Weekly Diary, No.489 (24-30 March 2012)
- WHO’S BURMA GOING TO FOOL WITH APRIL FOOL’S DAY POLLS?
- FREE, FAIR AND TRANSPARENT, BUT ANFREL IS KICKED OUT!
- NAYPYITAW ANNOUNCES MANAGED CURENCY FLOAT!
- WHO KILLS NANG WO PHAN?
- BLASTS IN TACHILEK, WHO DUNNIT!
Tips for April Fools’ Day candidates: Try to see it positively!
Think Piece
The definition of condominium in Myanmar is unlike that in Thailand. They call it a condominium if it has an elevator but call a building an apartment if it has no lift.
Tom Picon, associate director at Colliers, Bangkok Post, 26 March 2012
The path to achieving (peace in Shan State) is lined with poppies.
Jason Eligh, UNODC Country Manager, Irrawaddy, 26 March 2012
Opinion is divided among leading Burma watchers and Western politicians on the fate of sanctions:
- American economist and Nobel prize winner Joseph Stiglitz and NGO Network Myanmar chairman Derek Tonkin are for its immediate end
- 62 British MPs believe restrictions must remain in place until more positives and permanent reform is in place; they argue no reforms have yet been enshrined in law
- Sean Turnell, editor of Burma Economics Watch, and Derek Mitchell, US special envoy are for reducing sanctions gradually in return for more reform
Foreign Correspondents Club of Thailand (FCCT) holds by-elections and media reform forum on 26 March:
- Thiha Saw - Domestic and exile media complement one another
- Aung Zaw - It (the limited freedom we see today) is perhaps just to show to the world that Myanmar is changing
- Toe Zaw Latt - No legal and technical infrastructures for media operations. The media business is expensive.
We are being allowed to look in any polling station in any constituency. This is a real difference between 2010 and this time.
Thiha Saw, Open News Weekly Journal, BBC/Mizzimma News, 29 March 2012
The future is bright. If everything goes according to the game plan, Aung San Suu Kyi will be opposition leader in the near future and president after the next elections.
Larry Jagan, Asia Times, 30 March 2012
The World
27 March 2012
US Commission International Religious Freedom (USCIRF)’s 2012 annual report lists 16 countries of particular concern (CPCs). They include Burma, China, North Korea, Pakistan and Vietnam. (Irrawaddy)
International Relations
24 March 2012
Four trucks and 2 UN vehicles arrive in Sadang, a township under KIO control. The last aid allowed into the area was in December 2011. (KNG)
26 March 2012
By restricting honest observers like Anfrel, Myanmar hurts its own image. (Bangkok Post)
26 March 2012
Asean monitors have been asked to arrive in Rangoon on March 28, giving them only 3 days to organize and familiarize themselves with regulations and rules. Normally, monitors arrive in a country up to 6 months in advance, says a European Union official. (Mizzima)
28 March 2012
Malaysian PM Mohammad Najib Abdul Razak arrives in Burma on a 2-day visit. (Irrawaddy)
28 March 2012
159 international observers will monitor the by-elections with access to more than 8,000 polling stations, says U Tin Aye, Election commission chairman. (Irrawaddy)
29 March 2012
US State Department Spokesperson Victoria Nuland says US election observers who will be in Burma from 28 March – 3 April will not be in a position to monitor in the traditional sense under the terms of the 2005 UN Declaration of Principles on International Observance, because they are only getting there a couple of days before the election. (Irrawaddy)
Thai-Burma Relations
31 March 2012
Thai business leaders hope the by-elections in Burma will pave the way for lifting of sanctions within the year, says Tanit Sorat, Federation of Thai Industries’ vice chairman. (Bangkok Post)
Politics/ Inside Burma
25 March 2012
National Human Rights Council, formed on 5 September by President Thein Sein without approval by parliament, and funding for it was removed by the parliament. The parliamentary session ends today. Nang Wa Nu of Kunhing, member of Joint Bills Committee, had challenged its legitimacy on 15 March. (Mizzima)
26 March 2012
President Thein Sein urges people to respect the decision of the people at the by-elections. “Respecting the decision of the people, parties need to be able to bear losing,” he is quoted as saying. (AFP)
26 March 2012
Upper House Speaker Khin Aung Myint says fighting rampant corruption is the most important issue facing Burma today. (Irrawaddy)
27 March 2012
Armed Forces chief Min Aung Hlaing, speaking on Armed Forces Day, the Tatmadaw will defend the Constitution and will continue to take part in politics. (Irrawaddy) Article 20 states the Tatmadaw has a fundamental duty to protect the constitution, he says. (VOA)
28 March 2012
Tin Aye, at a press conference, says journalists can collect news and photos only outside the polling station, outside a radius of 500 yards. This provision however is not included in the English language version. (Myanmar Times)
29 March 2012
Election Commission says 157 candidates from 17 parties will compete for 45 seats:
- 129 candidates for 37 seats in the Lower House
- 22 candidates for 6 seats in the Upper House
- 6 candidates for 2 seats in the State House
29 March 2012
National Human Rights Commission says it will continue to promote fundamental rights of the citizens with or without government funding. (Mizzima)
30 March 2012
Widespread irregularities reported by Aung San Suu Kyi:
- Attempts to injure candidates
- Many cases of intimidation and vandalism on party campaign posters
- Not allowing NLD to use suitable venues for campaign rallies
- Names of dead people on electoral poll
30 March 2012
April 1 poll is crucial for the USDP:
- Poor showing could weaken the party’s standing
- It will test the party’s cohesion
Ethnic Affairs
5-11 March 2012
The Unity journal, formally Union Journal, is set to launch this month after its publishing license was finally approved. The 36 page journal will be published each Friday. It took 8 months to wait for the approval, says editor Phyo Way Lin. It will focus on ethnic news. (Myanmar Times)
24 March 2012
Mahn Nyein Maung handed over to Karen National Union leaders at Mae Sot by U Aung Min, who says, “I have kept my word and fulfilled my promise.” (KIC)
27 March 2012
Karen National Union (KNU) delegation, led by Zipporah Sein and Mutu Saypho will hold union-level meeting on 4 April. (DVB)
28 March 2012
La Nan, KIO spokesman, says an NLD statement issued on Monday (19 March) stated it wanted to discuss with the KIO about holding elections in Kachin constituencies. 4 days later, the Union Election Commission announced postponement of the by-elections in Kachin State. (Mizzima)
29 March 2012
KIA Vice Chief of Staff Gun Maw denies any letter had been sent to China Power Investment (CPI) Corp requesting profit-sharing on the Myitsone project, as charged by Li Guanghua, CPI’s Yunnan branch general manager. (Irrawaddy)
Shans/ Shan State
21 March 2012
Restoration Council of Shan State / Shan State Army (RCSS/SSA) issues statement outlining a 6 point policy on the ceasefire. It promises not to resort to military means unless necessary, to help form a genuine union and cooperate with Naypyitaw to eradicate drugs. (SHAN)
24 March 2012
Nang Wo Phan of Paliao, Tachilek township, plunges to death from the 5th floor after 3 days of relentless interrogation by the Bureau of Special Investigations (BSI) officers. She had reported to the police of being duped by a man out of some land property. She was interrogated as though she were the defendant and not a complainant, says her lawyer. Her Burmese was also very limited. (Irrawaddy/Demo Wayyan) Rangoon Regional Government’s Security Minister Col Tin Win says a special tribunal will be set up to investigate the case. (DVB)
26 March 2012
U Aung Min promises to talk to President Thein Sein over the protest letter by the SSA South 3 days earlier on the Burma Army’s breaches of ceasefire, says SSA spokesman Maj Lao Hseng. (Irrawaddy)
28 March 2012
Shan Women’s Action Network (SWAN) celebrates 13th anniversary of founding in Chiangmai. The group says due to reduced funding from donors, its $ 100 per student per year budget has gone down 80%. (SHAN)
Economy/ Business
26 March 2012
There are 25,000 hotel rooms nationwide. Most are three to four star establishments, while five star ones account for 5%. This year, international chains such as Sofitel and Marriott will enter Rangoon. (Bangkok Post)
28 March 2012
The value of the kyat currency will be determined by a managed floating exchange rate system that will become effective April 1. (New Light of Myanmar / AP)
30 March 2012
Than Aye of Maubin township recently sentenced to one year in prison for possessing a slingshot, capable of firing bicycle spokes and sharp objects. He was seeking to allow peasants to fish in waters leased by a businessman, when he was arrested on 21 October. (DVB)
Human Rights
27 March 2012
Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) condemns politicization of Burma’s judiciary, specifically concerning judges accepting bribes and following instructions from the executive arm of the government. (Irrawaddy)
29 March 2012
Tint Swe, director of Press Scrutiny and Registration Department (PSRD) says exile media groups can begin applying to establish operations within the country. Several draconian security laws and the notorious Electronic Act that can arrest and detain anyone without due process however still remain. (RFA)
Environment
26 March 2012
Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO) report, released today, says natural teak forests are in decline worldwide. They grow mostly in Burma, India, Laos and Thailand. In 2010, the combined area was estimated at about 29 million hectares, almost half of which is in Burma. (Mizzima)
Drugs
21 March 2012
Yan Shangzhi, deputy head of Yunnan provincial security department, speaking at a press conference says Yunnan had seized 13.5 tons of narcotics last year. (Irrawaddy)
War
24 March 2012
Bombs explode in Tachilek, killing a 10-year old boy and injuring 5 others, Two of whom are Thai. Authorities suspect militia groups who are against truce talks with the Shan State Army. Leaflets criticizing the negotiations distributed in Maesai and Tachilek, a week after a recent meeting between Naypyitaw and SSA. (Bangkok Post/Interview of Bangkok Post reporter)
26 March 2012
7th clash between Shan State Army (SSA) North and Burma Army column in Hsenwi. The latter suffers 5 killed and 12 wounded. (SHAN)
Tags: Weekly Diary
