BurmaNet News, July 16, 2010

[Editor]

July 16, 2010 Issue #4001


INSIDE BURMA
AP: Released Myanmar prisoner to keep up struggle
Mizzima: Authorities impose tighter controls on lawyers visiting Suu Kyi
DVB: Flooding adds to Kachin state’s woes
BBC News: Burma junta support group USDA disbands

ASEAN
AFP: Tensions over N.Korea overshadow US, Asia security meet

REGIONAL
VOA: US Urges Thailand to lift state of emergency

INTERNATIONAL
Irrawaddy: Burma, North Korea top Clinton’s agenda in Vietnam

OPINION / OTHER
Christian Science Monitor: Elections in Burma (Myanmar) won't be fair, but
they will be significant
TIME: Burma: Soldiers of fortune – Hannah Beech
Irrawaddy: Freedom of Association in Burma: Sunlight or false dawn? –
Simon Roughneen
Asian Tribune: Burma honors its martyrs amid political insecurity – Zin Linn




____________________________________
INSIDE BURMA

July 16, Associated Press
Released Myanmar prisoner to keep up struggle

Yangon, Myanmar – A pro-democracy advocate freed after 14 years in prison
said Friday he will help political prisoners as he continues his struggle
against military rule in Myanmar.

Win Htein, 68, told reporters that he would participate in social
activities arranged by the National League for Democracy party, especially
to help political prisoners and their families. The party was recently
forced by law to dissolve after failing to register for an election
supposed to be held this year.

"I have no faith in the elections, and I was happy that the NLD had
decided not to re-register," said Win Htein. The junta has called for the
first polls in two decades to be held this year, though no date has yet
been set. Critics have dismissed the election as a sham designed to cement
nearly 50 years of military rule in Myanmar, also known as Burma.

The NLD the party of opposition leader and Nobel Peace Prize laureate Aung
San Suu Kyi won Myanmar's last elections in 1990 by a landslide, but the
military government refused to hand over power.

A former army officer, Win Htein joined Suu Kyi's party when it was formed
in 1988 and served as a personal assistant and close aide to Suu Kyi and
her deputy, Tin Oo.

Win Htein served a 14-year sentence on charges of providing false
information to the foreign press. He had previously served 5 1/2 years on
another political charge. He was released Thursday from Kathar prison, 800
kilometers (500 miles) north of Yangon, and was brought home to Yangon on
Friday afternoon.

Speaking at his home, Win Htein who looked well and seemed cheerful said
his time in prison had left him gastric problems, high blood pressure and
migraines caused by spondylosis degeneration of the spinal column.

Win Htein said he wanted to help political prisoners and their families
"materially, morally and spiritually."

He said he had seen many deaths in prison due to lack of medical care and
poor nutrition. However, he thanked the prison doctor who was moved to
Kathar prison a few years ago, saying that "since that doctor has arrived
no prisoners had died in Kathar prison."

Win Htein said he was in the same prison with other, younger political
prisoners who remain defiant and committed to democratic struggle.

Despite being forced to disband, the National League for Democracy says it
will continue to have organized activities.

"Having a party signboard or not doesn't matter because a political party
can stand as long as it enjoys public support. The NLD enjoys public
support immensely," said Win Htein.

Win Htein said he had invested 20 years of his life in prison for his
beliefs.

"I will continue to work for democracy and for the country. Democracy will
one day prosper in the country. If I don't see democracy in my lifetime, I
will be happy if the next generation can enjoy democracy," he said.

____________________________________

July 16, Mizzima News
Authorities impose tighter controls on lawyers visiting Suu Kyi – Phanida

Chiang Mai – The Burmese junta has imposed tighter restrictions on
meetings between opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi and her lawyers, one
of which will in effect extend to a week the lag between a request to
consult her and their actual visit to her house in Rangoon.

The Nobel Peace prize recipient and the world’s most prominent political
prisoner has been held under house arrest or jailed by the ruling military
government under a variety of spurious charges for at least 14 of the past
20 years.

Suu Kyi’s lawyers had needed to submit an application to Special Branch
police in Bahan Township for permission to meet their client, the National
League for Democracy leader. But from July 10 police told them to submit a
request letter to Suu Kyi seeking her consent ahead of any future meetings
with her, on top of the usual application.

This new directive meant it would take up to a week, from a previous
waiting time of three days,  to meet their client, party spokesman and
lawyer Nyan Win said.

The lawyers are representing Suu Kyi a special appeal against her current
sentence and two other cases are lawsuits against the junta.

“I typed a letter that is to be signed by Daw Suu for her consent to meet
us. The police will send this letter to Daw Suu and it will be returned to
us,” Nyan Win said, using the Burmese honorific for women to refer to Suu
Kyi.

Also, from June 25, Special Branch officers also verbally forbade the
lawyers from discussing any matters other than those related to her
pending cases, Nyan Win said.

Suu Kyi was reportedly planning to protest against these new directives.
Lawyers Kyi Win and Nyan Win met her yesterday for about two hours and
discussed her special appeal.

She was given a three-year sentence for “entertaining” US citizen John
Yettaw, whose family described as mentally unwell after he twice took it
upon himself to swim across Inya Lake to visit her. Following his second
amphibious landing, Suu Kyi was jailed for “violating” the terms of her
house arrest. Had Yettaw not intervened, her sentence of house arrest
would have expired two weeks later. After an international outcry, the
widowed opposition leader was released from prison and taken home to serve
her sentence of 18 months under house arrest.

Her lawyers presented arguments in her special appeal before a three-judge
panel at the High Court in Rangoon. The case will proceed to the Supreme
Court in Naypyidaw if the High Court justices give her leave to appeal.

Meanwhile, Suu Kyi and the NLD party were planning to sue the military
junta’s entire cabinet for dereliction of duty to the Burmese people and
the nation, the lawyers said.

According to the intended suit, the junta’s cabinet members have failed to
fulfill their duties as public servants. The suit will seek an injunction
enforcing the defendants to perform their duties and will be filed under
sections 45 and 54 of the Specific Relief Act.

The NLD and Suu Kyi filed a similar suit in April but the court promptly
rejected it.

Another case filed against the regime under section 42 of the same act by
26 NLD members of parliament elected in 1990 asserts that they are still
entitled to stand as MPs as they were duly voted in under electoral laws,
and that the declaration voiding the 1990 result was unlawful.

____________________________________

July 16, Democratic Voice of Burma
Flooding adds to Kachin state’s woes

Landslides and flooding have submerged houses and blocked roads in
northern Burma’s Kachin state, which is already suffering from an outbreak
of dengue fever.

Villages around the jade mining town of Hpakant have been affected by the
flooding, which has followed several days of heavy rain. A Hpakant
resident said that houses and a village hall in nearby Hsaidaung and
Hpapyin villages were underwater, while the road connecting Hsaidaung to
Hpakant was down.

“There were two roads [connecting the town and the village] and one was
destroyed by the landslide – there is only a huge pond left now,” he said.
“There is no exit for the water [from the pond] as some channels built to
guide the flow of water were destroyed by the landslide.”

Several people died in flooding near Hpakant last year, which is home to
lucrative jade mines frequented by Kachin locals who make a living from
the precious stone. Hpakant residents expressed concern that the flooding
would turn old mines in the area into potential danger zones.

Meanwhile, an outbreak of mosquito-borne dengue fever is spreading across
Kachin state. The illness, common during monsoon season, is however said
to be affecting children more than usual.

“Almost every household in the town gets sick, including my four
grandchildren who had to have injections at the hospital,” said a man in
Mogaung, central Kachin state. “Most victims are children. The outbreak is
mostly via mosquitoes and the weather has been crazy – there has been rain
and heat.”

He said that victims were forced to rely on mosquito coils imported from
China for price of 500 kyat [US$0.50) per pack, while more remote regions
with no medical clinics may have been affected worse.

Dengue fever has been sweeping other areas of Burma, with multiple deaths
reported in Irrawaddy and Bago division. An outbreak has also been
reported along the Thai-Burma border and refugees in the Mae La camp close
to Mae Sot have been diagnosed.

Additional reporting by Nan Kham Kaew

____________________________________

July 16, BBC News
Burma junta support group USDA disbands

A powerful mass movement that supports Burma's ruling junta has disbanded
and transferred its assets to a new political party, its spokesman has
told the BBC's Burmese service.

The move is designed to ensure the junta dominates the election later this
year, critics say.

The movement, USDA, has been blamed for assaults on opposition activists,
including Aung San Suu Kyi.

The new party, USDP, was set up by senior members of the junta.

Under Burma's constitution, drawn up by the generals, 25% of seats in
parliament are reserved for the military, but soldiers and civil servants
are banned from standing as civilians.

However, Prime Minister Thein Sein, who has carried the rank of general,
and 26 other top officials registered as part of the USDP (Union
Solidarity and Development Party) earlier this year.

Official media outlets have stopped referring to the prime minister's
military rank in recent articles.

Thura Myint Oo, a spokesman for USDA (Union Solidarity and Development
Association), said the authorities had given permission for the movement
to be dissolved earlier this month.

"From now on, there will not be the USDA but we will continue as a
political party," he said.

"We have officially transferred all our assets to the party according to
the central committee's decision."

USDA had been backed by rich and powerful patrons such as self-styled
Senior General Than Shwe, the leader of the country's secretive junta.

The movement was said to number 24 million members - many of whom may have
been conscripted.

Its members were implicated in the violent suppression of protests led by
monks in 2007, and in an attack on opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi in
2003.

The junta's critics say many of the possessions handed over to USDP belong
to the state, which is illegal under election law.

But USDA insists the assets were theirs to hand over.

The last election in Burma was held in 1990. Ms Suu Kyi's National League
for Democracy (NLD) won a landslide victory, but the party was never
allowed to take power.

The NLD has boycotted the forthcoming elections, and other opposition
parties have complained of difficulties in registering.

Analysts say the growing power of USDP means the military and its allies
will dominate the parliament.

____________________________________
ASEAN

July 16, Agence France Presse
Tensions over N.Korea overshadow US, Asia security meet

Hanoi – Tensions over the sinking of a South Korean warship will
overshadow the Asia-Pacific's largest security forum when it convenes in
Vietnam next week, diplomats and observers said.

US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton will join her counterparts from 27
countries and blocs including China, Russia and the European Union for the
ASEAN Regional Forum (ARF) on Friday.

South Korea has said it wants the forum to condemn North Korea for a
torpedo attack which broke the corvette in two in March with the loss of
46 lives. Pyongyang vehemently denies involvement and says it is ready to
retaliate if it is punished.

Diplomats said the ARF would be under "very strong pressure" to address
the issue after the UN Security Council condemned the attack but did not
apportion blame -- a result hailed by the North as a "great diplomatic
victory".

"We have to say something," an Asian diplomat said.

But with North Korea, China and Russia on one side of the table and South
Korea and the United States on the other, the ARF was in a "sort of
headlock" over the wording of any statement, the diplomat said.

"I feel there will be sparks," he added.

Clinton and Defence Secretary Robert Gates will pay their respects to the
dead South Korean sailors during a visit to Seoul's war memorial on
Wednesday.

The allies also plan a naval exercise as a show of strength. Seoul said
the drill would takes place in the Sea of Japan (East Sea) rather than
sensitive Yellow Sea, partly as a concession to China.

Vietnam said North Korean Foreign Minister Pak Ui-Chun was expected to
attend the ARF talks, which also include US allies Australia and Japan.

Permanent Security Council members China and Russia ensured the UN's July
9 statement was "very soft and indirect," contrary to what Washington and
Seoul had urged, University of Sydney Korean studies lecturer Leonid
Petrov said.

China and Russia have not publicly accused the North of sinking the
warship, despite an investigation by the United States, South Korea and
other countries which found strong evidence of a North Korean torpedo
attack.

Diplomats and analysts said that while the ARF is likely to comment on the
sinking of the Cheonan -- possibly by referring to the UN statement or
using similar language -- it was unlikely to blame Pyongyang.

Communist Vietnam, which will chair the meeting, has major business links
with South Korea but sees the North as an ideological ally.

"Hanoi will try not to antagonise Pyongyang unnecessarily but also should
not shy away from some comment," said Ralph Cossa, president of the
Pacific Forum CSIS research institute in Hawaii.

International Crisis Group analyst Daniel Pinkston said he expected the
foreign ministers to play down the issue, "considering the format and
decision-making process at the ARF".

The UN statement gives the forum "a plausible reason for avoiding it", he
said.

Critics have dismissed the ARF as a "talk shop" with little influence on
the region's many conflicts -- from Kashmir to the South China Sea and the
southern Philippines -- except as a vehicle for confidence-building
between nations.

The 10 countries of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) --
whose foreign ministers meet in Hanoi from Monday -- form the core of the
ARF and have a principle of non-interference in each other's affairs.

In the wake of the UN statement, nuclear-armed North Korea said it was
willing in principle to return to multilateral disarmament talks which it
abandoned last year.

North Korea can be expected to make more efforts at the ARF to "mend
bridges" with Washington and perhaps Seoul, while believing it can
"continue extorting concessions and aid," Petrov said.

"But it's not going to lead anywhere unless North Korea undertakes a major
reform. Pyongyang doesn't understand this."

A "wild card" with the potential to colour next week's meetings is
Myanmar, the military-ruled member of ASEAN which, along with North Korea,
is under UN sanctions.

Al Jazeera television last month alleged North Korea was helping Myanmar's
ruling generals to begin a nuclear weapons programme, prompting Washington
to raise concerns about "growing military ties" between the two countries.

____________________________________
REGIONAL

July 16, Voice of America
US Urges Thailand to lift state of emergency – Daniel Schearf

Bangkok – A top U.S. envoy has urged the Thai government to lift the state
of emergency it has been under since April. Thai authorities say the
strict controls are needed to prevent unrest while critics say they are
being used to silence government opponents and limit freedom of
expression. The U.S. envoy also urged Thailand to push its neighbor Burma
for credible elections.

U.S. Undersecretary of State Bill Burns on Friday said he told Thai
officials emergency decrees imposed on much of the country ought to be
lifted as soon as possible.

The emergency powers allow the government to deploy soldiers to maintain
order, detain people without charge for up to a month, and censor the
media.

Thai authorities last week extended the state of emergency for Bangkok and
18 provinces for another three months. The government says the strict
controls are needed to prevent unrest.

But speaking to an audience at Bangkok's Chulalongkorn University, Burns
said it was in Thailand's own interest to lift the state of emergency. He
said the decrees were not healthy for any democratic system.

"Now more than ever, it is critical for all Thai leaders to promote
dialogue and reconciliation, to recognize the legitimate grievances of
Thai citizens and to support the equal and impartial application of the
rule of law," he said.

Thai authorities imposed the state of emergency after anti-government
protesters in April broke into the Parliament building, forcing leaders to
flee by helicopter.

Thousands of demonstrators occupied central Bangkok from March to May
demanding the government step down and allow new elections.

Clashes between soldiers and protesters left 90 people dead, most of them
civilians, and almost 2,000 injured.

The U.S. under secretary of State also urged Thailand to use its
leadership in the region to press Burma for political reform ahead of
elections expected later this year.

"The United States and Thailand have a shared interest in pressing for an
inclusive, transparent, and credible electoral process. A first step
toward this should be a genuine dialogue among all stakeholders and the
release of more than 2,100 political prisoners including Aung San Suu
Kyi," he said.

Aung San Suu Kyi's National League for Democracy won Burma's last
elections, two decades ago, but Burma's military rulers ignored the
results.

She has been kept locked up most of the time since and is banned from
running for office.

Burma's neighbors, including Thailand, have been criticized for putting
lucrative trade with the military government above human rights concerns.

The United States last year began a policy of engaging with Burma but
maintains economic sanctions along with the European Union, Canada and
other nations.

____________________________________
INTERNATIONAL

July 16, Irrawaddy
Burma, North Korea top Clinton’s agenda in Vietnam – Lalit K Jha

Washington — The  growing relationship between Burma and North Korea tops
the agenda of US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton next week when she
attends an Asean meeting in Vietnam.

The issues of human rights violations by the Burmese military regime and
North Korea's sinking of a South Korean navy ship will come up prominently
during Clinton’s bilateral meeting with Asean leaders and those from other
Asian countries, said Kurt Campbell, the assistant secretary of state for
East Asian and Pacific affairs.

 “The secretary will not shy away from raising either, both in the
multilateral context in the larger Asean session but also in a bilateral
context. And she will have very specific words about the tragic sinking
of the Cheonan and will talk about our concerns about a variety of
issues, including the upcoming steps leading up to the [Burmese]
elections, we think, later this year in Burma,” he told reporters at a
news briefing.

“Last year, we were very gratified that several of the key ministers spoke
out encouraging greater transparency, openness, on the part of the leaders
in Burma. And to take advantage of this opportunity to engage the United
States, I expect that there will be further statements along those lines,”
he said.

Campbell expressed concern over the nuclear weapons ambitions of the
Burmese junta and its links with the North Korean regime. “We’ve stated
very carefully and clearly on the record that we are primarily concerned
in terms of Burmese activities about its violation and its activities
associated with UN Security Council Resolution 1874,” he said.

“We continue to ask for adherence to that important resolution, and we are
asking for the government to put in place a process which allows for
greater transparency for various interactions with North Korea,” he said.

To date, the US has been unsuccessful in gaining this kind of
transparency, which would give it greater confidence about further
engagement and commercial interactions with Pyongyang, he observed.

Campbell said the Obama administration is working on appointing a special
Burma envoy and an announcement in this regard is expected soon.

“As we have stated publicly, it is a provision of the JADE Act that the US
government will appoint a coordinator for Burma policy. And there are
consultations ongoing now both inside government and with key
stakeholders, and I expect that there will be an announcement on this in
the not-too-distant future,” he said.

Responding to a question on the forthcoming elections in Burma, he said
all indications are that these will not be free and fair.

“I think the steps that we’ve seen to date suggest that these will not be
free and fair elections, that there are many problems associated with the
domestic environment,” he said.

Expressing concerned that the Burmese government has not engaged in a
domestic dialogue with its critics and others, Campbell said the United
States is prepared “under the right circumstances” to engage and to work
with the government in terms of trying to improve the domestic
circumstances inside the country and its international behavior going
forward.

Meanwhile, the global think-tank, the International Crisis Group (ICG),
has called on world leaders to make the best of a flawed situation and
work to reintegrate Burma with the community of nations.

“When they take place later this year, elections in Burma [Myanmar] will
not be free and fair. But in a country silenced for 20 years, an imperfect
vote will be better than no election at all,” Jim Della-Giacoma, the
Southeast Asia ICG project director, wrote in a commentary in The
Christian Science Monitor newspaper.

As elsewhere, flawed elections will be a part of that transition, he said.
“Some political space has already been created for such transition: for
example, some parties have started discussing future legislative proposals
and drafting laws. This is hardly a major step toward democracy, but
something that would have been unthinkable—and illegal—a year ago.”

____________________________________
OPINION / OTHER

July 15, Christian Science Monitor
Elections in Burma (Myanmar) won't be fair, but they will be significant –
Jim Della-Giacoma

Efforts to further isolate the military junta won’t succeed. Instead,
world leaders should make the best of a flawed situation and work to
reintegrate Burma with the community of nations.

Jakarta, Indonesia — When they take place later this year, elections in
Burma (Myanmar) will not be free and fair.

But in a country silenced for 20 years, an imperfect vote will be better
than no election at all. The international community should be ready to
take advantage of this regardless of who’s in power.

Many believe that the military regime in Burma, the poorest country in
Southeast Asia, is one of the world’s most repressive and abusive regimes.
Forced labor is still widespread, and the government is known for regular
human rights violations and violent crackdowns. In March, the dictatorship
announced it was going to hold the first elections in 20 years. This has
drawn a lot of international attention and skepticism.

In Burma’s last democratic election in 1990, Nobel laureate Aung San Suu
Kyi led her party, the National League for Democracy (NLD), to a landslide
victory. But the result was not accepted by the junta, and since then she
has spent most of the past 15 years in detention.

This spring Ms. Suu Kyi announced her party would boycott the polls if the
elections do happen. While she was constitutionally barred from standing
for the office of president, ambiguities in the new election law meant
that it was not automatically apparent that she would have been barred
from running for parliament. With her boycott, however, those wishing to
vote against the regime now have less choice – symbolically or otherwise.

The election will bring into force a flawed constitution, but it will be
one that creates new political institutions. There will be a presidential
system, two houses of parliament as well as 14 regional governments and
assemblies. Despite the fact that most of the spots will probably go to
the regime’s cronies, it will be the most wide-ranging transformation in a
generation and offers an opportunity for a change in the future direction
of the country.

Also, the wake of the elections will come with a generational change in
leadership as the aging Senior Generals Than Shwe and Maung Aye are likely
to step down or take on ceremonial roles. Of course, this is not
automatically a step for the better, but it is nonetheless highly
significant.

Critics argue that participation in an election is pointless (or wrong in
principle). Some argue an election should not take place until conditions
are perfect. They say voters – including those in the regime and their
family members, many who would have voted for the NLD in 1990 – could not
possibly be in a position to cast their votes freely this time around.

But such arguments belittle the bravery of the ordinary citizen who in an
act of defiance has often wrought change against decades of oppression.

Consider what happened in Timor-Leste: It would not be a free nation today
except for the courage of hundreds of thousands of individuals each
casting their own vote. The possibilities for intimidation and
vote-rigging in Burma should not be underestimated, but neither should the
bravery and determination of voters. Even if the elections are nothing but
a good relations publicity-stunt, as they likely are, the international
community and citizens within Burma should be determined to make the best
of a flawed situation.

Any evolution from half a century of authoritarian rule is going be slow,
halting, and imperfect. As elsewhere, flawed elections will be a part of
that transition. Some political space has already been created for such
transition: For example, some parties have started discussing future
legislative proposals and drafting laws. This is hardly a major step
toward democracy, but something that would have been unthinkable – and
illegal – a year ago.

With fresh allegations of military links between Burma and North Korea, as
well as indications that Burma may be flirting with nuclear and missile
technology, there is fresh momentum internationally to further reinforce
Burma’s pariah status. But surrounded by powerful and engaged neighbors
such as India and China as well as integration into the Association of
South East Asian Nations (ASEAN), the country is far from isolated.

Sanctions have failed to achieve their objectives over many years. Rather
than go back to what has not worked, efforts should be made to reintegrate
Burma with the community of nations. The international community can use
the news of elections as a window to such change.

To be sure, it seems very likely that the vote will go ahead without the
regime changing course. But the opportunity is still there. When a new
government is sworn in after the vote, the international community should
criticize unfair elections, but it should also not be blinded to the
significance of the change.

Jim Della-Giacoma is the South East Asia Project Director of the
International Crisis Group. Its latest report, The Myanmar Elections, is
available at www.crisisgroup.org.

____________________________________

July 16, TIME
Burma: Soldiers of fortune – Hannah Beech

Pyin U Lwin –The weekend invasion begins with the click-clack of
thumbtack-adorned shoes. For four hours, senior cadets from Burma's
Defense Services Academy (DSA) and its sister technological institute
march through the streets of Pyin U Lwin, briefcases in hand, maroon
berets perched on proudly angled heads. Most are preoccupied with securing
the rations of daily life: soap, socks, kung fu DVDs. But even as the
stern-faced students contribute to the local economy, shopkeepers whisper
about the arrogance of kids who are indoctrinated to believe they are, as
the massive English sign in front of the DSA campus proclaims, the
"triumphant elite of the future." Even after promised elections later this
year, Burma, known by the ruling junta as Myanmar, will remain one of the
most militarized states in the world. No wonder the privileged young men
marching through this central Burmese town expect nothing less than to one
day rule their cowed nation.

At a juice bar in this agreeable former British hill station once known as
Maymyo, I chat with a group of cadets hunched over glasses of strawberry
milk. Their attitude toward locals notwithstanding, the cadets are polite
and surprisingly willing to speak to a foreigner. One baby-faced
20-year-old tells me his major is naval architecture, sharing dreams of
designing warships for a nation that boasts 450,000 soldiers and dedicates
21% of its spending to the military, according to lowball official
statistics. Another student is focusing on hydro-engineering; he plans to
build dams, a lucrative new pursuit of Burma's military dictatorship,
which sells plentiful energy to neighboring nations while leaving
two-thirds of local households without access to any electricity. Yet
another narrow-shouldered cadet is studying nuclear chemistry and
confides, "my specialty is uranium and plutonium studies." His chosen
subject is particularly topical given the U.S. State Department's recently
stated concerns over a possible Burmese nuclear program — a project that a
DSA graduate turned defecting army major tells exile media has its
headquarters at the Defense Services Technological Academy's fortified
campus in Pyin U Lwin.

Later, I wander into an Internet café packed with cadets waiting for the
electricity to be restored — a constant waiting game in Burma — so they
can play World of Warcraft. I ask if they are skilled at the computer
game. "Of course, we are good," says an English-speaking nuclear-physics
major, his tone factual, not boastful. "We are students at the DSA. We are
very superior." A Burmese friend, who passed all the academic and
psychological requirements for the DSA but was rejected at the last moment
because he had flat feet, fills me in on the cadets' mentality. "The point
of going to the DSA is so you can become a rich and powerful person," he
says, relating the trajectory of a schoolmate who attended Burma's West
Point. His childhood buddy is now a rising star at a northern regional
command, which means he can profit from government timber and mining
businesses. "He is rich, his parents are rich, his brothers and sisters
are rich, his children will be rich," says my friend. "They don't worry
about anything."

Burma may be one of the poorest and most isolated nations on earth, but an
emerging elite — a burgeoning officer class, attendant business cronies
and the coddled offspring of both groups — is only getting richer, more
powerful and less accountable. Over the past few years, the Burmese
economy has been transformed as the junta has auctioned off the nation's
plentiful natural resources to the highest foreign bidder, Western
sanctions notwithstanding. The influx of cash has been reserved for the
razor-thin top stratum of Burmese society, whose ostentatious displays of
wealth shock a citizenry struggling just to survive. "For a long time, as
the regime ran the economy into the ground, there was a feeling that most
everyone was growing poor equally," says Sean Turnell, an economist at
Macquarie University in Sydney who studies Burma. "But now tensions are
growing because you see a small elite growing immeasurably richer while
others are getting poorer. It's all about relative position, and in Burma
today, the inequalities are growing faster than just about anything." (See
pictures of Burma's decades-long battle for democracy.
http://www.time.com/time/photogallery/0,29307,1665535,00.html

Poor Little Rich Country

Burma, which has been run by a military regime since an army coup in 1962,
is no tropical North Korea. Amid the crumbling colonial buildings,
Rangoon, the country's largest city, boasts glittering nightclubs, day
spas and even espresso bars. In fact, because of mushrooming foreign
direct investment (FDI) in the country's natural bounty — in 2009, 100% of
implemented FDI was from the resource-extraction business — the government
has more than $5 billion in foreign-currency reserves at its disposal,
according to the International Monetary Fund (IMF). Financial chicanery,
however, keeps most money flows obscure. For instance, Burma converts
revenues from its lucrative natural-gas sector at an official exchange
rate of $1 to 6 kyat, though the market exchange rate is roughly $1 to
1,000 kyat. That means of every $1,000 in energy earnings, just $6 goes
into national coffers. Where the rest goes is a mystery. Global watchdog
Transparency International ranks Burma as the third most corrupt nation in
its survey of 180 nations, outdone only by Afghanistan and Somalia.

Certainly, the revenues from natural gas, oil, timber, gems and other
commodities haven't been used for the betterment of the Burmese. Five
years ago, the country's military rulers spent billions of dollars
building a sprawling new capital out of scrubland, forcing many civil
servants to move from Rangoon with just a couple of days' notice. In two
decades, the nation has doubled the number of soldiers in the Tatmadaw, as
the Burmese armed forces is called, even though there are far fewer
battles to fight against ethnic insurgent groups. Twenty Russian fighter
jets — not to mention suspicious nuclear technology — are the military's
latest playthings. On the outskirts of Pyin U Lwin, another costly
megaproject is materializing: a cybercity whose vastness belies the fact
that Burma, even with a proliferation of Internet cafés in Rangoon,
remains one of the least wired nations on earth. And in the big cities and
beyond, construction crews are busy outfitting Burma's upper classes with
marble-lined mansions, fancy vacation homes and towering Buddhist pagodas
chiseled with the names of generals and their cronies.

The building boom has surged even as at least one-third of the nation
lives below the poverty line, according to the U.N. Inflation is so high
that the U.N. estimates an average household spends 73% of its income on
food. The World Health Organization ranks the country's health care system
as the second worst in the world, just ahead of Sierra Leone's. On the
recently built highway from Rangoon to Naypyidaw, the new capital, I meet
a 15-year-old girl who spends her days in the heat carrying chunks of rock
on her head. She has been working on this road since she was 11 years old.
Her daily pay? $1.50 — and that's when Max Myanmar, a company run by a
junta crony whose name was added to the U.S. sanctions list last year,
bothers to pay at all. On its polished English-language website, Max
Myanmar says employees' welfare is a top priority and that the
conglomerate covers "field allowance, bonus, meals, medicare, education
allowance and annual celebrations for pleasure and relaxation." The girl
laborer has enjoyed none of these. But she dreams one day of reaching the
end of her road. "I have heard that Naypyidaw has so much electricity that
nighttime looks like day," she says. "Can you imagine such a beautiful
place?" (See pictures of Burma's discontent.

Following the Money

With the nation set to hold carefully orchestrated elections later this
year, the economic disparities may soon yawn even wider. The junta ignored
the results of Burma's 1990 polls, which the military's proxy party lost
badly to Nobel Peace Prize winner Aung San Suu Kyi's National League for
Democracy (she remains under house arrest). Now, military leaders seem to
want to present a fig leaf of civilian rule to the West. Top posts like
the presidency and key Cabinet seats, as well as a big chunk of
parliament, will be reserved for military members. But to maintain the
appearance of a transition to civilian government, the junta has in recent
months privatized dozens of state-owned (read: military-owned) companies.
Auctioning off these enterprises creates cash to fund the military's proxy
Union Solidarity Development Party in the upcoming polls. In addition,
many high-ranking officers are being forced to stand in the elections and
they, along with other top brass uncertain about the postelection
landscape, must be worried about losing their military lifeline. A
redistribution of state assets to people close to them secures their
future. (Read "Burma Court Finds Aung San Suu Kyi Guilty."

Indeed, control of factories and banks, gas stations and ruby mines has
been handed over, without exception, to a select circle of favored
businessmen or military progeny. Many of these men — for they are all men
— are targets of Western sanctions, such as Tay Za, a DSA dropout whose
business empire has tentacles in everything from airlines to hotels, and
Steven Law, the son of a drug lord whose conglomerate constructs dams,
roads and practically any other project that uses copious amounts of
cement. These cronies burnish ties with the junta through directorships,
donations and even marriages. "I don't know of a single big company that
doesn't have a princeling or other [general's] family member on its board
or involved somehow," says economist Turnell. "The problem with this
system is that these robber barons aren't creating an environment for
sustained growth or the building of industry. It's just pure
racketeering."

I see how wealthy the Burmese elite has become when I tour the Mindhama
Residences in Rangoon, a Tay Za – owned housing development just across
the street from an exhibition center where massive slabs of jade are piled
high on government trucks. With villa types named after Burma's mineral
wealth, like Imperial Jade and Red Ruby, the mansions start at $850,000
and go up to $1.2 million, not counting interior decor. All but one has
been sold — this in a nation where per capita GDP is just $442, according
to the IMF. Might I be interested in the remaining one? The agent allows
me to gawp at the splendor: swirls of gilt and meters of marble, Jacuzzi
bathtubs, crystal chandeliers. I feel like I have wandered into a Texas
McMansion. "Who has bought the other houses," I ask, feigning interest in
my potential neighbors. "Some businessmen," he says. "But mostly ..." he
trails off, then taps his fingers to his shoulders, the Burmese code for
army stripes.

Hardwired

The red sign blocking the main entrance to the half-built Yadanabon
Cybercity looks innocuous enough to someone who doesn't read the local
language, a swirl of curved Burmese letters and numbers. But the people of
Burma have been conditioned to fear this sign: "This area is under
military order 144," it says. "Shoot to capture." It's a measure of
Burma's peculiar mix of isolationist paranoia and technological ambition
that its future Silicon Valley has been declared a military zone
inaccessible to normal civilians. Inside the 4,050-hectare construction
site, I drive along empty stretches of tarmac, past plots of land that
will soon boast offices for Burma's biggest crony companies: Htoo Trading,
Tay Za's conglomerate; IGE, headed by the son of Burma's Minister of
Industry General Aung Thaung, who is barred by the European Union; Redlink
Communications, owned by the sons of the junta No. 3, General Thura Shwe
Mann, one of whom is on the U.S. visa blacklist. Thai, Malaysian, Russian
and Chinese firms have staked their ground too. Burma's state media
reports that foreign companies have so far invested $22 million in the
first phase of Yadanabon.

Ever since images of protesting monks escaped from Burma during the
crushed demonstrations of 2007, the regime has been scrambling to
centralize control over the Internet. Thousands of websites have been
blocked, cyberdissidents jailed and debilitating strikes launched against
exile-media websites. Yadanabon will be the nerve center of Burma's
Internet operations. But it's not all computer cubicles and high-tech
wizardry. On a point overlooking the famous hills of Shan State, $200,000
vacation villas are being built. One model drawing shows a BMW SUV in a
garage, and the half-finished houses already feature Tudor trimmings and
spacious verandas. Nearby, a farmer toils on a sliver of land that has
belonged to her family for at least three generations. Soon the Cybercity
will eat up this tiny plot too. The woman doesn't expect any compensation
since she received nothing when the rest of her fields were confiscated a
year ago. "We are little people, so we cannot complain," she says. "All we
can do is concentrate on feeding ourselves." (See pictures of the junta
blocking Burma from receiving aid after a cyclone ripped through the
country.

The man entrusted to oversee Yadanabon is neither a businessman nor even
an adult. But being the grandson of junta leader Than Shwe brings perks. A
scrawny soccer fan with no discernible skills on the pitch, Nay Shwe Thway
Aung was once added to the Burmese national team when prominent Japanese
player Hidetoshi Nakata went to Rangoon for an exhibition match. Other
privileged Burmese youth have made an impression off the field. The most
notorious was an informal collective of military offspring called
Scorpion, which was forced to disband after two members spooked the junta
No. 2, General Maung Aye, by riding up to his car on motorcycles and
making menacing gestures. Maung Aye responded by outlawing most
motorcycles in Rangoon, a ban that still holds today. (Read "Getting to
Know Burma's Ruling General."

Even beyond Scorpion, there are plenty of other rich kids roaming Rangoon.
At the packed JJ nightclub — where the bidding at "model shows," as
prostitute auctions are called, reaches $2,500 for a comely maiden — one
manager complains about the impunity with which military officers and
their sons operate. "They drink for free and can pick girls for free," he
says. "Nobody dares say no; otherwise we will be finished."

Flying High

There are no such diversions in Naypyidaw, the austere capital that takes
a good hour to cross in a car — an hour in which I pass perhaps a dozen
other vehicles. When I visited two years ago, I figured the barren
landscape dotted with little more than grandiose ministry buildings and
golf courses would eventually be filled with normal signs of life. But
today, save the occasional color-coded civil-servant housing complex or
shopping center already deteriorating under the unrelenting sun, the
capital is still a monochromatic emptiness, as if Mark Rothko took to
urban planning. The rumor goes that Naypyidaw was built without nightclubs
or bars to prevent princelings and their cohorts from bad behavior.

So the party goes on in Rangoon instead — or in Singapore, where some
wealthy Burmese maintain homes and bank accounts. Riding one afternoon in
Rangoon in a dilapidated taxi that saw its best days four decades ago, I
hear a deep-throated purr behind me. Turning around, I spot a
sunflower-yellow Lamborghini careening past the potholes of Strand Road.
The taxi driver knows the luxury car well. It is a plaything of Tay Za's
family. Later I spot the same vehicle, along with several Mini Coopers and
a Ferrari, parked at the mansion of the man the U.S. Treasury Department
calls "an arms dealer and financial henchman of Burma's repressive junta."
In June, Tay Za is believed to have helped the Burmese regime buy even
flashier modes of transport: 50 Karakorum light attack aircraft from
China. (His aviation company is also credited with brokering last year's
deal for the Russian MiGs.) All these new planes will surely please the
DSA cadets, who perhaps one day can graduate from computer games to real
fighter jets. For the "triumphant elite of the future" — like the rest of
Burma's pampered classes — even the stratosphere is within easy reach.

____________________________________

July 16, Irrawaddy
Freedom of Association in Burma: Sunlight or false dawn? – Simon Roughneen

Bangkok—With elections scheduled for later this year, a fierce debate has
emerged among those who view the polls as an opportunity, albeit limited,
to open up some democratic space in a military-ruled country, and those
who see the process as a sham aimed at legitimizing continued military
rule.

A relatively light-handed reaction to a series of strikes in late 2009 and
early 2010 has some thinking that with an election looming, the ruling
junta does not want to be seen clamping down on public gatherings.

According to Steve Marshall, the liaison officer for the International
Labour Organization (ILO) in Burma, “The fact that the country is moving
toward general elections and a parliamentary system of government is
opening some windows of opportunity for positive change. It is important
that these opportunities be recognized and constructively taken.”

Some of the recent labor strikers were relatives of military officers,
another factor possibly curtailing any potential crackdown. Some of the
personnel working to reduce the prevalence of forced labor in Burma are
simultaneously members of the Union Solidarity Development Association
(USDA), a 28-million member “civil society” organization that is widely
regarded as a junta front, with many of its members coerced into joining.

The strikes were similar in origin to protests that precipitated the 2007
Saffron Revolution, based on economic factors generally, and price
increases specifically. A late 2009 wage hike for the public sector drove
up prices for basic goods, putting pressure on incomes elsewhere as
private sector wages stayed as they were.

Despite these echoes, and although public gatherings of more than five
people are prohibited, police action was restricted to crowd control
during the strikes. Criminal charges were not leveled against strike
leaders, and officials acted as mediators between the employers and
disgruntled workers.

This is unusual for Burma, where there are more than 2,100 political
prisoners, with many held in inhumane conditions. Domestic laws often
conflict with international human rights norms, including restrictions on
freedom of association that contradict the Universal Declaration of Human
Rights.

According to the March 2010 report on Burma, by UN Human Rights Envoy
Tomás Ojea Quintana, there are several domestic laws that restrict the
principles of freedom of association and assembly, such as the Unlawful
Association Act (1908), the State Protection Act (1975), as well as
sections 143, 145, 152, 505, 505 (b) and 295 (A) of the Penal Code.

However, some Burmese apparently feel that the legality of army-issued
laws and decrees is open to question. In June, an attempt to form a trade
union was nixed by the authorities, though surprisingly no arrests of the
prime movers concerned were carried out. The would-be trade unionists
based their challenge to the existing mechanisms restricting freedom of
association on a colonial-era law—the 1926 Trade Union Act.

It appears that the junta is working on trade union-enabling laws that
could be implemented after the election. Marshall told The Irrawaddy that
"the government has advised those workers of their legislative intentions
and has advised them to be patient and await the passing of the proposed
new Act of Parliament at which time they could seek registration as a
union under the new law."

This would bring the regime more in line with obligations under
international law, such as the ILO Convention 87 on Freedom of Association
and the Right to Organize.

Ojea Quintana reported: “According to the Attorney General, the Government
has been reviewing national legislation and has found that half are not in
line with the new Constitution, and 50 laws will be deleted. Some laws
remain to be reviewed, but that should be completed before the end of the
year.”

However, the junta has already been accused of breaching its own
Constitution by allowing sitting ministers to form the Union Solidarity
and Development Party (USDP), which will contest the election on behalf of
the military, despite a provision in the 2008 document that should prevent
officials from forming political parties.

The 2008 Constitution also lays out that the judiciary should administer
justice independently, dispense justice in open court unless otherwise
prohibited by the law and guarantee the right of defense and the right of
appeal under the law. However, as the March 2010 report to the UN Human
Rights Council notes: “In reality, many trials are conducted behind closed
doors within prison compounds, without legal representation, without the
presence or knowledge of their family members, without proof of evidence
or with defective evidence, and pursuant to arbitrary decisions of the
judges.”

The election laws have been dismissed as overly restrictive, with the
National League for Democracy boycotting the process as a result, along
with several ethnic minority parties. For those parties that have chosen
to participate, the playing field is far from level, with the latest
election rules prohibiting parties from displaying flags or marching and
chanting slogans in procession before or after a meeting.

Freedom of association is a key attribute in the holding of any elections,
and according to Ojea Quintana's report: “The continuous building of
democracy, which is the aim of the seven-step road map as declared by the
Government, requires the active participation of civil society, including
independent NGOs. Organized groups such as associations of monks, students
and human rights defenders have been harshly suppressed.”

History shows that the military government often allows public gatherings
to gather some critical mass over days and weeks, to enable intelligence
services to gather enough information about those involved to facilitate a
crackdown later on, as was the case during the 2007 Saffron Revolution.

____________________________________

July 16, Asian Tribune
Burma honors its martyrs amid political insecurity – Zin Linn

Burma’s Independence has been blended together with blood and lives of the
nation’s top leaders.

July 19 has been known as Martyr's Day in Burma and citizens will
commemorate their independence heroes as always amid political insecurity.
On 19 July in 1947, seven independence leaders of Burma were assassinated
by a group of armed men while they were holding a cabinet meeting at 'The
Secretariat' or government house in downtown Rangoon. The assassination
plot was made by Galon U Saw, a former prime minister of British colonial
Burma.

The assassinated cabinet ministers were General Aung San (father of Aung
San Suu Kyi), Thakin Mya, Dedoke U Ba Cho,U Razak, U Ba Win (oldest
brother of Aung San and father of Dr Sein Win, the leader of the National
Coalition Government of the Union of Burma), Mahn Ba Khaing and Meng
-pawng Saopha Sao Sam Htun. Cabinet secretary U Ohn Maung and a bodyguard
called Maung Htwe were also slain in the killing.

Most Burmese people believe that the then British authorities had involved
in the assassination plot behind the curtain; two British officers were
also arrested at the time and one of them charged and convicted for
supplying arms and munitions to U Saw. Six months after the assassination,
Burma gained its independence from British colonialist.

Trying to gain political power by means of gun or bloodshed is an
unacceptable practice, Aung San Suu Kyi highlights time and again
publicly. She also believes in non-violent politics to stop the
bloodstained politics. That’s why she repeatedly voices that political
problems must be solved out by means of political methods. Hence, she
always states practicing dialogue is the best way for conciliatory
conclusion in political dealings. She offers dialogue to the incumbent
junta since September 1988 after founding of her party, the National
League for Democracy. But, the authoritarian generals turn a deaf ear not
only to the Lady but also to the ethnic leaders so far.

As a result, the socio-economic atmosphere of the country is worsening
day-to-day because of political instability. The junta may not be able to
manage the socio-economic situation, which is deteriorating fast. It will
soon come face-to-face with a bleak future if it continues to refuse
dialogue or the national reconciliation process being urged by the
opposition the National League for Democracy (NLD) and the United
Nationalities Alliance (UNA).

The regime has also ignored calls from the international community,
especially from the UN, US and EU, to release over 2,100 political
prisoners for meaningful dialogue with the oppositions. In addition, the
groupings urge to review the 2008 Constitution, which will not bring real
changes to the Burmese citizens. People are convinced that, like the
referendum held at gunpoint, the secret ballot will not be free, fair and
inclusive. The junta may not be able to deal with the worsening
socio-economic situation if it continues to turn down the national
reconciliation process being urged by the opposition NLD and the UNA as
well as the UN. Without National Reconciliation settlement via dialogue,
Burma may not rise above the current political and economic melancholy.

The remarkable withdrawal of the key opposition party-- the NLD -- from
planned elections this year has added to the awareness that the votes
would bring no change to Burma's political surroundings, other than a
magic show of the generals who aim changing into civilian clothes to
maintain authority. The withdrawal decision is in line with people’s
opinion that NLD must flex its muscles to confront the unreasonable laws
forbidding the Lady from participating and call for her expulsion from the
party.

Actually, the 2010 election planned by Burma’s ruling junta seems to be a
trap for overemotional politicians. Several Burmese politicians are eager
to run in the incoming elections hoping a considerable political space.
However, they are now stuck in the entanglements when the 'Election
Commission’s Directive No.2/2010 dated 21 June, 2010' came out in the
daily papers. The analysts view the junta’s poll process as ‘deceit’ for
there will be more and more complicated regulations before the unknown
election date.

Political parties in Burma that want to assemble and give speeches at a
designated place must apply to the Election Commission (EC) for permission
at least seven days prior to the event, according to state-run media. The
new 'EC Directive No.2/2010 dated 21 June requiring political parties to
provide the specific place, date, starting and finishing time, and the
name and address of speakers. The EC will issue a permit or reject the
request at least 48 hours before the requested date.

It looks like creating hindrance towards the political parties on purpose.
But, the junta-backed USDP has none of such obstacle. The election date
has not been set and the regime has maintained tight restrictions on
political opposition in the country and has not granted any operational
breathing space for political parties to have a word with the public.

“The nearer the election, the more difficulties we have,” U Thu Wai, the
chairman of Democratic Party (Myanmar), spoke out to the media.

Meanwhile, the Obama administration on 12 July criticized the upcoming
general election of Burma as scheduled is “flawed” and that the military
government has not taken any step towards establishing democracy in the
country.

“We think that this is a flawed electoral process,” said State Department
spokesman P. J. Crowley.

On the other hand, the State Peace and Development Council (SPDC) is
building a multipurpose network of tunnels, bunkers and other underground
installations where they and their military hardware can be hidden against
any external airborne attack, including most likely from the United
States. At the same time, military junta has formed a strategic missile
force that works with North Korean contractors. Burma’s missile force is
armed with two types of surface-to-surface short and medium range
ballistic missiles, such as the Scud-type Hwasong-6 from North Korea, and
122-mm and 240-mm multiple rocket launch systems brought in from China and
North Korea.

Moreover, Burma's ruling junta has been in progress with a clandestine
program to develop nuclear weapons in a high-stakes bid to put off
supposed unfriendly foreign powers. In fact, there has never been a
serious threat of foreign invasion. To sum up, the junta – taking example
of North Korean style strategy - is strengthening its military might to
maintain its political-power everlastingly. According to military experts,
Burma spends 40 to 60 percent of the national budget for the armed forces.

In contrast, 0.4 percent of the national budget is spent on health-care,
while 0.5 percent is spent for education, according to a report released
in 2007 by the International Institute for Strategic Studies, a think-tank
based in London. UNICEF reported that SPDC spending on health care in
Burma amounted to U.S. $0.40 cents per person per year in 2005, compared
to U.S. $61 in neighboring Thailand.

Furthermore, the junta designs the 2010 election as a self-seeking
political game undoubtedly to legalize the government by the military. As
a result, one cannot discover an inch of political space in the military
run parliament aftermath of the upcoming polls.

As the junta monopolizes the state’s assets, natural resources,
businesses, institutions and so on, no other political party can compete
with the military-backed USDP, led by the current Prime Minister Thein
Sein. The political scenario looks like status quo under the gun for the
head of Union Election Commission has to obey the order of the military
chief.

General Aung San, the founding father of the Burma’s Independence Army,
never intended the army to intervene in governmental affairs. A liberal
and a democrat, he saw from the fascist Japanese army the dangers of
military absolutism. But unfortunately, on 19 July, 1947, he was
assassinated by a foolish politician and the country lost a genuine
national vanguard. Due to his death, the country’s fledgling democracy and
unison also ended up.

Although 63 years has passed by, people are still honoring the country’s
martyrs, especially Aung San of Burma. It is ironic that Burma’s military
top brass are putting their oars in the parliamentary affairs of the
nation against the will of General Aung San. Hence, Burma has to put more
effort into its struggle for liberation.