July 7, 2009
HURFOM: Many young people have to flee their homes in Karen State, due to recruitment for Border Guard Forces (BGF) and other government-run militias, and increased militarization.
According to two soldiers who deserted from the Democratic Karen Buddhist Army (DKBA), “Some of the DKBA higher-ranking Generals agreed with the State Peace and Development Council (SPDC) to be a BGF; therefore, the DKBA tries to recruit for the BGF…many young people have been fleeing from their home to avoid the recruitment.”
The two former-DKBA soldiers, three-year veterans who arrived at the Thai-Burma border, told HURFOM of the concomitant increase in troops: “the DKBA has been increasing their troops in the area…now, the DKBA has 6,000 troops. They [DKBA] will try to get another more than 3000 troops to develop their army. They target the young people between 20 and 30 (years-of-age) and recruit them in the army.
“In early May 2009, the [DKBA] Chief of staff Oo Kyaw Than and Junior Chief of staff Htun Hlaing have been commanding their troops to join the [Burmese] army and recruiting new soldiers…a hundred young people have been recruited by the DKBA army in our area.”
Because the DKBA Battalions force young people to join, many have fled, including Kha Lae Dta Gone Daing village, Kyainnseikyi Township (where the DKBA’s Battalion no. 906 is located) and Thee Khu Thaw village (where the DKBA’s Battalion no. 901 is located).
The two ex-DKBA members, 25- and 28-years-old, said that, “many Karen young people flee to the Thai – Burma border. Some young people who come from wealthy families, they just escape to Rangoon (Yangon) and find jobs there.”
HURFOM confirmed the report that the DKBA’s Colonel Saw Chit Thu commanded his army to recruit about 3,000 to implement their new brigade and insisted on recruiting as many young people as possible in Meh Naw Hta and Meh K’Taw, Karen State. Continue reading “Two DKBA soldiers desert”
Day: July 8, 2009
UNITED NATIONS, July 8 — In the run up to the trip to Myanmar by UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon and his envoy Ibrahim Gambari, Prime Minister Gordon Brown told the House of Commons that the UK had urged Ban to go to Burma.
As Group of Friends on Myanmar Meets, UK Perm Rep Doesn’t Friend Them
Byline: Matthew Russell Lee of Inner City Press at the UN: News Analysis
UNITED NATIONS, July 8 — In the run up to the trip to Myanmar by UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon and his envoy Ibrahim Gambari, Prime Minister Gordon Brown told the House of Commons that the UK had urged Ban to go to Burma. The trip took place; General Than Shwe rejected Ban’s request to meet with opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi; nearly everyone called the endeavor a failure.
With Ban still out of New York, at the G-8 meetings in Italy, Gambari descended to the UN basement on July 8 to brief the 14 countries on Ban’s Group of Friends on Myanmar. Notably, UK Permanent Representative John Sawers was not present, unlike his counterparts from Japan, Indonesia and Singapore, among others. Some some suspected Facebook fallout — and joked of Sawers not “friending” the Group — others questioned the UK being so loud before the trip, and so quiet afterwards, at least in public.
Gambari, normally affable, rushed into the meeting room. UN staff have confirmed to Inner City Press that Than Shwe in a fit of pique made Gambari travel to the country’s jungle capital by road, rather than by air. Reportedly, surrounded by the Ban-selected scribes on this most recent trip, Gambari wished for the presence of other reporters, to witness the indignities and discomforts that he has been going through.
There was also the report — an exclusive by Inner City Press — that Gambari’s name was offered by Ban as a possible replacement for Rodolphe Adada in Darfur, but that some Western powers rejected it. A subsequent candidate Said Djinnit earlier on June 8 thanked Inner City Press for not asking publicly about the Darfur post, at least not during his press conference on West Africa (Inner City Press’ report on West Africa is forthcoming.) continue
Paranoid Junta Paper on Embassies from US and UK
YANGON, 6 July—The National
League for Democracy (Headquarters)
has kept in touch with the US and British
embassies and is following their
instructions. The people are criticizing
such act of the NLD and keeping a
watchful eye on it.
Those from US and British Embassies visited
NLD (Headquarters) 26 times in June
Those from US and British
embassies visited the NLD (Headquarters)
on West Shwegondine Street, here, 26
times in June 2009. During their visits,
they met with CEC members of the NLD
party and gave small and large envelopes
and parcels to the latter.—MNA NLM
WHICH PEOPLE???
This June the Burmese authority, Myanmar Agriculture Development Bank, began offering farmers direct loans in Mon State.
Loans offered to farmers through village headmen with mixed reviews
Wed 08 Jul 2009, IMNA, Panorkkyar
This June the Burmese authority, Myanmar Agriculture Development Bank, began offering farmers direct loans in Mon State.
The Myanmar (Burma) Agriculture Development Bank staff members went to every village in Mudon Township and discussed with village headmen the loans for farmers.
One village headman told IMNA that the development bank had discussed the recipients of the loans being able to use them (village headmen) as intermediaries to facilitate the necessary loans.
“They have never come and talked to us before this year…I think this is because of the 2010 election so people will agree to vote for their party [the SPDC],” added the village headman.
In the past, Mon State farmers have had to travel to larger towns to apply for the loans. This year the demand has been high, following the severe drop in rubber prices, and in Mudon the demand has been amongst the highest. Continue reading “This June the Burmese authority, Myanmar Agriculture Development Bank, began offering farmers direct loans in Mon State.”
Four deaths in Mon State spreads fear of Swine Flu
08 Jul 2009, Rai Maraoh, Mon Son, IMNA
Four people have died over the last two weeks in Mudon Town, Mon State. Residents fear the cause was A/H1N1, commonly known as Swine Flu.
Two grade (10) standard students died from high school No.(1), along with another student from grade (5) standard and also a teacher.
A grade (10) student from the same high school told IMNA, “I am afraid the A/H1N1 disease will spread to me. Even though we didn’t know exactly what kind of disease the students and teacher died from, this disease is not like other diseases. If you suffer [from it] you can die immediately.”
The student added that the Mon State health department came to their school and provided a training on how students and faculty could protect themselves from the disease and identify the symptoms. The health department did these trainings in many Mon State schools during the month of June.
A speech from the Mudon school’s principal was paraphrased to IMNA by one of the student’s family members: “the students and a teacher got seriously sick [in the course of] two days and were sent to Moulmein hospital, and died there. Before they died, the victims showed symptoms of A/H1N1 disease. They had high temperatures, headaches, and their whole bodies hurt.”
The principal added that the hospital in Moulmein made no statement about the disease causing the four deaths, and that the families of the victims worry that the disease will spread.
A resident Mudon resident said that, “we are afraid the A/H1N1 disease will spread; this disease is stronger than other diseases. If we get A/H1N1 disease, we will die at once. How can we protect [ourselves] from this disease? We just know a little information from other people talking.”
“After the students and a teacher died in Mudon, we are also worried this disease will spread into our school,” said a teacher from Thanbyuzayat. In May, two students in Thanbyuzayat Township also died, but nobody knew from what type of disease.
A breath of fresh air did however arrive from a Radio Free Asia report of a 13-year-old Rangoon girl who suffered from A/H1N1 but recovered and will soon leave the hospital.
Imna news
Statement of the Australian Karen Organisation in response to the Press Release of Myanmar Foreign Ministry 7 July 2009
The Ministry of Myanmar Foreign Affairs issued a press release on 13 June 2009, in response to the statement released by the European Union of 11 June 2009. The Myanmar press release said that the Burmese Government was disappointed with the politically motivated declaration of the EU presidency, claiming that the document was released without a thorough study of Myanmar’s insurgency problem.
The press release claimed that the EU document was an incorrect declaration relying on inaccurate information.The whole population of Burma tells the world the difference between truth and deceit, and between justice and farce. But Nyan Win, the Burmese Foreign Minister is a liar. The Burmese General Than Shwe and his cohorts move forward with their efforts to force Burma to accept their dead-end “Road map” to a military-dominated “democracy”.
The world knows the 1990 Burma election’s result was ignored by military regime. Meanwhile, Daw Aung San Suu Kyi faces a sham trial, being accused of violating the conditions of her house arrest by allowing a “guest” to stay overnight in her home. This is only to justify barricading her in her home for the last 13 years, and this is Than Shwe’s cynical ploy for her to spend three to five years in the notorious Insein Prison.
Currently the SPDC is conducting other major military operation in Toungoo, Klerlwetu provinces and also around the Maethawor areas, (villages on the border with Thailand), shelling Karen villages and the internally displaced people’s camps. Over 50,000 civilians have had to flee for their life, from fear of being caught up in the fighting or being used as slave labour. Mr.Ban Ki-moon, UN General Secretary said that he was deeply disappointed with his two-day visit ( 3-4 July,09) to Burma, having had his request to meet with imprisoned leader, Daw Aung San Suu Kyi was denied twice by General Than Shwe.”The military, all political parties, ethnic minority groups, civil society, and indeed every son and daughter of Myanmar has a role to play in this country’s transition. The only mutual compromise, respect and understanding can lay the foundations for durable peace, national reconciliation and democracy”, Mr. Ban remarked.We call on the UN and the International governments to:a) Increase diplomatic pressure on their allies for a UN Security Council resolution on Burma and apply pressure in other forums for the release of Daw Aung San Suu Kyi and all 2100 political prisoners;b) Support a universal arms embargo against Burmac) Refuse to endorse the outcome of the election in 2010 unless the political climate improves in Burma.
Central Executive Committee, Australian Karen Organisation Inc.For further information contact-Saw Lwin Oo 0412344009, Daniel Zu 0434059903.
Posted by အဲေခါငေ္သာင့္
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NLD unhappy with brief meeting with UN Chief
by Nem Davies
Wednesday, 08 July 2009 22:17
New Delhi (Mizzima) – Leaders of Burma’s main opposition party, the National League for Democracy on Wednesday said they were dissatisfied with their 10-minute meeting with United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon, on his two-day visit last weekend.
Central Executive Committee (CEC) members of the NLD – Than Tun, Soe Myint, Nyunt Wai, and Hla Pe – were summoned on July 3 to Burma’s new jungle capital Naypyitaw. They were allowed to meet the visiting world body chief for a mere 10 minutes.
“The four CEC members are not at all satisfied with the meeting. They also told Mr. Ban Ki-moon that the time allotted was too short and that they are unable to explain to him whatever they wanted to,” NLD spokesperson Nyan Win told Mizzima.
“About three to four minutes were already gone just saying ‘Hi’ and ‘Bye’,” Nyan Win said.
Despite the constraint in time, Nyan Win said, the NLD CEC was able to explain to the UN Chief the four issues the party adhered to – to release political prisoners, to kick-start the national reconciliation process, to recognise the 1990 election results and to amend the 2008 constitution. Continue reading “NLD unhappy with brief meeting with UN Chief”
Burma Democratic Concern (BDC) Press Release:Review of the junta’s 2008 constitution is a MUST before playing into the junta’s illegal 2010 election
8 July 2009
Burma Democratic Concern (BDC) calls for the international community to pay close attention to what the democratic forces are saying especially the “Shwe-Gone-Dine” declaration by the National League for Democracy (NLD).
Aung San Suu Kyi and her party the National League for Democracy (NLD), the unanimous victors of the 1990 election, clearly stated their position in the “Shwe-Gone-Dine” Declaration.
NLD outlined the five main principles that need to place in order to have true national reconciliation. They are:
1. Release of all the political prisoners
2. Review of draft 2008 Constitution
3. Allow to reopen NLD and ethnic nationalities offices
4. Recognition of the 1990 election result
5. Political dialogue
These are the fundamental demands requested by legitimate leaders of Burma. If the international community truly wanted to see national reconciliation in Burma, they must find ways to facilitate these demands rather than playing into the junta’s illegal 2010 election.
Before we could possible address the junta’s proposed 2010 election we must address the validity of the recently adapted constitution. Drafted by the junta, this document is far from credible or constitutional. Free, fair and all inclusive is not what this document represents.
We would like to draw particular attention on these points:
1. The Junta gave itself amnesty from the crimes against humanity it has perpetrated throughout Burma during their reign of terror.
2. The Military regime systematically took 25% of the parliamentary seats. The military commander in chief was also given absolute authority to dissolve the parliament at any time effectively neutralizing the voice of the people. Continue reading “Burma Democratic Concern (BDC) Press Release:Review of the junta’s 2008 constitution is a MUST before playing into the junta’s illegal 2010 election”
democracy for burma 
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