BurmaNet News, April 14, 2009

[Editor]

April 14, 2009, Issue #3670


INSIDE BURMA
Kaladan Press Network: Burmese army increase use of forced labour
AFP: Myanmar celebrates festival with splash of freedom

REGIONAL
South China Morning Post: Regional talks to tiptoe around Rohingya crisis

INTERNATIONAL
AFP: US women senators urge UN pressure on Myanmar

OPINION / OTHER
Kaladan Press Network: The curse of historical rivalries in Arakan State
of Burma – Ahmedur Rahman Farooq

PRESS RELEASE
FTUB: Unlawfully detained trade union members released



____________________________________
INSIDE BURMA

April 14, Kaladan Press Network
Burmese army increase use of forced labour

The Burmese Army has been forcing villagers to dig trenches required in
Maungdaw Township since the first of March, an aide of the army and the
Nasaka said.

People of Maung Nama village and Bawli Bazar village tracts of Maungdaw
Township have to provide 20 villagers per village for digging trenches, at
the foot of Mayu Mountain. The villagers are not given any wages or any
other means of support.

The villagers have to work at the site from 8:00 am to 5:00 pm every day.
The Chairman of the village has to provide 20 villagers per village at
about 7:00 am, and then has to send them within 8:00 am, to the
construction site.

Forced labor has been on the rise since the first week of March, because
of the deployment of army personnel in Maungdaw Township. The deployment
was a result of the tension between Burma and Bangladesh, over the issue
of fencing the Burmese side of the Burma-Bangladesh border, a village
elder from Maungdaw said.

Recently, Burma transferred large numbers of armed soldiers to Maungdaw
from Buthidaung Township, carrying heavy weapons.

According to a local elder from Taungbro (Bangladesh side), a flag meeting
was held at Ghoon Doon of Bangladesh between BDR (Bangladesh Rifles) and
the Nasaka (Burma’s border security force) on April 11, over the issue of
the Burma-Bangladesh border fencing. During the meeting, both sides
remained dissatisfied over the fencing issue.

As a result, the army deployment increased in Maungdaw Township, as well
as harassment of Rohingya villagers was also augmented. The army looted
vegetables and chilli from the Rohingya farmers and also looted fish from
the fishermen. The armies also try to attempt rape to the Rohingya women
and young girls in isolated villages, according to a businessman from the
locality.

____________________________________

April 14, Agence France Presse
Myanmar celebrates festival with splash of freedom – Hla Hla Htay

Myanmar's partygoers enjoyed a splash of freedom Tuesday as the ruling
junta allowed them to enjoy street water fights for an annual festival
welcoming in the Buddhist New Year.

Revellers in the main city Yangon dyed their hair an array of dazzling
colours and cocked their water pistols to celebrate the annual Thingyan
water festival -- the only opportunity the government allows them to
assemble freely.

The The, a 22-year-old student, told AFP the festival -- also celebrated
this week across Thailand, Cambodia and Laos -- was a good excuse to set
aside recent economic troubles.

"Forget about what happened lately. It's time for us to have fun," she
said, as other city dwellers doused each other in water around her.

"I will spend (the festival) with my friends playing with water," she said.

More than 60 pavilions had been set up by businessmen around Yangon, with
queues of revellers lined up to collect their pitchers of water.

Prominent families, major businesses and nightclubs build wooden platforms
called pandals along the pavements each year, where bands play music and
water pours down on passers-by.

But businessmen, who were permitted to set up 700 pandals in 2008, said a
recent downturn in their fortunes had dampened this year's efforts.

"Some businesses stopped spending money on this festival although they
spent so much in previous years. It's because of the global economic
crisis," one businessman said.

In Myanmar, gatherings of more than five people are illegal, but families
and groups of friends made the most of the annual exception to hire cars
and drive around the country's main city, splashing water out the windows.

Although Myanmar is one of the world's poorest countries, many people will
spend their savings during Thingyan to hire a car, buy new clothes, or pay
for access to the most popular pandals.

The traditional festival runs from April 13 to 16 with the busiest day on
Tuesday.

But despite loosening the law of assembly, junta authorities warned
citizens to dress conservatively, in line with Myanmar tradition and
culture, as some girls donned short skirts and beachwear in the hot
weather.

State television and newspapers also told festival goers they must not
play too rough and should not incite unrest, although residents said there
seemed to be few plain-clothes police officers patrolling the streets.

But while some Myanmar citizens enjoy their freedom, restrictions remain
in place for others.

Pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi and the more than 2,000 other
political prisoners in Myanmar will remain locked up.

The festivities will run near Aung San Suu Kyi's home in University
Avenue, where she has been confined for most of the past 19 years.

But police remain at the barricades blocking off her home from the passing
cars and there will be no revellers allowed near her gate, which remains
locked.

____________________________________
REGIONAL

April 14, South China Morning Post
Regional talks to tiptoe around Rohingya crisis – Greg Torode

The biggest international meeting yet to focus on the plight of Myanmar's
Rohingya boatpeople opens today in Bali amid fresh doubts about diplomatic
efforts to end their persecution.

The foreign ministers of Indonesia and Australia will lead the two-day
meeting of the so-called Bali Process on Human Trafficking involving
officials from across the Asia-Pacific region and the United Nations.

As delegates arrived in Bali on the eve of the session, two hurdles
emerged, however.

Difficulties in engaging Myanmar's military junta on the Rohingya meant it
was being kept off the formal agenda in a face-saving bid to win its
co-operation in what are expected to be extensive sideline discussions.
And delegates were rocked by the withdrawal of Thai Foreign Minister Kasit
Piromya as his nation's political crisis degenerates into violence.

Thailand was expected to be a key player, having led the push for the Bali
meeting to find a solution to the Rohingya problem amid international
condemnation of its treatment of the boatpeople. Mr Kasit will now be
represented by a deputy permanent secretary as Prime Minister Abhisit
Vejjajiva's administration fights for its political survival.

A recent series of reports in the South China Morning Post exposed a Thai
army policy of detaining Rohingya in camps on isolated islands before
towing them out to sea in powerless boats and abandoning them. Hundreds
are now dead or missing. Thailand has apparently stopped the policy and Mr
Abhisit has ordered investigations.

"It was always going to be a very tough meeting to pull off requiring a
lot of delicacy," said one leading delegate. "We are still confident that
a great deal of pressure will be brought to bear on Myanmar to change
their ways and we are hopeful that new arrangements will be put in place.

"Just having Myanmar send a high-level team is a victory ? long term, this
issue is only going to be solved by Myanmar making life better for these
people."

Myanmar's generals class the Rohingya as stateless, refusing to grant them
any citizenship rights despite scholars tracing their roots in what is now
northern Rakhine state back to the 7th century. Conservative Muslim
traders, they originally hailed from Persia.

Statelessness means they have limited access to education, legal work or
movement. Men are jailed for four years if they are caught in a
relationship outside of marriage - even though it is exceptionally
difficult for Rohingya to marry.

The UN believes the situation is as bad as anything faced by persecuted
minorities internationally.

Increasing numbers of Rohingya have been fleeing by boat across the Bay of
Bengal and Andaman Sea every winter, washing ashore in Thailand, Malaysia
and Indonesia.

Earlier waves fled to neighbouring Bangladesh, despite that nation's
extreme poverty. An estimated 200,000 live there, with a further 800,000
still trying to eke out an existence inside northern Rakhine, an
undeveloped area of marshland. Many nations fear an even greater wave of
boatpeople next year.

Officially, Myanmar has so far shown little sympathy for their plight.
Officials have repeatedly stated that they cannot be classed as one of
Myanmar's ethnic groups - an attitude highlighted by a statement from the
country's consul general in Hong Kong that their skin was too dark and
they were as "ugly as ogres".

But some senior officials have told the UN that they are creating a
development programme for northern Rakhine to try to stabilise the
situation. Brigadier General Phone Swe, an immigration and home affairs
minister, is behind the drive and is expected to brief the session.

____________________________________
INTERNATIONAL

April 14, Agence France Presse
US women senators urge UN pressure on Myanmar

A group of women US Senators urged UN chief Ban Ki-moon in a letter
released Tuesday to step up pressure on Myanmar's ruling junta to scrap
elections plans and free democracy icon Aung San Suu Kyi.

The lawmakers, 10 of the chamber's 17 women, urged the secretary general
to publicly urge the military regime to end human rights abuses,
"eliminate rape as an instrument of war" and bring violators to justice.

"We must not allow this regime to continue to commit such dire crimes
unabated while the people of Burma continue to suffer," they wrote in the
letter, which was dated April 9.

The senators urged Ban to call on the junta in Myanmar, which Washington
refers to as Burma, to "release Aung San Suu Kyi and all political
prisoners immediately and unconditionally."

They also pressed him to ask the military to "abandon plans" to hold
elections in 2010 under a much-criticized new constitution approved in May
2008, after Cyclone Nargis devastated southern parts of the country and
left 138,000 people dead or missing.

"The upcoming election is based on a unilaterally drafted constitution
that violates international law and entrenches gender discrimination in
Burma," the US senators wrote.

"The constitution in its current form precludes women from holding
high-level government positions and attempts to give amnesty to the
military junta and thus deny access to justice for the victims of the
military regime's systematic sexual violence against ethnic minority
women," they said.

And they said Ban should urge the junta to "facilitate" a "dialogue
towards national reconciliation" grouping Nobel Peace Laureate Aung San
Suu Kyi, the military regime, and ethnic nationality representatives.

Myanmar has been ruled by the military since 1962 and is under tough
sanctions by the US and European countries because of its human rights
records and continued detention of Aung San Suu Kyi, whose opposition
party won a landslide victory in 1990 elections that the junta set aside.

The letter was signed by Senators Dianne Feinstein, Kay Bailey Hutchison,
Patty Murray, Olympia Snowe, Blanche Lincoln, Maria Cantwell, Susan
Collins, Barbara Boxer, Amy Klobuchar, Barbara Mikulski, and Lisa
Murkowski.

____________________________________
OPINION / OTHER

April 14, Kaladan Press Network
The curse of historical rivalries in Arakan State of Burma – Ahmedur
Rahman Farooq

For 3.5 million Rohingya Muslims of Arakan State of Burma, history has
turned out to be an instrument to subject them to the worst human rights
violations like denial of citizenship, a ban on marriage without
government permission, severe restrictions of movement, religious
persecution, extortion, land confiscation and restrictions on access to
education etc. Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF), which works in northern
Arakan State and has also operated in the camps for Rohingya refugees in
Bangladesh, has described the Rohingya as one of the ten world populations
in danger of extinction.  However, turning the wheels of Rohingyas'
history backward and distorting the records of Rohingyas' glorious past in
the multicultural society Arakan which is traced back to the 7th century,
the Burmese military regime and the majority of Rakhines of Arakan State
brand the Rohingyas as the 'Bengali immigrants' alleging that 'In the time
of the British government, it was that the British brought Bengalis and
Indians of India (now Pakistan, India and Bangladesh) into the nation with
various intentions. ....The British ruled Rakine State (Arakan) for 123
years from 1827 to 1948. During that period, Bengalis entered the nation
en masse.'   Ref: The New Light of Myanmar, a state-run news paper of the
Burmese military regime, dated Jan 30, 2009.

The anti-Rohingya camps brand the Rohingyas as Bengali immigrants because
of their close affinity with the neighboring people of Chittagong of
Bangladesh linguistically, religiously, culturally and physically.
Notably, Rohingyas share an Indo-Aryan physical features of dark and pale
skin like the people of Bangladesh and India because of being the
descendants of the people of the Indo-Aryan stock.

However, the focal point of the historical rivalries is whether the
Rohingyas existed in ancient Arakan Kingdom before its annexation with the
British colonial rule in 1827. Even though there is a tug-of-war between
the Rohingyas and anti-Rohingya camps over many issues of the history of
ancient Arakan, but at least there are few issues where there is an
unequivocal consensus among the Rohingyas, the anti-Rohingya camps and the
world historians. They unanimously agree that the names of many kings of
the ancient Arakan before the British colonial rule, were 'Muslim' like
(1) Solaiman Shah Narameikhla (1430-1434), (2) Ali Khan Meng Khari 
(1434-1459), (3) Kalima Shah Ba Saw Phyu (1459-1482), (4) Mathu Shah
Doulya (1482-1492), ( 5) Mohammed Shah Ba Saw Nyo (1492-1493), (6) Nori
Shah Ran Aung (1493-1494), (7) Sheikh Modullah Shah Salingathu
(1494-1501), (8) Ili Shah Meng Raza (1501-1523), (9) Ilias Shah Kasabadi
(1523-1525), (10) Jalal Shah Meng Saw Oo (1525), (11) Ali Shah Thatasa
(1525-1531), (12) Salimshah (1608). All the historians including the
anti-Rohingya camps also unanimously agree that all those kings used coins
with Muslim inscriptions like Kalima 'la-ilaha-illallah', 'Muhammedur
Rasulullah' etc.

This is an irrefutable evidence that the Muslims existed in Arakan either
as a ruler or as a predominant factor in ruling the ancient Arakan
Kingdom. This is also an irrefutable evidence of the peaceful coexistence
of all the people of Arakan irrespective of caste, creed or color who have
concentrated to defend the peace and prosperity of their motherland
Arakan. So, it is quite illogical to raise a controversy as to whether
those kings of Arakan were Muslims or simply used Muslim names and titles
and coins under a tremendous Muslim influence.

Now, comes the question of 'Rohingya' name. The anti-Rohingya camps allege
that the word 'Rohingya' has sprang up by 1950s and it was never heard
before. But for one's easy reference, here is a simple record of 1799th
publication: ' A Comparative Vocabulary of Some of the Languages Spoken in
the Burma Empire' which was published by Francis Buchanan in 1799, in the
fifth volume of Asiatic Researches. This piece provides one of the first
major Western surveys of the languages of Burma. But the article goes
beyond this and provides important data on the ethno-cultural identities
and identifications of the various population groups of the ancient Arakan
in terms of topography, history, antiquities, the condition of the
inhabitants, religion, natural productions (particularly fisheries,
forests, mines, and quarries), agriculture (covering vegetables,
implements, manure, floods, domestic animals, fences, farms, and landed
property, fine and common arts, and commerce (exports and imports, weights
and measures, and conveyance of goods).  Ref: SOAS Bulletin of Burma
Research, Vol. 1, No., 1, Spring 2003, ISSN 1479-8484  Link:
http://web.soas. ac.uk/burma/ Comparative% 20Vocabulary. PDF

Dr Francis Buchanan, later known as Francis Hamilton or Francis
Buchanan-Hamilton (15 February 1762 - 15 June 1892) was a Scottish
physician who made significant contributions as a geographer, zoologist
and botanist while living in India. From 1803 to 1804 he was surgeon to
the Governor General of India Lord Wellesley in Calcutta.

However, in his article, Dr Francis Buchanan wrote:

'I shall now add three dialects, spoken in the Burma Empire, but evidently
derived from the language of the Hindu nation. The first is that spoken by
the Mohammedans, who have long settled in Arakan, and who call themselves
Rooinga, or natives of Arakan. The second dialect is that spoken by the
Hindus of Arakan. I procured it from a Brahmen and his attendants, who had
been brought to Amarapura by the king’s eldest son, on his return from the
conquest of Arakan. They call themselves Rossawn, and, for what reason I
do not know, wanted to persuade me that theirs was the common language of
Arakan. Both these tribes, by the real natives of Arakan, are called Kulaw
Yakain, or stranger Arakan.

The last dialect of the Hindustanee which I shall mention, is that of a
people called, by the Burmas, Aykobat, many of them are slaves at
Amarapura. By one of them I was informed, that they had called themselves
Banga ; that formerly they had kings of their own ; but that, in his
father’s time, their kingdom had been overturned by the king of Munnypura,
who carried away a great part of the inhabitants to his residence. When
that was taken last by the Burmas, which was about fifteen years ago, this
man was one of the many captives who were brought to Ava.

He said also, that Banga was seven days’ journey south-west from
Munnypura: it must, therefore, be on the frontiers of Bengal, and may,
perhaps, be the country called in our maps Cashar.'

Giving a record of the 'Rooinga' vocabulary, Dr Francis Buchanan mentioned
50 words spoken by the 'Rooinga' tribe by that time like: ( 1) Bel - Sun
(2) Sawn - Moon (3)  Tara - Stars (4) Kool - Earth (5) Pannæ - Water (6)
Auin -  Fire (7) Sheel -  Stone (8) Bau - Wind (9) Jorail - Rain (10)
Manush - Man (11) Meealaw - Woman (12) Gourapa - Child (13) Mata - Head
(14) Gall -Mouth (15) Bahara - Arm (16) Hat - Hand (17) Ban - Leg (18) Pau
- Foot (19) Zoomtroo - Beast (20) Paik -  Bird (21) Maws - Fish (22) Goom
- Good (23) Goom nay - Bad (24)  Boddau - Great (25) Thuddee - Little (26)
Botdean - Long (27)  Banick - Short (28) Awg* - One (29) Doo - Two (30)
Teen - Three (31) Tchair - Four (32) Pansoee - Five (33) Saw - Six (34)
Sat - Seven (35) Awtoa - Eight (36) Nonaw - Nine (37) Dussoa - Ten (38)
Kau - Eat (39) Karin - Drink (40) Layrow - Sleep (41) Pawkay Bayra - Walk
(42) Boihow - Sit (43) Tcheilayto -  Stand (44) Marim - Kill (45) Hoi -
Yes (46) Etibar - No (47) Hayray - Here (48) Horay - There (49) Ouchalo  -
 Above (50) Ayray - Below.

Notably, except four words e.g; Ban, Thuddee, Tcheilayto and Etibar out of
these 50 Rooinga words, all other 46 words are still commonly spoken by
the Rohingyas of today's Arakan and the people of Chittagong alike some
ones with a little change of accent, object and area. So, this is an
irrefutable evidence that the word 'Rohingya' has originated from
'Rooinga', the name of a tribe of the Muslims of the ancient Arakan. It
did not spring up like a mushroom in 1950s.

There is no denying the fact that the ancient Arakan was a multicultural
society which was inhabited by many communities like the Rakhines,
Rohingyas, Chakmas, Hindus, Christians, Mros, Khumis, Kamens and some hill
tribes. In the words of Dr Shwe Lu Maung:

"The Rakhaing King was the patron of all religions and culture. Siddikh
Khan Mosque was built by the Rakhaing King in 1430 AD. It is the first
Mosque in all Burma. I suggest that UNCESCO may please take due action to
restore this oldest Myanmar Muslim heritage. .... (1) The Rohingya issue
is a cultural and political issue. (2) The politicians recognize the
Rohingyas.  I am a disciple of Bogri Kra Hla Aung and Chairman Kyaw Zan
Rhee. I worked with them in 1966-67. We have about fifty Muslim comrades
with us in Bogri’s party. Both leaders told me that we have to give due
rights and recognition to the Muslim Nationals. As their disciple I
recognize and respect the Rohingyas. (3) Presidents U Shwe Tha,  U Maung
Sein Nyunt, U Padi Phru, U Kyaw Hlaing,Dr. Khin Maung, Bo- Mhu Htun Kyaw
Oo, Red Comrade Oo Khin Maung, Khaing Ahnar Ni are the politicians and 
they all recognize the Rohingyas. I also met General Khaing Raza with Dr.
Yunus at Dhaka in 1991. I would assume that General Khaing Raza also
recognizes the Rohingyas. Same conclusion applies to Commander Saw Tun who
was killed along with General Raza."

History is a mirror which reflects the past of a nation and in many cases
it guides a nation to the road of peace and prosperity. In order to
achieve peace and prosperity, it is immensely necessary to take care of
only the positive and constructive events of the history and to bury the
dirty ones.

Rivalries will beget rivalries and it will never solve the problem. This
will simply poison the life of the people of Arakan not only for today but
also for the future generations. So, in order to let peace prevail in
Arakan and to restore communal harmony between two warring communities -
the Rakhines and Rohingyas, it is extremely important to bury the course
of historical rivalries and to initiate a politics of peace to create a
society for all the people of Arakan which would be free from political
oppression, economic exploitation and cultural slavery.

____________________________________
PRESS RELEASE

April 14, Federal Trade Unions of Burma
Unlawfully detained trade union members released

The five members of FTUB who were arrested unlawfully on April 1, 2009,
are back in their homes in Rangoon.  It was through international
solidarity that the five were released.  The charges on which they were
arrested were never announced, and the FTUB strongly condemns these
unlawful arrests.

The following five FTUB members were released on 10 April 2009.

1.	U Zaw Myint Aung    (49 years old, Teacher, South Okkalapa, Rangoon)

2.	U Soe Oo                   (37 years old, Textile Factory Worker, Shwe
Pyi Thar, Rangoon)

3.	Maung Tun Nyein      (22 years old, Worker, Shwe Hninsi Textile
factory, Hlaing Thayar,
Rangoon)

4.	Ms. Khine Lin Myat   (22 years old, Worker, UMH Textile factory)

5.	Ms. Shwe Yi Nyunt    (25 years old, Nurses Aide and Law Student,
University of Western
Rangoon, and Member, FTUB Women’s Committee)

A number of the family members of these five were also arrested.  They
have now all been released.

On behalf of the released members and their families, FTUB extends its
thanks and continuing appreciation to all international and national trade
unons who responded to our call, including those unions affiliated to the
International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC), the Global Union
Federations, the ITUC-Asia/Pacific, and the Asean Trade Union Council
(ATUC).  We also wish to thank the ILO for its prompt intervention, and
add our sincere appreciation to those national Governments who took up the
cause of our members.

FTUB requests the international trade union movement, the ITUC and its
members, as well as the ILO to assist the development of the workers’
social and economic conditions in Burma by continuing with the following
demands upon the SPDC Burma regime:

1. 	The SPDC must gaurentee that the five who were unlawfully arrested and
relased do not loose their jobs.

2.	The SPDC must strictly abide by ILO Convention 87 of the International
Labour Organization on Freedom of Association, which Burma has ratifed, as
well as all International Core Labour Standards, which Burma is required
as a member of the ILO to enforce.

3. 	The SPDC must denounce the actions of the authorities involved in
arresting our members, and immediately order an end to all actions to
prevent workers from forming trade unions and exercising their labour
rights in Burma.