 31 percent stake, along with Myanmar Oil and Gas Enterprise, a Burmese state entity, and the Petroleum Authority of Thailand.
"It's pretty clear that this is a very attractive asset and other people would be interested," Chevron Vice Chairman Peter Robertson told The Chronicle last year.
House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Rep. Howard Berman, D-Los Angeles, has been pushing Lantos' bill, arguing that Chevron should not benefit from a tax deduction for its payments to a repressive government.
But Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., a lead sponsor of a 2003 bill that set stiff sanctions against Burma, has taken an opposite view. In a recent interview with Politico, she warned that forcing Chevron to divest could be counterproductive. "Other countries are going to take it over and, most particularly, the Burmese government will take it over. So what is gained by doing this?" she said.
The issue has relevance to the presidential race. The GOP's presumptive nominee, Sen. John McCain of Arizona, introduced an even tougher bill last fall that would have forced Chevron to divest from Burma. But the Senate coalesced around a different bill, sponsored by Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chairman Joseph Biden, D-Del., and Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., which did not include the Chevron provision.
Jennifer Quigley, who's been lobbying the bill for the U.S. Campaign for Burma, said leaving the House's Chevron tax provision in would probably have doomed chances to get a bill through the Senate this year. Her group was more worried about winning other key provisions, including a crackdown on imports of Burmese rubies and jade into the United States, which could cost the junta hundreds of millions in revenue each year.
"Some people wanted to take a stand on Chevron. Other people said let's just get this through," Quigley said. "For us, we want the bill. It's very nice to take a stand, but for us what is most important is getting rid of this regime. Priority No. 1 is how to get legislation that is most effective at targeting the regime."
Quigley said the final bill also is likely to include language to help reduce illegal imports of wood products from Burma, especially teak, another key source of income for the junta.
Chevron acquired its stake in the Yadana and Sein offshore gas fields in the Andaman Sea when it bought its rival Unocal in 2005. Congress banned new investments by U.S. companies in Burma starting in 1997, but Unocal's ownership stake was grandfathered in because its venture began in 1993.
Marco Simons, legal director for EarthRights International, which has been critical of Chevron over human rights abuses linked to the Yadana pipeline, said he agrees that it's unlikely that forcing Chevron to divest would hurt the junta.
"The fact of the matter is whether Chevron is there or not, those dollars are still going to flow to the generals as long as Thailand is still paying the bills (for the natural gas) and the banks are still processing the payments," Simons said. "It may send a signal that the United States is taking democracy in Burma more seriously, but it's not going deprive them of any money, which is really what these projects are all about for the regime."
E-mail Zachary Coile at zcoile@sfchronicle. com.
The San Ramon-based energy giant has a 28 percent stake in the Yadana natural gas field and pipeline, which feeds Asia's growing energy appetite but also helps prop up the Burmese junta. In December, the House passed a bill by the now-deceased Rep. Tom Lantos, D-San Mateo, that would have revoked a tax benefit for Chevron to pressure the company to divest from Burma.
"This legislation will turn off a huge cash spigot for the thuggish Burmese regime," Lantos said last year.
But Chevron now appears to have caught a break: As House and Senate negotiators put the final touches on the Burma Democracy Promotion Act, their aides and human rights groups say they plan to drop the provision, which was not in the Senate version of the bill. The legislation will instead focus on slashing the leadership's revenue from its trade in gemstones and timber and establishing a new position of U.S. envoy for Burma.
In place of the House-passed Chevron measure, lawmakers are pushing compromise language that would encourage Chevron to voluntarily divest from Burma. It would be a slap on the wrist from Congress, one unlikely to sway Chevron executives.
The battle over the Chevron provision has been the last sticking point to passing a bill that has broad support on Capitol Hill. Lawmakers of both parties were shocked by the scenes of monks being beaten in the streets of Rangoon. The junta's refusal to accept foreign aid after a deadly cyclone in May only reinforced the efforts to put the squeeze on the leadership.
A divisive provision
But the provision affecting Chevron has split lawmakers and even divided some human rights groups. The crux of the issue: Would the action against a U.S. oil company have any impact on the junta?The measure by Lantos, who died of esophageal cancer in February, sought to pressure Chevron by revoking its ability to deduct from its U.S. taxes the tax payments it makes to the Burmese junta as part of the Yadana project. The goal was to make it more costly for the firm to do business with Burma - or Myanmar, as its military rulers call it. Congress used the same tactic in the 1980s to battle apartheid in South Africa, and some U.S companies divested.
But Chevron is only a minority stakeholder in the Yadana project, which is managed by France's Total, which holds a 31 percent stake, along with Myanmar Oil and Gas Enterprise, a Burmese state entity, and the Petroleum Authority of Thailand.
Chevron's position
Chevron officials have argued that if it were forced to sell its stake, China, India or another energy-hungry nation would gobble it up, with revenues flowing unimpeded to Burma's military leaders."It's pretty clear that this is a very attractive asset and other people would be interested," Chevron Vice Chairman Peter Robertson told The Chronicle last year.
House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Rep. Howard Berman, D-Los Angeles, has been pushing Lantos' bill, arguing that Chevron should not benefit from a tax deduction for its payments to a repressive government.
But Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., a lead sponsor of a 2003 bill that set stiff sanctions against Burma, has taken an opposite view. In a recent interview with Politico, she warned that forcing Chevron to divest could be counterproductive. "Other countries are going to take it over and, most particularly, the Burmese government will take it over. So what is gained by doing this?" she said.
Compromise in works
Feinstein spokesman Scott Gerber said this week that the senator has not been actively involved in the negotiations, but she backs the compromise that's likely to be announced soon. The bill "will strengthen and expand existing sanctions against Burma," he said.The issue has relevance to the presidential race. The GOP's presumptive nominee, Sen. John McCain of Arizona, introduced an even tougher bill last fall that would have forced Chevron to divest from Burma. But the Senate coalesced around a different bill, sponsored by Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chairman Joseph Biden, D-Del., and Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., which did not include the Chevron provision.
Jennifer Quigley, who's been lobbying the bill for the U.S. Campaign for Burma, said leaving the House's Chevron tax provision in would probably have doomed chances to get a bill through the Senate this year. Her group was more worried about winning other key provisions, including a crackdown on imports of Burmese rubies and jade into the United States, which could cost the junta hundreds of millions in revenue each year.
"Some people wanted to take a stand on Chevron. Other people said let's just get this through," Quigley said. "For us, we want the bill. It's very nice to take a stand, but for us what is most important is getting rid of this regime. Priority No. 1 is how to get legislation that is most effective at targeting the regime."
Quigley said the final bill also is likely to include language to help reduce illegal imports of wood products from Burma, especially teak, another key source of income for the junta.
Main revenue source
Still, natural gas remains the Rangoon government's chief source of revenue, totaling about 45 percent of its $8.7 billion in declared exports in 2007. Despite U.S. and European Union sanctions, the junta has been able to cut lucrative energy deals with its neighbors, including Thailand, China, South Korea, Malaysia and India.Chevron acquired its stake in the Yadana and Sein offshore gas fields in the Andaman Sea when it bought its rival Unocal in 2005. Congress banned new investments by U.S. companies in Burma starting in 1997, but Unocal's ownership stake was grandfathered in because its venture began in 1993.
Marco Simons, legal director for EarthRights International, which has been critical of Chevron over human rights abuses linked to the Yadana pipeline, said he agrees that it's unlikely that forcing Chevron to divest would hurt the junta.
"The fact of the matter is whether Chevron is there or not, those dollars are still going to flow to the generals as long as Thailand is still paying the bills (for the natural gas) and the banks are still processing the payments," Simons said. "It may send a signal that the United States is taking democracy in Burma more seriously, but it's not going deprive them of any money, which is really what these projects are all about for the regime."
E-mail Zachary Coile at zcoile@sfchronicle. com.
This article appeared on page A - 1 of the San Francisco Chronicle
http://www.sfgate. com/cgi-bin/ article.cgi? file=/c/a/ 2008/07/05/ MNS311I24I. DTL
Sunday, July 6, 2008
Aging Vietnamese Woman Battles Corrupt Officials
Most Vietnamese cower when a cop squeezes them for a bribe. Le Hien Duc, a gray-haired 75-year-old grandmother, fights back.
Four-foot-nine and weighing just 88 pounds, she'll take on anyone, from lowly bureaucrats to high-level officials. She e-mails, phones, tracks them down at their offices, confronts them at their homes. "Corruption is definitely an evil, and it is ruining my beloved country," said Duc, a former elementary school teacher who works from dawn until dusk battling graft.
Corruption is perhaps the most vulnerable spot in the country's single-party Communist state—from the traffic cops who pull drivers over for US $3 bribes to the Transportation Ministry officials accused last year of gambling $13 million in public money on British soccer matches.
Corruption persists here in part because officials earning $50 official salaries consider it perfectly acceptable to charge kickbacks for virtually any kind of service, large or small.
As a result, the country routinely fares poorly in international corruption rankings. But in Vietnam, where people respect authority, few dare challenge the system. But many turn to Duc.
"Most of us tremble when we have to deal with police," said Doan Van Hung, a delivery man who recently sought Duc's help. "She is incredibly brave."
Hung's ordeal was typical—a policeman stopped him for speeding and threatened to seize his motorbike unless he paid a $3 bribe—more than a day's average wage.
Corruption among "road bullies," as the Vietnamese traffic police are known, is rampant. But most drivers simply pay up and leave.
Duc tracked down the officer who harassed Hung and filed a complaint with the Hanoi chief of police. The officer was promptly demoted.
The grandmother of eight intervened in another recent case involving school officials who had apparently been pocketing school lunch money for years by making cafeteria staff cut back on the kids' portions.
Local government investigators confirmed the scam. But when the evidence was brought before Hanoi education officials, they did nothing.
Frustrated parents had read about Duc in the newspapers and turned to her for help. She took the case straight to the top.
She said she called the office of the education minister, Nguyen Thien Nhan, about 30 times.
When her messages went unanswered, Duc managed to discover the minister's cell phone number and called him. He promised to have the department's internal investigator look into the case.
"She always knows whom to call," said Nguyen Tan Tien, chairman of the school parents' association.
In Vietnam, most grandmothers stay home and look after their grandchildren. Duc buries herself in the fight against graft.
"Someone must stop it, for the sake of justice," she said.
Duc has spent a lot of time investigating where government and party leaders live and work. If they won't meet her at their offices, she just shows up at their homes.
"Whenever we see her, we know there is a problem somewhere," said Pham Van Tai, an Education Ministry official. "She has pushed us a little too hard."
Duc runs her crusade from her narrow, three-story home in Hanoi, where her desk is covered with stacks of mail from people seeking help from all corners of Vietnam. She spends about two-thirds of her $80 monthly pension on the Internet, phone calls, photocopying and motorbike taxis.
Her work has made enemies.
Last month, people came to her house and told her to butt out of the school lunch money scam.
"Drop the case or start saving money for your coffin," they shouted.
Her children wish she would give up her work.
"She is too old and weak to protect herself," said Pham Minh Hai, Duc's daughter. "She should stay home and play with the kids."
But Duc has no intention of quitting. She says she is following the example of Ho Chi Minh, the revolutionary hero of Vietnam's government.
Like many others of her generation, Duc joined the revolution as a young woman. During Vietnam's war against French colonialists, she spent years in the jungle, decoding messages for the army.
"We gave our blood, sweat and tears," she said. "There is no excuse for anyone to abuse their authority. I cannot stand seeing corrupt officials bully people."
 |
Corruption is perhaps the most vulnerable spot in the country's single-party Communist state—from the traffic cops who pull drivers over for US $3 bribes to the Transportation Ministry officials accused last year of gambling $13 million in public money on British soccer matches.
Corruption persists here in part because officials earning $50 official salaries consider it perfectly acceptable to charge kickbacks for virtually any kind of service, large or small.
As a result, the country routinely fares poorly in international corruption rankings. But in Vietnam, where people respect authority, few dare challenge the system. But many turn to Duc.
"Most of us tremble when we have to deal with police," said Doan Van Hung, a delivery man who recently sought Duc's help. "She is incredibly brave."
Hung's ordeal was typical—a policeman stopped him for speeding and threatened to seize his motorbike unless he paid a $3 bribe—more than a day's average wage.
Corruption among "road bullies," as the Vietnamese traffic police are known, is rampant. But most drivers simply pay up and leave.
Duc tracked down the officer who harassed Hung and filed a complaint with the Hanoi chief of police. The officer was promptly demoted.
The grandmother of eight intervened in another recent case involving school officials who had apparently been pocketing school lunch money for years by making cafeteria staff cut back on the kids' portions.
Local government investigators confirmed the scam. But when the evidence was brought before Hanoi education officials, they did nothing.
Frustrated parents had read about Duc in the newspapers and turned to her for help. She took the case straight to the top.
She said she called the office of the education minister, Nguyen Thien Nhan, about 30 times.
When her messages went unanswered, Duc managed to discover the minister's cell phone number and called him. He promised to have the department's internal investigator look into the case.
"She always knows whom to call," said Nguyen Tan Tien, chairman of the school parents' association.
In Vietnam, most grandmothers stay home and look after their grandchildren. Duc buries herself in the fight against graft.
"Someone must stop it, for the sake of justice," she said.
Duc has spent a lot of time investigating where government and party leaders live and work. If they won't meet her at their offices, she just shows up at their homes.
"Whenever we see her, we know there is a problem somewhere," said Pham Van Tai, an Education Ministry official. "She has pushed us a little too hard."
Duc runs her crusade from her narrow, three-story home in Hanoi, where her desk is covered with stacks of mail from people seeking help from all corners of Vietnam. She spends about two-thirds of her $80 monthly pension on the Internet, phone calls, photocopying and motorbike taxis.
Her work has made enemies.
Last month, people came to her house and told her to butt out of the school lunch money scam.
"Drop the case or start saving money for your coffin," they shouted.
Her children wish she would give up her work.
"She is too old and weak to protect herself," said Pham Minh Hai, Duc's daughter. "She should stay home and play with the kids."
But Duc has no intention of quitting. She says she is following the example of Ho Chi Minh, the revolutionary hero of Vietnam's government.
Like many others of her generation, Duc joined the revolution as a young woman. During Vietnam's war against French colonialists, she spent years in the jungle, decoding messages for the army.
"We gave our blood, sweat and tears," she said. "There is no excuse for anyone to abuse their authority. I cannot stand seeing corrupt officials bully people."
Saturday, July 5, 2008
Burma's longest-held political prisoner
Bangkok, Thailand — U Win Tin, a veteran Burmese journalist, is the world’s longest serving prisoner of conscience.
Two press freedom associations, Reporters Without Borders and the Burma Media Association, have issued a statement calling for the release of the veteran journalist, who has spent 19 years in solitary confinement under the inhumane junta’s detention.
His health has deteriorated in the past few days. U Win Tin suffers from a serious heart condition and is being treated at the Rangoon General Hospital where he is confined to a tiny box cell designed for political prisoners.
“It will be exactly 19 years on July 4 since Burma’s military arrested Win Tin,” the groups’ statement said. “The government, which has a responsibility to protect the life of its citizens, should now release him,” it went on.
The famous imprisoned journalist has constantly refused to sign a confession promising to abandon his political career as a condition of his release. The 79-year-old was admitted to the hospital for a second surgical treatment for a hernia in January. The first surgery was in March 1995.
The former editor-in-chief of The Hantharwaddy Daily of Mandalay was awarded the UNESCO/Guillermo Cano World Press Freedom Prize, the World Association of Newspapers' Golden Pen of Freedom Award and Reporters without Border/Foundation de France Prize for his efforts to defend and promote freedom of expression.
Burma has been called “the world's largest prison for prisoners of conscience” including political prisoners and journalists. In addition to being one of Burma's most established journalists, U Win Tin is an executive member of the National League for Democracy. He has spent one-fourth of his life in prison.
U Win Tin has been imprisoned since July 4, 1989, in a special cell of the infamous Insein Prison in Rangoon. He was convicted and sentenced to three consecutive prison terms for a total of 21 years. One of the charges against him stems from his 1995 human rights abuses report to Yozo Yokota, the U.N. special rapporteur for human rights in Burma.
U Win Tin was also imprisoned because of his senior position as key consultant to Aung San Suu Kyi, leader of the National League for Democracy. Additional years were added to his sentence because of his attempts to inform the United Nations about human rights violations in prisons under the military rule. Military rulers also accused him of writing political commentaries and poems to be circulated among political prisoners in Insein Prison, where possession of writing materials was forbidden.
The journalist told a friend who was allowed to visit him in 2007: "Two prison officers asked me at a special meeting last week whether I would resume political activities if I were released. I told them that I will definitely do so since it is my duty as a citizen to strive for democracy."
In 1996, military intelligence personnel regularly visited U Win Tin in prison in order to examine his political stand. They took him to their office in the prison and questioned him on various topics. They frequently tried to persuade him to join the junta. But U Win Tin always turned down their offers.
U Win Tin told the author, who was in the same cell block at that time, about an incident with the authorities. “It happened in 1991,” he said. “They took me out of my cell to an exhibition – ‘The Real Story behind the Big Waves and Strong Winds’ – held at Envoy Hall in Rangoon. The aim of the exhibition was to deplore the 1988 uprising as a riot created by destructive elements and terrorists,” said U Win Tin.
He recounted that there was a big character poster at the doorway of the exhibition saying, “Only when the Tatmadaw (military) is strong, will the nation be strong.” There were many galleries in the show. Each gallery highlighted the role of the army and emphasized that it was the sole force that could defend the nation.
The show also described the junta's discrimination against the role of the democratic institutions and societies. “The final conclusion is that no one except the generals can protect the unity of the nation including its sovereignty," said U Win Tin.
After witnessing the show, the authorities asked U Win Tin what he thought about the exhibition. They gave him some paper and a pen and told him to write down his opinion. "I wrote down my criticism. I used 25 sheets of paper. It was a blunt commentary. I made my explanation in a sense of sincerity and openness. But it irritated them severely," he told me later.
First of all, he criticized the army’s motto, “Only when the army is strong will the country be strong.”
“It's the logic of the generals to consolidate militarism in Burma,” he explained to me later. ‘Their logic tells us that they are more important than the people. They used to say they are the saviors of the country; that’s why they grabbed the sovereign power. That means they neglect the people’s wishes.”
Thus he wrote: “The slogan tells us that Burma is going against a policy of peace and prosperity.” He went on to explain his understanding of the role of the army as the guardian of the nation but with no obligation to be involved in administrative affairs.
He said, “The real thing is that the military comes out of the womb of the people. Thus, the slogan must be like this: ‘The people are the only parents of the military.’ Anyone who does not care about his own parents is a rogue,” he pointed out to the generals.
He also emphasized that if the generals really loved peace and wanted prosperity for the nation, they needed to truthfully reflect on their limitations. The generals might want what’s best for the country, but they did not know how to handle the entire state of affairs. They are accustomed to mismanagement.
“Eventually, I came straight to the point: The army must go back to the barracks. That will make everything better in Burma,” he told me plainly.
The junta was very disgruntled with his criticism and accused him of advising Daw Aung San Suu Kyi to launch a civil disobedience campaign in 1989. Then, they made another lawsuit against him and increased his jail term by 11 years.
They put him alone in his cell. The cell was 8.5 by 11.5 feet. There was only a bamboo mat on the concrete floor. He had to sleep, eat, walk and use the toilet in the same place. He could not see the sun, the moon or the stars. He was intentionally barred from breathing fresh air, tasting nourishing food and drinking a drop of fresh water. The worst thing was throwing the old writer into solitary confinement in such a cage for two decades.
In 1994, U.S. Congressman Bill Richardson met U Win Tin at Insein jail. Since that time he has continuously suffered from various health problems including his hernia, heart disease, failing eyesight and hemorrhoids. It is a surprise to everyone how tough this gallant journalist is.
For the junta, U Win Tin is really a man of steel. Although they wish to defeat him, they could never do it.
U Win Tin’s case is a good example of human rights violations under an inhumane regime. Article 5 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights says: “No one shall be subjected to torture or to cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment.”
But, the 79-year-old-man has been suffering a variety of inhumane tortures and unjust punishments for 19 years. The United Nations must take responsibility to flex its muscles when human rights are ignored by such an unmanageable regime as that in Burma.
Friday, July 4, 2008
Asian Poverty Drops but Inequality Rises, UN Says
Rapid economic growth has lifted millions in Asia out of extreme poverty, but the continent has at the same time experienced a dramatic rise in income inequality, the UN said in a report Monday.
The UN report was released to mark the midway point of a 15-year global development plan—dubbed Millennium Development Goals—that targets improvements in various social and economic indicators.
The worldwide report said the greatest progress was made in East Asia, including China and South Korea, where the proportion of people living in extreme poverty fell to 9.9 percent in 2004 from 33 percent in 1990, in part because of rapid economic growth.
In Southeast Asia, the ratio of people living in extreme poverty dropped to 6.8 percent in 2004 from 20.8 percent in 1990, according to the new statistics. Extreme poverty is defined as an income the equivalent of US $1 a day, or less.
"At this rate, Asia is on target to meet the goal of cutting extreme poverty by half by 2015," said Shigeru Muchida, deputy executive secretary of the UN's Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific. World leaders at a summit in 2000 adopted the 2015 target date.
The report also highlighted what officials said was a worrying trend in rising income inequality within and among countries in the Asia-Pacific region. Widening income inequality is of particular concern in East Asia, especially China, Muchida said.
The share of income of the poorest 25 percent of the population in the region declined to 4.5 percent in 2004 from 7.3 percent in 1990, contrasting with sub-Saharan Africa, where the share of income of the bottom 25 percent remained the same at 3.4 percent.
Overall success in achieving the millennium goals is also being hindered by a number of challenges such as slow progress in improving child nutrition, gender inequality and unplanned urbanization, said the report.
South and Southeast Asia are still among regions with the highest percentage of children under 5 suffering from malnutrition, the report said, warning Asia would fall short of reaching the target of halving the proportion of underweight children—a key statistic in measuring global hunger—if the current trend continues.
Progress in promoting gender equality in Asia remained slow, with a large number of women still facing employment discrimination and receiving poor health care, the report said.
Only a little more than one-third of women in South Asia received medical attention from health care personnel when giving birth, the report said. The report didn't break down the statistics by nation.
The UN report was released to mark the midway point of a 15-year global development plan—dubbed Millennium Development Goals—that targets improvements in various social and economic indicators.
The worldwide report said the greatest progress was made in East Asia, including China and South Korea, where the proportion of people living in extreme poverty fell to 9.9 percent in 2004 from 33 percent in 1990, in part because of rapid economic growth.
In Southeast Asia, the ratio of people living in extreme poverty dropped to 6.8 percent in 2004 from 20.8 percent in 1990, according to the new statistics. Extreme poverty is defined as an income the equivalent of US $1 a day, or less.
"At this rate, Asia is on target to meet the goal of cutting extreme poverty by half by 2015," said Shigeru Muchida, deputy executive secretary of the UN's Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific. World leaders at a summit in 2000 adopted the 2015 target date.
The report also highlighted what officials said was a worrying trend in rising income inequality within and among countries in the Asia-Pacific region. Widening income inequality is of particular concern in East Asia, especially China, Muchida said.
The share of income of the poorest 25 percent of the population in the region declined to 4.5 percent in 2004 from 7.3 percent in 1990, contrasting with sub-Saharan Africa, where the share of income of the bottom 25 percent remained the same at 3.4 percent.
Overall success in achieving the millennium goals is also being hindered by a number of challenges such as slow progress in improving child nutrition, gender inequality and unplanned urbanization, said the report.
South and Southeast Asia are still among regions with the highest percentage of children under 5 suffering from malnutrition, the report said, warning Asia would fall short of reaching the target of halving the proportion of underweight children—a key statistic in measuring global hunger—if the current trend continues.
Progress in promoting gender equality in Asia remained slow, with a large number of women still facing employment discrimination and receiving poor health care, the report said.
Only a little more than one-third of women in South Asia received medical attention from health care personnel when giving birth, the report said. The report didn't break down the statistics by nation.
Thursday, July 3, 2008
Canadian Senior gives $110K donation to Burma Victims
The Canadian Press
Fri Jun. 27 2008
TORONTO — A Toronto senior has offered up what's thought to be the largest private Canadian donation to date to help survivors of Burma's cyclone.
Joseph Lariviere donated $110,000 to the Burmese Buddhist Association of Ontario earlier this week for its relief program for Burma.
The abbot of the Toronto temple where Lariviere offered his donation says at first he didn't believe it.
He says the association is touched by the generosity of seniors but is checking to make sure they'll have enough money left to live on.
The association has raised about $300,000 to date to help survivors of the May 2 storm in Burma.
Canadians have donated about $8 million to cyclone relief for Burma.
Fri Jun. 27 2008
TORONTO — A Toronto senior has offered up what's thought to be the largest private Canadian donation to date to help survivors of Burma's cyclone.
Joseph Lariviere donated $110,000 to the Burmese Buddhist Association of Ontario earlier this week for its relief program for Burma.
The abbot of the Toronto temple where Lariviere offered his donation says at first he didn't believe it.
He says the association is touched by the generosity of seniors but is checking to make sure they'll have enough money left to live on.
The association has raised about $300,000 to date to help survivors of the May 2 storm in Burma.
Canadians have donated about $8 million to cyclone relief for Burma.
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