BurmaNet News, July 8, 2008

[Editor]

July 8, 2008 Issue #3506


INSIDE BURMA
Irrawaddy: Most ceasefire groups undecided on 2010 election
Irrawaddy: Cyclone orphans take low-paid work to survive
DVB: Families still waiting for news of detained relatives
DVB: ABFSU urges flexibility for late university admissions
Mizzima News: Prosecution alters charge against blogger
AP: Some Myanmar survivors now cringe at wind, rain
AFP: Myanmar says 1,670 visas granted to cyclone aid workers

ON THE BORDER
Mizzima News: Karenni refugees flee to Thai-Burma border

BUSINESS / TRADE
Mizzima News: Junta's business cronies shying away from reconstruction work
Irrawaddy: Junta profits from growing gap in value of cash and FECs
Narinjara News: Forced labor widely used in road construction

ASEAN
Bangkok Post: Surin says Burma, food crises strengthen Asean

REGIONAL
Xinhua: Thailand to establish cyclone warning network system for Myanmar

OPINION / OTHER
Irrawaddy: Why the generals are winning
Mizzima News: Sons of 1962 and future of Burma's political freedom



____________________________________
INSIDE BURMA

July 8, Irrawaddy
Most ceasefire groups undecided on 2010 election – Saw Yan Naing

Despite government pressure, most ethnic ceasefire groups are undecided on
whether to disarm and form political parties to contest the Burmese
general election scheduled for 2010, according to sources close to the
ceasefire groups.

For one month now, Burmese military authorities have been urging the
ceasefire groups to surrender—in effect, lay down their weapons—and form
political parties. An alternative option for the ceasefire groups could be
to enlist their troops as special combat police, said the sources.

Two ethnic ceasefire groups—the United Wa State Army (UWSA) and the Shan
State Army-North (SSA-N)—have not yet responded to the request of the
Burmese authorities, according to sources in Shan State.

The editor of Thailand-based Shan Herald Agency for News (SHAN), Khuensai
Jaiyen, told The Irrawaddy on Tuesday that no statement had been made as
yet. The UWSA just want autonomy, he added.

The UWSA has an estimated 20,000 soldiers deployed along Burma’s borders
with Thailand and China while an estimated 60,000 to 120,000 Wa villagers
inhabit areas of southern Shan State.

Another ethnic ceasefire group, the National Democratic Alliance
Army-Eastern Shan State, also known as the Mongla group, has been under
pressure to decommission its weapons or serve as a special combat police
unit under government command, according to a senior official of the
Mongla who was quoted recently by SHAN.

The Mongla group, however, have not replied to the military government’s
call for surrender, the article added.

Speaking to The Irrawaddy on Tuesday, Sai Murng, deputy spokesman of the
Shan State Army-South (SSA-S), said, “I think the ceasefire groups have
only two options. One is to surrender and do what the regime says. The
other is to fight back against the Burmese army.”

Meanwhile, Nai ong Ma-nge, a spokesman for the ethnic Mon ceasefire group,
the New Mon State Party (NMSP), said, “We haven’t decided as yet whether
to be involved in the 2010 election. It is a major political change, so we
have to wait for a decision from headquarters.”

The NMSP entered into a ceasefire agreement with the Burmese junta in 1995.

A source close to a Karen ceasefire group, the Democratic Karen Buddhist
Army (DKBA), said, “At this moment, it is impossible for the DKBA to
surrender and form a party. The DKBA has no interest in being involved in
the political process. They will retain their weapons and maintain their
development and business interests in Karen State.”

The DKBA is a breakaway group of the Karen National Union—Burma’s largest
ethnic insurgency group. The DKBA signed a ceasefire with the military
government in 1994 after splitting from the KNU.

However, an ethnic Kachin ceasefire group, the New Democratic Army-Kachin
(NDA-K), will reportedly lay down its weapons and participate in the 2010
election, said Aung Wa, a Kachin source on the Sino-Burmese border.

The Kachin Independence Organization (KIO), which is based along the
Sino-Burmese border, will also take part in the 2010 election, said Aung
Wa. However, it was still unclear whether the KIO would agree to a
surrender, he added.

The KIO, founded in 1961, was one of 17 ethnic armed groups that signed a
ceasefire agreement with the ruling junta in 1990s.

Recently, the Burmese regime published an article in the state-run
newspaper New Light of Myanmar calling the landslide victory of the
National League for Democracy in the 1990 general election “illegal,” and
calling for the party to run in the 2010 elections.

____________________________________

July 8, Irrawaddy
Cyclone orphans take low-paid work to survive – Violet Cho

Many children orphaned by Cyclone Nargis are being employed in low-paid
jobs in the Irrawaddy delta and Rangoon, according to monks in the region.

Monasteries throughout the region opened their doors to orphans, but a
monk in Mawlamyinegyunn Township said children who lost their parents in
the storm often preferred to live with adult survivors in their own
communities, where they found work in the paddy fields and fish farms.

Other children who had lost their parents had migrated to the cities to
find work in tea shops, small businesses and households, often encouraged
by family members, the monk said. Some were as young as 10.

A senior monk in Mawlamyinegyunn said his monastery had sent 20 orphaned
children to Phaungdawoo monastery in Mandalay, where they were being
educated.

“There are so many children who desperately need care, and we are now
trying to collect information and data about orphans so we can help them,”
he said.

The United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) said on Monday that 428
children had been separated from their parents by the cyclone. More than
50 centers had been established to help them, said UNICEF spokesman Zafrin
Chowdhury.

According to government figures, more than 84,000 people died in the
cyclone and 54,000 are missing. The most vulnerable victims of the
disaster were children, UNICEF said.

The International Labour Organization has expressed concern about the
possibility that children may be forced to help in reconstruction work,
and has warned UN agencies and relief workers of “the increased risk of
incidences of forced labor, child labor, human trafficking and migrant
labor as the authorities and individuals come to grips with the sheer size
of the tragedy.”

Rangoon-based journalist Aung Thet Wyine contributed to this report.
____________________________________

July 8, Democratic Voice of Burma
Families still waiting for news of detained relatives – Naw Say Phaw

The families of Zarganar, Zaw Thet Htway and others involved in voluntary
aid work for cyclone victims who were arrested by Burmese authorities say
they are still waiting for information on their relatives.

Writer Daw Kyi Oo, the mother of comedian and activist Zarganar, said she
is worried that her son has not been able to take his medication.

"He was already on three different medications before he was arrested and
now he has been without the medicine for over a month,” Daw Kyi Oo said.

“We have not been informed about his situation and no one has picked up
his medicine either," she said.

"His father has been not well either, and he kept asking for his son."

Daw Kyi Oo said the family had expected Zarganar to be released soon after
his arrest as had happened on previous occasion.

She said aid work carried out by Zarganar's group has been on hold for the
past two weeks as donations have not been coming in since the comedian's
arrest.

Zaw Thet Htway's wife Ma Khin Cho said 25 days have now passed since her
husband was arrested.

Ma Khin Cho said she plans to send an official letter to the authorities
asking them to disclose information about his whereabouts if he is not
released within 30 days.

The families of volunteers who were collecting the bodies of cyclone
victims the body snatchers said they too, have no idea where their loved
ones were.

____________________________________

July 8, Democratic Voice of Burma
ABFSU urges flexibility for late university admissions – Naw Say Paw

The All Burma Federation of Student Unions called on the military regime
on Monday to allow university students from cyclone-devastated Irrawaddy
division to enrol for the coming academic year.

Aung Zay, a member of the ABFSU, an established student union in Burma
since the British colonial era, said late registrations should be allowed
for students from the affected areas.

“We the ABFSU call on the authorities to grant students from
cyclone-devastated areas permission to register for the 2008-2009 academic
year,” said Aung Zay.

The call was timed to coincide with commemorations of the 46th anniversary
of the 7 July 1962 student uprising in Burma, in which students took to
the streets to protest against the regime led by the late dictator Gen.
Nay Win but were crushed violently.

The historic student union building inside Rangoon’s main university
campus was also blown up, causing the deaths of many students.

According to Aung Zay, hundreds of students from Maaupin, Bassein, and
Hinthata universities have been rejected for university courses this year
due to their late enrolments.

“Although university authorities allowed a one-month extension for late
enrolment, they [students] could not register in time because they didn’t
have the money to pay the school admission fees,” said Aung Zay.

“They informed the authorities that they were still looking for admission
fees and asked them to consider allowing them sign up but they were
rejected.”

Aung Zay told DVB that third year students at Bassein university were
given financial support of 100,000 kyat each, which could create tensions
among students.

“Are first- and second-year students not students? Don’t they deserve
financial support? Were only third year students affected by the cyclone?”
Aung Zay asked.

“We oppose this type of support as it is discriminatory and can create
problems among students.”

Besides calling for university admission, the ABFSU commemorated the 46th
7 July anniversary by distributing statements and pamphlets in Rangoon,
Irrawaddy and Bago divisions calling for non-violent struggle to liberate
Burma from the military dictatorship.

____________________________________

July 8, Mizzima News
Prosecution alters charge against blogger – Phanida

Author and blogger Nay Phone Latt, in custody for six months, was charged
again under the 1950 Emergency Provisions Act under section 5(j), a switch
from the previous charge under section 32(b) of the Video Act.

"His case has been changed to section 5(j) of Emergency Provisions Act.
The Special Branch (SB) of Police informed him about it in prison on July
2, he said. He was previously charged under section 32(b). The hearing is
now fixed for July 16. But he also said that he will not be produced
before the court on July 16 but will be remanded again," Aye Aye Than, his
mother, who met him in prison yesterday told Mizzima.

Under section 32(b) of the Video Act, he is facing a maximum of six months
in prison but now faces a maximum of seven years in jail under the new
charge under section 5(j) of Emergency Provisions Act, if convicted, the
defense lawyer Aung Thein said.

"The authorities and the law enforcement agencies do not respect and abide
by the law. They changed the charge according to their wishes. They
couldn't produce the accused before the court as they do not have a sound
case. They have just changed their charge sheet again and again under
different sections of different Acts. He has been in custody for long
time," he said.

The authorities arrested blogger Nay Phone Latt on January 29 and remanded
him until today without producing him before the court and now they have
changed their charge against him.

High court lawyer Aung Thein submitted an application to the authorities
on June 16 seeking an interview to get his client's instructions, but has
not got it yet.

Aye Aye Than said she had requested the authorities to let him have
treatment for his eye disease.

"He is suffering from eye disease and I requested the prison authority to
let him have treatment. My son said tears come to his eyes at night and he
cannot read books, his sole companion in prison. I worry about his
eyesight. He must get proper treatment before it is too late. The doctor
can prescribe him medicine and vitamins for his eye disease. The eye is
the most delicate part of the human body," his mother said.

Meanwhile another famous human right activist Suu Suu Nwe is suffering
from high blood pressure in solitary confinement.

"I couldn't meet her yesterday. I sent a food parcel to her through prison
authorities. They said that prison meetings with family members are banned
for violation of prison rules and discipline. Her blood pressure was
160-140 mm Hg when I met her last time on June 30, she said. Our family
doctor prescribed medicines and we sent them to her through the prison
authorities. We do not know whether she's got it," her elder sister Daw
Htay Htay Kyi who went yesterday to meet her said.

A heart patient Suu Suu Nwe hit her head against the brick wall after
having quarreled with the prison authorities at the end of June. After
that, she has been kept in solitary confinement in a prison cell.

"I saw a notice pasted at the prison gate saying she had quarreled with
the prison staff many times and made many complaints and argued with them
so she was punished with 14 days solitary confinement," lawyer Khin Maung
Shein said after visiting the prison on Friday.

 Suu Suu Nwe was arrested on 14 November 2007 in front of Myayeiknyo Hotel
while she was into a poster campaign. She was then charged under section
143 & 145 (unlawful assembly), section 505(b) (inciting crime against
public tranquility) and section 124(a) (committing disaffection towards
the State) of the Criminal Code. She will be produced before the court
again tomorrow.

____________________________________

July 8, Associated Press
Some Myanmar survivors now cringe at wind, rain

As the crowd gathered in the hall of a Buddhist monastery to receive their
free lunch, Hnin Mya sat listlessly, oblivious to the smell of warm curry,
the sounds of clinking utensils and the chatter of her compatriots.

Unlike most survivors of Cyclone Nargis whose lives have begun to return
to normal, Hnin Mya has withdrawn into silence since the storm swept away
her husband and two young children two months ago.

She tried to recount her loss, but words failed her. She started sobbing
quietly, her body shaking.

"She sits and stares at the river the whole day. But she frantically
searches for a place to hide whenever she hears strong wind or heavy
rain," said U Kaitila, a monk at the monastery, which has provided shelter
for Hnin Mya and 16 families made homeless by the storm.

The dead have been buried or cremated, the hungry fed and a massive effort
to provide shelter has been launched since the May 2-3 cyclone. But the
mental trauma affecting survivors like Hnin Mya may not be so easy to deal
with, and it appears to be widespread.

"You can have the supplies, you can deal with a lot of practical problems
... but in the end people also need support to reconstruct their lives and
make it worth living," said Kaz de Jong, a mental health specialist from
the humanitarian group Medecins Sans Frontieres who traveled to some of
the hardest hit areas in the country's Irrawaddy delta.

He recalled a woman telling him: "You know you are all worried about rice,
and enough rice, that's important, but do you also worry that people must
also have motivation to eat it? At this moment my life is not worth
living. ... I've lost all my family members."

Some 80,000 people were killed in the storm, with another 50,000
unaccounted for, and hundreds of thousands of families had homes battered
or destroyed.

Preliminary findings of a survey undertaken by the government, U.N.
agencies and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations found that 22
percent of storm-affected households reported psychological stress. Common
symptoms among survivors include the inability to sleep, recurrent
nightmares and flashbacks, apathy, absentmindedness and concentration
problems.

Some victims also experience headaches, body pains and palpitations.

"Some people start avoiding places, people and conversations which remind
them of the event," said de Jong. Others "become hyperactive, working
nonstop to avoid their mind wandering off to what happened and what is
lost."

"People report that they have (the) impression that everything takes a lot
of effort and they've lost energy, in many cases also their motivation, to
rebuild," he said.

Short-term psycho-social trauma is common after terrifying and
life-threatening events, but some victims will suffer mental problems for
months or years, said Surachet Satitniramai, director of Thailand's
National Medical Emergency Services Institute, who headed a team of about
30 Thai health specialists who worked in the devastated area.

Even after concerns about displacement, separation from loved ones,
poverty and livelihood are addressed, "some may never fully recover," he
said.

Myanmar government medical teams sent to the delta include mental health
experts, but since the country has never before experienced a tragedy on
this scale, they may not be as well-qualified as outsiders who have dealt
with similar disasters, such as the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami.

However, "it makes more sense for local doctors to deal with mental health
issues since they understand the culture and how people react," said
Surachet.

"Outside experts can help but there is a language barrier which makes
diagnosis and treatment difficult," he said. "Myanmar people are very
reserved and resilient and they may smile when they see a stranger, so it
may be more difficult to detect cases of mental trauma."

Many of the same Buddhist monks who provided food and shelter in the
storm's wake are able to offer spiritual comfort as well.

"It is our duty to give them courage to move on and rebuild their lives,"
said U Pinyatale, a 45-year-old abbot who provided shelter for some 100
villagers living along the Pyapon river. "Myanmar people are very
spiritual and religious and that is where they find their strength to
continue living."

Healing is difficult, though.

Nyo Nyo Than, 35, said she still hears the screams of her four-year-old
son — swept away by the waters — every time she tries to close her eyes.
Two months after the cyclone, she still has difficulty eating or sleeping.

"He kept screaming that he didn't want to take a bath when we were
floating in the river," she said, her face covered with tears. "He was
really scared so he pretended we were just taking a bath before I lost my
grip on him. I still cry every time I look at the river."

____________________________________

July 8, Agence France Presse
Myanmar says 1,670 visas granted to cyclone aid workers

Myanmar's military rulers have granted 1,670 visas to foreign aid experts
to deliver humanitarian aid to victims of the cyclone that devastated the
country two months ago, state media said Tuesday.

The regime had come under fierce international criticism for taking weeks
to approve visas for foreign experts after Cyclone Nargis pounded ashore
on May 2, leaving more than 138,000 dead or missing.

The United Nations estimates that 2.4 million people need food, shelter or
other aid. After a personal visit by UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon, the
junta slowly started to open up access to the country, although agencies
still face restrictions on their work.

The official New Light of Myanmar newspaper said that as of June 30, the
regime had given 1,670 visas, mainly to United Nations and other
international aid workers, but also to medical teams from around Southeast
Asia.

"The state has granted visas to experts and personnel from international
aid organisations to provide humanitarian assistance to the storm
victims," the paper said.

It did not say how long the aid workers were allowed to stay inside the
country or if they were allowed to travel outside the main city Yangon.

____________________________________
ON THE BORDER

July 8, Mizzima News
Karenni refugees flee to Thai-Burma border - Than Htike Oo

The Burmese Army's severe human rights violations have forced 165 Karenni
refugees to flee to refugee camps along the Thai-Burma border this year,
camp officials said.

The 165 refugees are from Shardaw and Phrusoe Townships in Karenni State.
They fled to the border after being intimidated by the army. They were
accused by the troops of having contact with insurgents, forced to
relocated and forced into labour. The refugees started arriving at the
camps situated in Mae Hong Song District, Thailand since January this
year. The exodus continues till today.

"The Burmese Army soldiers summoned the refugees to their outposts
repeatedly and lodged false complaints against them. They were wrongly
accused of having contact with insurgents and some were arrested on
suspicion. They did not dare stay in their villages and fled to the border
after hiding in the jungle for some days," Pho Pya, Chairman of Karenni
Refugee Camp Committee, told Mizzima.

"The junta forcibly and frequently relocated their villages. They were
forced to perform labour without being paid. They were made to work in
building, mending and renovating army outposts and fences built around
them. Moreover they had to part with meat, food, fish, bamboo and timber
free of charge to the soldiers. The soldiers forcibly relocated their
villages under various pretexts such as withholding information on
insurgent movements to the army, lading to encounters with the insurgents
around these villages among other such fabricated charges. The refugees
chose to flee to the border as a last resort after suffering harassment
which was becoming unbearable," Khu Oo Re, Secretary II of 'Karenni
Nationality Progressive Party' (KNPP), which is waging an armed struggle
against the junta said.

KNPP has had numerous skirmishes and encounters with the Burmese Army in
Shardaw and Mawchi areas. It is learnt that the Burmese Army's LIB 426,
530 and 531 are operating in these areas.

These new arrivals have been accommodated in their relatives' houses and
provided food by the Refugee Camp Committee.

The Camp Committee will have discussions with the district authorities for
giving them refugee status.

The camp officials said that there are about 23,000 recognized refugees in
Karenni Camp No. 1 and 2.

____________________________________
BUSINESS / TRADE

July 8, Mizzima News
Junta's business cronies shying away from reconstruction work – Mungpi

In the aftermath of Cyclone Nargis, Burma's military rulers have assigned
several private companies to undertake reconstruction work in the affected
areas. However, many are said to be reluctant to take on the job as there
is no certainty of being paid the money they need to spend, sources said.

A source close to Burma's military establishment said, the junta has
assigned more than 30 companies to undertake reconstruction work. But
several of these companies are apprehensive of going ahead.

Normally, these business groups, most being business cronies of the junta,
rush in to help the regime in any kind of project, because the companies
in return are rewarded with 'Business Opportunities', which give them
special advantages in their business ventures.

"For companies, this has become almost like their life line," the source
added.

However, with no clear indication of any 'Business Opportunities' in
return for helping in reconstructing the cyclone devastated areas,
companies seem to be soft pedaling in undertaking voluntary and charity
work, the source said.

But Aung Naing Oo, a Thailand based Burmese analyst, said while several
businessmen expressed their apprehension, some have really been touched by
the extent of devastation and are fully involved in the reconstruction.

"Some groups have already given more than 20,000 US dollar worth of aid to
help cyclone victims," said Aung Naing Oo, citing sources close to
business circles.

But he also added that several other companies are playing games to gain
out of helping cyclone victims in reconstruction and rehabilitation

"There is gossip among the people in the delta that this cyclone has
clearly showed who among the businessmen have a human heart," Aung Naing
Oo said.

Following the devastation caused by Cyclone Nargis, Burma's military
regime has appointed several of its ministers to monitor the
reconstruction and rehabilitation work in different townships in the
affected areas.

But the source close to the military said, the junta was forced to
undertake reconstruction work out of shame and humiliation.

The source said, the junta's secretary 1 Thiha Thura Tin Aung Myint Oo,
during his trip to Haing Gyi Island had told villagers that "we are doing
this relief and rehabilitation out of shame and humiliation."

While the information on Tin Aung Myint Oo's speech cannot be
independently verified, an aid worker helping cyclone victims in Rangoon
division said, the junta has been shifting cyclone refugees from their
make-shift tents in order to show that the situation has normalised.

"Now most of the temporary refugee camps have been closed down and people
have been forced to go back home, where there is still nothing to live
on," the aid worker, who has been helping victims in Kunchangone, Daedeye
and Kawhmu townships in Rangoon division said.

He added that the authorities want to show the international community
that under their coordination and effort, the situation has returned to
normal.

____________________________________

July 8, Irrawaddy
Junta profits from growing gap in value of cash and FECs – Min Lwin

The growing gap between the value of the US dollar and Burmese foreign
exchange certificates (FECs)—introduced in 1994 to ensure that most hard
currency that enters the country ends up in government hands—is turning
Cyclone Nargis relief efforts into a major cash cow for Burma’s ruling
junta.

All international aid agencies working in Burma are required to deposit
money for operating expenses in accounts at the Myanmar Foreign Trade Bank
(MFTB). These deposits—usually made in US dollars—can only be withdrawn in
FECs, which are technically equal in value.

However, since Cyclone Nargis struck on May 2-3, the actual value of the
FEC has fallen considerably, from slightly lower than the US unit to just
over 80 percent of the dollar’s black market exchange rate.

According to members of Rangoon’s business community, FECs now fetch just
965 kyat per unit, while the dollar is worth around 1170.

Businessmen say the price of FECs started to fall in the wake of Cyclone
Nargis, as Burmese living overseas began to transfer large amounts of cash
into MFTB accounts to support the relief effort.

After the junta finally decided to allow major international aid agencies
to enter the country in late May, the FECs dropped further.

“The demand for FECs [from international relief groups] increased, so the
government just printed more,” said a Rangoon-based economic observer.
“This drove down their value, because now the currency market is flooded
with FECs.”

Besides international organizations and foreign-owned businesses, Burmese
employed abroad are also required to hold MFTB accounts to send
remittances to their families in Burma.

“I have to transfer my dollar salary to my MFTB account, but when my
family withdraws the money in FECs, it’s worth a lot less,” complained a
Burmese engineer working in South Africa. “Nowadays we lose at least 200
kyat on the dollar.”

A Burmese relief worker said that the more aid that flows into country,
the less the FEC will be worth.

“International agencies and overseas Burmese deposit US dollars for local
purchases, but they can only withdraw FECs. The more dollars that come
into Burma, the more FEC there will be in the market,” said the relief
worker.

Economic observers pointed out that the government, which has been driving
down the value of the FEC by printing them in large numbers, is now
effectively earning a 20 percent “tax” on all aid coming into the country.

According to figures released by the United Nations, US $134 million has
so far been spent on the international relief mission in Burma, some of it
used to purchase supplies and pay for services locally.
____________________________________

July 8, Narinjara News
Forced labor widely used in road construction

A large number of people in Maungdaw Township have been used as forced
labor by local authorities on repair work on the Buthidaung - Maungdaw
roadway since the road and bridges collapsed in heavy rains, said a
resident from Maungdaw.
He said, "We have to go do the road repair along the motor road after the
authorities summoned 50 people from each ward in downtown Maungdaw through
Rayaka, the ward councils. The forced labor began on Monday."

In Maungdaw, there are six wards altogether, and each had to send 50
people yesterday to the locations where the road was damaged with their
own mattocks and pickaxes to do repair work. They had to work from 9 am to
4 pm yesterday without pay.

"We had to work there from 9 am to 4 pm without payment, but the authority
did not provide any assistance with any food or drinking water during the
work time. We brought our own food from our homes to the road repair
sites," the resident said.

A local source said the authority not only summoned people from downtown
Maungdaw, but also a large number of people from rural villages located
along the Buthidaung - Maungdaw motor road.

A witness said, "I saw a large number of people leave for the 7-miles
bridge in many vehicles from the central market to repair the road, and
most people were day laborers from Maungdaw."

According to another report, many wealthier families have had to pay 2,000
kyat to the ward council in order to hire a day laborer if they were
unable to send someone from their own families to do the work.

In Maungdaw's government construction department, there is no machinery
such as excavators or dump trucks to aid the repair work, so authorities
have used locals as manpower to do all the necessary tasks.

The road constructed is expected by some to take as much as a year to
complete by the people without any machinery due to the heavy damaged it
sustained in the rains.

According to a local source, many people from Maungdaw are preparing to
work at the road construction today after the township authority summoned
them to do so.

The Buthidaung - Maungdaw motor road is a key transportation link along
the western border and is central to the border trade with Bangladesh.
Every rainy season the road suffers blockages and bridge collapses but the
authority has neglected to repair such weaknesses as they arise.

____________________________________
ASEAN

July 8, Bangkok Post
Surin says Burma, food crises strengthen Asean

The Association of Southeast Asian Nations has emerged stronger in the
aftermath of Cyclone Nargis that whipped Burma and the rice crisis that
plagued several member countries, a senior official said Tuesday.

Asean Secretary General Surin Pitsuwan said the quick response of the
10-nation regional group in leading the international humanitarian effort
to help millions of cyclone victims gave the grouping "a sense of
community and confidence."

"The Asean was baptized by Cyclone Nargis," he told reporters in Manila
where he was on a visit. "We have shown to the world that we are an
effective organization."

Surin said that an assessment meeting on the ongoing humanitarian efforts
in Burma, where more than 140,000 people were killed or missing and
displaced at least 2 million, was slated next week in Singapore.

"The level of support from the international community is extremely
encouraging and giving us encouragement that more can be done not only for
the victims of Nargis but also to pockets of poverty and underdevelopment
in other Asean countries," he said.

Surin also noted that Asean's cohesiveness as a group was highlighted with
the quick action of rice-exporting countries within Asean to help
rice-importing countries in the group amid the grain shortage.

"There is enough rice stock to take care of the region and to also share
with the world in times of need," he said. "The panic is over, the rice
(prices) have gone down."

Surin said the humanitarian crisis in Burma and the rice crisis also
provided an impetus for Asean members to ratify the group's first
rules-based charter.

Surin said six Asean countries have already ratified the charter and the
remaining four countries were expected to ratify it in time for the
leaders' summit in Bangkok in November.

"I'm hoping that in Bangkok we will be able to celebrate the full
ratification," he said.

Asean groups Brunei, Burma, Cambodia, Laos, Indonesia, Malaysia, the
Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.

____________________________________
REGIONAL

July 8, Xinhua
Thailand to establish cyclone warning network system for Myanmar

Thailand is seeking to establish in Myanmar an early warning network
system against cyclone and a delegation, led by Minister of Information,
Communication and Technology Mun Patanotai, is currently on a visit in
Yangon.

According to the official newspaper New Light of Myanmar Tuesday, talks on
the move were held between the Thai delegation and its Myanmar
counterpart, led by Minister of Transport Major-General Thein Swe, during
the visit.

The Thai delegation also met with Deputy Foreign Minister U Kyaw Thu,
Chairman of the ASEAN-Myanmar-United Nations Tripartite Core Group
representing Myanmar, Monday to seek cooperation on the move, the report
said.

Meanwhile, the United Nations has set up an emergency telecommunication
centre (ETC) in Yangon to help for quick communication access in disaster
relief and restoration works, the local Biweekly Eleven reported earlier.

Some Myanmar staff have been trained by the UN Emergency Communication
Group operating the centre, the report said, adding that the UN group has
been rendering assistance for some social organizations based in Bangkok
to bring in their relief aid supplies to cyclone-hit areas in Myanmar's
Ayeyawaddy division and Yangon division.

Deadly cyclone Nargis, which occurred over the Bay of Bengal, hit five
divisions and states - Ayeyawaddy, Yangon, Bago, Mon and Kayin on last May
2 and 3, of which Ayeyawaddy and Yangon inflicted the heaviest casualties
and massive infrastructure damage.

Myanmar estimated the damages and losses caused by the storm at 10.67
billion US dollars with 5.5 million people affected.

The storm has killed 84,537 people and left 53,836 missing and 19,359
injured according to the latest official death toll.

____________________________________
OPINION / OTHER

July 8, Irrawaddy
Why the generals are winning – Kyaw Zwa Moe

This year is the 20th anniversary of the democracy movement in Burma. In
1988, a few small student protests against late dictator Ne Win’s Burma
Socialist Programme Party ignited the flame of democracy which quickly
developed into the strongest uprising in Burma’s history.

The flame still burns, and the spirit of democracy—though constantly
suppressed—lives on. But to accomplish the task of bringing democracy to
Burma, the country needs more than a flame—it needs a wildfire.

Twenty years may not be too long when one talks about changing a country’s
political system, but it’s a long time in a person’s life. Many democracy
leaders, activists and sympathizers have died, knowing the country was
still in the hands of totalitarian dictators.

Pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi once told me that we should be
prepared for a “lifelong struggle” to restore democracy in Burma. Yes, it
may take an entire lifetime, especially if  the pro-democracy movement
fails to unite into an unbeatable political force, one truly strong enough
to overwhelm the powerful, ruthless military regime, which is intent on
ruling Burma for decades to come.

Over the past 20 years, many committed leaders and activists have joined
the struggle, all willing to give everything they had. Their dedication
was beyond words: no matter how many times they were imprisoned, they
would rejoin the movement when freed. Many thousands of political
prisoners, including Suu Kyi, have spent most of the past 20 years in the
junta’s notorious prisons.

During this time, the movement has lacked the one essential, most
important factor: unity. The movement has never been able to gather
everyone—leaders and average Burmese people—into one, united political
force.

After 1988, when political parties were allowed to form and contest the
1990 elections, more than 200 political parties mushroomed into existence.
It was the first indication of a lack of unity in the pro-democracy
movement. Even popular political figures such as former premier U Nu, Suu
Kyi and former Brig-Gen Aung Gyi couldn’t provide a collective leadership
capable of uniting the disparate political groups opposing the regime.

For instance, even the main opposition party, the National League for
Democracy, formed around three leaders, Aung Gyi, Suu Kyi and Tin Oo. Aung
Gyi, who was chairman of the NLD, later broke away to form his own
political party. He was followed by others.

However, the people of Burma are smart. They knew there was a danger of
diluting their voting power among the various opposition parties. They
voted for the NLD, giving it 82 percent of the ballots cast.

Unfortunately, the proliferation of too many political parties and
organizations has become a trend in recent decades, not only inside the
country but in the exiled community as well, often weakening the overall
movement. Many groups are simply names, with no worthwhile activities.

In the activist community, there’s a joke that if two Burmese people meet,
they will form three groups. First, each person forms his own group and
then they both form a coalition group.

It’s a joke, but it captures a shameful truth. The pro-democracy movement
lacks the discipline for unity and power.

Recently, one of Burma’s most respected monks, Dr Ashin Nyanissara, noted
the lack of collaboration in Burmese society, saying there have been
thousands of pro-democracy groups formed since 1988, but little unity.
He’s right.

No matter what obstacles we face in the future, the chief priority for all
pro-democracy leaders should be to build a single force capable of uniting
the country around one goal: democracy.

When asked what she wanted to say to pro-democracy groups in an interview
with The Irrawaddy in 2002, Suu Kyi replied, “I have always wanted to see
unity.”

In every struggle, unity can bring success and disunity can bring failure.
All Burmese opposition groups must focus on unity. Otherwise, the flame of
democracy in Burma will never burst into the wildfire that’s needed to
sweep away the military dictatorship.

____________________________________

July 8, Mizzima News
Sons of 1962 and future of Burma's political freedom – Ma Ng

The Burmese Army grabbed political power in a coup on 2 March 1962; and
Burma again lost its political freedom 14 years after independence, to the
native military dictatorship instead of a foreign colonial power.

Within a few months, in a move to crush the students protest against the
army takeover the Burmese military dynamited the Rangoon University
Student Union building on 7 July 1962. And from the beginning the military
dictators proved to be more ruthless and destructive than the foreign
invaders.

During the 1962 crackdown, the army generals were no doubt confident that
the last of students' rebellion has been extinguished, for good. But 26
years later, Ko Min Ko Naing and Ko Moe Thee Zun who were born in 1962,
like many others in their generation, became student leaders of the 1988
uprising. The number of student protesters exploded from a few hundreds in
1962 to hundreds of thousands in 1988.

Ko Moe Thee Zun, the student leader in exile said that, in 1988 the
military did not expect the student rebels to survive the harsh and
difficult conditions in the opposition camps. But like the Karen, Shan and
other ethnic organizations that came before them, after decades of trials
and errors, the student organization led by Ko Moe Thee Zun has also
matured into one more challenger to the junta's rule.

While the military's credibility as the saviour of the nation and
protector of the people has diminished, the students' political commitment
has earned respect and credibility. It became evident when the 2007 fuel
price protest led by the '88 student leaders escalated into a full blown
Saffron uprising last fall.

While the military generals are increasingly isolated in their citadel;
according to Ko Moe Thee Zun, the difficulties experienced by the students
in the jungles, since 1988 have helped Burman majority urban-elites gain
greater understanding of the ethnic political movement. An invaluable
common bond and respect has also been forged among the students and ethnic
political oppositions to help shape durable peace in Burma, later.

The ethnic armed rebels, who were perceived to have been more concerned
with the ethnic right of self determination instead of aiming for a larger
political change, are finally evolving into more politically correct
organizations after decades of violent conflicts with the military regime
in Burma. The surviving armed rebels are no longer tainted with drug
trafficking or political and ideological confusion. Their aim for a
genuine democratic change, and, their support for Aung San Suu Kyi and the
legacy of her father, has never been clearer.

China which claims to be rising peacefully has nevertheless unilaterally
supported the military dictatorship in Burma. China's support for the
Burmese regime has been devastating for the armed resistance in Burma.

However, since the end of the Vietnam War, long before the war in Iraq,
armed conflicts alone no longer determine the political future of a
country. After the cold war, many nations gained democracy through mass
protests and peaceful political uprising, in places where civil wars have
already ended.

The enormous military apparatus in Burma is a threat mostly to the
military junta which has to feed and support such an enormous and costly
apparatus that do not contribute to the wellbeing of the rulers or the
citizens of Burma.

There is no need for such a large army even just to suppress the urban
dissidents or the armed rebels. It is only for the psychological need of
the generals. And it reflects the operational inefficiency of the Burmese
military.

The end result of such great inadequacy is calculated to be in billions of
dollars of losses for Burma. Within weeks after the Tsunami in December of
2004, the storm relief efforts received two and a half billion dollars
worth of pledges from around the world. The United States alone provided
90 helicopters involving military assistance with 12,600 personnel and 21
ships, immediately after the storm.

Whether the people in Irrawaddy delta are barely surviving or not, Burma
can certainly use such great outside humanitarian assistance.

Not only the regime's inability to overcome the distrust of outside
powers, the military's inability to convince the world's of its sincerity
toward helping its own people has also cost Burma dearly, by earning less
than two hundred million dollars worth of pledges for a disaster as
overwhelming as Tsunami of 2004.

The military's violent crackdown on peaceful monks and the regime's
intentional neglect of  Cyclone Nargis victims, have sparked a renewed
call to bring the Myanmar government before the International Criminal
Court, for committing crimes against humanity.

In addition, the UN Security Council has recently passed a resolution,
condemning rape as "a war crime, a crime against humanity, or a
constitutive act with respect to genocide," while the Burmese Army
continues to use rape as a weapon of war against the ethnic minority.

It has been shown that the enormous private wealth can no longer protect
the world's tyrants from prosecutions for the crimes they have committed.
Jean-Pierre Bemba who is accused of committing atrocities in the Central
African Republic in 2002, and the former Liberian president Charles Taylor
who begins to stand trial in front of a special tribunal in The Hague for
alleged war crimes in Sierra Leone, will join two former Khmer Rouge,
ministers Ieng Sary, and his wife, Ieng Thirith who are being charged with
war crimes and crime against humanity for their alleged role in Cambodia's
1970s genocide.

Aung San Suu Kyi has often said that politics is everyone's business and
people should overcome fear to involve themselves in politics. Hillary
Clinton said last January during her bid for presidency that, "some of us
put ourselves out there against pretty difficult odds because we care
about our country."

The Burmese struggle for democracy has come of age like the student
leaders. For Burma to be able to move closer towards its democratic goal,
the political, economic and military elite will all have to shed fear and
come forward to bear their share of responsibility.

Burmese people can no longer sit back and play the role of virtuous sages.
Blaming the military dictatorship founded by a postal clerk, and sustained
by illiterate generals and their business cronies; is no longer
sufficient. People should begin to take their own fate into their hands,
instead of blaming others.

Kishmore Mahbubani, Dean of the Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy at
the National University of Singapore wrote that Western principles of
democracy, the rule of law, and social justice are among the world's best
bets. And he continued that the world does not need to invent any new
principles to improve global governance; the concept of domestic good
governance can and should be applied to the international community.

And even if the above concept of democracy were written in an Asian
language other than English, its fundamental value will not be lost to the
people of Burma. The belief in democracy and freedom is fully supported by
the Burmese Buddhist tradition as well.

Ashin Gambira the famous monk leader said in March, 2008 that, if the
people no longer want to live under the cruel military dictatorship they
will have to speak up and protest. Unless they resist the military rule
with courage, absolute military power will continue indefinitely.

As Aung San Suu Kyi warned after the military crackdown on the monks last
September, the Burmese people can no longer sit around and simply hope for
the best. They must all begin preparing for the worst to come until the
end of military tyranny in Burma.

The recent Cyclone Nargis in the Irrawaddy delta has proven that the
downtrodden people of Burma can still take care off themselves even with
minimal outside help, and will manage to survive. There is no longer doubt
if they have the power to change their future. The people of Burma can and
must work together to end the military dictatorship. No one else can do it
for them.

May Ng is from the Southern Shan State of Burma and NY regional director
of Justice for Human Rights in Burma.