BurmaNet News, March 14 - 16, 2009

[Editor]

March 14 – 16, 2009, Issue #3672


INSIDE BURMA
DVB: Imprisoned monks’ leader sends message of solidarity
DVB: Police deployed to quell activity on Burma Human Rights Day
Narinjara: Two Muslim youth succumb to torture injuries
Khonumthung News: WFP to facilitate meeting for famine victims in Chin State

ON THE BORDER
Mizzima News: Environmentalists demand halt to US $ 35 billion Burma dams
Narinjara: Burma to fence border with Bangladesh
Irrawaddy: New bridge proposed in Mae Sot

REGIONAL
Irrawaddy: Burmese delegation arrives in Jakarta
Mizzima News: Campaigners unhappy over Japan’s support to junta

INTERNATIONAL
AP: UN expert to Myanmar: release political prisoners
Irrawaddy: Obama, Indonesian President discuss Burma
IHT: U.S. in a quandary over policy on Myanmar

OPINION / OTHER
Washington Post: Burma's bullies

ANNOUNCEMENT
Human Rights Center: Submit your idea for the next great mobile
application! Mobile Challenge deadline, March 20.




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INSIDE BURMA

March 16, Democratic Voice of Burma
Imprisoned monks’ leader sends message of solidarity – Nan Kham Kaew

The imprisoned All-Burma Monks Alliance leader, U Gambira, has passed on a
message of support to human rights and democracy activists in Burma to
keep fighting for change in the political system, said his mother.

U Gambira, known for playing a key role in initiating the September 2007
monk-led protests, is serving 69 years’ imprisonment in Sagaing division’s
Khandee prison.

He was previously held in Mandalay prison before being transferred to
Khandee on January 18 for allegedly staging a hunger strike in solitary
confinement.

His mother, Daw Yay, told DVB she went to Khandee last week to visit him.
He still remains in solitary confinement.

“He reiterated that he was continuing his fight for the people of Burma
whose rights were being abused by the government,” said Daw Yay.

“He reminded everyone to fulfill their duties.”

Last week six people, including two close relatives of U Gambira, were
sentenced to five years imprisonment each with hard labour under the
Immigration Act.

The group included U Gambira’s brother, Aung Ko Ko Lwin, brother-in-law
Moe Htet Hylan, Kyaw Myo Satt, Hlaing Myo, Soe Lwin and Ye Nyunt.

Family members said they were first arrested for planning to set off
hydrogen balloons in Rangoon last year to mark the one years anniversary
of the formation of the ABMA.

____________________________________

March 16, Democratic Voice of Burma
Police deployed to quell activity on Burma Human Rights Day – Thurein Soe

Security was tight in Burma’s former capital and economic hub Rangoon last
Friday as overseas Burmese democracy activists marked the 21-year
anniversary of the country’s Human Rights Day.

The event coincides with the anniversary of the death of Rangoon Institute
of Technology student Phone Maw, shot by government soldiers during a
protest in 1988. It was this incident that became a key trigger of the
1988 nationwide uprising.

A resident in Rangoon said on Friday that no sign of activity from the
opposition to mark the day was seen. Authorities had dispatched conveys of
armed policemen to crowded junctions in downtown Rangoon.

“We are seeing long conveys of police trucks loading and unloading armed
police officials at every intersection in Rangoon,” said the resident.
“They are disturbing a peaceful view for us.”

“The policemen were restless. They were jumping in and off from their
trucks all the time while waving their big guns around, as if our country
was in a civil war,” he said.

Other Rangoon residents said that heavily armed riot-police squads were
stationed at Shwe Dagon pagoda and Shwegondai and Hledan intersections.

Maung Maung Lay, of the Human Rights Defenders and Promoters Network, said
Friday’s situation in Rangoon highlighted the human rights situation in
Burma.

“We can’t say our human rights situation has been improved just because
the government agrees sign the ASEAN human rights charter and agreed to
let some human rights diplomat from United Nation in the country,” said
Maung Maung Lay.

“Firstly the government needs to be really devoted to granting us the
human rights.”

____________________________________

March 16, Narinjara
Two Muslim youth succumb to torture injuries

Two Muslim youth in Maungdaw on the western Burmese border recently died
from severe injuries soon after they were released from custody by Burmese
army intelligence in Maungdaw, said a relative.

The victims were identified as Abu Tahid and Zaw Fo Uhsong, son of Abu Gaw
Baw, from Zaydibying Village in Shwe Zaar Ward in Maungdaw.

"Abu Tahid died on 11 March while Zaw Fo Uhsong died on 15 March. Both of
them died with severe injuries that were received in army intelligence
custody," said the relative.

An Arakanese Buddhist in Maungdaw confirmed that one Zaw Fo Uhsong, aged
22 years, died on 15 March, but he did not have information to confirm the
death of the second youth.

According to a local source, the two Muslim youths were arrested by
Burmese army intelligence, or Sarafa, on 5 March 2009 on suspicion of
smuggling the drug yaba. After being arrested, they were brought to the
Sarafa office in Maungdaw for interrogation.
During the interrogation, the two youths were tortured severely by Sarafa
officers.

According to a family source, the intelligence officials released them on
10 March after their families paid a bribe of 3,50,000 kyat.

____________________________________

March 16, Khonumthung News
WFP to facilitate meeting for famine victims in Chin State

The Inter Agency Working Group (IAWG) for Chin famine victims will hold a
meeting to discuss the Chin famine issue in Rangoon, the former capital of
Burma, on March 27, 2009. The meeting would be held under the aegis of the
World Food Program (WFP).

“This meeting is being facilitated by the WFP. Indeed, the agency adopted
an Inter Agency Steering Committee (IASC) and IASC, under UNO, has passed
a USD 300 million budget for Burma this year. Therefore, they asked us to
form the IAWG so that they could support Chin State’s development,” Kung
Za Hmung, Director of Country Agency for Rural Development, said.

He added that the coming meeting would be dominated by the issue of Chin
famine victims. “We have to submit our work reports on the Famine Aid that
we are providing to Chin State, since the Department for International
Development (DFID) had granted us USD 1 million, in the winter of 2008,”
he said.

According to the CAD Director’s notes, we heard that DFID had agreed with
IAWGS to help with another financial grant for Chin famine victims.

“At the moment, we are working with DFID’s donation of USD 1 million for
relief for the Chin famine.” said a IAWGS member.

There are three main NGOs working for Chin famine victims, with the
project of DFID grant of USD 1 million, WFP, CAD and UNDP. Under the WFP,
there are umbrella organizations of NGOs such as CARE, World Vision and,
GRET.

“Under this project, CAD is providing 72,000 bags of Ration (360 tons) to
famine-hit villages such as, Tinam, Malsawm, Phaipha, Surkhua, Lungtar,
Dongva, Hakha Township, in Chin state. We use “Food for Work” system,”
said the CAD Director.

Under this system, local people are encouraged to construct roads, and
charge ‘one hundred ration bags per mile rate’. It is believed that 75
miles of roads have been constructed since the work began.

On the other hand, one of their partners, the UNDP uses another system in
which, they complete their target area of famine victims by giving ‘Money’
– Ks. 20,000/- every month of every family within three months.

“As soon as we finish this USD 1 million project, we, IAWGC will continue
this famine aid program with other projects, with the help of DFID and
IASC,” said the CAD director.

“UNDP has finished their project, but we, CAD and WFP have finished only
40% of the project. So, I cannot tell in detail about this project at the
moment. Hopefully it will be over by the end of this summer,” he added.

IAWG was founded in August 2008. Under this agency, there are eight NGOs
and International Non-governmental Organizations working in Chin state,
called WFP, CAD, UNDP, CARS, World Vision, GRET, Food and Agriculture
Organization of the United Nations, and the more recent, I Love Myanmar,
organization.

____________________________________
ON THE BORDER

March 16, Mizzima News
Environmentalists demand halt to US $ 35 billion Burma dams – Usa Pichai

Activists and environmentalists across the globe on Saturday urged Burma’s
neighbouring countries to halt dam construction projects as it hurts local
residents while providing financial lifeline to the military-rulers.

The call came in the form of myriad protests in several countries by
activists and environmentalists on Saturday, which is observed as an
International Day of Action for Rivers.

Burma Rivers Network, comprising of several environmental organizations
working on Burma’s environment, in its press statement on Saturday called
on related partners - neighbouring countries, dam builders, and
international financial institutions – to realise the impact of dam
constructions on local people in Burma.

Raising slogans such as “We stand and say: Free Burma’s Rivers, and Free
Burma,” the statement argues that dam projects should be put on hold until
the affected people are given opportunities to fully participate in
project decisions, and energy planning is transparent and takes into
consideration alternatives to dams.

Burma’s military-rulers in recent years have signed several agreements
with Thailand, China and India for construction of dams on rivers in Burma
including the Salween, on which at least five dams are to be built.

According to the agreements, dam constructions would be undertaken by
Thailand, China and India, while the Burmese government would provide
security and in turn would sell electricity to them after the completion.

The Thai government claimed that the investments of energy projects in
neighbouring countries including Burma are “for energy security in the
future.”

Experts estimate that the whole dam series will produce approximately
35,000 Megawatts of electricity, and would cost US$ 35 billion.

“Revenue from investment and the sale of electricity will provide huge
sums of money to Burma’s military regime. After over 50 years of civil war
in Burma, there will be no transparency or accountability around these
investments but instead the money will support the regime to increase its
power,” the statement noted.

Sai Sai from Salween Watch, based in Chiang Mai told Mizzima that
currently the Burmese military has moved forward with several of the
projects.

“The survey by junta’s counterpart company is going on and it results in
more forced labour and forced relocation in the area of construction
sites,” he said.

The group also noted that to date, none of the affected people in Burma
have been consulted about the dam projects.

“All the dams threaten internationally-recognized biodiversity yet almost
none of the sites have been assessed for environmental impacts,” the group
said.

The group said, a study of the biodiversity of the Weigyi dam area on the
Salween River in Shan State shows that the dam construction would endanger
the existence of 194 plant and 200 rare animal species, including 42
endangered species.

As a part of the International Day of Action on Rivers, ethnic Kachin in
Northern Burma on Saturday organized prayer ceremonies in several towns
including Kachin State’s Myitkyina, Waingmaw, Bhamo (Manmaw), Manje
(Mansi), Shwego and Laiza on the Sino-Burmese border and Rangoon.

Similarly, Burmese activists and supporters held a protest rally in
India’s New Delhi calling India to halt its planned Thamanthi dam
construction on the Chindwin River in North Western Burma.

At least 21 large dams are currently being planned, constructed, and
financed in Burma by Thai, Chinese and Indian corporations and
governments.  All the dams are on major rivers in Burma such as the
Salween, Irrawaddy, Chindwin, Sit Thaung, and their tributaries. Most of
the rivers are recorded so far as still free flowing.
____________________________________

March 16, Narinjara
Burma to fence border with Bangladesh

The Burmese military government is now preparing to fence its border with
Bangladesh to prevent human trafficking between the two countries, said an
official from Maungdaw on the condition of anonymity.
"Many soldiers arrived in northern Maungdaw bringing a lot of barbed wire
fence to the western Burmese border with Bangladesh. I think the project
will be implemented very soon," the official said.

Over 200 soldiers arrived at Kyin Chaung Village in northern Maungdaw
Township to implement the project. At the same time, a large amount of
barbed wire has been transported to Maungdaw from Sittwe on cargo ships to
use in the construction of the fence.

A townsperson from Maungdaw said, "I saw much barbed wire piled up at the
Kyin Gan Byin Jetty in Maungdaw that was brought there by four cargo
ships. Large amounts of barbed wire is being transported to Maungdaw by
cargo ships."

The barbed wire has been transported and distributed from the jetty to
Nasaka Areas 1 and 2, which are very close to Bangladesh in the north of
Maungdaw.

"Our government will fence its lands from Maungdaw Township to Paletwa
township near the triangle area among Burma, Bangladesh, and India," the
official said.

Even though the Burmese military government is preparing to fence its
border with barbed wire to prevent human trafficking, the authorities have
yet to officially make any announcements about the project.

Many people are traveling across the Burma - Bangladesh border without
permission, and the Burmese authorities intend to curb such unauthorized
movements with the barbed wire fence on the border.
____________________________________

March 16, Irrawaddy
New bridge proposed in Mae Sot – Lawi Weng

The Chamber of Commerce in Thailand’s Tak Province has proposed a plan to
build a second “Friendship Bridge” linking Mae Sot and Myawaddy, according
to the head of the local business association.

Ampol Chatchaiyareuk, chairman of the Tak Chamber of Commerce, told The
Irrawaddy today that he proposed the idea during a commercial trade
meeting held in Mae Sot on Saturday. The meeting included representatives
from Thailand, Burma, China and Laos.

“If the Burmese government agrees to do it, we will build it,” said
Amphol. “We are just waiting for their approval.”

He said a new bridge is necessary because the existing one is getting old
and is not suitable for large trucks. He added that the new bridge would
bring a twofold increase in border trade.

The proposed bridge would be built in Shwe Kokko, a village in Myawaddy
Township that is under the control of Brigade 999 of the Democratic Karen
Buddhist Army (DKBA).

According to a Karen businessman in Myawaddy, the DKBA has long had plans
to build a bridge linking the village to Mae Sot, on the Thai side of the
border.

He said the group, which has close connections to Burma’s ruling regime,
has already constructed a new road to handle the expected increase in
transport traffic, and has tried to attract local businesspeople to invest
in the village.

“They have been telling me for a long time to buy a plot of land for
trading there, but there’s still no new bridge,” he added. “That’s why I
haven’t bought any land there yet.”

Thailand earns around 1 billion baht (US $28 million) monthly from the
bilateral border
trade between Myawaddy and Mae Sot, according to the Tak Chamber of Commerce.

The two countries began official border trade in Mae Sot after the
Thai-Burma Friendship Bridge opened in 1997. A border trade zone in
Myawaddy is expected to increase trade between the two countries.

____________________________________
REGIONAL

March 16, Irrawaddy
Burmese delegation arrives in Jakarta – Wai Moe

Burmese Prime Minister Gen Thein Sein arrived in Jakarta on Monday on an
official visit, heading a delegation of five key ministers and nine
leading businessmen. Issues such as Rohingya boatpeople, bilateral ties,
and the political and electoral processes in the respective countries are
expected to be on the agenda during his two-day trip.

According to the Jakarta Post, Thein Sein was taken to the Merdeka Palace
to talk with President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono at 3pm on Monday. Earlier,
he had visited the Kalibata Heroes’ Cemetery in Jakarta.

Indonesian Presidential Spokesman Dino Pati Jalal said that Burma and
Indonesia will discuss bilateral relations as well as regional and
international issues.

Despite both being members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations
(Asean), bilateral trade between the two countries is not significant with
Indonesia only supplying 2.4 percent of Burma’s imports in 2007, according
to The Economist Intelligence Unit.

However, the Indonesian media reported on Monday that the two countries
have decided not to announce details of their discussions to the public.

Also on Monday, President Yudhoyono called on Indonesian citizens to show
their maturity to the international community by practicing democracy at
the April 9 election.

Military-ruled Burma is also scheduled to hold elections in the near
future. Indonesia will talk with Thein Sein about the process of democracy
in Burma, including plans for the 2010 election, according to Indonesia’s
foreign ministry.

The Burmese delegation’s visit follows just three days after an official
visit by US President Barack Obama. A White House statement said the new
US president and his Indonesian counterpart discussed human rights issues
and the restoration of democracy in Burma.

During US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton’s trip to Indonesia on
February 18-19, the two countries also discussed Burma issues.

After meeting with Indonesian Foreign Minister Hassan Wirajuda, Clinton
said the US was going to work closely and consult with Indonesia on
Burmese efforts.

In an interview with Australia’s ABC radio on February 20, Wirajuda
bemoaned the lack of progress toward democracy in Burma, as well as the
junta’s deplorable human rights record.

But he urged the international community to engage with Burma, arguing
that pressure and sanctions have proved ineffective in achieving change.

The Burmese delegation is due to visit Singapore on Tuesday.
____________________________________

March 16, Mizzima News
Campaigners unhappy over Japan’s support to junta – Mungpi

The Japanese government has provided election training to Burmese
officials, as the Southeast Asian Nation gears up for its general
elections in 2010, sources said.

The training on how to conduct an election was given to five Burmese
military officials by Japan as part of its support to the junta’s
seven-step roadmap to democracy, of which the general election is the
fifth step.

Yuki Akimoto, a Japanese activist with the Burma Information Network
(Japan) told Mizzima on Monday that she was aware of the training given to
the Burmese officials by the Japanese government.

“I am aware that Japan hosted a training facility on how to conduct
elections to five officers from the military regime,” said Akimoto, adding
that it made her sad to think that Japan is strongly supporting the
regime’s election.

The news of Japan’s secret training came as a not-so-surprising fact to
Burma observers as Japan has maintained its support towards the Burmese
military regime’s roadmap to democracy.

Akimoto said, Japan has encouraged the Burmese junta to conduct a free and
fair election and believes that it could bring about a change in Burma
through the process.

But she argues that Japan, being Asia’s strongest democracy, should give a
closer look at the Junta’s 2008 constitution and urged for a more
inclusive process.

Japan, which has created little pressure regarding the junta’s behaviour,
voiced its concern over the appalling human rights situation in Burma,
when a Japanese photojournalist Kenji Nagai was killed by the military
during its crackdown on monk-led peaceful demonstrations in September
2007.

But the Japanese mission to probe the killing of Nagai has revealed little
facts and has been left without any official announcement on the
punishment to the perpetrator.

Fellow journalists around the world, including press freedom groups, have
called on the Japanese government to press Burma to reveal the truth about
Nagai’s killing and to take effective action on the perpetrators.

Against this backdrop, Japan has maintained a ‘Quiet Diplomacy’ and has
not made public its dealings with Burma’s military government, said
Professor Chosein Yamahata, organiser of an international conference on
Burma in the Japanese city of Nagoya during the weekend.

Prof. Yamahata said, Japan prefers to be quiet about its relationship with
Burma and does not favour the western style of sanctions or the regional
countries approach of constructive engagement.

He said it is partly because there is little information about Burma to
convince the Japanese government for a policy review towards Burma.

“This conference aims to highlight awareness for both the Japanese people
as well as the government on the situation in Burma,” said Yamahata,
referring to a conference, held from March 13 – 15, where several Burma
analysts, former ambassadors, academicians and intellectuals gathered.

He said the conference is the first of its kind and organisers plan to
continue organising such events in order to raise further awareness on
Burma.


Japan’s role

Japan, which has been providing Burma in recent years about 3 billion Yen
(approximately US $ 18.2 million) in aid, is Burma’s biggest donor. Most
of the aids are given in the form of human resources development aid.

But Mark Farmaner, director of the Burma Campaign UK, who was in Nagoya
for the conference, said Japan could play a significant role in the
process of change in Burma.

He said, Japan is the only country in Asia that can balance the power of
China, and is also a member of the Security Council.

But he said the Japanese government’s policy towards Burma is
deteriorating in terms of support towards the democracy movement. And
Japan seems to be endorsing the junta’s planned 2010 election, which is
part of the roadmap that will cement military rule in Burma.

Farmaner added that there is also a lack of awareness among the Japanese
people regarding the situation in Burma that could act as a pressure on
its government.


Japan’s reluctance

One factor for the Japanese government to maintain its support to Burma’s
military rulers is the lack of proper information that could make Japan
see the situation in Burma genuinely, Farmaner said.

Akimoto said, there is little media coverage in Japan on Burma, and the
Japanese government relies on its embassy in Rangoon for most of its
information.

She said, Japan is also reluctant to engage with opposition members but
prefers dealing with officials, which leaves its Burma policy at a
distance from the reality.

“I think it is really important that the Japanese government expand its
source of information [on Burma],” Farmaner said.

Besides, he said, the Japanese people need to be aware of the situation in
Burma so as to be able to pressure its government’s policy.

“So far, I don’t think the Japanese government is facing any kind of
pressure from its people to change its policy on Burma,” he added.

He said, while in Japan, he along with fellow activists are planning to
meet Japanese parliamentarians, the foreign ministry and other civil
society groups to raise awareness on the situation in Burma.

____________________________________
INTERNATIONAL

March 16, Associated Press
UN expert to Myanmar: release political prisoners

A U.N. human rights investigator has urged Myanmar to release its 2,100 or
so political prisoners before holding next year's elections — the
country's first ballot in two decades.

In a report to be presented to the U.N. Human Rights Council on Tuesday,
Tomas Ojea Quintana said Myanmar's military-run government should release
all "prisoners of conscience" — starting with the elderly, the sick and
political leaders — because their detention breaches basic human rights.

"Release must be without imposing any particular condition which may
result in new forms of diminishing enjoyment of human rights, such as
written statements renouncing the right to political participation or
campaign," Quintana said.

Prisoners who remain in custody should be spared cruel treatment and
should be given better conditions and urgent medical treatment, he said.

Among those detained is Nobel laureate Aung San Suu Kyi, who has been held
without trial for 13 of the past 19 years. Her pro-democracy movement won
Myanmar's 1990 democratic elections, a result the military junta never
recognized.

Quintana said he regretted that the government denied his request to meet
with Suu Kyi and other detainees during his February visit to the country.

In the 41-page report, which was made available on the Web ahead of its
presentation Tuesday, he called for "an urgent, impartial and independent
review" of Suu Kyi's case.

Quintana also recommended other measures be taken in the run-up to next
year's elections, including reform of the judiciary, a review of 380 laws
that may breach international standards, an end to the recruitment of
child soldiers, and end to use of anti-personnel mines and the abolition
of forced labor.

____________________________________

March 16, Irrawaddy
Obama, Indonesian President discuss Burma – Lalit K Jha

US President Barack Obama discussed the issue of restoration of democracy
and protection of human rights in Burma when he made a telephone call to
Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono on Friday.

The talk centered on how to make progress on the issues, the White House
said in a statement after the call was made. No further details were
available.

After entering the White House, Obama and administration officials
reiterated their support for the people of Burma and a commitment to help
the country achieve national reconciliation.

The administration is currently reviewing its Burma policy, a point made
by Secretary of State Hillary Clinton during her trip to Asia last month.

Clinton said the current policy of economic sanctions on the Burmese
military government has not yielded the desired result.

The review process is still ongoing. Unlike the Afghanistan policy review,
no timeline has been set for its completion.

____________________________________

March 16, International Herald Tribune
U.S. in a quandary over policy on Myanmar – Seth Mydans

It has been a policy of unintended consequences “two decades of isolation
and sanctions by the United States that only made Myanmar's ruling
generals more stubborn” and now a new administration in Washington has
declared it a failure.

But U.S. officials also say they don't know what else to do.

"Clearly, the path we have taken in imposing sanctions hasn't influenced
the Burmese junta," Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton said in
February. "Reaching out and trying to engage them hasn't influenced them,
either," she said, referring to the policies of Myanmar's Southeast Asian
neighbors.

"We are conducting a review, because we want to see the best ideas about
to influence the Burmese regime," she said during a visit to Indonesia.
"And we are looking at every possible idea that can be presented."

Where that will lead is still unclear. Putting it bluntly, Scot Marciel,
deputy assistant secretary of state, said soon afterward: "The fact is,
there isn't any obvious way ahead."

Over the years, the United States has attempted to curb political
repression and human rights violations in Myanmar, formerly known as
Burma, with ever-tighter economic restrictions and diplomatic pressure,
accompanied by warnings and condemnation.

The sanctions began with an arms embargo after a massacre of as many as
3,000 pro-democracy demonstrators in 1988. Broader sanctions were imposed
in 1997 and 2003 in protest of human rights violations that included
restrictions on the freedom of Daw Aung San Suu Kyi and other opposition
figures.

The European Union and other countries have put in place their own
embargoes, and analysts say those countries would have to be consulted in
any policy change.

But Myanmar's military has not budged. Political opponents are still
jailed by the hundreds, free speech and assembly are still smothered, the
wealthy generals still leave their people in grinding poverty, and any
protests are crushed by force.

Rather than forcing change, many analysts say, the confrontational
approach has made the generals more stubborn, more repressive and more
antagonistic toward the West. The policy has deprived the United States of
useful contacts within the government and has left it with little leverage
to affect the junta's behavior. And it has held back the emergence of a
middle class that could have pushed for change.

"Continued pressure on the regime to change in unacceptable ways to them
forced them inward," said Robert Taylor, a consultant in London on Myanmar
affairs, in an e-mail message. "Had sanctions not helped end foreign
investments in the 1990s, Myanmar would now be involved in the world
economy, like Vietnam perhaps," he said. "Opening the country up now will
be many times harder than it would have been in the early 1990s, or even
seven years ago."

Economic sanctions have also been undermined by continuing trade and
investment from Myanmar's neighbors China, India and the Southeast Asian
nations.

Western nations learned the limits of their influence when the military
crushed an uprising led by Buddhist monks in late 2007, ignoring threats
and condemnation from around the world. A new round of sanctions was
imposed, with little effect.

Since then, a sense of the futility of sanctions has grown among many
exiles and foreign analysts.

Even the main opposition party, the National League for Democracy, said in
February that "continued confrontation and economic sanctions" were "not
beneficial to the country and its people."

The statement is significant because the National League for Democracy is
the party of Mrs. Aung San Suu Kyi, the pro-democracy leader who has been
held under house arrest for 13 of the past 19 years.

She is an original proponent of sanctions, and her views have had a strong
impact on American policy. But because she has been cut off from the
outside world, it is difficult to know what she would say today. Without
her influence, said David Steinberg, an expert on Myanmar at Georgetown
University, America's reassessment might have come earlier.

In any case, a weakening of sanctions would face tough opposition in
Washington, where the policy carries emotional resonance and has many
backers in Congress and among human rights groups.

"I think we have to stay the course and use this form of pressure to push
the regime to greater dialogue," said Debbie Stothard, coordinator of
Altsean-Burma, a regional human rights group. "If you want to throw away
the best cards that you have, you are setting yourselves up for failure."

Sanctions may not be an all-or-nothing issue, though, said Sean Turnell,
an expert on the Burmese economy at Macquarie University in Sydney.

He pointed to "targeted sanctions" that aim to cripple the financial
dealings of the junta and its associates and "send exactly the right
message to the people the message needs to be sent to."

Some of Washington's current sanctions fit this description, blocking
certain bank transactions and visa permits. It is broad-based embargoes on
trade and investment that critics argue are hurting the general population
more than the generals in power.

In an influential report last October, the International Crisis Group, an
independent research and advocacy group, said the aftermath of the
devastating cyclone last year could be an opportunity for productive
engagement. The cyclone took 138,000 lives when it struck the Irrawaddy
Delta in May 2008, and at first the junta — true to its insular and
suspicious nature — barred large-scale foreign aid.

But in the months since then, the crisis group said, Myanmar had entered a
period of "unprecedented cooperation between the government and
international humanitarian agencies." Visas and travel permits have been
streamlined, and working conditions have become more open. The crisis
group said some nations that seek to influence Myanmar's behavior had been
slow to seize this opportunity, still held back by old policies of
rejection.

It concluded: "Twenty years of aid restrictions “which see Myanmar
receiving 20 times less assistance per capita than other least-developed
countries” have weakened, not strengthened, the forces for change."

____________________________________
OPINION / OTHER

March 16, Washington Post
Burma's bullies

THE CRUELEST dictatorships, like the most ruthless criminal gangs, always
have understood that the most effective way to deter opposition is to go
after the innocent loved ones of potential enemies. Thus it was not enough
for Gen. Than Shwe and his junta in the Southeast Asian nation of Burma
(also known as Myanmar) to sentence the Buddhist monk U Gambira to prison
for 68 years last fall. It was learned last week that his brother, his
brother-in-law and four cousins have been sentenced to five years in
Burma's gloomy prisons. We hope that this small piece of data is fed into
the review of U.S. policy on Burma that Secretary of State Hillary Rodham
Clinton has promised.

U Gambira, 28 at the time, was a leader of the nonviolent protests that
broke out in Burma in September 2007. Thousands of Burmese followed him
and other monks in peaceful protest against one of the world's most brutal
dictatorships, despite understanding the possible consequences. U Gambira
himself, in an op-ed published in The Post on Nov. 4, 2007 -- the day, as
it happened, of his arrest after weeks on the run -- said that he
understood the risks he was taking. "It matters little if my life or the
lives of colleagues should be sacrificed on this journey," he wrote.
"Others will fill our sandals, and more will join and follow." We can only
guess whether he understood that even his uninvolved relatives would be
victimized.

The United States has been frustrated in its efforts to promote
democratization in Burma, a nation of about 50 million, so Ms. Clinton's
policy review is well timed. No doubt her team will talk to academics and
humanitarian aid workers who favor more engagement with the regime and the
country. (Those who tout Burma's recent cooperation with relief agencies
might, however, want to take note of another prison sentence handed down
last week: 17 years to Min Thein Tun, who was arrested last July for
distributing relief supplies to the victims of Cyclone Nargis in the
Irrawaddy delta.) They should talk with officials in neighboring
countries, who have been pursuing a policy of engagement for years; in
addition to its impact on the wealth of the regime and its trading
partners in countries such as Thailand and Singapore, U.S. officials might
ask, what effect has this policy had?

It may be that the U.S. review can lead to smarter and more targeted
sanctions, with better coordination among allies and neighbors. Certainly,
we hope that Ms. Clinton will make clear to Burma's government that the
United States could never ease sanctions without first conducting full and
free consultations with Aung San Suu Kyi, Burma's rightful ruler. Aung San
Suu Kyi's party overwhelmingly won an election in 1990, but the junta
ignored the results and has kept her isolated and under house arrest for
most of the time since. Her release, and that of thousands of other
political prisoners -- and their families -- remains essential.

____________________________________
ANNOUNCEMENT

March 16, Human Rights Center
Submit your idea for the next great mobile application! Mobile Challenge
deadline, March 20.

The Human Rights Center has partnered with NetSquared to sponsor the Human
Rights Center Mobile Challenge.

The Mobile Challenge invites project submissions from the general public
that apply new mobile technologies to advance human rights investigations,
advocacy and outreach. Through a NetSquared Community vote, 10 finalists
will be chosen. All 10 finalists will be invited to present their ideas at
the Soul of the New Machine.

A panel of judges, selected by the Human Rights Center, will choose three
winners, to be announced at the conclusion of conference. Winners will
receive cash awards of $15,000 (first place), $10,000 (second place), and
$5,000 (third place) to implement their ideas.

The first place winner will also receive a MinoHD camcorder, compliments
of Flip Video.

Visit the Project Gallery to view the projects that have been submitted so
far.The submission period ends next week on March 20th, so submit your
idea for the next great mobile application today!

For more information, please visit: http://netsquared.org/hrc-ucb