Under sanctions, Myanmar’s economy crumbling

AFP
Sunday, December 30, 2007

YANGON –– Myanmar’s already battered economy is groaning under the weight of new sanctions following a crackdown on dissent, business leaders say, fueling concerns that the hardships could spark more protests.

The United States, the European Union and Australia slapped tougher sanctions on Myanmar’s military regime in the wake of the bloody suppression of pro-democracy protests in September.

A UN investigator found that at least 31 people were killed when soldiers opened fire on the peaceful protests, which were led by Buddhist monks in Yangon and other cities around Myanmar, formerly known as Burma.

The country has been under a patchwork of sanctions for years, but the latest measures have blocked access to US financial institutions and made it more difficult to export Myanmar’s highly desired teak and precious stones.

The US sanctions have targeted specific companies and business leaders, noteably the flamboyant tycoon Tay Za, who is close to the top military leadership.

Tay Za has bitterly complained that the sanctions have crippled his Air Bagan airline, and warned that he would be forced to pass along his own economic pain to his employees.

Other business leaders have echoed that sentiment. Some say that they are struggling to stay in business only to support their employees, and that the current situation could soon become unsustainable.

“These sanctions pose problems for us. If the government suffers, we, businessmen have to suffer. If we suffer, the workers have to suffer,” said one top business leader in Yangon, speaking on condition of anonymity.

The original protests were sparked by the economic hardships facing Myanmar’s impoverished population, after an overnight hike in fuel prices on August 15 left many unable to afford even a bus ride to work.

The Yangon business leader said that he and other factory owners quickly negotiated deals with their workers, who had threatened their own protests over the fuel prices.

“The protests actually started with factory workers in industrial zones in August, because of their economic hardship,” he said.

An ordinary factory worker earns about 30,000 kyats (24 dollars) per month. Low-level government workers earn even less, about 25,000 kyats (20 dollars) per month.

A typical Myanmar meal of rice and pork curry for one costs about 500 kyats (40 cents).

Even before the energy hike in August, business leaders at 87 factories in Yangon, mainly in the garment sector, raised salaries to help workers deal with the sky-high fuel prices.

“It was quite lucky that the protests in the factories finished before the monks’ protests began. Otherwise, they would have gotten mixed up together,” the Yangon business leader said.

“The country’s economic development depends on the political situation. We cannot say yet what could happen next year. Right now we are running our business at a loss, just to keep our workers employed,” he said.

Myanmar’s fledgling tourism industry has also taken a blow, as the country saw an almost total drop-off in foreign arrivals after the bloody crackdown.

Police Nab Three Myanmar Nationals Swimming To Singapore

JOHOR BAHARU, Dec 28 (Bernama) — Marine police last night caught three Myanmar nationals as they were swimming across the Straits of Johor from Lido beach here to Singapore.

The trio were spotted by two marine police patrol boats scouring the waters at Danga Bay and were arrested at 11.15pm, said Southern Region Marine Police chief ACP Kamal Bakri Medan.

Marine police searched the waters after receiving information that three men were swimming across the straits to Singapore, he said in a statement on Friday.

The men, aged between 20 and 30, were handed over to the Johor Baharu South police station.

— BERNAMA

Myanmar: National Airline To Resume Service To Thailand, Malaysia

December 27, 2007
AP News

YANGON, MYANMAR: Myanmar’s national airline plans to resume flights to the capitals of Thailand and Malaysia in mid-January, more than two months after service was suspended amid a government crackdown on pro-democracy protests.

Myo Than, assistant general manager of Myanmar Airways International, said details on the number of flights per week to Bangkok and Kuala Lumpur would be released in the coming days when the airline officially announces the resumption of service.

Myanmar Airways halted its daily flights to the two cities in mid-October, two weeks after troops fired on pro-democracy protesters led by Buddhist monks. The crackdown sparked outrage around the world.

The airline said at the time that its London-based insurer had suspended coverage “due to the recent crisis in Myanmar.” It did not name the insurance company.

Myo Than declined to comment on whether the London insurer had resumed coverage.

Travel to Myanmar dropped dramatically following globally televised reports of the junta’s 26-27 Sept crackdown.

Hotel occupancy remains low and tour guides say many package tours remain canceled.

In the weeks after the violence, a number of governments, including the United States and Britain, advised their citizens against visiting Myanmar, and several big tour operators called for a boycott on visiting the country.

Media Rights Group Says Burma Censoring, Intimidating Journalists

By VOA News
26 December 2007

An international media rights group says Burma’s military government has been harassing journalists since anti-government demonstrations in September.

Reporters Without Borders said Wednesday police continue to search for journalists and activists who photographed and filmed the crackdown on the demonstrations led by Buddhist monks.

It says at least nine journalists have fled to Thailand, and at least three others have been arrested and are still being held.

The group said that while privately-owned media in Burma has resumed publishing, the country’s Censorship Board has stepped up its controls. It also says the government is strictly controlling the sales of foreign publications and that surveillance at Internet cafes has increased.

The Burmese government detained thousands of protesters during the September pro-democracy demonstrations. Burma says 15 people died in the protests but the United Nations puts the figure at 31.

Congressional award for Aung San Suu Kyi

WASHINGTON, Dec. 26 (UPI) — U.S. Senate leaders called on Congress to award a Congressional Gold Medal to Aung San Suu Kyi, the leader of the opposition group in Myanmar.

Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., and Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., said they intend to introduce legislation to award the Congressional Gold Medal to Suu Kyi, mirroring similar legislation in the House of Representatives.

“Aung San Suu Kyi is a woman of unrivaled courage,” Feinstein said in the daily congressional newspaper The Hill.

McConnell echoed Feinstein’s statements saying Suu Kyi was a “tireless advocate for the rights and welfare” of the people in Myanmar.

Suu Kyi is a pro-Democracy advocate who supports nonviolent resistance. She has been given a number of international honors, including the 1992 Nobel Peace Prize, the President Medal of Freedom from U.S. President Bill Clinton in 2000, the Rafto Prize, the Sakharov Prize for Freedom of Thought and the Jawaharlal Nehru peace prize.

PUBLIC REQUEST TO JUNTA *** FREE DAW AUNG SAN SUU KYI ***

From SAVING BURMA

Voters refuse to give PPP a full mandate

Thailand’s People Power Party (PPP) leader Samak Sundaravej said on Sunday night that his party has already become the biggest party in Parliament according to the early voting result of Sunday’s general election, and he will be the new prime minister absolutely.(Xinhua Photo)

Bangkok Posts
(08:52 Dec 24, 2007)

According to the Election Commission’s count of 93 per cent of votes cast in Sunday’s elections, the PPP won 228 of the 480 contested seats, 12 short of a majority.

PPP leader Samak Sundaravej, a 72-year-old veteran of Thailand’s political scene, said Sunday night that he would be the country’s next prime minister and would approach other parties to form a coalition government before Parliament reconvenes in 30 days, as required by the constitution.

Samak told a press conference Sunday night that the support for the PPP was a statement on the military’s September 19, 2006 coup that toppled Thaksin and installed an appointed cabinet of technocrats.

“The coup is dead,” said Samak. “Now the people have had their say. The numbers that came out are an answer to those people,” he said of the military.

It remains to be seen whether a coalition government under the PPP can be born, analysts said.

PPP’s main rival, the Democrat Party led by Abhisit Vejjajiva, 43, has already announced that it will not join the PPP in a coalition but will become the opposition if it fails to lead a government.

The Democrat Party has won 166 seats nationwide and dominated the capital Bangkok, where it won 27 out of 36 contested seats. PPP received the other nine Bangkok mandates.

Coming third was the Chart Thai Party with 39 seats and the Peau Pandin Party fourth with 26 seats. The other slates to win seats were Ruam Jai Thai Chart Pattana with 10, Machima Thipataya with seven and Pracharaj with four, according to the latest unofficial tally.

Although PPP has won the most seats, it will have a hard time mustering a coalition government around it, observers said.

“We have a clean winner but not a clear-cut outcome,” said Thitinan Pongsudhirak, a political scientist at Chulalongkorn University.

The Democrats have done better than expected at the polls and have won Bangkok’s backing, deemed a crucial factor to any government’s stability.

“The provinces elect governments, and Bangkok topples them,” is an old Thai saying.

The Democrats also received strong support for their party list candidates, winning 33 of the 80 contested party-list MPS, compared with the PPP’s 34.

“That means that many people split their vote, casting ballots for their preferred MPs but voting for the Democrats as their favourite party,” said Thitinan.

Samak will need to persuade the Chart Thai Party run by Banharn Silpa-archa to join him if the PPP is to muster a government, but Banharn has reportedly asked to become prime minister of such a coalition.

It appears that Thailand is heading for a weak coalition government that is not likely to last long, analysts said.

PPP has campaigned on a platform of continuing the populist policies initiated by Thaksin during his two premierships from 2001- 06 and assuring a safe return for the billionaire politician, who has been in self-exile since the coup.

Thaksin, a former telecommunication tycoon, reportedly moved from his mansion in London to his luxury apartment in Hong Kong to observe the election and hopes to return on February 14 to Thailand. (dpa)

Supporters …
Thaksin Shinawatra’s children,
from left, Phantongtae, Pinthongta and Paethongtan, vote in Bangkok.
Photo: AFP

Exit polls show pro-Thaksin Party wins Thailand’s post-coup election

Thailand’s People Power Party (PPP) leader Samak Sundaravej speaks to the media after votes in the general election in Bangkok, Thailand, Dec. 23 2007. Thailand’s first post-coup general election was held on Sunday.(Xinhua Photo)

By Shen Min
2007-12-23 19:31:58

BANGKOK, Dec. 23 (Xinhua) — Exit polls have shown the People Power Party (PPP), a party closely related to the coup-ousted prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra, is winning Sunday’s general election, which is considered the key step to bring the country back to political normalcy in Thailand, as the voting closed at 3 p.m. (0800 GMT) Sunday.

The poll by the Suan Dusit Rajabhat University, one of the two leading survey institutions recognized by the Election Commission to conduct the exit polls for Sunday’s election, showed the PPP got 256 seats, a majority in the 480-member House of Representatives.

Among the 256 seats, 221 come from the constituency-based MP election, while the rest 35 from the party-list MP election.

The PPP’s major rival in the race, the Democrat Party, followed with 162 seats, 127 for constituency MP seats and 35 for party-list, the Suan Dusit exit poll showed.

Another poll by the ABAC Poll Research Center also indicated similar outcome by showing the PPP on top with 202 seats, while the Democrat is expected to get 146 seats.

Democrat Party Leader Abhisit Vejjajiva said he would rather wait for the official results to voice his comment.

He earlier said he would respect the result, no matter what outcome it shows.

The Election Commission is expected to announce initial tallying results at around 9 p.m. (1400 GMT).

The PPP did not make haste to declare victory, but Surapong Suebwonglee, PPP’s secretary general, said the party’s expectation of winning 220 to 250 MP seats was similar to what the exit polls have shown.

PPP executives have said the party may consider inviting two or three other parties to join it in forming a coalition government with at least 300 parliament seats.

The Party Leader, Samak Sundaravej, said he was happy with the exit polls results and that he would hold a press conference at 8 p.m. (0100 GMT), by when he believed the initial rallying results will come out.

Both Party leaders has contested as party-list MP candidate in Bangkok and were seen as the leading runners in the race to become Thailand’s next prime minister.

In the exit polls, other major parties in the contest, such as Chart Thai Party (Thai Nation Party), Ruamjai Thai Chart Pattana Party (Thais United National Development Party), and Pua Paendin Party (For the Motherland Party) are legging far behind the two leading parties.

The exit polls results on Sunday have echoed earlier forecasts in various pre-election opinion polls, which all saw the PPP leading the race.

Over 70 percent of 45 million eligible voters in Thailand are expected to participate in the election, which kicked off at 8 a.m.(0100 GMT) Sunday at 88,500 polling stations throughout Thailand, to elect 480 members at Thailand’s House of Representatives ((or often referred as Parliament).

The party or the coalition of parties winning a majority of seats at the House will be empowered to form a new government, with the winning party or parties electing a prime minister, who must be an elected MP, to lead the cabinet.

In the voting system revised under the new Constitution 2007, voters have to mark on two separate ballot papers to elect the 480parliament members.

The 400 parliament members will be elected directly by voters in 157 designated Constituencies in the country, while the other 80 party-list MP seats will be taken by party candidates based on the proportion of votes their own party receives in each of eight designated Zones, each comprising a group of provinces and with 10party-list MP seats for grabs.

A record high number of over 2.9 million voters have cast their ballots in the advance and absentee voting during Dec. 15 and Dec.16. The advance ballots will be tallied along with those cast on Sunday.

The election has received great attention both in Thailand and from the international community, as it is the first general election 15 months after the military launched a bloodless coup to oust elected prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra and has carried with it the hopes of many Thai people to restore political normalcy to the country.

No comment on the exit poll results have been voiced so far from the military top brass or the interim government led by prime minister Surayud Chulanont.

Myanmar refugees wretched in Malaysia

Web posted at: 12/23/2007 4:0:16
Source ::: AFP

Kuala lumpur • Living in miserable camps not far from the glittering Petronas Twin Towers, Myanmar refugees in Malaysia are some of the most wretched of the hundreds of thousands who have fled their homeland.

“We are living here like prisoners, we cannot go out anywhere because we are frightened,” says 35-year-old James Munerlian, a Christian pastor from Myanmar’s Chin state who fled persecution by the military regime.

Munerlian is the leader of a 100-strong group of men, women and children who live a precarious existence in a secret encampment in one of the patches of jungle that still remain among Kuala Lumpur’s suburbs.

The half-hour trek there takes a visitor past an almost completed luxury housing project, over hilly and mosquito-infested terrain, through an illegal rubbish dump and across a riverbed reeking with sewage.

In a clearing, the Chin refugees huddle into eight huts made with sheets of zinc and cardboard, and draped with pieces of plastic.

They escaped Myanmar on foot in the hope of finding a better life, but instead are exploited by unscrupulous employers and harassed by Malaysia’s controversial volunteer security corps which hunts down illegal migrants.

Michael Boak Tun Thang, a 26-year-old farmer from northern Chin state, came to Malaysia in early 2006 and has been hiding in various jungle camps ever since.

“The junta came to my village with rifles. Because there were only a few men, they ordered all the boys and also the women to become porters and carry their foods and boxes,” he says.

“They raped all the women, even my sister, but I could not do anything. We carried the heavy things but they never paid us or gave us any meals.”

Late one night, Tun Thang was freed by men from a nearby village, but the last time he saw his sister she was a walking skeleton and he has not heard from her since.

Refugee advocates say the camp is just one of hundreds in the capital and around the country that have sprung up in patches of jungles, near agricultural plantations and on the fringes of coastal villages.

Some luckier ones have managed to find cheap housing, and live packed a dozen to a room.

“Malaysia has become one of the worst places for Burmese asylum seekers because of the way the government and its enforcers have brutalised and abused refugees,” says Debbie Stothard from human rights group Altsean Burma.

“Large groups of refugees are in hiding around the country and they are penniless and desperate,” she adds, using Myanmar’s former name.

United States data in 2006 listed Myanmar as the world’s third largest source of refugees after Afghanistan and Iraq, with at least 700,000 people having fled the country.

“Ten years ago, Burmese refugees were unheard of in most Asian countries with the exception of Thailand which shares a very porous border with the country,” Stothard says.

“But today, the situation is so bad that there are large numbers of refugees escaping to China, Bangladesh, India, Indonesia and Malaysia.

“Many of these refugees end up being illegal migrants because the Burmese government does not provide passports to most of its people and refuses to recognise them as citizens if they leave the country illegally.”

The Malaysian government says there are about 25,644 Myanmar asylum-seekers in the country but refugee groups believe the real figure is more than double that.

The majority are Rohingya Muslims from Myanmar’s Rakhine state while the rest are Christian Chins, Karens and Shan.

In the Chin jungle camp, they knew nothing of the massive September street protests, led by Buddhist monks, in Myanmar’s main city Yangon which were violently suppressed by the regime, triggering international outrage.

Chin Refugee Centre coordinator Paul Lian says most Myanmar refugees in Malaysia work illegally on building sites or plantations and face beatings, extortion and exploitation from employers.

“The groups are in very bad shape as they have no money, no food and fear for their safety,” he says, adding that as they have no rights they are either not paid at all or given a pittance.

Another camp dweller, 43-year-old Peter Thant Tum who has been on the run for the past three years, just wants a chance at leading a normal life.

“If the Malaysia government has consideration, please give us legal documents and allow us to work, to earn money and eat, our lives will be more happy,” he says.

U.N. adopts human rights resolution against Myanmar

Sunday, December 23, 2007 at 07:10 EST

NEW YORK — The U.N. General Assembly adopted early Saturday a resolution strongly condemning violence against peaceful demonstrators in Myanmar and calling upon the military to respect human rights and fully cooperate with U.N. special envoy Ibrahim Gambari.

The nonbinding resolution was adopted with 83 countries in favor, including Japan and the United States, with 22 countries against, including Myanmar, China and North Korea, and 47 countries abstaining from the voting.