BI Weekly No. 348

July 15th - 21st, 2008

The BI Weekly archive is available on our website: www.burmaissues.org

Inside Burma

Border

International

7 NLD members released

Seven National League for Democracy members who were arrested prior to
Martyrs' Day have been released now that the day has passed, according to one of those held.

Five of the members’ ­ Rangoon NLD social welfare member Ko Myint Htay,
Shwe Pyi township member Ma Htet Htet Oo Wei, New Dagon township youth wing member Ko The Han and social welfare member U Thein Myint Htun and
Khayan township youth wing member Ko Win Myint Maung ­ were released on
Sunday afternoon, three days after they were taken in by authorities, who detained them in the office of the Ministry of Home Affairs.

Two other members ­ private tutor U Aung Pe of Ton Tay township and South
Okkalapa NLD member Ko Kyaw Zeya ­ who were detained on 19 July, were released on a day after.

Despite the timing of the arrests, immediately prior to Martyrs’ Day on 19 July, Ko The Han said that the officials’ questions had not focused on political activities. They only asked about personal life, business and question about drug

“Seven NLD members released after Martyrs' Day” Democratic Voice of Burma, July 21, 2008

The Burmese military rulers are lining their pockets from the aid funds for Cyclone victims donated by the international community including the UN. The money is being made by way of a twisted currency exchange mechanism­ dollar to local Burmese kyat, a source in the Burmese military establishment said.

The source, who declined to be named for fear of reprisal, said the ruling junta is making a huge killing from these donations by keeping a margin in the conversion rates ­ from foreign currency to Burmese Foreign Exchange Certificates (FEC).

According to the source, the government-owned Myanmar Foreign Trade Bank is the principle bank that is used by aid agencies for transferring funds. And when aid agencies withdraw their money from the MFTB, it is given in the form of Foreign Exchange Certificates (FEC), which is treated as equivalent to the US dollar.

While the information cannot be independently verified, the source said the difference in exchange rates between the dollar and FEC is the margin that the government makes.

A businessman in Rangoon, who is into exchanging foreign currency in the black market said, currently a US $ is worth 1,175 Kyat while the FEC is valued at 850 Kyat. While the rates continue to fluctuate depending on the market, the US Dollar and FEC have never been treated equally in the market.

“Burmese junta profiting from aid funds?”, Mizzima News, July 17, 2008

Thousands of cyclone survivors forced to work for free

Thousands of people in hundreds of villages are being forced to labor for free under a military-led reconstruction effort in the cyclone-devastated Irrawaddy delta, according to sources in the area.

Villagers in the hard-hit townships of Laputta, Bogalay, Pyapon and Dedaye say that local people, including children, have been told by Ward Peace and Development Councils and military troops that they must provide labor on a rotating basis.

The work they are expected to do includes serving as porters, cutting bamboo and trees and cleaning up roads and villages. Some have also been put to work on construction sites.

The villagers, many of them living in camps for cyclone survivors, said that the duties imposed on them were preventing them from rebuilding their own homes or tending to their fields.

A refugee from the village of Kyar Chaung said that the authorities call on 100 men each day to carry sacks of rice. “Those who do not obey the order are driven out of the refugee camps,” he added.

There have been a number of reports of people in the camps being beaten and forced to leave. Some say that the authorities are looking for excuses to throw people out of the camps.

“Charges of forced labor emerge in cyclone-hit areas”, Irrawaddy, July 17, 2008

Buddhist monks across Burma have said they are continuing their boycott against government officials by refusing to accept donations or passing them on to needy people.

A monk taking part in the boycott from Kaw Thaung, Tenasserim division, said his monastery had not been able to refuse donations outright.

"Our Pattaneikkuzana act against government members is still ongoing ­ we have been giving away donation items we received from government members to other people,” he said.

The monk said some monasteries in Kaw Thaung which had refused donation from government officials had been put under close watch by the military and the monks were also told to inform the authorities when they wanted to travel to other areas.

A monk from one of the lecturing monasteries in Pakokku and another monk from Masoeyein monastery in Mandalay said that they and their fellow monks were also continuing the boycott.

“Monks continue regime boycott” Democratic Voice of Burma, July 16, 2008

Thai troop push back Karen refugee into conflict zones

Thai army pushed back 58 Karens, mostly women and children, displaced by fighting between Burmese government troops and rebel soldiers from Karen National Union, according to a border sources.

The 58 displaced Karens had been residing at the Mae Ra Ma Luang refugee camp in Mae Hong Son's Mae Sareing district since March. They had fled fighting in northern region of Burma's Karen State.

According to the source who spoke on condition of anonymity, the Thai troops from Mae Sareang Unit 105 came at about 07:00 hrs Thursday morning to remove the displaced refugees and took them to a boat dock where three long-tail boats awaits for them.

"Besides the fact that the area has been raining heavily, we are concern for their safety as fighting between the KNU and the Burmese troops in the area in question have yet to cease," said the source. "The decision to force them back appeared to have been made hastily," he added.

Meanwhile, New York-based Human Rights Watch condemned Thailand for forcing those refugees to return to a conflict zone in Burma.

Thailand has not signed the 1951 Refugee Convention, but Mr Brad Adams, Asia director at Human Rights Watch argued that Bangkok is still bound by the principle of non-refoulement, a prohibition in customary international law, from returning refugees to any country where they are likely to be persecuted or their lives are at risk.

''Sending these people back to conflict zones dominated by the Burmese army is disgraceful. Forcing civilians back into an active war zone may be an easy answer for Thailand, but it's brutal - a completely inhumane and unacceptable solution,'' he said.

“Thai Army pushes back Karen refugees”, The Nation (Thailand), July 17,2008
“Thailand condemned for kicking out refugees”, Deutsche Presse-Agentur, July 20, 2008.

Three more Burmese Rohingya refugees in the unofficial Lada camp died of starvation in July 2 to 19.  They have been facing severe food crisis because incessant heavy rain and consequent lack of work to support their families, said Olison Majee from the camp.

The dead were identified as Md. Hussain (77), son of Ullah Meah,  Mabia Khatoon (60), wife of late Mohamed, and Eman Hussain (35), son of Mohamed Siddique. They were starving unable to go out to work as they had no bus fare to go to Teknaf, said Hafez Md. Ayub from the camp.

The situation in Lada camp is terrible. Though their living conditions have improved a little compared to the Dum Dum Meah camp but they are now facing acute food crisis and other problems relating to local villagers.

The refugees have not been provided with rations from NGOs and other organizations. But they got some ration from the Islamic Relief Organization (IRO) when they were transferred to Lada camp. Since then they have received no rations from any quarter. The refugees thus have been trying to eke out a living by working outside the camp.

Currently the Lada camp hosts 1,972 families.

“Three more Rohingya refugees die of starvation in Lada camp”, Kaladan News, July 20, 2008

The 11 Padaung or Kayan ethnic tribes living in Huay Pu Ke and Huay Suu Htauk villages in Mae Hong Son province, Northern Thailand have been missing since July 3. Local Thai authorities are searching for them but in vain.

"We don't have any information on the missing Padaungs yet. The Mae Hong Song mayor called a meeting this morning to discuss the missing persons. And the township administrator is going to Chiang Mai in this regard," an official from Mae Hong Song Mayor's office said.

Thai authorities have formed a committee to find the missing Padaungs and the Mae Hong Song township administrator Thongchai Wunyaung Thaung has a clue to their whereabouts. The missing persons were reportedly taken away by a Thai woman called Ms. Mali in a police car from their village.

Township administrator speculated that they might have been taken to the Chiang Mai, Chiang Rai, Chon Buri and Phuket which are tourist spots.

Ethnic Padaung people were settled in Karenni State and Phekhong Township,
Southern Shan State and migrated to Thailand two decades ago after suffering forced relocation, arbitrary arrests by the Burmese Army and following military operations launched in their areas.

“Eleven ethnic Padaungs still missing”, Mizzima News, July 16, 2008

Cyclone Nargis that lashed Burma's southwestern coastal divisions on May 2 and 3 has resulted in damage to the tune of an estimated US $ 4 billion, according to a new report by the UN and Southeast Asian Nations.

The Post Nargis Joint Assessment report, by the Tripartite Core Group, formed with the United Nations, members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and the Burmese military government, was released on July 21 at the ASEAN foreign ministers meeting in Singapore.

According to the report the estimated damage of US$ 4 billion includes US$1.7 billion in damage to assets and US $2.3 billion from loss of income of the victims.

The report said the cyclone left 84,537 dead and 53,836 missing and injured 19.359 people while impacting the lives of 2.4 million people out of a population of 7.35 million living in the affected townships.

The report, which is the first comprehensive analysis of the damage caused by the cyclone, said recovering from the cyclone devastation will require more than US $ 1 billion.

“Damage caused by Cyclone Nargis US$ 4 billion” Mizzima News, July 21, 2008

UN top humanitarian relief official to visit Burma

The United Nations’ top humanitarian relief official, John Holmes said he would visit Burma next week to assess the progress of humanitarian relief work in cyclone-affected areas of the country.

Besides the situation in the Irrawaddy delta, which bore the brunt of the damage inflicted by Cyclone Nargis, Holmes said he would also look into the issue of aid money going into the pockets of the ruling generals through a skewed currency exchange mechanism.

“I will try to get this point clarified,” Holmes said in response to a question about relief funds being lost in the conversion of US dollars into government-issued Foreign Exchange Certificates (FECs), which are officially on par with the dollar but worth substantially less when converted into kyat.

Holmes said would stay in the country for three days. Details of his itinerary are being worked out. He will visit Burma after attending a meeting in Singapore on July 21 to take part in the release of the Post-Nargis Joint Assessment Report with the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) and the Burmese regime.

Meanwhile, the UN Security Council will discuss Burma at its meeting on July 24, the council president for the month of July, Ambassador Le Luong
Minh of Vietnam, said.
“UN Humanitarian Chief to visit Burma next week”, Irrawaddy, July 17, 2008

FAO appeal for $ 33.5 million to help farmers, fisherman in Burma

A U.N. food agency is appealing for $33.5 million to help small farmers and fishermen in cyclone-hit Burma.

The Rome-based Food and Agriculture Organization said that 75% of farmers in the country's main food-producing region lack sufficient seed, with little time left before the end of the planting season in August.

The agency said over 50,000 small-scale farming households and 99,000 landless rural households need immediate assistance. More than 100,000 fishermen have also been affected.

“U.N. appeals for $33.5 million for Burma”, Associated Press, July 17, 2008

Suu Kyi to be released in the next six months?

Burma ratified the charter of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations and vowed to uphold its democratic ideals, but dashed hopes of releasing opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi within the next six months.

The country, vilified for its dictatorial government and human rights abuses, became the seventh of the 10-member regional grouping to ratify the document, which was signed by the leaders in November last year.

"Myanmar's ratification of the charter demonstrates our strong commitment to embrace the common values and aspirations of the peoples of Asean," Foreign Minister Nyan Win said.

Burma was also among the Asean countries which unanimously set up a high-level panel on an Asean human rights body, and endorse its terms of reference.

The minister's communique at the end of the meeting also urge Burma to take bolder step towards a peaceful transition to democracy in the near future and work towards the holding of free and fair general elections in 2010.

In a separate statement, Singapore Minister for Foreign Af`fairs George Yeo said Ngan Win had clarified that Suu Kyi would not be released in the next six months, but six months from May 2009, the expiry date of the existing one-year detention order.

“Another Burma promise” Bangkok Post, July 21, 2008

NCUB objects military regime to represent in UN

An umbrella opposition group in exile, the National Council of the Union of Burma (NCUB), has objected to the claims of the ruling military regime to represent the country in the United Nations General Assembly.

Myint Thein, the NCUB’s joint secretary, said it was important for the nations of the world to cooperate and extend their active support to the people of Burma, who live under the repressive military junta.

“We want the UN to stand up for the principles of democracy and humanrights and reject the credentials of the State Peace and Development Council’s delegation to the United Nations during the upcoming session of the General Assembly.”

Besides campaigning to challenge the regime’s right to represent Burma in the UN, the group confirmed that it would also push to put Burmese human rights issues on the UN Security Council’s agenda and urge the world body to arraign Burma’s junta before the International Criminal Court for its crimes against humanity.

“Regime’s right to represent Burma challenged” Irrawaddy, July 16, 2008

UK Government urged to investigate Mahn Sha’s assassination

Nearly 60 British parliamentarians have signed a petition, 'Early Day Motion', urging for the UK government to investigate and expose the assassins of Burma's ethnic rebel leader Padoh Mahn Sha Lah Phan.

In absence of no official investigation on the assassination of the General Secretary of Karen National Union (KNU), an ethnic armed rebel group, the British parliamentarians call on the UK government to conduct a direct investigation and expose the culprit.

Mahn Sha was assassinated on February 14, by two unknown gunmen at his residence in the Thai-Burmese border town of Maesot. However, five months on, the culprit behind the murder is still unknown.

“British MPs call on Govt. to investigation Mahn Sha's assassination” Mizzima News, July 15, 2008