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Weekly Diary, No. 229 (16 – 22 December 2006)
Weekly Diary, No. 229 (16 – 22 December 2006)
JUNTA WORRIES OVER SAFTY OF HUMANITARIAN AGENCIES?
BURMA MEDIA IN THAILAND NEED TO DO MORE!
WAR GAME LAUNCHED IN KACHIN AREA!
Think Piece
I saw a poster left by the 16th Battalion (of the Burma Army) saying they don't want to see the face of a Karen and all the Karen people should go.
South China Morning Post, 15 December, quoting a refugee Htee Mo Klo, 38, who fled with his nephew to the Thai border
The World
14 December 2006
Ban Ki-moonBan Ki-moon who is to take over from Kofi Annan as the next UN Secretary General takes the oath of office. The 62 year old diplomat is the first Asian to lead the organization in 35 years. (AP)
16 December 2006
Jigme Khesar WangchuckPrince Charming Jigme Khesar Wangchuck, 26, becomes king of Bhutan. (Agencies)
18 December 2006
Six-party talks on North Korean nuclear program that resume after a year long hiatus make little progress. (Reuters)
International Relations
15 December 2006
Aung San Suu KyiNepal's Parliament demands release of Aung San Suu Kyi. (Mizzima)
15 December 2006
Hollywood and music stars call UN to pass resolution on Burma demanding its military to change policies that constitute a threat to international peace and security. The press release urges the resolution be passed before the end of the year. (AP)
16 December 2006
Jairam RameshIndian Minister for Commerce Jairam Ramesh says India will invest $ 100 million in developing Burma's Sittwe port to connect northeast India with East Asia. The project will start next month and be completed with the next three years. (Xinhua)
17 December 2006
Deputy Minister of Labor Aung Kyi while admitting "labor contribution" had been used by the Army between 1955-1990, the practice has stopped following peace deals with 17 armed groups. (Irrawaddy)
17 December 2006
U Soe ThaMinister for National Planning and Economic Development Soe Tha tells reporters the 7-page guidelines, issued in February to UN and development organizations, were meant to ensure "no unpleasant incidents" happen to them. "Even we ourselves have to take security precautions for traveling," he says. (AFP)
18 December 2006
Burma Campaign UK says UK's Department of International Development spends just $ 16.6 million per year on aid in Burma, compared to $ 97 million offered annually to Vietnam. A woefully-underfunded program, it says. (Irrawaddy)
19-22 December 2006
Ratnasiri WickramanayakaSri Lankan PM Ratnasiri Wickramanayaka visits Burma. (Xinhua)
21 December 2006
Tom Lantos, with a long record of vocal opposition to Burma's dictators, will be taking over as Chairman of the House International Relations Committee in January. (AFP)
Thai-Burma Relations
15 December 2006
A total of 120 migrant workers found hidden inside 2 trucks, says police in Tak province. 41 of them were hidden inside a storage compartment of a gasoline transport. "They looked exhausted due to heat and lack of air," says Police Major Rangsiman Songkhatham. Each had paid 4,000 baht ($ 45) for the trip to Bangkok. (Bangkok Post)
18 December 2006
Recent poll by Assumption University (Abac poll)
No need to accept more migrant workers – 58%
They should not work under same conditions and wages as local workers – 50%
They should work under same wages – 40%
Many say migrant workers are diligent, they also say migrant workers are neither honest nor loyal to their employers
Meanwhile, local businesses want to hire more migrant workers. (Irrawaddy)
They should not have freedom of expression (60%)
The majority learn negative information about migrant from the media, which causes them to find these people untrustworthy and disloyal
Media plays an important role in shaping public views and knowledge about migrant workers (80% remember reports about migrant workers committing crimes in Thailand, only 41% recall reports about migrants being cheated or abused by employers) (Bangkok Post)
Politics/ Inside Burma
12 December 2005
Announcement issued by Naypyidaw says customs officials on the run from corruption investigation must turn themselves in or their property will be confiscated. (Irrawaddy)
15 December 2006
Five 88 Generation student leaders who were detained 3 months ago yet to be charged and their families are pleading for their release. (DVB)
15 December 2006
Village headman in Mon State are being trained in methods on how to organize the people. The training is being held in every state simultaneously. The condition that says community leaders have to be matriculation graduates have been overlooked. A democratic system, according to the military, is to be launched between 2007 – 2009. (Independent Mon News Agency)
19 December 2006
The exile National Coalition Government of the Union of Burma, on its 16th birthday, calls for national reconciliation and increased humanitarian aid. (DVB)
19 December 2006
Thirty law students in Rangoon have formed Justice Validation Organization with the aim of helping the people to understand their rights and responsibilities under the legal system. (DVB)
19 December 2006
Karens hold New Year 2746 (First Waxing Moon of Pyatho). (Agencies)
Shans/ Shan State
19 December 2006
Brig-Gen Way LinClash at Nawngkhio, Monghsat. More than 10 casualties sustained by the Burma Army, say militia sources. Brig-Gen Way Lin, Second in Command of the Triangle Region, is directing the operation. (SHAN)
Economy/ Business
17 December 2006
National Planning and Economic Development minister Soe Tha says inflation had risen from 3.76% in March 2005 to 16.44% in September this year. But GDP growth is reaching 13.2%, exceeding expectations. Burma's official statistics are notoriously unreliable. (AFP)
18 December 2006
First ever "Six Countries Trade Fair" held in Muse. The three-day affair is participated by companies from China (108 stalls), Burma (108 stalls), Thailand (14 stalls), India (14 stalls) and Bangladesh (7 stalls). Laos fails to show up. Bilateral trade hit $ 1.2 billion in 2005, 5.6% up from 2004. (Mizzima/SHAN/Xinhua)
Human Rights
15 December 2006
Muslim students have to pay bribes to immigration officials to obtain ID cards in Taunggup. One official says many Muslim students are unable to provide proof for their identity and background. Detailed files have to be submitted to Naypyidaw. (DVB)
18 December 2006
People and motor vehicles in Muse, Namkham and Kutkhai pressganged to attend the opening of Six Countries Trade Fair, 18-21 December, held at 105 mile trade zone. (SHAN)
19 December 2006
Students in Mon State's Moulmein have been prohibited from wearing their own ethnic dress. They have instead restricted them to wearing white shirts and blue longyis. (Kaowao)
Environment
20 December 2006
Hanoi announces return of bird flu that has killed thousands of poultry during the past two weeks. (AP)
Drugs
21 December 2006
Drug agencies will step up patrols and surveillance operations along borders to suppress drug smuggling attempts in the 12 days before and after the New Year holiday, says Defense minister Boonrawd Somtas. (Bangkok Post)
War
16 December 2006
Recent war games in Burma are aimed at forcing ceasefire groups to come to their knees. Since the annual maneuvers began in 2000, only two could be said as exercises against foreign invasion:
2000 Joint army, naval and air force maneuvers in the Andamans
2001 Joint army, naval and air force maneuvers in Irrawaddy Division
2002 Division level exercises in Lawksawk-Loilem, Shan State
2003 Division level exercises in areas bordering Wa north, and another in Kya-In-Seikkyi, Karen State
2004 Division level exercises in Mon State's Thanbyuzayat and Mudon
2005 Division level exercise in southern and eastern Shan State and Tenasserum Division (NDD)
19 December 2006
At a meeting with the Burma Army's Northern Region Command, the KIO requested
the BA to call off its scheduled war games, 14-22 December. The exercises are being
conducted about 20 miles from the KIA headquarters. (Irrawaddy)
20 December 2006
Since November, the Burma Army has been laying increasing numbers of anti personnel mines around villages and rice fields deterring civilians from harvesting their crops. The army action is causing starvation to villagers, charges New York-based Human Rights Watch. (Irrawaddy)
Shan ceasefire group mum on meeting results
