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Human Rights Watch
March 11, 2013

International Pressure Needed on Minority Rights, Political Prisoners, Laws

(Geneva) – The United Nations Human Rights Council should retain its current level of scrutiny of Burma’s still poor human rights situation, Human Rights Watch said today.

The draft resolution on Burma for the council’s present session should continue the mandate of the special rapporteur on Burma under Item 4 of the council’s agenda to ensure monitoring and reporting on human rights developments in the country. Agenda Item 4 is for situations that require the council’s continuing attention. 

“The Human Rights Council’s support for reform in Burma should not veil international concern about continued serious abuses in the country,” said Juliette de Rivero, Geneva director at Human Rights Watch. “The council should endorse continued monitoring and reporting on Burma to move human rights reform forward and address the many challenging human rights issues that remain.” 

The recently released report of the UN special rapporteur on human rights in Burma, Tomas Ojea Quintana, outlines continued challenges to improve the rights of Rohingya Muslims, end grave violations of the laws of war in Kachin State, ensure humanitarian aid reaches populations in need, and reform or revoke rights-abusing laws. President Thein Sein, who is visiting Europe, and government representatives at the council continue to deny independent findings of continuing abuses in Burma, including those described in the Quintana report.

Pledges made by Thein Sein on November 19, 2012, on the eve of a visit to Rangoon by US President Barack Obama, included a promise to invite the UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights to establish an office in Burma, implement a mechanism to review the cases of political prisoners still in prison, end violence in Arakan State and hold accountable those responsible for attacks, and permit the International Committee of the Red Cross to resume prison visits and monitor conflict areas.

“The Human Rights Council should call for the fulfilment of these reform pledges and recognize that it has a prominent role to play monitoring their implementation,” de Rivero said. “Downgrading the scrutiny of the UN human rights body that has contributed so much to the current reforms would be premature and potentially disruptive of this fledgling process.” 

Human Rights Watch urged the Human Rights Council to call on the government of Burma to take the following steps to further the reform process: 
  • Sign a memorandum of understanding on the establishment of an office of the UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights in the country that has a full mandate for rights monitoring, protection, and technical assistance; 
  • Fulfill the pledge to release remaining political prisoners and fully support the work of the political prisoner review mechanism established by the government in February; 
  • Take all necessary measures to end human rights abuses that continue to be committed by the military, most notably in Kachin State, and hold accountable those responsible for such abuses; 
  • Set a clear target date for the review of existing laws, decrees, and regulations that have been used to prosecute peaceful dissidents and otherwise violate fundamental rights, with the aim to revoke them or bring them into compliance with international human rights standards; and 
  • Fulfill the pledge to “pursue sustainable political solutions that address efficient governance and rights of ethnic nationalities” in Burma. Addressing this issue should include amending the 1982 Citizenship Law, whose discriminatory provisions have been used to deny citizenship to most Rohingya Muslims and other minority groups. 
“The council should not let the government sweep the issue of minority rights under the rug,” de Rivero said. “This includes revising the 1982 Citizenship Law to end discrimination against Rohingya Muslims.”

BBC Impact
March 8, 2013

Burmese opposition party, the National League for Democracy, is holding its first party congress since it was formed more than 20 years ago. Delegates from across the country are gathering in Rangoon to set out new policies and to select new members for its ageing leadership. 

Meanwhile, the Burmese president Thein Sein is finishing his trip across Europe and will return home to a country whose recent reforms have been rewarded by the lifting of sanctions, but where ethnic populations are suffering violent assaults. 

Troops continued a raid on rebels in Kachin state in the east over recent months, despite the president's orders to cease. And in the western Rakhine state, tens of thousands of Rohingya Muslims have been displaced amid clashes with Rakhine Buddhists, violence in which some say the state is complicit. 

Lucy Hocking's was joined on BBC World News by Baroness Cox, the founder of the Humanitarian Aid Relief Trust charity and by Nurul Islam, of the Arakan Rohingya National Organisation.


M.S. Anwar 
RB Analysis 
March 10, 2013

On 9th March 2013, a conference was held at Mahidol University, Bangkok, led by Dr. Aye Chan with the help of Rakhines living in Thailand in an attempt to rewrite the history of Arakan. Neither any eminent Rohingya leaders nor any member of Rohingya community was invited to the so-called International Conference on the History of Arakan. The reason behind not inviting any Rohingya member to the conference might be to easily distort history to suit their agenda and reject Rohingyas outright. However, having realized this, a few eminent Rohingyas including Mr. Htay Lwin Oo attended the conference that hindered Dr. Aye Chan from further falsifying the history. 

First speaker in the conference was J. Leider, a French Historian, and he avoided stating that would cause conflicts. And the second was Stephen van Galen, a Dutch Scholar and he, too, avoided mentioning anything that would result in conflicts. And the last one to give speech in the conference was Dr. Aye Chan. In his talks about “From Rakhine cross-border settlement to ethnic violence,” he followed their traditional make-belief fictional story that there is no Rohingya in the history of Arakan and the term “Rohingya” was the creation of Mr. Gaffar in 1951. 

As he bluffed on so and so increase of cross-border settlements of Chittagong people in Arakan from 1826 to 1975 to become the majority in Maungdaw and Buthedaung townships, he forgot to mention the cross-border settlement of his own father, Kala Chand, a Bangladeshi Barua, in 1950s. It was not really surprising to see such a bigot falsifying the history as such and inversing the scenario of how Rohingyas became majority in Maung Daw and Buthidaung Townships (Mayu Region). Before 1942 Massacre of Rohingyas, Rohingyas were more or less equally scattered in Arakan than Rakhines were. As the aftermaths of the massacre, most of the Rohingyas from interior Arakan were pushed towards the Mayu region. Never were they able to return home and so settled in the region. This is the truth what Dr. Aye Chan was trying to distort in the conference. 

In the question and answer session, Mr. Htay Lwin Oo asked “Sir, you are a historian. Didn’t you know that the term “Rohingya” existed in Arakan before 1800 CE? If you don’t know, please read this (page)… of this (book)….” Mr. Htay Lwin Oo handed over a photocopy of the book. Upon that, Dr. Aye Chan answered “Rohingya was a name used to call us, Rakhines.” When Mr. Htay Lwin Oo rebutted that the term “Rohingya” was not a term used to call Rakhines because the terms for “Sun, Moon and Earth” mentioned in the section of Rohingya language are not same to that in the section of Rakhine languages, Dr. Aye Chan was at his wit’s end and rather hurried to end the session saying “it is enough.” Please read French Researcher and Medical Doctor Francis Buchanan’s “A Comparative Vocabulary of Some of the Languages Spoken in Burma Empire, Page 55” written in 1799 CE (http://bit.ly/TFJ4JJ). You will find the words used by Rohingyas today, not by Rakhines, under the “Rooinga” language section. And you will find totally different words under the language section of “Yakain.” Besides, in that, it is mentioned that Mohammedans used to call themselves “Rooinga” or “Rovingaw.” Now you tell us “was the term ‘Rohingya’ used to call Rakhines? 

Therefore, it is pretty obvious for even someone with a zero-knowledge on history to identify that Dr. Aye Chan was living in Rakhine’s father-to-son myths and beating around the bush. On one hand, they say there is no term such as “Rohingya” in the history of Arakan and on the other hand, it was a name used to call Rakhines. After all, how many names did Rakhines have? Rakkha, Rakkhita, Arakan, Rakuain and Rakhine, Roshang, Rohang and now Rohingya? The Sino-Tibetan tribe of Mongoloid stock hijacked the land of the forefathers of Rohingyas in 957 CE and now, they are trying to hijack even their name. Cruel and shameless invaders indeed!! 

Disgracefully, Burmese domestic media such as Eleven Media Group, Rakhine Media Groups and their Social Networking Sites are rather spreading made-up information about the conference and wrong propaganda. They are spreading adverse information: Mr. Htay Lwin Oo ran away being unable to face off with Dr. Aye Chan, which was other-way-round in the reality. The truths will prevail soon as the videos of the conference are coming up. And disgustingly, Eleven Media reported ‘International Scholars Say No Rohingya in Myanmar’ (something they have never said) taking advantage of their silence but only to fool the naïve Burmese people. Maybe these international scholars were supposed and brought to the conference to be silent upon any statements by the bigotry Rakhine scholars. 

References: 
M.S. Anwar is an activist and student in Malaysia. 

GEORGE TOWN: One hundred and twenty-six Rohingya refugees were found famished by local fishermen, as their cargo boat was on the verge of sinking at 2.5 nautical miles from Muka Head, Teluk Bahang here yesterday. 

The refugees, comprising 51 men, 35 women and 40 children, had spent 25 days sailing from Myanmar to Malaysia. 

Following a report lodged by the fishermen about 2pm, the Rohingyas were rescued by the Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency (MMEA). 

MMEA (Northern Region) enforcement chief First Admiral Tan Kok Kwee said, at the time of rescue, the refugees, aged between two months and 50, were found cramped in their boat. 

"The Rohingyas looked tired and famished because food supply had run out, three days earlier, and they had to make do with just sea water. 

"The MMEA found a leak in the boat and mobilised a maritime ship, KM Nyireh, to rescue the refugees and tow their boat. 

Investigations are underway to determine who had brought them in," he told reporters here today. 

He said the Rohingyas were taken to the Limbungan Batu Maung Jetty about 10.30am and given food, as well as health check-ups. 

The refugees are now held at the Penang MMEA headquarters in Jalan Sri Bahari, pending a remand order.

Buddhist Nationalism in Burma: How Institutionalized Racism led to the Genocide of Rohingya Muslims, Tricycle, Spring 2013 by Maung Zarni

For those outside Burma, the broadcast images of the Theravada monks of the “Saffron Revolution” of 2007 are still fresh. Backed by the devout Buddhist population, these monks were seen chanting metta and the Lovingkindness Sutta on the streets of Rangoon, Mandalay, and Pakhoke-ku, calling for an improvement in public well-being in the face of the growing economic hardships afflicting Burma’s Buddhists. The barefooted monks’ brave protests against the rule of the country’s junta represented a fine example of engaged Buddhism, a version of Buddhist activism that resonates with the age-old Orientalist, decontextualized view of what Buddhists are like: lovable, smiley, hospitable people who lead their lives mindfully and have much to offer the non-Buddhist world in the ways of fostering peace.


M.S. Anwar 
RB News 
March 10, 2013 

Maung Daw, Arakan - Around 2AM this morning, a joint department of NaSaKa (Border Security Force), Police and Military together with some Rakhine extremists raided and looted two Rohingya houses in the village of Shujah (ShweZar), Maung Daw. Besides, of the two families that got looted, all the members of the first family were arrested and are now detained in the NaSaKa Camp No. 14 under the Commandment Area No. 6. 

“Around 2AM this morning, a joint department of NaSaKa, Police and Military together with some Rakhine extremists broke into the houses of Abul Shadar (around 60 years old) and his brother in-law, Ramzan Ali (around 36 years old) in the village of Guna Fara Village Tract of Shujah village. In the first house, Rakhine extremists stabbed Abul Shadar at his back and hit his wife and daughter at their heads as they tried to shout out. That left their heads bleeding and led them to unconscious state. 

Then, they looted Kyat 1Million and gold jewelries weighed around 245 gram. On top of that, they all (i.e. 11 family members) were arrested without any reason and are now detained in the NaSaKa Camp No. 14 under the Commandment Area No. 6. At the same time, the house of his bother-law, Ramzan Ali, also got raided and Kyat 0.5Milion and around 114 gram weight of gold looted” said a Rohingya from a nearby village. 

“It is very difficult to do anything when Rakhine extremists come together with the enforcement agencies and loot our houses. We can’t protect our lives, dignity and properties here. We don’t know what our future holds in the hands of these evils in human forms” he exclaimed.

Nizam Ahmed
Financial Express BD
March 10, 2013

A senior official of the United States (US) is expected to visit Bangladesh, Myanmar and Japan for a week from Tuesday next to discuss issues relating to conflicts in Myanmar and exodus of refugees from the country, officials said on Saturday. 

US State Department Senior Advisor for Myanmar Mr W. Patrick Murphy will undertake the tour at such a time when fleeing Rohingya refugees from Myanmar have become a matter of concern for neighbouring countries.

The intrusion of Rohingyas in the south and the southeast Asian countries including Bangladesh have increased following spells of communal riots between Rohingya Muslims and local Buddhists in Rakhine state, in western Myanmar since June last year.

Bangladesh, which has been hosting about 400,000 unregistered refugees from Myanmar, sent back several hundred Rohingyas who wanted to take refuge in the country fleeing the recent communal riots in Myanmar.

However, before sending them back, the refugees were given medical treatment when needed, food and even cash so that they can support them at least for a few days, according to officials of Border Guard Bangladesh.

Meanwhile, India, Thailand, Malaysia, Indonesia and Sri Lanka which have been hosting lots of Rohingya refugees since Myanmar riots last year, recently rescued hundreds of boat-people, mostly Rohingyas from the Bay of Bengal and the Indian Ocean.

Senior Adviser Mr Murphy is scheduled to arrive in Dhaka Tuesday on a two-day visit to Bangladesh. He will also travel to Myanmar and Japan until March 18, said a press release of the US State Department made available to the FE on Saturday.

Mr Murphy will visit Rangoon, Naypyitaw and other Myanmar cities from March 13 to March 16, and the Japanese capital Tokyo on March 17 and 18, the state department said.

The senior adviser is expected to discuss with the relevant authorities in Dhaka and civil society groups on reforms and other recent developments in Myanmar.

"In particular, he will discuss US policies, conflict in Rakhine and Kachin States, and international support, including responsible investment, to strengthen reform and reconciliation efforts," said the press release.

Mr Murphy is also expected to pay a whirlwind visit to southeastern Cox's Bazar region to see the plight of the Myanmar refugees now living there, officials at the ministry of foreign affairs (MoFA) said in Dhaka.

"However the itinerary of Mr Murphy has no mention of a probable visit to refugee camps in Cox's Bazar district, but the arrangement will be kept ready in case the senior US adviser wants to visit the refugee infested region," a senior official at MoFA told the FE.

Like the US administration, Bangladesh has also a great concern on the Myanmar issues as tens of thousands of unregistered refugees from Myanmar have seriously affected socio economic situation in the refugee infested region.

The unregistered Rohingya refugees from Myanmar are now living in scattered squalid makeshift camps in southeastern region of Bangladesh near Myanmar border.

Besides the unregistered refugees, there are some 30,000 Rohingyas living in two official camps, run by the government of Bangladesh and the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, near Cox's Bazar resort town.

The inmates of the official camps are the remnants of some 250,000 Rohingya refugees, who fled Myanmar alleging persecution by military junta in late 1991 and 1992.

Recently, hundreds of Rohingya Muslims trying to flee their native Arakans (now Rakhine state) of Myanmar or their makeshift camps in Bangladesh have been nabbed or rescued from the sea in recent weeks in Malaysia, Indonesia, Thailand, India and Sri Lanka, according to news agencies.

Since the communal clashes began in Arakan State in June 2012, the number of Rohingyas fleeing by boats to neighbouring Southeast Asian countries has increased significantly.

News agencies say many Rohingyas flee Buddhist-majority Myanmar, which considers them illegal Muslim settlers from neighboring Bangladesh.

However, Bangladesh refutes the stance of Myanmar and claims that the Rohingys have been the residents of Arakan for several hundred years.

Meanwhile, the United Nations has recently considered about 800,000 Rohingya people of Myanmar's Rakhine state as the most persecuted people in the world.

With an estimated 115,000 people in Arakan displaced by the communal clashes, it is not surprising thousands more Rohingyas have fled from other parts of Arakan State not only by boat, but by air and overland too, say the news agencies.

M.S. Anwar 
RB News 
March 9, 2013

Maung Daw, Arakan - Around 3AM on 9th March 2013, five extremist Rakhine youths attempted to torch a house owned by Rohingya in Shikdar Fara (Myoma Kayintan), Maung Daw. Fortunately, the house owner happened to wake up in time to prevent his house from being torched. 

“Five extremist Rakhine youths came to the house of Zahid Hussain S/o Nurul Amin at around 3AM secretly and with them, there were petrol gallons and lighters. The house owner woke up and saw them trying to torch his house. When the house-owner and his neighbors chased them, four of the escaped and one got caught. Upon questioning, the Rakhine who got caught said that he was Minbraa Township and had been in Maung Daw for around 10 days. Then, he suddenly began to behave as if he was a fool. 

Later, the villagers informed the commander of the military battalion encamped at the High School in the village that they had caught a Rakhine trying to set fire to a house. The battalion commander, without even asking who he was, said “he is a fool” and asked the villagers to inform the Police. Police came and they, too, without even seeing him, said “he is a fool.” And Police released him. The guy was again seen traversing in the village in the evening of the day” said a Rohingya Elder from Maung Daw.

“There are curfew order imposed at night and two military camps at the two ends of the village. Police and Military always patrol at night. So, how could they come at night to set fire to the house? How could the commander say that he was a fool without even asking who was the person that got caught? If he was really a fool, why did he give some straight answers at first? Above all, why is he set free if he is a fool? There are a lot one can question upon. But we feel it is a CONSPIRACY to create violence against Rohingyas again, in which the enforcement authorities are involved. Now, we suspect that the six houses of Rohingyas burnt down in the village the night before might have been torched by the same fools” he continued.

Amnesty International
March 7, 2013

As Myanmar President Thein Sein concludes his visit to Europe, the United Nations Human Rights Council is scheduled to discuss the situation of human rights in Myanmar and the need for continued international human rights monitoring in the country. Considering remaining human rights concerns in the country, it is critical that international human rights monitoring mechanisms are maintained in Myanmar. 

Since 2008, Myanmar has allowed the United Nations Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Myanmar to conduct regular country visits. The mandate of the Special Rapporteur was created in 1992 and has been extended annually since then. On 11 March, the Human Rights Council is scheduled to discuss, among other issues, whether or not to renew the mandate of the United Nations Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Myanmar. If they do not renew the mandate, it will cease to exist. 

Despite some positive developments in Myanmar over the last two years, the human rights situation remains serious as shown by the recent report from the Special Rapporteur who visited the country in February 2013. In a human rights situation like that which prevails in Myanmar, independent and objective international human rights monitoring mechanisms play a critical and often unique role in promoting and protecting human rights alongside national human rights mechanisms. 

There continues to be credible reports of violations and abuses of international human rights and humanitarian law in northern Myanmar. Despite the resumption of peace talks in early 2013 between the Myanmar government and the Kachin Independence Organisation (KIO), armed conflict persists in northern Kachin State. Over 75,000 ethnic Kachin civilians remain displaced by the conflict, and many continue to face obstacles in accessing sustained assistance by humanitarian organisations. 

Amnesty International is also concerned about the human rights situation in Rakhine state following the eruption of communal violence between Rakhine Buddhist and Muslim communities in June 2012. The violence is ongoing and has resulted in considerable death and injury on both sides. Despite the need to ensure protection of both communities, reliable reports indicate that in some cases state security forces have failed to protect people. Government forces have conducted massive sweeps, largely targeting Rohingya and other Muslim populations; hundreds remain in detention in Rakhine State. Over 120,000 internally displaced persons (IDPs) are currently living in temporary shelters with limited access to food, medical care, sanitation facilities, and other types of humanitarian necessities. 

Although government amnesties have resulted in the release of thousands of prisoners, including prisoners of conscience since May 2011, many more prisoners remain arbitrarily detained or imprisoned in Myanmar. Among them are individuals whom Amnesty International considers prisoners of conscience who have been imprisoned solely for the peaceful exercise of their human rights, in particular to freedom of speech, association and assembly. Many others have been falsely charged or convicted of serious offences after trials that fell far short of international fair trial standards, including convictions that relied on “confessions” obtained by torture. Those arbitrarily imprisoned include farmers and villagers in ethnic minority areas, such as Shan and Kachin states. 

Lastly, despite recent changes in the laws ostensibly relaxing restrictions on media freedoms and freedom of assembly, the right to freedom of expression continues to be limited through the use of existing and newly enacted laws. The government detained and charged numerous peaceful protestors under the 2011 Right to Peaceful Assembly and Peaceful Procession Law last year. Further, there have been credible reports of unnecessary or excessive use of force by members of the security forces towards peaceful protestors. Many laws are not in line with international human rights law and have been used in the past by the government to stifle free expression, assembly, and association. These laws include the Law on the Right to Peaceful Assembly and Peaceful Procession, the Unlawful Associations Act, the Penal Code, the Printers and Publishers Registration Law, the Electronics Transactions Act, the State Protection Act, the Emergency Provisions Act, and the Law Relating to Forming of Organisations. 

Amnesty International recommends that the UN Human Rights Council and its member and observer States: 

Ensure that the mandate of the United Nations Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Myanmar is renewed; 

Address the ongoing human rights concerns in Myanmar in the Human Rights Council resolution on the country; 

Call on the Myanmar Government to guarantee sustained international human rights monitoring to promote and protect human rights alongside national human rights mechanisms; and 

Urge the Myanmar government to respect, protect and fulfil their human rights obligations.

Burma Campaign UK
March 8, 2013

British government receiving; ‘disturbing reports of the use of sexual violence by the military in Burma.’ 

On International Women’s Day, Burma Campaign UK is calling on members of the United Nations Human Rights Council to ensure that the Council continues to investigate serious human rights abuses in Burma, including sexual violence. There have been moves by some countries not to renew the mandate of the UN Special Rapporteur on Human Rights in Burma, and for Burma to be downgraded from agenda Item 4; ‘Human rights situations that require the Council’s attention’, to Item 10, ‘Technical assistance and capacity building.’ 

UN Human Rights Council members will discuss Burma on Monday 11th March. 

The moves come just one week after a British Foreign Office Minister, Baroness Warsi, stated: “We continue to receive disturbing reports of the use of sexual violence by the military in Burma. We are concerned that the Burmese authorities have done little to investigate.” The statement came in an answer to a question in the British Parliament on 26th February 2013. 

“Since Thein Sein became President, we have received more, not fewer, reports of rape and sexual violence by the Burmese Army,” said Zoya Phan, Campaigns Manager at Burma Campaign UK. “The government of Burma continues to either ignore or deny its forces are committing sexual violence, instead of investigating and stopping the attacks. If Human Rights Council members end the mandate of the Special Rapporteur, they will be helping the Burmese government to cover up rape and other abuses. In their own countries if they helped a rapist get away with their crime that would also be a crime. There are double standards here and women in Burma are being left to pay the price.” 

Numerous cases of rape and sexual violence by government forces in the past two years have been documented in Shan State, Rakhine State and Kachin State. Reports are available online at: http://www.burmacampaign.org.uk/index.php/campaigns/crimes-against-humanity/142/132

“It is not just naive but also criminally negligent to think the issue of rape and sexual violence in Burma can be addressed internally without international involvement,” said Zoya Phan. “Thein Sein has presided over an increase of sexual violence by government forces and has taken no action. He has a track record of allowing his soldiers to commit rape. When he was a commander in Shan State in the 1990s, the Shan Women’s Action Network documented 45 cases of rape by soldiers under his command.”

Greg Torode
South China Morning Post
March 8, 2013
 
Reports that 15 Rohingya migrants trying to flee Myanmar were shot dead by Thai security forces prompt UN demand for explanation

United Nations officials have demanded urgent explanations from Thailand over reports that its security forces shot dead up to 15 unarmed Rohingya migrants trying to flee neighbouring Myanmar. 

Vivian Tan, spokeswoman for the UN's High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) in Thailand, said officials yesterday met counterparts from the Thai Foreign Ministry in Bangkok. 

"We … are watching this closely and we are concerned," Tan said. While no specific timetable was offered from the Thai side, "we did say it was urgent".

Her comments follow reports in yesterday's South China Morning Post from its correspondents in Phuket detailing allegations from survivors of the February 22 incident near the island of Phuket on Thailand's Andaman coast. 

The alleged killings came during an attempt by the military to transfer about 20 migrants from the boat that had carried them and more than 100 others from Myanmar to a smaller boat. 

Some feared they would be separated from family members and jumped into the water, at which point the military opened fire, witnesses said. Survivors are being sheltered by local Thai villagers, some of whom heard the shooting and photographed Thai military vessels towing a Rohingya vessel. Thai naval officials have yet to comment. 

Tan said the UNHCR was aware of earlier, vague media reports of shootings in Thailand from Rohingya boatpeople arriving in Sri Lanka and two recent boatloads in Aceh, on the north-western tip of the Indonesian island of Sumatra. 

UNCHR staff had yet to be allowed access to the Sri Lanka migrants but had started interviewing the arrivals in Aceh. 

"We are aware of the reports but we don't yet have our own information. We are trying to find out what happened," Tan said. 

If correct, the reports suggest a lethal new twist in Thailand's previously controversial handling of the Rohingya, according to diplomats and observers. 

Conservative Muslims from Myanmar's isolated Rakhine state, Rohingya have been described by the UNHCR as the most persecuted people on earth. 

Denied citizenship in Myanmar - despite settlements going back centuries - Rohingya have fled across the land border with Bangladesh, where hundreds of thousands still languish in camps, and by boat to Thailand, Indonesia and Malaysia. 

Lack of citizenship means it is difficult for Rohingya to marry or work legally. 

Thousands have set sail to escape a recent outbreak of violence targeting their communities in Myanmar while hundreds languish in Thailand, which has yet to allow the UNHCR to screen them as refugees. 

In 2009, a series of Post reports revealed a campaign by Thailand's Internal Security Operations Command (ISOC), an elite but secretive Thai army unit, to tow Rohingya in powerless boats out to sea and cast them adrift. 

Hundreds died before the policy was disavowed by then-prime minister Abhisit Vejjajiva. 

ISOC officials launched the crackdown apparently fearing the Rohingya could swell the number of terrorists in Thailand's restive Muslim deep south - even though they have never been linked to any violent groups. 

Since then, the Thai military has publicly adopted a policy of "helping on" Rohingya boats intercepted at sea, supplying them with fuel, food and water on the promise that they keep sailing and do not land in Thailand.

Hamid and Emma Crichton
OpenDemocracy
March 7, 2013

The Rohingya, a Muslim minority from Rakhine State in Burma, are among the most persecuted minorities in the world. Hamid sends a letter detailing the violence and exclusion his community continues to face. 

Since June 2012 the Rohingya have been subject to an intense spate of inter-communal violence and state-sanctioned persecution in Myanmar (Burma). Reports of untold deaths, thousands of homes being destroyed, and tens of thousands of Rohingya being displaced have coincided with a time of great change for the country as it transitions to democracy. 

The Rohingya are a Muslim minority from Rakhine State in western Burma, and have been acknowledged by the United Nations to be one of the most persecuted minorities in the world. For decades, the estimated 800,000 population from Rakhine State has confronted restrictions on their freedom of movement, marriage, education, and worship. In 1982 the Government of Burma enacted the ‘Burma Citizenship Law’ constitutionally excluding the Rohingya people from citizenship, making them a stateless people. At the heart of the tension lies a contested history of the origins of the Rohingya. The Burmese government considers them to be illegal immigrants from Bangladesh. 

Bangladesh, as the eighth most populated country in the world, is estimated to be host to over 200,000 Rohingya refugees. Whilst many refugees have resided in Bangladesh since 1978, with another key migration in 1991, the recent arrival of those fleeing persecution from Burma has stirred ongoing tensions. Competition over scarce resources and employment is said to have fueled these tensions between local residents and the Rohingya. This, along with the Government of Bangladesh’s suspension of humanitarian aid in refugee camps in July 2012, prompted my investigations about the protection needs of the Rohingya. 

After making research inquiries into the consequences of forced migration on both the Rohingyas and the local Bangladesh host population in the Cox’s Bazar District of southern Bangladesh, I met a community with a resounding plea for international help and for others to know the Rohingya story. 

One young man, Hamid, wrote this letter, and requested his testimony be shared. 

[Editor's note: Where marked, the text below is expedited for Hamid's security. Grammar has been altered for ease of reading. In all other respects this is an unedited translation of Hamid's letter. ] 

Who I am 

I finished my primary study in U Hla Pae village and continued my high school in Buthidaung Township. After I finished my study, I continued to study politics. However I could not live in my hometown and had to flee to Bangladesh, and am now living in Cox’s Bazar. Bangladesh government also arrested me here with illegal entry to Bangladesh from Myanmar. It is very difficult to get a job here as an illegal immigrant. We are neither accepted by the Bangladesh government nor Myanmar government. We cannot go back to Myanmar. We would like to request to the international community to show us a peaceful place. I am here now for 5 months. I came here to save my life and feed myself. Because there are so many Rohingya in Bangladesh, we only get work once a week. We do not know what to do. People coming from Myanmar are now starving. These people get food once a day only. The Bangladesh government also arrests them. These people cannot live in cities so they have to stay in countryside villages. My hope is to get donations from rich countries to feed us. [sentence excluded for confidentiality]. I am very thankful and grateful that you listen to our news. I cannot give information about us because I cannot get in contact with any NGOs. 

Reality behind the Taunggot event 

A group of 52 Muslim pilgrims from Yangon, former capital of Myanmar travelled to the cities in Rakhine state with the purpose of religious activities. For their activities, they had to stay for 45 days in different cities and travelled to Yangon through Taunggot. Taunggot is a crosslink city between Rakhine state and Yangon division. On the way back to Yangon on 3rd June 2012, a Rakhine mob attacked them in Taunggot highway. The mob was so cruel that the pilgrim group was killed inhumanly. They were beaten in head till their brains came out, and slaughtered. That night, the Rakhine mob openly celebrated their successful killings with music and alcohol in Taunggot with the presence of local authorities. 

Reality about the story in Kyauk Ni Maw (Than Dwe) 

In Kyauk Ni Maw, a Rakhine girl was in love with a Kaman Muslim boy since their high school. There was another Rakhine boy who loved this Rakhine girl. The two lovers broke up for some reason. In general, Rakhine girls were not allowed to have affairs with Muslims in Rakhine state. Therefore some Rakhines made a plan to kill that girl for not loving someone of the same race ([the] Rakhine boy) and murdered her inhumanly. After she was murdered, her body was left closer to the Muslim village and accused her former lover, the Muslim boy, as the rapist and murderer and arrested him. However according to initial medical report, she was not raped at all. Together with him, two of his Muslim friends were also arrested with the same accusation. With that news, some Rakhine extremists distributed pamphlets to instigate the anger and hatred against Muslims among the Rakhine community. 

Reality behind the events at Myauk-O, Kyauk Phyu and Kyauk Taw 

In Myauk-O, the number of Rakhine villages is more than Muslim villages. Therefore Muslim population is much less than Rakhine population. Rakhine used their numbers as an advantage and killed Muslims above 4000 by using long knife and guns. Among the victims, 2500 were children and new born babies. Rakhines attached the new born babies at the edge of steel rods and put into fire. Many Muslim houses were also burnt down. Similar stories in Kyauk Phyu and Kyauk Taw as well. 

Reality behind Sittwe’s crisis 

In Sittwe, it started on 7 June 2012. The Rakhine started killing Muslims, burning the houses in Zalla Fara (a Muslim village) and all villagers were killed on that day. It continued to other Muslim villages such as Nazir Fara, Amala Fara, Hausha Fara, San Taw Laik, Bomu Rwar and Bo Pwa Fara with the combination of Rakhines, Police forces, NaSaKa (Burmese Border Security Forces), Lone Tein and Military forces. Rakhines used long knives and homemade guns while the government forces [used] guns to kill Muslims. 

Muslims were burnt alive in their own houses and some were tied up while being burnt. Children and newborn babies were thrown into the river when the Rakhines got tired of stabbing with knives. Some of the children were also thrown into fire. All the government bodies in Sittwe were involved in helping the Rakhine mob to target Muslims. Rakhines had guns and together with Nasaka, Police and Lone Tein, they directly shot at Muslims. Those who were not killed and became homeless are in refugee concentration camps now. 

Muslims from Sittwe tried to flee from their birth places to save their lives and travelled by five small boats to Bangladesh. However those five boats were not accepted by the Bangladesh government and were pushed back towards Burma. Among 5 boats, 3 boats were destroyed by NaSaKa with guns in the sea. The other 2 were also not lucky. There were few pregnant women in those 2 boats and they all died while trying to deliver the baby on the boat. The remaining Muslims were also shot dead by local security forces when they reached back to Rakhine state side. 

Local security forces were famous for torturing and raping Muslim women previously. In this crisis, they did not stay behind doing all those atrocities towards Muslim girls. The government never take action for that. The monks also encouraged and instigated the Rakhines to kill Muslims. Moreover, the monks were involved by themself to kill and drive away Muslims from their land by changing their clothes to ordinary people. 
Reality behind Maungdaw’s crisis 

In Maungdaw, it was started on 8 June 2012. When the problem started in Maungdaw between Rakhine and Muslims, NaSaKa supported to first Rakhines to kill Muslims. When there was a big chance of a riot starting in Maungdaw, a Rakhine trashed a Muslim with his motor bike on 8 June 2012 at 12 pm. After hitting the Muslim, he ran away and the police came and arrested and tortured the victim instead of the Rakhine in the street where the intentional accident happened. When the Muslims (around 10) gathered to the event and asked the police why he was torturing and beating him instead of the Rakhine, the police left the scene with anger and the Muslim was escaped. 

That day was Friday and therefore all Muslims go to mosque to pray Juamma at noon. During that time, the police and NaSaKa force arrived and waited outside till people came out from mosque and shot at Muslims and 2 Muslims died on the spot. When the police and NaSaKa fired shots into the group, people were dispersed and ran away in different directions. After that scene, the Rakhine went to a local mosque and fired it to burn it down. Muslim houses were also burnt down. As the officers shot fire into Muslims, some of them were seriously injured and some of them escaped to Bangladesh to save their life and to treat their injuries. Some are still in Chittagong continuing their treatment and some were dead with their injuries. Back in Maungdaw, NaSaKa threw some Muslim corpses into the river. 

Reality behind Buthidaung’s crisis 

In Buthidaung, there were no clashes yet between Rakhines and Muslims as the Rakhines are the minority there. The military station Sa Kha Ka group no 15 and Strategy group no 18 are trying to not have any clashes till today. However the commissioner from the police station commanded the police officers to arrest the educated Muslims from every village and kept them in police custody for 2 days and sent to jail. Some of the Muslims were tortured to death. The police are still arresting the known and rich Muslims and extorting money from them to release them from jails. If the demanded money cannot be provided, the Muslims were tortured inhumanely. 

Recently the monks from Buthidaung called a meeting for Rakhines and made a secret plan to bring the guns from Sittwe together with Rakhines from there and stored in Buthidaung. The Muslims are afraid of the guns as they do not have anything to protect themselves. The local government also support the Rakhines and encourage them to attack and oppress Muslims. All of the police are Rakhines and therefore they do not show any mercy to shoot at Muslims. On 3 November 2012, the military seized 180 handmade guns from Rakhines in Buthidaung. 

Law and Order in Rakhine State 

In 1950s and 1960s, Muslims from Rakhine state from various cities entered to government posts after they finished their study. However now Muslims cannot enter to government jobs at all. Moreover they created different law and order for Muslims in the whole of Rakhine state. Muslims have to follow the rule strictly. No Rakhine has to follow that rule. Muslims cannot marry according to Islamic law. Muslims can only marry after paying 300,000 kyats to NaSaKa (Boarder security forces). Only Muslims who have money can marry and poor Muslims cannot. If anyone marries without getting permission from NaSaKa they can be sentenced to 5 years according to strict law. Rakhine people do not have such kind of rule. If Muslims have to visit to Maungdaw and Buthidaung, they have to get permission (called Form 4) from the authority. To obtain that form, 5000 kyats need to be paid and anyone who is caught travelling without that form, he/she will be sentenced to 4 years. 

Moreover one cannot live in another house even in the same village without permission. Muslims cannot stay in their relatives’ house without any permission from the authority. Otherwise they will be fined 300,000 kyats. It is a very miserable life for Muslims in Rakhine state. 

Four years ago, the police forces and NaSaKa forces went to villages in Buthidaung and Maungdaw and gathered all the young girls, young boys and women in police headquarters. They were raped, tortured and beaten inhumanely. Muslims are facing all difficulties to survive in Rakhine state. 

Another important matter is that the authority is giving trouble with improper law to UNHCR and UNDP, with the accusation of sending the news of Rakhine state overseas, and sentenced to jails some staff. Those who sent information through the internet and mobile phone are sentenced to 45 years. Therefore some of the real news from Maungdaw and Buthidaung was not sent through internet and phone. Moreover the internet lines were filtered and closed not to be able to send the news. Therefore the international community do not get the real information of Rakhine state. Therefore I am trying now to send the news to international communities. 

I hope this letter will reach everyone and after reading this, please help and sympathize to Muslims in Rakhine state. 

This letter is directly translated from the original Burmese letter. Translated by Mohammed Anwar, the current president of the Burmese Rohingya Community in Australia. 

This testimony is not necessarily representative of the researcher's views.

Introduction

1. The mandate of the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Myanmar was established pursuant to Commission on Human Rights resolution 1992/58, and was recently extended by Human Rights Council resolution 19/21. The present report is submitted pursuant to Council resolution 19/21 and General Assembly resolution 67/233, and covers human rights developments in Myanmar since the Special Rapporteur’s report to the Council (A/HRC/19/67) in March 2012 and to the Assembly (A/67/383) in October 2012.

2. From 11 to 16 February 2013, the Special Rapporteur conducted his seventh mission to Myanmar and met, in Naypyitaw, the Minister for Home Affairs, the Minister for Social Welfare, Relief and Resettlement, the Attorney General, the Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs, the Deputy Minister for Border Affairs, the Deputy Chief Justice and other justices of the Supreme Court, as well as several members of parliament and parliamentary committees. In Yangon, he met Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, members of the Myanmar National Human Rights Commission, civil society, prisoners of conscience held in Insein prison, former detainees from Buthidaung Prison, the United Nations country team and the diplomatic community. He also visited Yangon University and met with the Dean and students, and visited the offices of the Myanmar Times.

3. He visited Rakhine State, where he met state authorities and community leaders. He visited camps for displaced persons for both Buddhist and Muslim communities in Sittwe, Myebon and Pauk Taw and visited Sittwe Prison. He also visited Kachin State, where he met state authorities and civil society, visited camps for displaced persons in Myitkyina and Waingmaw and visited Myitkyina Prison. He expresses thanks to the Government of Myanmar for its cooperation during the visit.

4. He visited Japan from 7 to 10 February and met with representatives of the Japan International Cooperation Agency, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry, the Parliamentary Senior Vice-Minister for Foreign Affairs, and civil society organisations. He also visited Thailand from 17 to 18 February and met with representatives from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, civil society, United Nations regional and national offices and the diplomatic community. He is grateful to the Governments of Japan and Thailand for their cooperation.

5. The Special Rapporteur expresses thanks to the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) in Geneva, Bangkok and New York, for assisting him in discharging his mandate.

Read more here:

Photo - Phuket Wan
Chutima Sidasathian and Alan Morison 
Phuket Wan
March 6, 2013

PHUKET: Thai security forces opened fire on defenceless Rohingya boatpeople north of Phuket, killing at least two and as many as 15, according to detailed accounts by three survivors and Thai villagers who are sheltering them.

The killings, which are said to have occurred on February 21, came during a botched attempt by the military to transfer about 20 would-be refugees from the large boat on which they arrived from Burma (Myanmar) with 110 others, to a much smaller vessel. 

When some feared they would be separated from family members, they jumped in the water and the military men opened fire during the predawn incident, the witnesses said.

Survivors Habumara, 20, Rerfik, 25, and Jamar, 16, said yesterday that they swam for their lives when the shooting broke out. They are currently being sheltered by sympathetic villagers.

Two fresh graves, said to contain Rohingya, were seen by a Phuketwan reporter and an Australian news television crew yesterday.

The three survivors said they believed that the killers were members of the Thai Navy, but village residents said they probably belonged to another branch of the Thai military. 

Previous abuses of the Muslim Rohingya have been carried out by other arms of the Thai military or operatives trained as paramilitaries.

Vice Admiral Tharathorn Khajitsuwan, the Commander of Thai Navy Three, which patrols the Andaman coast, declined to comment.

One Rohingya, Rerfik, said that their boat, which had run out of fuel on its journey from Burma, was intercepted by local Thai fishermen on February 21.


RB News
March 6, 2013

A delegation of the Burmese Rohingya Organisation UK (BROUK) is visiting South Africa to raise awareness about the situation of the Rohingya and human rights in Burma. The delegation was invited by Burma Campaign South Africa and Protect the Rohingya Group from Johannesburg. 

Yesterday evening the delegation met the Deputy Foreign Minister of South Africa, Ibrahim Ibrahim and highlighted the new apartheid system against Rohingya being imposed by the Burmese Government. 

The delegation highlighted how the immediate priorities are safety and security, and for President Thein Sein to allow full international humanitarian access, not just to those in camps, but also those in villages. The delegation asked the Foreign Minister to support international observers on the ground, support a UN Commission of Inquiry, and to pressure Thein Sein to repeal the 1982 Citizenship Law. 

BROUK President Tun Khin said: “I am extremely satisfied with the meeting with the South Africa Deputy Foreign Minister. We were able to deliver the message that the world needs to wake up to the new apartheid system against the Rohingya which is being created by President Thein Sein.” 

Yesterday the delegation also held a press conference, and met lawyers from the Muslim Association to discuss justice and accountability issues relating to violence and discrimination against the Rohingya. 

Today BROUK President will give an interview on South African national television and give a speech at the prestigious Johannesburg University. 

During South Africa trip the delegation will raise awareness the plight of Rohingya in Cape Town.

Aubrey Belford
The Global Mail
March 6, 2013

Aung San Suu Kyi has made some surprising new friends on her way from democracy icon to politician: Burma’s former military men and crony capitalists are getting cosy. The country’s downtrodden minorities, not so much.

Tolerating racists, coddling the military, courting crony capitalists — these aren’t accusations the world is used to hearing against Aung San Suu Kyi.

But plenty has changed since the Nobel Peace Prize winner made the transformation from detained democracy icon to politician.

Since her release from house arrest over two years ago, Suu Kyi has become a key player in democratic reforms spearheaded by President Thein Sein, a former senior official in the country’s old junta. Her National League for Democracy (NLD) has gained a toehold in a parliament still dominated by old regime loyalists and uniformed soldiers. The Lady, as many Burmese call her, has made it clear she wants to become president when Burma holds democratic elections in 2015.

Yangon, Burma’s peeling main city, is choked with new traffic. Newspapers are largely free of censorship, and secret police have vanished from the streets. The city’s hotels are seeing unprecedented numbers of silver-haired tour groups, as well as hopeful NGO workers and businessmen.

But in other parts of the country, things are looking grim. In the northern Kachin areas, a brutal war with ethnic rebels that has likely killed thousands since mid-2011 goes on. In the western Rakhine state, fighting between Muslim Rohingya and Buddhist Rakhines last year likely killed hundreds and displaced at least 100,000 Rohingya, who are now living in squalid camps. Media freedom has exposed an ugly underbelly of anti-Muslim prejudice among many Burmese.

Even though she doesn’t run Burma — yet — Suu Kyi has been thrust to the centre of all this. Spending much of her time in the new sparse capital Naypyidaw, Suu Kyi has embarked on what is widely viewed internationally as a successful collaboration with the ex-military men leading the country’s top-down transition. With the Nobel Laureate’s blessing, foreign sanctions on both the government and business have been eased and more than $5.8 billion of Burma’s debt has been forgiven.

But while Suu Kyi remains popular in the heartland of Burma’s ethnic Bamar majority, she is increasingly alienating foreign supporters, as well as the minorities who make up one-third of the population. For six decades, many of these minority groups have been involved in intermittent conflict aimed at earning greater autonomy from the central government. Now Suu Kyi has caused concern by appearing to draw the NLD closer to some of Burma’s crony capitalists, a small club of men who grew rich under sanctions by leveraging their connections to the military junta to gain dominance over a crippled economy.

What exactly is Suu Kyi up to?

Central to the current machinations is that Suu Kyi is angling for the country to hold its first fully democratic parliamentary elections in 2015, says Richard Horsey, an analyst and former United Nations official in Yangon.

“Given her huge popularity across much of the country, a landslide victory seems very likely, which will be further amplified by the first-past-the-post electoral system,” Horsey says.

“The risk is that this will marginalise some important and powerful constituencies: the old political elite, the ethnic minorities and the non-NLD democratic parties.

“This is a serious risk because a stable and sustainable transition will be very difficult unless the political process is inclusive.”

It was Suu Kyi’s meeting with Thein Sein in mid-2011 that convinced her the government’s reform project was for real, Horsey says. And it has been Suu Kyi’s star power that in turn has convinced the world to back the country’s transformation.

Suu Kyi is widely seen as having formed a close working relationship with Shwe Mann, the powerful speaker of the lower house, who is a former general. As a result she’s had a greater say on key bills than the NLD’s tiny representation would otherwise merit.

If Suu Kyi wants to become president, however, she will have to change the constitution, which currently bars her from running because she was once married to a foreigner. Changing the constitution to allow her presidency would require the agreement of a more than 75 per cent majority in the parliament, meaning she would need the support of both the regime’s Union Solidarity and Development Party, and serving soldiers, who under the current constitution hold 25 per cent of seats.

In short, she has to convince the current rulers that their interests will be safe even if they are squeezed out of power by the NLD.

Many critics of Suu Kyi say she has gone soft on her former jailers, particularly when it comes to what is arguably the most pressing problem facing Burma: ethnic chaos.

During the violence in Rakhine State, Suu Kyi repeatedly avoided the thorny issue of whether or not the stateless Rohingya – who are regarded as illegal Bangladeshi immigrants by the government, despite having lived in Burma for generations – should be given citizenship.

She was similarly reluctant to criticise widely documented abuses by the Burmese army against Kachin rebels, instead stating earlier this year on a visit to the United Kingdom that she had long been “fond” of the army. Following sustained criticism, Suu Kyi offered to mediate the conflict. That offer was curtly rejected by the rebel Kachin Independence Army.

“I think she’s more silent than the past, more silent to criticise,” says Zaw Min, a member of the 88 Generation of activists, which takes its name from the bloody 1988 uprising against the former military regime. “I think her aim is to soften the government or to change the constitution. She’s only paying attention to these issues to take power.” New fissures have emerged in Burmese politics since the days of military rule and Suu Kyi’s house arrest, he argues. “In the past, we would say there are two sides to our country: the military and the democratic side. But that’s not true [anymore]. There are a lot of sides.”

Thein Sein has earned kudos for securing ceasefires with a number of ethnic rebel armies, most notably for securing a halt to the 63-year conflict between the government and the Karen National Union. But even outside the riven Kachin areas and Rakhine State, peace is shaky. A central demand of many ethnic groups is the creation of a federal union to replace the current central state, which is heavily dominated by the majority Bamar. They argue this is the spirit of the Panglong Agreement, which was negotiated with Suu Kyi’s father, Aung San, before he was assassinated in 1947, before independence was achieved from Britain.

While many minorities are making tentative steps towards negotiating with Thein Sein’s government, their relationship with Suu Kyi’s NLD has mostly gone backwards, says Khun Htun Oo, a leader of the Shan National League for Democracy.

Htun Oo, a former political prisoner who had been serving a 93-year sentence for charges including treason, was released in early 2012 as part of the country’s reforms. His ethnic group, the Shan, is Myanmar’s largest minority. Its members reside mostly in the hilly parts of Burma around the Thai, Chinese and Laotian borders — an area infamous for armed conflict, and the production of heroin and methamphetamine. Htun Oo’s group is traditionally aligned with the NLD, but he has become disappointed with Suu Kyi’s engagement with the government.

“I don’t know what it is, but we can feel that there is some agreement between the government and Daw Suu,” he says, referring to Suu Kyi by an honorific. Htun Oo interprets her attitude as being: “Don’t try to be an opponent of the government and don’t try to criticise the military. She’s quite reluctant with these affairs.”

“We have stood by her but ... when she joined force with the parliament we were not consulted about it. We are all warning each other: trusting a person is dangerous. We trusted [Suu Kyi’s father] Aung San as a person. And when the person died, the problems started. Now, if we trust The Lady and once she changes her mind, it could cause the same problem. We might as well stick to our own policy and fight for it.”

Suu Kyi is trying her best to reach out to the minorities, but is consistently rebuffed, argues Nyan Win, a senior NLD official. “The conflict between the Burma government and the ethnic groups is based on racism. Many ethnic groups don’t like the Bamar.”

Adding to the widely held belief that Suu Kyi is focussing solely on improving relations with the Bamar elite is the perception that she and the NLD have been conciliatory towards, if not directly courting, Burma’s crony capitalists. In late 2011, Suu Kyi famously accepted an invitation to publicly watch a football match in the company of Zaw Zaw, a tycoon whose financial interests range from toll roads to hotels and jade, and who is the subject of US sanctions. It is one of a number of meetings she’s had with Zaw Zaw.

More controversially, Soe Win, a senior NLD official, confirmed to The Global Mail that an educational foundation run by the NLD last year received 70 million kyat, or about $79,500, from a company owned by Tay Za, another tycoon operating under sanctions from the US — he was described by the US Treasury in the pre-reform era as “a notorious regime henchman and arms dealer”. The foundation also received 130 million kyat from SkyNet, a broadcaster owned by Kyaw Win, who has close links to the current regime. His wife reportedly paid the equivalent of nearly $50,000 for a sweater knitted for charity by Suu Kyi.

In January, Tay Za, who has interests in both jade and timber in the Kachin north, also reportedly gave 70 million kyat to the military, to match his donation to the NLD.

The NLD’s Soe Win defends the donations it has received, saying they are acceptable because they did not go directly into party coffers. By reaching out to such regime cronies, the NLD hopes to reform them into responsible businessmen, he says. “This is a transitional period. We have no experience and no comparison. We have to train them; change their mindset,” Soe Win says of the businessmen, adding that he has yet to see evidence of any such change. And he says the NLD will only allow direct contributions from these businessmen in 2015 if they have significantly improved their record.

An assistant to Suu Kyi declined a request by The Global Mail for an interview. Tay Za also declined our request for an interview, citing a lack of time; and a list of written questions submitted in lieu of an interview remained unanswered at the time of publication of this article. Zaw Thet Maung, a senior executive of Kyaw Win’s SkyNet, denies any attempt to politically influence Suu Kyi or the NLD, characterising the contributions as “purely charity”.

Regardless of whether their approach to Suu Kyi has borne fruit, the government cronies are seeing their fortunes improve alongside the reform process. The US Treasury in late February eased restrictions on US companies doing business with banks owned by Tay Za and Zaw Zaw.

There’s little doubt that Suu Kyi remains essential to Burma’s transition. She is wildly popular among the ethnic majority, and she remains the closest thing to a unifying national figure. A recent editorial in The Irrawaddy, a magazine set up abroad by Burmese exiles, but which has recently established a presence in Burma, sums up the frustration of many of her critics:

“Suu Kyi is right that Burma doesn’t need a saviour; but it does need a leader. After a year of collecting international accolades, it’s time for her to prove that she is that leader.

“As long as Suu Kyi continues to avoid taking any meaningful stance on the very real issues that plague Burma, the ‘democratically united’ country that she spoke of in her speech will remain as elusive as ever. Without decisive words from the woman in whom the country has placed its hopes for a better future, Burma will remain, at best, a slightly less repressive version of the deeply divided tyranny it has been for most of its history as a modern nation.”

Bangkok Post
March 6, 2013

Thein Sein, on the first-ever visit to Brussels by a Myanmar president, received on Tuesday new pledges of EU economic assistance coupled with calls to protect his country's ethnic minorities.

The Myanmar leader, setting out on the fourth leg of an historic 10-day tour of Europe, met successively with European Commission chief Jose Manuel Barroso, EU president Herman Van Rompuy, and foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton.

"You have in the European Union a committed and longterm partner for the historic journey that Myanmar and its people have started," Van Rompuy told Thein Sein, who was warnmly welcomed all round for his ground-breaking reforms in the once pariah state.

Since the former premier took over the presidency in March 2011, hundreds of political prisoners have been released and elections held, including the election to parliament of long-detained opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi.

"The EU and Myanmar are turning a page in their relationship," said Barroso. "More dialogue, more and better aid, more trade and investment."

While EU development aid has more than doubled to around 200 million euros for 2012-2013, Brussels said it was now ready to explore the feasibility of a bilateral investment agreement.

Ashton, flanked by commissioner for industry Antonio Tajani, will visit Myanmar, also known as Burma, later this year to look at further economic support.

The EU has also offered to reinstate a preferential tariffs deal with Yangon.

Thein Sein complained however of continuing economic sanctions against the country, saying "we are one of the poorest countries in the world."

The EU in April rewarded Myanmar's historic changes by suspending for one year a wide range of trade, economic and individual sanctions and said it would "monitor closely the situation on the ground, keep its measures under constant review."

And Brussels on Tuesday made clear it was monitoring minority rights, notably the ongoing conflict in the northern state of Kachin, and communal Buddhist-Muslim unrest in the western state of Rakhine -- where the bloc has provided some 5.5 million euros to help the internally displaced from both communities.

"Important challenges remain. In particular, on the need for a comprehensive peace settlement in ethnic areas," Van Rompuy said.

Speaking through an interpreter, Thein Sein said his government had been able "to reduce a culture of fear" and vowed to continue to work to strengthen democracy. "You have my promise we will continue on this path," he stated.

But groups such as Human Rights Watch urged leaders in Brussels to press the head of state to honour pledges on rights, including a promise to allow the UN Commissioner for Human Rights to set up an office in Myanmar.

There was deadly sectarian violence against ethnic Rohingya Muslims and rights abuses by security forces in ethnic conflict areas, particularly in Kachin state since the resumption of fighting in 2011 against separatists.

The minority, numbering about 800,000, has been described by the United Nations one of the most persecuted minorities on the planet, with thousands seeking refuge in neighbouring countries as boat people.

"Any realistic analysis of the current situation on the ground in Burma would conclude much more needs to be done to entrench reforms," said the group's EU director Lotte Leicht.

Thein Sein, who has already visited Norway, Finland and Austria, will end his 10-day trip in Italy.

On February 27, Archbishop Emeritus Desmond Tutu addressed a crowd of religious, political and civil society leaders at the American Center in Rangoon. This was Bishop Tutu's first visit to Burma, and in his first public speech in the country he spoke about reconciliation, tolerance and faith.


Source: U.S. Embassy Rangoon

    • Rohingya Exodus