- FAREWELL, LUDU SEIN WIN, WISH YOU’RE STILL AROUND!
- NO MORE CHILD SOLDIERS BY 2014!
- SSA GETS ANTI-DRUG AWARD!
- CEASEFIRE AGREEMENT ONLY WITH GOVT, NOT WITH ARMY?
- AUNG MIN ON BRINGING EXILES BACK HOME MISSION!
Cartoon
Tips for the President: How you know Chinese!
Think Piece
Done without first developing alternative livelihood options, widespread eradication of poppy can increase food insecurity.
Jason Eligh, UNODC country manager, reported by Mizzima, 27 June 2012
Burma is saddled with two generation of chemistry professors who have never conducted a proper laboratory experiment and mechanical engineers yet to handle hands-on equipment. Although the government boasts 160 institutions of higher learning, many graduates scoff at their own degrees. Initial steps being taken include the education budget which was increased from $ 340 million to $ 740 million. “To catch up with the rest of the world, we will need at least 10 years. We have to change our entire education culture, and that will be very difficult,” says a physician who heads Mingala Myanmar, a group promoting education.
Denis Gray, AP writer, 28 June 2012
Most comments (on ongoing sectarian crisis in Arakan State) either in English or Burmese on the internet seldom suggest solution to the unfolding crisis. The commentators use the internet mainly as a means to vent their own bigotry.
Kanbawza Win, Post-mortem of a sectarian violence, 29 June 2012
This (1947) constitution may not have been perfect, but at its core was a profound understanding of and respect for the aspirations of the people. The current constitution, drawn up by the military government in 2008, must be amended to incorporate rights and aspirations of Burma’s ethnic nationalities.
Aung San Suu Kyi, speaking at Westminster, 21 June 2012 (transcript)
The World
18 June 2012
The world’s most free nation is Finland, followed by Sweden and Denmark, according to 2011 Failed State Index (FSI). Somalia remains # 1 failed state. (Mizzima)
24 June 2012
There are more than 1,000 active satellites orbiting the earth. (Believe it or not)
International Relations
18 June 2012
Burma is ranked # 18 in the 2011 Failed State Index (FSI) issued by Fund for Peace, up from # 16 in 2010. (Mizzima)
20 June 2012
Aung San Suu Kyi awarded honorary doctorate by Oxford University. (AFP)
21 June 2012
Aung San Suu Kyi addresses British parliament, a rare honor bestowed on only 4 foreign dignitaries since World War II. (AFP)
22 June 2012
Aung San Suu Kyi calls for a “democracy friendly investment” in her address to the British Parliament. (Reuters)
27 June 2012
President Thein Sein receives Ms Radhika Comaraswamy, UN Secretary General’s Special Representative for Children and Armed Conflict. They discuss successful implementation of prevention against recruitment of minors. (MNA)
29 June 2012
Election Commission issues complaint in New Light that Aung San Suu Kyi must “respect the constitution” by using the proper name of the country Myanmar and not Burma. (AP)
Thai-Burma Relations
22 June 2012
American Chamber of Commerce in Thailand holds meeting. Michael McGee, commercial counselor, US embassy in Bangkok, says rules in Burma will change constantly over the next 4 or 5 years. Thai and foreign investors should therefore prepare for uncertainty in Burma. (Bangkok Post)
25 June 2012
Ministry of labor is drafting legislation that will allow pregnant migrant women to return to their country of origin when they are 3-4 months pregnant. This policy will prevent trafficking of children. (MCOT)
Politics/ Inside Burma
22 June 2012
Decision reached by Rangoon’s Western District Court to give half of Aung San Suu Kyi’s house to her eldest brother, Aung San Oo, who holds foreign citizenship. (Irrawaddy)
Ethnic Affairs
18 June 2012
31 Karen and Rakhine guerrillas who spent 13 years in Indian prison on their way to Netherlands on a UNHCR resettlement program. (Irrawaddy)
27 June 2012
U Aung Min meets KNU, ABSDF, Forum for Democracy in Burma (FDB) and Dr Cynthia in Maesod. It is part of his no less than 14 meetings scheduled to meet in Thailand. His mission: to bring the exiles home, he says. (Irrawaddy)
27 June 2012
Statement by National Democratic Front (NDF) a grouping of 8 ethnic parties, says it does not consider Rohingya as a fellow ethnic group. But some Rohingyas could be granted Burmese citizenship if they meet appropriate qualifications, according to NDF Secretary Khun Oh. (RFA/Mizzima)
Shans/ Shan State
17 June 2012
Shan State Army (SSA) delegation meeting Shan Nationalities League for Democracy (SNLD) leader Hkun Tun Oo, told persons who agree to participate in the Peace Monitoring Group would like to receive pledges from the government they would not be persecuted if the peace process fails and war resumes. (Kawli Media)
23 June 2012
Shan State Army (SSA) leader Lt-Gen Yawdserk presented with Gold Eagle Award by Royal Privy Councilor Gen Pichitr Kullavanich for his service against illicit drugs production and trafficking. (SHAN)
24 June 2012
Shan Literary and Culture Society holds meeting in Rangoon to discuss teaching of Shan language in government-operated school hours reaches a 3 point resolution: to submit the text books prepared by the Shan State Government before 1962 to the Ministry of Education’s curriculum committee, to demand teaching of mother tongue during school hours and to form a Shan curriculum committee at the next Shan Literary and Culture Central Committee meeting to be held in Mandalay in August. (SHAN)
Economy/ Business
28 June 2012
State run media says Burma has suspended commercial tax on import of some agricultural related items and domestic states for a period of a months, 1 July-31 March 2013. Items exempted include fertilizer, pesticide, farm equipment and machinery. The move is in line with focusing on stimulating the agro-industry, says the article. (Mizzima)
Human Rights
18 June 2012
Kyaukphyu court sentences to death 2 Bengali Muslims in a rape-murder case that has rocked the Rakhine State. A third suspect hanged himself on 9 June. (Irrawaddy/AFP)
19 June 2012
Industry minister Soe Thane, on a visit to Norway says Naypyitaw is planning to release more political prisoners as early as next month. (DVB)
26 June 2012
Human Rights Watch release 68 page report on 10,000 Kachin refugees in Yunnan. It urges Beijing:
- Allow UN humanitarian agencies unhindered access
- Non-refoulement
(Bangkok Post)
27 June 2012
According to state-run media, Naypyitaw signs a UN action plan pledging to abolish the use of children in the country’s armed forces by 2014. It includes a plan to immediately release all underage soldiers not only from government forces but also from ethnic armed groups. UN listed in its May 2011 report 8 armies in Burma that it believes regular recruits and use children:
- The Burmese Army
- Democratic Karen Buddhist Army
- Kachin Independence Army
- Karen National Liberation Army
- Karen Peace Council
- Karenni Army
- Shan State Army (SSA) South
- United Wa State Army
(Irrawaddy)
Environment
1 July 2012
Guinness World Records declares 6.17 meter long saltwater crocodile named Lolong, captured last September in the Philippines, is the largest crocodile in captivity in the world. (AP)
Drugs
24 June 2012
In Thailand, 85% of 25,000 female prisoners are there due to drug-related offenses. 17% of prison population is female. (Bangkok Post)
25 June 2012
The number of Chinese companies investing to develop alternative crops to poppy growing in the Golden Triangle has risen from 42 to 180 since 2005, with investment up to $ 157 million, according to Yang Jun, deputy director of overseas poppy substitution development for Yunnan Province Commerce Department. The enterprises have conducted more than 200 alternative planting programs, covering more than 200,000 hectares of land. However, opium cultivation is still on the increase since 2007, says Rao Jie, a senior officer at Baoshan city’s frontier defense corps. (China Daily/ Irrawaddy)
25 June 2012
The Philippines has the highest rate of methamphetamine users in East Asia. 2.1% of citizens age between 16-64 are speed users, according to a UN report in March. (InterAksyon.com)
26 June 2012
SHAN release Shan Drug Watch 2012 report. (SHAN)
29 June 2012
The United Wa State Army (UWSA) is allegedly ordering large amounts of “black orchid” from suppliers in northern Thailand as a substitute for pseudoephedrine, says Office of Narcotics Control Board (ONCB) Secretary General Adul Saengsingkaew. Professor Rapee Sagarik, renowned orchid expert, says the black orchid mentioned by the ONCB is widely referred to as Dracula orchid and is known to be a key ingredient in several Chinese traditional drug formulae, such as pain-killers. (Bangkok Post)
29 June 2012
Office of Narcotics Control Board (ONCB) Deputy Secretary General Sukhum Opasnipat says officials have been sent to serve as minister-counselors for drugs control to Beijing and Rangoon. The posting for Laos has also been approved. (Bangkok Post)
29 June 2012
Three men, believed to be Burmese nationals, shot dead by unidentified armed group while traveling in a speedboat 10 km north of the Golden Triangle. Authorities investigating whether the three are linked to Naw Kham who was arrested on 25 April and is currently being detained in China. Chinese authorities have reportedly finished questioning him, who they claim is addicted to Ice. Fewer Chinese flagged boats have sailed in the areas since October. Kings Romans casino of Tonpheung meanwhile have reportedly employed 200 Chinese man as security guards. (Bangkok Post)
War
30 June 2012
Shan State Army (SSA) North attacked at Monghsu-Tangyan township border again. (SHAN)
Obituary
17 June 2012
Outspoken and widely respected journalist Ludu Sein Win, 71, passes away after a long fight with lung disease. (Irrawaddy)
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