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BURMA RELATED NEWS - OCTOBER 18, 2005. YANGON, (AFP) - Myanmar sold almost 70 percent of pearls, gems and jade on offer at what became the country's biggest precious stones auction, the state-run media said. Some 1,784 lots sold from more than 2,600 available, raising much needed hard currency for the cash-strapped military government which had hoped it would raise more than 43 million dollars. No sales figures were published. However, auction organisers said before the 10-day sale, which ended on Saturday, 2,687 lots were available, worth 39.76 million euros (48.02 million dollars). "The 2005 Mid-Year Myanmar Gems Emporium has sold more jade, gems and pearl lots than those in previous years, and a greater number of gems merchants from abroad attended it," the New Light of Myanmar newspaper said. A total of 205 pearl lots, 45 gems lots and 1,534 jade lots sold during the sale through a competitive bidding and tender system, the newspaper said. More than 2,000 gems merchants from Myanmar and 13 other countries attended the sale, it added. Myanmar earned about 23.8 million dollars from the October 2004 gems auction, and most auction customers are from neighbouring China and Thailand. Myanmar is one of the poorest and most isolated countries in Asia, but has vast natural wealth -- including minerals and highly prized teak wood -- that often disappears into black markets. The junta began the gems auctions in a bid to curb the smuggling of precious stones out of Myanmar, which deprives the government of desperately needed foreign currency. Myanmar is under stiff EU and US sanctions imposed for human rights abuses and failure to implement promised democratic reforms. But neighboring giants China and India have increasingly sought to boost trade relations, especially to satiate their ever-growing energy needs with Myanmar's natural gas fields. (AFP) - China, Myanmar, Laos and Thailand jointly cracked a major cross-border drug trafficking network, arresting 70 suspects and seizing 56,500 dollars worth of heroin, the Xinhua news agency said. The 70 suspects included Chinese as well as nationals from Myanmar and Laos, Xinhua said, citing officials from the Chinese ministry of public security. Police seized 726.8 kilograms (1,598 pounds) of heroin, 36 guns, six rocket launchers, as well as grenades, bullets and communications equipment, officials said. China has been stepping up cooperation with Southeast Asian countries in recent years to combat an increase in drug trafficking from Southeast Asia to southern China. This comes as drug abuse is on the rise in China. State media reported earlier that the number of known drug addicts in China reached 791,000 at the end of last year, up 6.8 percent from the previous year -- although many experts believe the true figure to be far higher. BANGKOK, Thailand (AP) - Chinese logging companies in Myanmar have illegally exported huge amounts of timber in collusion with the military government and ethnic guerrillas, destroying ecologically unique forest areas, an environmental watchdog alleged Tuesday. Global Witness, a London-based non-governmental organization, said much of the wood was illicitly exported to China to feed its insatiable demand for timber, despite promises by the Chinese government and the European Commission to address the problem. The group said about 95 percent of Myanmar's timber exports to China were illegal. The illegal exports result in an annual loss of $250 million in revenue for Myanmar, the group alleged, adding that the activity takes place with the knowledge of Myanmar's ruling junta, the government in Beijing, and the international community. Chinese lumber companies, regional units of Myanmar's military, and ethnic guerrilla groups allied with the government "are all directly involved," it said. China's foreign ministry said in a statement that the report contains a lot of "untruthful information." It said China doesn't allow its citizens "to conduct illegal deforestation activities and trade across the border" and that in recent years it's enhanced border cooperation with Myanmar to crack down on crime. In Myanmar — also known as Burma — where few government officials are authorized to speak to the media, no officials could immediately be reached for comment. Ethnic guerrilla groups also could not be reached for comment, though in the past they have admitted to illegal logging, claiming that the wood is part of their natural resources. Global Witness has long accused Myanmar of turning a blind eye to illegal logging, saying the activity increased after the country's junta signed cease-fire agreements with various ethnic guerrilla groups beginning in 1989 and gave the rebels logging concessions. Myanmar military units also conduct illicit logging operations themselves, and even ethnic guerrilla groups opposed to the military regime trade timber illegally, Global Witness said. China depends largely on imported lumber from Malaysia, Russia, Myanmar, Indonesia and Gabon since it banned the felling of domestic old-growth trees in 1998. Global Witness accused China of reneging on promises made in 2001 to address illicit wood coming from Myanmar, noting that timber imports from there have risen by 60 percent in the past four years. The fate of one of Burma's most renowned semi-independent newspapers, the Myanmar Times is likely to be decided later this week. The newspaper's part-owner and chief editor, Ross Dunkley is scheduled to meet Burma's minister of information, General Kyaw Hsan, to try to resolve the current impasse between the government and the paper's overseas owners, according to sources inside the media group. Last Friday, Yamin Htin Aung, who is the majority shareholder in the Myanmar Times, resigned as an executive of the company, because of government pressure, according to sources inside the newspaper. More than two months ago, the military regime launched a campaign to try to seize control of the paper. The paper was originally set up as a joint venture between the Australian media entrepreneur and Sonny Swe, the son of a senior Burmese military intelligence (MI) officer. The minister of information has been pressuring the company's major shareholder to sell the family's shares. Mr Swe's wife, Yamin Htin Aung, took over the shares and the directorship of the company after he was arrested in November last year, along with his father Brigadier General Thein Swe, one of former prime minister and intelligence chief Khin Nyunt's closest subordinates. Earlier this year Mr Swe was given a 14-year-jail sentence for violating the country's censorship regulations. His father, General Thein Swe was sentenced to more than a hundred years in jail for corruption and economic crimes. Since Khin Nyunt was arrested in October 2004, the junta has purged all his supporters and sympathisers from the army and government. Property, vehicles and other valuables have been confiscated from all the former MI officers. The information minister's campaign to seize control of the Myanmar Times is largely motivated by the government's efforts to sever all ``MI connections'' with the paper, according to sources close to the paper's owners. The weekly newspaper was closely identified with the former MI officers through General Thein Swe, who was one of Khin Nyunt's closest confidantes. The independent Internet provider, Bagan Cybertech was nationalised a few months ago under the Burma's Post and Telecommunications ministry after its owner, Khin Nyunt's younger son Ye Naing Win was sentenced to more than 40 years in jail for corruption and economic crimes. General Thein Swe was also the chairman of the company's board of directors. Two months ago the information minister ordered Mr Swe's wife to sell her shares or risk the government nationalising the paper. So far she has resisted government pressure to sell them to the minister's nominated buyer, a small local media proprietor Dr Tin Tun Oo, known to be close to several ministers, including both the information and health ministers. After dodging the information minister for more than a month, two weeks ago Mr Dunkley met him and the prospective buyer. But that meeting did nothing to resolve the issue, as the newspaper's owners remained adamant that any new buyer must be a credible investor with substantial experience in the media business, according to an Australian source close to Mr Dunkley. Dr Oo owns a number of small Burmese-language publications, mainly health magazines and journals. He recently launched the Sporting Times. These are all small-scale operations and do not make him an appropriate owner for a newspaper, which relies heavily on advertising revenue to be profitable, according to Mr Dunkley's associates. In the meantime, the papers' owners have been working behind the scenes to find an alternative buyer. A Burmese businessmen, who grew up abroad before returning to Rangoon more than a decade ago, with substantial interests in the media and advertising industry is believed to be organising a consortium of investors. ``They are all non-military men,'' a source in Rangoon close to the owners told the Bangkok Post. Burma's leading businessman, Tay Za, who is very close to the country's top military ruler, General Than Shwe, is also believed to be one of this group of commercial backers. The Myanmar Times started publishing its weekly English edition at the start of 2000, with a weekly Burmese edition following a year later. The paper's owners claim its circulation is now more than 350,000 a week. The company now employs more than 300 workers in Rangoon and Mandalay. Mr Dunkley has made no secret of the fact that his long-term ambition is to launch a daily Burmese-language newspaper. ``The Myanmar Times is an example of sophisticated propaganda. While the battle for control of the paper is between one junta clique and another, its closure would deprive the country of an important publication. Comparing it with the government's official daily newspaper, the New Light of Myanmar, is like comparing Singapore with North Korea. While the regime continues to strictly control the media in Burma and jail journalists who dare challenge the government, the presence of the Myanmar Times has helped create some space for the media.'' Vincent Brossel, head of Asia for the Paris-based Reporters Sans Frontiers told the Bangkok Post. The battle for the control of the Myanmar Times is set to continue. The information minister has even recently threatened to close the paper if Mrs Swe continued to refuse to sell the family's majority shareholding in the paper. Mr Dunkley insists that the survival of the paper is in the broader interests of the country as it has raised the standards of local journalism and has helped to counter the bias in the international press. Burma's foreign minister Nyan Win recently told diplomats in Rangoon that the Myanmar Times was important in helping give a more sophisticated view of the country internationally. He also revealed that he was not aware of the minister of information's threat to close the paper. The Australian government has also intervened in the dispute. Two weeks ago the foreign minister wrote to the Burmese government urging them not to force the sale of the majority shares in the paper and to allow the company to find viable commercial backers which whom they were comfortable. In the end the junta has always controlled what the paper printed. ``Every aspect of the newspaper has been subject to government censorship. Even headlines and pictures have had to be approved by the censors,'' a former journalist at the Myanmar Times recently told the Bangkok Post. Even the most innocuous items get spiked, the journalist said. In recent weeks photographs of street vendors have been pulled at the request of the censors. It was the military intelligence chief, Khin Nyunt, who permitted the launch of the Myanmar Times as part of his efforts to engage the international community and show the world that Burma was changing. It started publication at a time when Mr Nyunt and his supporters favoured opening up to the outside world to try to deflect criticism of its human rights record and lack of progress towards political reform. The International Labour Organisation was allowed to open an office in Rangoon, the UN envoys _ Razali Ismail and Paulo Pinheiro _ were allowed to visit the country relatively freely, and even the UK-based human rights organisation Amnesty International was permitted to make two fact-finding missions. But in the eyes of most Burmese, the Myanmar Times remained a pro-government publication. During 2002 when there were rice shortages and fears of social unrest, the paper's cars had their Myanmar Times stickers removed as a precaution against any possible attack on them because of their association with MI, according to a former journalist at the paper. The outcome of the struggle between the information minister and the foreign owners of the Myanmar Times is likely to reflect the regime's new priorities _ the junta's concern to strengthen their control over every aspect of life in Burma. Suspecting the involvement of many Rohingya refugees in terrorist activities across the country, the government is going to make a list of the Rohingya refugees staying in the country.(The Independent) This was decided at an inter-ministerial meeting held in the Home Ministry yesterday. There is an allegation that many of the Rohingyas are actively involved in the arms smuggling across the Bangladesh –Myanmar border and many of them are linked to the militant groups, sources said. Many Rohingyas are operating different business in Chittagong area violating the rules since there is no comprehensive list of them. Moreover, they have enlisted their names in the voter’s list and consequently have been elected chairmen as well as members of the Union parishads of respective areas. Some of these Rohingyas are using Bangladeshi passport and have gone abroad. Against this backdrop, the government is going to form a committee to survey and to prepare a list of the Rohingyas so that their activities could be monitored. The district administration was asked to trace Rohingyas through verification of the names of their parents, grandfathers and grandmothers thrice. After tracing, the government would take initiative to send them to Myanmar, sources said. A total of 2,50,877 Rohingya refugees came to Bangladesh since 1991. Of them a total of 2,36,597 were sent to Myanmar. A total of 20,572 Rohingya refugees are staying in two camps of Ukhiya and Teknaf. Of them 8,500 could not be sent although the preparation of sending them is completed (The Independent) NEW DELHI: In a boost to the mutual cooperation in tackling criminal and insurgency-related activities, India and Myanmar have agreed to hold joint interrogation of persons arrested for drugs, arms smuggling and for involvement in militancy. They also agreed to further strengthen cooperation in curbing trafficking in drugs and psychotropic substances. At the conclusion of the 11th national-level meeting between the Home Secretaries of India and Myanmar in Yangon on Monday, the two sides agreed to step up action against arms smugglers. Myanmar reiterated that it would not allow negative elements to use its territory for carrying out hostile activities against India. The talks were held in an atmosphere of mutual understanding and trust and it was agreed that maintenance of peace in the border area was pre-requisite for development of both the countries. The seven-member Indian delegation at the talks was led by the Union Home Secretary V.K. Duggal. THERE is an obvious excitement in Asia today in anticipation of the emerging regional political architecture and the shifting of the centre of gravity from the US and Europe to Asia. It is far from clear at this stage how this nascent process will unfold and what shape the new Asia will eventually take, but there is little doubt that whatever the eventual outcome, a re-energised and ascending Asia will directly or indirectly have a profound effect on the region and the rest of the world. Hence, the obvious imperative on the part of both the big and small players alike to ensure that the emerging political architecture is one in which there will be space for all of them. No surprise, therefore, that countries both within and outside the region are positioning themselves to influence the outcome of the process in Asia. Within the region, China, India, Japan, Korea and the Asean countries, in subtle and not so subtle ways, are all working towards influencing the process. Likewise, important actors outside the region, like the United States and Australia, among others, are making their individual or co-ordinated moves. Meanwhile, there are several attendant initiatives like the East Asia Summit just down the road, the Asean Charter on the horizon, and fresh attempts around the corner at enhancing the Asia-Pacific Economic Co-operation forum to provide for its greater involvement. These initiatives are a natural and legitimate progression in the right direction and ought to be welcomed. What is unusual, however, is that in the midst of all these exciting permutations, there is the most glaring absence of a meaningful European Union engagement. Bluntly put, the EU is punching well below its weight — and deliberately so — in a region with which it has always had strong traditional ties. The casual observer may be misled into believing that the EU is no longer seized with Asia. After all, it is common knowledge that ASEM and Asean-EU ministerial meetings are not well attended by the European side. It would further appear, rightly or wrongly, that at best its present Asian policy is a reactive one. An example was when Indonesia recently wanted assistance in Aceh and the EU responded generously, and many lives were the better for it. Why then is the EU isolating itself? Why the reluctance to be more involved, why the sulking? It is indeed a sad commentary that the EU’s lack of proactiveness in matters Asean, and by extension matters Asian, is because of the involvement of Myanmar in both these equations. The situation in Myanmar is, of course. serious. It ought to be of concern. But the really serious question is whether Myanmar should be the sole prism through which the EU views a rising Asia and/or determine its engagement with the region as a whole. We must not have any delusions here. If Myanmar, for example, gave up its right to be chairman of the Asean Standing Committee, it was not because of Asean’s persuasiveness or the EU’s pressure. Myanmar did so because it was in its national interest. Full stop. That does not mean Asean and the EU must abandon their respective campaigns to assist the people of Myanmar and for the Government to move forward. We must individually and collectively do what we can. By the same token, it is pertinent to recognise that even within the EU there are perceptible differences over how relations with Myanmar ought to be handled. Increasingly, there are those within the EU and Asean who take the enlightened position that bilateral problems should not be dragged into the multilateral arena. This is really the point. An example of how confusion between bilateral and multilateral approaches can be an unnecessary impediment to relations between regional groupings was clearly demonstrated at the ASEM Economic Ministers’ Meeting in Rotterdam on Sept 16-17. The Netherlands, the host, denied a visa to Myanmar Minister U Soe Tha to attend the meeting. It apparently did so without consulting other EU members, some of whom have expressed dissatisfaction with how the Dutch handled the matter. Asean ministers responded by refusing to attend. The Dutch, as a last-ditch attempt to salvage the meeting, then proposed that the meeting proceed at the Senior Officials level, which Asean agreed to. The important point here is that the episode was not just about Myanmar. It was far bigger than that. It was a clarion call that bilateral problems should not be brought into a multilateral context. It was about Asean’s credibility and solidarity and an example of how Asean can be expected to respond when one of its members is discriminated against in international forums. It is pertinent to recall here that when Cambodia, Laos and Myanmar joined ASEM as recently as in 2004, together with the new EU members, they did so as full and equal members without any conditions attached. At subsequent ASEM Ministerial Meetings held in Asia, Myanmar was appropriately represented at the ministerial level — bilateral qualms did not override multilateral obligations and interests. That Rotterdam incident was singularly unfortunate. Nevertheless, countries in the region have no baggage with the EU and would welcome its presence and contribution to regional and global security and well-being. It is, of course, up to the EU to decide its foreign policy directions and whether the narrow concerns of the presiding country ought to propel or impede the initiatives of the grouping as a whole. The Rotterdam episode was perhaps an opportunity lost for enhanced EU participation in the emerging theatre. However, if it proves to be a catalyst, it will bring dividends to both Asean and the EU, who would be winners in many ways. The writer, a former Singapore ambassador to Cambodia, is a visiting fellow at the Institute of Southeast Asian Studies. YANGON, Oct. 17 (Xinhuanet) -- Myanmar Prime Minister General Soe Win left here Monday for Nanning to attend the Second China-ASEAN Expo and the Second China-ASEAN Business and Investment Summit scheduled to open on Wednesday in the capital of Southwest China's Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region. Leading a 30-member delegation including Foreign Minister U Nyan Win, Minister of National Planning and Economic Development USoe Tha and Minister of Commerce Brigadier-General Tin Naing Thein, the Prime Minister is joining such event for the second time, the first being in November last year two weeks after he held the post. Myanmar local products will be exhibited at the expo which include jewelry, garments, medicines, household goods, silver wares, wood carvings, handicrafts, tapestries, gemstone pictures and marine products, diplomatic sources said. According to Chinese official statistics, China-ASEAN bilateraltrade reached 105.9 billion US dollars in 2004, breaking through the target of attaining 100 billion. Over the period from 2002 to 2004, China-ASEAN bilateral trade grew 38.9 percent annually. ASEAN has been China's 5th largest trading partner for 12 consecutive years. The Chinese statistics also show that China-Myanmar bilateral trade, including border trade, reached 1.145 billion US dollars in2004, up 6.3 percent over 2003. Of the total, China's exports to Myanmar reached 938 million US dollars, while its imports from Myanmar 207 million. Meanwhile, Myanmar official figures show that China's contracted investment in the country amounted to 130.92 million US dollars as of the end of 2004 since 1988. Bangkok, 18 October, (Asiantribune.com):The Assistance Association for Political Prisoners (AAPP) today submitted to the UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention the case of Su Su Nway 34 who was sentenced to eighteen months of imprisonment on false allegations of swearing at and threatening local authorities. The submission comes just days after Su Su Nway, 34, was sentenced to eighteen months imprisonment on false allegations. She was charged under Criminal Acts 506 and 294B, and taken to Insein prison, though the reason for her detention is widely known to be politically motivated. In January 2005, Su Su Nway sued local authorities from Htan-Manaing and Mya-Sanni villages for forced labor practices. In a historic court decision, Su Su Nway won her case and the local authorities responsible for coercing villagers into forced labor were all given prison sentences. Her decision to sue though brought the constant surveillance of the authorities, who repeatedly sought to intimidate her, and finally counter-sued her on the false allegation of ‘besmearing their reputation.’ In addition to the obvious falsity of the allegations against Su Su Nway, her trial was a farce, with the outcome predetermined. During the course of the trial, Su Su Nway was continuously threatened and publicly taunted outside of the courtroom. The judge, Htay Htay Win, accepted such behavior, and revealed a clear bias towards the authorities. Htay Htay Win waived all legal rules and trial procedures for the authorities, failing to check reports of the local authorities’ corrupt practices. Additionally, the trial clerks were caught altering the trial transcript, changing Su Su Nway’s plea of innocence into one of guilt. The judge is thought to be merely a prop, present only to read out Su Su Nway’s sentence, which had already been decided by higher authorities. “Su Su Nway did not receive a fair trial, and as a result she now faces an unjust prison sentence for something she did not do,” says Ko Tate Naing, Secretary of the AAPP, “The trial’s conclusion was foregone; the authorities clearly intended to punish Su Su Nway for her bravery, and in doing so intimidate other villagers into not speaking out against the practice of forced labor.” Su Su Nway’s imprisonment is of grave concern to her family and her supporters, as she is known to be in poor health. She suffers from heart disease, and after slipping and falling, was unable to speak or walk properly. Though in great pain, the authorities intimidated a local nurse into not giving Su Su Nway the proper treatment for her illness. The poor prison conditions and the ineptitude of the prison health care system in Insein prison, in several instances amounting to torture, will only exacerbate Su Su Nway’s illness, causing her further suffering. The AAPP has submitted her case to the UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention on the grounds that international norms relating to a fair trial were not observed. Failure to adhere to international standards for a fair trial, as laid out in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, and the UN Body of Principles, make a detention arbitrary. Su Su Nway’s case has been submitted for the Group’s urgent consideration due to her deteriorating health condition, and the likely effect imprisonment will have on her condition. The Group will send the case to the SPDC, who will then have ninety days to respond to the allegation of arbitrary detention before the Group makes its final ruling as to the arbitrary nature of the detention. Su Su Nway, a youth leader of the National League for Democracy (NLD), was awarded a human rights prize from the NLD in May 2005, and despite the severe harassment she faced, continued to speak out until the day of her sentencing on behalf of villagers forced to labor for the SPDC. At great risk to her own life, she reported on the regime’s forced labor practices to the International Labor Organization’s (ILO) office in Rangoon. She has repeatedly, and elegantly, stated her willingness to go to prison for the truth, for the right of her fellow villagers to be free from the practice of forced labor. “Su Su Nway should be held up as an example to the Burmese people of someone who refused to live in the climate of fear the regime has created,” continued Ko Tate Naing, “She bravely defied the authorities, and though she has been imprisoned, her bravery will hopefully inspire others to fight the regime’s cruel attempts to silence any and all dissent among the people.” Oct 16, 2005 (DVB) - From schoolchildren studying in schools to taxi and trishaw drivers living within Rangoon Division townships, have been forced to join the junta-sponsored Union Solidarity and Development Association (USDA). Pupils at middle and high school levels have to join the organisation against their will and their membership fees are taken automatically as soon as they join the schools. Local youths who do not go to school are also pressurised to join the organisation through their local authority offices. Trishaw drivers have been forced to join the organisation when they renew their vehicle licenses. Each member has to pay the membership fee and provide three photographs for membership cards. It is not known exactly why the USDA has been intensifying its campaign to rally for more members lately, but its actions come at a time when the ruling junta, the State Peace and Development Council (SPDC) generals are trying to 'successfully' end the undemocratic constitution-drafting ‘National Convention’. It is widely expected that the junta will force the people of Burma to ratify the new, pro-army constitution with the help of its sponsored thuggish organisations during a referendum. Meanwhile, the main opposition party, the National League for Democracy (NLD) which won a landslide victory in the 1990 election and never allowed to rule, has been barred from expanding its membership and forced to close down some branches with various excuses. The USDA is reportedly headed by the SPDC minister Aung Thaung and some of its members were involved in the notorious Diepyin incident in which NLD supporters and leaders including Aung San Suu Kyi and her deputy Tin Oo, were brutally attacked in an ambush in upper Burma on 30 May 2003. Scores were killed and hundreds were seriously wounded and arrested. Oct 17, 2005 (DVB) - Rangoon Kawmoo Township, Htan Manaing Village authority chairman Than Lone (a.k.a.) Tin Aye who counter-sued local heroine Su Su Nway, is starting to mete out his revenge on villagers who supported her during the trial, according to local residents. In 2004, Su Su Nway successfully sued Than Lone, a known alcohol bootlegger and his henchmen over forced labour practices and they were sentenced to six months in prison. And when he was released, Than Lone, in the true spirit of revenge and spite, counter-sued her alleging that she used threatening and abusive languages against him, but witnesses testified it to the contrary at the court. But the presiding judge, Htay Htay Win who is known to hate all democracy and human rights activists, found Su Su Nway guilty of ‘defamation’ and sentenced her to 20 months in prison on 13 October. 35-year-old Su Su Nway, an orphan and a heart disease suffer, is being detained at the notorious Rangoon Insein Jail and deprived of essential medicines needed for her heart condition. She predicted that she would be sent to prison one day by the authorities and that she forgives them. Meanwhile, Than Lone is intensifying his intimidation campaign on those who supported and testified for Su Su Nway, restricting their business interests and making their lives miserable. He is also confiscating their homes and farms by using the power of Rangoon Military Command commander Maj-Gen Myint Swe. He also boasted that the wife of the military commander is ‘in his pocket’ and he feels so elevated and untouchable that he is not even dealing with the authorities at the township level anymore, Htan Manaing villagers told DVB. DVB - The Union Solidarity and Development Association (USDA) led by Burma’s military junta, State Peace and Development Council (SPDC) minister Aung Thaung, is reportedly planning to take over all successful charitable and non-governmental organisations (NGOs) throughout the country. The organisation has been surreptitiously and secretly collecting lists of the properties of all these charitable organisations through the local authorities and it is planning to seize them by the early 2006, according to someone close to the USDA HQs in Rangoon. These charitable organisations are politically impartial and they are led and patronised by famous religious figures, elders and artists such as renowned author Ludhu Daw Amar and film director Thukka who are respected by all sides of the political divides. Because of their fair leadership and effective management, many people in the country have been enthusiastically donating their money and labour to the organisations as much as they could, according to a Rangoon resident who volunteers for these organisations. Moreover, these ‘Nar-yay’ independent charitable organisations are trusted and relied on by the majority of the population as they deliver what they are set out for, unlike government-sponsored organisations which are known to be ineffective and corrupt. The Rangoon resident added that if these charitable organisations are in the hands of thuggish USDA members, they are certainly likely to be destroyed with corruption and mismanagement. When DVB contacted some of the organisations, the people in charge said that they haven’t heard of the secret plan to takeover their organisations and insisted that the ruling military junta will not carry out this kind of mean action. |
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