BurmaNet News, June 18, 2010

[Editor]

June 18, Issue #3985

QUOTEOF THE DAY
“Today, as we mark Aung Sand Suu Kyi’s 65th birthday, she will be marking
this day as yet another day without freedom, cut off from her children and
family, under house arrest imposed on her by the military dictatorship
that rules Burma.” – The Dalai Lama

INSIDE BURMA
Independent (UK): A birthday party without the star guest
AP: Flooding, landslides kill nearly 60 in Myanmar

BUSINESS / TRADE
Mizzima News: Burmese tycoon brokered arms deal with China
Irrawaddy: Burma to boost ties with Iran

DRUGS
Sydney Morning Herald: Drug trade booms as rebels prepare for war

REGIONAL
China People’s Daily: Lao PM to visit Myanmar

INTERNATIONAL
BBC News: Aung San Suu Kyi's supporters mark her 65th birthday
Sydney Morning Herald: Politicians send support to Suu Kyi
DPA: Philippine activists demand Suu Kyi's release for 65th birthday
VOA: Burmese activists fear extension of army's power

OPINION / OTHER
Independent (UK): We are walking a long road to peace and freedom – Mary
Robinson
IHT: The Burma-North Korea axis – Aung Lynn Htut
Inner City Press: On Myanmar, UNDP's Clark Blames Poverty on Politics, UK
Defends Sanctions, UNDP Conflict of Interest in N.Korea? – Matthew Russell
Lee
DVB: Stop this ‘better than nothing’ talk



____________________________________
INSIDE BURMA

June 18, Independent (UK)
A birthday party without the star guest – Phoebe Kennedy

Rangoon – One thing is certain about Aung San Suu Kyi's 65th birthday
tomorrow - it will rain. This is the monsoon season in Burma and each day
brings a torrential downpour. After years of decline, her dilapidated
lakeside villa in Rangoon - where she has spent 15 of the last 21 years
under house arrest - is finally being renovated.

New terracotta roof tiles should keep the rain out and workmen have been
busy this week repairing cracks in the once-grand portico and felling a
coconut tree that was swaying dangerously close to the house.

The rain will clear the still, muggy air over Lake Inya, and Ms Suu Kyi
may choose to walk across her lawn to the shore, to watch herons and
cormorants circle their prey. She won't be alone: two policemen are
constantly stationed by the water, after an American man swam to her house
last year.

The icon of Burma's democracy movement will receive a card, cake and a
bunch of flowers from senior party members, to be delivered by a family
friend who is able to visit her most days with groceries and supplies.

"We have already organised that," said Nyan Win, her close adviser and
spokesman for her now defunct National League for Democracy (NLD) party.
"And if she wants anything else for her birthday, we will get it."

Ms Suu Kyi may decide to re-read letters from her younger son Kim and her
sister-in-law Lucinda that were delivered to her a month ago. Her husband,
the Oxford professor Michael Aris, died of cancer in 1999 and she did not
risk returning to Britain to visit him on his deathbed, fearing that she
would not be allowed back to Burma. The military authorities have denied
visas to her two sons, Alexander and Kim, whom she has not seen for years.

Another certainty: Ms Suu Kyi won't be attending the party held in her
honour in Rangoon's Ten Mile suburb. This evening, her female friends and
supporters will gather at a sprawling house, and prepare huge vats of
chicken curry and rice to feed the expected 500 guests.

As the sun rises, senior party members and loyal friends will arrive to
give alms to the cinnamon-robed Buddhist monks filing past the front
gates. "We will eat, talk and laugh. This is our way of marking her
birthday," Nyan Win said.

Hundreds of party activists, friends and supporters have been invited to
the celebrations at the home of May Hnin Kyi, who 20 years ago was elected
as the member of parliament for Mandalay but was never able to take up her
seat because the military junta dismissed the NLD victory.

As is the case at any NLD event, military intelligence officers will be
stationed outside, noting down names and taking photographs. The
party-goers risk arrest and harassment, but they don't care; many will be
former political prisoners and their families, who feel they have little
left to fear.

Most Burmese prefer to keep a lower profile, and are too preoccupied with
the daily struggle of feeding their families to pause to consider the
birthday. "Many people will not notice it," explained one local
journalist.

Those with internet access - which at a cost of 60p an hour wipes out most
people's daily wage - may try to mark the birthday online, risking
reprisals from the authorities. With sites like Twitter and You Tube
blocked, many young, urban Burmese are tentatively using Facebook to post
articles from foreign newspapers and jokes about the political situation.
"All I wanna say is that / They don't really care about us," read one
post, invoking a Michael Jackson lyric.

Thida, a 36 year-old primary school teacher, described her silent way of
marking the birthday of Burma's leading lady. "We can't celebrate. We
daren't even talk about it. But I will go to the pagoda and light candles.
So will many people. We will know it's for her."

____________________________________

June 18, Associated Press
Flooding, landslides kill nearly 60 in Myanmar

Yangon, Myanmar — Days of flooding and landslides caused by monsoon
downpours have killed 57 people in northwestern Myanmar, state media
reported Friday.

The torrential rain that started Sunday and ended midweek in Myanmar's
northwestern Rakhine state triggered floods and mudslides that washed away
homes, damaged schools and bridges, and forced more than 2,000 people to
flee, the state-run Myanma Ahlin newspaper reported.

Floodwater levels have receded and relief operations were under way, the
report said.

In neighboring Bangladesh, heavy rains killed more than 50 people this week.

Flooding is common in Asia during the monsoon season that typically starts
in late May.

Cyclone Nargis struck Myanmar in May 2008, leaving more than 140,000
people dead or missing.

____________________________________

June 18, Irrawaddy
Parties seek allies to meet election expenses – Ko Htwe

Short on funds and with limited manpower at their disposal, several
political parties in Burma are looking to pool their resources ahead of
this year's election.

The parties, among the dozens that have so far received permission to run
in the election, say they are facing severe financial constraints that
limit their ability to function effectively. Among other things, they say
they can barely afford to publish campaign materials such as political
pamphlets and journals.

“Our weak point is our lack of time, money and human resources. That's why
we need to cooperate with other parties,” said Phyo Min Thein, the
chairman of Union Democratic Party (UDP), adding that his party is now
discussing possible tie-ups with ethnic and democratic parties.

Some parties said that registration fees are especially onerous. In
addition to the 300,000 kyat (US $500) that parties must pay to register,
there is an additional fee of 500,000 kyat for each candidate that the
party fields in the election.

The UDP has released a statement calling on the government to subsidize
the candidate registration fee.

Than Than Nu, the general secretary of the Democratic Party (Myanmar),
said she welcomed cooperation between parties, but added that forming
alliances would likely take a lot of time.

“If we cooperate in the election, democratic forces can be successful. It
is difficult to reach agreements on cooperation, but we are all friends.
We also welcome other parties' offers to work together,” she said.

Nan Shwe Kyar, the spokesperson for the Wuntharnu [Patriotic] National
League for Democracy, said that finding common ground is the key to
forming a successful alliance.

“We are ready to negotiate with parties that share our goals and point of
view. Right now we are learning about the political ideologies of other
parties,” he said.

So far, 42 political parties have applied for party registration, of which
33 have been accepted. Except for the pro-regime National Unity Party
(NUP), none of the major parties from the last election in 1990 will be
running.

Both the NUP and the National League for Democracy, which won the 1990
election by a landslide, formed alliances with smaller parties.

____________________________________
BUSINESS / TRADE

June 18, Mizzima News
Burmese tycoon brokered arms deal with China – Thomas Maung Shwe

Chiang Mai – Burma’s richest business tycoon and close ally of despotic
ruler Senior General Than Shwe, went to China early this month to broker a
deal enabling the regime to buy 50 multi-role jet bombers for its air
force, trusted sources said.
Tay Za was also spotted at the Kunming regional trade fare on June 7, in
China’s southern province of Yunnan. The purpose of his visit was to help
the Burmese regime acquire the K-8 Karakorum, a two-seat intermediate jet
trainer and light attack aircraft developed in a joint venture between
China and Pakistan.

Estimates for the price of the aircraft vary widely. Last October, Bolivia
announced that it would spend US$57.8 million to buy six of the planes.
According to Jane’s Defence Weekly the deal also included “two spare
engines, a KTS2000BW test vehicle, an Interactive Multimedia Instructor
system, initial spare [parts], training and maintenance equipment”.

Since then, Venezuelan leader Hugo Chavez had announced on June 7 that his
government would spend US$82 million on 18 of the planes. The air force of
the country on the northern coast of South America already has at least
200 aircraft.

The Burmese Air Force had bought 12 K-8 Karakorum. Sources close to the
air force told Mizzima that Burma’s rulers want more ground attack
fighters than strategic fighters such as the Russian-made MiG-29 or its
Chinese-built version, the F-5. Such ground attack fighters could be used
to intimidate ethnic groups under ceasefire which have refused to bring
their troops under the supervision of the junta’s Border Guard Force.

Planes part of a mystery deal announced om September by Hongdu Aviation?

Last year Jane’s Defence Industry (also part of the Jane’s Intelligence
group) reported that K-8’s Chinese manufacturer Hongdu Aviation had
released a cryptic statement in September saying it had just secured a
contract with an “unnamed Asian country” to export 60 K-8 planes.
According to Jane’s, the statement disclosed that a deal had been struck
between Hongdu, the mystery Asian nation and China’s National
Aero-Technology Import and Export Corporation on September 6 at Hongdu’s
offices in Nanchang, Jiangxi province.

Jane’s speculated that the unnamed Asian partner could be Iran or
Indonesia, both seeking to upgrade their air forces. While it is possible
that the unnamed partner was in fact the Burmese regime, Mizzima was
unable to determine if this was the case.

According to Jane’s the statement Hongdu issued in September disclosed
that the deal would transpire in three stages. The first stage would
involve the export of 12 aircraft.  The second stage would involve the
customer acquiring K-8 related technologies, equipment and tools. The
third would involve the customer producing the final 48 aircraft under
licence locally.

Mizzima has learned that Tay Za was looking to buy an ATR-72
twin-turboprop short-haul regional airliner from Chinese Southern Airlines
for his own airline, Air Bagan. He had bought two A-310 Airbuses from
China but was unable to use the aircraft because they were grounded in
Rangoon for safety reasons.

China is one of the few places where Tay Za can now conduct business
transactions with relative ease since he was put on the American,
European, Canadian, Australian and Swiss financial sanctions blacklists
for Burma. The US government, which commonly refers to Tay Za as “an arms
dealer and financial henchman”, was the first Western nation to target the
portly tycoon on their black list, citing his close financial ties to Than
Shwe and the reclusive dictator’s children. Despite the sanctions against
him Tay Za is estimated to have amassed a fortune of more than US$10
billon dollars.

____________________________________

June 18, Irrawaddy
Burma to boost ties with Iran

Burma and Iran vowed to increase their economic and diplomatic cooperation
as a high-level delegation led by the Iranian deputy foreign minister
concluded a three-day visit to Naypyidaw on Thursday.

Burmese state-run newspapers reported on Friday that the two sides agreed
to expand their business ties and increase cooperation in regional and
international forums such as the United Nations and the Non-Aligned
Movement.

The Iranian delegation, led by Deputy Foreign Minister Mohammad Ali
Fathollahi, held talks with Burmese Foreign Minister Nyan Win on Wednesday
and later met with Minister for Energy Lun Thi to discuss matters relating
to cooperation in the oil and gas sector.

The delegation also met with Deputy Foreign Minister Maung Myint to
exchange views on mutually beneficial cooperation, according to the
state-run New Light of Myanmar.

During their meeting, Maung Myint and his Iranian counterpart signed a
Memorandum of Understanding to establish bilateral consultations between
the two foreign ministries, said the paper.

On Thursday, the Iranian delegation flew from Naypyidaw to Rangoon, where
they met with the chairman and members of the Union of Myanmar Federation
of Chambers of Commerce and Industry and agreed to promote trade and
economic cooperation between Iran and Burma.

____________________________________
DRUGS

June 19, Sydney Morning Herald
Drug trade booms as rebels prepare for war – Ben Doherty

Bangkok – Elections promised for Burma this year have sparked an explosion
in drug-trafficking into Thailand as rebel armies, fearful of a pre-poll
crackdown by the Burmese junta, trade drugs for guns. The rebels, most
notably the Wa State Army, have for decades financed their fight against
the junta by running drugs over the border, from where they are trafficked
all over the world. A decade ago the Golden Triangle border region of
Thailand, Burma and Laos supplied half the world's heroin. Afghanistan
produces more now, but drug lords in Burma have turned to making vast
quantities of amphetamines and methamphetamines, which can be produced
cheaply in small, hidden laboratories, without the need for hectares of
exposed land.

Now, Burma's illicit drug trade and its electoral process appear set to
collide. The junta has promised elections some time this year, probably
October, although few expect them to be free or fair. The junta has vowed
to bring the rebel armies under its control and turn them into
border-guard forces, before the polls are held. With the deadline for the
Wa to come under central government control lapsed, its leaders have
become worried about being attacked by government troops.

U Htin Kyi, a former Wa drug runner who now works undercover for the Thai
army gathering intelligence on drugs, said: "The Wa are very worried; they
think the junta's soldiers are coming soon, to take control before the
election. They sell the drugs to buy many, many guns so they can fight.
The Wa fighters will be ready, and they will fight." The head of the Thai
army's anti-drug Pha Muang Task Force, Colonel Peeranate Gatetem, said the
number of drug runs had increased in recent months as the desperate Wa -
outnumbered and outgunned by the junta's troops - prepare to fight.

"This year will be the biggest for amphetamines," Colonel Peeranate said.
"In all of last year, we intercepted 1.2 million pills. This year, in just
six months, already we have seized 5 million. This year there has been an
explosion." Authorities were probably uncovering only a fraction of what
is being brought across the border, by most estimates between 1 and 2 per
cent, he said. "The amphetamine trade is huge now. We think it will be
around 300 million to 400 million pills this year."

Sources from within Burma said the drug labs were working around the
clock, and new ones were being built. Larger and larger drug shipments are
being uncovered by troops and police. In February, 15 smugglers were
intercepted carrying 1.2 million pills. The United Nations' Office on
Drugs and Crime has noticed the increase, as has Thailand's Office of
Narcotics Control Board. "Minority groups that feel under threat from the
central government are using drug trafficking to sustain themselves and
keep control of their territories," a UN representative, Gary Lewis, said.
With the money they are making, the Wa are arming themselves with
surface-to-air missiles from China and AK-47 assault rifles, Colonel
Peeranate said. "They are preparing for war," he said.

"The Burmese government wants the Wa to disarm, to come under government
control and become a border guard force. But the Wa will not ever agree to
do that, so they are preparing for the government troops to move in on
them. They are getting ready to fight. They are selling more and more
drugs so they can buy weapons to fight the government." Just over the
border, in Burma, about halfway between the Thai army border camp and a Wa
camp, the rebels soldiers confirmed the Wa will not participate in the
election, and refused to co-operate with the junta. They refused to talk
about drugs. "We protect our territory. We fight for [our] people," one
soldier said. "Our life here is hard," he said. "We are poor. We always
need to make money some way, any way to feed our people. We need to
survive."

____________________________________
REGIONAL

June 18, China People’s Daily
Lao PM to visit Myanmar

Lao Prime Minister Bouasone Bouphavanh will pay an official visit to
Myanmar soon, according to an official announcement from Nay Pyi Taw
Friday with no specific date of the visit disclosed.

It will be a reciprocal visit to Myanmar made by Bouphavanh in return to
Vientiane visit by his Myanmar counterpart U Thein Sein in November 2007.

In November 2009, Lao Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Thongloun
Sisoulith came to Myanmar, during which, the two countries signed two
memorandums of understanding in Nay Pyi Taw respectively on mutual visa
exemption for holders of ordinary passport and avoidance of double
taxation and prevention of fiscal evasion with respect to taxes on income.

Sisoulith also attended the 9th meeting of Myanmar-Laos Joint Commission
for Bilateral Cooperation in Taunggyi, the capital of Myanmar's Shan
state, discussing with Myanmar Foreign Minister U Nyan Win matters
relating to further strengthening cooperation between the two countries as
well as enhancing mutual cooperation in regional and international forums.

In May 2009, Myanmar and Laos also reached a memorandum of understanding
in Nay Pyi Taw on establishing sister cities between Myanmar's ancient
city of Bagan and Laos' Luang Prabang. The establishment of the two sister
cities to boost tourism was initiated during Thein Sein's 2007 trip to
Laos.

____________________________________
INTERNATIONAL

June 18, BBC News
Aung San Suu Kyi's supporters mark her 65th birthday

Supporters of Burma's detained opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi are set
to mark her 65th birthday.

Members of the pro-democracy campaigner's party, the National League for
Democracy, plan to plant about 20,000 saplings around Burma.

Demonstrations calling for her release are planned around the world.

Ms Suu Kyi has spent most of the last two decades in some form of
detention and is currently under house arrest in Rangoon.

She was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1991.
Symbolic gesture

Supporters in the city say they plan to throw a small party for her at one
of their houses.

In the US, activists are planning to stage a rally in Washington on Saturday.

Activists from the Free Burma coalition staged a demonstration outside the
Burmese embassy in Manila, in the Philippines, on Friday.

Also on Friday, the UK called for her immediate and unconditional released.

"Her continued detention, and that of more than 2,100 other political
prisoners in Burma, contravenes international human rights law," said
Foreign Secretary William Hague.

And a group of global statesmen called The Elders, founded by Nelson
Mandela, left a seat symbolically empty for her at a meeting in South
Africa on Thursday.

Ms Suu Kyi's party, the National League for Democracy, won the last
elections in 1990 but was not allowed to take power.

The party has been forcibly disbanded, and she has been banned from
standing in elections later this year.

____________________________________

June 18, Sydney Morning Herald
Politicians send support to Suu Kyi

Australian politicians have sent birthday messages of hope and freedom to
imprisoned Burmese democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi.

Federal Housing Minister Tanya Plibersek and Deputy Opposition Leader
Julie Bishop were among 11 women named as ambassadors for Aung San Suu Kyi
at the launch of the program in Sydney on Friday.

Ms Suu Kyi, whose political party won an election in 1990 that was ignored
by the military junta, has been under continuous house arrest since 1995.
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She celebrates her 65th birthday on Saturday.

Speaking at the launch, organised by Burma Campaign Australia, Ms Bishop
said a meeting she had with Ms Suu Kyi in 1995 was a moment she would
always treasure.

"I was struck by her resilience, her determination and her courage," she
said.

"She is an inspiration to people throughout the world."

Ms Plibersek was unable to attend the launch but sent a message of support
praising Ms Suu Kyi's "personal courage in the face of injustice".

"The Australian government consistently calls for the immediate and
unconditional release of Aung San Suu Kyi and the release of more than
2000 other political prisoners in Burma," she said.

Other ambassadors named in the program include NSW Greens MP Lee Rhiannon,
NSW Legislative Council member Penny Sharpe, Sydney city councillor
Meredith Burgmann and Sydney archdeacon for women Narelle Jarrett.

The ambassadors will work to raise awareness of Ms Suu Kyi's plight ahead
of the 15th anniversary of her house arrest in October.
____________________________________

June 18, Deutsche Presse-Agentur
Philippine activists demand Suu Kyi's release for 65th birthday

Manila – Democracy activists on Friday rallied outside the embassy of
Myanmar in the Philippines to call for the release of opposition leader
Aung San Suu Kyi ahead of her 65th birthday.

The activists took a birthday cake and yellow chrysanthemums to the
embassy in Manila's suburban city of Makati to mark Suu Kyi's Birthday,
which falls June 19.

"Calling for Aung San Suu Kyi's immediate and unconditional release is the
best gift that we could offer on her birthday," said Egoy Bans, spokesman
for the Free Burma Coalition-Philippines.

"We see her continued detention as an insult to justice and democracy," he
added.

The group also called for the release of other political detainees in
Myanmar, also known as Burma.

Bans noted that based on reports by the Assistance Association of
Political Prisoners-Burma, there are currently 2,157 political detainees
in Myanmar.

Burma is a garrison state where human rights violations happen on a daily
basis," he said. "Until today, thousands of political prisoners are
suffering from torture and other forms of persecution."

During the rally, women activists read excerpts from a book, Burma Women's
Voices, a collection of stories and poems by women from Myanmar narrating
their experiences as refugees, activists, migrant workers and political
prisoners.

They also chanted slogans and sang freedom songs.

The group called on Philippine president-elect Benigno Noynoy Aquino III
to lead the Association of South-East Asian Nations (ASEAN) in pushing the
military leaders of Myanmar to free Suu Kyi and other political prisoners.

Bans noted that Aquino's late mother, democracy icon and former president
Corazon Aquino, was a staunch supporter of Suu Kyi and had called for her
release.

"We hope to see a like mother, like son situation when Noynoy assumes the
presidency," he said.

Aside from the Philippines and Myanmar , other members of ASEAN are
Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand, Vietnam, Cambodia and
Laos.

____________________________________

June 18, Mizzima News
Ban Ki-moon called Burma gas pipeline a ‘win-win’ – Thomas Maung Shwe

Chiang Mai – Mizzima has learned that while serving as Korea’s foreign
minister, UN secretary-general Ban Ki-moon promoted and publicly praised
Daewoo’s controversial Shwe natural gas pipeline project in Burma, calling
it a “win-win situation”.

The controversial project that started construction two weeks ago is the
effort of a multinational consortium that consists of Chinese, Indian,
Burmese and Korean state-owned firms as minority partners, with Daewoo
International having the largest stake and taking the lead in its
development.

The Korea Herald newspaper in Seoul called the Shwe gas project South
Korea’s “largest overseas project”.  It is estimated that royalties from
it will give the Burmese regime an estimated US$40 billion over three
decades, funds that critics fear will empower its army for years to come.
Construction of an 800-kilometre pipeline that will send gas from Burma’s
west coast to China began last week.

The uncovering of Ban’s pro-Daewoo pipeline comments comes as the UN chief
faces intense criticism from international rights advocates who question
his commitment to democracy and human rights.

The pro-pipeline comments were made in August 2005 when Ban was in New
Delhi for talks with his Indian counterpart K. Natwar Singh. According to
the India press, a high priority for both governments was Daewoo’s
collaboration with two Indian state-controlled firms in the Shwe natural
gas project: the Gas Authority of India (Gail) and ONGC Videsh, the
wholly-owned international subsidiary of the Oil and Natural Gas
Corporation (ONGC). The Press Trust of India citing the agreed minutes of
the meeting described it this way:

“Taking note of the model of Daewoo-OVL-Gail partnership in Myanmar
[Burma], the two sides agreed collaboration in exploration of hydrocarbon
resources between Indian and South Korean companies would lead to a
‘win-win’ situation.”

That Ban had agreed the Shwe project was a “win-win” has outraged human
rights advocates and Burmese exiles who have grave concerns about the
devastating environmental impact of the project, which they predict will
provide billions in foreign currency for the Burmese military to buy
weapons to use against their own people .

Wong Aung from the Shwe Gas Campaign, an advocacy group that is strongly
opposed to the Shwe project told Mizzima it “is a ‘win win’ for Ban
Ki-moon and Korean industry but certainly not the people of Burma, just
the killer generals”.

Naing Htoo from Earth Rights International also objected to the
controversial project being called a “win-win”, saying that the “Shwe
Project will harm Korea’s reputation, Daweoo’s reputation and it poses
direct human rights threat to thousands of villagers in Burma, so I’d say
it’s a ‘lose-lose’ situation. Unless the junta completely changes the way
it manages natural resource wealth and unless it starts to protect human
rights rather than violate them, the Shwe project is a disaster.”

When questioned last year by a reporter from Inner City Press about his
stance on Daewoo’s Shwe project Ban refused to comment. On Wednesday June
9 the same reporter, Matthew Russell Lee, asked the UN chief’s spokesman,
Farhan Haq, if Ban still believed the project was a “win-win”.  Haq
claimed he would find out. When reached for comment by Mizzima a week
later, Haq claimed he was still looking into the matter and failed to
provide an answer.

When Ban travelled to Burma last summer in what many observers believed
was a half-hearted attempt to show he was doing something, the Burmese
regime refused to let him see detained opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi.
 Many Burma opposition activists believed Ban could have pushed harder for
a meeting with the world’s most famous political prisoner, but failed to
do so out of fear he would risk angering the regime and harm a project
important to Korean industry. Several weeks after Ban’s visit, US Senator
Jim Webb was allowed to meet the detained Nobel Peace laureate.

Wong Aung from the Shwe gas movement feels that the Ban has never ceased
being Korea’s Foreign Minister, “when he served Korea Ban Ki-moon was
clearly a supporter of Daewoo’s Shwe gas project, an environmentally
destructive pipeline that will be built on land stolen from the citizens
of Burma. Its clear that when he became UN secretary general he didn’t
stop pursuing Korean business interests and I strongly believe this has a
lot to do with his reluctance to challenge the Burmese regime”.

Wong Aung points out that Ban’s friendly overtures to the dictatorial
regime of Islam Karimov in Uzbekistan coincide with the massive amounts of
Korean investment in that central Asian nation. In addition to Daewoo
International, two Korean state-owned firms Korea Gas Corporation (Kogas)
and the Korean National Oil Corporation (KNOC) have each invested several
billion dollars in the former Soviet republic’s lucrative energy sector.
Uzbekistan’s despotic ruler Karimov has been accused by rights groups of
jailing and executing large numbers of his opponents. In 2002, Craig
Murray, then Britain’s Ambassador to Uzbekistan, commissioned a forensic
report concluding that a deceased Uzbek dissident had likely died as a
result of his having been boiled alive by his jailers.

He said that he was particularly disturbed to read that spokesman Haq
could not confirm if on his April trip to Uzbekistan Ban had raised the
conviction in February of a prominent Aids activist who worked closely
with United Nations agencies. Human Rights Watch reported that Maxim Popov
was sentenced to seven years’ jail for “anti-social behaviour” because he
wrote and distributed Aids-awareness pamphlets that were printed with
funds from the UN.

The plight of Maxim Popov, Wong Aung believed, was not high on the
secretary-general’s list of priorities, if at all.  He said: “Korean
Foreign Minister Ban Ki-moon built up ties between Seoul and places that
are priority areas for Korean industry such as Burma and Uzbekistan,
helping to make Korea one of the biggest investors in both nations.”

“Evidently Ban Ki-moon thinks he’s still Korean foreign minister and he
can’t risk his good standing with Uzbekistan’s dictator by speaking out
about the plight of Maxim Popov, a man who was jailed by a paranoid regime
for handing out UN-funded material on Aids prevention,” he said.

“Ban Ki-moon’s relationship with Burma’s generals is exactly the same –
the rights of Korean business trump human rights. Going by his record as
secretary-general it is abundantly clear that Ban Ki-moon is not fit for
the job of heading the UN – he really is a disgrace.”

____________________________________

June 18, Voice of America
Burmese activists fear extension of army's power – Ron Corben

Bangkok – Burmese women activists fear Burma's military will be entrenched
in power after elections later this year and are calling on the
international community to reject the outcome.  The activists made the
calls as they marked Women of Burma Day and the birthday of Nobel Peace
Prize Laureate, Aung San Suu Kyi.

Fears over the transparency of Burma's national elections scheduled for
this year have led to calls by Burmese political activists for the
international community to boycott the election result.

The concern over the election outcome, likely to be in October, comes as
Burmese and ethnic communities who support Burma's opposition parties
prepare to mark the 65th birthday of opposition leader, Aung San Suu Kyi
on June 19.

The elections, the first in 20 years, are seen by some analysts as a step
forward following two decades of stagnant political progress after the
military rejected results from an election in May 1990.

Aung San Suu Kyi's opposition National League for Democracy (NLD) won the
1990 vote in a landslide, but the party never assumed power as the
military detained dozens of opposition political leaders as well as
harassing party members.

In 2008 a new constitution was pressed through by a national referendum
and the government recently announced new election laws. The NLD and other
ethnic groups have refused to participate in the election.

Lae Lae Nwe, a former political prisoner who served four years of a
21-year jail sentence before fleeing to Thailand, says she fears the
outlook for Burma after the elections.

She says the constitution supports the military's position with the
allocation of seats in a new parliament while the military's power is
supported by recently announced election laws which activists say are
biased against the opposition.

"We can see no justice and also the release of the election law," she
said.  "The election laws are not fair. I would like to say to the
international community please wipe out the 2010 elections and don't
support military junta."

Her comments came as rights group, the Alternative ASEAN Network on Burma,
released a publication, Burma - Women's Voices for Peace, a compilation of
writings by women of Burma who have faced rights abuses.

Lway Aye Nang, a member of the Women's League of Burma says the elections
will raise concerns over the military's ongoing influence.

"The election will give legitimacy to the people to the military that they
can do whatever they want in officially," she said.  "So it will not
change, the situation for Burma it will continue to put the people of
Burma in danger."

Parties closely associated with the military, such as the Union Solidarity
and Development Association (USDA), are able to campaign while other local
parties, including those linked to ethnic communities are being
restricted. She says the election is not a way forward for Burma.

"People will say something is better than nothing," she added.  "But this
something is putting the people of Burma in danger. So at the end of the
day these people from the military personnel, military community these
USDA member - they will take the lead, they will take the position to rule
the area like officially."

Burmese communities throughout the world, preparing to mark Augn San Suu
Kyi's birthday, are stepping up calls for her release from house arrest
along with the more than 2,500 political prisoners officially recorded as
being detained.

____________________________________
OPINION / OTHER

June 18, Independent (UK)
We are walking a long road to peace and freedom – Mary Robinson

My fellow Elders and I place an empty chair for Aung San Suu Kyi at all of
our meetings. We drape the chair in Burmese silk as a reminder not only of
her continued suffering, but of that of more than 2,100 other political
prisoners in Burma.

This year elections are due to take place in Burma - the first since the
victory of her National League for Democracy (NLD) in 1990, which the
junta rejected. Sadly, this is not a sign of hope as these elections are
likely to lack any credibility.

In recent months, highly restrictive provisions have forced the NLD to
disband. New laws forbid prisoners to be members of political parties -
Aung San Suu Kyi can no longer be a member of the party she used to lead
and the party cannot operate politically.

The opposition in Burma is divided between those who think participation
in the elections is wrong, and those who are trying to make the best of a
flawed situation.

My fellow Elders and I are deeply sympathetic to the difficult decisions
the people face - and we pay tribute to the ordinary citizens who are
bravely trying to improve their country's future.

It is important to remember that elections are just one part of progress
towards a sustainable peace. Burma is a deeply fractured society; tensions
between the government and ethnic groups have caused serious instability.
Burma's neighbours have already experienced the effects of conflict in
border areas and have the greatest interest in trying to prevent future
division.

With such deep fractures in society, the country needs an avenue for
dialogue. My fellow Elders and I urge the international community to
assist the government, opposition, ethnic minorities and religious groups
of Burma to begin a process of reconciliation.

Without this, the people will never achieve the peace and prosperity they
deserve.

The writer is a member of The Elders. She was the first woman President of
Ireland and is the former United Nations High Commissioner for Human
Rights

____________________________________

June 18, International Herald Tribune
The Burma-North Korea axis – Aung Lynn Htut

Washington — This is a sensitive moment in relations between the United
States and the world’s most corrupt regime: the military junta that has
plundered Burma for decades as if it were a private fiefdom.

The Obama administration has attempted to apply a strategy dubbed
“pragmatic engagement.” As it works to rethink its position amid the
present cacophony of foreign and domestic crises, there is a danger that
Washington might give Burma short shrift and unwittingly soften its stance
toward the country’s military leaders. It should be careful not do so. And
it should take the junta’s nuclear-weapons ambitions seriously.

The regime in Burma has a history of deceiving American officials. I know;
before defecting to the United States in 2005, I was a senior intelligence
officer for the war office in Burma. I was also the deputy chief of
mission at Burma’s embassy in Washington.

In the autumn of 2003, a senior staff member for a U.S. senator came twice
to our embassy in Washington to call on Ambassador U Lin Myaing and me. At
about the same time, officials from the U.S. State Department and the
National Security Council also met in New York with U Tin Win, from the
office of Burma’s prime minister, and Colonel Hla Min, the government’s
spokesman.

The American officials were checking reports that Burma had secretly
renewed ties with North Korea — one of the three pillars of George W.
Bush’s “axis of evil.”

Burma had severed ties with North Korea in 1983, after North Korean
operatives attempted to assassinate South Korea’s president, Chun Doo
Hwan, during a state visit to Rangoon. Chun was unhurt, but 17 senior
South Korean officials — including the deputy prime minister and the
foreign and commerce ministers — were killed.

The head of Burma’s junta, Senior General Than Shwe, instructed us to lie
to the Americans. We did. We blamed Burma’s political opposition for the
“rumors” that Rangoon had renewed ties with Pyongyang. The Americans
wanted proof. Than Shwe then ordered Foreign Minister U Win Aung to send a
letter denying the reports to Secretary of State Colin Powell. The British
government knew the truth. London’s ambassador to Rangoon rightfully
called U Win Aung a liar.

Why did Burma renew ties with North Korea? Regime preservation.

In the aftermath of the 1988 nationwide uprising in Burma, many foreign
joint ventures for the production of conventional weapons were cancelled.
Than Shwe began the secret re-engagement with North Korea in 1992, soon
after he took control of Burma’s ruling clique.

He argued that Burma faced potential attack from the United States and
India, which at the time was a champion of Burma’s democracy movement. He
wanted a bigger army. He wanted more modern weapons. He even wanted
nuclear arms. He cared not at all for the poverty of Burma’s people.

Than Shwe secretly made contact with Pyongyang. Posing as South Korean
businessmen, North Korean weapons experts began arriving in Burma. I
remember these visitors. They were given special treatment at the Rangoon
airport. With a huge revenue bonanza from sales of natural gas to
Thailand, Burma was soon able to pay the North Koreans cash for missile
technology.

The generals thought that they could also obtain nuclear warheads and
that, once these warheads were mounted on the missiles, the United States
and other powerful countries would not dare to attack Burma and have much
less leverage on the junta.

Than Shwe hid these links with North Korea as long as he could from Japan
and South Korea, because he was working to lure Japanese and South Korean
companies to invest more in efforts to plunder Burma’s natural resources.
By 2006, the junta’s generals felt either desperate or confident enough to
publicly resume diplomatic relations with North Korea.

Burma has worked for almost a decade to expand its production of missiles
and chemical warheads. General Tin Aye — chairman of the Union of Myanmar
Economic Holdings, the military’s business arm — is the top manager of
ordinance production and main liaison with North Korea.

According to a secret report leaked last year, the regime’s No. 3 man,
General Shwe Mann, also made a secret visit to Pyongyang in November 2008.
He signed an agreement for military cooperation that would bring help from
North Korea for constructing tunnels and caves for hiding missiles,
aircraft, even ships.

That this information was leaked by Burmese military officials working on
such sensitive activities shows both the degree of Than Shwe’s military
megalomania and the existence of opposition within the regime itself.

The words “pragmatic engagement” should not become synonymous with any
weakening of Washington’s firm opposition to Burma’s rulers.

The United States and other nations must continue to question the
legitimacy of Than Shwe and the regime. They should not believe his
promises to hold free and fair elections this year.

Only coordinated pressure from around the globe will be effective in
dealing with this master of deceit.

Aung Lynn Htut is a former senior intelligence officer in Burma’s Ministry
of Defense. He is working on his memoirs.

____________________________________

June 18, Inner City Press
On Myanmar, UNDP's Clark Blames Poverty on Politics, UK Defends Sanctions,
UNDP Conflict of Interest in N.Korea? – Matthew Russell Lee

United Nations -- Building the capacity of governments, even dictatorships
and military regimes, is the approach taken the UN Development Program.
Thursday Inner City Press asked UNDP Administrator Helen Clark to explain
what she meant that because "'political factors' restrict what the UNDP
can do in Myanmar.. 'it's not so easy to make progress there at this time'
on the Millennium Development Goals.

Ms. Clark backtracked, saying that it's not UNDP's restricted action in
Myanmar that's to blame, its the politics of aid donors-- apparently
meaning, sanctions. Clark emphasized that Myanmar gets the least
development aid per capita of any country, including North Korea.
"Politics," she said, "has been a complicating factor." Video here, from
Minute 32:28.

Well, yes. The government of General Than Shwe has dissolved the NLD party
of Aung San Suu Kyi, and has stacked the upcoming election for military
connected candidates. Is this the government whose capacity UNDP seeks to
build?

UK Ambassador Lyall Grant jumped in to say that the sanctions only "target
the regime" in what he called Burma.

The UN's Children and Armed Conflict envoy Radhika Coomaraswamy has said
that Myanmar entirely stopped working toward an action plan on child
soldiers, in the run up to the election. Inner City Press stopped
Myanmar's Ambassador to the UN outside the Security Council on June 16 and
asked why the country has stopped. The Ambassador insisted that his
government works closely with Ms. Coomaraswamy, and wants to be take off
her list of recruiters. Perhaps UNDP would support this?

Inner City Press also asked Ms. Clark about UNDP's role in the security
sector in Somalia, where the government has been exposed as using 20%
child soldiers. "We do not train soldiers," Clark answered. "We are
nowhere near that one." Not so fast. UNDP has provided funds for training
TFG security; the dispute has been how much they spend. We aim to have
more on this.

Footnote: When UNDP re-opened its North Korea program and website, it
listed Mr. Vijay Thapa as International Finance Officer. A whistleblower
asks, isn't this a conflict of interest since Mr. Thapa has been Finance
Officer in DPR Korea since 2003, therefore four years before the discovery
of counterfeit? Mr Thapa is among those UNDP Staff of DPR Korea whom
declined to talk to US Southern District Attorney on counterfeit and he is
part of the "old cast" of UNDP DPRK management responsible for the wrong
doings. One wonders, was the appointment of Mr. Thapa a request from DPR
Korean Government ? Is this more capacity building?

____________________________________

June 17, Democratic Voice of Burma
Stop this ‘better than nothing’ talk

In recent comments to the media, US senator Jim Webb urged the people of
Burma to vote in order to “build the future a step at a time”. Webb is not
alone: a number of commentators have adopted the position that an election
in Burma is better than nothing.
Many have asserted that the opposition movement would do better to
participate in the upcoming parliamentary elections, and that protest from
the sidelines rarely works. Indeed the newly formed National Democratic
Front party also believes that change may come through the parliamentary
system.

The ‘better than nothing’ approach of Webb and others, whether pragmatic,
hopeful or naïve, is not good enough. Proponents of this approach are in
essence accepting the fate of elections; they are conceding to the fact
that they will not be free and fair and that this is somehow acceptable.
Acceptance of these elections and the election result will bestow upon the
military regime the legitimacy it is seeking. The elections are not about
democratization: rather than serving the people, these elections will
serve the interests of the military elite.

Elections are important for Burma and an essential part of its
democratization process. After 20 years of military repression, the people
of Burma deserve the chance to vote. But they also deserve for their vote
to count, and the military regime has spent the past twenty years working
to ensure that it won’t. The National League for Democracy’s landslide
victory in 1990 won’t be repeated. This time round the military has
secured its success; in fact, they have constitutionalised it.

With the 2008 constitution already ensuring the military 25 percent of the
seats in parliament, the military-led Union Solidarity and Development
Party (USDP) set to secure the pivotal presidential post and with the
regime’s propaganda machine in full swing, any doubts as to the ruling
State Peace and Development Council’s (SPDC) true intention for any
power-sharing arrangement should be dispelled.

But the constitution goes further to ensure the entrenchment of military
rule. It grants total immunity for any past human rights violations
carried out by agents of current or former ruling juntas. The constitution
also allows for the return to absolute military rule and the suspension of
all fundamental rights in their entirety: in other words, the constitution
legalises military coups. The impact of this on any future attempts at
democratisation could be devastating.

Some people in the international community see these elections as a
hopeful step forward. For the people of Burma, the elections will not
bring about change, nor will they improve the lives of the people. If
anything, they have the potential to worsen the already fraught human
rights situation. If anyone had doubts about the direction of reform in
the country, then they need only look at the military regime’s
recently-exposed nuclear plans. Burma’s nuclear programme is further
evidence of the junta’s total disregard for the basic rights of its
people. It has no intention of bringing them out of poverty and all the
intention of increased militarisation. While the regime siphons off money
from the basic needs of its people and into the pockets of its military
cronies, the people of Burma are getting poorer.

For elections to be free and fair they must be competitive. Opposition
parties and candidates must enjoy the freedom of speech, assembly, and
association necessary to openly voice their criticisms of the government
and bring alternative policies to the voters. Simply granting the
opposition access to the ballot is not enough.  At present, basic
conditions allowing for the exercise of these rights do not exist in
Burma.  Anything written on the election must go past the junta’s
censorship board.

The Burmese junta has made clear its thoughts on “the process of fostering
democracy,” when it said that “improper and inappropriate campaigns” would
not be allowed. It is not hard to imagine what is meant by “improper and
inappropriate,” and it is evident what the consequences for those found
engaging in such campaigning would be. There are currently more than 2150
people languishing in prisons for peacefully exercising their political
rights.

A normal part of a democratic electoral process is debate – criticism of
the incumbent government. But in Burma the law requires that political
parties do not oppose the ruling SPDC or criticise the armed forces. How
can an opposition party, be seriously expected to contest the election
that way?

Genuine opposition parties are vital to the functioning of free and fair
elections. In Burma the political space is so restricted as to render any
party or candidate contesting the election, other than the military-backed
USDP, redundant. Not only are opposition party members facing increasing
threats, attacks, and harassment but the arbitrary nature of the rules
governing the election ensure all parties are at the whim of the military
appointed Election Commission. The Commission can pick and choose which
political parties will contest the election, all the while retaining the
power to dissolve any party, at any time, whose members fail to meet the
requirements of the military junta’s election laws, including those who do
not swear allegiance to the undemocratic 2008 constitution.

In this climate it is impossible for parties to function, with the
exception of the USDP who seem to operate above the law. The most recent
election law to be breached by the USDP is the one banning foreigners
standing as candidates. The USDP has appointed a Chinese businessman with
close ties to the ruling junta as a candidate in Kachin state.

With the election date still unannounced, and an array of arbitrary
restrictions in place, many parties are too frightened to start
campaigning. This hasn’t stopped USDP from opening their offices or
canvassing for votes. Though, when campaigning includes “incentives” such
as lending money, free tuition classes, and free medical treatment for
those who agree to vote for USDP candidates, a more apt description is
buying votes.

‘Disciplined democracy’ in Burma should be exposed for what it is:
continued military rule. Of course, it is unrealistic to expect the same
democratic standards we see in countries with years of practice, and no
one is doubting that true democracy takes time. But there are certain
conditions that must be met. Unless those conditions are met the
international community should not recognise the election result. Without
a genuine democratic transition, any election, regardless of how it is
sold abroad, will be meaningless, and it will be ‘business as usual’ in
Burma. Senator Webb needs to face up to this unpleasant reality. ‘Better
than nothing’ must be that – it must be better. If this election can not
offer the people of Burma a better future then it must be exposed for what
it is: a cruel charade.

Bo Kyi is joint secretary of the Assistance Association for Political
Prisoners-Burma (AAPP)