Burmese Internet Users Share Video, Documents about North Korea

Amid revelations about recent secret meetings between Burmese and North Korean leaders and growing concerns that the two countries may be cooperating in illegal weapons programs, a video showing the 1983 bombing of the Martyr’s Mausoleum in Rangoon has attracted strong interest among Burmese Internet users.

The video, which has been on the Web site Youtube for at least a year, has suddenly become a big hit among Burmese both inside and outside the country, reminding them of a savage incident that resulted in the severing of relations between the two countries two-and-a-half decades ago.   

Apparently taken from Japanese news footage, the video shows a blast that killed 19 people, including 16 South Korean officials. The attack, by North Korean agents, was targeted at former South Korean President Chun Doo-hwan, who escaped death by being a few minutes late for a wreath-laying ceremony at the monument to Aung San and other assassinated leaders of Burma’s independence movement.

“The video footage is horrific, showing the killing and injuring of South Korean and Burmese officials. It reveals North Korea’s cruelty,” said an Internet user in Rangoon, Burma’s largest city.

The interest in the video comes amid growing evidence that Naypyidaw and Pyongyang are forging stronger military ties. Over the past two weeks, a series of documents have been leaked to exiled Burmese and international media organizations showing meetings between senior Burmese and North Korean military leaders.

“I am seriously wondering how these documents, including an MoU [Memorandum of Understanding] signed in North Korea, got out of Burma,” said one journalist in Rangoon.

The MoU appears in a top-secret document detailing a visit to North Korea by the Burmese junta’s No 3, Gen Thura Shwe Mann, and is related to North Korean technical assistance in the construction of a maze of tunnels in the Burmese regime’s capital of Naypyidaw.

Electronic copies of the MoU have been spreading widely among Internet users in Burma.

Some Burmese political analysts say they believe the documents were leaked by moderate military officials who are not happy with the Burmese senior leadership’s decision to restore diplomatic and military ties with North Korea.

“There are many moderate military officials who dislike what Snr-Gen Than Shwe did with North Korea, but they didn’t dare to criticize Than Shwe,” said a retired military official from Rangoon.

“Many military commanders don’t like North Korea, because North Korean agents killed members of a visiting South Korean delegation and Burmese officials on Burmese land,” he added. “These confidential documents may have come from military officials who don’t want diplomatic and military relations with North Korea.”

Burma’s ruling military council has been sending secret delegations to North Korea since 1999. A North Korean delegation led by Deputy Foreign Minister Park Kil-yon met with his counterpart, Khin Maung Win, in Rangoon in June 2001.

Win Tin, a prominent member of Burma’s main opposition party, the National League for Democracy, said that the growing relationship between the two pariah states would likely pose serious challenges for the international community.

Quoting a Burmese proverb, he added: “It is look like saintly people in pursuit of virtue seek each other’s company.”

Japanese Police Block Suspected Missile Technology Exports for Burma

Japanese police arrested three top businessmen on Monday on suspicion of attempting to export to Burma a measuring instrument that could be used to develop long-range ballistic missile systems, Japanese newspapers reported. 

Accordingly to the newspaper Yomiuri Shimbun, Japanese police initially believed that the three—all of them presidents of Japanese companies—were trying to export the device to North Korea via Burma.

But then suspicions hardened that the nominal North Korean importer had exported other missile development-related equipment to Burma, leading the police to believe that “North Korea was attempting to promote the transfer of missile technologies, such as its Taepodong system, to Myanmar [Burma].”

The three businessmen, arrested on suspicion of violating the Foreign Exchange and Foreign Trade Law, were identified as Lee Kyoung Ho, 41, an ethnic Korean resident and  president of the trading firm Toko Boeki; Miaki Katsuki, 75, president of a manufacturing firm; and Yasuhiko Muto, 57, president of an export agency.

According to the police, the three conspired to export the magnetic measuring device to Burma via Malaysia around January 2009 at a price of about 7 million yen (US $73,000), the newspaper report said.

Export of the device is restricted under regulations that prohibit exports of products that could be used for weapons of mass destruction.

The newspaper said that around September 2008, the company had also tried to export the same instrument to Burma’s Ministry for Industry 2, which plays a key supporting role in Burma's nuclear program as the chairman of the Myanmar [Burma] Atomic Energy Committee.

The Japanese newspaper report said both attempts to export the device were aborted immediately before shipment when Japan's Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry notified the company that it had failed to submit an export application.

The export attempts were based on an order by the Beijing office of New East International Trading Ltd, based in Hong Kong, in early 2008. The firm is believed to be under the direct control of the Second Economic Committee of the Pyongyang's Workers' Party of Korea. The committee is responsible for the party's military procurement.

North Korea has a record of selling arms and military technology to Burma. It is suspected that this may include secret nuclear technology.

In 2004, a high-ranking US government official said North Korea had proposed the sale of missiles to Burma.

A North Korean cargo ship, Kang Nam 1, left a North Korean port reportedly for Burma on June 17, and is believed to be carrying weapons, missile parts or possibly even nuclear materials. A US Naval ship is shadowing the ship, which is being monitored under UN sanctions.

Tunnel Construction Pictures Spark Questions

Is the North Korean involvement in advising and building underground tunnels in Burma concentrated on military-based activities, or does it also include hydropower projects which are scattered around the country?

That is one of the questions raised by Burmese civil engineers living inside and outside Burma, since photographs of a tunnel construction site were posted on news Web sites in recent weeks including the Democratic Voice of Burma, Yale Global online and The Irrawaddy.

Unsolicited photographs and video were published in recent weeks from a number of sources including the Burmese military and Burmese activists.

Some of the photographs showing tunnel construction were sent to The Irrawaddy by an organization calling itself the Peace Creation Group, an underground group in Burma.

When The Irrawaddy editors contacted members of the group, they said the photographs were taken around Naypyidaw, but they had no knowledge of what the photographs showed.

Some images appear to show civilian workers in blue-colored uniforms, other people who appear to be foreigners from Asia, Burmese military officers, and normal construction site workers. Workers with the Ministry of Electricity normally wear blue-colored uniforms.

Burmese engineers inside and outside the country noted that the military regime currently has 12 hydropower projects scheduled, including the Ye Ywa hydropower project, 31 miles southeast of Mandalay, the largest in the country.

“I am wondering whether these photos are for hydropower projects or military purposes,” wrote one civil engineer who worked on the Paunglaung hydropower project near Naypyidaw.

“As for me, I can’t distinguish which one is military or for hydropower projects,” he said. “Hydropower project tunnels are quite large, [and] are built underground [and sometimes in] mountains,” he wrote.

Burma’s directorate of military engineers, along with private construction contractors, is involved in implementing hydropower projects and underground tunnels.

Suspicions about the exact purposes of tunnel construction in Burma were heightened recently after accounts surfaced about Burmese-North Korean military cooperation in the areas of military hardware procurement and tunnel construction projects.

According to a MoU signed between Burma and North Korea which has been obtained by The Irrawaddy, Burma plans to build a military headquarter facility with a maze of underground tunnels around Naypyidaw, the remote capital.

N. Korean Engineers Assist Burmese Tunneling Projects

 
High velocity jets are used to smooth rock faces. (Photo: Peace Creation Group/ The Irrawaddy)

North Korean engineers are helping Burma build tunnel complexes, not only in and around the capital, Naypyidaw, but at other strategic locations. The Irrawaddy has come into the possession of a series of photographs illustrating the extent of the North Korean involvement.

Burma Denies Knowledge of North Korean Vessel’s Destination

Burma's state-owned media announced that it had “no information” on the North Korean- flagged cargo ship Kang Nam 1 being tracked by a US warship while reportedly enroute to a port near Rangoon.

The state-owned newspaper The New Light of Myanmar said on Thursday that foreign news agencies have been "spreading rumors" about the North Korean cargo vessel that left Nampo port last week.

"The authorities concerned have no information about the Kang Nam 1 itself as reported by foreign news agencies," the report said.

The report said that another cargo North Korean vessel, the MV Dumangang, is due to arrive in Rangoon from Kolkata in India on June 27 with a shipment of about 8,000 tons of rice.

South Korea’s YTN television news channel, citing an unnamed intelligence source, reported on Sunday that the Kang Nam 1 was suspected of carrying missiles or related parts and was heading for Burma via Singapore.

Earlier, a port official in Rangoon told The Irrawaddy that the North Korean ship would dock at Thilawa port, some 20 miles (30 kilometers) south of Rangoon, in the next few days.

A UN Security Council resolution passed earlier this month, in response to the North Korea’s May 25 nuclear test, prohibits Pyongyang from exporting or importing any weapons. It calls on UN states to intercept any ships believed to hold illicit material.

A US guided-missile destroyer, the USS John S. McCain, might intercept the Kang Nam 1. However, the United States could also wait to see if the ship attempts to refuel in Singapore.

Singapore’s maritime and port authority said on Thursday that it had not received any information that the ship had requested to dock in the city-state, Agency France Presse reported.

While the South Korean intelligence agency believes the ship is carrying small arms for the Burmese military government, some analysts said concerns about unconventional weapon proliferation to Burma are not totally unfounded.

"Given North Korea's nuclear trade to Syria, its attempts to sell Scuds to Myanmar [Burma], and its ongoing sales of conventional arms, there's reason to be worried about a WMD [weapons of mass destruction] relationship," Michael Green, an Asia expert and former adviser to then-President George W. Bush told the Wall Street Journal on Tuesday.

Analysts at Yale University several weeks ago released photographs of workers constructing a network of tunnels beneath Burma's capital Naypyidaw with North Korean coworkers.

Burma sends mortars to Shan State

The Burmese government has reinforced Burmese forces in Mong Tong Township, Shan State, due to growing tension with the United Wa State Army (UWSA), according to sources close to an armed group in Shan State.

Speaking to The Irrawaddy on Tuesday, Sai Sheng Murng, the deputy spokesman of the rival Shan State Army-South (SSA) said seven M120 120 mm mortars were sent to reinforce Burmese Infantry Battalion No 65 on June 20.

The battalion is based in Nakawngmu village, Pong Pa Khem Sub-Township, Mong Tong Township, in eastern Shan State, which is about 29 kilometers from the Thai-Burma border. 

The source said the reinforcement may have been made in preparation for a possible military offensive against the UWSA if tension with the group continues growing.

According to a source on the Sino-Burmese border, the mortar reinforcements have been made close to UWSA military region 171, where Burmese army leaders have put pressure on the UWSA to withdraw from strategic positions in southern Shan State along the Thai-Burmese border. However, UWSA leaders have refused to withdraw its troops from the area.

The UWSA has rejected a request by the Burmese junta to turn their forces into border guards. The group, which is the most powerful ethnic armed ceasefire group in Burma, has 23,000 troops.

Mai Aik Phone, who is an observer of the UWSA, said the group was watching closely the current attempts by the Burmese military to transform ethnic armed forces into border guards. The UWSA, meanwhile, has warned its people to prepare for the worst. However, they said that they would try to negotiate with the Burmese government before fighting.

Due to heavy pressure on the Burmese government by the international community over the ongoing trial of pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi, the Burmese government would be unlikely take any direct action against the UWSA for the moment, according to the sources.

Meanwhile, the Burmese Army launched a military offensive against the Karen National Liberation Army (KNLA) early in June. The joint troops of the Burmese Army and Democratic Karen Buddhist Army (DKBA) seized the headquarters of KNLA Brigade 7, which was a main base near the Thai-Burma border. The attack has forced an estimated 4,000 Karen people to flee to Thailand.

The Burmese junta is trying to transform all ethnic armed ceasefire groups in the country into border guards ahead of elections they plan to hold in 2010.

However, many ethnic armed ceasefire groups do not want to live under the control of the Burmese Army, and they have refused to disarm and become border guards.

Under the junta’s scheme, the Burmese military will have more control over the armed ceasefire groups. Each border guard battalion would consist of 326 troops, including 30 from the Burmese army. Three of these would be Burmese officers with administrative positions.

The Burmese military junta No. 2 Gen Maung Aye visited China to talk about the ethnic armed ceasefire groups in Shan State last week.

The Sino-Burmese border sources said that Gen Maung Aye failed to persuade China to put pressure on the groups. China refused to use its influence in the area because it wants a stable border in Shan Sate in order to run oil and gas pipelines through the area, according to the sources.

Beijing is scheduled to begin constructing the pipelines, which have to pass through areas of Shan State controlled by the ethnic armed groups, in September 2009.

Seventeen insurgent groups have signed ceasefire agreements with the ruling generals since 1989, according to official Burmese reports.

Russia Rejects Pressuring Burma

The Russia Foreign Ministry Department in Moscow has rejected using political and economic pressure to influence the Burmese government, said Moscow’s Itar-Tass Russian News Agency on Sunday. 

According to the news website, www. itar-tass.com, the Russia Foreign Ministry Department said that Russia opposed attempts to internationalize the internal situation in Burma as it did not endanger peace and security in the region or in the world at large.

“In our opinion, the political and economic pressure on that country is counterproductive, as it enhances isolationist feelings of the Myanmar military and exacerbates the [poor] socioeconomic position of citizens,” the department said.

A Russian diplomat in Thailand, who participated at the forum on Burma held at Chulalongkorn University on the anniversary of Aung San Suu Kyi’s 64th birthday on Friday, June 19, said, “We don’t see Burma as a threat and danger to world security.”

He also rejected Burmese activists’ calls on the UN to isolate the Burmese military government from the world.

The Russian Foreign Ministry Department said that they hoped the trial of Burma’s opposition leader Suu Kyi would be unbiased and strictly comply with national laws and humanitarian standards, and that it would take into account international opinion.

Suu Kyi is being charged by the Burmese government and held in Rangoon’s Insein prison on charges of violating her house arrest after an American man swam to her lakeside home. If she is found guilty, she could be sentenced to five years in prison. She has already served more than 13 years in detention under house arrest.

Meanwhile, Burmese activists and the international community have called on the UN to put more pressure on the Burmese government to release Suu Kyi. The activists have also called for Asean to suspend Burma as a member of the organization.

Russia has kept a strong relationship with the Burmese military, and several thousand Burmese military officials and technicians have studied in Russia.

In 2007, Russia’s federal nuclear agency, Rosatom, announced they were collaborating in the construction of a 10 megawatt nuclear reactor in Burma. According to the Russians and the Burmese, the small reactor could only be used for the production of isotopes for use in the medical, agricultural and industrial sectors.

Russia and China, who are permanent members of the UN Security Council, have opposed putting the Burma issue on the agenda at the UN Security Council.

The two countries have kept strong relationships with the Burmese government and have rarely criticized the Burmese government.

However, China recently told Burmese junta No.2 Gen Maung Aye to promote democracy in the country when he visited China last week.

Suu Kyi’s 64th Birthday Celebrated amid Repression

While celebrations of the 64th birthday of Burma’s pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi were freely held around the world on Friday, her supporters in Burma celebrated her birthday under the junta’s tight repression.

National League for Democracy (NLD) sources said supporters held a religious ceremony to mark her birthday early Friday morning at party headquarters. However, authorities harassed one monastery not to send monks to perform the ceremony.

Two guitarists perform songs dedicated to pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi during a celebration to mark the detained leader's 64th birthday at the headquarters of the National League for Democracy on Friday. (Photo: AP)

About five hundred people including journalists attended the birthday ceremony at NLD headquarters in Rangoon.

“First we invited five monks from the well-known Maha Si Monastery. However, authorities prevented those monks from coming,” a NLD source told The Irrawaddy.

“So we invited monks from other monasteries,” he said. “But only four monks dared to come to our office. We held the Buddhist ceremony for her birthday with four monks.”

In the Buddhist tradition, at least five monks should be present to conduct a religious ceremony.

A highlight of the celebrations at the Rangoon headquarters of the National League for Democracy on Friday morning was a musical rendition by NLD youth members of Rudyard Kipling’s poem “If,” a popular composition encouraging strength of character and steadfastness. (Photo: The Irrawaddy)

Burmese monks, who led the mass demonstrations in September 2007, are under close watch by security forces. Authorities do not want to see close ties between monks and members of the main opposition NLD party, say observers.

According to NLD sources, four monks who participated in the birthday ceremony were later contacted by authorities. It is not known if they were arrested or just questioned.

In keeping with a tradition on Suu Kyi’s birthday, the NLD granted scholarship to 130 children of political prisoners.

“Last year, we gave grants to 80 children,” said Than Aye, a NLD member who directs the NLD scholarship program.

Apart from the Buddhist ceremony, the NLD also held other observances for the birthday event. Suu Kyi’s supporters freed 65 birds and prayed for her release. Rangoon residents said that authorities banned bird selling around some pagodas to prevent people from celebrating her birthday. In Burmese tradition, people free birds when they want a loved one to be free of a hindrance or obstacle.

Birthday celebrations at the Rangoon headquarters of the National League for Democracy were attended by NLD members and their leaders and also a number of ethnic representatives. (Photo: The Irrawaddy)

Also, NLD members read Rudyard Kipling’s poem entitled “If,” which was translated by Suu Kyi from English to Burmese.

Ordinary citizens celebrated Suu Kyi’s birthday in various ways.

“Today I went to Shwe Dagon Pagoda and lighted 64 candles before a Buddha statue at the Tuesday corner of the pagoda,” said a student at Dagon University in Rangoon. Suu Kyi was born on Tuesday. “I pray for her health and for her to be able to work freely on political activities.”

Since last Thursday, security forces in Rangoon and other large cities have been on alert. Rangoon residents said securities forces have assumed positions at significant intersections and military trucks patrol the city.

Celebrity Birthday Wishes for Daw Aung San Suu Kyi's 64th Birthday

Hollywood celebrities, singers, writers and dignitaries tweeted, uploaded and signed petitions for the release of Burma's opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi, who turned 64 in prison Friday. Here are excerpts from birthday messages that appear on a Web site created in her honor: http://64forsuu.org

— "Nineteen years ago, the Burmese people chose Aung San Suu Kyi as their next leader. For most of those 19 years she has been kept under house arrest by the military junta that runs the country. We must not stand by as she is silenced again. Now is the time for the international community to speak with one voice: Free Aung San Suu Kyi."

(signed by dozens including George Clooney, Drew Barrymore, David Beckham, Bono, Matthew Broderick, Sandra Bullock, James Carville, Daniel Craig, John Cusack, Matt Damon, Robert De Niro, Jake Gyllenhaal, Vaclav Havel, Helen Hunt, Anjelica Huston, Scarlett Johansson, Nicole Kidman, Ashton Kutcher, Norman Lear, Madonna, Mary Matalin, Sarah Jessica Parker, Brad Pitt, Julia Roberts, Meg Ryan, George Soros, Steven Spielberg, Meryl Streep, Archbishop Desmond Tutu, Naomi Watts, Elie Wiesel, Owen Wilson)


Paul McCartney. (Photo: AP)
— Paul McCartney wrote: "Aung San Suu Kyi is an inspiration to her country and to the rest of the world."

U2's Bono (Photo: AP)
— Bono posted lyrics from U2's 2001 single "Walk on," which was written for Suu Kyi: "Packing a suitcase for a place none of us has been/A place that has to be believed to be seen/You could have flown away/A singing bird in an open cage/Who will only fly, fly for freedom/ ... Walk on, walk on/Stay safe tonight."

James Cameron (Photo: AP)
— Director James Cameron wrote: "Aung San Suu Kyi is a hero of mine because she stands up for human rights and dignity for the people of Burma, and for all people. I admire her because the heroes of many of the movies that I make stand up against injustice. While my heroes are fictional, Aung San Suu Kyi is a real-life hero, and she needs help from you."

Salman Rushdie (Source: wordpress.com)
— Author Salman Rushdie wrote: "On this day, my birthday and yours, I always remember your long ordeal and silently applaud your endurance. This year, silence is impossible... It is your trial, not your struggle that is unjust. On this day, on every day, I am with you."

Richard Branson (Source: businessweek.com)
— Richard Branson made a video tribute: "Happy 64th birthday Aung San Suu Kyi. We all support your incredible commitment to the people of Burma. Your unshakable moral courage is a shining light to all of us. Aung San has given her life to the people of Burma. It is time now for us to stand up and act to stop her unfair persecution."

US Tells Daw Aung San Suu Kyi Inspires All who Love Freedom, Democracy

WASHINGTON — In a message marking Friday’s birthday of Burmese opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi, the US State Department says the 64-year-old Nobel Peace Prize laureate inspires all who support freedom and democracy.

Politicians, human rights activists and personalities from across the United States joined the State Department in congratulating Suu Kyi and calling on the regime to halt her trial and release her.

Protesters places a birthday cake in-between the words 'Not Guilty' during their picket outside the Burmese Embassy at Manila financial district of Makati city, Philippines, to mark the 64th birthday of jailed Burmese Nobel Peace laureate. (Photo: AP)

“We call on the Burmese authorities to drop those charges and release Aung San Suu Kyi immediately,” said State Department Spokesman Ian Kelly.
Sadly, though, she will once again spend her birthday in confinement–isolated from her family, friends and the Burmese people–as Burmese authorities pursue unjustified and indefensible charges against her, Kelly said.

US House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi said the continued detention of Suu Kyi deserved the full condemnation of the international community.

“A clear message must be sent that Aung San Suu Kyi and all other prisoners of conscience in Burma must be released, immediately and unconditionally,” she said.

“Aung San Suu Kyi has made every conceivable sacrifice that could be asked from any leader.  She has seen her supporters beaten, tortured and killed yet she has never responded to hatred and violence in kind.  All she has ever asked for is peaceful dialogue and to play a role in the future of her country,” Pelosi said.


Supporters of Burmese opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi release birds to celebrate her birthday in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia on June 19. (Photo: Reuters)
In a 64-word message posted on the Web site www.64forsuu.org, former Secretary of State Madeleine Albright, along with actors Drew Barrymore, Sandra Bullock, Daniel Craig and football star David Beckham said: “We must not stand by as she is silenced again. Now is the time for the international community to speak with one voice: Free Aung San Suu Kyi.”
In another message on the newly-created site, women who have also won the Nobel Peace Prize—Maired Maguire, Betty Williams, Rigoberta Menchu Tum, Jody Williams, Shirin Ebadi and Wangari Maathai—demanded Suu Kyi’s immediate release.

“Detained against Burma’s own laws, your imprisonment and trial are a stark illustration of the brutality and lawlessness of the Burmese military regime, which holds over 2,000 democracy activists in prison,” they wrote. “We look forward to a day when you are finally free.”

Canada’s Foreign Minister, Lawrence Cannon, also sent a birthday message to Suu Kyi, saying: “Aung San Suu Kyi, your continued, unjust and unwarranted detention illustrates the complete disregard that the Burmese military junta has for human rights and democratic freedoms.

“On your 64th birthday, Canada commends you on your ongoing struggle to promote freedom, democracy, human rights and the rule of law, and commits to continue advocating for your release and that of all political prisoners in Burma.”

Meanwhile European Union leaders are set to make a 64-word call Friday for the release of Burma's pro-democracy icon as she celebrates her 64th birthday behind bars.

"The European Council calls for the immediate unconditional release of Aung San Suu Kyi, who has tirelessly defended the universal values of freedom and democracy," said the statement, to be released at the end of a two-day summit in Brussels.

"Unless she is released, the credibility of the 2010 elections will be further undermined and the EU will respond with appropriate measures," said the statement.

"We urge Myanmar (Burma) to embark on a genuine transition to democracy bringing peace and prosperity to its people."

Kachin Schoolchildren Beaten And Hospitalised By Burmese Army

Around 15 schoolchildren and young men have been beaten, and some hospitalised, after Burmese Army soldiers went on a rampage through Mayan village in Kachin State, Burma.

According to Burma Campaign UK sources, the attacks happened after youths in the village prevented soldiers from gang-raping a 17 year old girl.

On the morning of 31st May a young man in the village, Lasaw Naw, was brutally beaten by a group of army soldiers in an unprovoked attack.

Later the same day Wa Sha Ki, a Kachin schoolgirl, was attacked by four Burmese army soldiers on her way home. A knife was held to her throat, and they attempted to rape her, but were disturbed by a group of young people who saw the attack, and released her. She is 17 years old and grade 8 student.
Anger has been growing in the village over attacks and abuses like this, which commanders and local authorities have failed to take action on following complaints. Abuses include land confiscation, forced labor, forcing people to pay illegal tax, and rape and sexual abuses toward women and children. Later in the day, when a group of young men saw the same soldiers who had attempted the rape, they attacked them and beat them.

Battalion commander Lt-Col Ye Yint Twe gathered 30 of his soldiers and ordered them to “kill all Kachin young men in the village.” The soldiers rampaged through the village for three hours, dragging boys and young men from their homes, from public transport, and from a video theatre, and beating them.

More than 15 youths have been severely injured, and 3 persons were hospitalised. One young man was arrested, his feet locked in wooden stocks, and was brutally beaten. He received head injuries.
A 14 year old schoolboy, Sawan La San, was severely beaten by a group of army soldiers in the local train station and left unconscious. He was assaulted without any warning. He suffered four broken ribs, was vomiting blood, and has a brain injury, resulting in a coma. He is reportedly now in Myitkyina hospital.

There are more than 600 households living in Mayan village and most of them are ethnic Kachin.  After the brutal assault villagers were threatened by the Lt-Col Ye Yint Twe not to speak of the attacks to anyone. A night curfew was set till 4th June 2009 and villagers were warned anyone on the streets after 7pm would be shot.

Since the incident, a Col. Pyi Win Soe and more than 10 soldiers, often without uniform, have been patrolling the village carrying guns, knives and sticks. The soldiers are from the village-based Burmese Army Artillery Battalion No. 372.

A villager said, “we have been suffered this kind of abuses by the Burmese army soldiers decades after decades since our grandfather generation, but no one can help us. We don’t want army based in our village. They are not here to help us but to abuse and oppress us every day in different ways. They took our land and farms for their business, they steal our cows, they forced us to work, and they forced us to pay illegal tax and they commit sexual violence towards our women and girls. Therefore, unless the military is removed from our village, we will continue suffer”.

Thirty youths from the village have now gone into hiding as they are afraid of arrest, beatings, torture, or being killed.

Last August, a 15 year old school girl was gang raped and killed by Burmese military soldiers in Bamaw district, Kachin state but no action was taken by the regime. Last December, a 21 year old girl in Sarmaw was gang raped by a group of Burmese soldiers and again no action was taken.

“This incident is typical of the kind of things going on in villages and towns across Kachin State,” said Nang Seng, Campaigns Officer at Burma Campaign UK. “Since the ceasefire in 1994 more Burmese troops have come to Kachin state and human rights abuses are part of daily life. This will continue after elections next year, as ethnic people have been given no rights, no level of autonomy, and Burmese Army soldiers will still occupy our villages.”

Former Political Prisoners Join ‘Free Suu Kyi’ Campaign

More than 100 former political prisoners around the world have added their names to a statement calling for the release of Burmese pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi and for the UN Security Council to establish a global arms embargo on the military-ruled country.

The former political prisoners come from over 20 countries across Asia, Africa, Latin America and Europe. They have all signed a campaign called "64 words for Aung San Suu Kyi"—launched May 27 and which asks Suu Kyi's supporters to tweet, write text messages or send video and photos to its Web site, http://64forsuu.org—to mark her 64th birthday on June 19.

Organizers of the campaign include Human Rights Watch, the US Campaign for Burma, Burma Info Japan, the Open Society Institute, France's Info Birmanie and Amnesty International.

The 64-word message from the former political prisoners says: "The continued denial of your freedom unacceptably attacks the human rights of all 2,156 political prisoners in Myanmar. As those also incarcerated for our political beliefs, we share the world's outrage. We call on the United Nations Security Council to press the Myanmar Government to immediately release all political prisoners, and to restrict the weapons that strengthen its hand through a global arms embargo."

Several of the signatories are themselves under house arrest in China, including Yuan Weijing and Zeng Jinyan. Others who have added their names include Anwar Ibrahim, former Deputy Prime Minister of Malaysia; Ingrid Betancourt, former senator and Nobel Peace Prize nominee kidnapped by the Colombian FARDC; Kim Dae-jung, former president of South Korea and Nobel Peace Prize laureate; Lech Walesa, former president of Poland and Nobel Peace Prize laureate; the Nelson Mandela Foundation; Shirin Ebadi, lawyer and Nobel Peace Prize laureate; Shao Jiang, a survivor of the Tiananmen Square massacre; Terry Waite, the British humanitarian and author; Vaclav Havel, writer and former President of the Czech Republic; and Yuri Feodorovich Orlov, nuclear physicist and former Soviet dissident.

"Aung San Suu Kyi's continued detention shames Asia," wrote Kim Dae-jung, while Anwar Ibrahim urged the Association of Southeast Asian Nations to lift its policy of nonintervention in Burma.

UN should treat Burma as it is North Korea

After long and excruciating negotiations over the new sanctions by the United Nations Security Council to punish North Korea for its nuclear-weapons test, once again the council has shown its ability to act in response to a crisis that genuinely threatens global peace and stability. What Pyongyang has done has so rubbed the raw nerves of key players that they are acting with common positions and standards. It is rare indeed for them to agree on common retaliation against North Korea's stubbornness.

This time the harsher sanctions are more targeted, including weapons exports and financial transactions. Furthermore, the resolution allows inspections in port and on the high seas of ships suspected of carrying nuclear technology. It urges North Korea to return to the six-party talks immediately without conditions and abandon its nuclear ambitions. This shows the determination of the 15-member council to adhere to its international obligations.

Unfortunately, the same thing cannot be said of the council's attitude towards Burma and its continued oppression of its citizens. Although the council adopted a non-binding resolution last month in response to the continued detention and farcical trial of Aung San Suu Kyi, it still lacks the teeth to punish one of the world's worst regimes. Like North Korea, Burma's military leaders know how to test the water and push the envelope. They have succeeded before, knowing full well that the council, with its different players and national interests, will never agree on a common plan of action. Worse, the council's attention span is usually brief given the myriad global issues confronting it.

For the time being, the Burmese junta is obviously correct in its assessment. Despite some bridging of the gap between members preferring tougher sanctions and those advocating a softer approach, the council does not see eye to eye on reprimanding Burma. Of course, the five permanent members have something to do with this. Previously, both China and Russia opposed any attempt by the council to punish Burma for nearly two decades of continued intransigence. They have since ameliorated their positions but are no nearer uniting with the other members to deliver a stronger message.

Obviously the junta leaders are now playing hide and seek, testing the international community's determination and the sustainability of Asean positions against them, as witness their attempt to create havoc along the Thai border following Thailand's growing assertiveness by attacking minority groups so as to scarce the Thai security forces. This pattern of diplomatic brinksmanship has worked for the junta all along. If the international community, particularly the council, remains divided, pariah states can continue to exploit it. The new sanctions against North Korea are a case in point.

Burma has delayed the trial of Suu Kyi for an additional two weeks. Of course, the junta is watching closely how the international community reacts to the ongoing court case and to her plight. International pressure has increased by the day. Major world leaders have spoken in support of her and called for her release. Asean has been firm. Burma's continued attack on Thailand as the Asean chair is aimed at undermining its position as such. It is to be hoped that Asean positions will be bolstered by increasing support from the international community.

The North Koreans and the Burmese have suffered tremendously because of their leaders. Both countries have spent heavily on arms and left their citizens starving in the expectation of foreign assistance. The Burmese have risen several times since 1988 demanding democratic change and been violently put down. This could happen again due to economic hardship and rising fuel prices. The North Koreans have yet to do this.

It is pivotal that when the council puts its mind to fighting pariah states such as North Korea and Burma it is intelligent and united, otherwise it will be manipulated and exploited, especially when there are cracks in its ranks. It backed Friday's tough sanctions against North Korea; it is to be hoped that in the near future it will do the same in the case of Burma.

UN Should Treat Burma as it is North Korea

Why Singapore Will Keep Struggling

SINGAPORE (AP)—This speck on the map leapt from poverty to First World riches in a generation. Now its halcyon years of breakneck growth may be over.

Ask none other than Lee Kuan Yew, the authoritarian statesman who oversaw Singapore's transformation from a malarial outpost of the British Empire to a modern city-state churning out hard-drives, medicines and deepwater oil rigs for export.

Premier from 1959 to 1990, he squashed dissent and steered the tropical island into embracing globalization. It reaped the economic benefits, becoming the world's fourth-richest country as Western consumers sent global trade soaring.

Now Singapore's top customers —the US, Japan and Europe—are mired in the biggest global slump since World War II and may take years to recover their normal growth.

Lee, currently an adviser to his son, Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, acknowledges it's improbable that China along with other Asian nations can pick up the slack. It will take "decades" for Asians to shake off their traditional caution and tendency to save rather than spend, he says.

"The Chinese always believe there may be an earthquake. So do the Japanese," Lee said last month in Japan.

"We'll have to wait for the American economy," he said.

Fellow Asian "tigers" Taiwan, Hong Kong and South Korea have also been hammered by the global crisis. But Singapore is the most dependent on trade, with exports equal to a whopping 185 percent of gross domestic product (GDP).

As a result, the Southeast Asian city-state is reeling from its deepest recession since splitting from a short-lived federation with neighboring Malaysia in 1965. The International Monetary Fund forecasts GDP to shrink 10 percent in 2009, the most of any major Asian economy.

So far, there are few signs the downturn is threatening the ruling party's five-decade hold on power. Singapore—known for its ban on chewing gum and canings for crimes some countries would rule as minor—strictly controls public speech and assembly, though it has become socially more liberal and allowed greater artistic freedom in recent years.

The People's Action Party, which engineered yearly growth averaging 7.7 percent since 1961, is also doing what it can to soften the blows.

Officials are aiming to boost tourism with two casinos and promoting the island as a private banking haven for wealthy foreigners but concede no amount of tinkering can eliminate the tiny nation's weaknesses.

Singapore's 4.8 million population, 683 square kilometers of land—a fourth the size of Luxembourg—and lack of natural resources leave it with little choice but to sway with the global winds of trade and finance.

A speech by the prime minister this week welcomed the creation of a high-level committee to plot fresh directions for the economy. Yet it offered nothing new by touting Singapore as a base for corporate head offices and center for biotechnology research and drugs production.

Considerable hopes are also pinned on financial services as a bilingual Chinese-English work force and political stability have spawned a busy wealth management sector. But after years of promoting its finance industry, Singapore does not yet rival Hong Kong as a regional financial center.

"The road ahead will be difficult. First we have to see through this global economic storm. Beyond that, we face a new world," Lee Hsien Loong said.

Many economists expect the US to emerge from recession later this year, but say the strength of the recovery is uncertain. US consumer spending may take several years to return to pre-crisis levels as Americans pay down debt and build savings.

"US consumers seem to be undergoing a change in mind-set for the first time in a generation or two," said Quentin Fitzsimmons, a fund manager for London-based Threadneedle. "You shouldn't look to the US consumer to lead us out of this recession."

The collapse in demand for Singapore's exports is already putting pressure on wages. Growth in real household incomes slowed to 5.7 percent in 2008 from 7.5 percent the previous year while incomes of the bottom 10 percent of households stagnated even with increased government aid for the poor.

GDP per person this year is expected to slide to about $32,000 from nearly $37,700 last year.

Analysts at Credit Suisse predict an exodus of 200,000 foreign professionals and other workers from the island, adding to a collapse in house prices.

Singaporeans still flock to the swanky malls that line Orchard Road, a shopping strip famous in the region. But they mostly eyeball the luxury goods rather than buy.

"Right now, I don't feel like I can afford Fendi," said Yolanda Wong, a 27-year-old accountant, as she window-shopped at the Italian designer fashion store.

Free Suu Kyi Campaign Gains Momentum in the US

WASHINGTON — As the Burmese regime’s “illegitimate” trial of Aung San Suu Kyi continues, supporters in the US have launched a multi-pronged campaign to build international pressure to free the pro-democracy icon.

On Thursday, Freedom House, a Washington-based nongovernmental organization that conducts research and advocacy on democracy, political freedom and human rights, said India needs to “break its silence over the sham trial in Burma” and urged New Delhi to use its influence over the Burmese military junta to seek Suu Kyi’s release.

“Freedom House is deeply disappointed that the Indian government is turning a blind eye to Burma’s shameful behavior,” Jennifer Windsor, the executive director of Freedom House, said in a statement.

“As the world’s largest democracy and a regional leader, India has an obligation to defend Suu Kyi and at least attempt to influence the actions of Burma’s ruling junta,” she added.

Next week, former political prisoners and human rights activists are coming to New York to submit a global petition for the release of all political prisoners, including Suu Kyi, to UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon.

The global signature campaign, “Free Burma’s Political Prisoners Now,” was launched last March and has been signed by more than 670,000 people from 220 countries and territories. The letter calls on the UN secretary general to make it his personal priority to secure the release of all political prisoners in Burma as the essential first step towards democracy in the country.

Meanwhile, New York-based Burma Point this week announced plans to launch a “fax campaign” to demand Suu Kyi’s release. Under this campaign, people from across the globe would be sending thousands of faxes to Burmese diplomatic missions all over the world and to offices of the Burmese military junta inside the country demanding that Suu Kyi and other political prisoners be freed.

In a video message released today, the executive director of Human Rights Watch, Kenneth Roth, also called on Burma’s rulers to free the detained democracy leader and other political prisoner. “Aung San Suu Kyi has been a symbol of freedom for the Burmese people and a guiding light for the human rights struggle worldwide,” Roth said.

Two influential US senators, Mitch McConnell and Dianne Feinstein, have also added their voices to the growing US campaign to push for the release of Suu Kyi, calling on their colleagues in the Senate to quickly approve their legislation, “The Burmese Freedom and Democracy Act,” which renews sanctions against the Burmese junta.

The bill calls for an import ban on Burmese goods entering the US and visa restrictions on officials from the State Peace and Development Council (SPDC), Burma’s ruling regime.

“Now is the time for Congress to send another strong message to the SPDC: the United States continues to stand squarely with the long-suffering people of Burma in their quest for democracy and reconciliation,” said McConnell.

Feinstein said that the junta “understands all too well that the vast majority of its citizens embrace Aung Sang Suu Kyi’s call for freedom and democracy and rejects the junta’s record of human rights abuses and oppression. That is why they are trying once again to silence Suu Kyi’s voice with the latest round of trumped up charges against her.”

Daw Aung San Suu Kyi Trial Complicates US Burma Policy Review

WASHINGTON — The Obama Administration is finding it difficult to move forward in engaging Burma because of the trial of Aung San Suu Kyi, Obama’s choice for top diplomat in East Asia said on Wednesday.

“The recent events with Aung San Suu Kyi are just deeply, deeply concerning, and it makes it very difficult going forward,” said Kurt Campbell, the Obama nominee for assistant secretary of state for East Asian and Pacific Affairs, told US lawmakers during his confirmation hearing.


Kurt Campbell, nominee for US assistant secretary of state for East Asian and Pacific Affairs, (Source: New American Security)
“We're in the midst of a very sensitive review,” he said. “We are looking at the situation of the trial and what the junta is considering going forward.  It will play into our review.” Campbell appeared before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.
Referring to a statement made by Secretary of State Hillary Clinton during her maiden tour to Asia this year, Campbell said, “What she said out in the region stands for itself.  I think she was very clear about what—the approach the administration has taken.  And as a general practice, we're prepared to reach out, not just in Burma but in other situations as well.”

When asked about the administration’s view on the 2010 Burmese elections, Campbell said: “Well, some of the discussions that we have had to date surround whether recent actions of the junta are designed to create a different domestic context for the upcoming 2010 elections. The truth is that we have an embassy there, we have sources of information.”

“I think at the current juncture, given that I'm unconfirmed and that I am not privy to some of the most sensitive deliberations, I would simply say that we are looking closely at all developments inside Burma, and this is very high on Clinton’s list of issues in Southeast Asia.”

He termed it as “hypothetical” to assume that “Burma would honor the items that are in its proposed constitution, which move, however imperfectly, toward a multi-party system and open elections.”

Observing that the developments inside Burma have implications for Suu Kyi's party, Campbell said: “All I can tell you is that I think in the past there has been a determination that not much could be done; let us live with our sanctions.  I think there is a very high-level degree of interest in seeing what is possible going forward and a deep sense of disappointment in the recent steps that the junta's taken towards Aung San Suu Kyi.”

In remarks before the committee, Sen James Webb said for the number of years he has advocated a different approach in Burma.

“I have had some good discussions with Sec Clinton about this over the past couple of years, before she became secretary of State and afterwards.  Aung San Suu Kyi's ongoing trial is the latest incident in a cycle that's been virtually unchanged for 60 years, actually, not 20, as some people comment.”

In that time, particularly over the past 10 years, the United States' ability to influence events in Burma has steadily waned. Businesses, NGOs, government groups have been ousted, he argued.

“Meanwhile, other countries, not only China but most notably China, are more engaged than ever, with infrastructure projects, mineral resources. China just signed a large oil deal,” he pointed out.

“On the one hand, I would like to say very clearly, as someone who has advocated a different approach, the situation presently with Aung San Suu Kyi is unacceptable to any of us who have advocated varying approaches with respect to Burma.  But on the other, we need to look at a different way of doing things,” Webb said.

Earlier in his prepared statement, Campbell said the people of Burma deserve better than what they now have.

“As secretary Clinton said in Jakarta, neither our sanctions-based approach nor Asean’s engagement approach have worked, so the Administration is reviewing policy options with the goal of finding more effective ways to encourage dialogue among the military, the opposition, and the ethnic nationalities, release of political prisoners and broad-based reform,” he said.

“The recent actions by the Burmese Junta against Aung San Suu Kyi are deeply troubling, and we are factoring these developments into our ongoing policy review,” he said.

Being a Defense Lawyer in Burma Is a Risky Business

As the trial of pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi unfolds, many people are asking: How difficult is it to be a defense lawyer who represents political activists in Burma?

Defense lawyers who represent political dissidents routinely face government intimidation, in some cases leading to prison terms and the suspension or cancellation of their license to practice by the Burmese Bar Council.

Eleven lawyers who defended pro-democracy activists are currently serving prison terms across the country.

The Thailand-based human rights group, the Assistance Association for Political Prisoners (Burma), said at least 207 Burmese lawyers, including central high court lawyers, have faced suspension, warnings, temporary suspension or dismissal of their license without a proper hearing process.

“If you want to be a defense lawyer for political activists, you can have your lawyer license cancelled at any time,” said Nyi Nyi Hlaing, who has represented political activists. 

“Sometimes judges intimidate us by saying if we upset the judicial process, we can be punished,” he said.

Prominent defense lawyer Aung Thein, who recently served a four months prison sentence for contempt of court and had his license cancelled, told The Irrawaddy: “There are two kinds of lawyers who have had their license dismissed. Political activist lawyers who are dismissed for their political activities and lawyers dismissed in the process of defending their activist clients.

Aung Thein’s colleague, Khin Maung Shein, who has represented political activists including Aung San Suu Kyi, was also dismissed from practicing law and sentenced to four months in prison.

“The fact that the Burmese Bar Council cancelled our licenses is not fair, because we served four months detention in payment for what they called contempt of court,” said Aung Thein.

Late last year, attorney Saw Kyaw Kyaw Min was convicted of contempt of court after complaining of unfair treatment by a Rangoon court in a case involving political dissidents.

“I was intimidated by the judge from Kyimyindine Township court when I asked to call a government witness to the court to testify,” said Saw Kyaw Kyaw Min, 29. “She told me you don’t have a right to call the government witness. If you do that, your lawyer license will be cancelled.”

In addition, attorneys Nyi Nyi Htway and Saw Kyaw Kyaw Min were both sentenced to six months imprisonment for contempt of court while representing activists. Saw Kyaw Kyaw fled to Thailand rather than serve time in prison.

The convictions were politically motivated to intimidate other lawyers from defending political dissidents, said observers of the legal system. 

Like activist lawyers, average citizens who are caught up in politically sensitive issues are frequently intimidated or charged with criminal acts by the military government. Various professions, including comedians, doctors, private teachers, singers, writers, journalists and their family members, have been charged and imprisoned because of their political involvement.

On June 9, Khin Khin Aye, a senior manger in the Central Cooperative Society under the Ministry of Cooperative, was dismissed from her job without warning because her husband, attorney Hla Myo Myint, had represented Aung San Suu Kyi.

Serious Violations against Children in Burma

WASHINGTON — UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon on Tuesday reported grave violations against children in Burma including credible reports of recruitment and use of children by some government military units and several ethnic armed groups.

Expressing serious concern over the plight of Burmese children, the secretary-general in a report to the UN Security Council urged the Burmese military government to put into place a tighter mechanism to prevent the military recruitment of children.

Ban also urged the junta to demobilize unconditionally all children who participated in any capacity in its armed forces, in coordination with the UN country task force on monitoring and reporting.

“The secretary-general stresses the need for the governments concerned to facilitate dialogue between the United Nations and the Karen National Union and Karenni National Progressive Party for the purposes of signing an action plan in accordance with [relevant] Security Council resolutions,” Marie Okabe, deputy spokesperson for the secretary–general, told reporters at UN headquarters in New York.

In the report, Ban urged Burmese authorities “as a matter of priority” to “redress the prevailing culture of impunity, to launch investigations into all incidents of recruitment and use of children, and to prosecute people responsible for such acts under the Penal Code.”

“Building on the limited progress thus far, the government should, with immediate effect, cease the arrest, harassment and imprisonment of children under the age of 18 for desertion and/or attempting to leave the army and continue to work with the country task force to monitor such cases and to ensure the swift and unconditional surrender of children,” Ban said.

Besides government military units, the secretary-general identified several ethnic armed groups involved in recruitment of children: the Democratic Karen Buddhist Army, Kachin Independence Army, Karen National Liberation Army Peace Council, Karen National Liberation Army, Karenni Army, Karenni National People’s Liberation Front, Myanmar National Democratic Alliance Army, Shan State Army-South and Shan National Population Liberation Organization and United Wa State Army.

Ban noted in the report that there was a continued lack of humanitarian access to Burma, particularly in conflict zones and ceasefire areas, was an impediment to providing much needed humanitarian assistance. He urged the junta to ensure full, unhindered and safe access for children and to allow free passage for the delivery of UN humanitarian assistance in all parts of the country.

Charges against Suu Kyi ‘Baseless’: Clinton

WASHINGTON — US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton on Monday said that the charges against Aung San Suu Kyi are “baseless.” The visiting Indonesian Foreign Minister, Noer Hassan Wirajuda, joined her in demanding the Burmese junta immediately release the popular Burmese pro-democracy leader.

The meeting between Clinton and Wirajuda at the headquarters of the State Department was used as an opportunity for the two leaders to discuss the current situation in Burma, in particular the ongoing trial of Suu Kyi, on flimsy grounds that she violated the terms of her house arrest.

“Let me again reiterate that the charges against her [Suu Kyi] are baseless, and we call for her immediate release,” Clinton told State Department reporters after her meeting with her Indonesian counterpart.

“Indonesia, like other Asean countries, have also spoken out about her plight and urged her immediate release, and we greatly appreciate that,” she said.

Terming the decision of the military junta to bring Suu Kyi to trial, the Indonesian Foreign Minister said they were actually expecting a review of her case last month and her release as the term of her house arrest expired in May.

“So that’s why we issued a very strong statement on the current case of Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, and we remind Myanmar [Burma] of its obligation under the new Asean charter, and likewise through the previous calls  made by our leaders to immediately release Daw Aung San Suu Kyi,” Wirajuda said.

Traditionally Asean, a regional block of 10 countries, has been reluctant to weigh in on any issue relating to the “internal affairs” of one of its members. But Asean has issued a statement, expressing "grave concern" about recent developments relating to Suu Kyi given her fragile health.

Wirajuda also said that Burma's elections next year must be credible and include Suu Kyi's political party, the National League for Democracy.


However, Indonesia believes Burma's neighbors should engage with the junta even more closely and the US approach of harsh sanctions causes hardship among Burmese, he said.

Wirajuda said that sanctions "make the local people suffer even more." He called on the world to help alleviate the hardships for daily survival for Burmese. "This would encourage Myanmar to be more open," he said.

Meanwhile Senior Minister Goh Chok Tong will visit Burma from June 8-11 and is scheduled to meet the country's leader, Snr-Gen Than Shwe, and second top vice Snr-Gen, Maung Aye, on Tuesday in Naypyidaw, the capital.

During his trip to Burma, Goh is expected to talk about Asean’s perspective on the Burmese political situation.

Mae Sot Workers Hungry for Suu Kyi News

MAE SOT — Factory workers along the Thai-Burma border are simmering with anger over the ongoing trial of Burma's democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi.

News of the trial has quickly spread through the factories and ignited quiet outrage amongst the workers. For many of the migrant workers, the Burmese government is to blame for the financial misery which has led them here to the factory floor. Their only hope for being able to return home is the release of Suu Kyi who could now face a further five years imprisonment.

Burmese workers at a knitting factory in Mae Sot.
"I am so angry, now we are working like slaves in another country," said a knitter in his early 20s in a textile factory. "If she is released, then she will be able to sort out all our country's problems, and I can go home to my family."
The workers are shocked by the news coming out of Burma but hardly surprised.

"I knew she was due for release soon so I expected the SPDC would do something," said another worker from Pegu. "I am angry but because I am a migrant worker I feel so helpless."

With so many counting on her, the present trial is a great concern for all the migrant workers who anticipate the day they can live and work in Burma.

Relieved from their eleven-hour shifts twice a day, most of the workers catch up on the news during their breaks.

In one knitting factory, workers watch the Democratic Voice of Burma TV in the canteen during lunch. Many of the factories have TVs, but they are often muted or playing Burma's state channel—MRTV.

In the factories that don't have TVs, the workers go to the tea shops in the factory compounds and get updates from the radio.

Most workers don't listen to exiled media radio stations such as the BBC or RFA. Workers are attracted to the "good pop music" on Padauk Myay, a government-owned radio station in Rangoon. Airing at 5:30 am till 8 am, it is convenient for workers to listen to as they prepare for work.

Mae Sot-based organizations suspect it was designed to interfere with exiled media agencies' programs. Radio listeners in Rangoon have reported Padauk Mayay radio interrupting BBC news programs and temporarily taking over the frequency.

Like all media in Burma the radio stations adhere to the junta's policy. Although it has reported the Suu Kyi trial, a lot of the details are left out so workers must rely on colleagues who listen to international news for the whole story.

"Not every worker has access to international news," said one worker. "Some of the workers who know the whole picture have been informing their colleagues who listen to the government radio stations."

For the latest information many of the workers rely on the handful of organizations that were set up to improve the working and living conditions for migrant workers.

The Yaung Chi Oo Workers Association publishes a monthly magazine that is popular amongst the migrant community, and it has become a source that informs the workers about issues relating to Burma.

Similarly, the Overseas Irrawaddy Association looks after all migrant workers who come from the Irrawaddy delta region. Many of the factory workers frequent the office to get regular updates about the trial. The chairman, Saya Pu, once a student activist, also worked in factories before setting up the organization.

"I set up the organization not for my living but to tell the workers about human rights and democracy," said Saya Pu. "I push them all to read the news as much as they can."

Another Pagoda Accident in Burma

An electric elevator crashed into a stairway inside a well-known Buddhist temple, Bawdi Ta Htaung monastery, in the central Burmese city of Monywa on Thursday, injuring five laypersons and two prominent Buddhist monks.

It was the second accident at a Buddhist temple in Burma within a week after the collapse of the ancient Danok Pagoda, south of Rangoon, on May 30, which killed some 20 construction workers and injured up to 150.

The incident in Monywa, some 136 kilometers northwest of Mandalay, occurred at 6:30 p.m. On Thursday when the temple lift experienced what is thought to be an electrical fault and plunged downward, colliding with the temple stairway. The eight persons who were in the elevator at the time were reportedly inspecting the country's tallest Buddha statue. One person in the lift, the head abbot of the monastery, was uninjured.

The two abbots who were injured in the accident were Ashin Sandar Dika and Yawainwe-Innma, both of whom were well-known for publishing books on society and religion. Both reportedly required surgery on their legs following the accident.

A local source told The Irrawaddy on Friday that the eight persons involved in the accident have been taken to a hospital in Mandalay.

The Buddha statue inside Bawdi Ta Htaung monastery stands at a height of 130 meters (425 feet) and was completed in 2007.

In superstitious Burma, the incident is sure to ignite rumors and intrigue after the mysterious collapse of Danok Pagoda just a few days before. Several sources have said that many people are taking the incidents to be omens and are openly questioning whether the collapse of the pagoda was related to the junta’s prosecution of pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi.

Meanwhile, the Burmese authorities have banned reports in the media about the collapse of the ancient pagoda.

Keep Up the International Pressure: Activists

Burmese politicians and activists are continuing the campaign to urge the International community and world leaders to maintain pressure on the military regime.

Win Tin, a prominent politician and executive member of National League for Democracy (NLD) told The Irrawaddy on Thursday international pressure has given the democracy movement “a bit of breathing space.”

As the current chair of Asean, Thailand called on May 19 for the immediate release of Aung San Suu Kyi. In a statement on behalf of Asean, the Thai government said it was ready to help with national reconciliation and democracy efforts in Burma.

Recently, Burmese state-run-media has exposed a rift between the junta and the current Thai chair of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) over comments he made about the trial of Aung San Suu Kyi.

The junta is counter attacking critical comments from neighboring countries: “Foreign countries should realize that the present case concerning Aung San Suu Kyi is not ‘trumped up’ by the government, as some have been willing to claim,” said a statement sent by the foreign ministry to all Burmese embassies.

Ashin Issariya, a leader of All Burma Monks Alliance (ABMA), said, “I agree and welcome condemnation of the international community. I think it is very effective and has an impact on the Burmese government. If Asean suspends Burma, it will be more effective because Asean has protected the Burmese government in the past.”

Han Thar Myint, a spokesperson for the NLD, told The Irrawaddy on Thursday, “The international criticism is very important for Burmese pro-democracy activists and the Burmese people, because it makes them feel good. Now, Asean has also criticized the Burmese military government. I think it is important because Burma is a member of Asean.”

He said the image of the Burmese military junta has been tarnished, and, “I think they are trying to release international pressure, so they postponed Aung San Suu Kyi’s verdict.”

Activists have called for the international community and world leaders to take more effective actions against the junta.

Win Tin said, “UN chief Ban Ki-moon should go to Burma as soon as possible. But, if he leaves Burma empty-handed, it will be a set back. We must keep up the pressure.”
Many activists said the military regime’s real fear is the UN Security Council.

“The only body that the junta really fears is the Security Council,” said the former UN Rapporteur for Human Rights in Burma, Paulo Sergio Pinheiro. “I have personal evidence of this. So the Security Council must address this immediately as a matter of absolute urgency.”

Some observers have called for the International Criminal Court to become involved.

The monk-activist, Ashin Issariya, said, “Now, International organizations and governments need to take effective measures against the military junta. We should build a case for human-rights abuses by military junta and call for the Security Council to take action to bring it before the International Criminal Court.”

Ashin Issariya said the UN is aware of the scale and severity of rights abuses in Burma, and it is incumbent on the Security Council to authorize a commission of inquiry into crimes against humanity and war crimes in the country.

Pro-democracy leader Suu Kyi’s trial has drawn worldwide condemnation and is seen as an effort of the junta to detain the political leader through elections scheduled for 2010.

Current UN Secretary-General Ban Praises Burmese former UN Secretary-General U Thant

The United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon paid tribute on Wednesday to the memory of one of his predecessors, Burma’s U Thant, who held the secretary-general position from 1961 to 1971.

The centenary of U Thant’s birth was marked at the UN headquarters in New York. The event was organized by the U Thant Institute, the UN Office for Partnerships and the UN Department of Public Information.

Ban said, “It is a sad irony that U Thant’s vision of democracy has not been realized in his own country. That is why I would like to visit Burma again this year. This quiet diplomat worked hard for the principles of the United Nations.”

Ban recalled he took the opportunity to visit the U Thant mausoleum in Rangoon to pay respects during his mission to Burma last year.

Ban said U Thant oversaw the organization’s growth and helped lay the foundations for what is now known as “sustainable development.”

He said U Thant provided the seeds for the UN University and the institute that bears his name, which is built on the concept of “One World.”

“The crises of the past year—the food crisis, the energy crisis, the financial crisis and the economic crisis—emphasized the interconnections of our “One World,” said Ban.

Ban praised U Thant, the first Asian to hold the position of UN secretary-general, for his commitment toward world peace and his efforts in defusing Cold War tensions.

As the third secretary-general of the UN, U Thant established many of the world body’s development and environmental agencies, funds and programs, including the UN Development Program (UNDP), the UN University, the UN Institute for Training and Research, and the UN Environmental Program.

He died of lung cancer in New York on November 25, 1974.

Former Burmese Ambassador to China Thankin Chan Htun knew U Thant personally. “To become a good diplomat, one needs to be well-read, polite, calm, and be able to negotiate with others peacefully,” he said. “If diplomats act wrongly, it reflects badly on the country. So, the authorities need to select them specially.”      

Veteran Burmese journalist Win Tin said that U Thant was a successful UN head who solved problems peacefully and astutely. “He kept on good terms with people, and spoke calmly and sincerely,” he said.

“We should keep him in our memory. We should be proud of him and we should take example from his character and skill,” he added.

Wanted! For Crimes Against Humanity

WANTED!
FOR CRIMES AGAINST HUMANITY

Protestors Arrested at US Embassy in Rangoon

The family of a detained prisoner was arrested after demonstrating in front of the US embassy on University Avenue Road in Rangoon at 10 a.m. On Thursday, according to local residents in Bahan Township.

Speaking to The Irrawaddy, residents said five family members, including three children, were arrested by police after standing in front of the embassy for 15 minutes holding a placard that read, “Our father was unfairly arrested. Release him!”

It is as yet unclear who the prisoner is or whether he was convicted for political reasons.
The new US embassy was built on the south bank of Inya Lake on University Avenue Road, not far from the lakeside residence where pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi was held during her term of house arrest.

Daw Aung San Suu Kyi Photo Campaign Launched

Activists have launched a photo campaign to encourage people to get involved in the Burmese democracy movement and to call for the release of pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi.

Myit Myit Aye, a campaign organizer and a member of Nation League for Democracy (NLD) in Meiktila District in Mandalay Division, said that campaign activists distributed 3,000 photographs of Suu Kyi in a Myingyan Township market on Wednesday.

In a similar campaign in Tharzi Township, authorities confiscated the photographs from the public after they were passed out.  

The campaign plans to distribute another 7,000 photographs in Mandalay Division.
“We don’t have media freedom here,” Myit Myit Aye said. “So many people can’t see Daw Aung San Suu Kyi’s photograph in the newspapers. Many people are happy we are distributing the pictures and some people even came to my home.”

She said they are trying to encourage people to get involve in the democracy movement and to pray for Aung San Suu Kyi’s release from prison.

A member of Generation Wave, an activist group base in Rangoon, said the photo campaign also will be launched in Rangoon. 

“Our respected leader is in prison,” she said. “This is not fair. We will continue on our campaign till her release.”

Meanwhile, Burmese living abroad also have launched a campaign for the release of Suu Kyi on Facebook, the popular Internet social-networking Web site. 

According to the London-based Burma Campaign UK, in late May 40,000 people had registered on the Facebook Web site in support to Suu Kyi.

A Suu Kyi page is being used to promote and coordinate global campaign actions, including a global day of action on Monday when demonstrations will take place in more than a dozen cities including London, Bangkok, Sydney, Perth, Melbourne, Canberra, Taipei, Barcelona, Paris, Stockholm, Ottawa, Barcelona, Cadiz, Seville and Kuala Lumpur.

Facebook is increasingly popular among Burmese in exile for social networking and the promotion of Burma causes. Several Burmese activists and campaign groups in the West and in the region also use Facebook to promote Burma.

Suu Kyi has been detained in Insein Prison under charges that she violated the terms of her house arrest when an American citizen visited her house.

South Korea Urges Burma to Ensure Democracy

SEOGWIPO, South Korea — South Korean President Lee Myung-bak urged Burma to take steps to promote democracy during a meeting with its prime minister on Tuesday, Lee's office said.
Lee held talks with Gen Thein Sein on the sidelines of a two-day summit between South Korea and leaders of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations.

South Korean President Lee Myung-bak, right, greets Burmese Prime Minister Gen Thein Sein before their meeting at a hotel, the venue of the Asean-Korea Commemorative Summit in Seogwipo on Jeju island, South Korea, on June 2. (Photo: AP)

"President Lee expressed the hope that the Myanmar [Burma] government would address the concerns of the international community by making sure that national unity and democracy take root in a substantial manner through dialogue and compromise," Lee's office said in a press release.The statement offered no specifics and did not say how Gen Thein Sein responded.

The meeting came as detained Burmese opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi is on trial in Rangoon for allegedly violating the terms of her house arrest. Closing arguments are scheduled for Friday.

Suu Kyi has been in detention without trial for more than 13 of the past 19 years. Her party won the country's last elections held in 1990, but the military, which has run Burma since 1962, did not allow her to take power.

The junta, which has come under strong international criticism, says it is committed to democracy and will hold elections next year, though serious doubts persist about its intentions.

South Korea was once ruled by a series of military-backed strongmen. Nationwide pro-democracy demonstrations in the summer of 1987 forced then president Chun Doo-hwan, a former general who took power in a coup, to restore direct presidential elections.

Lee and Thein Sein agreed that their nations would cooperate to further expand trade and investment, the release also said.

Insein Prison Trial is a One-Way Street

Burma’s detained democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi believes she is innocent and will continue to defend herself against the charge she faces in the Insein Prison court, according to her lawyers.
One of her lawyers, Kyi Win, told The Irrawaddy that, according to the evidence, “we have a very good case because she has not breached any conditions and restrictions imposed upon her.”

Analysts believe, however, that the regime is likely to extend her detention, pointing to the latest official statement on the case. Burmese Deputy Defense Minister Maj-Gen Aye Myint told a security conference in Singapore, “If offenders are not [prosecuted], anarchy will prevail, and there will be breach of peace and security.”

Breach of peace and security? What can the man mean?

Kyi Win was firm in saying that the Nobel Peace Prize winner broke no law or any of the restrictions imposed upon her during her current term of house arrest, which expired last week.

First, the restrictions bar Suu Kyi or anybody else condemned to house arrest from communicating with any foreign embassy or any political party or connected persons. House arrest restrictions also bar any postal or telephone communication with the outside world.

Suu Kyi strictly followed these regulations, addressing the regime leaders in Naypyidaw through her lawyers. Their legal appeal against an extension of her house arrest was rejected by the regime, indicating that the military leaders had already made up their minds to keep her in detention.
According to Kyi Win, the American who gained access to Suu Kyi’s home, John William Yettaw, had been guilty of breaching security, not she. “John W Yettaw came into her compound without her knowledge or invitation and he was the one who was breaching the security cordon placed around her house,” he said.

Suu Kyi asked Yettaw to leave but he begged to stay, promising to leave soon. Suu Kyi gave him the benefit of the doubt, the lawyer said.

Consequently, it’s Yettaw who should be on trial for breaches of security, not Suu Kyi. Yet, to the surprise of her lawyers, Suu Kyi said last week that she wanted to offend no one, including the regime, at her trial.

During the court proceedings, Suu Kyi is careful not to make accusations or jump onto the bandwagon of those who suggest that the case was set up by the regime to extend her detention.
“Suu Kyi herself does not suspect the government of that kind of set-up and that’s her attitude,” Kyi Win told The Irrawaddy.

“I lost my words [after hearing Suu Kyi’s remarks],” Kyi Win said.

“I was astonished to hear that kind of attitude from her,” he added with evident admiration.
During the three weeks she has now been held in Insein Prison, Suu Kyi has been denied even the limited access to outside news that she had in her home.

At home she at least had a radio and is believed to have kept herself well up to date with news on Burma and the rest of the world. Visiting UN officials were often surprised to learn how well informed she was.  

In Insein Prison, however, she has no access to a radio and very limited access to news from outside. She did meet some diplomats who were allowed to attend two sessions of her trial last week, but journalists who were also present were not allowed to talk to her.

Through her lawyers, though, Suu Kyi has learned about the international outcry against her trial and the overwhelming support she commands.

Kyi Win said, “I conveyed sentiment and support from world leaders including [British Prime Minister] Gordon Brown, [US President] Obama and many other leaders. She expressed her sincere thanks to them.” 

Moral support alone is not enough, however.

Another of her lawyers, Nyan Win, who is also spokesman of her National League for Democracy, questioned the country’s judicial system and its independence.

It is believed that the details of the court proceedings have been submitted to the top leaders in Naypyidaw. Diplomats have said they believe that the verdict has already been written, ready to be read out on the final day of the trial.

There is no doubt that junta leader Snr-Gen Than Shwe holds the key to the final decision. Political observers in Rangoon believe that the decision to postpone the trial until Friday also came from Than Shwe. The judges exercise no power in the Insein Prison court.

Although they know the verdict has already been decided, Suu Kyi’s lawyers say they cannot afford to lose hope. “We will always have hope,” Kyi Win said.
Kyi Win and Nyan Win did not want to comment on why the regime has suddenly postponed the trial until Friday. 

Join This Friday Protest against China and Other Burma related Actions/Events in SF

Please receive Burma related news and events. Please visit www.badasf.org for more information. 
1. Call your representatives to End Burma's System of Immunity, War Crimes and Genocide; Related news and how to help, click here

2. To help free Daw Aung Suu Kyi also visit:  www.64forSuu. org

3. June 4th; We Are Burma: A benefit exhibition of paintings and drawings by artists living and working thought Burma. Opening Reception and Silent Auction: June 4th, 5-9:30 pm; Exhibition: June 4th - July 4th, 2009; The Leila Gallery; Cafe Leila, 1724 San Pablo Avenue, CA 94702.

4. June 5th, 2009. Protest against China; FOR SUPPORTING BURMA'S MILITARY REGIME
WHEN : FRIDAY, JUNE 5th, 2009; 11:00 AM to 1:00 PM; WHO : Burmese Democratic Forces and Friends
WHERE : Chinese Consulate; 1450 Laguna St, San Francisco; (Corner of Geary Blvd. & Laguna St.) Flyer,  Online Posting

5. June 20th,  A Celebration of Daw Aung San Suu Kyi’s Birthday & Burma’s Women’s Day
DATE: Saturday, June20, 2009; TIME: 10 AM to 2:00 PM; LOCATION: Metta Nanda Vihara (Central)
4619 Central Ave. Fremont, Ca 94536  Download Flyer

6. July 26: Run For Burma at San Francisco Marathon to raise awareness about Burma as well as funds for internally displaced people: You can join the ‘Run for Burma’ team in the San Francisco marathon series on July 26th! There are a number of events: a full marathon, half marathon, progressive marathon and a 5k run/walk. The runners are training NOW! Join us. More info

Thanks,

Burma Locked Out of Region’s Prosperity, Says Gates

Burma is “one of the isolated, desolate exceptions to the growing prosperity and freedom of the region,” according to US Defense Secretary Robert Gates.

Gates made his comment at a security conference in Singapore, where
Burma’s deputy defense minister, Maj-Gen Aye Myint, tried to deflect criticism of his government and its latest action against opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi.

Burma’s state-run-newspaper The New Light of Myanmar reported on Monday that Aye Myint told the conference that Suu Kyi’s trial in Rangoon was an internal Burmese affair.

“Thus, if any country interferes in the internal affairs of another country, that particular act may possibly affect the mutual understanding and friendly relation between countries,” he said.

Gates, however, repeated calls for Suu Kyi’s release. He said, “We need to see real change in Burma—the release of political prisoners, including Aung San Suu Kyi, and the institution of meaningful dialogue between the junta and the opposition.”

Gates said, “We saw Burma's resistance to accept basic humanitarian aid last year following the cyclone, a decision indicative of that country's approach to the rest of the world.”

The Singapore conference, the 8th Shangri-La Dialogue, organized by the city-state’s International Institute for Strategic Studies, brought together defense ministers or their deputies from 27 countries. The situation in Burma and the trial of Suu Kyi were raised by several participants, despite Aye Myint’s objections.

Burma is facing mounting international pressure, also from within the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean).

At an Asia-Europe Meeting (ASEM) of foreign ministers in Phnom Penh last week, Burmese Foreign Minister Nyan Win opposed any consideration of the Burma issue, complaining that the gathering “has overlooked the important issue of non-interference.”

Nyan Win declared, “This is an internal legal issue and it is not a human rights issue.”

Despite Nyan Win’s objections, ministers from the European Union and Asean discussed Suu Kyi’s trial and called on the Burmese government to free her and other political prisoners.

Burma’s traditional allies, China and India, are also reportedly concerned about the impact of Suu Kyi’s trial.

The trial is also expected to be an issue at an Asean meeting in South Korea next week.

“Asean leaders will meet and discuss an issue that has received international attention —about a neighboring country—for further cooperation,” said Thai Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva, whose country is currently chairman of the regional grouping.

One human rights expert, Sriprapha Petcharamesree, of Bangkok’s Mahidol University said three Burmese issues—the junta’s response to Cyclone Nargis, refugees, Suu Kyi and other political prisoners—are real threats for the Asean Charter.