BurmaNet News, March 12, 2009

[Editor]

March 12, 2009, Issue #3670


INSIDE BURMA
DVB: Cyclone relief coordinator sentenced to 17 years
Irrawaddy: Three men die in forced labor incidents
Network Media Group: ‘Suu-Parliament-Meet’ movement in Northern Shan State
Khonumthung News: Chin orphanages shut down in Burma
Xinhua: Japan to help Myanmar upgrade public transportation in Yangon

ON THE BORDER
DVB: Exiled Burmese groups close following rumours of Thai crackdown

DRUGS
AP: Myanmar sees 25-fold rise in amphetamine seizures

REGIONAL
Mizzima News: Burmese PM to visit Indonesia and Singapore
Irrawaddy: French Govt Minister to raise Burma question during Thailand visit

INTERNATIONAL
AP: UN to increase focus on Myanmar's Muslim migrants

PRESS RELEASE
Burma Partnership: Free Burma’s political prisoners now
European Parliamentary Caucus on Burma: EU should strengthen its common
position on Burma



____________________________________
INSIDE BURMA

March 12, Democratic Voice of Burma
Cyclone relief coordinator sentenced to 17 years – Khin Hnin Htet

A man who organised rescue efforts via the internet for Cyclone Nargis
victims has been sentenced to 17 years in jail.

Min Thein Tun (also known as Thiha) was charged under the Electronics Act,
Unlawful Associations Act and Immigration Act. The sentence was passed on
11 March in a court inside Insein prison.

He had carried out the efforts whilst working legally in Malaysia, but was
arrested on his return to Burma last year, his mother Thein Thein said.

“On 11 July 2008 [the police] came to my house and searched it,” she said.
“They found nothing.

They searched the house a second time and told Thein Thein that her son
had been arrested.

“When I asked [Min Thein Tun] what had happened, he said he was not
involved in politics, just social work and support,” she said.

Six members of the All Burma Federation of Student Unions are currently on
trial following their arrest last year for collecting and burying corpses
in the aftermath of Cyclone Nargis. They are defending allegations of
sedition and Unlawful Associations Act.

____________________________________

March 12, Irrawaddy
Three men die in forced labor incidents – Min Lwin

Three villagers died in two cases of forced labor in Kyauktada and Daik-U
townships in Pegu Division in Burma, according to a social and labor
rights group, Guiding Star.

The deaths occurred when village authorities forced villagers to excavate
sand and gravel for schools and to construct government buildings, said
the labor group, which monitors and documents human rights abuses in
Burma.

“Local village authorities are still using forced labor in villages in
Pegu Division,” Aye Myint, a Guiding Star activist, told The Irrawaddy on
Thursday.

Saw Phar Luu, 54 years old, of Kyauk Talone village in Daik-U Township was
forced to work in a rock quarry in the Yoma Mountain range in Pegua
Division.

“Saw Phar Luu was killed when rocks fell on him on January 29,” Aye Myint
said.

In a separate incident, two brothers, Min Oo and Myint Aung of Gway
Chogone village in Kyauktada Township in Pegu Division, died on February 1
when sand buried them in Phayargyi, one mile from Gway Chongone village.

The village authorities and school construction committee asked Min Oo,
30, and Myint Aung, 22, to work on a government school in Gway Chogone
village and to take charge of collecting sand for the project.

“They were killed while collecting the sand at a forced labor site. The
sand pit collapsed and both of them died,” said Aye Myint.

Aye Myint said the local village authorities offered no compensation to
family members.

Aye Myint complained about what he termed the response of the
International Labor Organization (ILO) office in Rangoon, when it was
informed about the death of the two brothers.

"The ILO doesn’t want us to inform the exile media,” said Aye Myint.

Meanwhile, Phoe Phyu, a labor lawyer, has been arrested by local
authorities in Magwe Township. Phoe Phyu was an advocate for farmers in
Natmauk Township in Magwe Division who were arrested by local authorities.
The farmers had complained to the ILO office in Rangoon that their land
had been confiscated.

____________________________________

March 12, Network Media Group
‘Suu-Parliament-Meet’ movement in Northern Shan State

Activists, who want 'Freedom for all political prisoners including Daw
Aung San Suu Kyi, convening of Parliament, and having a political
dialogue' have started a movement in northern Shan State. The movement
wants supporters to write the words 'suu-parliament-meet' on currency
notes and spend it in the market.

The movement was started in some regions in Burma after a respected
journalist, U Win Tin talked to the foreign based media when he was
released from jail.

A local who participated in the movement said that the movement was
started on March 8 at a religious ceremony Hsenwi (Theindi) town, northern
Shan State.

"Our movement does not represent a party or an organization. We, have a
common feeling, gather a group and go about it without hurting anybody. We
believe that the 'suu-parliament-meet' is the only way to solve the
political problems in our country. Therefore we did it."

We spent a total of 50,000 Kyat at a religious ceremony in Hsenwi's
pagoda. We wrote the words 'suu-parliament-meet' with a ball-pen on the
corner of a 1,000 Kyat note and a 500 note, and distributed them among
local people, said the local.

"We are creating a movement. We are focussing on it whether it is
effective or not. We are doing what we can do. All the people can easily
participate in this movement. If all people participate in this movement,
wishes and desires of the people will spread to the whole country," he
added.

During the May 2008 referendum, 'vote no' leaflets were distributed and
'vote no' campaign was launched in Nang Kham and Muse region, northern
Shan State.
____________________________________

March 12, Khonumthung News
Chin orphanages shut down in Burma

The Burmese military regime has shut down at least 50 Chin orphanages in
Rangoon, the former capital of Burma leading to problems for children.

According to a report said the regime closed down about 50 Chin orphanages
on March 6, 2009 as their licenses expired. The regime has seized all the
buildings

“We had registered for a period of five years. I don’t know others’ cases.
Actually, we had registered in 2003 and its validity is up to 2008. Now we
have to register for 2009 to 2013, but just before doing so the
authorities stopped renewing the license,” said a local Chin from Rangoon
.

It means 50 out of 100 Chin orphanage schools in Rangoon city have now
been shut down by the government. Similarly, 13 out of 16 schools in Hleku
townships also closed including Victoria Childcare Centre (VCC) which
looks after 54 orphanages.

Kanpalet Township , Southern Chin state, which looks after 99% of the
children in VCC has sent them back to their relatives as per the rule of
government that allows a person can adopt not more than five children in
his life time.

“The children’s future will be totally dependant on the adopters. Some
will be adopted well and some might be adopted as house keepers or
servants. It’s very hard to figure out their fortune,” said a victim at
one of orphanage schools.

At the same time, some schools are searching for people to adopt the
children.. It is difficult to know where other schools are located and who
are taking responsibility regarding this matter as the government has
restricted them and they are afraid to used telephone for their security.

“Once we had used telephone for conversation about our work, the
authorities immediately arrived and they inquired about it. We don’t want
to use the phone anymore after facing this thrice as we’ve afraid,” he
added.

He continued that the care takers at the orphanage schools have been given
an appointment on 17 March. It needs to be watched how it will turn out,
but the schools cannot be opened again.

Chin orphanage schools started to open in 2003 in Yangon city and there
are about 140 of Chin orphanage schools in Burma.
____________________________________

March 12, Xinhua
Japan to help Myanmar upgrade public transportation in Yangon

The Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) will help Myanmar
upgrade the urban public transportation of Myanmar's former capital of
Yangon to international standard as part of the cooperation program
between Japan and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN).

The JICA, which is Japanese government's overseas aid agency, had
conducted research for two times in Myanmar with a workshop being held on
the move last year and the findings will be based to seek ways of
improvement of the urban transportation, the Yangon Times weekly quoted
the Myanmar Engineering Association as reporting Thursday.

According to statistics of the Yangon municipal authorities, there is a
total of 310 bus lines with 6,330 buses transporting over 3 million
passengers per day in the city.

As part of its efforts to reduce traffic jam and ensure safety in
traveling, the Yangon traffic police authorities have started removing a
total of 370 very-old-aged buses running in the former capital, which were
left behind by the Second World War, and replacing them with modern ones.
Of the total, 207 have been transferred to the remote suburban areas.

Instead, about 300 modern buses have been imported to reinforce the city's
public transportation, the authorities said.

Meanwhile, except for authorized persons, motor cycles are banned for
running in the municipal areas in Yangon division.

According to statistics, the number of motor vehicles operating in the
whole of Myanmar stood at 1.9 million as of the end of last year, up from
over one million correspondingly in the previous year.

Of the total, motor cycles accounted for 1.1 million, or 75 percent of the
total, while passenger cars remained at 200,000, or 15 percent.

____________________________________
ON THE BORDER

March 12, Democratic Voice of Burma
Exiled Burmese groups close following rumours of Thai crackdown – Ahunt
Phone Myat

Exiled Burmese opposition groups based in Thailand’s border town, Mae Sot,
were forced to close down their offices following rumours of a crackdown
on Burmese migrants by Thai authorities.

A Burmese democracy activist in Mae Sot told DVB that rumours of a
possible crackdown by the Thai government has spread among the Burmese
community in Mae Sot following a demand on the Karen National Union last
week to leave Thailand.

“We are living in paranoia now,” he said. “We have to give ourselves a
very low profile and avoid gathering in a large groups to avoid drawing
attention from the authorities.”

Dr. Naing Aung, General Secretary of the Forum for Democracy in Burma,
said the Thai government should be considerate towards Burmese groups
based in their country, in order to develop good bilateral relations, and
for the sake of regional stability.

“The Thai government should allow groups working for democracy and human
rights in Burma to work freely for what they believe,” he said.

Nyo Ohn Myint, Foreign Affairs Coordinator of Thailand-based National
League for Democracy-Librated Area, said it was too early to say what the
motives of the Thai government were.

“We can’t definitely say yet that the Thai government is doing this
according to their new policy,” he said. “This could be just a security
measure in the region, the Tak province.”

“We are now preparing to raise this issue with Mr Abhisit during an
international meeting with him in the coming month.”

____________________________________
DRUGS

March 12, Associated Press
Myanmar sees 25-fold rise in amphetamine seizures

Law enforcement officials in Myanmar seized more than 1.3 million
methamphetamine tablets last month, a 25-fold increase over January's
total, a report said Thursday.

The state-run Myanma Ahlin daily reported that police, military and
customs officials in February seized about 1,300 pounds (630 kilograms) of
assorted narcotic drugs and drug-making chemicals including almost 840
pounds (380 kilograms) of opium — from which heroin is derived — and more
than 1.3 million methamphetamine tablets.

According to earlier reports, more than 55,000 stimulant tablets were
seized in January and more than 221,000 in December.

The most recent U.S. State Department report on the international illicit
drug trade said Myanmar "is a significant player in the manufacture and
regional trafficking of amphetamine-type stimulants."

Myanmar, also known as Burma, is also the world's second largest producer
of heroin after Afghanistan, according to U.S. and U.N. experts, although
the Central Asian country leads by a long shot, accounting for 90 percent
of the world's production of the narcotic.

The amount of heroin seized in February was only about 6 pounds (2.5
kilograms) compared to nearly 330 pounds (150 kilograms) in January, when
a shipment of heroin bound for foreign markets was seized on a ship in
Yangon's port and another cache was found in a shipment of crabs.

____________________________________
REGIONAL

March 12, Mizzima News
Burmese PM to visit Indonesia and Singapore – Mungpi

The Burmese Prime Minster General Thein Sein will lead a delegation to
Indonesia and Singapore, sources in Naypyitaw said.

Thein Sein’s delegation is scheduled to reach Jakarta, Indonesia's capital
on March 15 and he will meet Indonesian President Susilo Bambang
Yudhoyono.

An official at the Indonesian Foreign Ministry confirmed the trip to Mizzima.

According to sources in Naypyitaw, the capital of the military government,
the delegation will comprise ministers, deputy ministers and other members
totalling about 50.

____________________________________

March 12, Irrawaddy
French Govt Minister to raise Burma question during Thailand visit – Wai Moe

The French government minister responsible for human rights issues, Rama
Yade, an outspoken critic of the Burmese regime, began a three-day visit
to Thailand on Thursday, during which she will discuss the Burma question
with Thai Foreign Minister Kasit Piromya.

Yade, a minister of state in the French Ministry of Foreign and European
Affairs, will also visit a refugee camp housing about 20,000 Burmese, most
of them Karenni.

A French Foreign Ministry statement said that apart from bilateral issues
Yade would discuss with Kasit the Burma situation.

The statement said the objective of her visit to Ban Mai Nai Soi refugee
camp in northern Thailand’s Mae Hong Song Province was to strengthen
cooperation between the Thai government and major donors of aid to
refugees, including the European Union.

Rama Yade is a 32-year-old career politician who was born in Senegal, West
Africa. She has made clear her concern for events in Burma at a number of
international gatherings, and at an Asean summit in Singapore in November
2007, two months after the September uprising, she said it was time the
grouping tackled the challenges posed by Burma.

“After the tragic hours of repression of the pro-democracy movement,
fragile hope has appeared for the people of Burma,” Rama Yade said at the
summit. “It is naturally for them to maintain and develop it by
envisioning the prospects for the future.”

She said she was convinced the EU and Asean can work together for change
in Burma. “I’m certain, at any rate, that we must do so, in the interest
of the people of Burma,” she said.

In an article carried by the English-language daily Bangkok Post on
Thursday, Yade said France and the EU, “far from preaching,” want to
“stand alongside Asean, which at the Cha-am/Hua Hin summit recently
reaffirmed its wishes for Burma: democracy, freedom and co-operation with
the international community.”

France and the EU also wanted to “give the efforts of the United Nations
Secretary General every chance,” she said.

“Expectations will, of course, remain high with respect to Burma, where we
share the hope of a return to democracy and freedom, for Aung San Suu Kyi,
for all political prisoners and for the population as a whole, and with
freedom, the hope of a return to economic development,” she said in the
article.

“We are willing to assist and support a genuine process of democratisation
that respects the choices of the Burmese after an inclusive dialogue
between the authorities and the opposition that everyone hopes for.

“We hold out our hand to people of goodwill in Burma to accompany it in
the best possible way on its own path towards freedom.”

Yade has repeatedly called for the release of Suu Kyi—most notably in
article for the French daily “Le Figaro” in September 2007 and in a
statement issued jointly with French Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner in
May 2008.

During her stay in Singapore for the 2007 summit, Yade visited a Burmese
monastery and the Burmese community there, along with British
Parliamentary Undersecretary of State, Meg Munn. They met Burmese monks
and activists.

When former Thai Foreign Minister Noppadon Pattama visited France in June
2008, Rama Yade discussed the Burma situation with him, including the
delays of international relief supplies to the victims of Cyclone Nargis.

A few days after Cyclone Nargis hit Burma, France sent its navy vessel
Mistral with 1,000 tonnes of humanitarian supplies to join US and British
ships off the Burmese coast. Burmese authorities refused to allow the
supplies to be delivered and the ships eventually unloaded their supplies
at Thai ports—although French officials reportedly pushed for unilateral
action to rush relief to the cyclone victims.

The regime’s refusal of cooperation angered the French government, and a
joint statement by the Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs and the
Ministry of Defense said: “France reiterates that in her eyes nothing can
possibly justify disaster victims seeing themselves denied the basic right
to benefit from the necessary aid and stresses her commitment to the
implementation of the ‘responsibility to protect’ principle under all
circumstances.”

____________________________________
INTERNATIONAL

March 12, Associated Press
UN to increase focus on Myanmar's Muslim migrants

The U.N. refugee agency said Thursday it would increase its focus on areas
of Myanmar from which Muslim migrants have recently fled.

The announcement came after High Commissioner for Refugees Antonio
Guterres' visit to the country that began Saturday.

The group's plight gained widespread attention earlier this year following
reports from the Indian Navy that hundreds were believed to have drowned
after being sent out to sea in rickety boats by the Thai military.

Other Rohingyas were detained after landing in Thailand, and more came
ashore in Indonesia, fanning regional concern they could become an
economic burden.

Both Thailand and Indonesia refused to accept those who landed as
refugees, and Myanmar's military government has agreed to accept them back
only if they can prove their nationality. Rights groups have also urged
against returning them to Myanmar, which they say persecutes minorities.
The Rohingyas' status in Myanmar is particularly precarious because they
do not hold full citizenship.

The U.N. said in a statement that Guterres traveled to Sittwe, capital of
northwestern Rakhine state near the Bangladesh border, where most Rohingya
are settled. It said he also visited Myeik, a southeastern port town on
the Andaman Sea from which many refugees are believed to have departed.

"On the basis of his observations and the discussions held, the High
Commissioner came to the conclusion that UNHCR's current level of
activities in northern Rakhine State does not correspond to the actual
needs and a decision was taken to upgrade the program with immediate
effect," said the agency's statement, issued after Guterres' departure
Thursday night.

It said the agency had agreed with the government "on the importance of a
continued presence of UNHCR in northern Rakhine State and the South East,"
said the U.N. statement issued after Guterres' Thursday night departure.

____________________________________
PRESS RELEASE

March 12, Burma Partnership
Free Burma’s political prisoners now

A global signature campaign for the release of Burma’s political prisoners
has been launched today, on Burma’s Human Rights Day. The campaign aims to
collect 888,888 signatures before 24 May 2009, the legal date that Nobel
Peace Prize winner Daw Aung San Suu Kyi should be released from house
arrest.  Over 150 Burma exile and solidarity groups are participating in
the campaign. Events and activities will take place around the world,
including in Bangkok, Chiang Mai, London, Dublin, New Delhi, Hong Kong,
Manila, Seoul, Jakarta, Sydney, and Tokyo.

The petition calls on the UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon to make it his
personal priority to secure the release of all political prisoners in
Burma, as the essential first step towards national reconciliation and
democratization in the country. The target symbolises 8.8.88, the day the
junta massacred some 3,000 people who courageously protested in Burma’s
largest democracy uprising.

On 3 December 2008, 112 former Presidents and Prime Ministers from 50
countries sent a letter to the UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon urging him
to press for the release of all political prisoners in Burma by the end of
2008.  241 legislators from all over Asia also sent a public letter to the
UN Secretary-General on 5 December conveying the same message.  Over 2,100
political prisoners remain in Burma’s jails.

Tate Naing, a former political prisoner and secretary of the Assistance
Association for Political Prisoners (Burma), said, “Political prisoners
are not criminals.  They have simply stood up for freedom and democracy.
Without the release of all political prisoners, there can be no peace and
stability in our country.  But we need the UN Secretary General to step in
and show strong leadership on this issue.  With this signature campaign,
we want to show Ban Ki-moon just how many people around the world care
about this issue.”

The global signature campaign will run from 13 March to 24 May. To sign
the petition, visit www.fbppn.net.

For media interviews, please contact:

Soe Aung, Forum for Democracy in Burma: +66 (0) 81 839 9816
Dr Naing Aung, Forum for Democracy in Burma: +66 (0) 81 883 7230
Tate Naing, Assistance Association for Political Prisoners (Burma): +66
(0) 81 287 8751

____________________________________

March 12, European Parliamentary Caucus on Burma
EU should strengthen its common position on Burma

The European Parliamentary Caucus on Burma (EPCB) was set up to support
human rights and democracy in Burma, and consists of 156 MPs from 15
European countries, strongly urged the European Union to strengthen its
Common Position on Burma when it is renewed in April.

In a letter to European Foreign Ministries, the EPCB stressed its concern
about the continuing human rights and humanitarian crises in Burma,
including the appalling conditions of the political prisoners, the ongoing
attacks by the Burmese Army against ethnic people in Eastern Burma, and
the humanitarian problems the attacks are causing.

The EPCB welcomes the European Union’s longstanding engagement on the
issue of Burma, such as increased humanitarian assistance, support for a
global arms embargo, new sanctions on imports of timber and gems, and
rejection in their current form of the dictatorship’s elections planned
for 2010.

However, the EPCB believes the EU has not done all it can to push the
Burmese military regime to engage in a genuine democratisation process in
Burma.

The military dictatorship is ignoring calls by the United Nations Security
Council and General Assembly to enter into tripartite dialogue, and Than
Shwe, the dictator of Burma, has repeatedly snubbed UN envoy Ibrahim
Gambari. Instead, the regime is pushing ahead with elections in 2010 that
will enact a constitution which will effectively legalise dictatorship,
and do nothing to change the human rights and humanitarian situation in
the country.

“Allowing this situation to continue is unacceptable on human rights and
humanitarian grounds. Clearly more pressure needs to be placed on the
generals to ensure they comply with the demands of the United Nations. We
believe the European Union can and should do more to ensure the generals
comply with the UN” the letter states.

Therefore the EPCB urges the European Union to use all its influence to
secure the release of all political prisoners and to promote positive
change in Burma.

EPCB also asked the European Union to consider the following four proposals:

1. To reiterate that the military dictatorship’s planned 2010 elections
and constitution are unacceptable in their current form, and support the
National League for Democracy and other democratic forces’ proposals for
genuine dialogue and reform.

2. To work to build a global consensus for a global arms embargo.

3. To consider carefully targeted economic sanctions, including targeted
financial sanctions, and sanctions stopping European companies providing
insurance in Burma.

4. To continue to increase humanitarian assistance in Burma, and to do
more to challenge restrictions on aid delivery imposed by the regime.
Until such restrictions are lifted, the European Union should support the
delivery of cross border aid in order to save lives.

About EPCB: The European Parliamentary Caucus on Burma was founded in June
2008 to raise awareness of Burma in Europe and promote human rights and
democracy in Burma.

Administrative support for the European Parliamentary caucus on Burma is
being provided by Burma Campaign UK and People in Need in the Czech
Republic.  For more information contact:

For more information contact Zoya Phan at Burma Campaign UK on
07738630139, or Marie Zahradníková on +420 739 220 248.