BurmaNet News, January 20, 2011

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January 20, 2011 Issue #4123

INSIDE BURMA
AFP: Myanmar parties join calls to lift sanctions
Mizzima: Proposed military conscription law abuses rights: NLD
DVB: Weak dollar hits Burma aid work
Kyodo News (Japan): Myanmar's Suu Kyi gets Internet access, Kyodo News learns

BUSINESS / TRADE
Bangkok Post: PTTEP looks to reduce Burma risk
Irrawaddy: China Unicom set to provide roaming service in Burma

HEALTH
Irrawaddy: Shan coal mine affecting local health, report says

ASEAN
New Light of Myanmar: ASEAN Foreign Ministers welcome positive
developments including successful holding of multi-party democracy general
elections, stress need for countries, which imposed sanctions on Myanmar,
to respond to those developments, lift sanctions

REGIONAL
Bernama (Malaysia): Soldiers charged with human trafficking
Mainichi Daily News (Japan): Immigration officials offered special visas
to Myanmar nationals if they dropped suits

INTERNATIONAL
The Star (Malaysia): It's a wrap for Michelle Yeoh and 'The Lady'

OPINION / OTHER
Jakarta Post: Insight: ASEAN’s new approach to Myanmar is nothing new –
Rizal Sukma
DVB: Sanctioning sanctions? – Moe Aye





____________________________________
INSIDE BURMA

January 20, Agence France Presse
Myanmar parties join calls to lift sanctions

Yangon — Two prominent Myanmar opposition parties Thursday added their
voices to calls for Western powers to lift sanctions, as the country
prepares for a new parliament after controversial elections.

The National Democratic Force (NDF) and the Democratic Party (Myanmar)
said the punitive measures were "not beneficial", echoing calls made by
the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and other, major ethnic
parties.

Khin Maung Swe, a leader of the NDF, said his party had asked the United
States to review the sanctions.

"There should not be a determination to impose sanctions to achieve human
rights and democracy by neglecting the development of the country and the
people," he said.

Khin Maung Swe called for the termination of all sanctions, which include
penalties imposed by the US, Europe and other Western nations aimed at
members of Myanmar's junta, trade restrictions and other measures.

"Trade and investment sanctions are harming the country and the people,
directly or indirectly," he added.

Democratic Party chairman Thu Wai said his party concurred.

"We have urged all sanctions to be lifted as these are not beneficial for
the people," he said.

Both parties won seats in Myanmar's controversial election in November.

The NDF, which split from Aung San Suu Kyi's National League for Democracy
(NLD) to contest the vote, will take 16 seats when parliament and regional
legislatures convene on January 31. The Democratic Party has three seats.

The government-backed Union Solidarity and Development Party (USDP)
claimed an overwhelming majority in the polls, winning 882 out of around
1,160 seats amid allegations of fraud and intimidation, plus the exclusion
of democracy icon Suu Kyi.

Five ethnic parties, including the Shan Nationalities Democratic Party
(SNDP), which has 57 seats in the new parliament, issued a declaration on
Sunday saying sanctions caused "many difficulties" in ethnic minority
regions.

ASEAN, which welcomed the release of Suu Kyi from more than seven years
under house arrest in Yangon shortly after the vote, issued a statement on
Sunday and said the measures should be reviewed.

Myanmar remains one of the world's poorest nations following mismanagement
by successive military regimes, and some areas have also been wracked by
decades of civil conflict between the junta and ethnic rebels.

US President Barack Obama's administration launched a dialogue with
Myanmar's military rulers in 2009, but it has said it will lift sanctions
only in return for progress on democracy and other concerns.

After years of espousing punitive steps against the junta, Suu Kyi has
shown signs of softening her stance, writing to junta chief Than Shwe in
September 2009 to offer suggestions on getting sanctions against the
country lifted.

Observers suggest the views of the Nobel Peace Prize winner are influential.

"If Aung San Suu Kyi comes out and say it, that would be a big push, but
she has not said that yet... she wants to study (the issues)," said Dr Tin
Maung Maung Than of the Institute of Southeast Asian Studies.

Since her release, Suu Kyi has told AFP that she does not see sanctions as
a "bargaining chip" to secure concessions from the regime, but she has not
publicly spoken on the issue in detail.

____________________________________

January 20, Mizzima News
Proposed military conscription law abuses rights: NLD – Phanida

Chiang Mai – If the controversial People’s Military Service Law (PMSL)
were to be enacted in Burma, the authorities will be abusing the rights of
grassroots people in the name of the state, the National League for
Democracy (NLD) said on Wednesday.

‘If the law is enacted, the authorities will be committing evil deeds in
the name of the law. The law will add fuel to the fire and place heavy
burdens on the people’, said an NLD statement.

While the 1959 Public Military Service Act said the state had the right to
order anyone who is eligible to serve in the military, the recently
proposed PMSL law would affect even more adults between designated ages
who could be called up to serve in the military, the statement said.

According to the draft law, which is dated November 4, 2010, it will come
into force on the day that the State Peace and Development Council enacts
the law, according to an article in an official gazette.

The draft law states that men between  ages 18 and 45 and women between
ages 18 to 35 must serve for two years in the military, and the service
term could be increased to five years in times of a national emergency.

The NLD statement said that the draft law should be reviewed and revised
in the Parliament before it is enacted. Moreover, it said that the law
should be enacted by the Parliament, instead of  being promulgated by the
junta.

Under the proposed law, those who failed to report for military service
could be sentenced to up to three years in prison, and those who
deliberately avoided conscription could be sentenced up to five years.

____________________________________

January 20, Democratic Voice of Burma
Weak dollar hits Burma aid work – Shwe Aung

Falling US dollar prices have meant that domestic NGOs in Burma are unable
to carry out infrastructural activities vital to peoples’ wellbeing, the
head of a Rangoon-based aid group has warned.

Earlier this month the exchange rate hit a low of 780 kyat to the dollar,
and businessmen in Burma are expecting that to decrease further over the
coming months. The US is struggling to recover its housing and labour
markets, and economic growth remains sluggish, although currency
restructuring is underway to help boost exports.

Many NGOs in Burma rely on funding that comes in US dollars, which for
decades has been used as the de facto second currency – as it has been
globally – given its stability compared to the kyat. As the dollar weakens
against the kyat, operational costs are effectively forced up. Prior to
the global financial crash, the exchange rate hovered around 1000 kyat to
the dollar.

“Usually it would cost us around 1.6 million kyat, which had normally been
about $US1600, to dig a well, but now this will work out at around
$US2000,” said Dr Hpone Win, head of Mingalar Myanmar, an independent,
non-profit sustatinable development organisation in Burma.

“So we have to reduce the amount of wells and lakes we are digging. For
example, we may only be able to dig wells in about eight or nine villages
from an initial plan of 10 villages.”

He added that NGOs were also struggling to pay transportation fees in
Burma, which have stayed at the same price while their funding has
decreased.

Numbers of business owners in Burma are fearful that the exchange rate
will drop to 700 kyat to the dollar as the quantity of US currency in the
country increases following massive sales in the recent Naypyidaw gem
fair.

There are around 20 Burmese-run NGOs operating inside the country, as well
as a number of international aid groups who are permitted to work, albeit
with limited mobility, by the ruling junta.

Such fluctuations in currency have prompted many to speculate or suggest
that the world economy moves away from sole use of the dollar as a
universal currency. Commodities such as oil are priced in US dollars, but
as Chinese President Hu Jintao visits Washington, the sense of a seismic
shift in currency usage is palpable, with World Bank chief Robert Zoellick
even suggesting a modified gold standard to maintain stability through
turbulent currency times.

Additional reporting by Joseph Allchin

____________________________________

January 20, Kyodo News (Japan)
Myanmar's Suu Kyi gets Internet access, Kyodo News learns

Yangon – Myanmar democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi has been officially
approved to use the Internet at her home in Yangon, her security chief Win
Htein told Kyodo News on Thursday.

Technicians from Yatanapon Teleport, the state run Internet service
provider, set up a broadband connection at her lakeside house on Thursday,
Win Htein told Kyodo News by telephone.

Her setup is the latest "McWill" (MULTI Carrier Wireless Local Loop)
system broadband wireless mobile Internet recently launched by the ISP and
her serial identification for the system is 00001, which means she is the
first user granted access to the McWill system, he added.

Asked if Suu Kyi has already tried accessing the Internet, Win Htein said
she was feeling unwell with a cough Thursday and has decided to wait until
she feels better before testing the new system.

The democracy icon's first request for Internet access, made a few weeks
after she was released from years of house arrest last year, was initially
denied on "technical" grounds, but it was allowed with the advent of the
new McWill wireless system.

The official cost for McWill system access is an initial down payment of
610,000 kyats (about $720 on the black market) and the usage fee is about
$0.5 per hour.

The McWill system is a new broadband mobile Internet access system
recently introduced by China, according to technicians in Yangon.

____________________________________
BUSINESS / TRADE

January 20, Bangkok Post
PTTEP looks to reduce Burma risk – Yuthana Praiwan

PTT Exploration and Production Plc hopes to secure strategic partners
within six months for its five petroleum exploration and production
ventures in Burma in order to reduce business risk, according to CEO Anon
Sirisangtaksin.

PTTEP currently is the sole owner of the licences for five offshore
petroleum exploration blocks in the Gulf or Martaban known as M3, M4, M7,
M9 and M11.

Mr Anon said PTTEP intended to reduce its holdings in the projects to 45%
from 100%, offering 15% to the Burmese government and the remaining 40% to
strategic partners.

The company plans to begin pumping natural gas from the M9 or Zawtika well
at about 300 million standard cubic feet per day (mmscfd) in 2013. Of the
total, 240 mmscfd would be sold to Thailand and the rest would serve local
demand in Burma.

In another development, PTTEP said it expected to start production of
about 35,000 barrels per day from its Montara field off the northwestern
coast of Australia in the fourth quarter of this year.

Operations in the Montara oil field were halted after an oil spill and
fire in late 2009.

An Australian government inquiry concluded that the Thai company's
Australian subsidiary had not used prudent oilfield practices at the
Montara field.

Mr Anon said the company was confident that its operating permits would
not be revoked, though it has allocated about A$2 million for any possible
fine.

PTTEP plans to more than triple its overall petroleum production to
900,000 barrels per day in 2020 from 273,000 bpd this year through the
acquisition of new projects in markets including Australia, Canada, Africa
and Southeast Asia.

The company has 44 projects in 13 countries. It has an investment budget
of 572.4 billion baht from 2011-15, half of which will be spent in
Thailand. Another 24% will go to its oil sands project in Canada and the
remaining 26% will be spent in Southeast Asia, the Middle East, Africa and
Australia.

Chattchawal Eimsiri, PTTEP's chief financial officer, said the company
would issue US$700 million worth of dollar-denominated bonds in February
or March to fund investments.

The maturity of the bonds has not been decided. The company has hired
Barclays Plc to help sell the bonds.

PTTEP has also secured short-term revolving loans totalling 20 billion
baht from Krung Thai Bank, Mr Chatchawal said.

As well, he said, the company's board has approved a plan to sell 100
billion baht of medium-term notes, subject to approval by shareholders.

PTTEP shares closed yesterday on the SET at 167 baht, up two baht, in
trade worth 496.88 million baht.

____________________________________

January 20, Irrawaddy
China Unicom set to provide roaming service in Burma

China Unicom, a major state-owned telecommunications operator in China,
has signed an agreement with Myanmar Post and Telecommunications (MPT) in
Kunming, the capital of China's Yunnan Province, to jointly provide GSM
international roaming service to China Unicom's users in Burma, according
the China Tech News website. MPT is the only state-owned telecoms company
in Burma. Although no details of the agreement have been made available,
the agreement would make China Unicom the only operator in China and the
first in the world to launch this service in Burma.

____________________________________
HEALTH

January 20, Irrawaddy
Shan coal mine affecting local health, report says – Ko Htwe

The agriculture and health of nearly 12,000 people living within a
five-mile radius of Burma’s largest coal mine and coal-fired power plant
are threatened with air and water pollution, according to a report titled
“Poison Clouds” that was complied by the Pa-Oh Youth Organization (PYO)
and the Kyoju Action Network (KAN).

According to the report, the power plant, which is located near Tigyit in
Pinglaung Township in southern Shan State, releases 100 to150 tons of
toxic ash containing mercury, lead and arsenic into the atmosphere every
day.

A farmer tends his crops in Tigyit while the coal-fired power plant looks
in the background (PHOTO: PYO)
In recent years, ash has been known to cover roads and some 50 percent of
the local population suffers from skin infections, the report says.

“Our skies and waters are turning black,” said Khun Chankhe of the PYO.
“What future is there for our children who are growing up in a toxic
wasteland?”

The residue from the coal mine is piling up so high that the dumps have
become like hills and are blocking the flow of water, as well as creating
pollution and stagnant lakes. Toxic fly ash that is dumped on coal mine
waste piles or spread on local roads is also running off into local water
sources, some of which eventually flows into Inle Lake, the report states.

The Burmese military regime’s Vice-Snr-Gen Maung Aye chose the site for
the power plant in 2001, and instructed local military officials to
confiscate more than 100 acres of local farm lands, said the 54-page
report.

However, some 500 acres of land were seized. Three hundred and twenty-one
families from Lai Khar and Taung Pola villages each received a maximum of
170,000 kyats (US $170) compensation for forced relocation.

However, the Myanmar Mines Law of 1994, Chapter 5, Section 4, states that
“the holder of a permit for mineral production within an area under the
Ministry's administrative control or which does not lie within the Mineral
Reserve Area or Gemstone Tract, shall carry out such production only after
coordinating and receiving agreement from the individual or organization
having the right of cultivation, right of possession, right of use and
occupancy, beneficial enjoyment, right of succession or transfer of the
said land.”

The plant uses 640,000 tons of coal per year to produce 600 Gigawatts of
power with a capacity of 120 Megawatts.

The China National Heavy Machinery Corporation, along with Eden Group of
Myanmar and Shan Yoma Nagar, implemented the project in 2002 under the
supervision of the Energy Ministry with an investment of $42.93 million.

Chit Khaine, the founder of Eden Group, is on the EU sanctions list under
the category, “Persons Who Benefit from Government Economic Policies and
Other Persons Associated with the Regime.”

“The project is for the sake of China, not for the local communities. The
local people don’t receive sufficient electricity from the plant,” said
Khun Chankhe.

Electricity produced from the power plant is sent to the nearby Nagar
cement plant. A proposal is being considered to supply electricity to
another mining project, the Pangpet iron factory near Hopone and the
Taunggyi highway, which is run by Russian and Italian companies, the
report said.

The Tigyit coal mine also produces nearly 2,000 tons of lignite and
sub-bituminous coal every day. Lignite, a soft brown coal, produces the
most carbon dioxide emissions per unit of energy than any other type of
coal.

The plants and the mine are located within the watershed that is 13 miles
from Burma’s famous Inle Lake in Shan State. River waters polluted by the
mine and waste from the power plant are flowing into the lake via the Balu
Creek, the report says.

Khun Chanke said that this is one of the main reasons why Inle Lake is
drying up.

Residue piles from the mine are now towering above the homes of 3,000
people, blocking streams and contaminating fields. The coal is extracted
through an underground tunnel system which runs beneath tea farms—another
major concern for villagers who live in constant fear of landslides and
land collapses, said the report.

“We issue the report today with concern for Inle Lake,” said Khun Chanke
on Thursday. “We also wish to call on the elected candidates from Inle and
Pinglaung region to discuss this issue in Parliament.”

The Inn National Development Party has previously said that the party will
focus on the environmental issues of Inle Lake.

There are over 16 large-scale coal deposits in Burma. The Italian-Thai
Development Plc, a large Thai construction firm, signed a multi-billion
dollar deal with Burma in November for the development of a deep sea port
in Dawei (Tavoy). The project includes plans for Southeast Asia’s largest
coal-fired power plant that will build in Dawei where 18 villages have
been ordered to move to make way for the project, said the PYO/ KAN
report.

PYO was set up in 1998 and says it is “striving for peace and justice in
Burma through empowering youth.” It published a report, “Robbing the
Future,” in June 2009 after two years of research at the site of Burma’s
largest iron mine and the Pangpet No. 5 Steel Mill in Shan State.

KAN was set up in 2010 and says its aim is “strengthening communities’
capacity to protect their natural resources.”

____________________________________
ASEAN

January 20, New Light of Myanmar
ASEAN Foreign Ministers welcome positive developments including successful
holding of multi-party democracy general elections, stress need for
countries, which imposed sanctions on Myanmar, to respond to those
developments, lift sanctions

Nay Pyi Taw – A Myanmar delegation led by Minister for Foreign Affairs U
Nyan Win arrived back home by air yesterday afternoon after attending the
ASEAN Foreign Ministers’ Retreat and the Special Meeting of the ASEAN
Coordination Council (ACC) in Lombok, the Republic of Indonesia, from 15
to 17 January.

On 15 January, Indonesian Minister of Foreign Dr R M Marty M Natalegawa
and wife hosted a dinner to the ASEAN Foreign Ministers and spouses and
the ASEAN Secretary-General at Oberoi Lombok Hotel.

On 16 January, the minister attended the ASEAN Foreign Ministers’ Retreat
at Oberoi Lombok Hotel and exchanged views on international and regional
issues. The ASEAN Foreign Ministers held cordial discussion on topics
including the ASEAN Community Building, modalities of ASEAN Summits, East
Asia Summit and ASEAN Community in a global community of nations.

During the retreat, the minister explained the positive developments in
Myanmar in the post-election era.

In their discussions on the issue on Myanmar, the ASEAN Foreign Ministers
welcomed the positive developments including the successful holding of the
multi-party democracy general elections and stressed the need for the
countries, which imposed sanctions on Myanmar, to respond to those
developments and lift their sanctions against the country.

In the afternoon, the minister joined other ASEAN Foreign Ministers and
the ASEAN Secretary- General to participate in the activities of coral
reef planting, tree planting and releasing turtles on the beach of Lombok
in commemoration of the event of holding of ASEAN Foreign Ministers’
Retreat in Lombok.

In the evening, the minister attended a dinner cohosted by the Indonesian
Foreign Minister and the Governor of the West Nusa Tenggara Province in
honour of the ASEAN Foreign Ministers and the ASEAN Secretary-General at
the Sheraton Senggigi Beach Resort Hotel.

The minister participated in the concluding session of the ASEAN foreign
ministers, retreat and the special meeting of the ASEAN Coordinating
Council (ACC) 17 January at Oberoi Lombok Hotel.

The Foreign Ministers considered and adopted the Terms of Reference of
ASEAN Connectivity Coordina-ting Committee and exchanged views on the
follow-up to the recommendations of the High Level Task Force on ASEAN
Connectivity.

On 15 January, the minister met the Indonesian Foreign Minister and held
cordial bilateral discussions on ASEAN-related matters and strengthening
bilateral relations and cooperation between the two countries.

In Jakarta, the minister met Myanmar Ambassador to Indonesia and Permanent
Representative of the Union Myanmar to ASEAN U Nyan Lynn and staff of the
Embassy and Permanent Mission at Borobudur Hotel and gave necessary
instructions.

Director-General U Kyaw Tin of Political Department and the delegation
members arrived back in Myanmar on the same flight. - MNA

____________________________________
REGIONAL

January 20, Bernama (Malaysia)
Soldiers charged with human trafficking

Kangar – Two soldiers were charged in the Sessions Court here today with
trafficking in 16 Myanmar citizens including four women, aged between 15
and 48 years, in December last year.

Mohd Rashidi Abd Halim, 36, and Mohd Johari Abu, 28, who are from Jitra,
Kedah and are attached to a military camp in Bukit Kayu Hitam, Kedah,
however, pleaded not guilty to the charge.

The duo are alleged to have committed the offence at around 10.40pm at a
sugar cane farm in Chuping, Perlis.

If convicted, they are liable to be jailed not more than 15 years or fined
or both.

Judge Wan Norzanuar Wan Ahmad set bail at RM6,000 each in one surety each
and Feb 22 for the trial.

Deputy public prosecutor Norsalihah Sulaiman appeared for the prosecution
while both accused by represented by counsel Rahmathullah Baharudeen.

____________________________________

January 20, Mainichi Daily News (Japan)
Immigration officials offered special visas to Myanmar nationals if they
dropped suits

Immigration authorities offered to give special resident status to Myanmar
nationals in return for withdrawing their lawsuit demanding refugee
status, it has emerged.

The former plaintiffs and organizations representing Myanmar nationals in
Japan have made the revelations to the Mainichi Shimbun.

Lawyers supporting them protested the move, saying that authorities
attempted to decrease the number of court precedents recognizing Myanmar
nationals as refugees, as Japan has come under fire from the international
community for its strict standards for refugee recognition.

Several years after its founding, the League for Democracy in Burma (LDB)
was told by the Justice Ministry's Immigration Bureau that it would give
its members special resident status on condition that they withdraw their
lawsuits for refugee recognition and reapply for refugee status.

On recommendation from the LDB, four Myanmar nationals withdrew their
lawsuits and reapplied for refugee status sometime around 2006, but they
were not recognized as refugees and instead were given special resident
status. Unlike refugees, various restrictions are placed on the lives of
foreign nationals with such a special status.

A man living in central Japan, who belongs to another organization,
launched a suit for refugee recognition in 2008 after immigration
authorities refused to grant him refugee status.

The Immigration Bureau subsequently approached the man and made a similar
offer on condition that he not mention it to his lawyer.

The man reapplied for refugee recognition and withdrew his suit. He was
granted refugee status.

After a high-ranking member of another organization in Tokyo filed a
refugee recognition suit in 2007, the bureau approached him without going
through his lawyer, recommending that he withdraw the suit and reapply for
refugee status. At the time, the bureau did not offer to give him special
resident status instead of refugee status.

He was also granted refugee status after he complied.

Kuniaki Ishioka, director of the bureau's Adjudication Division, denied
that the bureau has made such proposals.

"We sometimes explain to foreign nationals, including those suing the
bureau, that they can reapply for refugee recognition under law. However,
it's impossible for us to make such a proposal on the premise that we'll
give them special resident status."

He also denied that the bureau urged the plaintiffs to withdraw their
lawsuits or told them not to mention the proposals to their lawyers or
anyone else.

However, the Japan Lawyers Network for Refugees (JLNR) said it has
confirmed that eight of 13 Myanmar nationals, who have withdrawn their
refugee recognition lawsuits since 2000, had been urged by the bureau to
do so or to reapply for refugee status on the premise that they be given a
special resident status.

The ratio of Myanmar nationals who win refugee recognition lawsuits is
over 30 percent, far above the average of other foreign nationals,
apparently because pro-democracy movements in the country are highly
appreciated.

The bureau made such offers to plaintiffs that it believes was highly
likely to win their suits, network officials said.

"The Immigration Bureau apparently wants to prevent such plaintiffs from
being recognized as refugees through court rulings," said Lawyer Shogo
Watanabe, secretary-general of the JLNR.

____________________________________
INTERNATIONAL

January 20, The Star (Malaysia)
It's a wrap for Michelle Yeoh and 'The Lady' – Noorsila Abd Majid

After three months of hard work, playing Burmese freedom fighter Aung San
Suu Kyi in 'The Lad'y, Malaysia's very own Michelle Yeoh could finally
take a breather as filming of the biopic was wrapped up on January 18.

In an exclusive e-mail to The Daily Chilli (The Star's
sister-publication), Michèle Abitbol-Lasry, the publicist for
EuropaCorp-Left Bank Pictures-France 2 Cinema, the maker of The Lady
confirms that the eagerly awaited film is already in its post-production.

"We have yet to set a release date for the movie in Malaysia and are still
looking for a distributor," says Abitbol-Lasry.

But definitely,The Lady will be released worldwide later this year.

"Michelle and Luc Besson (the director) are very busy at the moment. The
shooting is finished and they're doing the post-production," she adds. "We
would like to have all press be done when the film opens in each country."

In an earlier interview with The Guardian, former Bond girl Michelle
described her experience playing Suu Kyi as awe-inspiring.

"When I got the script," the Malaysian superstar actress has been quoted
saying, "I thought: either my agent wants to kill me or he's telling me I
need a challenge."

On her first private meeting with Suu Kyi at the Rangoon International
Airport, Michelle said " "The first thing we did is hug and I thought you
are really skinny, man. One of the first things she said was 'Why doesn't
the BBC world service have more music?'

"You feel a real sense of calm when you're with her. She's a very striking
figure. She is so proud of her culture and the best way to show it is with
dignity and elegance. She has a glow and an aura about her."

Directed by acclaimed French actor/director Luc Besson, The Lady also
stars British actor David Thewlis (of Harry Potter fame) as Suu Kyi's
university academic husband, Michael Aris.

The script was written over a period of three years by Rebecca Frayn, who
spoke to the key figures in Suu Kyi's entourage to enable her to have a
personal account of the national heroine of Myanmar who was put under
house arrest most of her life.

Filming of the movie, which began on October 18, was done in various parts
of Thailand, Burma, UK and France.

____________________________________
OPINION / OTHER

January 20, The Jakarta Post
Insight: ASEAN’s new approach to Myanmar is nothing new – Rizal Sukma

Jakarta – ASEAN’s foreign ministers just completed their two-day retreat
in Lombok on Jan. 17, wherein Indonesian Foreign Minister Marty Natalegawa
outlined the nation’s agenda and priorities for ASEAN as it assumes the
association’s rotating chair.

He touched almost every issue of paramount importance to ASEAN, including
the need to accelerate its community-building process, the imperative of
finding a peaceful solution to the South China Sea dispute, the importance
of East Asia Summit (EAS), and the question of ASEAN’s place in the world
in the post-2015 period.

The most contentious and sensitive issue of all, Myanmar, was also touched
upon and discussed.

Indonesia is of the opinion that it is time for the world — especially the
West — to renew engagement with Myanmar by lifting sanctions against the
nation. This position, unsurprisingly, was welcomed and embraced by other
ASEAN countries.

Does ASEAN’s position signify a new approach to the Myanmar problem? It is
fair to say that there is nothing new in this position. ASEAN has long
argued that economic sanctions against Myanmar would never force the
country to change. ASEAN believes that change, especially democratic
change, cannot be imposed from outside. It has to take place within the
country itself. In that context, external sanctions will not do much to
bring change to Myanmar.

The recent call made by ASEAN for the West — especially the EU, Canada and
the US — to consider lifting sanctions can also be seen as an ASEAN’s
attempt to formulate a new approach toward the Myanmar problem. Three
reasons can be put forward in this regard.

First, the call was made within a new context in Myanmar’s domestic
politics. As Marty argued during the retreat, the international community
should take note of two events in Myanmar: the general elections and the
release of opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi.

Despite the fact that the general elections have been described as neither
fair nor free, it seems that ASEAN intends to explore whatever
opportunities — no matter how slim — that may arise in the post-election
period. With the release of Suu Kyi, ASEAN also hopes that she will be
able, and allowed, to participate in the process of finding a solution to
the political impasse that has beset Myanmar for decades.

Second, ASEAN has long admitted that both ASEAN’s strategy of engagement
and its policy of sanctions have failed. The position adopted during the
retreat reflects an agreement to combine both approaches.

In this context, it is importance to note that Marty also emphasized that
“lifting the bans and reconciliation should go hand in hand”. This should
be seen as a warning to the junta in Nyapidaw that ASEAN’s willingness to
help Myanmar is not a blank check. In other words, ASEAN will not blindly
support Myanmar if the junta tries to block or delay an inclusive
reconciliation process.

Third, the call also came about after a review by the US of its Myanmar
policy under President Barack Obama. In September 2009, the US government
announced that it would start engaging Myanmar’s government while
retaining sanctions: a policy of “pragmatic engagement”. In effect,
however, this new policy also constitutes an attempt to combine both
engagement and sanctions, bringing the US’ position closer to that of
ASEAN.

Indeed, if one wants to try a new approach towards Myanmar, it is time to
go beyond the engagement-sanction debate. Regardless whether ASEAN’s
dialogue partners will follow ASEAN’s call to lift the bans, ASEAN itself
needs to formulate a more coherent and detailed Myanmar strategy,
including how to engage without giving incentives to the junta to
strengthen its grip on power by excluding and suppressing other forces in
the country.

This is obviously a difficult proposition. However, ASEAN can begin its
new approach by devising a three-pronged strategy. First, ASEAN should
start devising a framework to make it possible for all major stakeholders
to start reconciliation talks and discussions on democratization.

Second, ASEAN should have a common platform on how to encourage the junta
to start a meaningful and inclusive economic development program. At the
same time, ASEAN also needs to start helping the people of Myanmar
directly through grassroots-based programs such as community development,
humanitarian assistance and capacity building.

Third, ASEAN should also devise a platform on how to engage the wider
Burmese community, to include both the new political elite (such as the
“Parliament”) and civil society organizations.

Indonesia, as the chair of ASEAN, is in a position to devise such a new
ASEAN Myanmar strategy.

Otherwise, the international community will see the Lombok agreement on
Myanmar as another move by ASEAN to engage in rhetoric without substance.
This is a challenge for Indonesia’s chairmanship and leadership in ASEAN.
Hopefully Indonesia is more than ready to answer that challenge.


The writer is the executive director of the Centre for Strategic and
International Studies (CSIS), Jakarta.
____________________________________

January 20, Democratic Voice of Burma
Sanctioning sanctions? – Moe Aye

There appears to be no end in sight for the Burma sanctions debate: recent
appeals by Southeast Asia’s regional bloc and ethnic parties inside Burma
to end the blockade have been met with a sharp rebuke from the old guard
of Burma’s pro-democracy movement, and observers are feeling a sense of
deja vu. Why does the issue remain so divisive, and can the pro-sanctions
lobby continue to promote the status quo when any tangible results are so
obviously lacking?

Within the polarizing discourse, there is some consensus among both sides
that targeted sanctions against key members of the regime should be
strengthened – focusing on specific areas, rather than a blanket policy
that critics argue is damaging the population. Even the National League
for Democracy (NLD), the strongest proponents of a boycott, are conceding
that certain areas of the package, such as the trade ban, may need to be
reviewed if indeed they are hurting Burmese people.

Most scholars believe that sanctions require three factors in order to
succeed: multilateral coordination, incentives (such as a lifting of the
visa ban on the generals as a reward for releasing political prisoners),
and some degree of domestic opposition to the targets as a means to
supplement the pressure.

Their usage has increased dramatically since the Cold War – prior to this,
the two prominent cases were Zimbabwe (then Rhodesia) and South Africa,
the casue célèbre of sanctions, which became a key factor in the ending of
apartheid.  Since 1989, their use by the US in particular has been
widespread – against political leaders, drug lords, and terrorists – but
their impact limited. In cases like Sudan, Somalia, and of course Burma,
they are deemed a failure.

Most Western governments imposed an arms embargo on Burma and suspended 
defense cooperation following the bloody 1988 uprising. Even Japan
initially ceased providing aid. But countries such as China, Korea and the
Burma’s regional neighbours in ASEAN rushed in to do business with the
generals.

Fast-forward several years, and the junta’s refusal to recognize the NLD
as the winners of the 1990 elections caused the US to widen its boycott.
In July 1995, the Free Burma Act was introduced which included a ban on US
companies doing business with the Burmese generals, as well as a
prohibition on imports of Burmese goods and travel restrictions on the
junta leaders to and from Burma. Some scholars believed that the act was
sufficient to persuade the regime to release Aung San Suu Kyi from house
arrest in July 1995.

The following year, the Danish consul to Burma, James Leander Nichols, was
sentenced to three year in jail for the illegal possession of a printer.
Two months into his sentence, he died. Despite insistence from family
members and Danish authorities, the regime refused to carry out an
independent autopsy. Soon after this, the European Council took its first
Common Position on Burma, introducing a visa ban on members of the
military regime and their families. It also suspended all high-level
governmental visits to Burma.

After the 2003 Depayin massacre when pro-regime thugs ambushed Aung San
Suu Kyi and her supporters, killing 70, the US imposed the Burma Freedom
and Democracy Act banning imports such as teak and gems. The Act also
limited financial transactions and extended visa restrictions on
government officials.

Major crises in Burma have often preempted the toughening of sanctions:
Washington did not pass the 2008 JADE Act until the September 2007
crackdown on peaceful demonstrations led by Buddhist monks. Such incidents
have not however triggered policy decisions in the ASEAN neighbourhood,
where continued investment in Burma provides an economic crutch for the
regime in the face of a Western embargo.

ASEAN’s argument is that sanctions will further drive Burma towards
isolation or into the hands of China at a time when economic engagement
with the West will spur progress in one of the world’s least developed
countries. Some have their doubts, however, claiming that ASEAN countries
are concerned first and foremost with their own highly lucrative
investments in the country, particularly in the energy sector. The regime
uses the substantial capital gained from sales of natural gas ($US2.6
billion in sales to Thailand in 2007/08 alone) and electricity to fund its
ever-expanding army, spending billions on building underground tunnels,
buying Russian MG-29 fighters jet and attempting to produce advanced
missiles – all despite the sanctions from the U.S. and EU.

But, of course, there are detractors in every department, and a vocal
school of thought asserts that trade will eventually be the main factor in
spurring political reform and lessening the rich-poor divide, such as
happened in Taiwan and South Korea. They also argue that the generals will
be forced to improve the business environment before hoping to attract
Western investment, something that could have a knock-on effect on the
overall human rights situation for Burmese citizens.

This is perhaps unlikely, however – as long as the current regime stays in
power and retains its myopic focus on itself and its military, then reform
through trade remains a distant prospect. Sanctions aren’t responsible for
endemic poverty in Burma; gross economic mismanagement is, and without any
clear sign that the generals have the intention to improve the wellbeing
of Burmese, then the lifting of the blockade may be fruitless.

But careful review of areas that are problematic for Burmese, as well as
tightening restrictions that affect those in power, will be a welcome
step. The banking sector, for example, is largely owned by businessmen
close to the regime, and distrust of the financial system in Burma is so
acute that citizens rarely use banks – this is one area where stronger
sanctions could start to hurt the generals and not your average Burmese,
and it’s this kind of fresh tactical thinking which is what the sanctions
debate desperately needs.