An autobiography, “My Experiences over 50 Years,” by former Lt-Gen Tun Kyi, one of the 1988 coup leaders, has sold out, according to sources.
A book distributor in Rangoon told The Irrawaddy that the original price of the autobiography by “Bo Tun Kyi (Monywa),” the general's pseudonym, was 5,000 kyat (US $5), but the price has increased to 10,000 kyat in the used book market. -- The Irrawaddy.
I wonder if there is anything interesting for UN about voilating human rights. It will be one of the great evidences which might trigger the downfall of the military junta.
Burmese media has been given minimum space for election related news recently, but starting next month the space will likely be further restricted by new censorship rules.
Two months ago, the weekly news journals in Rangoon—an estimated seven journals, each with an average circulation of between 50,000 to 100,000—offered full pages or special stories on election coverage, introducing various political parties and their leaders who plan to contest the election this year.
But beginning in July, Burma's notorious Press Scrutiny Board (PSB) will reduce election coverage and a newly formed commission will monitor the news journals to make sure the same rules apply to all—meaning that no journals will be able to circumvent the censorship rules with their connections or under-the-table payments, according to editors in Rangoon who spoke to The Irrawaddy.
Currently, journals are now allowed to submit three or four pages to the PSB for last-minute news. Next month, they will be allowed to submit only two pages, which must not include any political news. -- The Irrawaddy
If a 28- or 30-pages long journal can only print maximum of four pages of political news, how will the public be informed about political news? The junta is suppressing every possible blockage to their 'dictatorship'. Luckily, Burmese people still have radios at home to listen to the authenticnews about the election via VOA, BBC, RFA, and DVB. However, people should stand up against PSB for this kind of unjustness to let the world know what is truly happening in Burma.
Union Solidarity and Development Association (USDA) members are offering low-income workers and farmers in Rangoon small “loans,” which are seen as support for government-backed political candidates, according to local residents.
In Yankin, Kawmu and Kungyangone townships, USDA members, accompanied by township leaders, made the offers to selected residents.
Speaking to The Irrawaddy on Monday, residents in Yankin Township said: “Three days ago members of USDA and the head of the quarter offered the loans.”
A youth member of the National League for Democracy in Rangoon said that for a farmer with one acre, the USDA will loan 10,000 kyat (US $10). Many village residents have already received the loans said a resident in Kungyangone Township. -- The Irrawaddy
Not surprisingly, USDA is bribing or controlling farmers with the money. What do you think 'loan' is? In fact, USDA as known as USDP is planning to take over the lands of farmers. Since the farmers cannot reimburse, they will ask for the ballot for the election instead of the land. How can this election be fair?
Zaw Thet Htwe is being detained in Taungyi Township, the capital of Shan State. He was chief sports editor at a journal in Rangoon when he was sentenced in 2008 to nine years in prison for helping Cyclone Nargis victims in the Irrawaddy delta.
Ashin Gambira, a prominent monk and leader of the Saffron Revolution, has also been asked the same questions by authorities. Gambira was sentenced to 63 years in prison and is being held in Kalay prison, Sagaing Division.
There are 2,157 political prisoners in Burma, according to the Thailand-based Assistance Association for Political Prisoners-Burma (AAPP). Many of them were arrested in 2007 during the Saffron Revolution.
Officials at some registered political parties say they know the election will be unfair, but they will participate to help educate the public about the political process.
Nay Myo Wai, the secretary of the Peace and Diversity Party (PDP), told The Irrawaddy on Friday:“ We know the circumstances. And we know the election will not be free and fair. We will participate to help the people understand the political process.”
The public has many interests and many people are not concentrating on politics or the election process, while the military government is going all out to make its Union Solidarity Development Party the clear winner, said Phyo Min Thein, the chairman of the Union Democratic Party (UDP)
“People are not active in politics,” he said. “The government doesn't want people to concentrate on the election. People didn't have much interest in the 2008 constitutional referendum. If people don't take part, government can do what it wants.” said Phyo Min Thein. -- The Irrawaddy.
The election has been unfair since the beginning. Thanks to those who sacrifice themselves, people will be educated, at least, a little bit. It is true that the junta doesn't want people to concentrate on the election, but since the junta has made the country poor, Burmese people do not have time to worry about the 2010 election or the 2008 referendum.
North Korean-made truck-mounted multiple launch rocket systems have been reportedly set up at Burmese army bases in northern, eastern and central Burma, according to military sources. The North Korean rockets were recently delivered to missile operation commands in Mohnyin in Kachin State, Naungcho and Kengtung in Shan State and Kyaukpadaung in Mandalay Division, sources said. Missile operation commands were reportedly formed in 2009.
It is not clear when the multiple launch rocket systems were shipped from North Korea. However, military sources said delivery of rocket launchers mounted on trucks occurred several times in recent years.
Sources said they witnessed at least 14 units of 240-mm truck-mounted multiple launch rocket systems arrive at Thilawa Port near Rangoon on the North Korean vessel, Kang Nam I, in early 2008. Previous reports said Burma had purchased 30 units of 240-mm truck-mounted multiple launch rocket systems from North Korean. -- The Irrawaddy
Burma is not a safe country anymore as it was before. It has armaments imported directly from North Korea, which is an EYE-SORE TO UNITED STATES. So, if US or International would ever wanted to scare North Korea, Burma will be the victim. Burmese people are in danger of missiles from both inside and outside of the country.
The Asian Network for Free Elections (ANFREL) said on Thursday that the directive released by Burma's election commission (EC) which prohibits political parties from marching in procession to designated gathering points or venues while displaying party flags is a violation of human rights.
ANFREL media officer and political columnist, Bidhayak Das, told The Irrawaddy, “This is a total violation of Article 21 of the Universal Declaration on Human Rights.”
“The ruling side is trying to use this regulation to prevent people, political parties and candidates from expressing their agenda. They don't want people to know what is the political agenda of other parties,” he said.
The EC directive, which was published in Burma's state-run newspaper, also prohibits the act of marching and chanting slogans in procession, and parties must disperse without any slogan-chanting march at the end of an assembly or speech.
Chairman of Burma's Union Election Commission Thein Soe delivers a speech during a meeting of the commission in Naypyidaw. (Photo: AP)
The international standard is for governments to allow political parties to march, wave flags and chant slogans up to 500 meters away from parliament and other government buildings, Bidhayak Das said.
Also according to the EC directive, political parties in Burma must apply to the EC for permission to hold political gatherings and to give speeches at least seven days prior to the event.
Phyo Min Thein, chairman of the Union Democratic Party (UDP), said that the circumstances under which the government would allow political parties to give a speech is very strict, but he welcomed the fact that they would give permission for assemblies and speeches at all.
“In our country, assembling and giving speeches was never before allowed by the government. If we are allowed to assemble in public in the future, we can create the change that the public can participate in politics,” he added.
The EC directive also prohibits the use of flags when party members are traveling to a speech or assembly. Aye Lwin, the chairman of the Union of Myanmar Federation of National Politics, said that party movements need party flags, and prohibiting the use of party flags is not realistic.
“If parties are not allowed to fly their flag it means the Election Commission is pessimistic about the political parties. Unrealistic regulations are a kind of political suppression,” he said.
The regulations are more strict than those issued during the last election in 1990, but political parties will proceed under the given circumstances, said Dr. Than Win, one of the founders of the National Democratic Force (NDF).
“It is very important that the regulations are applied with equality,” said Than Win.
Meanwhile, the US State Department said on Wednesday, “The US believes elections planned for this year in Burma will not be free or fair and will lack international legitimacy.”
Thus far, 42 political parties have applied to the EC for party registration and 33 have been accepted.
ANFREL, established in 1997, is a regional network of civil society organizations that strives to promote and support democratization at national and regional levels in Asia.
In an article titled “The Worst of the Worst,” Foreign Policy magazine named junta chief Snr-Gen Than Shwe the world's third worst dictator, with North Korean leader Kim Jong Il ranked No 1 and Zimbabwe president Robert Mugabe No 2.
Than Shwe, Kim Jong Il and Mugabe were pictured on the magazine cover with the caption, “The committee to destroy the world.”
Than Shwe, who has been ruling Burma by force for almost 20 years, was described by Foreign Policy as a “heartless military coconut head whose sole consuming preoccupation is power.”
The article said the Burmese dictator has decimated the opposition with arrests and detentions, denied humanitarian assistance to his people in the wake of Cyclone Nargis, which devastated Burma in May 2008, and thrived off a black market economy and natural gas exports.
“This vainglorious general bubbling with swagger sports a uniform festooned with self-awarded medals, but he is too cowardly to face an honest ballot box,” the article said. -- The Irrawaddy.
Heartless Military Coconut Head? Very good word choice. That's exactly what he is. Although it is not a surprise, I cannot stop laughing that Dictator Than Shwe was titled this way. However, it was a sad news that Than Shwe only got third place. He should at least tie with North Korean Kim Jong Ii.
Despite being disbanded for failing to register for this year's upcoming election, the National League for Democracy (NLD) remains active, sending senior members to branch offices around Burma to discuss strategy.
On Sunday, Win Tin, an NLD executive member, traveled to Karen State to meet with former party members. “I told them not to vote in the election,” he said, speaking to The Irrawaddy on Wednesday.
Win Tin, who was accompanied by two other party members from the the NLD's Rangoon headquarters, said he also urged the members in Karen State to boycott the pro-junta Union Solidarity and Development Party, led by Prime Minister Thein Sein, and the National Unity Party, formed from late dictator Ne Win's authoritarian Burma Socialist Programme Party.
“The purpose of the trip was to consolidate party unity and listen to the voices of members who face difficulties since the party decided not to register. We also wanted to tell them that we will not abandon them. We will continue to work more actively in politics,” said Win Tin. -- The Irrawaddy.
What a marvelous work by Mr. Tin, telling former party members not to vote this unfair/unjust 2010 Election. USDP has been incessantly trying to win the election by not only cheating votes, but also forcing people to vote for them. So, we have to dissuade people from voting for those pro-government parties. Moreover, people must show their courage and their feelings by not going to the ballot stations as Burmese Noble Laureate Daw Suu Kyi said.
Burma’s junta chief Snr-Gen Than Shwe and his top four generals met with Laotian Prime Minister Bouasone Bouphavanh on Monday to discuss intelligence issues along with strengthening military and bilateral ties, according to military sources.
Bouphavanh’s trip followed a visit by Brig-Gen Bouasieng Champaphanh, the deputy chief of staff of the Laos Armed Forces, who visited Burma on June 9-12.
Champaphanh met with Lt-Gen Ye Myint, chief of military affairs security, who heads the junta’s plan to transform ethnic groups into a border guard force under Naypyidaw’s command.
Burmese leaders and the Laotian delegation met in Naypyidaw on Tuesday. Prime Minister Bouasone Bouphavanh is standing to Snr-Gen Than Shwe's right. (Photo: MNA)
Senior Burmese and Laotian military officials were expected to discuss tension between the junta and ethnic militias, including National Democratic Alliance Army (NDAA) bases located near China and Laos in eastern Burma.
Burmese military observers have said that if the junta launches an offensive against ethnic armed groups over the border guard force issue, it might choose a small group, such as the NDAA, as its first target. The NDAA is an ally of the largest ethnic armed group, the United Wa State Army.
Another key issue between the two countries is drug trafficking. In February, 15 Burmese anti-narcotic agents were ambushed by suspected drug dealers while they traveled along the Mekong River in the Golden Triangle area, where Burma, Laos and Thailand meet.
At the time, Burmese police blamed Shan drug lord Naw Kham for the ambush. Naw Kham is wanted by authorities in Thailand, Burma, China and Laos for drug trafficking.
Lt-Gen Ye Myint, right front, chief of military affairs security, meets with Brig-Gen Bouasieng Champaphanh and the Laotian delegation in Naypyidaw. (Photo: MNA)
According to a state-run-newspaper, The New Light of Myanmar, Than Shwe met the Laotian delegation accompanied by: No 2 Vice Snr-Gen Maung Aye, vice commander-in-chief of the Tatmadaw [armed forces]; No 3 Gen Shwe Mann, joint chief of staff of the Tatmadaw; No 4 Gen Tin Aung Myint Oo, quartermaster general; and No 5 Lt-Gen Tin Aye, chief of military ordnance.
Other officials at the meeting were Prime Minister Thein Sein; Foreign Minister Nyan Win and Soe Tha, minister of National Planning and Economic Development.
During a bilateral meeting between the Burmese delegation led by Thein Sein, Burma’s deputy defense minister Aye Myint attended.
Political parties in Burma must apply to the Election Commission (EC) for permission to hold political gatherings and to give speeches at least seven days prior to the event, according to a state-run newspaper.
The new EC directive (Directive No.2/2010) was published on Wednesday, requiring political parties to provide the specific place, date, starting and finishing time, and the name and address of speakers.
The EC will issue a permit or reject the request at least 48 hours before the requested date.
However, if necessary, “the rules and regulations enumerated in the permit may be amended or the permit may be revoked for the sake of security, [or] the rule of law and peace” the directive said.
The directive also prohibits the act of marching to the designated gathering point or venue while displaying party flags or chanting slogans in procession, and parties must disperse without any slogan-chanting march at the end of the assembly and speeches.
Political parties must also agree not to say or publish anything that criticizes the military, government service personnel or misuses religion or education for political gain. -- The Irrawaddy
Where do such laws exist? And these laws are the violation of Global Human Rights created by the junta's dog, EC (election commission). We don't need permission to speak or talk in the public. We can say whatever we want in the public. If the parties, cannot make gatherings or give speeches, this Election is just another laughing-stock for the International Community. UN must never enforce this election whatever means that is needed to be taken.
Burma has sent a letter to the U.N. nuclear agency insisting it has no current or future plan to develop a nuclear program in the isolated country's second denial this month after reports emerged it may be seeking an atomic weapon. -- The Associate Press.
It would be a ridiculous letter, blindly stating that the junta is not producing Nukes. The hard evidences have proven that the junta is tricking German Company to help them building Nukes. If U.N nuclear agency believe and accept the junta's claim, U.N will fail the hearts of all Burmeses over the world.
Check Aljazeera English from Youtube or from the videos above for DVB's video evidences of Burmese junta's Nuclear plots.
The popular Burmese Web site photayokeking.org, edited by a Burmese army deserter, was recently attacked, leaving it inaccessible and out of operation.
According to one of the editors, who goes by the name Photayoke, the Web site came under major attacks on May 27 and June 11, following three smaller attacks.
On June 11, the server provider sent an email to the Web site's owners stating that a major distributed denial-of-service attack (DDoS) had been focused on their data center.
Although there is no evidence to prove it, the Web site's owners are convinced that the State Peace and Development Council (SPDC), Burma's ruling junta, was behind the virtual attack.
“We know the SPDC attacked our Web site. They are afraid of us because we get the secret information from our close contacts inside the Tatmadaw,” said Photayoke, referring to Burma's armed forces.
“Then the exiled radio stations like Democratic Voice of Burma and Voice of America broadcast our information to soldiers on the front line in Burma,” he said.
The site received its first major attack on May 27—the same day, according to the Web site's owners, that the SPDC held a press conference in Naypyidaw accusing Maj Aung Lynn Htut, a former senior intelligence officer, of stealing US $85,586.45 when he defected from the Burmese embassy in Washington, DC, in March 2005.
In response to the accusations, Aung Lynn Htut wrote a letter, which was posted on photayokeking.org, explaining that he was unable to deposit the money in a US bank because of sanctions, but had transferred it in Washington.
Photayokeking.org was set up in May 2008 in order to provide “real information” about the Burmese military, according to the site's owners. It relies on soldiers inside the Tatmadaw to provide intelligence about the secretive army’s activities and meetings.
“We want to show that all the subordinate soldiers until brigadier-general rank are disappointed with the military regime and are experiencing the same suffering as the civilians,” said Photayoke.
In order to avoid problems with Burmese spies and hackers, the Web site's owners took the precaution of using a more expensive server in the US, instead of Thailand.
The server, based in Los Angeles, has since said that it would no longer be able to host the Photayokeking.org because of the dangers it posed to other customers’ Web sites.
The cost of creating a new Web site is $8,000 per year, making it difficult to re-launch the site, according to its owners.
This isn’t the first time a Burmese opposition Web site has come under attack. During the September 2007 Saffron Revolution, when thousands of monks and civilians took to the streets to protest against continued military rule, several exiled media sites were disabled by cyber attacks.
Professional hackers infected The Irrawaddy Web site with a Trojan virus, which left the site inoperable at a time when the world was relying on the exiled media for information about the brutal crackdown.
In September 2008, The Irrawaddy was targeted again, this time by a DDoS attack—the same method that closed down photayoke.org. Jammed with fake traffic by “robot” visitors, The Irrawaddy's online news service was put out of operation for three days.
A DDoS attack is orchestrated by hiring a hacker who controls thousands of PCs around the world and uses them to attack the victim Web site. Fees for the services of the hacker vary according to the size and duration of the attack, but usually start at around $500.
INET, the second largest host server in Thailand, confirmed that The Irrawaddy Web site, www.irrawaddy.org, became the target of a DDoS attack on Sept. 17, 2008.
The CAT Telecom Public Co. Ltd and some ISPs blocked the site as a “danger zone” following the attacks.
The attacks coincided with the first anniversary of the regime’s brutal suppression of the Saffron Revolution and also put other exiled media sites, such as Mizzima, Democratic Voice of Burma and the Bangkok-based New Era Journal, out of action.
Mizzima has been repeatedly attacked by pro-SPDC hackers in an effort to shut down its Web site.
In October 2008, a group of hackers calling themselves the “Independence Hackers from Burma” shut down mizzima.com for nearly ten hours.
In an interview with The Irrawaddy, former SPDC spy, Kyaw Myint Myo, said that SPDC intelligence has hired foreign computer technicians and hackers to monitor e-mail messages and telephone conversations at home and in neighboring countries.
“They [the technicians and hackers] are North Korean, Singaporeans and Russians.”
Like other Web sites that have been blocked, photayokeking.org has been moved to a blog address, photayokeking.blogspot.com, until its administrators are ready to re-launch the site. -- The Irrawaddy
That is why people need bloggers like us. SPDC hackers cannot attack Google's Blogger.com. If they get caught by doing so, it will be the end of the days of junta.
Today is the Birthday of Daw Suu Kyi, a Burmese Noble laureate. Today, June 19, is also an unofficial Burmese Women day before those wicked junta generals announce a new Burmese Women day.
Daw Suu Kyi, you will always be our hope and our strength while we are fighting the junta without using force. Your words will always be remembered and saved in our hearts.
Happy birthday and we wish you a happy and healthy year.
There is one attribute that Suu Kyi possesses that will never change under any circumstance—her belief in non-violence adorned with a strict sense of morality. Some may say that this mode of conviction is tactless and naïve, but it is the same quality she displayed when she rejected Naypyidaw's election laws, and last year when she requested people at her trial not to mock the eccentric American citizen who had swum uninvited to her lakeside house in Rangoon.
“She would never take the cheap option, even for the sake of democracy,” a dissident in Rangoon said of Suu Kyi's mentality.
There seems little hope that Suu Kyi can significantly influence Burma's unfolding political developments as long as she remains under detention—it is an open question how many people would listen to her even if she called for a boycott of the election.
She recently said through her lawyer that Burmese people have “the right not to vote,” implying the prospect of her call for a boycott of the election in weeks ahead.
Anyway, it seems that her political clout and powerful charisma to rally people remains very much unchanged—qualities that have been recognized as crucial in breaking the political deadlock in Burma by leaders of various ethnic groups.
The regime knows that these qualities will reveal themselves again if she is released and in the public eye again. The generals will continue to view her as a major threat to their hold on power. Even after she is freed—if indeed, she is released— she will undoubtedly be subjected to alternative methods of restrictions to contain her activities.
Many observers speculate that the election will be held in October simply because Suu Kyi's sentence is due to expire in November.
There is lingering hope that one day Suu Kyi might be able to accomplish her dream of democracy for Burma, following in the footsteps of fellow Nobel Peace Prize winner Nelson Mandela.
For now, her incarceration and her relentless commitment to the cause of democracy, coupled with her long separation from her children, will continue to provoke sympathy in many parts of the world. On Saturday, Suu Kyi's popularity will be demonstrated around the world in the form of rallies, marches, birthday parties and even some self-imposed house arrests in her honor. -- The Irrawaddy
We, the students, will always be admiring you, Daw Suu Kyi. You are the only for the true Democracy no matter what other poeple says. We will always respect your non-violence way.
Khin Maung Swe, the leader of the breakaway National Democratic Force (NDF) party, said on Friday that the leaders of the dissolved National League for Democracy (NLD) are prohibiting its former members from dealing with the NDF.
“The NLD prohibits its members from dealing with us [the NDF], saying it has upcoming activities for its members. We found the NLD members in some townships avoid us. They seem to decide that they'll not deal with the NDF,” Khin Maung Swe told The Irrawaddy. -- The Irrawaddy
Has NDF become military dog? If Mr. Swe is confident of himself, he should not be blaming the dissolved NLD even if the leaders of NLD are dissuading the former members to deal with NDF. If he was from NLD, he should respect NLD and its members, the democracy icons since 1988.
Amnesty International (AI) has launched an online campaign to collect enough money from donors to buy 4,000 radios to be distributed in Burma next month, according to a press release on Thursday.
"Burma is preparing for its first elections in two decades,” the statement read. “By heavily censoring the media, the ruling military junta attempts to isolate the population from independent opinions. But you can help us beat the blackout.”
AI called on its readers and members to donate £12.50 (US $18.50), which the London-based rights group said is the cost of one radio.
Calling the campaign “Break the Silence,” AI said it hopes to collect enough donations to buy 4,000 radios, 60 walkie-talkie kits and six satellite kits. -- Irrawaddy
The junta tightly controls all media in the country, including printing, Internet, radio and TV, and is notorious for its censorship and state propaganda. But radio is the only way that people can get information from outside. We can still operate radio with batteries although we do not have electricity, but batteries might cost more than electricity.
Military government had attacked and accused foreign news stations such as CNN, BBC, VOA, RFA, and DVB as radio wave killers when these news stations aired accurate news of Saffron Revolutions during September 2007.
Anyhow, let's support the campaign of Amnesty International (AI) for the nourishment of our Burmese citizens.
Burmese Foreign Minister Nyan Win met with an Iranian goodwill delegation at the Foreign Ministry in Naypyidaw on Wednesday afternoon, according to the state-run newspaper, The New Light of Myanmar.
The report provided no further details about the visit, the first by an Iranian delegation since 2006.
Although Iran is not closely allied with Burma's ruling regime, the two countries share a similar pariah status in the international community due to their repression of internal dissent and worries about their military ambitions.
In recent years, the junta has reached out to several other nations that have been singled out for censure, including North Korea, Sudan and Sri Lanka. -- Irrawaddy
Obviously, the Burmese junta joining the Mass Destruction Allies. Since Burmese Generals are illiterate people, they will be manipulated by Iran and North Korea and will not hold back in using the weapons, thus threatening the world's security without a doubt. If UN and EU do not respond to these delegations (of Iran and of North Korea), Burma is going to be one of the nations that the world cannot control.
Events to mark detained Nobel Peace Prize laureate Aung San Suu Kyi's 65th birthday will take place both inside and outside Burma on Saturday. While foreign diplomats in Bangkok read out messages of support for Suu Kyi's freedom to Burma's opposition in exile, her supporters in Rangoon have said they will plant tens of thousands of trees in honor of their leader.
“We will plant 20,000 trees in 386 townships for our leader's birthday,” said Phyu Phyu Thin, a female leader with Suu Kyi's disbanded National League For Democracy (NLD).
Filipino solidarity activists under the Free Burma Coalition hold mock ballot papers with the image of Burmese opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi during a protest action at the Burmese embassy in Makati, financial district of Manila on May 27. (Photo: Getty Images)
Other party members said they will mark their leader's birthday by making donations to Buddhist monks and providing financial support to the children of political prisoners.
On Thursday in Bangkok, a coalition of 10 Burmese opposition groups held a ceremony to mark Suu Kyi's birthday at the Foreign Correspondents Club of Thailand (FCCT). The event included diplomats from Canada, the United States, the Czech Republic and Thailand.
Canadian Ambassador to Thailand Ron Hoffmann said that Canada will continue to support Suu Kyi and Burma's democratic struggle, adding that his country has imposed the toughest economic sanctions against the Burmese regime.
Kraisak Choonhavan, a leading member of the Thai parliament, expressed his hope that—although his country is essentially supporting the Burmese regime by importing natural gas— Thailand might be in a position to pressure the regime at some time in the future. He added that he wished to be the first person to shake hands with Suu Kyi if she is released and is able to visit Thailand.
The FCCT event also marked the end of an international campaign denouncing the Burmese general election that received more than 40,000 signatures from 35 countries in two weeks.
On Saturday, supporters of the US Campaign for Burma will hold a solidarity rally in Washington, as will members of Burma Campaign for UK, who say they are calling for the release of Suu Kyi and more than 2,000 other political prisoners in Burma.
“We will form a line of 18 people, wearing T-shirts spelling out the messages: 'Aung San Suu Kyi' and 'Now set her free.' We will hand out flyers with information about Suu Kyi and human rights in Burma,” said a statement from the London-based group.
This week, the United Nations Working Group on Arbitrary Detention condemned Suu Kyi's detention in a statement, saying, “[the] continuation of the deprivation of liberty of Ms Aung San Suu Kyi is arbitrary [and] in contravention of articles 9,10, 19 and 20 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.”
Suu Kyi has spent nearly 15 of the last 21 years in detention. She is currently serving an 18-month extension of house arrest for briefly sheltering an American citizen last year who swam uninvited to her lakeside home in Rangoon.
The NLD was officially dissolved on May 7 after rejecting the regime's election laws which would have required it to oust its leader, Suu Kyi, from the party.
The regime is widely expected to hold a general election before Suu Kyi's sentence expires in November.
It was a shocking news that a US Senator claimed a negative opinion on anti-regime news media, DVB, and a positive opinion on the Burmese junta. It cannot be denied that the junta is shaping its nuclear dream by looking at the fresh evidence from the army defector Sai Thein Win.
Sen. Webb, I do not know what the junta did to you, but I am certain that every Burmese in US are having strong opinion against you right now. The regime's officials are good at bribing, so I hope you are not also a victim of the bribery.
It's now clear that the relationship between the Burmese regime and US Sen. Jim Webb is unique, and his position as a strong advocate for US engagement with the generals has not changed, in spite of recent allegations that the junta is trying to acquire nuclear weapons. Webb's relationship with the regime might even have been strengthened. Many wondered if the relationship was damaged after the Democratic lawmaker said he would seek clarification on the report that Burma was acquiring a nuclear program—a report which compelled him to cancel his scheduled visit to Burma early this month, when he also called for the appointment of a US special envoy to Burma.
But, last week both Webb and the regime spoke out in rejecting the conclusions of the report, citing similar reasons as if they were talking from the same script.
On Thursday, Webb pointed out in a letter to Secretary of State Hillary Clinton that the Oslo-based Burmese exiled news service Democratic Voice of Burma (DVB), which alleged that Burma had a nuclear program, is a US-funded media organization, insinuating that the US government should be held accountable for the nuclear report.
Three days later, on Friday, the Burmese Ministry of Foreign Affairs described the DVB as “a killer broadcasting station” that survives on US aid from the National Endowment for Democracy (NED) and that the report was issued by anti-Burma elements in collaboration with other news media for a political purpose.
The DVB deputy executive in Norway defended the station's report, saying that the organization functions independently, and, although 10 to 15 percent of the organization's funds comes from the US government, its main financial backers are European countries such as the Netherlands.
Some observers noted that while it is not uncommon for the regime to accuse Burmese exiled newsgroups in such a way, it is unusual for an American senator to make a similar point.
Also, regarding an earlier news report that Burma might have violated UN Security Resolution 1874 imposed on North Korea by receiving alleged shipments of military items from North Korea in 2009, Webb said that it was an “unsubstantiated” allegation raised by the US top diplomat for Asia, Kurt Campbell. By the same token, the regime defended itself by saying that it had only imported cement from North Korea during the alleged transaction.
While Webb said that the new nuclear allegations had “frozen any prospect of further engagement with Burma,” the regime's media noted on Friday that the “unfounded” nuclear allegations surfaced at a time of resumption of engagement between Burma and the United States.
Even though there may have been no direct discussions between Webb and Burmese government officials, informed sources said that there is regular contact between him and the regime aided by overseas Burmese who support the junta.
Based on his sources, Webb told the Asia Society last week that Burma's election, whose date is yet to be announced, would probably be held on Oct. 10, adding that the election should be viewed as a step forward for Burma.
When Webb made his first official visit to Burma in 2009 and met with the reclusive regime's chief Snr-Gen Than Shwe, opposition figures said he did not mention the more than 2,000 political prisoners languishing in prisons and human rights violations against ethnic minorities.
Since that visit, Webb has not enjoyed support among many Burmese democracy activists, who say that his primary concern is countering Chinese influence in Burma through US economic investment in the country.
Nevertheless, Webb is not mistaken in pointing out the growing Chinese influence in Burma, as seen by the recent visit by Chinese Primer Wen Jiabao, during which 15 cooperation agreements were signed covering areas such as natural gas imports, a trans-Burma gas pipeline, hydro-power dams and foreign aid.
And according to the latest reports, Chinese political influence might have been a factor in the regime's recent easing of pressure on ethnic cease-fire groups on the China-Burma border to join the regime's border guard force plan.
Given these realities, Webb's position for greater engagement with the regime to counter China's growing influence is not likely to change. In doing so, Webb frustrates Burmese pro-democracy activists and delights the regime, which will soon probably reward him with another personal meeting with Snr-Gen. Than Shwe.
Burmese Deputy Defense Minister Maj-Gen Aye Myint was absent from the 9th annual Shangri La Dialogue, an Asia-Pacific security summit held in Singapore on June 4-6.
The summit brings together defense ministers, academics and security experts to discuss Asia-Pacific security issues, including weapons of mass destruction, biological weapons and humanitarian and disaster relief.
Aye Myint's absence came as fresh evidence of Burma's nascent nuclear weapons program was revealed in a documentary aired on the Doha-based Al Jazeera television network on Friday. -- Irrawaddy
Must not every Deputy Defense Minister attend Security Summit? This is totally an ignorance to other countries in Asia, and this is an absolute evidence that Burmese junta is creating nuclear weapons. If the regime does not relate nuclear armaments, Maj-Gen Aye Myint should be boldly attending the 9th annual Shangri La Dialogue.
Though, it is interesting that nobody mentioned Burmese junta's nuclear plans at the Summit. Are these nations scared? Are they afraid that they will be the targets of Burma in future?
The Burmese junta’s ambition to become a nuclear power is a threat to regional security, according to a documentary by the Norway-based Democratic Voice of Burma (DVB), which alleges that Naypyidaw is developing nuclear weapons and a missiles system with help from North Korea.
Quoting experts and defectors, the documentary, which was aired by Al Jazeera on Friday, said that if the junta achieves its goal, Burmese missiles could target neighboring countries, as well as threatening US military activities in the Indian Ocean.
Burmese army defector Maj Sai Thein Win, who is a missiles expert, said the junta is constructing nuclear and missiles facilities at at least two sites in Magwe and Mandalay divisions in central Burma.
“They [the junta] really want a [nuclear] bomb. That is their main objective,” said Sai Thein Win in the documentary. “They want to have rockets and nuclear warheads.” -- Irrawaddy
Should not UN be very strict with its UN Nuclear Resolutions? Thanks to Major Sai Thein Win, the world could apprehend the evil nuclear plans of the junta. Anywhere in Burma is not a safe place to live anymore. International must interfere or Burma will be the second North Korea in a couple of years. Hopefully, Rangoon, where most politicians live, will not be the target of the nuclear warheads. I care more about people in Rangoon or anywhere else in Burma than neighboring countries or the US military fleet in the Indian Ocean.
The Burmese military regime is constructing a tunnel in Rakhine Yoma, some 80 km west of Padan Township in Magway Division, local sources said. The tunnel is 50 feet wide and 50 feet high, a worker from the project said, and is being supervised by North Korean technicians.
On Friday, fresh evidence of the regime constructing a secret network of hidden bunkers and tunnels across the country surfaced. According to an investigative film by an exiled Burmese broadcaster, the Democratic Voice of Burma (DVB), which was aired by Al Jazeera on Friday, some tunnels are marked as substations for fiber optic cables and are part of a plan to provide the military with a secure nationwide communications network.
“They are constructing a tunnel ... a huge tunnel. Many tunnels all over the country,” said Sai Thein Win—a former defense engineer and missile expert who recently defected from the army—in the film. The documentary also revealed bunkers alleged to be used as secret military storage facilities and command centers in case of aerial attacks. -- Irrawaddy
Tunnels again! Before this new evidence from former Major Sai Thein Win, tunnels are believed to be the hiding places for the generals of junta when US aircrafts come. Experts referred these tunnels as rat-tunnel defense used by Vietnams when they fought US in World War II.
Now, these tunnels are proven to be not only bunkers, but also nuclear missile-silos. UN and EU should have closely and tightly scrutinized these rats (generals) since North Korea's ship carrying weapons anchored at Burma shore in June 2009.
Because of these negligence, Burma is going to be a second North Korea and Burmese citizens are in danger of nuclear side-effects and consequences.
It is the time that all the people of Burma must demonstrate the will of anti-military dictatorial system with boycotting the 2010 Election together with elected-parties including the NLD and ethnic parties in order to prevent the military junta from coming up with legitimacy for enduring a military rule.
All the people including students and youths,
We, All Burma Monks’ Alliance, 88 Generation Students and All Burma Federation of Student Unions, seriously request for your actions of boycott the 2010 Election by: (a) No voting (b) No advanced voting (c) Making your vote null if being forced to vote.
All Burma Monks’ Alliance 88 Generation Students All Burma Federation of Student Unions
Kyaw Ko Ko made three dramatic escapes, but his luck finally ran out in 2008, when Burmese authorities arrested him for his role in the 2007 Saffron Revolution and he was sentenced to three years in prison for possesing illegal videos.
On Friday, with his first sentence set to expire in one year, the junta tacked on an additional five years for illegal asociation and subversion.
Kyaw Ko Ko delivers a speech to students in Rangoon during the 2007 Saffron Revolution.
Rahul Kyaw Kyaw Maung, alias Kyaw Ko Ko, 28, is the son of school teachers in Rangoon's Tamwe township. In 2006, he was in Rangoon studying for his masters degree in economics when he was recruited by former political prisoners to engage in political activities.
“Though he received some influence from other individuals, he himself is well-read, calm and disciplined,” recalled a political activist who met Kyaw Ko Ko a few years ago.
Kyaw Ko Ko met the prominent 88 Generation Students' leader Min Ko Naing in a monastery, where they were celebrating the anniversary of the student-led uprising in 1988. When Min Ko Naing and other 88 Generation Students' leaders were re-arrested for their protests against the unannounced increase in fuel prices, and many former political prisoners consequently fled Burma for fear of persecution, younger activists like Kyaw Ko Ko stepped in to take a leadership role.
Representing the new generation of activists that has emerged since since the nationwide anti-government uprising in 1988, Kyaw Ko Ko attempted to rejuvenate the Burma Students' Union, which had became active again during the 1988 uprising.
Although not an officially outlawed association, the Students' Union had become virtually illegal since the 1962 military coup, despite the fact that it played an important role in the country's independence struggle.
“At the court on Friday, my brother did not deny that he tried to reorganize the student's organization, but he insisted to the judges that the organization is a legal organization,” said Kyaw Ko Ko's sister.
When the Saffron Revolution broke out, Kyaw Ko Ko continued his dissident leadership role, and after the crackdown on protesting monks, he went into hiding in and around Rangoon.
In October 2007, a house in South Okkalapa township that Kyaw Ko Ko was hiding in was raided. He managed to escape by jumping off the balcony, but some of his friends were arrested.
Later, the police discovered him in a Rangoon monastery where he had been given refuge, but again he managed to escape. He eluded the authorities for a third time when they raided a snack bar in Rangoon's Junction 8 Shopping mall where he was meeting with friends, who were all arrested.
Kyaw Ko Ko fled to Pegu, but returned to Rangoon in early 2008 to launch a no-vote campaign against the referendum over the junta's controversial Constitution. Before the referendum was held, however, he was finally arrested.
The authorities found videos of the 1988 uprising in the place where Kyaw Ko Ko was hiding, and although family members said he had nothing to do with the videos, in 2009 Kyaw Ko Ko was sentenced to three years in jail after being convicted of violating Burma's Video Act, which regulates uncensored videos, and sentenced to three years in jail.
Violation of the Video Act is one of the charges the regime used in handing down a heavy prison sentence to Burma's famous comedian Zarganar, who is currently jailed in a remote prison.
On Friday, following a trial that was not covered by the state-controlled media, Kyaw Ko Ko received an additional five-year jail sentence for unlawful association and subversion, which according to his defense lawyer, Aung Thein, he is alleged to have committed during the monks' protests in 2007.
“He gave a speech to the crowds in 2007 in front of the Rangoon city hall while representing the students, and this entails the first charge of unlawful association. The same fact becomes the basis of the second charge for subversion,” Aung Thein said. “I believe this is nothing but an attempt to lengthen his prison term.”
“I am not frustrated. I will try to survive the prison life,” Kyaw Ko Ko told his sister during his Rangoon court appearance last week.
The 2007 Saffron Revolution saw the arrest and incarceration of other young activists in Burma, such as blogger Nay Phone Latt and hip-hop singer Zay Yar Thaw, who joined their activist predecessors in jails across the country.
And 2007 was not the first time Burma's young activists have been persecuted following the 1988 uprising. In 1998, many young dissidents were arrested and given long prison sentences, some exceeding 50 years. Many of these activists are still behind bars, according to the Thailand-based Association of Assistance for Political Prisoners in Burma (AAPP).
Currently, while the regime is preparing to hold Burma's first election in twenty years, more than 2000 political prisoners are estimated to be in jails across the country. Under the regime's election laws, all of them are barred from the voting process and do not have the right to be a member of any political party.
“My brother is against the election this year. He has no faith in this at all,” Kyaw Ko Ko's sister said.
This picture corresponds exactly what USDA (Union Solidarity and Development Association) is doing. Reference: Lay, Harn. Disciplined Democracy's Dry Run. The Irrawaddy. May 18, 2010.
Fighting Peacock Flag is an ABFSU's emblem and was a NLD's flag. It was and must be used solely by students of ABFSU but should not be used for any political purposes: good or bad.
I, as a student activist from ABFSU, condemn both Ye Htun of "FAKE" 88 Generation Student Union of Myanmar (GSUM) and Aye Lwin of Union of Myanmar Federation of National Politics (UMFNP). Since both of you are students of 88 Generation, you should have known that it is strongly prohibited to used for any benefit. And I believe both of you have become military dogs after being put behind bars. I also conclude that your intentions of using our emblem is detrimental.
If you believe in yourselves, you can create and use your own. DO NOT USE OUR FIGHTING PEACOCK FLAG AT ANYTIME, YOU IMPOSTORS!!!
Feathers are flying in Burma over the use of the fighting peacock emblem by two newly registered political parties in their election campaigns.
The emblem—famously associated with the now disbanded National League for Democracy (NLD)—has served as a national symbol since the days of the Burmese monarchy and was a rallying image brandished by student activists in colonial times.
“It's not appropriate to use the student movement's flag as the symbol of a political party,” said prominent journalist Ludu Sein Win, one of a group of about 40 people in the Burmese media world who signed a letter of complaint to the Election Commission.
“The fighting peacock symbol is not the property of a certain organization and it is associated with all Burmese nationals,” said Ludu Sein Win.
The Election Commission has ruled that it will accept objections against the use of flags or symbols by registered political parties.
The fighting peacock symbol is being used by two newly registered parties, the Union of Myanmar Federation of National Politics (UMFNP) and the 88 Generation Student Union of Myanmar (GSUM), led by two brothers who are former political prisoners. The two are the subjects of unsubstantiated suspicions that they are collaborating with the regime.
Objectors point out that the fighting peacock symbol adopted by the two new parties is similar to the one used by the All Burma Federation of Student Unions (ABFSU), which played a key role in Burma's independence movement against British colonial rule.
Since the 1962 military coup, the ABFSU has been viewed by successive regimes as an illegal organization. Its building on the Rangoon University campus was destroyed in a bomb attack in the year of the coup.
The ABFSU objected to the use of the peacock symbol when it was first adopted by the the now-defunct NLD and used in its party flag, but later dropped its objection.
“The ABFSU flag is being used only in the movement led by students, handed down from one generation to another,” said Myo Myint Nyein, of the Rangoon-based weekly journal The Ray of Light. “I don't agree with using it as the image of a party.”
GSUM chairman Ye Tun said his party and the UMFNP were only trying to trying to preserve the image of the fighting peacock.
The group of objectors agreed in their letter to the Election Commission that the symbol was “crucial for the history of the nation” but said “it should not be the property of any political party.”
Among the signatories of the letter of complaint was Maung Wun Tha, a veteran writer and editor who was a member of the ABFSU before 1962.
Burma’s censorship board is keeping a tight control on reporting in private journals about the junta’s Union Solidarity and Development Party (USDP) led by Prime Minister Thein Sein. Journalists in Rangoon said the censorship board, the Press Scrutiny and Registration Division under the Ministry of Information, does not allow any questioning on the controversial formation of the USDP, which was formed directly from the state mass organization, the Union Solidarity and Development Association (USDA). -- Irrawaddy
Again... Why is Thein Sein afraid off? Is he frightened that people might be focussing on his corruptions? Why is the Censorship Board preventing journalists to write critical comments although Thein Sein is no longer a Military official?
Answers to these questions are obvious. Although the War Office announced that Thein Sein's retirement, he is still acting as a Premier without a doubt. His party USDP, which is hated by citizens the most, involved in beating monks in Saffron Revolution. The corruptions in this election will be evident by the victory of USDP.
Hopefully, United Nations would not approve the outcome of this election. If UN or the World's Nations approve the result of election, it means that these Nations approve the massacre of Saffron Revolution in September 2007 and these nations will have proved themselves to be the same as Burmese junta.
WASHINGTON — Speaking at a daily press briefing on Tuesday, the assistant secretary of state for public affairs, P J Crowley, suggested that if Burmese generals resigned from the military to contest the upcoming election, this could be seen as a positive step.
Even Assistant Secretary of State for Public Affairs was deceived by the sly actions of Military Junta. Do you really believe these Burmese generals resigned for good or for the well-being of Burma? Of course not!
These generals are resigning because they have to cope with the unjust rules of 2010 Election written by themselves and because they want other countries to think they have become innocent. Even prime minister, Thein Sein, has stood down from his super position to take part in 2010 Election. If this is not the greediness, then what is it?
One thing for sure is that these resignations are not POSITIVE in all senses!
Reference: Jha, Lalit K. Generals Resignation for Election May Be Positive. Irrawaddy. May 5 2010 http://www.irrawaddy.org/
NLD has been forced to disbanded. Ms. Suu Kyi is still under house-arrest. Students and opposing politicians expressing their views are put into jails.
If you ask where Democracy is now, I am very confident to say that it does not exists in Burma. Burmese military junta is trying its best to brush off any obstructions for them from the surface of the earth. By obstructions, I am referring to Democracy icons such as the peacock flag, Ms. Suu Kyi, NLD, and so on.
Although NLD is dissolved by force, the peacock flag which is a representative of our student body and a Democracy Icon, will vanish by no means, and we will protect our peacock flag with all our hearts!!!
The National League for Democracy (NLD) will cease to exist as a political movement after the deadline for party registration on May 6, according to NLD Central Executive Committee (CEC) members. The Burmese opposition party refused to re-register for this year's general election, saying the election laws were “unfair and unjust.”
-- Irrawaddy
Unfortunately, NLD had fallen into the dirty tricks of Military Government. With NLD's declaration of refusal to take part in the election, Military Government immediately announced a new rule for the election -- "all parties which took part in 1990 election must register for 2010 election or they will be disbanded".
What an "unfair and unjust" move! Like I speculated, this Military junta has always been craving to wipe out the name "NLD" from the surface of the earth.
Students, monks, and opposing political parties are the only groups which dare to express their beliefs towards everything, and thus are targets of this cruel regime. DON'T FORGET that a lot of students had been massively annihilated since 1988 uprising, monks were beaten to death in September 2008, and politicians, especially from NLD, are still in jail.
Is this what Democracy is? Definitely not!!! This is a pure dictatorship of the suppressive regime which always wants to clear anything in its way.
“The people of Myanmar must have the courage to say no to injustice and yes to the truth. They must also work to correct their own wrongdoing that hurt society.” by — Min Ko Naing, speech at the first 88 Generation meeting in August 2006.
“It's not appropriate to use the student movement's flag as the symbol of a political party.” by -- prominent journalist Ludu Sein Win, one of a group of about 40 people in the Burmese media world who signed a letter of complaint to the Election Commission.
