BurmaNet News, December 5 - 7, 2009

[Editor]

December 5 - 7, 2009 Issue #3854


INSIDE BURMA
DVB: Monk given two-year sentence
AFP: Myanmar charges detained fishermen: official
Khonumthung News: Volunteer firemen given lessons on 2008 constitution
Xinhua: Myanmar to install 150,000 more mobile phones in two major cities
Irrawaddy: Young voters hold mixed views of next year's election

ON THE BORDER
SHAN: Junta to survey gas pipeline route

REGIONAL
Vietnamese News Agency: Vietnam, Burma sign agreement on management of
religion

INTERNATIONAL
Irrawaddy: US Women's Issues Envoy seeks junta accountability
Mizzima News: Austrian film fest highlights Burma
Nanaimo Daily News (British Columbia): Burmese ethnic group finds home in
Langley

OPINION / OTHER
DVB: Stiglitz and the master of puppets – Dr Zarni

PRESS RELEASE
AAPPB: Political prisoner on hunger strike

STATEMENT
Forum of Burmese in Europe: On the visit of Myanmar’s Representatives to
the International Climate Change Conference in Copenhagen/DK in Dec. 2009



____________________________________
INSIDE BURMA

December 7, Democratic Voice of Burma
Monk given two-year sentence – Nan Kham Kaew

A monk who appeared at the Rangoon courtroom on the day Burmese opposition
leader Aung San Suu Kyi was sentenced in August has been imprisoned for
two years, family sources said.

Nyi Nyi San, also a member of Suu Kyi’s National League for Democracy
(NLD) party, who had entered temporary monkhood, was arrested whilst
walking away from the Insein prison courtroom on the day the verdict was
given.

He has been sentenced on charges of defaming the Buddhist religion at the
end of a trial held in Bahan township, Rangoon, where the NLD headquarters
are based.

Nyi Nyi San was in temporary monkhood under the name of Ashin Sandatika at
Daysunpa monastery in Bago division when the opposition leader began her
trial.

“He requested permission from the abbot at the monastery where he was
ordained [to attend the trial],” said a source. “He was arrested and
pulled into a truck while on his way to the NLD office from Insein
prison.”

The source told DVB that Nyi Nyi San is suffering from a hernia. Prison
doctors have reportedly told authorities that he needs medical attention.

The Burmese junta’s treatment of monks, widely revered across the majority
Buddhist population of Burma, was thrown into the spotlight in September
2007 as police opened fire on crowds of monks protesting in the streets of
Rangoon, in what come to be known as the Saffron Revolution.

Video footage later emerged that showed the bloated bodies of monks, still
in their robes, who had been shot by police during the protests.

Suu Kyi was sentenced in August to a further 18 months under house arrest
after US citizen John Yettaw intruded into her lakeside home-cum-prison.
Judges alleged that her “sheltering” of Yettaw contravened the rules of
her house arrest.

Scores gathered regularly at the heavily guarded gates of Insein prison
throughout the trial. Eyewitnesses said that police had set up road blocks
along the main arteries to the prison, and had regularly intimidated NLD
supporters.

According to the Thailand-based Assistance Association for Political
Prisoners-Burma (AAPP), more than 250 of Burma’s 2173 political prisoners
are monks, while 433 are NLD members.

____________________________________

December 6, Agence France Presse
Myanmar charges detained fishermen: official

Yangon – Myanmar has charged 128 foreign fishermen with violating
immigration laws after they were arrested last month for illegal fishing,
an official said Sunday.

The group, currently held in Yangon's notorious Insein jail, was made up
mostly of Indonesians and included 14 Filipinos, one Chinese and four
Taiwanese nationals, a senior official of the prison told AFP on condition
of anonymity.

"Altogether 128 foreign fishermen, most of them Indonesians, were charged
at Insein prison on Friday. They were charged under the immigration act,"
the official said.

He said seven Myanmar fisherman arrested with the group were also charged,
but it was not immediately clear what charges they faced.

The foreigners were likely to be deported from the military-ruled country,
he added, declining to give further details.

The fishermen were arrested last month from ten illegal fishing vessels
and sent to Insein prison for poaching in Myanmar's waters -- the
country's largest arrest for illegal fishing in decades, officials said.

A consular team from the Philippine embassy in Yangon has twice visited
the detained Filipinos, the country's department of foreign affairs said
on its website.

It said the fishermen may face prosecution for violation of immigration
laws which carries a penalty of imprisonment for up to three months, or
payment of a fine not exceeding 200 Kyat (30.72 dollars).

Under the law of the sea, a nation has the right to outline an exclusive
economic zone stretching up to 200 nautical miles from its shores and
claim the right to exploit the resources within that area.

Myanmar possesses a 2,229 kilometre-long (1,385 miles) coastline along the
Bay of Bengal and Andaman Sea.

____________________________________

December 7, Khonumthung News
Volunteer firemen given lessons on 2008 constitution

The Burmese military junta while conducting volunteer fire fighting
training programmes is also teaching the constitution to the trainees of
the fire department in Kalemyo district, Sagaing Division in western
Burma.

“The training period was for a month. We were taught not only fire
fighting but also given lessons from the 2008 constitution,” said a local
in Nwainpinta block of Kalemyo.

The trainers told them to campaign for government candidates among
civilians for the forthcoming 2010 general elections. So they learnt
details of the election chapter in the 2008 constitution.

Generally the trainees are men between the ages of 16 and 45. The training
programme was held every week with 100 trainees.  At least 20 persons from
each block had to go for the training. There are 30 blocks in Kalemyo
district.

The military authorities gave Kyat 1500 per day to the trainees for their
travel, lodging and food. The officials collected Kyat 2000 to 2500 from
each family from all the blocks in Kalemyo.

In much the same way many people are being trained as volunteer firemen
along with lessons on the constitution in different parts of Chin state
and Tamu district in Sagaing division, Burma.

____________________________________

December 7, Xinhua
Myanmar to install 150,000 more mobile phones in two major cities

Yangon – The Myanmar telecommunication authorities will add 150,000 more
CDMA phone lines in two major cities of Yangon and Mandalay this month to
provide better telecommunication services, the state-run Myanmar Posts and
Telecommunications said on Monday.

Of them, 100,000 CDMA 800 MHz phone lines will be installed in Yangon,
while the remaining 50,000 will be installed in Mandalay, the sources
said, adding that such phone lines cost 500,000 Kyats (about 500 U.S.
dollars) each, cheaper than the former previously available.

Voice message, fax and short message services are rendered with the CDMA
800 MHz phones but accessible only within the limited area, the sources
said.

A former CDMA 450 MHz phone card costs about 1.5 million Kyats (about
1,500 dollars) and its accessibility covers the whole country.

The number of CDMA phone lines stood 205,500, while that of GSM phones hit
375,800 and auto-phones reached 153,344 in the country in 2008, according
to statistics.

CDMA phones have been extensively used in Myanmar since it was introduced
in 1997 after cellular ones in 1993. GSM followed in 2002.

Meanwhile, Myanmar is also making efforts to introduce world's up-date
audio-visual mobile phone for use in the country for the first time to
upgrade its telecommunication links.

The upgraded system will be based on the existing GSM network, the
authorities said, adding that the introduction of 3-G WCDMA system
represents Myanmar's entry into a new phase of its mobile phone system.

Moreover, Myanmar has planned full coverage of public access centers (PAC)
in every township in the country by this year to facilitate communication
links.

There has been over 400 PAC opened in 44 townships in Myanmar since 2004.

According to the authorities, the number of internet users in Myanmar has
reached over 300,000, up from merely dozens in four years ago.

____________________________________

December 5, Irrawaddy
Young voters hold mixed views of next year's election – Aung Thet Wine

Rangoon — Many young people in Burma say they won't go to the polling
booths in next year's  junta-sponsored general election if there are no
political parties representing public interests, according to a poll
conducted by The Irrawaddy.

The poll asked people who were too young to vote in the 1990 general
election whether they would cast a ballot in the election slated to take
place next year. The results showed that many would stay away unless they
felt that citizen's interests were represented.
A member of the National League for Democracy pins a badge of the party's
leader Aung San Suu Kyi on shirt of her colleague outside the party's
headquarters during a celebration to mark the 89th anniversary of the
country's National Day in November. (Photo: AP)

Sixty people between the ages of 18 and 29 responded to the poll.
Respondents included 10 university students, seven media workers, four
lawyers, seven manual laborers and a graduate from a military academy.

Many of the respondents said they considered the 2010 election to be the
official conclusion of the prolonged period of military rule in Burma, but
added that they doubted it would bring a genuine democratic government
representing the people's concerns.

Many said they expected junta-backed parties and organizations, such as
veterans associations and the the Union Solidarity and Development
Association (USDA), a pro-military mass organization, to compete in the
election, but saw little likelihood that political parties representing
the people's interest would be allowed to participate.

“The junta's USDA organization has engaged in many pre-election
activities, such as putting up USDA banners to publicize their volunteer
work on road construction, bridge-building and other social welfare
activities. They have been campaigning quite extensively, well in advance
of the election laws that will officially begin the election period," said
a 25-year-old mathematics student from Rangoon.

With less than a month to go before the start of 2010, the junta has yet
to give any indication when it will hold the election, except to say that
it will take place sometime next year. Many of those who responded to the
poll said that the election law, whenever it is announced, would likely
make it difficult for political parties to form and would also set many
restrictions on freedom of assembly and expression during the election
campaign.

"The junta promulgated the Constitution as it liked and I am pretty sure
they will impose more restrictions to choke political parties with the
coming election laws and regulations,” said a legal intern from Rangoon.

Critics of the 2008 Constitution say that it contains many clauses that
are contrary to democratic principles, including its guarantee of 25
percent of seats in parliament for the military. It also reserves more
power for the commander-in-chief of the armed forces than for the
president and  allows the top general to legally seize power under certain
conditions.

"The constitution starts with a clause stating that the union must
practice a genuine, disciplined multiparty democratic system. But in a
real democracy, there is no such notion as a 'disciplined democracy.' A
real democracy is simply one that represents people's aspirations,” said a
female lawyer who took part in the survey.

But not everyone was so dismissive of the junta's intentions.

"Everyone should assist the military government with good will to
transform from military rule to civilian rule peacefully and smoothly. The
2010 election is only the first step to a new democratic system without
any bloodshed,” said a youth trainee of Myanmar Egress, a locally based
nongovernmental organization.

A 26-year-old military academy graduate also said that he strongly
believed the nation would change its administrative system after the 2010
election.

"It's not only our people who eager to see change. The army servicemen are
also hungry for change. Junior officers like us in the Burmese army are
looking for change after the 2010 election," he said.

Some other respondents to the poll also expressed enthusiasm, even if they
were less sure how it would shape the country's political landscape.

"Many young people are excited about the 2010 election, because it will
give them a chance to see what role they can play in the future of the
nation,” said one IT professional.

Some young people who are struggling to make ends meet expressed hope that
the post-election government will provide them with more economic
opportunities to help them improve their living conditions.

"It is important for a household to be able to survive and live in
well-being,” said a factory worker who spoke with The Irrawaddy. “I will
vote for whoever can create that kind of situation.”

For some respondents, however, the way the election is conducted matters
more than its actual outcome.

Although the junta leaders have promised to hold the 2010 election in a
free and fair manner, there is every indication that the regime will
continue to impose strict limits on media freedom.

"We haven't been allowed to freely publish news relating to the election
until now. The censorship board has actually increased its restrictions on
news related to politics and the election,” said a 27-journalist, adding
that the election could not be considered free and fair without freedom of
expression.

"If even journalists, who are regarded as the eyes and ears of a nation,
can't express their opinions freely, ordinary citizens will find it hard
to make informed decisions. But I don't see any prospect of media freedom
in 2010," another local journalist said.

____________________________________
ON THE BORDER

December 7, Shan Herald Agency for News
Junta to survey gas pipeline route – Hseng Khio Fah

Junta military is to conduct a survey in Shan State for construction of
gas pipeline route to China from the offshore Shwe gas fields in Arakan
State in western Burma, according to sources on the Sino-Burma border.

The field survey will be starting from 15 to 30 December and will be led
by an official from the Science and Technology, Aung Zaw Lin and
accompanied by officials from two other departments. The survey team is
made up of about 20 officials.

On 15 November, junta authorities and some officials of China National
Petroleum Company (CNPC) were reported to have held a meeting in Namkham,
northern Shan State, over the gas pipeline project which is to be
transported from Arakan state all the way to China. It was presided over
by Brigadier-General Than Htay, Deputy Energy Minister and local
authorities in Muse and Namkham, according to a report from a Shan
language webpage.

According to the plan, the proposed gas pipeline route is to run through
from Maddaya, north of Mandalay and will be crossing Shan State North’s
former ceasefire territories that were forced to surrender by the Burma
Army in 2005 all the way to Nongdao, southwest of China’s Ruili, the
source said.

 The said ceasefire groups were Palaung State Liberation Army (PSLA), Shan
State National Army (SSNA) and 3rd Brigade of the Shan State Army (SSA)
‘North’. While PSLA and SSNA were forced to surrender, the SSA’s 3rd
brigade was ordered to move to areas south of the Mandalay-Lashio motor
road in the same.

The total length of the proposed pipelines is 771 kilometers.

A Burma watcher said, by looking at the proposed route in ceasefire
regions, it was clear that the removal of the ceasefire groups by the
Burma Army was linked to the planned oil-gas pipeline project.

“The military will try to remove everything that is in the way of their
plans,” he said.

The Burmese government had agreed to sell gas to China for 30 years that
will provide up to US $ 30 billion to the ruling junta. Authorities from
Burma, CNPC and Korea’s Daewoo signed the agreement on 22 June 2008.

____________________________________
BUSINESS / TRADE

December 7, Mizzima News
Indian FM to visit Burma for BIMSTEC meet – Mungpi

New Delhi – Indian Minister for External Affairs (MEA) S.M Krishna will
commence a three-day visit to Burma, on Wednesday for a multilateral
meeting to be held in capital Naypyitaw.

MEA officials told Mizzima on Monday that S.M Krishna would be attending
the meeting of Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi Sectoral, Technical and
Economic Cooperation (BIMSTEC), to be held from December 9 to 11 in the
Burmese capital.

“We don’t have details of the schedule but we are sure that the Minister
will start his trip on December 9,” an official at the MEA told Mizzima.

The official said, the 12th BIMSTEC ministerial and 14th Senior Official
Meeting, would include discussion on trade and connectivity, a review of
counter-terrorism cooperation among BIMSTEC members and also with China,
which shares borders with several BIMSTEC countries.

According to a senior Indian journalist, Ramesh Ramachandran, the Foreign
Minister is likely to take the opportunity to have a meeting on the
sidelines with Burmese officials, where he is expected to discuss issues
related to Northeast rebel groups, many of whom are reportedly using
Burmese soil as a safe haven.

Krishna, during the BIMSTEC meeting, is also expected to take the
opportunity to express to his counterparts, New Delhi’s concerns about the
safe havens of Indian insurgent groups in their countries and to seek
cooperation in the fight against separatism.
“It is likely that the Indian Foreign Minister will have an informal pull
aside meeting with Burmese officials on the sidelines of the BIMSTEC
meeting,” Ramachandran, who has been closely following the Indian Foreign
Minister’s visit to Burma, said.

He said Krishna is likely to raise the issue of North-eastern rebels with
the Burmese officials during the informal meeting.

In recent days, Indian media quoting security officials have reported that
members of Indian rebels, fighting against the central government, are
taking shelter in Burma, along its border with China.

Indian security officials have also reported that they have in their
custody Arabinda Rajkhowa, Chairman of the United Liberation Front of Asom
(ULFA), an armed rebel group in India’s North-eastern state of Assam.

Reports also added that ULFA’s leader Paresh Barua is currently taking
shelter in Kachin state of Burma, bordering China.

Responding to a question on Paresh Barua’s shelter, India’s Foreign
Secretary Nirupama Rao on Saturday told reporters in New Delhi that Paresh
Barua is wanted in India for crimes against the Indian state, against
Indian people, and India continues to seek his apprehension.

“We are in touch with our neighbouring countries about these matters. We
expect all our neighbours to behave responsibly on this issue,” Rao said.

Ramachandran said the Foreign Minister is also likely to raise the issue
of strengthening information-sharing and cooperation among the law
enforcement agencies of the BIMSTEC members for combating transnational
crime.

BIMSTEC comprises of India, Bangladesh, Burma, Nepal, Bhutan, Sri Lanka
and Thailand.

One of India’s proclaimed reasons for reversing its pro-democratic
supportive policy to a junta-friendly policy was seeking the cooperation
of the Burmese military junta in tackling its North-eastern rebels
fighting against the central government.

____________________________________
REGIONAL

December 7, Vietnamese News Agency
Vietnam, Burma sign agreement on management of religion

Hanoi -Vietnam's Governmental Committee for Religious Affairs and
Myanmar's Ministry of Religious Affairs signed a cooperation agreement in
Hanoi on Dec. 7.

According to Nguyen Thanh Xuan, Vice Chairman of the Committee for
Religious Affairs, religions have developed in Vietnam in tandem with the
nation's history, culture and struggle for liberation.

Buddhism is the largest organised religion in Vietnam which has developed
over 2,000 years with more than 10 million followers and 45,000 monks and
nuns practising at 15,500 pagodas, four Buddhist institutes and more than
30 Buddhist schools nationwide.

Vietnam also has other religions such as Catholicism, Protestantism,
Brahmanism, Baha'i, Caodaism, Hoa Hao Buddism.

Xuan said the Vietnamese government follows a policy of respecting
citizens' religious freedom and the equality among religions, supports
religious activities to serve the nation and protests any acts under the
mask of religious practice to serve political and individual purposes.

Myanmar 's Minister of Religious Affairs Thura Myint Maung said the
cooperation would help increase the mutual understanding between the two
peoples.

He said Myanmar is home to various religions, of them Buddhism is
outstanding with 80,000 pagodas and other famous Buddhist sites. Myanmar
protects the rights of its citizens to practice their religions under its
Constitution and laws.

The two officials expressed their belief that the two countries' exchange
of experiences in implementing policies on religion, especially the
cooperation agreement, would contribute to the development of their
diplomatic ties.

____________________________________
INTERNATIONAL

December 7, Irrawaddy
US Women's Issues Envoy seeks junta accountability

The US Ambassador-at-Large for Global Women’s Issues Melanne Verveer said
on Saturday that Burma's military junta must be held accountable for human
rights abuses against the country's women.

“We have said over and over that there must be accountability for these
human rights violations,” she said, adding that those guilty of crimes
against women should be prosecuted.

Melanne Verveer, the US Ambassador-at-Large for Women's Issues,
participates in a panel discussion at the Clinton Global Initiative in New
York in September 2009. (Photo: Reuters)

However, she did not say what action Washington would take to stop
violence against women in Burma.

Verveer made her remarks after a meeting with Burmese women's rights
activists in Thailand, held to discuss human rights violations against
women in Burma.

“We have just had a meeting with five representatives of ethnic minority
women from Burma,” Verveer told reporters at the US consulate in the
northern Thai city of Chiang Mai on Saturday.

“I feel it is important to hear from them, to get their perception of what
is happening [in Burma],” she said, adding that the US is committed to
helping Burmese women activists working both inside the country and in
border areas.

At the meeting, the activists talked about issues facing women in Burma,
including sexual violence committed by Burmese soldiers during military
offensives, and discussed ways of empowering women through civil society
organizations operating across the country's borders.

Another issue affecting women in Burma is the regime's practice of
imprisoning its critics and political opponents. According to the
Thailand-based Assistance Association for Political Prisoners (AAPP), the
junta is currently holding 179 women, including nuns, in prison.

Tate Naing, the secretary of the AAPP, said many female prisoners in Burma
are sexually humiliated and physically tortured by prison authorities
during interrogation. Some have also  died in prison after suffering
physical or mental abuse.

Verveer also spoke about Burma's military-backed 2008 Constitution,
calling it “flawed” because of its lack of guarantees for women's rights.

Her Thailand visit and meeting with Burmese women activists was part of
her Asian tour to learn more about the state of women's rights in the
region. She came to Thailand from Malaysia and is scheduled to head to
South Korea and Japan.

In Malaysia, Verveer met with victims of human trafficking, including two
Burmese women who were victims of sexual violence. “One had been
gang-raped, and the other was suffering terribly from trauma,” she said,
adding that human trafficking has become a “global scourge.”

Asked about efforts to address the issue of human trafficking through
cooperation with regional governments, she said: “We should be doing more
together. We have to find solutions together.” However, she provided no
details about specific actions taken in conjunction with regional
authorities.

Verveer’s trip is also part of the UN's 16-day Global Campaign to End
Violence Against Women. Many organizations across the world have set up
programs as part of the campaign.

As ambassador for women's issues, Verveer has called on governments to
follow the “three P's”—protection, prevention and prosecution—to end
violence against women.

____________________________________

December 7, Mizzima News
Austrian film fest highlights Burma – Salai Pi Pi

New Delhi – ‘This Human World’ film festival in Vienna, capital of
Austria, is screening films on Burma to highlight the situation of Burmese
refugees and human rights conditions in the military-ruled country.

The second film festival of ‘This Human World’, which began on December 3
and is to be concluded on December 13, will screen a total of 130 films
focussing on Burma and Iran, at Vienna’s auditorium.

The Vienna-based Austria Burma Centre (ABC) said they have negotiated with
the organisers of the festival to screen nine films on Burma, as an
awareness campaign for the people.

“I have told them they should not miss out on including Burma because this
is a human rights film festival. There are several good documentary films
to highlight human rights violation and the situation in Burma,” Margot
Pires, Director of Austria Burma Center told Mizzima on Monday.

“We have seen it is very important to have Burma in this programme and to
raise awareness on Burma in Austria,” Pires added.

On Sunday, three films on Burmese refugees titled ‘Don’t Fence Me In’,
‘Abandon but Not Forgotten’ and ‘Ausgeschafft’ (‘Deported’ in English)
were screened. The Oscar nominated  ‘Burma VJ’, which is about an
undercover journalist covering the 2007 September protests, which was
brutally crushed by the military rulers, will also be screened on Monday
evening.

Following the screening on Sunday, a panel discussion on the human rights
condition in Burma was held at the auditorium of This Human Rights, where
panelists Bwa Bwa Phan of the European Karen Network, Aung Ko, actor from
the film ‘Beyond Rangoon’, Margot Pires and Sabine Vogler from Amnesty
International discussed the situation in Burma.

“After the screening, the people said we would like to help, we would like
to support democracy in Burma and Austria Burma Centre,” Pires said, “I
think it is very successful. We will continue and work together.”

Pires, however, called on the Austrian government to take a pro-active
role for the release of Burmese Nobel Peace Laureate Aung San Suu Kyi and
to strengthen European Union’s sanction against Burmese military regime.

Austria serves as a non-permanent member of the UN-Security Council for
the years 2009/10.

“Though Austria is member of the UN Security Council, they don’t raise the
issue of Burma. There were many statements but [Burma] was not
highlighted,” Pires said.

She also called on the Austrian government to support ABC on funding and
to help Burmese asylum seekers in Austria. According to her, currently,
there are about 50 Burmese in Austria, of whom about 20 have been granted
citizenship.

____________________________________

December 7, Nanaimo Daily News (British Columbia)
Burmese ethnic group finds home in Langley

British Columbia – Early in the morning, a 13-year-old child in an eastern
Burma village heard a pack of dogs barking.

Her parents quickly gathered her sisters and brothers, and the family of
10 ran as government troops stormed their village, firing machine guns and
burning huts.

The family hid by a river in the nearby jungle, watching smoke rise above
the trees. When day turned to night, they ran through the trees and
crossed a river into neighbouring Thailand, where they moved into a
refugee camp.

That was 1992.

Now an adult, Zipporah Min, of an ethnic group called Karen, recalls that
the leaders of the ruling military junta of Burma -- also known as Myanmar
-- had pledged "the only place you will find a Karen is in a museum."

But a small community of Karen people on Canada's west cost -- one of
several across the country -- would say otherwise.

In 2006, Zipporah Min became one of the first 350 Karen to settle as a
refugee in Langley.

She now works with the local school district, helping other young Karen
adapt to life in British Columbia.

Two of the parents she has been helping, Ali Shar, 43, and his wife Nwel
Nwel, 36, arrived in 2007.

Ali Shar says his family rejoiced at leaving their bamboo hut in a Thai
refugee camp.

When he heard the Canadian government had accepted his family, Ali Shar
remembers thinking: "If we go to Canada, we will be free to go where we
want to go. The children will have a future."

When the family arrived in Langley and saw the snow-capped mountains
bordering the valley, he thought: "I've never dreamed of a place like
this."

Lisa Sadler is a settlement worker for the school district, and says a
seasonal donation bank assists to support the families -- and hockey helps
Karen youth fit in.

Last year, the donation bank gave the children hockey sticks and
equipment. The younger children play road hockey, and about 40 of the
teens are involved in a program with former NHL great Trevor Linden.

"They feel like they are Canadian now," Zipporah Min says. "It's a very
big experience for them since they've never seen ice before."

Sadler says the Langley community has really gathered around the Karen,
underlining the value of Canadian citizenship.

____________________________________
OPINION / OTHER

December 7, Democratic Voice of Burma
Stiglitz and the master of puppets – Dr Zarni

The long list of dignitaries with whom Burma’s junta chief has played
‘engagement’ attests to his masterfully strategic use of iconic figures
for public relations purposes. Stiglitz may be next.

How exciting that Joseph Stilglitz, the high priest of post-Washington
Consensus globalization, will be traveling to Rangoon next week to give
Senior General Than Shwe’s deputies a crash course in poverty reduction
and rural development! But this misplaced and premature excitement, if
that is what it is, shows how desperate for change we as Burmese elites
and our international supporters have become, and how pathetically
inadequate our understanding of the nature of the beast we are dealing
with is.

Stilglitz’s journey to Naypyidaw is seen as newsworthy by star-struck
Burmese and Burma media who think that the regime, which has not and will
not budge a political inch despite repeated calls for engagement by Aung
San Suu Kyi, our home-grown Nobel, may finally bend to the economic advice
from another Nobel.

In his Prize Lecture delivered at Stockholm University in 2001, Professor
Stilglitz expounded, “Problems of information (asymmetry) are central to
understanding not only market economics but also political economy.” In
contrast to his own theory, neither he nor his handlers seem to have any
real strategic understanding of the Burmese regime which they are trying
to fix.

It is not only Stilglitz who “doesn’t get it” when it comes to the regime,
its nature and its modus operandi. There is a whole industry of
Burma-changers, who after years of involvement in “the cause” still don’t
get it. Senior National League for Democracy member, U Win Tin, the man
who has long understood what the country is up against and hence spent
nearly 20 years behind bars, summed it up when he recently said “the
regime has no intention of change”; that is, real change for the better.

One reason for the new found fervor for Stilglitz’s policy input may be
that Burma has become a new commodity for UN agencies; a potentially
lucrative client of their consultancy and/or a new market for their
experimental ideas.

Meanwhile, I wouldn’t be surprised if Senior General is feeling very
confident about the fact that both local and global engagers can be had
easily, a dime a dozen, all wagging their tails like cute puppy dogs at
the half-opened door of Generals’ Abode. Who can blame the general if he
is pleased with his own ability to bring the once cold and hostile world
to his doorstep, strictly on his own terms, and in his own time?

Allowing the establishment of Tripartite Core Group (between the UN, the
Association of Southeast Asian Nations, and itself) for cyclone Nargis aid
delivery is a classic example of the regime’s manipulation of engagement.
The move initially raised expectations about expanding “humanitarian
space” on the ground while in reality the continuing strict control over
the aid industry in Burma still prevents aid from reaching the bulk of the
vulnerable population. Further to this, and according to the Euro Burma
Office Election Monitor Number 8, there are growing concerns that nearer
to the elections the regime will shut down even this limited space of
humanitarian engagement.

But despite Than Shwe’s new-found engagement with the West, he has been
ignoring the icon at home. Engagement must begin at home, as Aung San Suu
Kyi has correctly pointed out.

To understand Than Shwe’s “game of engagement” with the world, one needs
to understand that the general knows very well he has been at war with the
world; the world tha wishes to see change in “his” Burma and, ideally,
remove him from office.

Whether they are polished, respect-feigning engagers or crude, die-hard
sanctioners, it matters not. To him, all those who clamor for change are
like tropical mosquitoes which need to be taught a hard lesson in how not
to bother a Senior General who merely wishes to be left alone.

Indeed Burma has become a graveyard of luminous engagers, figuratively
speaking. Among them are Wall Street’s John Rockefeller Jr., Professor
Jeff “End-of-Poverty” Sachs, UN’s “Kim-Chi Chief” Ban Ki-Moon, American
senators John McCain (Republican) and Jim Webb (Democrat), former New
Mexico Governor Bill Richardson, Malaysia’s ambassador Tan Sri Razali,
Indonesian president Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, and most recently Nigeria’s
Dr Ibrahim Gambari, who folded his Burma shop and moved onto the new
mission of saving Darfurians.

There are also locals, dissidents and generals, who got buried in Than
Shwe’s ghostly “engagement graveyard.” I know; I was one of them. General
Khin Nyunt was another. I feel we have all run fools’ errands, having
opted for the easy route of engagement over a decisive overthrow of what
is beyond reform.

Historical change is a bloody affair, whether through the capitalist route
of “creative destruction” or good old fashioned violent revolutions and
assassinations. No self-confident tyrant with the army’s loyalty remaining
has in history been known to have negotiated their own retirement! So why
do we think that Than Shwe would behave any different?

There is something patently false about this ill-informed engagement with
Than Shwe. Only recently, US officials publicly announced that they had
detected “the regime’s seriousness in engagement” for the first time in a
long while. I doubt Washington’s heart is still beating with such
excitement after hitting the dead end following two rounds of high level
talks with Naypyidaw’s pseudo-engagers, such as Prime Minister Thein Sein,
Science and Technology Minister Maung Thaung, and the like.

The truth of the matter is that the Senior General sees nothing wrong with
either the country’s economy or the state of the Union. After all, he
views himself as the last in the long line of victorious warrior-emperors.

He thinks he is building the 5th Burmese Empire, unified, prosperous and
preferably nuclear-armed. From where he sits, no other Burmese leader,
soldier or civilian, since the country’s independence has ever presided
over the inflow of revenues in billions of petrochemical-dollars. He
attributes all this wealth and might to his unparalleled strategic
brilliance and leadership.

With every major challenge he (and his regime) has been able to ride out -
be it the threat of “humanitarian intervention” by Western warships; the
challenge posed by a massive number of venerable Sons of Lord Buddha; the
worldwide outrage against the farcical trial of Aung San Suu Kyi; or his
own intelligence chief’s “insubordination,” - Senior General Than Shwe’s
confidence seems to have grown rock-solid.

In the fast-stabilizing new geo-economic and strategic equations, both
senior and junior generals appear to have concluded that their regime has
finally gotten the world exactly where they want it. Nobel or not, Than
Shwe and his deputies couldn’t care less who the engager is.

Finally, there is something bizarre and colonial about a New York-based
Nobel who charges exorbitant fees for sharing his wisdom on world poverty,
flying in on a big jet plane to the opulent Abode of the Kings in central
Burma to hold seminars with the military leadership that knows not the
difference between micro- and macro-economics.

In the past Burma has produced world class economists. Some are still
alive, in the country or in the neighborhood, such as Bangkok. If the
regime is serious about poverty alleviation and rural development, I am
sure these Burmese experts would happily dispense their advice free of
charge. Some names spring to mind: Professor Hla Myint who helped found
development economics, taught at Oxford and the London School of Economics
and served as Vice Chancellor of Rangoon University in the 1950s; Dr
Ronald Findlay who holds an endowed chair in development economics at
Columbia University; and others such as Berkeley-trained Dr U Myint who
retired as Professor of Economics in Rangoon and R.M. Sundrum who
emigrated to Australia and taught at the Australian National University.

To think that the regime, which holds the rabid nationalist view that the
proverbial White Man is always up to no good and their ideas and actions
lie at the root of Burmese woes, will take on board Stilglitz’s expensive
policy advice is just plain mad. But I suppose as long as some donors foot
the bill for Professor Stilglitz's journey to Than Shwe's surreal capital,
the regime doesn’t mind playing engagement. Engagement with the generals
has indeed become fools’ errands.

Dr Zarni is Research Fellow on Burma at the Center for the Study of Global
Governance, London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE)

____________________________________
PRESS RELEASE

December 7, Assistance Association for Political Prisoners-Burma
Political prisoner on hunger strike

Kyaw Zaw Lwin (a.k.a. Nyi Nyi Aung), a political prisoner in Burma’s
notorious Insein Prison, is currently on hunger strike.  He is on hunger
strike to protest losing prisoners’ rights.

Kyaw Zaw Lwin is a 40-year-old male who was born in Burma and is now a
naturalized U.S. citizen.  He is a known political activist, and on 3
September 2009 he flew into Rangoon on a flight from Bangkok and was
arrested by military authorities shortly after landing.  During
interrogation he was brutally tortured.  He is currently on trial for
charges related to fraud and of carrying excessive amounts of the Burmese
currency into the country.

For further information, please contact:
Tate Naing, AAPP Secretary,  +66(0)812878751
Bo Kyi, AAPP Joint-Secretary,  +66(0)81-3248935

____________________________________
STATEMENT

December 5, Forum of Burmese in Europe
Statement of the Forum of Burmese in Europe on the visit of Myanmar’s
Representatives to the International Climate Change Conference in
Copenhagen/DK in Dec. 2009

The International Climate Change Conference will be held in Copenhagen /
DK starting from December 07, 2009, to which world government leaders
including EU ministers will be attending. It is expected that Thein Sein,
so-called prime minister of the notorious Burma/Myanmar military regime,
will as well be attending the Conference, accompanied by his foreign
minister Nan Win and followers.

Burma is a country in South-East Asia, which has been ruled by successive
military dictators since more than 50 years. Once a rice-bowl nation of
Asia, the country is becoming at present one of the poorest nations in the
world under the military-dictatorial rule. Burma is rich in natural
resources, such as oil and gas, precious minerals like gems and uranium,
forest and marine products, etc. Due to the mismanagement and corruption
of the ruling military dictators, poverty in Burma is one of the highest
among the third-world countries, and as well environmentally catastrophic.

Thein Sein is likely to brief the Conference that since Myanmar is an
agricultural country, it is not responsible for the climate change in the
area and his government is doing everything possible for the betterment of
the environment in the region, such as plastic bags have been banned to
use in Nay-Pyi-Daw (new capital), Rangoon and some cities. But what he
would not be going to brief are impacts of deforestation, mineral and mine
productions, and oil and gas explorations and transportations. He would
not be going to describe the destructions after the 2004 Asian Tsunami and
Burma’s Cyclone Nargis in 2008. He would shut his mouth on destruction of
environmental health and biodiversity in Burma.

The military regime of Burma has signed recently with neighbouring
countries like China, India, Thailand, and South Korea related to the
exploration, production, development, operation, transportation and
management of the oil and gas pipeline projects. The oil and gas
pipelines, which begin in the Bay of Bengal and pass through diagonally
across entire Burma to Kunming and further destinations in  China will be
nearly 4,000 km long, having a security corridor of about 50 km. It means
that all living beings including the rare species in the area of at least
60,000 square-km in Burma alone will be affected due to the environmental
destruction. An estimated of 20,000 well-armed Burmese soldiers are
currently securing the pipeline route, in which forced labour, forced
relocation, land confiscation, deforestation, human rights abuses by the
soldiers will be on the daily routine. Mangrove forests, which provide a
vital natural protection against cyclones, storm surges, tidal waves,
global warming, would be disappearing day by day. But estimated revenues
from the sale of only natural gas would reach around 1 - 2 billion US$
annually for 30 years and go into the pockets of the military elites and
their cronies.

We, the Forum of Burmese in Europe in cooperation with the friends of
democratic Burma, would like to urge the leaders of the EU and of the
world
1)	NOT to support the illegitimate military rulers, their 7-step roadmap,
and their financial programs,
2)	NOT to shake with their blood-stained hands caused by crimes against
humanity,
3)	To refrain from wining and dining with Thein Sein and his thugs,
4)	To respect the resolved EU Common Position including visa ban on them.

We, the Forum of Burmese in Europe in cooperation with the friends of
democratic Burma, will stage strong protest demonstrations to the military
lackeys during the Conference.

Contact persons:

Myint Wai, Denmark,            +45 21 28 74 62,       MyintWaiNLD at yahoo.com
Tayza Thura, Denmark,         +45 52 22 46 23,       Tayzathura at yahoo.co.uk
Kyaw Thwin, MP, Norway,   +47 90 88 34 48,       Kyawthwin2004 at yahoo.com