BurmaNet News, September 6-8, 2008

[Editor]

September 6-8, 2008 Issue # 3551


INSIDE BURMA
Mizzima News: Opposition denies junta's accusation of terrorism
DVB: Riot control directive issued to local authorities
DVB: Abbot denies reports of raid and arrest
DVB: Pakokku monk vows to continue regime boycott
AFP: Myanmar police chief denies Suu Kyi hunger strike
Xinhua: Myanmar to introduce visa-on-arrival system soon
Irrawaddy: Gambari should push for tripartite dialogue: UNA
Irrawaddy: Suu Kyi companion hospitalized: NLD

ON THE BORDER
DVB: Border markets closed due to flooding

BUSINESS / TRADE
Myanmar Times: Dhaka proposes road links with Thailand through Myanmar
DVB: Unofficial curfew on businesses in Pyinmana

ASEAN
MOFA (Union of Myanmar): ASEAN Secretary-General lauds Myanmar endeavours
for storm-hit victims

OPINION / OTHER
UPI: Burma: Building upon success – Dawn Calabia and Megan Fowler
Irrawaddy: Arrest the criminals, not journalists – Yeni
DVB: Burma’s diplomatic stalemate – Aung Htoo



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INSIDE BURMA

September 8, Mizzima News
Opposition denies junta's accusation of terrorism – Zarni

Burma's main opposition party, National League for Democracy (NLD), on
Monday denied the ruling junta's claim that members of the party are
responsible for bomb blasts in the country.

During a rare press conference on Sunday, the country's Police Chief,
Brigadier General Khin Yi, told reporters that it had arrested several
opposition activists, including members of the NLD, in connection with
planting bombs and conducting subversive activities.

Khin Yi said NLD members Yan Shwe, Zaw Zaw Aung and Myint Aye, that last
of whom is also a member of the Human Rights Defenders and Promoters
Network (HRDP), were arrested with explosives and accused of the blasts at
an office of the Union Solidarity and Development Association (USDA) – a
junta-backed civilian organization – in Rangoon's suburban township of
Shwepyithar.

However the NLD said it has been following a policy of non-violence and
those persons mentioned by the government had been previously dismissed
from the party.

"They [the government] cannot prove their evidence, and we take it as just
an unfounded accusation," commented NLD spokesperson Nyan Win.

Khin Yi also accused the exile-based NLD-Liberated Area (NLD-LA), as well
as the Forum for Democracy, of helping to obtain funding from donors,
including the U.S.-based Open Society Institute (OSI) and National
Endowment for Democracy (NED), for terrorist acts conducted inside Burma.

He added that Myint Aye, who is a key contact person with the exile
opposition groups, has confessed that he offered cash awards to those who
committed terrorist acts in Rangoon.

According to Khin Yi, Myint Aye's cash awards differed depending on the
location of the blast, with 10 million kyat awarded for bombing City Hall,
7 million for the city center, 5 million for government offices, 2 million
for township peace and development council offices, 1.5 million for
township USDA offices and the Rangoon Railway Station, 1 million for
traffic lights, 0.5 million for junctions and crossroads and 0.2 million
for less prominent locations (1 dollar equals approximately 1,250 kyat).

The Burmese police chief said Yan Shwe directly received explosives from
Myint Aye, but was denied his due cash award for planting the bomb at the
USDA office in Shwepyithar on July 1.

Yet, contrary to Khin Yi's statement, an armed student group known as the
Vigorous Burmese Student Warriors (VBSW), on July 2 claimed responsibility
for the blast at the Shwepyithar USDA office.

The VBSW, in a statement posted on an exile Burmese blog, claimed the
blast was carried out by their members, who are urging the junta to
implement political reforms in the country.

The VBSW also confessed that it was been behind the bomb blast near the
ABC Restaurant in downtown Rangoon on April 20, and that they have further
targeted vehicles owned by USDA officials.

The group said they will continue with their acts, but would avoid damage
to the public, as a means of pressuring the government to stop their
tyranny and to embark on a process of national reconciliation.

Meanwhile, the NLD-LA in Thailand denied the government's accusations,
saying it was an act to blackmail the NLD's image by accusing its members
of conducting terrorist acts.

Nyo Ohn Myint, the Foreign Affairs In-Charge of the NLD-LA, remarked: "We
always maintain a policy of non-violence; it [government accusation] is
purely to blackmail the NLD. If we would have chosen violence, we would
not have come this far."

Critics view that the government, by increasingly arresting activists in
recent months, is trying to prevent any kind of movement that might spark
into yet more protests similar to the September 2007 protests led by
Buddhist monks.

Nyan Win, a NLD spokesperson said, "We don't know what the government's
intentions are, but what is certain is the increased arrest of our party
members as well as activists."

Edited by Mungpi

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September 8, Democratic Voice of Burma
Riot control directive issued to local authorities – Aye Nai

Local authorities in Myin Chan township, Mandalay division, have been
given training and directions for dealing with demonstrators, according to
a source close to the township Peace and Development Council office.

The instructions were reportedly issued from Naypyidaw amid fears of
renewed public demonstrations on the anniversary of last year's Saffron
Revolution.

The source, who did not wish to be identified, said the Myin Chan PDC
office had received a letter from government leaders in Naypyidaw last
Monday which instructed local authorities to use a three-stage method in
dealing with protesters.

"For the first step, the local authorities should negotiate with the
protesters to get them to stop their demonstration," said the source.

“If they refuse to stop, the second stage is to shoot them in the legs,”
he said.

"And if the protesters still don't back off after the second stage
response, they will be shot dead according to the third stage set out in
the instruction letter."

He said the letter also directed authorities to transfer any protesters
who they were able to detain to Mandalay's Home Affairs department.

On Wednesday, two days after the township PDC office received the
instructions, local police, USDA members and Swan Arr Shin members in Myin
Chan were seen being given riot training at the township's police academy.

Security is currently tight in Myin Chan, with uniformed and plain-clothes
government officials at every intersection conducting random vehicle
searches.

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September 8, Democratic Voice of Burma
Abbot denies reports of raid and arrest – Yee May Aung

An abbot who was reported by the Assistance Association for Political
Prisoners to have been arrested in a raid on Marlayon monastery has denied
the story and told DVB that no raid took place.

AAPP had received information that the a group of around 23 people came to
the monastery in the early hours of 5 September in three trucks, ordered
the monks to lie face down on the floor while they searched the premises
and then left, taking the abbot with them.

But Ashin Thilawuntha, abbot of Marlayon monastery in Bogyoke village,
Than Lyin township, categorically denied the reports.

“[A truck] didn’t arrive, and they didn’t come to see me. We were out
collecting food offerings,” he said.

U Thilawuntha said that the monks in his monastery did not get involved in
politics.

“We have only old men, religious people here. We can’t go anywhere,” he said.

“I myself am not in good health, I don’t go anywhere. I concentrate on
spiritual matters,” he said.

“There are 14 novices here, all men of 60 to 80 years and over who are
concentrating on religious matters.”

U Thilawuntha said he did not know where the reports had come from, and
said that when he first heard the rumours, he thought they may be
referring to a different monastery.

“Nothing like this could happen in our monastery,” he said.

“There is no interrogation and so forth from anyone – only my followers
come to ask me questions. Some ask me by phone as they are worried.”

Ko Tate Naing of the AAPP said that the organisation had been given
precise information and had carried out all the necessary checks to
confirm its credibility.

“We carried out further investigations based on the news story we
received,” Tate Naing said.

“We also learned more about the monks. The information was very precise
and we we asked the necessary questions,” he said.

“We also learned that the monk was someone who lives quietly and we also
know that he was venerated by General Khin Nyunt and his wife,” he went
on.

“And we were told very precisely that there was a DINA truck owned by the
township Peace Development Council, and two other pick-up trucks; one
white and the other saffron.”

Tate Naing said that it was possibly that the AAPP’s source had
deliberately provided false information.

“If there was some kind of pressure from the SPDC on the person who gave
us the information, then that would change the situation.

“If that person deliberately provided us with false news, it could be that
that person was under great pressure to do so.”

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September 8, Democratic Voice of Burma
Pakokku monk vows to continue regime boycott – Nan Kham Kaew

Young monks from Pakokku will continue to refuse alms from government
officials until they apologise for beating, insulting, killing and
imprisoning monks during the Saffron Revolution last year, a local monk
said.

A young Pakokku monk said the government’s crackdown had cut the number of
monks in his monastery significantly.

“Last year, there were about 600 monks. This year, there are only just
over 500 left. It is better for the Sasana when there are more monks,” the
monk said.

“We young monks are still maintaining the boycott. I am not sure about the
older ones,” he said.

“It is not good to torture monks like that. Even normal people do not like
to be beaten up. People should even avoid harming animals.”

The monk said regime officials could begin to redeem themselves by
apologising to the monks.

“Beating up monks is a mortal sin. If they think about that it is a
frightening prospect for them,” the monk said.

“If they do not apologise, despite knowing they have sinned, they will pay
for it. If they apologise, that is another matter,” he said.

“We are still feeling saddened. They know themselves that evildoers won’t
last long. Those would act as kings have to follow the ten rules that bind
kings.”

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September 7, Agence France Presse
Myanmar police chief denies Suu Kyi hunger strike

Myanmar's police chief on Sunday denied detained democracy leader Aung San
Suu Kyi was on hunger strike after her party said she has been refusing
food for three weeks.

Khin Yee told reporters a lawyer and doctor had visited the Nobel peace
laureate, who has spent most of the past 19 years under house arrest.

"We allowed lawyer U Kyi Win to visit Daw Suu Kyi three times as she
requested, as well as her doctor Tin Myo Win for her medical check-up,"
the police chief told a press conference.

"According to their report back to us, we haven't heard anything about Daw
Suu Kyi being on hunger strike in her house," he said, using an honorific
title before her name.

The 63-year-old receives daily rations from the regime and has no other
source of food.

Aung San Suu Kyi's National League of Democracy (NLD) party reported on
Friday that she had been refusing those food supplies for the past three
weeks but stopped short of claiming she was on hunger strike.

In a statement, the NLD said Aung San Suu Kyi wished only to draw
attention to her "unfair" imprisonment and that of her two maids. One of
her maids was taken to hospital on Friday night with kidney trouble.

"Daw Aung San Suu Kyi's refusal of food supplies is to denounce her
continuing detention.... The National League for Democracy party and the
people are extremely worried," it said.

Aung San Suu Kyi is allowed little contact with the outside world, but in
recent weeks has refused even the rare meetings that the junta has offered
her.

She has met with her lawyer three times over the last month and had a
medical checkup in August, but refused to meet with the junta's liaison
officer this week. Before August, she had not been allowed to see her
lawyer since 2004.

She also refused to meet visiting UN envoy Ibrahim Gambari last month,
fuelling speculation about her motives, with analysts saying she was
trying to express her frustration with the slow pace of the regime's
"dialogue" with her.

Aung San Suu Kyi's party won a landslide victory in a 1990 election but
the junta never allowed it to take office. Myanmar has been ruled by the
military since 1962.

The police chief was joined by ministers from the ruling junta for the
press conference held in the remote and newly built capital Naypyidaw.

Information Minister Kyaw Hsan told the press conference further meetings
with Aung San Suu Kyi were up to her, and insisted the government would
cooperate with international efforts to progress talks.

"This matter depends on Daw Aung San Suu Kyi," Kyaw Hsan said. "We will
also cooperate with the United Nations and Mr Gambari."

The regime says it is preparing new polls for 2010 under a new
constitution, which the NLD says will merely entrench military rule.

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September 7, Xinhua
Myanmar to introduce visa-on-arrival system soon

Myanmar is planning to introduce a 100-percent visa-on-arrival system
starting the coming open season by November in a bid to revive its
tourism, the local weekly Voice quoted the Hoteliers Association as
reporting on Sunday.

The visa-on-arrival system will be applicable to international visitors
with those of some countries be covered in the pilot phase, the report
said without specifying the name of the countries.

At present, international travelers applying entry visas into Myanmar
through Myanmar embassies abroad have to take four days in Beijing, 24
hours in Jakarta, five days in Paris and Tokyo, three days in London and
two days in Bangkok and Singapore, the Myanmar Foreign Ministry was quoted
as saying.

Domestic travel and tour companies are presently set to apply for their
customers visa-on-arrival 15 days in advance with the presentation of
their personal data, the report added.

Meanwhile, all famous resort hotels lying in three beach areas of Myanmar
will reopen next month despite drop of tourist arrivals over the past few
months impacted by May cyclone, according to earlier local reports.

These measures are taken as part of Myanmar's efforts to revive its
tourism industry severely affected by the May storm.

Although it has been over three months after the cyclone smashed Myanmar,
tourist arrivals during the period fell 90 percent compared with the
previous years correspondingly.

Also as part of its efforts to restore tourism operation in the aftermath
of the cyclone storm, Myanmar is reportedly planning to hold a market
festival in Inlay, one of the country's famous tourist sites in Shan
state.

Preparations including upgrading of hotels and restaurants are underway
for the two-day market festival scheduled for next February, sources with
the Ministry of hotels and Tourism said.

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September 8, Irrawaddy
Gambari should push for tripartite dialogue: UNA – Saw Yan Naing

Instead of holding dialogue with the Burmese military government about
elections in 2010, the United Nations (UN) special envoy, Ibrahim Gambari,
should urge the regime to initiate a tripartite dialogue aimed toward
reaching national reconciliation in Burma, according to the United
Nationalities Alliance (UNA), a Rangoon-based coalition of 12 ethnic
political parties.

The UNA stated in an open letter to UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon on
Monday that in order to build national reconciliation, tripartite talks
involving the Burmese junta, the political opposition parties and the
ethnic political parties was first and foremost required.

The UNA urged the UN to exert “appropriate pressure” on the junta to
engage in a tripartite dialogue. Unless national reconciliation was
established, the UNA warned, there would be no peace and tranquility in
Burma.

“What are the UN’s mandates assigned upon Ibrahim Gambari?” the UNA
questioned.

Answering its own question, the UNA stated that the UN’s mandate was to
build national reconciliation in Burma.

The open letter went on to say that the UN special envoy’s mission had not
brought about any tangible outcome despite his having visited Burma six
times since he was appointed as the special advisor to Burma in 2005.

The ethnic political alliance also alluded to the junta’s “seven-step road
map” toward democracy, calling the national convention, the state
constitution and the referendum “sham processes” which were legitimized
“without the real will of the people in Burma.”

The UNA’s open letter was also sent to the president of the UN Security
Council, as well as to ambassadors of the permanent members of the UN
Security Council—the United States, United Kingdom, France, Russia and
China.

The UNA won 67 seats in the 1990 general elections.

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September 6, Irrawaddy
Suu Kyi companion hospitalized: NLD – Wai Moe

A woman living with Burmese opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi has been
hospitalized, leaving the detained democracy activist alone under house
arrest and adding to concerns about her well being, according to a
spokesman for the National League for Democracy (NLD).

NLD spokesman Nyan Win told The Irrawaddy that one of two women living
with Suu Kyi was hospitalized earlier today and that her mother, Suu Kyi's
other companion, was also at the hospital taking care of her daughter.

"We don't have any details about her health problem. We are trying to find
out now," said Nyan Win.

The hospitalized woman has been identified only as the daughter of Khin
Khin Win, an NLD member who has lived with Suu Kyi periodically since
1997. Khin Khin Win and her daughter have stayed in Suu Kyi's home
continuously since she was released from prison and placed under house
arrest in September 2003.

The two women, who are Suu Kyi's only companions, assist her with
housekeeping and cooking meals, said party sources.

Meanwhile, the NLD said that Suu Kyi is still not accepting food supplies
that the party normally delivers to her home every Friday.

In a statement released yesterday, the NLD said that Suu Kyi has not
accepted any food for the past three weeks. The statement also urged
Burma's military junta to ensure her well being.

"We expressed our concerns about her situation. At the moment, only the
authorities know about her condition. We are worried about her," said Nyan
Win.

According to the NLD statement, Suu Kyi has refused to accept her food
supplies in protest against her unlawful detention, and also to demand
greater freedom of movement for her two female companions, who have been
forbidden to leave Suu Kyi's home.

The statement also said that Suu Kyi is protesting the authorities'
failure to honor a promise to allow her to receive monthly medical
checkups by her physician. A doctor visited Suu Kyi on August 17, but her
previous checkup was in January, the statement said.

Suu Kyi also has severely limited access to her lawyer, Kyi Win, with whom
she is preparing a legal appeal against her detention, which was extended
in May.

When she met with her lawyer on August 17, she also instructed him to look
into the legality of restrictions placed upon Khin Khin Win and her
daughter.

Kyi Win told The Irrawaddy that Suu Kyi noted that since the women have
not been charged with or convicted of any offense, it was illegal to
restrict their movements.

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ON THE BORDER

September 8, Democratic Voice of Burma
Border markets closed due to flooding – Htet Yazar

Markets in the towns of Tachelik and Mae Sai on the Thai Burma border have
been closed in anticipation of flooding due to heavy rain on Sunday,
locals said.

A Tachelik shopkeeper said border checkpoints between Tachilek in Burma
and Mae Sai in Thailand had also been shut as the water level of the Mae
Sai river had risen up to the two friendship bridges linking the towns.

The shopkeeper said the while the Thai government had put in place
emergency measures in Mae Sai, the Burmese authorities had not done yet
anything about the situation in Tachelik.

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BUSINESS / TRADE

September 8, Myanmar Times
Dhaka proposes road links with Thailand through Myanmar

Bangladesh has proposed direct road links with Myanmar and Thailand to
improve its business ties with the nations of Southeast Asia.

The proposal was made by Bangladesh Foreign Adviser Iftekhar Ahmed
Chowdhury to the Myanmar and Thai foreign ministers during the latest Bay
of Bengal Initiative for MultiSectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation
(Bimstec) meeting in New Delhi, India.

An official report from Bangladesh stated that Foreign Adviser Iftekhar
Ahmed Chowdhury made the proposal on August 29 during his meetings with
Myanmar’s Foreign Minister, U Nyan Win, and Thai Foreign Minister Tej
Bunnag.

The 10th Bimstec Ministerial Meeting was convened in New Delhi on August
29 with the intent to forge stronger ties and map out transportation and
trade links between countries.

Foreign ministers from Bangladesh, Myanmar, India, Thailand, Bhutan,
Nepal, and Sri Lanka attended the meeting.

Bangladesh has plans to build a road linking it with Myanmar, but the plan
has yet to be implemented, even though the agreement between the two
countries was made over five years ago.

Bangladesh believes that the road link will also provide access to China,
eventually building connections between Bangladesh, Myanmar, Thailand, and
China.

Bangladesh Foreign Adviser Ifthekhar during the meeting said: “This is
still a very preliminary stage in the thought process. Bangladesh will
benefit immensely from a road leading to the East, particularly to China
and the ASEAN bloc via Myanmar. There seems to be a growing interest of
these countries in this idea, which is good for all of us.”

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September 8, Democratic Voice of Burma
Unofficial curfew on businesses in Pyinmana – Naw Say Phaw

Authorities in Mandalay division's Pyinmana, near the SPDC's
administrative capital Naypyidaw, have issued an order to local
restaurants and shops to close by 11pm, according to local residents.

Pyinmana residents in said local authorities had begun distributing
leaflets on 6 September warning shop and restaurant owners that they would
be arrested if they allowed customers on their premises after 11pm.

A restaurant owner said the leaflets were not marked with official seals
or order numbers.

Rangoon residents also said a similar order had been issued for shops and
restaurants in the former capital.

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HEALTH / AIDS

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DRUGS
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ASEAN

September 6, Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Union of Myanmar)
ASEAN Secretary-General lauds Myanmar endeavours for storm-hit victims

Minister for Health Dr Kyaw Myint received ASEAN Secretary-General Dr
Surin Pitsuwan and party at Yangon General Hospital this evening.

In their dis-cussions, the ASEAN Secretary-General said that he was
pleased with health care services of the victims in the storm-hit areas in
Yangon and Ayeyawady Divisions, Post-Nargis Assessment Report (Ponja
Report) and lauded Myanmar's endeavours on Internet Websites.

The minister said that the hospitals in Pyapon, Bogale, Labutta and
Mawlamyinegyun townships were upgraded and rural health care centres were
being reconstructed in the storm-hit regions.

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REGIONAL
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INTERNATIONAL

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OPINION / OTHER

September 8, United Press International
Burma: Building upon success – Dawn Calabia and Megan Fowler

Three months after Cyclone Nargis, the world has an outdated image of the
situation inside Burma. Although aid agencies delivered assistance within
days after the storm and continue to do so, the story of a recalcitrant
government that rejects aid from the generous nations of the world has not
been updated.
Aid agencies today report an unprecedented level of access and mobility in
the Ayeyarwady Delta, which is a tribute to the successful fight by the
United Nations, the Association of Southeast Asia Nations and the United
States for humanitarian access. But the gains in delivering relief
supplies, gathering information about needs and supporting local
communities are at risk without continued commitment to food security,
livelihood and early recovery activities.

For two weeks, Refugees International interviewed the staff of over forty
humanitarian organizations inside Burma. All reported access to any
requested part of the delta, including ethnic minority areas, and the
ability to send international staff to train, implement and monitor
programs without obstruction. Since June, over 1,000 visas have been
granted to international aid workers. Similarly, agencies report the
ability to resolve problems with the government, and praise the Tripartite
Core Group – the cyclone response structure comprised of working levels of
the Burmese government, ASEAN and the United Nations – as an effective
mechanism for resolving disputes. The TCG has ably removed obstacles
related to visas, Foreign Exchange Certificates and the importation of
food, among others.

Agencies also praised the Post Nargis Joint Assessment (PONJA), the first
comprehensive, independent assessment of humanitarian need. For a country
that has not conducted a national census in over 20 years, the information
that it contains represents a major leap forward. PONJA is to be updated
regularly to report on aid operations and their effectiveness, and ASEAN
will establish six offices in the delta to better monitor and evaluate aid
activities.

Burmese community based organizations were first responders that are now
working to increase their capacity to provide effective aid. Local
organizations with international support are providing training and
funding to ensure that Burmese humanitarian groups can better assess and
organize community assistance, improve their organizational structures and
coordinate activities with each other and with international agencies. The
work of local organizations is vital for the success of humanitarian
operations in Burma as these groups promote self-reliance and reduce
vulnerabilities. Support for groups that provide capacity building and
training services to these organizations is as important as the provision
of direct relief.

Improved information sharing and coordination between the U.N. and
international and local NGOs, coupled with easier international access to
the delta and donor support, have reduced suffering, saved lives and
improved the overall humanitarian response to the affected population.
While a large majority of cyclone victims have received some sort of
assistance, and most are receiving regular food aid, the process of
transitioning from relief to self-sufficiency will require international
help well through 2009 and perhaps beyond. The international community
must continue funding humanitarian assistance and begin livelihood and
other early recovery activities that will allow the gradual phasing-out of
emergency aid.

The demands of the relief effort have emboldened some ministers within the
government of Burma to facilitate international cooperation, a story
ignored by international reports that focus on the government’s
obstructionism. Their success has created a new set of operational rules
that are unique to the delta, including increased mobility for
international staff; operations approved quickly through “letters of
agreement;” the use of community organizing strategies; and improved
communication between the international community and the government
through the TCG. This new standard for humanitarian operations inside the
cyclone-affected areas should be commended by international organizations
and donor governments and its application to the rest of the country
should be advocated by all actors.

Nonetheless, hardliner isolationists are still determined to prevent
further international involvement in Burmese affairs. This obstructionism
has raised hurdles for relief operations, such as the failed attempt to
impose strict guidelines on international agencies in June. More
seriously, this conservative faction is attempting to exert its influence
over on-going operations outside the delta, and is meddling with the
annual memoranda of understanding (MOUs) of a number of long-standing
operational agencies. With little clear direction being given from the
senior leadership, multiple government officials appear to be implementing
competing pro- and anti-engagement policies simultaneously in hopes that
their actions will curry favor with top officials.

The sooner the U.S. and other donor countries reaffirm their commitment to
early recovery operations at least through 2009, the better the chance
that the new openness in the delta will take hold. Ministers who have
risked their political capital to support international involvement must
be encouraged by donor commitments to more than a short-term infusion of
humanitarian assistance. Without these commitments, isolationists may
argue that humanitarian operations were more about scoring political
points against the regime rather than aiding Burma.

Gaps and delays in funding will hamper relief activities and could cause
ruptures in the supply of essential goods. The U.S. Office of Foreign
Disaster Assistance has led an exemplary operation to provide cyclone
relief, granting almost US$50 million to international NGOs and U.N.
agencies. OFDA programs are scheduled to transition to the U.S. Agency for
International Development in January 2009. Refugees International is
concerned that to date no funding has been requested or identified by the
Bush Administration or authorized by Congress to continue the needed
relief programs in 2009.

Similarly in April 2009, the European Commission’s Humanitarian Aid Office
will hand over responsibility for future aid to the European Commission.
Currently the EC plans €6 million (US$8.5 million) for cyclone operations,
substantially below current ECHO funding levels. The British government
has provided £45 million(US$79 million) through March 2009, but has not
determined funding past that date. Australia has announced $55 million
(US$45 million) for its 2008/2009 cyclone programs.

Humanitarian agencies have largely maintained their operations throughout
the country while responding to the cyclone. Though many agencies
temporarily pulled staff from regional offices throughout the country to
work in the delta, few programs halted their nationwide operations to
respond to Nargis.

Many humanitarian activists in Burma hope that the assessment, monitoring
and access breakthroughs that characterize the delta operations will
eventually lead to a revision of overall Burmese policy on humanitarian
activities. Currently, the restrictions placed on agencies in other parts
of the country remain unchanged.

Many actors also hope for benefits from increased contact with Burmese
officials, and one agency has indeed reported expanded access in another
part of the country as a direct result of relationships built during
cyclone operations.

It is too soon to tell if there will be a national transformation on
humanitarian access. To encourage this transition, international agencies
and donor governments must continue to demonstrate their willingness to
engage in the delta and lend support to those Burmese officials who are
pushing for a greater international role. Without this vital support –
both financial and political – the international community may risk
squandering the largest humanitarian opening inside Burma in the past
twenty years.

--

(Dawn Calabia is Senior Advisor and Megan Fowler Communications Director
at Refugees International. The organization generates lifesaving
humanitarian assistance and protection for displaced people around the
world and works to end the conditions that create displacement. Calabia
and Fowler assessed the cyclone response effort in Burma in August 2008.)

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September 8, Irrawaddy
Arrest the criminals, not journalists – Yeni

It’s outrageous to learn that Saw Myint Than, the chief reporter of the
Rangoon-based weekly the Flower News Journal, was arrested on Monday for
reporting on a murder that should have been a wake-up call to the city’s
police force.

According to journalists in Rangoon, Saw Myint Than was summoned by police
on August 26 and rebuked for a story he and another reporter wrote about
the murder of a couple in Thingangyun Township. He was threatened with
arrest and the possible closure of his newspaper.

In fact, the murder story had passed the military regime’s censorship
board, the Press Scrutiny and Registration Division office, and was also
published in other journals.

After Burmese exiled media, including The Irrawaddy, reported on Saw
Myint’s interrogation, he was accused of spreading rumors and charged with
at least three offences, including an infringement of a section of the
Electronics Act which bans contacts with "unlawful organizations."

Editors of at least six Rangoon publications, including Flower News
Journal, were then visited by the authorities and warned to avoid contacts
with the Burmese media in exile and international news organizations.

This is a ridiculous state of affairs. Besides intimidating responsible
journalists and seeking to suppress their freedom of expression and
professionalism, the police seem to be trying to hide their failure to
expose and arrest the criminals who committed the murders in Rangoon.

In March, five people living near the home of opposition leader Aung San
Suu Kyi were shot by unknown gunmen in an execution-style killing. On
Friday, The Irrawaddy received a report of a further murder, this time of
a customs officer who lived in an apartment on 37th Street in downtown
Rangoon.

Journalists seeking to report on these acts of violence encounter red tape
and an aggressive refusal by the police to cooperate in shedding light on
the murders.

Instead of being recognized as professional journalists in search of the
truth, these newsmen and women are regarded by Burma’s military
authorities as whistle-blowers who threaten to expose their mismanagement
and poor governance.

The authorities should be arresting the criminals, not journalists—whose
protection is in the public interest and a necessary condition for the
propagation of the truth

____________________________________

September 7, Democratic Voice of Burma
Burma’s diplomatic stalemate – Aung Htoo

If we compare United Nations special envoy Ibrahim Gambari’s visit to
Burma to a chess game, we can say that during his latest trip from to 23
August he attempted to sacrifice a queen for five pawns.

The five pawns that Gambari wanted from the State Peace and Development
Council military regime in return for the extinction of the National
League for Democracy were the release of political prisoners, talks
between the SPDC and Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, development of economy, the
opening of a UN liaison office in Rangoon and the visit of UN
secretary-general Ban Ki-moon to Burma in December for political
discussions.

Why do I refer these five points as pawns?

The call for the release of political prisoners is no longer new or
surprising. It had been repeatedly demanded by Burma’s pro-democracy
moment as a whole well before Gambari mentioned it. As a representative of
the UN, he should ask for more than political prisoners’ freedom. Gambari
should have talked about the elimination of repressive laws and the
improvement of the legal and judiciary systems in the country to ensure
that there would be no more arbitrary detentions in the future.

Instead of meeting between the SPDC and Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, Gambari
should have asked the military regime to formally arrange a genuine
political dialogue with political party leaders, including Daw Aung San
Suu Kyi, whose parties won in the May 1990 elections.

Gambari’s call to the SPDC for economic development in Burma will go
nowhere since the regime does not have any capacity to bring it about.

The opening of a UN liaison office in Rangoon is also not a surprise - it
is a normal procedure for the UN.

As for the visit of the UN secretary-general to Burma in December for
political discussions, it is not in itself something to be much pleased
about. The important thing is what he is going to talk about when he meets
the junta.

I have previously suggested that Gambari’s visit to Burma in August could
make the situation worse for the country. I predicted that he might try to
urge the SPDC to make the elections in 2010 free and fair. This kind of
attempt is actually to the military regime’s advantage because it supports
the regime’s effort to legitimise the elections.

When Gambari met with the NLD leaders in his recent trip, he actually
tried to convince them to go along with his efforts regarding the 2010
elections. He tried to convince them to accept the SPDC’s 2010 elections.
In reality, the recognition of the 2010 elections is equivalent to the
elimination of the 1990 election results and the acceptance of the 2008
state constitution. Gambari had five pawns in mind, but even before he got
them he tried to undermine the queen by talking the NLD into accept the
2010 elections. We cannot condemn those who criticise Mr Gambari for doing
what the SPDC wants him to do.

However, the NLD leaders could protect the queen by stating their strong
demands to the military. The fact that Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, who has been
at the forefront of Burma’s pro-democracy movement like a queen, refused
to meet with Gambari was absolutely the right step to take diplomatically.

But this diplomatic struggle was just the beginning. We should learn from
it and ensure we are well prepared to continue to fight in this arena.

Our defensive line for the diplomatic struggle is the 1990 elections
result. We should never take a step back from that line. Our main
offensive target is the SPDC’s 2008 state constitution. It is not the 2010
elections because the elections will be held on the basis of the
constitution. The 2010 elections will bring the 2008 constitution into
effect. If we can overturn the 2008 constitution, the 2010 elections will
automatically be abandoned. Therefore, if we can let the whole world know
the reasons why we cannot accept the 2008 constitution, we will be able to
oppose the legitimacy of the 2010 elections very effectively.

As far as I see the situation, we still do not have a systematic working
strategy to get our message out to the world of why we cannot accept the
2008 state constitution. It is worrisome to note that international
governments, especially the European Union, ASEAN and Japan, have echoed
Mr Gambari’s views on the upcoming elections in Burma in 2010.

It is difficult for people inside Burma to find out about and understand
the SPDC constitution. The military regime has never allowed its citizens
to learn about the constitution and continues to prevent its people from
discussing the constitution. Decree 5/96, violation of which can lead to
up to 20 years’ imprisonment, is still in effect.

Although activists and political leaders have studied the constitution to
some extent, it has not been in enough depth due to the lack of reference
books and information and the many restrictions. The constitution booklets
have still not reached many townships and villages in remote areas. The
majority of people in Burma have not yet read the SPDC’s 2008 state
constitution. It is almost impossible to access constitution-related books
and papers in order to make a comparative study of the SPDC constitution
against international norms.

The SPDC has intentionally created this situation. The regime does not
want its people to know anything about the constitution. Nor does it want
its people to study, analyse and criticise the constitution. If people
don’t know anything about the constitution, the regime can easily lie to
them and use the constitution against them.

Therefore, on one hand the SPDC obscures constitutional issues from its
people. But on the other hand, the regime tries to push for what it wants
within and outside the country by claming that the new constitution has
been adopted. For instance, ceasefire organisations have come under
pressure to go along with the 2008 constitution. Political parties have
been asked to register in order to contest the 2010 elections. Moreover,
the SPDC has been calling widely for the recognition of the state
constitution not only in the international arena but also at the UN, and
assistance in implementing the processes set out by its own constitution.

The SPDC uses the same strategy of obscuring constitutional issues from
the international community. So far, there has been no official
translation of the 2008 constitution available for public use. The
military regime has said it has already had an English version of the
constitution prepared but this has not been made public.

Foreign countries have the capacity to study the SPDC constitution by
translating it into English or their own languages but most countries have
not yet done so because of the time, money and professional expertise they
would have to invest. Up to now, Burma’s opposition has still not come up
with an exact translation of the constitution in English. There have been
some analytical papers on the 2008 constitution but they have not been
published in full in English. Even with the material that has been
published in English, the opposition has still not been able to distribute
it widely. This means that the international community cannot yet form an
opinion of whether and why the SPDC constitution is good or bad. The
military regime has benefited from the fact that the international
community has limited knowledge about its constitution.

Conversely, I would like to point out the negligence of those who
understand the 2008 constitution but go along with the SPDC by pretending
they don’t know where it is leading Burma. One of them is the UN special
envoy Gambari. Constitutional experts at the UN office in New York have
already explained the SPDC’s 2008 constitution to him. Basically, Gambari
must have already realised that democracy in Burma will never prevail if
we follow the path of the SPDC constitution.

Understanding the motivations of Gambari, who urges people to accept the
2010 elections despite their uncertainties, is another matter. What we,
the people of Burma, need to do is to tell Gambari and his superior Ban
Ki-moon very firmly that we cannot accept any political process that
includes the 2010 elections based on the SPDC’s 2008 state constitution.
If we cannot be straightforward with them, the situation of our country
will worsen far more than we can imagine.

It is time to develop without further delay an inclusive working strategy
to make governments all over the world understand our unwavering stance
and accept our analysis of the SPDC constitution, and to convince them to
support our approach.