BurmaNet News, January 20, 2010

[Editor]

January 20, 2010, Issue #3879

INSIDE BURMA
Irrawaddy: New anti-terrorism law a threat to the opposition?
VOA: ILO extends agreement to monitor labor rights in Burma
AFP: Punk's not dead in military-ruled Myanmar
DVB: Election ‘preparation’ barred from media
New Light of Myanmar: Labour Minister receives Executive Director of ILO

ON THE BORDER
Irrawaddy: Tak Gov. issues warning to humanitarian workers
Mizzima News: Uneasy calm prevails between junta and ceasefire groups
Shanghai Daily: Sold in Shanghai: Myanmar bride rescued

BUSINESS / TRADE
Kachin News: Farmers ordered to sell paddy to army in northern Burma

INTERNATIONAL
Reuters: U.S. to press Myanmar on reform: report

OPINION / OTHER
Refugees International: Burma: Rohingya a year later

INTERVIEW
Mizzima News: A conversation with U Win Tin – Elke Kuijper



____________________________________
INSIDE BURMA

January 20, Irrawaddy
New anti-terrorism law a threat to the opposition? – Saw Yan Naing

Burmese authorities have drafted and plan to introduce a new
anti-terrorism law this year, according to a report in this month's
journal of the Myanmar Times.

Based on statements made on Dec 18 by Pol Col Sit Aye, the head of the
Burmese police's Department of Transnational Crime, the report said the
Ministry of Home Affairs cooperated with several departments to implement
the law.

“Action will be taken against those who offer financial or material
support to terrorism. This is a very important step for the security of
the people,” Sit Aye was qoted as saying.

Observers and lawyers contacted by The Irrawaddy on Wednesday are
concerned the law will be used by the Burmese military government as a
tool to control anti-government activities.

Speaking to The Irrawaddy on Wednesday, Saw Kyaw Kyaw Min, a Burmese
lawyer who fled into Thailand after the Buddhist monk-led protest in Sep.
2007 said the law only seemed to benefit the government.

“If this law is promulgated, it will be used as a tool to entrench the
rule of the military dictatorship,” he said.

“Causing death and injury through bombings and shootings can be called
terrorism, but not providing financial and material support to opposition
and political organizations striving for democratic reform through
non-violent means,” he said.

It is another story if an organization or individual receives support from
a group that conducts armed operations, however, said a Rangoon-based
Burmese lawyer on Wednesday.

“It all depends on how the Burmese government defines terrorism,”  he said.

The lawyer also said the regime regularly denounced illegal groups and
named armed groups as terrorists in its newspapers, but it has yet to
officially announce terrorist groups and the anti-terrorism law.

“Perhaps the regime will officially announce the anti-terrorism law when
they are ready to enforce it,” he added.

The Myanmar Times report accused armed groups such as the Karen National
Union (KNU) and the All Burma Students' Democratic Front of involvement in
terrorism and that financial support and training provided by these groups
are recognized as acts of terrorism.

However, some observers said the anti-terrorism law may be aimed at
dissident groups or individual activists who contact opposition groups in
exile. Some suggest the regime intends to use the law during the election
period in 2010 to prevent any anti-government opposition including public
gatherings and other forms of “social unrest.”

Zipporah Sein, general-secretary of the KNU, said the government's
anti-terrorism law intends to restrict dissident activities and prevent
opposition supporters and democracy activists from participating in
political activities in the run up to the election.

In Burma, any individual or organization who is contacted by or receives
support from illegal groups such as dissident and armed groups can be
charged under the Section 17/1 of the Illegal Organization Act. Violators
can be sentenced to 3 to  5 years in prison, according to lawyers.

____________________________________

January 20, Voice of America
ILO extends agreement to monitor labor rights in Burma

Burma's military government has renewed for a year an agreement allowing
the United Nations to monitor complaints of forced labor.

Burmese state-controlled media report the agreement was reached Tuesday
during a visit by a group of International Labor Organization officials.

A state-television report said the ILO delegation, led by the U.N.
agency's executive director Kari Tapiola, met with Burma's Minister of
Labor U Aung Kyi.

Norway-based rights group, the Democratic Voice of Burma, says the ILO
delegation will also meet with labor advocacy groups during its week-long
stay in the country.

The Geneva-based ILO first signed an agreement with Burma in 2007 with the
goal of curbing forced labor, based on the country's existing laws.

Burma has agreed not to punish those who complain of forced labor.

In November, the U.N. agency reported that the military authorities still
use forced labor in infrastructure projects, such as oil and gas
pipelines.  The report said the number of complaints of forced labor is
increasing.

Burma's government insists authorities are making efforts to eliminate
forced labor, and also recognize the right of people to protest the
practice.

____________________________________

January 20, Agence France Presse
Punk's not dead in military-ruled Myanmar

Yangon — The singer smashes his guitar to pieces on the stage as thousands
of spiky-haired punk fans cheer loudly -- a rare display of
countercultural exuberance in military-ruled Myanmar.

At this concert in a land where all song lyrics must be submitted to the
regime's censors, there are no openly anti-establishment messages from
either the musicians or the crowd with their dyed blond, blue and red
locks.

But as the band launches into the next number, a raw release entitled "I
Want To Kill You!", fans moshing at the open-air park in the former
capital Yangon say they want the freedom to express themselves.

"As a punk, I do whatever I want!" says 16-year-old Ko Pyae, dressed
head-to-toe in black and sporting smeared black eye shadow -- the
unofficial uniform of punks and goths all around the world.

"At home I don't care about anyone. I don't care about my neighbours."

Yangon's vibrant youth music scene is unexpected in a city where the
streets ran with blood less than three years ago as the ruling junta
crushed massive pro-democracy protests led by Buddhist monks.

But the regime's thought police still exert their control -- even when
most bands would rather sing about vague themes of fun, teenage rebellion
and relationships than anything political.

Heavy rock group Outsider are in a dingy studio on the outskirts of Yangon
working on their first album -- and must submit all their song lyrics to
the censors.

"If I want to write something about freedom, if I want to write about the
things I want, I can't write it directly," says drummer and songwriter
Thar Nge, stepping over the blankets next to his drum kit that serve as
his bed.

"If I want to show something that represents the Myanmar people, not just
me personally, there's no way I can do it. If I write that, it becomes
political," he adds.

The censors do not stop at politics, he says. Any mention of alcohol,
cigarettes or anything else deemed not to conform to the Buddhist nation's
values is struck out.

Bands like Outsider learn to sing in analogies and become masters of
euphemism -- even though they say they are no trailblazers for democracy
and don't want their music to have any overtly political message.

"We do as much as we can," says Thar, "but we don't try to change
politics. In our heads, we are musicians."

Debbie Stothard, a Bangkok-based pro-democracy campaigner and coordinator
of the ALTSEAN-Burma network, said the reluctance of some of Myanmar's
young musicians to play at politics was a legacy of the system.

Myanmar, formerly known as Burma, has been ruled by the military since
1962 and the regime has cracked down on protesters not only in 2007 but
also in 1988, besides locking up hundreds of dissidents.

They include Nobel Peace Prize winner and author Aung San Suu Kyi.

"Young people have been brought up to believe that politics is dangerous
and, by being political, they are asking to be locked up, they are asking
to lose their job opportunities, they are asking to be tortured and
killed," Stothard said.

"But, eventually, everyone gets to a point where they have to sing what
they're thinking."

Music is not the only way of getting a point across in Myanmar.

Aung is a successful painter whose commercial works sell for hundreds of
dollars each, a big sum in this impoverished nation, but he says his real
interest lies in conceptual art.

"I live by selling paintings but there's less freedom with paintings. I
make videos and do performance art to express myself. That gives me a
sense of satisfaction afterwards," says Aung, not his real name.

One of his videos shows a goldfish swimming in a small glass of water. A
hand drops in a tablet that fizzes and sends the fish into a frenzy --
when the froth clears it lies floating dead on the surface.

An apparent commentary on the junta's handling of the 2007 protests --
known as the Saffron Revolution after the colour of the monks' robes -- he
says that he has drawn fire for cruelty to the fish.

"People have criticised this video because a fish is killed. What about
all the people killed here in Myanmar? Why don't they speak up about
that?" he says.

Meanwhile at the end of the punk concert in Yangon unrest brews, fuelled
by cheap beer vendors, as fans throw bottles, try to tear apart the stage
and stamp -- then urinate -- on concert posters.

But there is no sign of any security forces moving in and no chants of
political activism -- the marauding punks are angry that the band didn't
play an encore.

____________________________________

January 20, Democratic Voice of Burma
Election ‘preparation’ barred from media – Ahunt Phone Myat

Burmese media has been banned from publishing material covering political
groups’ preparations for the elections this year, while news of the
elections themselves is allowed.

The censoring has targeted parties belonging to the ‘third force’ in
Burmese politics; those neither aligned to the incumbent nor opposition
groups, said potential runner Phyo Min Thein, who recently organized a
discussion forum on Burmese politics in Rangoon.

“Basically, [the junta] is blocking its opponents from exercising their
rights and is looking to manipulate the [political] playground for
itself,” he said.

A veteran news editor in Rangoon said that reporting on activities to do
with the elections is not likely to be allowed until the elections laws
and laws regarding the formation of political organisations are announced.

He added however that even when laws are announced, the media will be
allowed only limited scope to report on the events.

His comments were echoed by the secretary of the Burma Media Association,
San Moe Wei, who said that the delay in announcing the elections laws and
date was deliberate, and will give the media “limited freedom
to report on
events”.

“[The government] was once defeated in the 1990 elections, so it seems
like they will be very careful not to make the same mistakes this time,”
he added.

Other political activists in Rangoon speculated that media reports on the
elections were not yet allowed because the government was still working to
persuade credible and influential political figures, who are not
government-backed, to join the elections as individual parliamentary
representatives.

Veteran Burmese politician and former ambassador to China, Thakin Chan
Htun, said that Burma should model its elections on that of neighbouring
countries.

“I would like to urge leaders of the [army] to hold the elections the way
Bangladesh did, where the country’s polls were praised by the
international community as free and fair,” he said.

____________________________________

January 20, New Light of Myanmar
Labour Minister receives Executive Director of ILO

Nay Pyi Taw – Minister for Labour U Aung Kyi received a party led by
Executive Director Mr Kari Tapiola of International Labour Organization at
the ministry here on 18 January. The meeting focused on works between the
government of the Union of Myanmar and ILO. It was also attended by Deputy
Minister Brig-Gen Tin Tun Aung, Director-General U Chit Shein, Deputy
Director Ms Karen Curtis of Labour Standards Department, Law Officer Mr
Drazen Petrovic and Liaison Officer Mr Steve Marshall.

The government of the Union of Myanmar and ILO agreed on extension of
appendix MoU for next 12 months to carry out arrangement for complaints
against forced labour. – MNA

____________________________________
ON THE BORDER

January 20, Irrawaddy
Tak Gov. issues warning to humanitarian workers – Lawi Weng

The governor of Tak Province warned Burmese humanitarian workers in Mae
Sot on Tuesday that if they become involved in Burmese political affairs
they could be deported, according to Burmese sources in Mae Sot.

Gov. Samart Loyfa told at a press conference on Tuesday, “There are
humanitarian workers involved in politics and [they have] formed
organizations illegally. We need to investigate. If we find any violations
of law, we have to kick them out of the country.”

Burmese sources in Mae Sot said they believe the statement is a result of
improved bilateral trade on the Thai-Burma border.

Meanwhile, Thailand has agreed with the Burmese regime to build another
friendship bridge and create a second trade zone between Mae Sot and
Myawaddy Township.

Moe Swe, the head of Mae Sot-based Yaung Chi Oo Workers Association, said,
“Many civil society groups are now in Mae Sot. The Burmese government
doesn't like it, and it is worried about their activities.”

“But, the Thai government should understand that we help Thailand solve
social problems with Burmese migrants such as education and health care,”
he said.

According to the workers association, there are more than 20 humanitarian
organizations that help Burmese migrant workers in Mae Sot.

The Burmese government has asked Thailand to not allow its soil to be used
for anti-Burma political or military activities.

About 150,000 Burmese migrant workers live in Mae Sot. Many migrant
workers rely on humanitarian organizations for health, education and other
needs.

Moe Swe said he believed some pressure might be coming from Thai
businessmen also, because Burmese migrant workers have taken part in
several demonstrations in Mae Sot recently.

Mahn Bala Sein, a director of the Kwe Ka Baung School based in Mae Sot,
said, “I don't think they [Thai authorities] will put a lot of pressure on
us because we only help students in education. But, because they want to
build the bridge, they have to say something to us because the Burmese
government requested it.”

In Mae Sot, some humanitarian organizations are staffed by Burmese
pro-democracy activists who fled Burma after the 1988 uprising. The
Burmese  regime recognizes some of the groups as political activists who
oppose the ruling regime.

The Thai government recently warned members of the Karen National Union in
Mae Sot not to engage in political or military activities on Thai soil.

____________________________________

January 20, Mizzima News
Uneasy calm prevails between junta and ceasefire groups – Salai Han Thar San

New Delhi – Despite the refusal of armed ceasefire groups to favorably
respond to the junta’s proposal to transform their armies into Border
Guard Forces, the situation is tense but calm, according to observers.

Aung Kyaw Zaw, a Sino-Burmese border-based military analyst, told Mizzima
on Tuesday that though there are no visible tensions between the junta and
armed ceasefire groups, the junta continues to secretly prepare for their
next move.

Caption: Ousted Prime Minister Khin Nyunt and UWSA supreme leader Pau Yu
Chang“They [junta] is currently silent. They are rethinking their strategy
on how to break the ceasefire groups as it is not as easy as they
initially thought,” Aung Kyaw Zaw speculated.

Burma’s military rulers, in April 2009, proposed that all seventeen armed
ceasefire groups transform their armies into Border Guard Forces
administered by the junta.

Though a few groups including the New Democratic Army – Kachin (NDA-K)
accepted the proposal, bigger armed groups such as the United Wa State
Army (UWSA) and Kachin Independence Organization (KIO) have rejected the
proposal, leaving the junta’s plan stalled.

The junta earlier set a deadline of October 2009 for all ceasefire groups
to make the necessary change, but following the rejection of numerous
groups were forced to extend the deadline to the end of 2009.

“They [junta]
are taking time to rethink their strategy as they know they
cannot just use brute force to attack the groups,” Aung Kyaw Zaw said.

Despite the deadline having expired, the situation between the junta and
armed ceasefire groups, according to Sein Kyi, editor of the
Thailand-based Shan Herald Agency for News (SHAN), is calm with no signs
of enhanced security from any of the actors.

“I don’t think the junta is giving up but it seems to me that they are
stepping back in order to take a step ahead,” Sein Kyi said.

He said though the junta might not conduct a major military campaign
against the ceasefire groups, the junta’s most obvious strategy will be to
try and separate the groups so they can more easily be won over.

In August of last year, Burmese troops attacked the Peng Jiasheng-led
Myanmar National Democratic Alliance Army (MNDAA), also known as the
Kokang Army, after successfully dividing the group into two – a Peng
Jiasheng-led faction and a Bai Souqian-led faction.

The junta then promoted Bai Souqian as the new leader for Kokang and
termed Peng and his group fugitives. Observers said the incident was a
typical Burmese junta tactic to bring down ethnic armed groups.

Following the incident, the junta was reported to be moving a number of
its troops near UWSA controlled territory in northern Shan State,
providing speculation that a massive war between the junta’s troops and
the UWSA, the largest armed ceasefire group, would soon break out.

However, despite the preparations for war by both sides and the Border
Guard Force issue left unresolved, the junta has not shown any signs of a
military campaign against the UWSA or other ceasefire groups, Sein Kyi
said.

“I think it is unlikely the junta will launch intensive attacks on armed
ceasefire groups, as they are busy preparing for the 2010 general
election. And they might want to deal with the ceasefire groups later,
after they have completed forming a new government,” he added.

Similarly, Naw Din, editor of the Thailand-based Kachin News Group, said
though the KIO has refused the junta’s Border Guard Force proposal, there
are no signs of any impending war between the two.

“A military campaign would be the last option for the junta, as they are
now busy preparing for the election. I think the junta wants to shelf it
for later,” Naw Din explained.

But the junta is definitely not giving up on the ceasefire groups and will
sooner or later resume tactics directed at imposing their authority, he
added.

But on the other side, he continued, it will be difficult for armed
ceasefire groups, particularly the KIO, to accept the proposal, as it
would mean giving up on the cause of their decades-old struggle.

The junta’s proposal of a Border Guard Force would have 326 soldiers per
battalion, including 30 Burmese soldiers, and would fall under the
administration of the Burmese Army, with all remuneration for troops paid
by the central government.

Editing by Mungpi
____________________________________

January 20, Shanghai Daily
Sold in Shanghai: Myanmar bride rescued – Jane Chen

A MYANMAR girl has been rescued in Shanghai after being smuggled to the
city by a human trafficker and sold to marry a local man.

Police have sent the 17-year-old girl back home to Myanmar and caught the
suspected trafficker surnamed Xie, reported today's Shanghai Oriental
Morning Post.

Xie allegedly smuggled the girl to Shanghai last June after promising her
a good job in China. When she arrived, he told her there were no jobs and
forced her to marry a man surnamed Zhu, police told the newspaper.

Xie took 25,000 yuan (US$3,662) from Zhu, the report said.

The girl was since then locked in the man's home until the end of the
year. When she managed to escape through a window, she contacted police.

____________________________________
BUSINESS / TRADE

January 20, Kachin News
Farmers ordered to sell paddy to army in northern Burma

Farmers in Kachin State in northern Burma are in a spot for they have been
ordered to sell paddy to the Burmese Army as of late December last year at
prices lower than market rates, local farmers told Kachin News Group.

The order by the administrative office of Dawhpumyang branch-township in
Bhamo district on December 21 says every farmer was directed to sell one
Tin (Burma's standard unit of measurement of rice is 1 Tin = 10.5 kg) per
acre to the local Burmese Army base in Myothit--- Light Infantry Battalion
(LIB) No. 387.

The total amount of paddy to the tune of 5,400 Tin (56700 kg) has to be
sold to the Burmese military base at Kyat 3,000 (US$3.1) per Tin, a farmer
in Dawhpumyang said.

At the prevailing prices, farmers can sell a Tin of paddy for between
3,500 Kyat (US$3.6) and 4,000 Kyat (US$4.2) in the open market and the
China border markets in Kachin State, said a farmer in the
branch-township.

“The fact is I don’t want to sell paddy to the military because of the low
price.  But, it is an order and therefore compulsory,” he said.

Some farmers living at a distance from the LIB 387 have decided to provide
the cash equivalent for the paddy, according to farmers in remote areas of
the branch-township.

There are two main reasons for farmers, who want no further loss ---
farmers have to transport the total paddy asked for to the military base
at their-own cost and they dislike the military scale which is larger than
the standard scale, said farmers in those areas.

Every year, come the post harvest season starting December, farmers in
Kachin State are ordered to sell large amounts of paddy to local Burmese
military bases at a fixed price, said sources among local farmers.

The military rulers claim that Kachin State is the fourth largest rice
bowl of the country but they do not provide any subsidy to farmers,
according to farmers in the State.

Every year, farmers have to sell the paddy demanded, to the military at a
loss, added local farmers.

____________________________________
INTERNATIONAL

January 20, Reuters
U.S. to press Myanmar on reform: report

Washington – The United States plans to meet officials from Myanmar soon
and will seek more evidence it is ready to enact political reforms in
return for broader dialogue with Washington, a senior U.S. official said
on Tuesday.

World

Assistant Secretary of State Kurt Campbell, who in November led a U.S.
team to Yangon for the highest level talks in 14 years, said Washington
had seen a "mixed bag" of results from overtures to the military junta in
Myanmar, formerly known as Burma.

"We have had some follow-on direct interactions with (the) Burmese
authorities, and I think we're going to be looking at a subsequent set of
discussions in the near future," Campbell told a news briefing.

Washington last year said it would pursue deeper engagement with Myanmar's
military rulers to try to spur democratic reform but would not ease
economic sanctions for now.

Campbell noted some progress, including higher level contacts between the
government and Nobel laureate Aung San Suu Kyi, the opposition leader who
has been in various forms of detention for 14 of the last 20 years.

But he said there were also problems, including Myanmar's treatment of
ethnic minority groups and other issues, and that Secretary of State
Hillary Clinton and her team would be "looking for greater clarity in the
coming weeks."

"We went into this ... with a very clear understanding of the challenges,"
Campbell told a news briefing. "But it is also the case that we're not
unendingly patient. We will need some clear steps in due course."

The State Department has already voiced concern over Myanmar's plan to
hold general elections this year -- the first since 1990, when the junta
ignored the results and instead jailed more than 2,000 activists and
political opponents, many for minor offenses.

Myanmar's leaders have as yet given no schedule for the vote, which
activists say could simply entrench more than five decades of military
rule by yielding a legislature dominated by the military and its civilian
allies.

(Reporting by Andrew Quinn; editing by Vicki Allen)

____________________________________
OPINION / OTHER

January 20, Refugees International
Burma: Rohingya a year later

One year ago, the travails of Rohingya from Burma shocked people around
the world. Boat after boat of refugees, fleeing abuse and oppression in
Burma, were intercepted at sea by the Thai army, who then proceeded to
detain them without trial. After days in outdoor detention, the Rohingya
refugees were loaded back on to their boats, and the Thai army proceeded
to tow them out to sea where they were abandoned with little food or water
and no motors to power their boats. Over 500 people died in the few weeks
that the Thais carried out the operation, and one year later, 500 more
remain in detention in India, Indonesia and Thailand.

International outcry ended the Thai military’s operations against the
Rohingya. It also led to pledges by governments throughout the region to
develop long-term solutions to the plight of the Rohingya. The issue was
raised at summits of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN)
and at meetings of the Bali process. Fingers were pointed at Burma for its
abuse of the population at home, at Bangladesh for allowing Rohingya to
transit there on their way to sea, at Thailand for their abusive policies,
and even at Malaysia, whose economy is a pull factor for Rohingya seeking
safety. In the end, there were no decisions made about the Rohingya, and
with the summer monsoons putting an end to sailing season, the issue soon
faded away, back into the obscurity that the Rohingya have endured for
decades.

One year later, the sailing season is again underway. While smugglers and
the Rohingya alike have been hesitant to resume the voyage, indications
are that once again boats have begun sailing with passengers destined for
Malaysia. And as a safeguard, the Rohingya are now attempting to fly to
Kuala Lumpur via Dhaka and then making the arduous overland journey by
foot. For most though, boats remain the most affordable, if dangerous,
option for a better life, and they will continue to sail.

A new twist on the Rohingya migration is a push to reach Australia by boat
via Indonesia. While this may be an indication that slowing economies have
created fewer opportunities for new refugees seeking work, it may also be
a sign that the Rohingya are hoping to move further from the Southeast
Asian countries that refuse to provide any real refuge. If anything, this
shows the growing reach of the problem, rather than any real solution to
the Rohingya’s plight.

The anniversary of the Rohingya boat crisis highlights the lack of action
by the region’s governments, but it also draws attention to the problems
that arise when there is no legal framework for refugees. Policies that
target people solely as economic migrants and ignore the persecution,
abuse and violation of human rights they face, whether in Burma or
elsewhere, will never be able to address the causes of their displacement.
The countries of South and Southeast Asia need to recognize the fact that
the Rohingya will continue to leave Burma, and that their policies to deal
with this reality are inadequate. On the anniversary of last year’s
tragedy, policymakers in the region should look with a renewed eye towards
finally creating humane policies to ensure that the Rohingya do not
continue to face abuse after abuse in their search for safety.

____________________________________
INTERVIEW

January 20, Mizzima News
A conversation with U Win Tin – Elke Kuijper

In 1989 he was sentenced to prison, without any proof of having committed
a crime. He was released almost 20 years later, in September 2008, though
he does not see it that way himself. He did not want to be released out of
pity for his old age, but only on the basis of the charges against him.
This is one of the reasons why he still wears his blue prison shirt. He
may be outside the prison walls, but he still is not free to do as he
wants in his country.

U Win Tin is one of Burma's most well-known journalists, an opposition
leader and Daw Aung San Suu Kyi's right hand man. Famous both inside and
outside of Burma, many people campaigned for his release. He is known as
Burma's longest serving political prisoner, though he says, “There are
many young people who spend more than twenty years in jail and who are
hardly known by the people.”

He spent almost twenty years in one of Burma's most notorious prisons,
Insein in Rangoon. For long periods of time he was kept in isolation and
even in former dog cells. He kept himself sane by writing poetry and
solving mathematical problems. He is now 80 years old and his health is
starting to fail. Because of a lack of medical care during his
incarceration, existing medical conditions worsened. He suffers badly from
asthma, underwent a heart operation last August, suffers from spondylitis
of his spine and has failing eyesight. But from the moment he was released
he resumed his old duties for the opposition party NLD (National League
for Democracy). In his own words: “I am not bedridden so I can walk. But
anyhow, I work everyday and I meet people and I talk with the media.
Sometimes I am tired. But I continue.”  wintin1

A brave man with a vision and a dream of a free Burma; a comparison with
South Africa's anti-apartheid hero and former president Nelson Mandela
comes to mind. U Win Tin's struggle is purely non-violent. He believes
this is also a part of the character of the Burmese people. I asked him
whether he thinks that maybe at some point, violence will be necessary to
create change in Burma.

U Win Tin: I do not think it is necessary to use violence because people
in Burma are really – because of their religion – mild and very docile.
Their will, their desire, is not to use a violent way. Even to use a
violent word is frowned upon in Burmese society. The people like to be
very polite and very quiet and they do not express their will in a violent
way.

I think the nonviolent way is possible, though there might be some
violence, or a violent phase in our struggle. Of course the ruling power
in the country is too big. There is a very strong army and they have
modernized and spent a lot of money on the military. They have built up
their military power over the years. One army regiment is like 1,000
people or something like that. They are very modernized, live in big
houses, own plantations and inside their compounds there might even be
some factories. So they are very strong, you see, among the people. Of
course the soldiers themselves are suffering too. But they are suffering
much less than the ordinary people. They earn more money and they have
more facilities.

We are nonviolent all the time. We go out on the streets but we never use
violence. I just think it is not in the Burmese people's will to use
violence. It is not their style of expressing their will, political
thinking and opinions. People are very nonviolent now. But maybe tomorrow,
I don't know.

He then elaborated on the violent suppression of the 2007 Saffron Revolution.

U Win Tin: The military is very strong and suddenly they will shoot, even
the monks. All the people are giving homage to the monks, but they shoot
them. In 2007, monks were shot for no reason. Even in the time of colonial
rule there was political movement by the monks, political demonstrations
and so on. But nowadays, say for instance in 2007, the monks are
nonviolently and nonpolitically rallying against the government by just
reciting the metta suttra, which is about loving kindness. And still they
were shot. They are still unsure how many monks were killed. People
believe more than 100 were killed. People are shocked by this and do not
like it.

When I do get hold of him – I am referred to a different number a few
times, as he has no permanent place of residence due to the junta
repossessing his house during his detention and pressure placed on
landlords not to rent to him – I am surprised by his eloquent and
energetic sounding voice. He is witty and sharp and talks a lot. He has no
fear that conversations like ours might cause him danger.

U Win Tin: You see, if you speak like this in Burma, some action or
something you have done cannot bring danger for you at the present time,
but it might be dangerous for you at a later time. They keep a record of
your actions, and then when you are sent for trial these things will
become evidence of you being guilty.

But I do not mind. I am always talking to the media: VOA, BBC, DVB,
Irrawaddy. I am very outspoken and I have no restraints about my opinions.
Recently, I was telling everybody that Burma at this moment is like a
jail, like a prison. The whole country is a prison and people are
suffering. We talk about human rights violations and about the 2,000
political prisoners in jail now, but all people are prisoners. They are
prisoners in their own country, in their own towns and homes. Whenever I
go to my office or to a friend's house or even to a funeral, you see,
there are some two or three motorcycles following me. It is almost
impossible to see a free man in Burma at this moment.

When asked about his opinion on the recently announced alms boycott and
whether he thinks it is effective, his answer is long and passionate, it
is obvious he admires the monks and is a devout Buddhist.

U Win Tin: This pattanikkujjana (alms boycott) is very effective. For a
Buddhist, when you are under a pattanikkujjana you are no longer a
Buddhist. For the government it is very effective. They are Buddhist  –
nominally of course – and the pattanikkujjana has a very bad effect on
them. As Buddhists, they play the religion card. They assume they are the
guardians of the religion. They are the promoters of the religion. They
put up big pagodas and give support to the monasteries.

But, although it is effective, in order to have a pronounced change more
is needed. The monks, according to Buddhist teachings, do not act as
politicians. Burmese monks are always out of politics because they are the
religious people, so they are not concerned with voting. Anyhow, they have
a very strong tradition of political activity and leadership, even as far
back as the colonial days.

Although the government promotes religion so that people will regard them
as the guardians of the religion, they try too hard. So you see, this
pattannikujjana action happened and they were very shocked. In a situation
like this, the monks could make a movement if they were a political party,
but they are not. They are not a political party, so they have to wait and
just provide people with information and tell people that this government
really has no authority and that the monks are suppressed.

Things have not changed for the better since the peaceful demonstrations
by the monks were violently stopped in 2007.

U Win Tin: Every week we hear news about monks being arrested and taken
from their monasteries. Even, for instance, if I want to ask a monk to
give some offering at my house, his monastery will be asked not to go to
my house. The government's suppression of religious people will not go
unnoticed, because in the foreign press and media people are reporting
these incidents. So, although there is not so much activity by the monks
as a political force, they are still there. The force is going on everyday
and they work everyday.

Because they have to collect their meals, they go around and talk to the
people. They are in contact with the people. In that way they are more
political than us, because we do not go to people's houses everyday. They
have to go out and collect their meals early in the morning or in the
daytime. They are in close contact with the people and can exchange ideas
and opinions. Their influence on the people is very high, because they are
their friends. And in those talks there might be some political matters or
talk about suffering.

We talk about the United States' recent policy of dealing with the Burmese
junta: engagement coupled with sanctions. How does U Win Tin feel about
this new approach? According to him, a lot of the sanctions are not very
effective, but he feels engagement with the military regime will not be
very effective either.

U Win Tin: It has been proven that sanctions are not effective and they
know that. But they will keep them as long as there is no improvement in
the current situation. Engagement is not effective either, as it has
already been tried by other countries such as Russia. Nowadays the US
government uses this engagement and sanctions approach together. They are
attacking with one gun that is not very effective and now they are using
another gun that is also not very effective. Whether they have one gun or
two guns it does not matter.

Although I do not think this American action of engagement and sanctions
will be very effective, we are still hopeful. At least now there are two
weapons and they are engaging in Burma, so people in political parties and
political forces are encouraged and we are rather hoping for something.

He switches to the subject of the upcoming elections in 2010.

U Win Tin: Without political dialogue the upcoming elections will be
nothing. They will be a sham. This election is built upon the framework of
the 2008 constitution, which will be enacted after this election. This
constitution will prolong military rule for many years. There are no
peoples’ rights, no democratic rights, nothing at all. For instance,
according to this constitution (article 6), the military is the leader of
politics. I cannot agree with that.

Another difficulty is that there is no political will on the part of the
junta. They have no idea of the country's problems and are only thinking
of their own will, which is to prolong their rule. They have no plans at
all to make any contact, to make any dialogue, with political forces or
ethnic nationalities. So, we use this American initiative as a tool to
move and go through the election. The election is a sham without the
participation of the ethnic nationalities and opposition parties. We need
to have political dialogue before the election; with nationalities, with
ourselves and with opposition forces. That will be the only way.

One of the demands of the United States government and also one of the
conditions for the NLD to partake in the upcoming elections is the release
of all political prisoners. Amnesty International estimates there are
currently more than 2,000 political prisoners languishing in Burma's
prisons. Many of them were involved in the 1988 uprising and the 2007
Saffron Revolution. Nearly 200 monks and nuns are believed imprisoned. U
Win Tin feels the US might have some influence on the release of these
prisoners.

U Win Tin: If the US shows some positive thinking and initiative, the
military will know how to react to this. One of these reactions can be the
release of political prisoners. As a sign of goodwill they might release
some students but they will not release all political prisoners. They will
keep some as hostages. They want to show the world that they are not that
bad, by releasing prisoners. When I was released in September 2008, they
released many prisoners, most of whom were criminals and not political
prisoners.

U Win Tin believes the junta is not interested in the political process. A
person with ties to a foreign country cannot participate in the election.
This was invented to prevent Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, whose husband was
British and sons live abroad, from playing a legitimate role in politics.

U Win Tin: The government has no intention to give her a role to play in
Burmese politics. She is a very good leader. Daw Aung San Suu Kyi has many
activities and much influence, but still she is restricted. She can do a
lot and she can assert her experiences on the people. But, if she is not
allowed to go outside of Rangoon or to meet the press or something, then
it is almost impossible for her to play a very big role in politics.