Suu Kyi becomes key to complex Myanmar politics
By Didier Lauras | AFP – 11 hrs ago

Aung San Suu Kyi is playing an increasingly important role in Myanmar, helping shore up a fragile alliance of former junta generals whose recent reforms have amazed observers, analysts say.

After half a century of total military domination, the Southeast Asian nation held widely-criticised elections in 2010 after ordering some of its members to shed their army uniforms to lead a “civilian” government.

Suu Kyi, released from house arrest days after that poll, has since taken a pivotal position, following talks with President Thein Sein last summer and her subsequent decision to run in an April 1 by-election.

The 66-year-old’s participation in the upcoming vote is one of a series of positive changes that have marked a break with the old junta approach to leadership and led to thawing relations with the West, which has imposed tough sanctions on the isolated nation.

Observers say power in the new regime balances between two key former generals turned eager reformers — the president and Shwe Mann, the speaker of the lower house of parliament — with Suu Kyi becoming a third key player.

“The new generation (of military leaders) has come to terms with her and she has come to terms with the new generation,” said Aung Tun Thet, who works as an advisor for the UN in Yangon after many years abroad.

“For the first time now, I see an opportunity for change you get once in a lifetime.”

Shwe Mann, previously the junta number three, has on several occasions said Suu Kyi would be welcome in parliament.

The comments mark a dramatic political rebirth for a woman who was so hated by former strongman Than Shwe that she spent most of the last two decades locked up.

Than Shwe is officially described as retired, but many believe he is still relatively influential.

Observers stress that the current reform process is very fragile, with a small minority in the army outraged — or scared — by the changes.

While a cabal close to Myanmar’s top leaders pushes for more transformations, many are cautiously waiting to see whether the reformers will succeed.

The new system will soon need economic success and investment to win stronger popular backing — hence the regime’s desire for Western support and the lifting of sanctions.

And this gives massive leverage to Suu Kyi, whose iconic status both in the European Union and the United States has given her a very powerful influence on public opinion.

“I wouldn’t say we’re giving her a total veto but to the extent that she has confidence in the process, we will have confidence in the process of change in Myanmar,” US Senator Joe Lieberman told reporters in Bangkok recently.

In recent months, the opposition party leader has been an indispensable interlocutor during the visits of foreign dignitaries. And she is careful not to criticise the government.

“She transformed from an icon to a politician with all the risks and contradictions that entails,” said an observer who visits her regularly.

Shwe Mann’s son Toe Naing Mann, who is helping his father in his new role, believes that the common political goals uniting Suu Kyi and the two top regime reformers, all in their late 60s, are the key to the country’s future.

“The three of them can work now together for about five years. It is their first chance and also their only chance. If they cannot cash in this opportunity, they will be held responsible,” he told AFP.

Suu Kyi and her National League for Democracy (NLD) decided in May 2010 to boycott the general elections that year.

Her talks with Thein Sein have since convinced her to rejoin mainstream politics, to the point of rumours she will soon be in the government, speculation that she has not ruled out.

As the generals become heralds of parliamentary democracy, albeit with a legislature still dominated by the army, she is quickly learning a new role. “Suu Kyi is in uncharted waters,” said the observer.

But she is clearly determined to remain leader of the democracy movement.

This is acknowledged, despite some bitterness, by members of the National Democratic Force (NDF), which split from the NLD in 2010 to contest the November election, convinced that the boycott was a mistake.

NDF head Khin Maung Swe, who was in prison for around 20 years for his involvement in the NLD, does not understand why Suu Kyi has not been in contact since she decided to run in the April by-election.

He said he would have appreciated her admission that he was probably right, a year and a half ago.

“They have no guts to say to us: ‘Guys you were right, we were wrong at the time’,” he said. “She is too far away above our heads, she has no time to see us.”

But he admits she is “of course” the patron saint of the opposition.

“She is the only person who can have an influence all over the people.”

Investors aim to reap benefits of Myanmar reforms
By Didier Lauras | AFP – 17 hrs ago

Dramatic changes afoot in Myanmar have whet the appetite of foreign investors who are eyeing a slice of the frontier market’s rich and largely untapped economic potential.

As the new army-backed government steps up its reform agenda after nearly five decades of outright military rule, the West is considering easing sanctions that have stifled development since the late 1990s.

But when the measures are eventually lifted and multinationals are given the green light to invest, they will discover a country weakened by half a century of military rule and economic mismanagement.

An abundance of natural treasures — including gold, gas, teak, oil, jade and gems — could make the country rich, as it was before the generals took power.

The country formerly known as Burma also has a pool of low-cost labour and English is widely spoken, a legacy of more than a century of British rule until independence in 1948.

And the Southeast Asian nation of 60 million people is tipped as a hot tourist destination thanks to its appealing colonial architecture, picturesque temples and golden beaches.

“The numbers are exploding. There are no empty rooms in hotels in high season anymore,” said a foreign businessman involved in the tourism sector.

Doing business is also becoming easier, he said. “Licences which took weeks to obtain can be got in a day. Things that were impossible to do are now authorised.”

The European Union is considering lifting sanctions against Myanmar as soon as February, according to diplomats in Brussels, while Washington has promised further reforms will be met with US rewards.

But firms hoping to rush in should bear in mind that the new parliament has yet to pass any laws on investment and the judiciary lacks the competence and the independence to ensure contracts are respected, observers say.

“The law is obsolete so people find their way by themselves. They don’t want to break the law but they have no choice,” Toe Naing Mann, son of key regime figure Shwe Mann, the lower house speaker, told AFP.

In the meantime, the black economy has boomed, notably cross-border trade and the illegal migration of workers from Myanmar who go overseas to work, particularly to neighbouring Thailand, and send home money.

Myanmar’s banking system has never really recovered from a major crisis in 2003 and illegal money changers flourish thanks to an exchange rate almost 100 times better than the official one.

A few Western corporations such as French oil giant Total do have a presence because the sanctions framework permitted firms that were already operating in the country at the time to stay.

The US and EU measures ban a range of imports from Myanmar but, with certain exceptions, do not stop companies exporting goods to the country, although many firms refrain from doing so anyway for fear of an activist backlash.

Asian allies such as China and Thailand already have a foot in the door and their firms are involved in the construction of hydropower, deep-sea ports and gas pipeline projects.

Others are also beating a path to the door, with Japan’s trade minister this month leading a delegation of Japanese business chiefs to scout for potential business opportunities.

A group of US corporate executives is also expected in Myanmar later this month to assess the economic landscape.

So far junta-friendly Myanmar tycoons have been the main beneficiaries of economic development, but experts say the headaches for foreigners of doing business are gradually easing.

“The new government is trying to open up and to reduce the existing restrictions, controls and transaction costs with a view to create a favorable investment and business climate,” said Winston Set Aung, co-founder of the Asia Development Research Institute in Yangon.

The junta, which ruled until March 2011, also set in motion a programme to sell state assets such as petrol stations and Yangon’s port.

But a dearth of infrastructure means the downstream oil and gas sector is still not profitable enough to attract foreign giants, said Toe Naing Mann.

“Sometimes we protect our national interests too much,” added the businessman, who now works as a political aide to his father.

Like Vietnam in the 1990s, when the United States lifted a trade embargo and restored diplomatic relations with Hanoi, lawyers and consultancy firms are likely to be the first to become well-established in Myanmar.

The resources and tourism sectors will also be deluged with requests for licences, predicted Aekapol Chongvilaivan, a fellow at Singapore?s Institute of Southeast Asian Studies.
But problems such as corruption, mismanagement and inadequate economic policies need to be addressed, he added.

“Particularly, industrial and financial market reforms have desperately struggled in the midst of inadequate infrastructure, policy uncertainties, and bleak business climate,” he said.

EU agrees to ease Myanmar sanctions
Associated Press – 2 hrs 52 mins ago

BRUSSELS (AP) — The European Union is rewarding Myanmar’s moves toward political reform by easing some sanctions against the regime.

The EU foreign ministers agreed Monday on a “first step”, ending the visa ban on the president and top government officials.

EU foreign affairs chief Catherine Ashton said she would visit the country after an April 1 election, in a move set up with pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi.

As well as the visa ban, over the years the EU has imposed an arms embargo, a ban on the sale of goods linked to internal repression, and has suspended certain development aid programs.

EU eases sanctions on Myanmar leaders after reforms
By David Brunnstrom and Sebastian Moffett | Reuters – 3 hrs ago

BRUSSELS (Reuters) – The European Union agreed Monday to suspend visa bans on the president of Myanmar and other senior officials, following reforms that have included the release of hundreds of political prisoners.

EU foreign ministers meeting in Brussels hailed a “remarkable program of political reform” in Myanmar and the government’s commitment to economic and social development.

They said that in response, the EU would suspend visa bans on Myanmar’s president, Thein Sein, the country’s vice-presidents, cabinet members and parliamentary speakers.

In a statement, the ministers also pledged to promote reform by increasing assistance to reduce poverty and for professional training and by strengthening dialogue with the government. They also called for “progressive engagement” by the World Bank and International Monetary Fund.

Further reforms, including the release of remaining political prisoners, the holding of free and fair by-elections in April and progress in resolving ethnic conflicts could lead to more sanctions being eased by the end of April, they said.

“These changes are opening up important new prospects for developing the relationship between the European Union and Burma/Myanmar,” the statement said of Myanmar’s reforms.

EU sanctions were imposed after bloody military crackdowns on a pro-democracy movement led by Nobel Prize-winning dissident Aung San Suu Kyi.

They target nearly a thousand firms and institutions with asset freezes and visa bans have affected almost 500 people. The sanctions also include an arms embargo, a prohibition on technical assistance related to the military and investment bans in the mining, timber and precious metals sectors.

“QUITE EXTRAORDINARY CHANGES”

EU foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton said “quite extraordinary changes” had taken place in Myanmar in the last weeks and months and British Foreign Secretary William Hague said it was important to recognize the progress made.

Ashton said she aimed to visit the country soon — probably after the April ballot.

“Colleagues who have already been there have experienced a real sense of transition in that country,” she said. “We are working closely with Aung San Suu Kyi and I will visit Burma in coordination with her — we’ve done this entirely with her.”

She said the aim of the visit would be to offer “full support in what we hope will be a very successful transition.”

The reforms in Myanmar have followed a March election that saw a new government take over from a military junta and have included loosening media restrictions and other repressive laws, peace talks with ethnic insurgents and the freeing of hundreds of political prisoners.

Ashton sent her top foreign policy adviser to Myanmar last year, and the EU, in a move to encourage reform, slightly eased sanctions last April by suspending travel bans and asset freezes on 24 civilian government officials.

Earlier this month, the European Union said it would open a representative office in Myanmar to manage aid programs and promote political dialogue.

Suu Kyi, a former political prisoner who was freed in 2010, has reversed her stance on boycotting Myanmar’s army-dominated political system following the reforms and has agreed to stand in the April polls.

The lifting of sanctions could lead to Western investment in oil, gas and other sectors to compete with Myanmar’s neighbors, especially India, Thailand and China.

The United States has decided to upgrade diplomatic ties with Myanmar as a result of its reforms and is considering lifting its sanctions if the by elections are fair and open.

As big as France and Britain combined, Myanmar lies between India, China and Southeast Asia with ports on the Indian Ocean and the Andaman Sea, all of which make it an energy security asset for Beijing’s landlocked western provinces and a U.S. priority as Obama strengthens engagement with Asia.

Its resources include natural gas, timber and precious gems. Myanmar is building a multibillion-dollar port through which oil can reach a 790-km (490-mile) pipeline under construction with Chinese money and workers.

Top Myanmar dissidents back Suu Kyi but won’t contest election
By Aung Hla Tun | Reuters – Sat, Jan 21, 2012

YANGON (Reuters) – Myanmar’s most famous political prisoners on Saturday voiced support for democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi, a week after their mass release, but said they would not contest April by-elections for seats in parliament.

The “88 Generation Students Group,” which led a 1988 uprising that was brutally suppressed by the then military regime, said it was too soon to form a political party and would take a wait-and-see approach to reforms being initiated by the nominally civilian government that came to power last year.

The group, led by Min Ko Naing and Ko Ko Gyi, who were freed this month after being jailed for leading the 1988 revolt, is regarded as Myanmar’s most popular opposition group after Suu Kyi’s National League for Democracy (NLD) party.

“We support Daw Aung San Suu Kyi’s decision to take part in the upcoming election for the emergence of genuine democracy,” the group said in a statement read at a conference attended by more than 800 people in Yangon. Daw is a Burmese honorific.

“The 88 Generation Students Group will provide her with support and encouragement,” it said.

Suu Kyi, herself a former political prisoner who was released in November 2010, has reversed her stance on boycotting Myanmar’s army-dominated political system following a series of surprise reforms by the new government.

The NLD boycotted the widely criticized 2010 elections but has re-registered as a party and will field candidates — including Suu Kyi herself — in April by-elections for 48 vacant seats in the 1,158-seat national legislature.

LEAP OF FAITH

The NLD’s decision to take part has been welcomed by the international community but has not been entirely supported by the Burmese public, some of which feel Suu Kyi is being used by the former generals now in government to legitimize their new political system.

Analysts and diplomats say last week’s release of more than 300 political prisoners, together with transparent April polls, could see the start of a gradual lifting of Western sanctions imposed due to the harsh rule of the country’s former junta.

Ko Ko Gyi said the group would keep an open mind regarding the reforms under way in recent months, which include prisoner releases, more media freedom, tentative moves to overhaul the long stagnant economy and peace talks with ethnic militias.

“We are neither optimistic or pessimistic. We just try to see things as they are,” he said.

“We don’t care whether the glass is half full or half empty. We will just watch what they will do with the water already in the glass.”

The 88 Generation said it would fully cooperate with the government to build a “new state” and said all parties, including the military, needed to work together for a brighter future, which should include activists still in detention or those driven into exile.

The stance reflects a remarkable lack of bitterness towards those still in power, who were part of a regime that ensured members of the group were locked up for years in dire conditions, some subjected to torture and malnourishment.

“We will cooperate with all national forces for the emergence of a wider peace process through talks being held at present,” it said.

“For democracy, peace and development, we will do all we can to the best of our ability to cooperate with the government led by the president, the People’s Parliament, the National Parliament, the military, all political parties, ethnic nationalities and all the pro-reformists from all walks of life in our society.”

The Christian Science Monitor – Is it ‘Burma’ or ‘Myanmar’? US officials start shifting.
Sen. John McCain arrives Sunday with other US officials in Myanmar. Or is it Burma?
By Simon Roughneen, Correspondent / January 22, 2012

Burma or Myanmar? As the country’s military-backed government races headlong into reforms aimed at ending its long international isolation, US officials are changing their tone.

For starters, they are beginning to use the government’s preferred name for the country, “Myanmar,” after two decades of sticking with “Burma.”

“We have visited the Philippines, Vietnam, we are here, we are going to Myanmar tomorrow morning,” said Sen. John McCain, opening a press conference given by four US senators for journalists in Bangkok on Saturday afternoon.

It may seem like a small point, but in the subtle world of diplomacy this is heady stuff. It would seem to signal US recognition of the changes afoot in Myanmar and a willingness to work with a regime it has shunned for decades.

Until now, the US took its verbal cues from opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi when it came to the country’s name. Attempting a symbolic stand against the arbitrariness of military rule, Ms. Suu Kyi and western governments have mostly stuck with “Burma” since the military junta changed the country’s name to Myanmar in 1989.

But throughout Saturday’s 45 minute Q&A with the senators, “Myanmar” was the term of choice, though the senior lawmakers at times slipped back into using “Burma.”

When I asked whether the etymological shift presaged a changing US policy, Senator McCain cracked a joke about the “West Philippine Sea” (the name used by Manila to refer to the disputed South China Sea, also known as the East Sea in Vietnam), before telling me that “you raise a good point.”

He moved swiftly along to the next question.

After US State Deptartment official Joseph Yun got an ear-bending last year from Myanmar’s Foreign Minister Wunna Waung Lwin over his use of “Burma” during a visit to the country, perhaps the senators were just getting the script right before meeting President Thein Sein.

McCain, fellow veteran Sen. Joseph Lieberman, and colleagues Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse and Sen. Kelly Ayote travelled to Myanmar/Burma today, after visiting Vietnam, the Philippines, and Thailand. They will also meet opposition leader Suu Kyi, partly to assess next steps on possible removal of some US sanctions on the country

Her opinion will be key to whether the US waters down sanctions, as Senator Lieberman acknowledged on Saturday. “I wouldn’t say we’re giving her a total veto,” Lieberman said, but added that “her views over when to end sanctions would heavily influence US policy”.

The next shift is likely after April 1 by-elections, in which Suu Kyi will run, and if they are deemed free and fair, the senators see no option for the US but to respond by removing some sanctions.

But as far as anyone knows, Suu Kyi’s take is that the country’s name is “Burma,” itself a tin-eared British colonial-era rendering of “Bama,” a way people in country pronounced
what was more formally called “Myanma.” But then, many Burmese are easy either way. “I say Burma, I say Myanmar,” one Burmese told me today when I raised the subject.

As an Irishman, I empathize, as many Irish place-names are mangled Anglicizations (manglicizations?) of Gaelic names, rather than meaningful translations into English of what the original actually means.

Back in 1989, the military regime spun the renaming as “Myanmar” as a concession to the country’s more than 130 ethnic minorities whom the army decided were discriminated-
against by the use of the allegedly-ethnocentric British adaptation. This was fresh from gunning down some 3,000 student demonstrators in then-capital Rangoon/Yangon (another lexical wrangle: think Burma/Rangoon and Myanmar/Yangon and you get the idea).

But ethnocentricism lived on in much worse form, real rather than symbolic. The army has destroyed more ethnic minority villages in eastern Burma than the Sudanese Army and its janjaweed militia allies managed in Darfur, according to data in a 2009 Harvard University report, as well as a litany of abuses such as forced labor, extrajudicial killing, child soldiers, and gang-rape.

While the regime has claimed “Myanmar” is the more inclusive term, linguist Maung Tha Noe told the BBC in 2010 that “Bamar” means all the people in this country, but that “Myanmar” excludes the country’s ethnic minorities, such as the Karen, Mon, and Shan. But Bertil Linter, prolific author on the country, has a simpler take: “Burma” and “Myanmar” mean exactly the same thing.

ABC Radio Australia – Burma guarantees Aung San Suu Kyi media access in polls
Updated January 23, 2012 22:09:39

Burma’s government says it’s serious about ensuring free and fair by-elections that have been scheduled for the country in April.

Pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi will be running for a parliamentary seat, with the opposition National League for Democracy expected to field 48 candidates in total.

Ms Suu Kyi has been receiving foreign dignitaries over the past few months, her latest visitor being the high-profile American Senator John McCain.

Senator McCain said after talks with Ms Suu Kyi, that the US was “pleased” with the progress of reforms, but that it did not expect “miracles”.

Presenter: Sen Lam
Speaker: Ko Ko Hlaing, chief political advisor to Burma’s President Thein Sein
Listen:Windows Media(http://www.abc.net.au/ra/asiapac/stories/m2060999.asx)

KO KO HLAING: Actually, this is the second time of his visit to Myanmar. Compared to his previous visits, I’ve seen alot of progress in his perspective on Myanmar. And also, he’s now saying he’s saying that he’s quite encouraged by Myanmar’s initial reforms, he’d like to see free and fair by elections. In his interviews with media, he mentioned circumstances of lifting sanctions. I think that is quite encouraging for Myanmar reforms.

LAM: Well, Senator McCain, as I understand it, indicated that the US might lift sanctions if the April by-elections are free and fair. And I think even the European Union is reported to be viewing the April polls to be some kind of a litmus test. Is that a strong enough incentive for the Burmese government to ensure that free and fair elections do happen? What is the government doing about this?

KO KO HLAING: The chairman of the National Election Commission already has made some comment that upcoming elections will be free and fair, because it’s very important for Myanmar politics and the main opposition force, the NLD has re-registered as a formal political party and it will compete in the by-election, including its leader, Daw Aung San Suu Kyi as a candidate. So the Myanmar government is quite serious on that matter. And also the National Election Commission, to prepare for free and fair elections.

LAM: As you say, Ms Aung San Suu Kyi, the leader of the National League for Democracy, the NLD, she’ll be running for a parliamentary seat. Everyone has been calling for free and fair elections. Can the government ensure that Ms Suu Kyi will have free and unfettered access to government media, and also to campaign freely in the country?

KO KO HLAING: Actually, we have given equal opportunities to all the candidates, who are competing in the elections. So, Ms Suu Kyi will have equal opportunities and equal chance provided by the government media and also other media.

LAM: But is the government also guaranteeing the safety of Ms Suu Kyi, as she goes about campaigning, that she can get her message out there to the people, without fear of intimidation or threat of violence?

KO KO HLAING: Of course, in her previous visits to rural areas of Ms Suu Kyi’s is quite secure and safe, and the government has provided a proper security plan for her. So I believe that she will be secure and safe in her campaign. Her constituency is not far away from Yangon (Rangoon) and there will be a much popular in the local audience, and the local authority will make a proper security plan for her. And as she is a public figure and also the authorities have to give a security plan for any citizen, especially like her, who’s a very popular figure. So, I don’t think the government will neglect her in security matters, because it’s a concern for them also.

LAM: Senator John McCain also noted that there remained a great deal to be done, even though he did say that there was progress made in Burma over the last twelve months. And he’s especially concerned about not just rule of law, but also the military’s relationship with the ethnic tribal groups. Can you tell us, your government signed a peace deal with the Shans late last year – is this the beginning of a long process of reconciliation with the groups in the tribal areas?

KO KO HLAING: If you study our country’s history, our insurgencies have a long history for many decades, so this simply cannot be wiped out overnight. But our government has a strong strategy to make a peace process. Our strategy for peace is through development. And we have contact with nearly a dozen ethnic armed groups, and we’re starting peace talks and nearly half of them, we have reached initial peace agreement and some of them, we are now starting political dialogues. After our political dialogues with individual groups, we will bring them in parliament, for discussions with the law-makers. And after that, we’ll make a permanent peace agreement in our parliament. And so, we hope that this peace process will enhance our reform, as well as our rule of law.

LAM: And finally, very quickly, Human Rights Watch points to the rape and torture and killings committed by the Burmese military, especially in areas like Kachin state. Is the government doing anything to make sure that the military gets the message, that these activities are not acceptable?

KO KO HLAING: Every warlike situation, there’ll be such kind of human rights abuses… even the well-disciplined and well-developed army like the NATO and United States army, they’d committed abuses, like their urinating on the dead bodies of the Taliban, and also rape case on the Okinawa marine base. So, there will be some individual commitment, but Myanmar army has rules and regulations and laws to prosecute the offenders. And we now have a National Human Rights Commission and this commission has arrived in the Kachin area, to study the situation of human rights. And so, I think there will be more progress there, and after, we can make ceasefire and a permanent peace done, in these states. There will be no more fighting and no more human rights violations by both sides or their troops.

Indian Express – Manmohan to visit Myanmar in May
Shubhajit Roy : New Delhi, Mon Jan 23 2012, 03:02 hrs

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh will visit Myanmar in May, sources said on Sunday. Singh will hold discussions with Myanmar’s leadership as well as attend the Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation (BIMSTEC) summit meeting.

Myanmar Foreign Minister Wunna Maung Lwin landed in New Delhi on Sunday and will meet his Indian counterpart S M Krishna on Tuesday to discuss preparations for the Prime Minister’s visit, scheduled between May 10 and 12.

Lwin and Krishna will also review the progress in bilateral cooperation since the visit of Myanmar President Thein Sein to India in October last year.

Engaging with Myanmar has become one of key cornerstones of the government’s policy since the country began a peaceful transition from decades of military rule to parliamentary democracy.

India and Myanmar have pledged to work to ensure peace along the border, and friendship and bilateral cooperation between the two countries.

This was reiterated at a meeting between Deputy Home Minister Brigadier-General Kyaw Zan Myint and Home Secretary R K in Nay Phi Taw on Thursday.

The meeting discussed a memorandum of understanding on border affairs and matters of common interest. Both countries felt that efforts to maintain stability has improved the socio-economic condition of people living in the border regions.

During President Sein’s visit, the two countries had reaffirmed their “unequivocal and uncompromising position against terrorism in all its forms and manifestations, agreeing on enhancing effective cooperation and coordination between the security forces of the two countries in tackling the deadly menace of insurgency and terrorism”.

The Times of India – Burma event at JLF
Vineet Gill, TNN | Jan 23, 2012, 01.30PM IST

JAIPUR: A country shut airtight against the rest of the world for over four decades, Burma – or Myanmar, the name preferred by the rulers – is slowly and gradually opening up. The country’s government, although still backed by the military leaders, has rolled out massive waves of political, social and economic reforms over the last two years.

One of the relevant signs has been the release of the pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi from 15 years of house-arrest, and who might be getting a seat in the Burmese parliament soon.

The historian Thant Myint-U’s recent book, Where China Meets India, makes an argument for the increasing importance of Burma on the global stage. “There’s a tendency to look at Burma only as the country it became post the military takeover,” said Myint-U, talking on the future of the country at the Jaipur Literature Festival on Sunday.

One of the most significant indicators of an overall reform has been the improving economy. “The economy of the country is much better than it was some years back. But there is still a long way to go,” added Myint-U.

The political situation in the country too is getting better, and analysts believe that the ‘pseudo-civilian government’ is expected to veer further towards democracy in the coming years.

Speaking at the same event, journalist and author Peter Popham, who has recently written Suu Kyi’s biography, said that athough tolerance levels for the dissenting voices have gone up, but the road ahead is long. “When Suu Kyi was asked if she would like to be the president of the country ever, she declined. Then she added that still, she would like a country where she could have become the president if she wanted it,” Popham said.

Posted: Mon, Jan 23 2012. 1:00 AM ISTPublished on page 6
Livemint – India to review economic, security ties with Myanmar
Elizabeth Roche, elizabeth.r@livemint.com

India will review its economic and security ties with strategic neighbour Myanmar during foreign minister Wunna Maung Lwin’s four-day trip starting Sunday, besides exchanging views on the internal political changes in the previously military-ruled reclusive country that is slowly opening up to the world.

The foreign ministry said in a statement that Lwin and Indian foreign minister S.M. Krishna will review the progress in bilateral cooperation since a three-day state visit of Myanmar’s civilian president U. Thein Sein in October, following landmark elections in the nation in November 2010 that ushered in limited democracy.

“It would also give India a chance to exchange views with Myanmar on internal developments in the country and also on international developments” vis-a-vis the changes in Myanmar, a person familiar with the matter said on condition of anonymity.

Though the November 2010 elections—the first in two decades—were dismissed by Western governments as flawed, given that many of those standing for polls were those who resigned from the military, Myanmar has surprised many with its steps toward political reform. Chief among these have been the release of hundreds of political prisoners, more political freedom for Myanmar’s pro-democracy icon Aung San Suu Kyi, and allowing access to the Internet.

Since her release from house arrest a week after the 2010 elections, Suu Kyi has met a host of international leaders including US secretary of state Hillary Clinton and UK foreign secretary William Hague at her residence in Yangon. Last week, Suu Kyi, who had spent 15 of the past 21 years in jail or house arrest, registered to run for Parliament in a by-election on 1 April. The National League for Democracy party chief will stand for elections in Kawhmu, south-west of Yangon, BBC reported.

Myanmar’s neighbour India, often criticized by Western countries for being among the few nations to engage the previous military regime despite being the world’s largest democracy, has welcomed the reforms.

The Indian government, which had invested in Myanmar’s energy and infrastructure sectors, had opposed sanctions on the country, describing them as counterproductive, citing economic and security compulsions.

Once a staunch supporter of Suu Kyi, India reversed its policy in the mid-1990s when it realized insurgent groups operating in its North-East were using Myanmar as a springboard to launch attacks inside India. The engagement has yielded dividends.

In July 2010, during a visit to India by military junta chief Than Shwe, India signed a mutual legal assistance agreement with Myanmar through which Indian insurgents held in that country can be deported for trial under Indian law—a pact that had been hanging fire for two-and-a-half decades.

Myanmar’s army, too, has joined hands with Indian security personnel for anti-insurgency operations along their 1,640km-long unfenced border. The Indian government has also been wary of giant neighbour China’s interest in resource-rich Myanmar that India is keen to tap for its economic growth.

Besides India, China has also been a supporter of Myanmar’s former military regime led by Than Shwe, investing millions of dollars. In a key development last year, Thein Sein ordered work on a controversial $3.6 billion dam to stop after rare public opposition to the Chinese-backed hydropower project.

“Myanmar is a very important neighbour,” said C.U. Bhaskar, former head of the National Maritime Foundation think-tank. Myanmar’s geographical location between India and the dynamic economies of South-East Asia, its position vis-a-vis India’s insurgency-ridden north-eastern states, and a long border make the country strategically key and have been the reasons for India’s engagement, said Bhaskar.

Myanmar pressing ahead with political reforms “vindicates India’s approach which is not to hector rulers of authoritarian regimes in public while conveying its message in a persuasive in private,” he said.

Former Indian ambassador to Myanmar G. Parthasarthy said India’s readiness not to target Myanmar with sanctions has helped in building ties with the new administration there.

“To my mind, what is important now is to continue with the constructive engagement and also to see that our aid projects are more efficiently administered,” Parthasarthy said, noting that such Indian projects have often been delayed, leaving room for countries such as China to seize the advantage.

During Thein Sein’s visit, India had announced a $500 million dollar credit line to Myanmar to promote economic and development activity.

According to Parthasarthy, Myanmar’s progress toward democracy will lead to increased economic linkages not only with India, China and the economies of South-East Asia.

“An increasingly important player is Japan,” he said, noting that the increasing global involvement in Myanmar will lessen the chances of Myanmar falling under the exclusive sphere of influence of any one country.

Assam Tribune – Myanmar to take steps against NE militants
R Dutta Choudhury

GUWAHATI, Jan 22 – The Government of Myanmar has assured India that steps would be taken against the militants using the territory of that country. At the same time, Myanmar has sought assistance from India for implementation of several major development projects.

Highly placed sources in the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) told The Assam Tribune that the issue of presence of militants of India in Myanmar was discussed in detail in the recent Home Secretary level meeting between India and Myanmar. The Indian delegation pointed out in the meeting that a number of leaders of the militant groups are staying in Myanmar and almost all the major insurgent groups of North East India have their bases in that country. The Indian delegation also submitted a list of camps of the militants with pinpointed locations to the Myanmar Government so that action can be taken to evict the same.

The presence of Paresh Baruah in Myanmar was also discussed in the meetings between the two countries. According to information available with the security agencies, Baruah, the leader of the hard line faction of the United Liberation Front of Asom (ULFA), spends most of his time in an area bordering Myanmar and China and he frequently visits China.

MHA sources revealed that the talks were very candid and the Government of Myanmar assured that steps would be taken against the militants staying in that country. “Myanmar has made it clear that they do not have any intension to allow the insurgent groups to use the territory of that country to wage war against India,” sources added.

However, MHA sources admitted that Myanmar is now bogged down with its own problems and Myanmar Army is busy fighting own insurgent groups. Under the circumstances, Myanmar has not been able to spare enough troops to take sustained action against the insurgent groups of India. However, Myanmar Government made it clear that it is not supporting the insurgents and would take action whenever possible, sources added.

On the possibility of joint operations against the militants, sources said that it would be difficult for a sovereign country like Myanmar to allow Indian Army to operate in
its territory. However, the possibility of coordinated operations on both sides of the border cannot be ruled out.

Meanwhile, the Government of Myanmar has sought India’s help to implement several major development projects, which would also be beneficial for India. Myanmar has sought India’s help for implementation of several road projects and sources pointed out that construction of the roads would facilitate free movement of the troops to the areas where the militants are taking shelter.

Sources revealed that Myanmar has sought India’s help for early completion of the “trilateral highway” linking India, Myanmar and Thailand. Though all the three countries are bearing the cost of the project, India is spending the highest amount on the same. Myanmar is not in a position to complete the road falling under that country and recently Myanmar Government has completed a four kilometer long bridge, but India will have to complete the approaches to the same.

MHA sources pointed out that the completion of the Highway would give a major boost to the economy of the North East region of the country.

Myanmar Government has also sought India’s help for development of the Naga Hills area of Myanmar and India has agreed to do so. Sources pointed out that India’s help for development of the Naga Hills area of Myanmar at a time when talks are on with insurgent groups of Nagaland would give a psychological boost and prove India’s willingness for the development of the Naga people.

Lion and dragon dance opens up Chinese New Year celebration in Yangon
English.news.cn   2012-01-22 20:10:21

YANGON, Jan. 22 (Xinhua) — A grand lion and dragon dance performed by Chinese-Myanmar dancing groups opened up the Chinese New Year celebration in Myanmar’s commercial city of Yangon Sunday, the eve of the Chinese Year of the Dragon.

With large traditional drums beating and colorful festive flags flying, the round-the-Chinatown dancing procession made up by 24 amateur lion and dragon dancing groups attracted thousands of watchers on Sunday afternoon.

As in the previous years, the marchers paid homage to the Chinatown Guangdong Guanyin (God of Mercy) Temple and Fujian Qingfu Gong Temple with on-the-spot brief performance when they passed by.

The two ancient temples of over a century of history represent the two largest Chinese temples in the Yangon Chinatown.

The procession began from the Sint Oh Dan Street in the heart of the Chinatown which is one of the most crowded places in Yangon and a commercial center.

As it passed noon, traffic on the main road in the Chinatown, which had been partially blocked for three days by temporary roadside stalls for selling new year goods, returned to normal, making way for the procession.

During the day of the new year eve, family members used to come back home from wherever they were for the reunion-lunch or dinner.

Families of Chinese residents prepared their meal rich with meat, especially pork, chicken, duck, wine and beverages, and had their meal deliciously after paying worship to their ancestors.

Chinese-Myanmar families used to erect the signboard of their ancestors on the wall of their apartments for worship, burn sticks and paper-money of gold and silver and offer liquor and a variety of food with their worship to pay respects to their ancestors according to traditional customs.

Most of their ancestors drifted away from the homeland in war time dating back to the Qing Dynasty when the first generation of Chinese citizens migrated to various parts of the world including Myanmar’s Yangon by waterways.

Children are wearing colorful new clothes. They will visit relatives and close friends with their parents on Monday, the first day of the new year. Children are naturally joyful and encouraged as they will be offered by elders “Hongbao” (red envelops) as pocket money.

Some family members are also prepared to spend the night of the new year eve by staying up late or all night at home or at temples to observe the coming of the new year.

A series of lion dance competitions, involving the 24 amateur lion dancing groups, will take place on the Sint Oh Dan Street. The contests will run from the second day of the new year for three consecutive nights until Thursday, Jan. 26, and a prize- presentation ceremony will be held on Friday, Jan. 27, when the dancing groups will repeat their excellent performances.

Several other lion and dragon dance groups are also preparing to launch performances at some Chinese temples, international schools, famous parks and private companies respectively starting from the first day of the new year.

For the past week as the lunar new year was drawing near, many Chinese-Myanmar communities launched their respective traditional charity activities with several social and religious organizations such as Fujian Qing Fu Gon Temple, Guangdong Guan Yin Temple and Mutai Temple, distributing cash aid to the poor people above 75 years of age with no children to care for them.

Other local Chinese cultural associations are also due to launch big cultural shows on the new year days as annual festive get-togethers.

Myanmar’s ruling party stresses need to improve public welfare
English.news.cn   2012-01-23 11:35:18

YANGON, Jan. 23 (Xinhua) — Myanmar’s ruling party, the Union Solidarity and Development Party (USDP), held its first ever special meeting at the weekend in the wake of changing scenario, stressing the need to study the real situation of the public and to support undertakings in the interest of the people, local media reported Monday.

Top leader of the USDP U Shwe Mann, who is also speaker of the parliamentary House of Representatives (Lower House), also emphasized the need to cooperate in realizing citizens’ fundamental rights, promoting democracy and human rights, said the Weekly Eleven News.

He called for the government to carry out the duty in line with people’s desire and do their utmost to work for preventing people from falling into misery.

Meanwhile, the USDP said it is nominating candidates to vie for the 48 vacant seats of the parliament in the upcoming parliamentary by-elections set for April 1 where Aung San Suu Kyi- led National League for Democracy (NLD) also announced to take part.

Of the 48 vacant posts to be elected from constituencies in 10 regions or states, 40 are for the House of Representatives, 6 for House of Nationalities and 2 for region or state parliament.

The Union Election Commisssion has set Jan. 31 a deadline for contesting political parties to register with the commission for entering the by-elections.

In the 2010 November general election, contested by 37 political parties in the absence of NLD, the USDP won the majority of the parliamentary seats at three levels.

Mainichi Daily News – Top Myanmar military regime officials cross-dressed to drive away evil spirits
January 22, 2012

If you have a chance to visit Myanmar, known worldwide for its fortune-telling, it is a good idea to have local diviner check your future.

There is a building that looks like a row house on the premises of a pagoda in Yangon, the old capital of Myanmar, and fortune-tellers wait for customers in spaces separated by partitions.

I sat in front of a woman of Indian descent. After I told the fortune-teller my birth date and year, she drew a rough celestial map on a piece of paper, and in detail indicated the future in my work, colors and directions that she claims would bring me fortune.

“Don’t wear black clothes until after next month. You might have a traffic accident,” she told me.

“But don’t worry,” she said as she wrote down how to drive away evil spirits. She listed up various items I should buy at stalls on the premises of the pagoda, including an umbrella, nine paper fans and three gilts, as well as a bunch of flowers. She then advised me to dedicate these items before the tablets of my deceased ancestors and offer a prayer. If I followed her advice, she assured me I would be all right.

A Myanmar state-run TV station aired a scene of a dinner meeting of top military-regime officials in February last year, a month before it handed over power to a civilian government.
The scene came as a surprise as then supreme leader Than Shwe, current President Thein Sein and all the others were cross-dressed in folk clothes called “longyi.” It was not some form of entertainment for the party.

“Undoubtedly, it was yadaya (a ceremony to drive away evil spirits),” recalls a local journalist. Many fortune-tellers reportedly predicted that an administration led by a woman (Aung San Suu Kyi) would take over the reins of government soon.

The top officials of the military regime were cross-dressed as if to tell the public, “We’re all women.” In other words, they were relieved after showing to the public that the establishment of a woman-led administration was achieved.

Myanmar’s military regime has given the world a hard-line image by suppressing pro-democracy forces and confronting the Western world. Top officials in the military regime, who are usually dressed in military clothes and appear dignified, showed their cross-dressed appearance to the public in a serious manner. They looked like they admitted that they were afraid of Suu Kyi, indicating their human touch.

If you walk around Myanmar, you’ll definitely notice that military regime leaders greatly fear Suu Kyi. No posters of the opposition leader nor books she authored can be seen anywhere in the country. State-run media outlets had called her “Mrs. Aris,” which is the family name of her late British husband, and a “female cobra,” which can mean the most poisonous and dangerous woman.

In Myanmar, broadcasters are prohibited from airing songs of well-known Irish rock band “U2″ in retaliation for the group singing songs that praise Suu Kyi’s pro-democracy campaign. However, there were rumors that if one writes “U2″ on a piece of paper and flips it, the letters can read “SU” which is pronounced as Suu Kyi in Burmese.

Myanmar’s military regime has wanted to rid the world of Suu Kyi but its attitude toward and distance from her father, Gen. Aung San, who is regarded as the father of Myanmar’s independence has been delicate.

Myanmar has recognized the general as a symbol of the unity of the country since its independence as its regime has been threatened by ethnic separatist and independence movements by minorities.

Ironically, however, the general’s daughter has led pro-democracy movements and confronted the military regime.

Since Aung San is the father of Myanmar’s military and a symbol of the military, the regime apparently feared that he would turn into a symbol of pro-democracy movements and fuel the public’s anti-military regime sentiment. The regime replaced the portrait of the general on banknotes with other pictures.

“In history classes, teachers no longer emphasize the general’s achievements,” says Sophia University professor Kei Nemoto.

I visited Bogyoke Aung San Museum, the British-style former residence of the general, where Suu Kyi spent part of her childhood and her father’s study room and bedroom are preserved as they were, but it was closed.

The museum reportedly opens only on limited days on an irregular basis, such as on Martyr’s Day on July 19 when the general was assassinated.

“The government is still wary that people’s sense of affinity toward Suu Kyi will increase,” says a local diplomatic source.

Still, the military regime cannot eradicate the presence of the “father of the country.” Books on the biography of Gen. Aung San are on sale at bookstores. An employee of one of the stores said these books have been selling well since Suu Kyi was invited to attend a government-sponsored ceremony at the Martyrs’ Mausoleum to mark Martyr’s Day in 2011, and offered a prayer in front of his tomb for the first time in nine years.

A book vendor was selling books on the biography of the general at an open-air market in Yangon. “At least 100 such books are sold a day,” he said.

I asked the vendor through a guide what would happen if he put books authored by Suu Kyi on sale at his stall. In interpreting my question into Burmese, the guide replaced Suu Kyi’s name with the Burmese word that means, “grandma.” It is an established custom for people in Myanmar to replace her name with “grandma” in public for fear that secret police or an informer may hear it.

He replied, “Our sales would drastically surge.”

A neighboring bookstall keeper said, “Printers’ capacity to produce her books would be insufficient to fill the demand,” and the two vendors burst into laughter so loud that people around them noticed.

They might be satisfied because they sarcastically criticized the government. The tension in the town appeared to have somewhat loosened.

In July, the government and Suu Kyi entered full-scale dialogue, while state-owned media outlets now add an honorific title to her name.

I left the market after telling the two laughing book vendors, “I’m sure you’ll be selling Suu Kyi’s books when I come here again.” I felt just like a fortune-teller. (By Takayuki Kasuga, Foreign News Department)(This is part 3 of a series on Myanmar)

The Irrawaddy – Mon Chairman Says ‘No’ to Ceasefire
By LAWI WENG Monday, January 23, 2012

The chairman of the New Mon State Party (NMSP), Nai Htaw Mon, said that his party was not seeking a ceasefire agreement with the Burmese government, and considered that no political advantage could be gained from it.

The announcement comes at a time when several other armed ethnic groups, including the Karen National Union and Shan State Army-South, have signed ceasefires with Naypyidaw.

“We maintained a ceasefire for 15 years, but there was never any political dialogue,” said Nai Htaw Mon. “The only thing the ceasefire did was convince many members to leave our party.”

Speaking at the Sixth Mon National Conference held at the Thai-Burmese border from Jan. 18 to 20, he said that the ceasefire undermined the NMSP. “Many of our soldiers quit. They blamed us for cooperating with the Burmese military,” he said.

The NMSP leader said the Mon people wish to avoid military conflict if possible, but that their main goal is to solve the political crisis.

The NMSP did not support the 2008 Constitution and refused to run in last November’s general election.

“We believe that confrontation with government forces is inevitable unless the 2008 Constitution is revised,” the NMSP chairman said.

“The Burmese government presented their political road map—but they will only let us walk this road if we sign a ceasefire,” he said. “However, we said we would only walk this road if they changed the Constitution.”

The NMSP has long said that they feel that Naypyidaw is trying to take advantage of the ethnic minorities, and is attempting to subdue them through a ceasefire.

However, several representatives at last week’s Mon conference stated that they believed the time was right—now that other ethnic militias were holding peace talks with the government—to consider a ceasefire.

Nai Seik Rot, a Mon youth from Moulmein who participated in the conference, said that he and other local youths wanted the NMSP to seek a ceasefire because that would help control the spread of illegal drugs, a controversial issue in Mon State where drug addiction is widespread.

Nai Kasauh Mon, the director of Thailand-based Human Rights Foundation of Monland, also supported a ceasefire. “If the Kachins can make a peace agreement, the NMSP should, too,” he said.

However, Nai Htaw Mon said, “We want our people to consider in a balanced and profound way the reality of the current political reforms in Burma. We do not want people to become  overly optimistic with the changes.

“We consider the main issue to be the need for a review of the 2008 constitution, because it allowed the military to take all the main positions within the government,” he said.

About 100 ethnic Mons took part in the conference—not only representatives from Mon State, but also expat Mons, and some from the Thai-Mon community.

The participants discussed Mon affairs including ways to strengthen the Mon military, education, and where the Mon party lies with regard to the current wave of changes in Burma.

The NMSP previously met for peace talks with a Burmese delegation led by Railways Minister Aung Min, in Sangkhalaburi, Thailand, on Dec. 23 when no conclusion was reached.
Regarding peace talks, the NMSP say it has informed the Burmese government that they can meet again after Jan. 25, but the government is yet to reply.

Meanwhile, many people from the Mon community have asked the NMSP to demand the release of two Mon political prisoners who were sentenced to life in prison: Min Nay Win (aka Nai Yekha) and Min Myo Thwe.

The Irrawaddy – US Calls for International Observers at Burma By-elections
By SIMON ROUGHNEEN / THE IRRAWADDY Monday, January 23, 2012

BANGKOK—A US delegation fronted by Sen. John McCain and Sen. Joseph Lieberman will request that the Burmese government allow international observers to oversee April by-elections, which, if deemed free and fair, will almost certainly see the US remove some sanctions on the Burmese government.

“Obviously we will have to look carefully at the process of the elections,” said McCain, who conceded that Burma’s reforms in recent months—including the release of several hundred political prisoners—are “a dramatic change in policy and behaviour in as short a time as a year ago,” he said.

McCain confirmed that the delegation, which arrived in Burma on Sunday, would ask Burma’s government to allow international observation of the April by-elections, in response to a question about the issue from this correspondent.

A positive assessment by the observers could pay off for the Burmese government, which refused to allow international monitoring of the November 2010 elections. Removing some sanctions could come after a free and fair April by-election, said Lieberman, who added that “the President can remove some of the sanctions,” but confirmed that others would require a legislative amendment.

“We are watching the changes in Myanmar very carefully” said Sen. Kelly Ayotte, part of the delegation along with Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse. Apart from a few references to Burma, the delegation mostly used “Myanmar” throughout the Q&A with several reporters on Saturday afternoon.

“My personal view is that we should not lift any sanctions before April,” and possibly not even then if enough progress isn’t made”, said McCain.

“We should all applaud what is happening in Myanmar but there are many times in history where we learned things aren’t what we thought they were”, he said, adding that ‘”I’ve puzzled over that,” said Sen. McCain, when asked why he thinks Burma’s decades-old dictatorship has undertaken reforms in recent months.

Asked how far the US expects Burma’s government to take reforms, McCain said “We do not expect perfection, but at the same time we do not expect one step to mean that we treat them like Sweden,” he said referring to the recent release of many of Burma’s high-profile political prisoners.

“We’d like to see a commitment by the government to improving the lives of the people,” added McCain. “I don’t agree with the assertion that the sanctions have caused that,” Sen. McCain said, referring to the dilapidated state of main city Rangoon and the Burmese economy. “It is government mismanagement,” said the Arizona Republican representative.

Fighting in Burma’s ethnic regions has pushed hundreds of thousands of refugees into Thailand, along with millions of migrant workers seeking jobs outside of Burma’s non-performing economy.

McCain expressed his thanks for Thailand’s long record of “care for Burma’s refugees, at no small cost to the Thai government or its people.” The delegation was in Bangkok after visiting the Philippines and Vietnam, before heading to Burma on Sunday.

Sen. McCain said that they did not discuss the recent jailing of US citizen Joe Gordon with Thai Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra during their Friday meeting. “The State Dept. and the embassy here say they have raised it at the highest level,” said McCain.

In Vietnam, the US delegation said they raised human rights issues with a government that could be set to assume Burma’s long-held position as Asean’s worst rights offender.

Vietnam is seeking what Sen. McCain described as a “long long list” of arms from the US, as tensions between Vietnam and China grow over the South China Sea, known as the East Sea in Vietnam. “Concern about a rising China is on the lips of leaders in Vietnam and the Philippines,” said Lieberman.

But that will not happen without some human rights reforms in Vietnam—likely, as in Burma, to include the release of political prisoners. “There’s certain weapons systems that the Vietnamese would like to buy from us or receive from us and we’d like to be able to transfer these systems to them, but it’s not going to happen unless they improve their human rights record,” said Sen. McCain.

88-Students will be active in politics
Monday, 23 January 2012 12:49 Mizzima News

(Mizzima) – Burma’s  “88 Generation Students Group” will work with all democratic forces to build democracy, but it will not form a political party right now, leaders said in a press conference in Rangoon on Saturday.

In a press statement, the group, led by Min Ko Naing and Ko Ko Gyi, said they didn’t see the glass “half full or half empty” in terms of progress.

“We are neither optimistic or pessimistic. We just try to see things as they are,” said Ko Ko Gyi, who was serving a prison sentence of 65 years and was released in the amnesty this month. “We don’t care whether the glass is half full or half empty. We will just watch what they will do with the water already in the glass.”

The leaders said the group, which led the 1988 demonstrations which saw hundreds killed and thousands jailed, said it would fully cooperate with the government, including the military, to build a “new state.”

“We will cooperate with all national forces for the emergence of a wider peace process through talks being held at present,” said the statement.

“For democracy, peace and development, we will do all we can to the best of our ability to cooperate with the government led by the president, the People’s Parliament, the National Parliament, the military, all political parties, ethnic nationalities and all the pro-reformists from all walks of life in our society.”

The group has said that it supports the candidacy of Aung San Suu Kyi,  the leader of the National League for Democracy, who is running for a seat in Parliament in the April 1 by-election.

“We support Daw Aung San Suu Kyi’s decision to take part in the upcoming election for the emergence of genuine democracy,” the group said in a press conference attended by more than 500 people.

‘The path to peace is better’
Monday, 23 January 2012 13:37 Mizzima News

(Interview) – National Democratic Force (NDF) leader Khin Maung Swe is preparing to take part in the third session of the Burmese Parliament, which starts on January 31. Mizzima managing editor Sein Win talked to Khin Maung Swe at the party’s headquarters in Rangoon about the Parliament, military representatives, the ethnic peacemaking process and the possible make up of the Parliament after the April 1 by-election.

Question: How do you see the make up of the new Parliament, and will the people have more influence in the processes?

Answer: How much influence the people can have will depend on the electoral results. I’m a former NLD [National League for Democracy] member. The situation of the 1990 general election and the 2010 general election were not similar. In the ethnic areas, it’s sure that most of the ethnic parties will win seats in the coming election. But, I don’t think the NLD will win all 48 parliamentary seats. Anyway, if candidates of the NLD and other democratic forces including our party can enter the new Parliament, it will be more open and transparent. As for our party, the number of seats we will win may be small; maybe two or three; if we are lucky, may be 4, 5 or 10.

In the past, the lawmaking process was delayed. In the new Parliament, the length of time for the lawmaking process will be more reasonable. Before, maybe because the oversight committees did not have experience or because of some other reasons, we experienced delays. The speed of lawmaking anyway is slow. So, to speed up the process, the democratic forces need to be strong. The stronger the democratic force, the more voice we can give to the people. The more the MPs will speak out. We believe that the role of the new Parliament will be more active than before.

Q: Could the NLD and NDF join forces?

A: We don’t see a situation in which our party needs to be dissolved. If she [Suu Kyi] had wanted, she would have told us to join with them before the NLD was re-registered. Now, it seems that she does not want to use us again, so when they registered [NLD], we were not a part of that process. Anyway, talking about cooperation, we will always welcome cooperation. We want to cooperate in order that the democratic forces can make progress in going ahead and speed up the political process. But, Aung San Suu Kyi and the NLD will determine if we cooperate in that process.

Q: Have you talked to Suu Kyi about cooperating in Parliament?

A: Yes. We’ve spoken about it through the media, but she hasn’t replied because she is very busy. She has to prepare for the by-elections. So after the by-elections, the NLD may issue a statement, I think. Then, we can decide what we should do.

Q: What are the biggest challenges to bring about reform through parliamentary politics?

A: The problem in the last sessions was that former ministers answered questions in the first parliamentary session by being defensive against [the criticisms] of ministries’ actions. In the second parliamentary session, the former ministers became the chairmen of the committees. So, they tried to protect their interests. It’s only human nature to protect their interests. Even I would protect my interests. For instance, talking about the car import, they collect a very high tax. If they reduced the tax, their interests would be threatened. It’s only human nature that they cannot lower the tax immediately. Regarding the cases related to their interests, they may need more time, I think. The economic reform process will gain momentum on the basis of the President’s decisions.

Q: Some people hope that the attitude of military representatives [in Parliament] will change. On the other hand, some think that the military representatives will simply obey the orders of their superior officers.

A: Everything depends on the make-up of Parliament. Every time a new Parliament is formed, new possibilities occur. Now, the Parliament is a combination of former military officers and people from democratic groups. The situation will change as time goes on. So, there is no reason that the current MPs will exist in the next Parliament. Even the army is not the previous army.

It needs to “back up” the Constitution. Another thing is that the army does not lead the political economic and administrative processes, so the results are a more democratic environment.

Q: Do your party’s MPs and military representatives talk to each other?

A: Yes, we go together to teashops and food shops. It’s clear that the military representatives usually only support proposals. I think they will not be active unless their three main national concerns are threatened. They have about 25 percent of the Parliament. If their interests were threatened, their role would be important.

Q: Talking about political interests, we have heard that the USDP [Union Solidarity and Development Party] has some small parties under their pocket, that they’ve “bought” their support. Have you experienced that?

A: No, we they don’t have control over us. We are former NLD members. In some rural areas, there was no other party to contest; so local people invited us to contest against them.

Q: The USDP is Burma’s financially strongest party. Are there any dangers in competing with it?

A: We should not underestimate the people. Aung San Suu Kyi, the person who we can rely on, will enter parliamentary politics. She is a popular force in politics. I do not see anything dangerous. Among the USDP MPs, there are not only former military officers but also former ordinary government employees, managers and doctors. They also want democracy. If the army’s grasp on power is relaxed as time goes by, we will get to a new situation. That’s usual. We can see the events in South Korea and Peru. In the past, they were under military dictatorships and after 14 years, the opposition party won even under the current constitution drawn up by the army and after the party won, it could amend the constitution. As for us, we need to take more than one decade to amend [the Constitution].

Q: They [those countries] could conduct economic reforms successfully. Can we achieve economic reform within one decade?

A: It depends on the peace issue. Our country could collect one trillion from taxes but the military expense is 1.3 trillion. If we can establish peace, those expenses will be reduced. As a consequence, the budget allocation for education and health may be increased. Similar opportunities will arise. Opportunities will arise in ethnic areas, too. Near the end of President Thein Sein’s tenure, our country will be able to grasp economic reform, I think.

Q: How can corruption be eliminated?

A: To secure their livelihood, both superior officials and lower-level employees are involved in corruption. Just changing the habits of five top officials cannot affect lower-level employees. When the country’s economy becomes strong and it can stabilize the inflation rate and government employees earn sufficient salaries, corruption will be eliminated.

Q: Concerning peace with ethnic groups, the current cease-fire agreements largely just talk about stopping the fighting.  That will not be sufficient to have long-lasting peace.

A: If the peace situation does not improve, it cannot be successful. Now, they [the government] has given promises that it will work for the development of the states. Now we’ve reached a point in which political problems will be solved via political means. So, it’s very likely that peace will be established by the time the process ends.

Q: You are optimistic that there will be long-lasting peace?

A: The government has promised that it will be brought about within three years. So, we have to wait and see. The [current] peace offer is different from the peace offers made under Ne Win’s government and peace offers in 1955 and 1963. This is the turning point.

To speak frankly, this is the military’s last chance. If they cannot establish peace, there will be very little chance for economic development. Without peace, there can be no unity. If we cannot build a genuine union, peace will not be established. So No. 1 is to establish peace.

No. 2 is to solve problems politically and amend the Constitution and make the outline for power sharing between the local governments of states/regions and the union [central] government. And [the government] needs to give autonomy. Only if peace has been established, will it dare to give autonomy. Otherwise, they will not do it. If they give autonomy [without peace], separation could occur. So peace is No. 1.

To have political equality, to create business opportunities and to improve the economy, education and health, peace is essential.

Like I said before, if the military expense which is more than one trillion is reduced, many opportunities will emerged for us. Now there will be challenges. Later, they will become opportunities. Regarding peace, although I am not optimistic, in comparison with peace processes in the past, the current peace processes are better––nobody can deny it.

Q: Regarding fighting with ethnic armed groups, some observers say the Burmese army does not want to solve the problems that could lead to long-lasting peace.

A: According to the Constitution, the government must provide leadership in forming the Border Guard Force. Just stopping the fighting is not a final solution. There will be political demands. The 1947 Constitution could not guarantee the union and the ethnic people could not have autonomy. The1974 Constitution was worse. Now, after the elections, the government’s actions are more transparent than actions in the past, so the path to peace is better.

Suu Kyi to have access to media: presidential adviser
Monday, 23 January 2012 18:42 Mizzima News

(Mizzima) – The chief political adviser to Burmese President Thein Sein, Ko Ko Hlaing, told ABC Radio Australia on Monday that the government is serious about free and fair April 1 by-elections, and Aung San Suu Kyi will have the same access as other party leaders to the media.

Ko Ko Hlaing told the news group that Senator John McCain’s remarks in Rangoon on Monday about the possibility of removing U.S. economic sanctions were encouraging.

“The chairman of the National Election Commission already has made some comment that the upcoming elections will be free and fair, because it’s very important for Myanmar politics and the main opposition force, the NLD has re-registered as a formal political party and it will compete in the by-election, including its leader Daw Aung San Suu Kyi.”

The Burmese government is “quite serious” on the matter of free and fair elections, he said.

Asked if Suu Kyi would have free and fair access to Burmese media, Ko Ko Hlaing said “Suu Kyi will have equal opportunities and equal chances provided by the government media and also other media.”

Regarding her safety, he said, “Of course, in her previous visits to rural areas Suu Kyi was quite secure and safe, and the government provided a proper security plan for her. So I believe that she will be secure and safe in her campaign. Her constituency is not far away from Yangon [Rangoon] and there will be much popularity in the local audience, and the local authority will make a proper security plan for her.

“I don’t think the government will neglect her in security matters, because it’s a concern for them also,” he said.

On the cease-fire agreements with ethnic armed groups in Burma and the chances for a long-term peace, he said:  “If you study our country’s history, our insurgencies have a long history for many decades, so this simply cannot be wiped out overnight. Our strategy for peace is through development. And we have contact with nearly a dozen ethnic armed groups, and we’re starting peace talks and with nearly half of them, we have reached initial peace agreements and with some of them, we are now starting political dialogues.”

He said that after political dialogues with individual groups, “We will bring them into Parliament for discussions with the lawmakers. And after that, we’ll make a permanent peace agreement in our Parliament. And so, we hope that this peace process will enhance our reform, as well as our rule of law.”

Responding to observers who say the Burmese military is still engaged in clashes with armed groups, Ko Ko Hlaing said: “…even well-disciplined and well-developed army like NATO and the United States army, they’ve committed abuses, like their urinating on the dead bodies of the Taliban, and also rape cases on the Okinawa marine base.

“…but the Myanmar army has rules and regulations and laws to prosecute the offenders. And we now have a National Human Rights Commission and this commission has arrived in the Kachin area, to study the situation of human rights.”

He said he thought Burma would make progress in human rights. After more cease-fires and peace talks, he said, “There will be no more fighting and no more human rights violations by both sides or their troops.”

DVB News – Army abuses ongoing in Burma: HRW
By AFP
Published: 23 January 2012

Burma’s army raped, tortured and killed civilians in ethnic minority conflict zones last year, Human Rights Watch said Sunday, despite the government’s recent political reforms.

Bloody battles have raged since June in Kachin state in the far north, marring the progress of a new regime that has surprised observers with a series of positive reforms in the isolated nation.

“The Burmese military continues to violate international humanitarian law through the use of anti-personnel landmines, extrajudicial killings, forced labor, torture, beatings, and pillaging of property,” HRW said.

Its report on the country — part of a worldwide review of human rights in 2011 — also said sexual violence against women and girls “remains a serious problem”, while the army “continues to actively recruit and use child soldiers”.

Ethnic minority rebels were also accused of abuses, including using landmines near civilian areas. HRW said over 50,000 civilians had been internally displaced by fighting in Kachin state, which shattered a 17-year ceasefire, while around 500,000 people were internally displaced due to conflict in the country’s eastern border areas last year.

Burma’s government, still largely dominated by former junta generals, has reached peace deals with Shan and Karen rebels in eastern states in recent weeks as part of efforts to end civil war that has gripped parts of Burma since independence in 1948.

In December, a presidential order was issued for the military to cease attacks against guerrillas from the Kachin Independence Army (KIA), but it failed to stop heavy fighting in the region, according to the rebels.

On Friday, Burmese state media reported that the government and Kachin rebels had agreed to hold further ceasefire negotiations.

Resolution of the conflicts is a demand of Western nations which impose sanctions on the regime.

The government has made progress on other key areas including holding talks with democracy icon Aung San Suu Kyi, who has been allowed to stand in an April by-election, and released hundreds of political prisoners.

DVB News – Politics returns to Burma
By ELLIOTT PRASSE-FREEMAN
Published: 23 January 2012

A woman sorts newspapers on a street in Rangoon. Burma will be going to the polls in April amid signs of reform in the country (Reuters)

This is the first in a three-part series examining recent developments in Burma. Tomorrow, Animating Burma’s reform from within…

Reflecting on his time as a political prisoner from 1997 to 2000, a Burmese friend once told me that he would like to go back to prison, for just one week. Seeing my surprise, his confederate clarified: “It was actually a hopeful time. We were together, we talked about all the ways we would change the country when we got out. I’m out but nothing changes, I can do nothing, it feels like I am in prison.”

Describing Burma as an open-air prison often obscures more than it illuminates. Burmese life is not dominated in the way the word ‘prison’ suggests, but is rather repressed and restricted. The ‘prison’ metaphor, however, successfully outlines the way life is put on hold, and invokes a sense of suffocation and enervation. Indeed, for two generations a particular group of Burmese have been trudging through anemic existences, feeling the attendant dull ache that seems, at least for my two friends as they looked back on it, worse than the prison time.

Perhaps nowhere is the feeling of indefinite delay more pronounced than in Mae Sot, the Thai border town where tens of thousands of Burmese live in exile. While conducting interviews in 2010, dissidents and activists repeated the phrase “we are waiting for the spark” like a mantra. The prison’s effects also morph, taking on different forms depending on how groups navigate the state and their own lives: inside, even those who expressly disavow traditional “big-P” politics have long seemed to be waiting for that moment when the entire system would begin to change and life could begin again. Thus we see an entire community – both inside and outside the country – trying to balance living and waiting.

Is now the moment they have been waiting for? Those same ex-political prisoners are unsure, but they tell me of the palpable and undeniably new feeling of possibility suffusingRangoon over the past six months. And indeed, Burma’s reforms are shocking: Thein Sein’s government, meant to be the Tatmadaw’s puppet, has already freed most political prisoners, expanded press freedom and internet access, legislated the right to strike, signed a ceasefire with the Karen National Union and the Shan State Army-South, created a human rights commission, and convinced erstwhile exile Aung San Suu Kyi to return to politics. Perhaps most symbolically resonant, in halting the Myitsone mega-dam project, the government has committed an act that would be anathema to its predecessor: appearing to succumb to public pressure by reversing a contentious policy.

Yet their policies are still steeped in indeterminacy – no one knows what might happen. Why then the blithe endorsements of the regime, or conversely the vociferous condemnations from the likes of Maung Zarni or Bertil Lintner? The radically divergent accounts are alike at least regarding the unequivocal nature of their conclusions. What explains this?

The sheer suddenness of the changes in an environment inured to such dynamism may clarify the polarisation in responses. Life in the virtual prison has been static, predictable, and in those regards, almost safe. As this gives way to a deluge of political occurrences, sensations of speed, risk, uncertainty, and peril are inserted back into the world, creating a phenomenon simultaneously frightening and thrilling. It is difficult to know what these events signify. Hence each side falls back upon their classic modes of interpretation, demanding that either everything has changed, or nothing has (“the generals are evil, this is just another insidious trick!” versus “Burmais on the road to development, bring in the IFIs!”). These actors respond to the abyss and uncertainty of politics in Burma – between military and civilian opponents, between Burman and ethnic, and so on – by fleeing to the safety of discourses like Law and internationally-orchestrated Development. In doing so, however, they miss the opportunity to articulate an actual vision for where the country will go from here, and the politics that would animate that path.

Instead, many seem to be fighting the interpretive battle today so as to justify policies enacted over the past twenty years – note Human Rights Watch’s contention that the recent political prisoner release can be ascribed to its advocacy, or the Wall Street Journal’s unsubstantiated claim that sanctions have caused the current thaw. We could conclude the precise opposite: that the military regime did not want to be coerced by hypocritical neo-colonists, and hence was more obstinate regarding political prisoners or détente than it otherwise would have been. We cannot determine which way the cause-and-effect runs, hence these commentaries only open up the counter-arguments through their opportunistic or obtuse claims.

While they fight these battles, we might entertain the possibility that these reforms might signal opportunity – for either immense improvement or vast deterioration. The task
becomes to analyse how Burmese people can insert themselves into the flow that these events are creating, and direct it toward desirable ends. Changes in Burma’s political life will cause anxiety and dissensus, but they must be engaged. And we need to address how certain discourses such as Law and Development become comfortable panaceas that distract from these painful but necessary political conversations that Burma now has to embrace.

Elliott Prasse-Freeman is currently an MPA-ID student at the Harvard Kennedy School, and is leading a number of research projects through the university’s Human Rights and Social Movements Program. He spent five years working in international development for various agencies—from the UN to international NGOs—where he directed projects in Burma, India, Thailand, and other countries in Southeast Asia.