PANGLONG BASIS FOR PEACE, SAY SHANS!
OIL PIPELINE CONSTRUCTION BEGINS!
JUNTA’S BEST FM DIES IN JUNTA PRISON!
Cartoon
Tips for the opposition
Think Piece
“If we take out the gist of the constitution, we can say that the Tatmadaw (military) is the principal guardian of the constitution, Tatmadaw is the principal operator of the constitution and Tatmadaw is the principal interpreter of the constitution,”
Win Tin, CEC member, National League for Democracy, 4 November 2009, Mizzima
We’re opposed to drug trafficking, but certainly we don’t want the military to go in and attack people and create human rights violations as they have in the past.
Scott Marciel, Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for East Asian and Pacific Affairs, and US Ambassador to Asean, 6 November 2009, International Herald Tribune
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The World
2 November 2009
Pneumonia kills 1.8 million children under 5 every year, more than any other diseases, but $ 39 billion ($12.9 per child) can save 5.3 million lives in developing countries by 2015, according to the UN. (Reuters)
6 November 2009
Japanese PM Yukio Hatoyama pledges $ 5.5 bn to aid 5 Mekong River nations, including Burma, seeking to deepen ties with the region as China’s influence grows. (AFP)
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
International Relations
2 November 2009
Kachin peace brokers Rev Dr Lahtaw Saboi Jum and Dr Manam Duga will meet US delegation to deliver a federal proposal. (Irrawaddy)
2-3 November 2009
Coinciding with the visit of US envoys, Senior Gen Than Shwe is making a trip to cyclone devastated delta. (Mizzima)
3 November 2009
US diplomats Kurt Campbell and Scot Marciel, accompanied by two others, arrive in Rangoon. (Mizzima/Guardian) Journalists are permitted to take photos of the planned meeting at Inya Lake Hotel tomorrow between the diplomats and Aung San Suu Kyi, but “no questions”. (Irrawaddy)
3 November 2009
Kurt Campbell and party meet leaders of
KDA
PNO
KNPLF
Phayagon
DKBA at Myat Taw Win Hotel
between 17:30 – 18:10. (NLOM) It says 4 November – Editor
4 November 2009
Visiting Kurt Campbell, who is on a fact finding mission, meets Burmese bigwigs:
PM Thein Sein
Aung San Suu Kyi
NLD executives
Ethnic nationalities representatives
He explains Washington’s new policy whose goals are “strong support for human rights, the release of Aung San Suu Kyi and all other political prisoners and the promotion of democratic reform.” He emphasizes Burma “should abide by UN resolutions with regards to proliferation.” NLD, on the other hand, asks him to include the revision of the 2008 constitution as one of the main agendas. (AP/Mizzima/Al jazeera.net)
5 November 2009
The main purpose of the visit, Scott Marciel, Deputy Assistant of State to a seminar in Thailand, was to explain “the context of our recently completed policy review” and to hear from the key parties in Burma “their views and their ideas”. The Obama’s commitment to re-engage outcast regimes is coming under increasing scrutiny. “Election without Aung San Suu Kyi and the NLD would be hard to be seen as credible,” he says. (Financial Times)
5 November 2009
PM Thein Sein flies to Tokyo to attend Mekong – Japan summit. The six-country Greater Mekong sub region (GMS) Economic Cooperation has designated 2009-2010 as GMS tourism year. (Xinhua)
5 November 2009
Cin Xian Thang, spokesman for the United Nationalities Alliance (UNA), representing 12 ethnic parties, says, “We are very hopeful. For the last 2 years we were prohibited from meeting UN envoys. This is a sign of hope that we can pursue national reconciliation that involves our communities.” The UNA told US delegation it does not agree with the 2008 constitution because:
The referendum was a sham
The new constitution does not have a single article that offers protection of ethnic groups.”
(Irrawaddy)
6 November 2009
New Light of Myanmar says although arrangements had been made, Kurt Campbell did not meet representatives of the pro-junta National Unity Party (NUP). (DPA)
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Thai-Burma Relations
5 November 2009
Thailand recalls its ambassador to Cambodia. (Agencies)
6 November 2009
More than 500 workers from 12 factories in Maesod have sued their employers for failing to abide by regulations laid down by the Thai ministry of labor. The complaint includes paying only B50 ($1.5) instead of B 150 ($4.5). The trial is adjourned to 21 December. (DVB)
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Politics/ Inside Burma
2 November 2009
Myo Yan Naung Thein, who was released in September after two years in prison, speaks about life behind bars, how he was tortured including being “forced to kneel on all fours like a dog.” (DVB)
2 November 2009
The Kachin Independence Organization has proposed discussion of Panglong Agreement with junta. This is the first time the military shows willingness to discuss it. Junta chief Than Shwe was reportedly very angry with the latter, saying the Kachins did not understand its spirit, says Ma Grang, a Kachin source on the Sino-Burma border. (Irrawaddy)
3 November 2009
Whereabouts of Poet Khant Min Htet who was detained on 22 October still unknown. (Mizzima)
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Shans/ Shan State
2 November 2009
A Wa official says Panghsang will hold talks with Lt-Gen Ye Myint this month. (Irrawaddy) Meeting scheduled for tomorrow postponed - Editor
4 November 2009
Open letter by Shan Democratic Union to Kurt Campbell calls for Panglong as the basis for peace, reconciliation and democracy in Burma. (SHAN)
6 November 2009
We are on the look out for anyone coming in – 24 hours a day, says a Wa soldier in Mong Phen. The Internet here is fast and free of censorship. Wa are a disciplined and militaristic society. Those who do not fall into line are severely dealt with. Almost all households in the Wa and a neighboring allied fief known as Mongla include at least one man in uniform. “We are not afraid to fight,” says a soldier there. “But we are afraid of the air force burning our villages, (the army) stealing from villages and raping women.” (International Herald Tribune)
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Economy/ Business
2 November 2009
Hyundai Heavy Industries says it has secured order from Daewoo International to build a $1.4 billion offshore gas platform in Arakan state. Daewoo plans to supply gas from the field by May 2013 to China. (AFP)
3 November 2009
In September, a crew of two-dozen Chinese engineers showed up in Hsipaw to survey the path for the oil and gas pipeline through the town. A full-scale construction was to begin in September, but it was delayed by tensions along the route, says an official from China National Petroleum Corp (CNPC). The gas portion should begin by year’s end, says a Daewoo official. Advocates say the pipeline project will worsen human rights abuses as in the Yadana gas pipeline project for Thailand. Those in Hsipaw who are aware of the project say it “is only good for the government.” “China is colonizing our country.” (Wall Street Journal)
3 November 2009
China National Petroleum Corp (CNPC) says it has begun construction of an oil pipeline. (AP)
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Human Rights
4 November 2009
One Burmese migrant from Myawaddy in the care of Bangkok social services:
Fee for crossing the border $60
Price per head when sold to fishing industry $658
(VOA)
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Environment
5 November 2009
Burma Environment Working Group releases report Accessible Alternatives:
Ethnic Communities’ Contribution to Social Development and Environmental Conservation in Burma released.
It exposes harsh impacts caused by the SPDC’s development projects and describes positive cases in which community-based projects have helped. (Press Release)
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Drugs
31 October 2009
Police chief Khin Yi presides over drug burning ceremony in Kokang. (Agencies)
3 November 2009
Around 15 police officers arrested after allegedly substituting seized drugs for fake ones prior to their destruction. Locals in Taunggyi say similar incidents had occurred before. Khin Maung Win, former head of Taunggyi Special Police Narcotics Unit is reportedly under investigation. (DVB)
6 November 2009
Indictment have limited the Wa leaders’ ability to travel and run businesses outside their territory. “We have shrunk their cage,” says DEA agent in Thailand Pamela Brown. (International Herald Tribune)
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
War
4 November 2009
Burma was among abstainers from a draft resolution submitted by Japan on nuclear disarmament last week. Others were China, France, Iran, Israel, Pakistan, Cuba and Bhutan. 170 countries were in favor with two against it, according to the Japanese foreign ministry. (DVB)
6 November 2009
Burmese troops have surrounded a base of Khaplang faction of the National Socialist Council of Nagaland (NSCN). Indian troops have fanned out on the Indian side, say Indian officials. There about 300 rebels, 50 of them from United Liberation Front of Asom (ULFA). (BBC)
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Obituary
4 November 2009
Former FM Win Aung, 65, dies in detention. He served as foreign minister, 1998-2004. (Mizzima)
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
