Thread: Burmese Weekly : Vol 45 , WE Sun 5th Oct '08

'People of Burma have not been forgotten'
Mon, 2008-09-29



David Miliband : "The people of Burma have not been forgotten by the international community."

snip

"It's vital that, first, we don't fall for the electoral and constitutional facade that has been erected over the last year, and, secondly, the UN remains determined in its support for the UN Security Resolutions that have been passed."

asiantribune.com


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


Burma: Inside the Saffron Revolution
BY FRONTLINE/World Correspondent
September 25, 2008

After the uprising, what comes next?


On the one-year anniversary of Burma's September uprising, when hundreds of thousands of monks protested for democracy, the country's military junta continues to wage war against its own people.

snip

To find out what has become of that uprising, much of it distilled into this video report, I've made several undercover trips back to Burma during the last year. Increasingly, I found a place as complicated as Iraq -- divided by political interests, ethnic groups and languages. It's a land of contrasts, with as many soldiers as there are monks -- roughly 400,000 of each.

snip

Length: 13:50


pbs.org


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


ASEAN to continue engaging Myanmar on economic reform
By Imelda Saad
28 September 2008


George Yeo
(file pic)

NEW YORK: Singapore's Foreign Affairs Minister George Yeo has stressed the need for ASEAN to press on with economic engagement, even as member state Myanmar deals with its internal problems.

snip

channelnewsasia.com


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


Myanmar-China border trade fair to be held in Muse this year
2008-09-29

YANGON, Sept. 29 (Xinhua) -- A Myanmar-China border trade fair will be held in Myanmar's border trade zone of Muse in December this year involving four other neighboring countries, the local Weekly Eleven reported Monday.

The three-day 8th border trade fair of the two countries, which will take place in the second week of December with unspecified date, will comprise 224 booths -- 107 from host Myanmar and 108 from China as well as 9 from Thailand, India, Bangladesh and Laos, the report said.

snip

xinhuanet.com


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

38

Three more political prisoners released
Reporting by Htet Aung Kyaw

Sep 29, 2008 (DVB)–Three more political prisoners have been released by the Burmese military regime, bringing the total number of political detainees freed as part of the recent government amnesty to nine.

Ko Aung Khin of Indaw and Ko Maung Kyaw of Mawlu in Sagaing division were released from Kalay prison on Friday, along with criminal inmates, according to National League for Democracy information committee member U Nyan Win.

Formed major U Myint Lwin of Bago was also released from Insein prison on 23 September, the same day that U Win Tin and others were released.

snip

Activist Han Lin dies in New York
Reporting by Htet Aung Kyaw

Sep 29, 2008 (DVB)–U Han Lin, who led the “long march to freedom and democracy” campaign in 2005 to highlight the plight of Burma, died from lung cancer on 26 September at the age of 57.

snip

english.dvb.no

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

Singapore donates 38,000 bags of fertiliser to Myanmar farmers
By Hoe Yeen Nie
29 September 2008

Myanmar women plant rice seedlings in Dalla.

SINGAPORE: Singapore has donated over 38,000 bags of fertiliser to Myanmar, to help farmers affected by Cyclone Nargis.

snip

channelnewsasia.com


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


Junta sells foreign-aid-fertilizers for Cyclone Nargis-hit Irrawaddy River Delta
Monday, 29 September 2008
There is no let up in the greed that the Burmese military junta harbours.

The regime is now selling fertilizers, which came as aid from foreign countries for farmers in the Cyclone Nargis devastated regions in the country, since early this month, said local farmers.


Farmers in Burma's northern Kachin State said, sacks of fertilizers marked 'Made-in-China' known as Super phosphates

snip

kachinnews.com


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

65

Security tight in Sittwe after demonstration
Reporting by Yee May Aung

Sep 29, 2008 (DVB)–Security has been tightened again in Sittwe after 150 monks staged a silent march on Saturday to commemorate last year’s Saffron Revolution, according to local residents.

snip

english.dvb.no

See Also : https://teakdoor.com/thailand-and-asi...tml#post778787 (Burma : Monks in Sittwe defy authority to mark Saffron Revolution)


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


Students stage protest in Sittwe
Than Htike Oo
Monday, 29 September 2008

Chiang Mai – The local residents said that the students from Sittwe Technical College staged demonstration by marching in procession on Monday morning in protest of non-availability of school ferry.

About 250 Sittwe Technical College of Sittwe situated at Yechanpyin Ward, Rakhine State came back from school by marching in procession.

This opposition movement arisen from the region filled with opposition spirit and having high anti-government attitude, scared the authority.

"The school ferry followed the protesting students and met them at Bandoola junction, about 8 miles from their college, but the students refused to board the ferry and came back to their homes on foot", one of the demonstrators said.

This is the exam period and the students staged demonstration in protest of school authority's harsh treatment to them in dealing with them, he said.

Sittwe Technical College responded by phone, “Nothing happened, everything is over and OK", when contacted by Mizzima.

About 150 monks launched silent protest of marching in procession in Sittwe on Saturday morning marking the first anniversary of Saffron Revolution.

This demonstration erupted amid the tight security imposed in all major cities in Burma to prevent the fresh monks-led demonstration again.

mizzima.com


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


Burma calls for lifting of sanctions

September 30, 2008 10:59:56


Burma's foreign minister Nyan Win has called for the lifting of what he called "unwarranted" and "counter-productive" Western sanctions against his country.

snip

radioaustralia.net.au


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

80

from the blog world .......


Monk Killers and Monastery Robbers
Bahtoo, September 25, 2008
Posted by Goldie Shwe


Soilder Near the Monastery

It is reported that the Light Infantry 703 was one of the troops which attacked and crushed the Ngwe Kyar Yan Monastery in South Okala, Rangoon during the Golden Colour Revolution in September 2007. Deputy Battalion Commander Major Shwe Win and his soldier Khin Zaw Oo looted gold worth about 4 million Kyats, donated to the monastery by the public. Suspicions were raised when Khin Zaw Oo, a lowly soldier, bought a plot in Myine Tharyar village.

All the resident monks of Ngwe Kyar Yan Monastery were either beaten to death, tortured or imprisoned when it was attacked by Light Infantry groups 703 and 709 (both under No. 4 Military Operation Control Headquarters) and also over 100 police from No. 8 Police Force.

On 27 September, the angry citizens, who heard the screaming and shouting at night and also saw the monastery buildings covered in blood, and littered with broken glass and furniture, were staging a protest against the troops’ terrorism. In response to the protest, the troops were ordered to crush the protesters and 3 people were shot dead.

According to reports, Khin Zaw Oo was forced to resell the plot and the money was divided between the Battalion Commander and his deputy. The Battalion Commander Colonel Soe Tint Naing has since been promoted to First General Staff (G1) at Taungoo (sa ya pa)

The military officials, who gave the orders to terrorize Ngwe Kyar Yan Monastery are:

• Myint Naung (Brigadier General, and currently Head of the Bayint Naung Military School)
• Soe Tint Naing (Colonel)
• Shwe Win (Major)

Original Source :Yoma3 News Service (Burma)

paraussies.blogspot.com


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

87

Ten case studies in illegal arrest and imprisonment

Terminology

CrPC : Criminal Procedure Code
Kyaikkasan : Location of military interrogation facility
MAS : Military Affairs Security, military intelligence
SB : Special Branch police
Swanar-shin : 'Masters of force', gangs operating under command of local councils
USDA : Union Solidarity & Development Association, government mass body

Note
Some of the cases described here have already had verdicts handed down which are mentioned. In others no verdict is mentioned either because they are still under trial or because at time of writing additional full details were not available on the verdict.

see full article : https://teakdoor.com/thailand-and-asi...tml#post783167 (Burma : Ten case studies in illegal arrest and imprisonment)

article2.org

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

General Maung Aye Scheduled to Arrive in Bangladesh on 7 October
9/30/2008



The Burmese military government's second most powerful leader, Senior General Maung Aye, will arrive in Bangladesh on 7 October for a three-day official visit.

snip

narinjara.com


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


Potential war crimes?
Oct 1, 2008

WASHINGTON - AN INDEPENDENT US group is to carry out unprecedented studies to determine whether Myanmar's military rulers, accused of rampant human rights abuses, have committed international crimes.

The Centre for Constitutional Democracy at Indiana University's school of law said it would launch the research based on anecdotal human rights evidence of 'severe mistreatment' of marginalised ethnic groups by the military junta.

snip

straitstimes.com


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


QUOTE OF THE DAY



All those clubs—the African Union, Asean, or the UN Human Rights Council club—recognize their job as protecting the state rather than protecting the human rights of people from states that violate them.
— Jody Williams, 1997 Nobel Peace Laureate

irrawaddy.org


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


Myanmar discovers new large coal mine in Shan state
2008-10-01

YANGON, Oct. 1 (Xinhua) -- Myanmar has discovered a new large coal mine in northern part of the country's Shan state and mining of the mineral will start with a local private company soon, the local weekly 7-Day News reported Wednesday.

snip

Statistics showed that with a total of 82 coal mining blocks in the whole country, Myanmar produced 282,655 tons of coal in the fiscal year 2007-08 which ended in March, up 19.5 percent from 2006-07.

xinhuanet.com


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

114

ENC calls on the international community to help starving people in Chin State after crops are destroyed
Wed 01 Oct 2008, IMNA

More than a hundred thousand people in Chin State, in northwest Burma, face starvation after a plague of rats destroyed crops in the area. Burma’s military government is offering no help, says the Ethnic Nationalities Council (ENC).

snip

monnews-imna.com

See Also : https://teakdoor.com/thailand-and-asi...tml#post783478 (Burma : Famine Next ............)

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

Mizzima websites hacked
by Mungpi
Wednesday, 01 October 2008

New Delhi – The websites of Mizzima News, an independent Burmese news agency based in New Delhi, India, has been hacked with a Cross-site scripting causing the webites to be inaccessible since early Wednesday morning.

snip

mizzima.com

See Also : https://teakdoor.com/thailand-and-asi...tml#post783484 (Press Release: DVB web site hit by DDoS attack)

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

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

125

Burma’s ethnic Kachin woman gang raped, no action yet
Wednesday, 01 October 2008

Despite international pressure and condemnation, the Burmese military junta is still avoiding taking action against rapists in Kachin State, northern Burma.

There was an instance of rape again in Kachin State in Loiije Township. A married woman, Sumlut Roi Ji (33) was gang raped by two Burmese construction workers, U Thein Tun Lyin (40) and U Thein Myint Swe (29) from Loije on September 21.

But no action has been taken yet, a resident said.

snip

kachinnews.com

See Also : https://teakdoor.com/thailand-and-asi...tml#post784295 (Burma’s ethnic Kachin woman gang raped, no action yet)


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


NLD youth member reported dead in custody


Oct 1, 2008 (DVB)–Aung Moe Lwin, a 36-year-old youth member of the National League for Democracy in Natmauk township, Magwe division, is said to have died in detention, according to a source who spoke on condition of anonymity.

His family has been informed of his death.

Aung Moe Lwin went to Rangoon last year for training before the Saffron Revolution in September and stayed at Maggin monastery, where became friendly with the monks and helped look after AIDS patients.

snip

But five days ago, Aung Moe Lwin’s brother in Kyaukpadaung received a telephone call from an unnamed person who informed him that Aung Moe Lwin and another person from Meikhtila had died from an ‘over-zealous hand’ during interrogation.

snip


Bus drivers’ licences revoked by Dala authorities

Oct 1, 2008 (DVB)–Authorities in Rangoon’s Dala township have revoked the licences of private bus drivers whom they accuse of suspending their services to mark Daw Aung San Suu Kyi’s birthday on 19 June.

snip


Locals say robberies on the rise in Rangoon

Oct 1, 2008 (DVB)–Residents of Rangoon division say that the number of robberies and muggings is on the rise in local townships, but authorities are currently failing to catch those responsible.

snip


Mid: surprised ? , what to expect when nearly 9,000 cons are released onto the streets ................


Argument breaks out at 88 Students’ court hearing

Oct 1, 2008 (DVB)–An argument broke out in court yesterday at a hearing for members of the 88 Generation Students group over the use of the term defendants when they have not yet been charged.

snip


Elected MP Dr Myo Win dies aged 54

Oct 1, 2008 (DVB)–Dr Myo Win, elected member of parliament for Kawa township, Bago division, died of liver cancer on Monday at Phawat private hospital in Mae Sot, Thailand, his wife said.

snip

english.dvb.no

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


Reports of Rape Surface in Cyclone-devastated Delta
By KYI WAI
Wednesday, October 1, 2008

LAPUTTA — Reports of rape and other abuses of women are surfacing as communities in Burma’s Irrawaddy delta continue to recover from May’s Cyclone Nargis.

snip

irrawaddy.org

See Also : https://teakdoor.com/thailand-and-asi...tml#post784309 (Burma : Reports of Rape Surface in Cyclone-devastated Delta)


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


Myanmar builds seaside airport
Oct 1, 2008

YANGON - MYANMAR authorities are building a seaside airport in the southwest region laid waste by a cyclone five months ago, a local weekly paper reported Wednesday.

They hope to boost tourism at Ngwesaung beach, in the country's Irrawaddy delta near the Bay of Bengal, 7Day said.

'The hotel authorities in Ngwesaung beach said an airport with an 8,000-feet (2,400-metre) long runway is under construction now at the beach,' the paper said.

Ngwesaung beach, opened in 2000, is 240 kilometres (150 miles) from the main city Yangon, in the middle of the area left devastated by Cyclone Nargis, which struck May 2-3 and left 138,000 people dead or missing.

The beach attracts foreign tourists looking for budget deals according to one tour operator.

'Spanish and Italian tourists are more interested in Ngwesaung beach as the hotel rates there are lower than at Ngapali beach,' a tour company operation manager told AFP, referring to a beach in Rakhine state already accessible by air and speaking on condition of anonymity.

'But recently the road has been very bad since the Nargis cyclone and because of the rainy season,' she said.

Ngwesaung beach has 20 hotels providing 800 guest rooms according to official statistics. Construction of the airport began in the third week of September, the report said. -- AFP

straitstimes.com


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


How to shoot down Than Shwe - published

(Click picture to Play the Game)

ko-htike.blogspot.com

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

139

Commander Soe Win spends sleepless night over student's movement
Thursday, 02 October 2008

Maj-Gen Soe Win, the Burmese military junta's Northern Military Command commander is spending sleepless nights over the movement unleashed by student activists.

Try as he might, he has been unable to stop the poster movement launched by students in his area of control, sources in Kachin State in northern Burma said.

snip

kachinnews.com

Mid :

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

Swan Ahr Shin and Police Support Sittwe Monks
10/2/2008

Members of Swan Ahr Shin, the police, and the riot police have supported the anti-government movement led by monks in Sittwe because they are suffering the same difficulties in their daily lives, said monk leader Rakhaputta in Sittwe.

He said, "We received not only the people's support, but also the support of members of Swan Ahr Shin, riot police, and the police force for our movement at present, because they are unable to tolerate the economic hardship of their daily lives under the current military government."

snip

narinjara.com

See Also : https://teakdoor.com/thailand-and-asi...tml#post784718 (Burma : Monks in Sittwe defy authority to mark Saffron Revolution)

143

Lawyer Aung Thein withdraws representation

Oct 2, 2008 (DVB)–Prominent lawyer U Aung Thein has said he is to stop representing clients such as U Gambira and other activists in protest at the court’s refusal to allow him enough time to prepare a defence.

snip

english.dvb.no


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


Monk Escapes from Lantalang Prison
By SAW YAN NAING
Thursday, October 2, 2008

A 28-year-old Burmese Buddhist monk, Ashin Pannasiri, has successfully escaped from Lantalang Prison in Chin State and arrived in Delhi, India, after 13 days.

snip

irrawaddy.org

See Also : https://teakdoor.com/thailand-and-asi...tml#post785384


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



Senior Opposition Leader Arrested In Burma

(RTTNews) - The military regime of Burma has arrested Ohn Kyaing, a senior opposition leader, from his house on Wednesday, said his National League for Democracy party on Thursday.

The NLD said that the police did not say why they were arresting Kyaing, who has already spent about 15 years in jail for distributing leaflets against the government.

snip

nasdaq.com


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

158

Eye specialist examines Aung San Suu Kyi
October 03 2008

Yangon - An eye doctor has visited Burma's pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi at her home, where she has been detained for most of the past two decades, her party said on Friday.

The specialist accompanied the Nobel peace laureate's general physician and his assistant on a rare visit to her lakeside home in the main city Yangon on Thursday.

"The eye specialist spent about an hour with her," National League of Democracy spokesperson Nyan Win said, adding he had no further details about her health condition.

Witnesses said her regular physician Tin Myo Win spent about four hours at the house, just two weeks after his last visit.

snip

The doctor had given Aung San Suu Kyi an intravenous drip on September 14, about a month after she began refusing to receive food rations delivered to her home.

The 63-year-old campaigner has refused to meet with anyone other than her lawyer and her doctor since early August.

iol.co.za


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


QUOTE OF THE DAY



We believe that there are still 2,000 political prisoners in Myanmar [Burma]. We are asking the authorities in Rangoon to free them.
— UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Navi Pillay

irrawaddy.org


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


Health imperative 'justifies interventionism'

Western countries should be prepared to intervene without permission when countries like Burma or Zimbabwe threaten the survival of whole populations, two global health experts have said.

Professor Lawrence Gostin and others from Georgetown University in the US call on political leaders to place the survival of large populations over "the sovereignty claims of despotic leaders".

They argue restrictions on humanitarian assistance, as seen in the wake of Cyclone Nargis in Burma, can have a devastating impact on public health in affected countries.

snip

viewlondon.co.uk

See Also : https://teakdoor.com/issues/36568-r2p.html#post786150


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




shanland.org


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


Than Shwe’s Health Again in Question
By MIN LWIN
Friday, October 3, 2008

Burma’s 75-year-old leader, Snr-Gen Than Shwe, is undergoing medical treatment at his Rangoon residence near Tooth Relic Pagoda in Mayangone Township, says a source close to the junta chief’s family.

“Than Shwe has stayed in his Rangoon house since late September where he is receiving medical treatment,” said the source.

No further medical details were given. According to sources inside and outside the country, Than Shwe and his family, accompanied by a team of doctors, are expected to travel to Singapore soon for additional medical consultations or treatment.

The information, however, could not be independently confirmed.

snip

irrawaddy.org


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


Nuclear bond for North Korea and Myanmar

By Norman Robespierre

Oct 4, 2008

YANGON - A recent flurry of high-level contacts between North Korea and Myanmar raises new nuclear proliferation concerns between the two pariah states, one of which already possesses nuclear-weapon capabilities and the other possibly aspiring.

snip

atimes.com


See Also : https://teakdoor.com/thailand-and-asi...tml#post786168