Sunday, March 27, 2011
Friday, March 25, 2011
တပ္မေတာ္ေန့အေပၚ မတူညီတဲ့အျမင္မ်ား
Burmese Army Trapped by its Turbulent History
The Nation, 30 March, 2000.
*Burma's 'Tatmadaw', facing an increasing number of desertion and lack of direction, badly needs to change its image for the better, writes Win Htein.
On March 27, 1945, General Aung San, the commander of Burma Independent Army (BIA) and the chairman of the Anti-Fascist Organization (AFO), declared zero hour to the Japanese in Rangoon and called on the people to "find and attack nearest enemy".
In Burma, March 27 became known as "Anti-Fascist Revolution Day". This year is the 55th anniversary of that day. But the Burmese junta has announced that the day will henceforth be known as Tatmadaw (Armed Forces) Day. The re-naming of the anniversary is very controversial, because it overstates the Tatmadaw's role in the Burma revolution.
According to Dr Aung Khin, a Burmese history professor in London, "The BIA was founded on December 26, 1941 in Bagkok". Earlier that year, 30 young Burmese rebels (later to become legendary as the '30 comrades) had secretlt left Burma to travel to Hainan Island in southern China, which was then controlled by Japanese troops. The Japanese army gave them military training for five months, to enable them to fight the British in Burma. They then traveled to Bangkok where they founded the BIA, before returning to Burma.
"Why does the junta say now that 'Revolution Day' is Tatmadaw Day? It's a lie about history,'' the professor continued in his radio articles broadcast on the Democratic Voice of Burma.
In fact, the Tatmadaw's role was not important in the revolution era because it had so few members, The FAO and Communist Party of Burma (CPB) were more important than the Tatmadaw because they could organize the people to rebel against the fascists. It was really a 'people's revolution', not just the Tamadaw's offensive.
Later on, several pf 30 comrades joined the CPB and began a civil war. After half century, the Tatmadaw said: "We have rescued the country from falling into the hell-holes of fascism, colonialism, communism and federalism''. Then they hammered into the people's mind that the Ttmadaw is not composed of just normal civil servants but is above the state. Everyone must obey its commands without any complaint.
But the All Burma Students' Democratic Front claims nearly 100,000 soldiers have ''deserted during the past 12 years. They are facing a shortage of food and medicine. And there are many problems among the officers, soldiers and the MIS (Military Intelligence Service).
A few months ago, the National Council for the Union of Burma founded a rehabilitation center in the Karen State to welcome the ex-soldiers. "Monthly, about 50 soldiers join us in the Karen National Union (KNU) controlled area" said U Maung Maung Tate, a member of the center. These are just in the Karen State. Many other deserters have gone to Thailand as illegal workers and some have joined other rebel groups along the border.
Last year, the Rangoon War Office ordered all front-line battalions to grow vegetables and raise livestock, as rations would be reduced. From then on, the front troops took whatever they wanted from the villagers. Many villagers were forced to work on the army's new projects. Some soldiers were disappointed about the order and its consequences for villagers. There were more desertions.
"Why do people join the Tatmadaw even through it has many problems" a reporter asked some ex-Tatmadaw men. One of the defectors, Maung Aung Kyaw Thein, a 19-years-old from a training camp for new recruits in Wetgali, answered: "I was arrested in Mae Sot by Thai police as illegal worker. Then they sent to me Myawaddy. On March 3, 1998, I was arrested again by LIB 32 in Myawaddy. They sent to me Wetgali Training School via Moulmein soldiers' conscription camp. After 10 days in the training, I fled here".
Another question is, "Why do graduates join the Tatmadaw? Ko Myint Wai, a defector from Burma Air Force, left the army to join the "8888 Uprising" with another 1,000 soldiers. He commented: "Once, before the 8888 Uprising, students were keen to become young Tatmadaw officers. It was a popular choice because it was an opportunity for a job and a guaranteed future".
Now he is working for a human rights NGO in Thailand. He compared the Thai army and Burma's Tatmadaw, saying: "There pasts are not too different. Both armies have staged coups. But today, the Thai army is obeying the civilian government, while our Tatmadaw is denying the legitimacy of the elected government.
"Another important point is their budgets. The Thai army has full facilities while the Tatmadaw men are very poor. The lowest Thai private's salary is Bt 4,000 while his Burmese counterpart receives 850 kyats (Bt 85). That's why the Burmese Tatmadaw rob villagers to support their family. There is no civil war in Thailand, so the army budget is enough for them".
When General Than Shwe, chairman of the junta, visited Bangkok in early March last year, it was suggested that he learn from the Thai army. But the problem is that the Burmese Generals never respect the Thai because in their minds, the Thai is Nhe-Naing (those beaten from young). Instead, they they have looked to and tried to emulate the Indonesian army as it was before the fall of Suharto's empire. They want an Indonesian-style parliament with an ex-soldier as president in Burma.
However, the Indonesian army is less willing now to be the toll of a dictator, and has moved towards supporting democracy. This has left the Burmese Tatmadaw in a dilemma, as it role model has changed. Many observers believe that there are two different groups in the Tatmadaw- the Military Intelligence Service (MIS) and the front-line troops. The First Secretary of the State Peace and Development Council, Lt Gen Khin Nyunt, controls the intelligence service, while the council's vice chairman, Gen Maung Aye, commands the front-line troops. Observers have suggested that Khin Nyunt now wants to change the image of the Tatmadaw. For example, his intelligence service has negotiated cease-fires with 15 ethnic armed groups during the past 10 years.
The MIS's next negotiation will be with Aung San Suu Kyi's National League for Democracy. But Maung Aye's group does not agree with such negotiations. His group wants to fully control the country forever.
Win Htein is a correspondent for the Democratic Voice of Burma.
The Nation, 30 March, 2000.
*Burma's 'Tatmadaw', facing an increasing number of desertion and lack of direction, badly needs to change its image for the better, writes Win Htein.
On March 27, 1945, General Aung San, the commander of Burma Independent Army (BIA) and the chairman of the Anti-Fascist Organization (AFO), declared zero hour to the Japanese in Rangoon and called on the people to "find and attack nearest enemy".
In Burma, March 27 became known as "Anti-Fascist Revolution Day". This year is the 55th anniversary of that day. But the Burmese junta has announced that the day will henceforth be known as Tatmadaw (Armed Forces) Day. The re-naming of the anniversary is very controversial, because it overstates the Tatmadaw's role in the Burma revolution.
According to Dr Aung Khin, a Burmese history professor in London, "The BIA was founded on December 26, 1941 in Bagkok". Earlier that year, 30 young Burmese rebels (later to become legendary as the '30 comrades) had secretlt left Burma to travel to Hainan Island in southern China, which was then controlled by Japanese troops. The Japanese army gave them military training for five months, to enable them to fight the British in Burma. They then traveled to Bangkok where they founded the BIA, before returning to Burma.
"Why does the junta say now that 'Revolution Day' is Tatmadaw Day? It's a lie about history,'' the professor continued in his radio articles broadcast on the Democratic Voice of Burma.
In fact, the Tatmadaw's role was not important in the revolution era because it had so few members, The FAO and Communist Party of Burma (CPB) were more important than the Tatmadaw because they could organize the people to rebel against the fascists. It was really a 'people's revolution', not just the Tamadaw's offensive.
Later on, several pf 30 comrades joined the CPB and began a civil war. After half century, the Tatmadaw said: "We have rescued the country from falling into the hell-holes of fascism, colonialism, communism and federalism''. Then they hammered into the people's mind that the Ttmadaw is not composed of just normal civil servants but is above the state. Everyone must obey its commands without any complaint.
But the All Burma Students' Democratic Front claims nearly 100,000 soldiers have ''deserted during the past 12 years. They are facing a shortage of food and medicine. And there are many problems among the officers, soldiers and the MIS (Military Intelligence Service).
A few months ago, the National Council for the Union of Burma founded a rehabilitation center in the Karen State to welcome the ex-soldiers. "Monthly, about 50 soldiers join us in the Karen National Union (KNU) controlled area" said U Maung Maung Tate, a member of the center. These are just in the Karen State. Many other deserters have gone to Thailand as illegal workers and some have joined other rebel groups along the border.
Last year, the Rangoon War Office ordered all front-line battalions to grow vegetables and raise livestock, as rations would be reduced. From then on, the front troops took whatever they wanted from the villagers. Many villagers were forced to work on the army's new projects. Some soldiers were disappointed about the order and its consequences for villagers. There were more desertions.
"Why do people join the Tatmadaw even through it has many problems" a reporter asked some ex-Tatmadaw men. One of the defectors, Maung Aung Kyaw Thein, a 19-years-old from a training camp for new recruits in Wetgali, answered: "I was arrested in Mae Sot by Thai police as illegal worker. Then they sent to me Myawaddy. On March 3, 1998, I was arrested again by LIB 32 in Myawaddy. They sent to me Wetgali Training School via Moulmein soldiers' conscription camp. After 10 days in the training, I fled here".
Another question is, "Why do graduates join the Tatmadaw? Ko Myint Wai, a defector from Burma Air Force, left the army to join the "8888 Uprising" with another 1,000 soldiers. He commented: "Once, before the 8888 Uprising, students were keen to become young Tatmadaw officers. It was a popular choice because it was an opportunity for a job and a guaranteed future".
Now he is working for a human rights NGO in Thailand. He compared the Thai army and Burma's Tatmadaw, saying: "There pasts are not too different. Both armies have staged coups. But today, the Thai army is obeying the civilian government, while our Tatmadaw is denying the legitimacy of the elected government.
"Another important point is their budgets. The Thai army has full facilities while the Tatmadaw men are very poor. The lowest Thai private's salary is Bt 4,000 while his Burmese counterpart receives 850 kyats (Bt 85). That's why the Burmese Tatmadaw rob villagers to support their family. There is no civil war in Thailand, so the army budget is enough for them".
When General Than Shwe, chairman of the junta, visited Bangkok in early March last year, it was suggested that he learn from the Thai army. But the problem is that the Burmese Generals never respect the Thai because in their minds, the Thai is Nhe-Naing (those beaten from young). Instead, they they have looked to and tried to emulate the Indonesian army as it was before the fall of Suharto's empire. They want an Indonesian-style parliament with an ex-soldier as president in Burma.
However, the Indonesian army is less willing now to be the toll of a dictator, and has moved towards supporting democracy. This has left the Burmese Tatmadaw in a dilemma, as it role model has changed. Many observers believe that there are two different groups in the Tatmadaw- the Military Intelligence Service (MIS) and the front-line troops. The First Secretary of the State Peace and Development Council, Lt Gen Khin Nyunt, controls the intelligence service, while the council's vice chairman, Gen Maung Aye, commands the front-line troops. Observers have suggested that Khin Nyunt now wants to change the image of the Tatmadaw. For example, his intelligence service has negotiated cease-fires with 15 ethnic armed groups during the past 10 years.
The MIS's next negotiation will be with Aung San Suu Kyi's National League for Democracy. But Maung Aye's group does not agree with such negotiations. His group wants to fully control the country forever.
Win Htein is a correspondent for the Democratic Voice of Burma.
Friday, March 18, 2011
Tuesday, March 15, 2011
“Knife to Knife, Lance to Lance”
At gunpoint on the Thai-Burma border
I found myself at gunpoint again in early 1995 when I tried to sneak across the border to Minthamee Camp with a foreign journalist. It was a sunny afternoon in January 1995. I was on my way back from the ABSDF office in Bangkok to Minthamee camp, across the border from Hwaynamkhong in Thailand’s Kanchanaburi province, accompanied by a western journalist. We got off the bus just before we reached a Thai border checkpoint and walked along a jungle path to our camp as we often did when crossing the border to avoid questions from Thai soldiers.
But this time, unbeknown to us, Thai villagers informed the checkpoint officials that a white man had followed a Burmese man into the jungle. After we had been walking for about 15 minutes, I heard Thai voices and the heavy tread of jungle boots. First we hid behind a big tree but then I began to worry that they might shoot us by mistake and so I called out, “We are here”. Three Thai border guards pointed their M-16 rifles at us and took us to their base. They asked me many questions in Thai. My Thai language skills had improved by this time, but I was still not able to communicate easily so the guards contacted some KNU officials nearby. “Why is a farang [foreigner] going with you into the jungle?” the Thai officer asked me.
After a night in jail in the army hut and hours of discussion at Kanchanaburi police station, we were finally allowed to proceed to our camp. Minthamee is located between Kanchanaburi province in Thailand and the Tavoy district of Burma. We built the camp in the hills alongside the Tenasserim river. “This is such a nice place with a good view,” the Austrian videojournalist said when we arrived at my hut by the river. We had never thought of our place as nice but for him, a western journalist, everything was new and interesting. His visit gave me my first opportunity to learn how professional journalists work on the ground.
The Austrian had come to our camp to make a short documentary about ABSDF activities. He wanted to focus on our military actions, so we took him to the frontline where we faced Burmese troops. It was not an easy journey from Minthamee camp in the border area to the Andaman Sea. After two days on a tail-boat along the Tenasserim river and another two days on foot, we reached Pyicha village in Palaw township where our frontline troops were based.
The Austrian video-journalist actually wanted to film while we were fighting with the SPDC troops, but this would have been a deadly game. So I told my column commander Hla Oo (who is now resettled in US) to avoid enemy outposts as we made our way to Lake-U-Thaung, a coastal village where we were due to address a public meeting. After five nights and four days travelling along the Andaman coast, we concluded our trip with a speech at a public meeting at a bus station in nearby Palaw town.
The hour-long documentary “Knife to Knife, Lance to Lance” that resulted from this trip was broadcast in Austria in 1996 and DVB has often used the footage taken for stories on the ABSDF and jungle life.
(For video----http://htetaungkyaw201.blogspot.com/2011/03/minthamee-battalion-201-part-one.html
http://htetaungkyaw201.blogspot.com/2011/03/minthamee-battalion-201-part-two.html
(From Far from home: 20-years in Exile)
Friday, March 11, 2011
Thursday, March 10, 2011
တနဂၤေနြအစီစဥ္---ဖုန္းေမာ္ေန့ နွစ္ပါတ္လည္ကုိ သတိရျခင္း-
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
THE NATION: AN ALERT FOR THE COMING '9999 UPRISING'?
14 March, 1999 by Win Htein
IN 1988, WHAT LATER CAME TO BE KNOWN AS THE '8888 UPRISING' BURMESE STUDENTS LED THE FIGHT AGAINST THE MILITARY JUNTA. AFTER A DECADE, THEY ARE NOW TALKING ABOUT OF A '9999 INCIDENT', WRITES WIN HTEIN.
Yesterday was the 11th anniversary of Burma's Human Rights Day. Ko Pho Maw, a 21-year old engineering student was killed by the army in the compound of Rangoon Institute of Technology (RIT), and was the first martyr among 3000 people in the "8888 Uprising".
"At the time, they [riot police] shot at us with real bullets when we asked the soldiers to go back to their barracks. We could not see anything under the smoke-bomb and we ran like blind men" recalled Ko
Kyaw Htin in a border shelter camp. He was an RIT student. Now, he is a leader of the All Burma Students' Democratic Front.
"We had never experienced anything like this. I thought they would shoot plastic bullets and smoke-bombs". They believed that the police would not use real bullets or enter the RIT compound.
The evening before, five RIT students had clashed with young civilians in an RIT tea shop. A general's son wielding a knife injured the RIT students. They called on the authorities to take action in the case.
But the junta's replay was "It's the students' mistake, they wanted violence". This message challenged the students like a spark. If the junta's reply had not been so stupid, the "8888 Uprising" may not have begun at that point.
A day later, hundreds of thousands of students began an anti-authority
demonstration in the RIT for the first time in 26 years under Ne Win's Burmese Socialist Programme Party (BSPP) military rule.
At the shooting, at least two students were killed and about 30 injured. People were very angry with the government about the killed students. Then people joined with students to demonstrate in downtown Rangoon. They broke state-owned cars, buses, buildings etc and shouted "No confidence in the BSPP", "Hold an independent investigation into the case of Ko Pho Maw".
General Ne Win; and his men from the BSPP were very surprised at the students' sudden reaction. In their thinking, no one could challenge them while they stood watch with guns. Then they ordered the closure of all universities and the sending home of students.
But their plan was not successful. The students and people demonstrated again when the universities reopened in June. That time the demonstrations were more violent, wider and spread to other universities and cities.
However, strongman Ne Win never reviewed his BSPP's policy. He declaimed in BSPP's parliament, "The army will never shoot into the air. If they shoot, the guns will be aimed at the people. If someone wants to complain to BSPP, he must be careful of my guns.
After his speech, no one could control the angry people. People demonstrated all over the country- including in border towns and villages. They cried, "Enough is enough, BSPP", "Don't need Ne Win regime", "Build a Student Union".
"People could not tolerate any more at the time. They were facing suppression from military rule for 26 years. At the time, our tea shop case inflamed the people to challenge Ne Win's dictator regime", said another RIT student.
The ABSDF reviewed 'political progress in the last ten years' in their 5th conference on the northern border of Thailand. They analysed the "8888 Uprising" and the current political situation in deciding "How to move forward".
"In the last '8888 Uprising', we could abolish the BSPP with four presidents and all its administration, but why could we not take final victory?" questioned one at the conference hall.
"It's a big lesson for us. We were not ready to find a new government and did not understand that 'opportunity only knocks once'."
They said, "Now we have a leading political party with a strong leader. And the people are also more knowledgeable than 8888. This fact could be the main difference between 8888 and 9999."
The ABSDF decided to choose this year's Human Rights Day to alert people to begin a campaign for a '9999 (9-9-1999) uprising' in Burma. They said, "The whole political situation is ripe. People are just waiting for a spark".
The young political idealists said, "The students and people are ready to show 'People Power' like in the '8888 Uprising'. They are just waiting for a clear message from Daw Aung San Suu Kyi".
They cited last year's student demonstrations in Rangoon in August and
September on the 10th anniversary of 8888.
Moe The Zun, one of the masterminds of the ABSDF, told the Democratic Voice of Burma, "We believe that there is just one path to achieve democracy. It's 'the People Power Way'."
The ABSDF concluded that it is not enough just to use the NLD's legal way of the people's parliament. The people power way must be added.
They said, "There are many pressures form the outside world and inside the country to transfer power from the military to the elected government. But the junta never responds to outside pressure."
People chose their representatives for their new government in the 1990 May election. Now these representatives have called a 'people's parliament' and called for dialogue.
However, the junta's reply is to arrest more than 200 MPs and more than 1,000 members of the NLD. Then the Military Intelligence Service forced the resignations of MPs and members throughout the whole country. Now over 50 per cent of NLD members and MPs have resigned, been jailed or are in exile.
Recently, the New Light of Myanmar, a state-controlled daily paper said "'Everyday, one MP and approximately 30 members resign, and one township level committee abolishes its office. This is of their own volition, as they did not like Suu Kyi's confrontational way to parliament". The junta knows nothing about justice, legitimacy and the people's desire.
"The generals have encouraged the NLD to choose the 'People Power way', by rejecting all other ways and backing them into a corner" the ABSDF accused.
They added, "The NLD has called for dialogue since the 1990 May election. And now it has called a people's parliament. But the junta never responds. Therefore, we would like to say 'enough is enough'. The NLD has no chance to choose any other way. Today, the NLD's main task is to lead people into the final battle".
Mr James, a spokesperson of a ceasefire armed group, Kachin Independent
Organisation commented in an interview with DVB, "There is no law and order in this country at the moment. So the NLD should not confront the junta because no soldiers are interested in justice and legitimacy. They are only interested in the power of their guns".
He added, "This country needs national reconciliation. If no side can
eradicate the other, there is just one path that must be negotiation".
No one doubts that the country needs national reconciliation, except the SPDC.
The source said that the NLD has chosen March to begin preparations for 9999. Which is the best way for this country? Dialogue or devastation?
Everybody wants to choose dialogue and negotiate. But the ruling junta is still rejecting dialogue. If this continues, there is only one way left for the people - that is 'People Power' in the coming '9999 Uprising'.
Wednesday, March 9, 2011
Tuesday, March 8, 2011
Monday, March 7, 2011
Articles in English
Homesick on the Thai-Burma border
Tuesday, 27 January 2009 09:26 Htet Aung Kyaw COMMENTARY
Although the word 'vacation' is still a strange one to most ordinary Burmese inside the country, many Burmese in exile, including this correspondent, enjoy taking holidays.
But it may be hard for the western community to understand why many exiles would spend their holidays on the Thai-Burma border rather going to Phuket or one of the other beach resorts popular with western tourists.
According to Burmese dissidents in Mae Sot, about 100 exiles who have resettled in the U.S., Canada, Europe, Australia and New Zealand visited the border town last year. "Why do so many of you come here?" I was asked by a dissident who runs a restaurant in downtown Mae Sot.
After 20 years far from home, I believe that many exiles come here to treat their homesickness. They want to see the Burmese community in Mae Sot, or "Little Burma" as it is sometimes referred to, and maybe take a look across the Moei River to Myawaddy on the Burmese side. For me, as an activist turned journalist, I wanted to learn what was going on in the dissident movement in Mae Sot and the rebel-controlled areas.
The changing face of Mae Sot
In 1941, Mae Sot was a normal border village where the Burma Independence Army (BIA) was briefly based before re-entering the country to fight against British colonial rule. General Aung San and the rest of the 30 comrades led the BIA to Mae Sot and two other border towns on the route back to Burma after they were trained by Japanese army. I had read about the exploits of the 30 comrades in a school history book before coming to Mae Sot, which may be why some western analysts have criticized our romanticism in dreaming of following in general Aung San's footsteps.
My first trip to Mae Sot was in mid-November 1988, just after the All Burma Students' Democratic Front (ABSDF) was founded. I came from southern Burma and stayed at the home of Major Soe Soe of the Karen National Union in Mae Sot before going to attend the ABSDF meeting at Kaladay Camp.
Twenty years after my first trip, Mae Sot has changed a lot. The road to Myawaddy, on the Thai side at least, is now a six-lane paved highway where 20 years ago I walked in the dust. Major Soe Soe's house, where KNU travel passes were once issued for travel from Mae Sot to KNU headquarters in Manerplaw in Burma, without any questions from Thai authorities, is now the Peace Development office.
But today, while the Major still screens and issues travel receipts, KNU travel passes no longer offer any guarantees on Thai soil. The KNU's general secretary, Pado Mahn Shar, was himself killed by unknown gunmen in downtown Mae Sot last February. Officials from the KNU's rival, the Democratic Karen Buddhist Army (DKBA), and Burmese government officials, travel to Mae Sot, which I never saw 20 years ago. Additionally, many Burmese dissidents have been arrested and some deported to Myawaddy, which I would never have thought possible two decades previously.
Yet, despite many challenges, Mae Sot is still the hub of the Burmese dissident movement, especially after the fall of Manerplaw in 1995. I met and chatted with dozens of dissident leaders in Mae Sot. "After the killing of Pado Mahn Shar, no one is safe here. But we cannot use our own guards or guns as we did in the jungle on their soil," said an ABSDF leader who is now working for the Forum for Democracy in Burma.
Although there is no security, "We must still work here. This is because Mae Sot is the closest place to Burma," he explained to me from his hideout. And it is not only politicians who choose to stay in Mae Sot but also social workers. "We must operate here as much as we can. I would never think of going to a third country," said Dr. Cynthia Maung, know as Burma's Mother Teresa, who runs the Mae Tao clinic off the highway between Mae Sot and Myawaddy.
She was one of a few students whom I met at Major Soe Soe's house 20 years ago. I personally helped her to clean out an ageing mud hut to run as a clinic in 1989. Now I see about 100 patients on beds, 200 outpatients and about 30 new buildings beside the old hut that I helped clean. A dozen foreign medics, 50 Burmese staff members and an annual budget of 40 million baht (approx. US$ 1.14 million) are today overseen by Dr. Cynthia.
From idealism to realism?
"Twenty years on, Cynthia's battalion is the biggest in the Student Army," jokes a former ABSDF member who is currently working as a volunteer at the Mae Tao clinic. It is difficult to find hard evidence of how much the rebels and exile politicians have done for the people in past 20 years, although they claim to have been working for the country's 50 million people. "But in Cynthia's clinic, you will see with your own eyes how many people she helps," the former ABSDF member told me.
"How many people have you helped with your own hands, my comrade?" he asked me while I was interviewing his patients. I could not answer him immediately. In fact, despite my 10 years as a freedom fighter and a further 10 years working in the media, I have never been able to help people physically like he has, but only through ideas or words.
I was seized with the desire to do something to help when I met people from Tavoy, my hometown, who were living as illegal migrant workers along the border between Sangkhlaburi and Phuket, some of the two million Burmese migrants and hundreds of thousands of refugees on Thai soil. It was them to whom I once promised to bring freedom and democracy in a speech during the 1988 uprising. Now, 20 years later, I was meeting them on the Thai border, far from my home city, and I was somewhat ashamed that I had not yet honored my promise.
In the end, the only help I could give them was the contact details of some social organizations run by comrades, such as Dr. Cynthia's Mae Tao Clinic (www. maetaoclinic .org), Aye Aye Mar's social network (http://socialactionfor women.blogspot.com/), Myat Thu's children's fund (www.aiyafund.com) and Moe Swe's labour rights group (http:// yaungchioo.org) in Mae Sot, Aung Myo Min's human rights group (http://www.hreib.com/) in Chiang Mai and Htoo Chit's organisation (http://www.ghre.org) in Phuket.
Nevertheless, Dr. Cynthia was unhappy when I told her about my feelings, saying "Changing politics and ideology are more important than social work. We all are doing our duty and we shouldn't be blaming each other."
Armed struggle and unwanted guests
Apart from politicians and social workers, I met another group of former ABSDF members who had been waiting for four years at No Poe Refugee camp to go to a third country. "We were all rejected by U.S. authorities because we were all ABSDF or armed men," one former ABSDF member who was visiting Mae Sot told me. "But they allow fake refugees in with no difficulties. Please tell the true story to the outside world," he pleaded.
According to him, those rejected by the US can be divided into three groups. First, those, like him, who have been rejected by the U.S. but can apply to other countries. Second, those whose applications have been stalled but not yet rejected – meaning they can do nothing but wait. And third, the men who have been rejected by Washington while their wives and children were allowed to go to the U.S. – effectively splitting up the family.
ABSDF and KNU officials confirmed that U.S. authorities have rejected all of their former members since the attacks of 11 September 2001. They also confirmed the allegations of 'fake refugees' and human trafficking. "[The camp authorities] let the new arrivals in from Rangoon who can pay a half million baht (approx. US$ 14,000) each to replace the old ones who have no money after living in the camp for many years," a KNU official told me. Unfortunately, I did not have enough time to investigate this accusation for myself.
However, a Burmese journalist in Mae Sot gave me a different view. "As far as human trafficking goes, I agree that the UN and Thai officials need to investigate it urgently," he said. "But as for the meaning of refugee, I think all people in Burma today are suffering and in need of a refuge, so why are the dissidents opposing the new arrivals when they claim they are working for all 50 million [Burmese] people?" he asked.
ABSDF and KNU officials are not only worried about being rejected by U.S. authorities but also about the changing mindset of former members who have resettled in the west. "Donations from our former members in the U.S. have been reducing month by month since 9/11," an ABSDF financial worker told me. Strangely, the highest number of donations is coming from Japan and Korea, where there are no former members of the ABSDF or the KNU.
Change we need: Where is Burma's Abhisit?
After a three-week vacation in Mae Sot, Chiang Mai, Sangkhlaburi and Ranong, I met some Burmese, Thai and western journalists in Bangkok. One western journalist began to question me. "Do you think there will be any change in Burma after the 2010 election? What is the role of the exiles in the coming election?" he asked.
"Yes, there will be a few changes – from khaki uniforms to white shirts. Don't hope for too much," I replied. But as for the role of exiles, I'm not ready to answer that. However, a Thai journalist who has been following Burmese affairs for over a decade said, "The exiles are not interested in the 2010 election because they are all too busy with their own election," he joked, referring to a statement by the exile coalition who claimed to be founding a new government in exile in 2009.
A Burmese journalist who was at the gathering suggested, "They should try to found a real government in Rangoon, not in exile. They also should learn some new methods from the new [Thai] Prime Minister Abhisit [Vejjajiva]".
There have been at least 12 changes of government in Bangkok in the past 20 years while nothing has changed at all in Rangoon or Naypyidaw. Some observers have contrasted the rise to power of the 44-year-old new Thai premier Abhisit last month with the fate of 46-year-old Burmese 88 generation student leader Min Ko Naing, who was most recently jailed for 65 years in November.
"That is why I suggested you look to Abhisit," the journalist went on. "Then you would find some creative ideas about how to break a 20-year political deadlock rather than holding on to traditional ways of thinking such as 'kill or be killed', or 'aggression or destitution'."
Htet Aung Kyaw is a senior journalist for the Oslo-based Democratic Voice of Burma. He published a book last month in Thailand called, "Far from Home: 20 years in Exile".
http://www.mizzima.com/edop/commentary/1606-homesick-on-the-thai-burma-border.html
Sunday, March 6, 2011
Press Release in English about DVB kick out HAK.
Explanation to DVB audience, Democracy activists regarding dismissal
from DVB's Journalist.
280211 (Htet Aung Kyaw)
(a) The latest situation
-An official letter stating the dismissal of 3 persons; Htet Aung
Kyaw, Khin Hnin Htet and Nang Kham Kaew from DVB was given by board
team on 22 February. Therefore, we have ceased all our daily
activities last Friday 25 February.
(b) Explanation on dismissal from job– indiscrepancy
-Regarding dismissal from job, in the first section (initially), as
there is difference in some places between the notice letter of board
team sent to all staff and what are really happening, I write this
letter so that all staff will know the true sequence of events.
1. according to the email sent around 9pm on 19 January to all DVB
staff from DVB board team, it was not said that we 3 are to be
dismissed, just that if we desire, we could go and work in Chiangmai
office, (and) that we will be given entitlements given to staff of
Chiangmai office, (and) that we will be given help as much as possible
on our Norwegian refugee travel documents we are holding, by
negotiating/cooperating with Norway Immigration department officials.
(It was also said at the plenary meeting on the following day). Board
chairman himself said and promised.
But at the individual meeting between us who were going to be
dismissed from job and board chairman, DVB director and deputy
director, only 4 people on 7 February, all these words were put aside
(withdrawn) and, as the current Norwegian refugee travel document you
are holding is not valid for living outside Norway for more than 7
months, the original statement of (you) going to carrying out in
Chiangmai office for years is not possible anymore. At least you
should try to get a permanent document/status in Norway first and
re-apply for the job. Only then we will reconsider it, the three
authorities said. To sum up, in the first section (initially), it was
not said directly that we are dismissed from job, but that we are to
be transferred to Chiangmai to carry out duties. Then, we were made to
appear as if we want to cling on to Norway and that we do not want to
return to Chiangmai with Chiangmai salary, in a dishonest way and
dismissed us. (In fact, with current document we can stay outside the
country for six months each.)
2. Before the decision was made, the points we put forward both in
letters and orally to board team, were; we have no objection to the
fact that the administration team needs to decide to reduce staff for
budget deficit, the cessation of broadcast and such a thing. This is
their rights, but what we did argue was (We had said it to the
administration team and board team, both orally and by letter more
than twice) why we three were chosen for dismissal; isn’t it possible
not to dismiss staff who served more than 15 years and couldn’t it be
possible to solve it by other means, isn’t it possible to reduce the
budget of all departments by percent (to recover) just 3 millions
deficit out of 23 millions, is it not possible to recheck the budget
of internal network properly which uses much budget to get a little
bit more (money), couldn’t we get a bit more if we take out Youth
Voice which is not made up with permanent staff and appointed while
there was donor and now that there is no donor, and that there are
people who are already Norwegian citizens and got permanent status who
should go and work in Thailand in terms of work, (and) currently if we
give Thai salary to those who are taking Norway salary and living in
Thailand, could we not get a bit more (money) for the deficit money?
Moreover, according to the rule and regulations of organizations and
companies, when it is inevitable to dismiss (someone), we argued that
there is the nature that, (it is done) in accordance with the
years/length of service; people with the highest years of service are
dismissed only after people with lowest years of service are
dismissed.
3. And although this case is titled budget case, I questioned that if
there are other hidden agendas of the two directors. The fact that
triggered such a question thus is, just before we the letter notifying
our dismissal from job, (an incident) occurred. News editor Ko Moe Aye
was suspended from the duty of news editor in relationship with
disputes/rows in TV broadcast room, internal network problems and
other matters. But he was not dismissed from DVB. The emergence of the
decision and thinking to dismiss us 3 from job who have been carrying
out duties under him (his supervision) during the days he was
suspended from editor duty, could not just be a coincidence.
Another coincidence is, all the 3 people who are dismissed from job
are singles with no family, (and) people who could not afford to buy
house. What I mean is, by dismissing us from job, is it done (with the
thinking that) we could not face family problems like others and (our)
house could not be repossessed because we could not pay monthly house
debts/rents – is a point.
(c) Our views ignored
These facts were put forward at the meeting on 7 February and
explained properly in a letter sent to board team before the meeting
but, 6 board members (board chairman said on 22 there are 8 board
members and Prime Minister and another person didn’t give their
opinion during the job dismissal letter giving meeting) and two
directors didn’t reconsider (to) amend their decision. And on 22
February, we were all summoned and given dismissal from job letter.
I state thus so that all DVB staff can know about it because as I said
at the last meeting, this decision has no strong reason, the thinking
that caused this decision has no strong reason, (and that) as they are
only thinking and decision without thinking properly from every
viewpoint, every corner, I could not agree with it, (that) although I
have no plan to file lawsuit in accordance with the law regarding the
decision, I would continue to expose the true states to the public and
audience by using every means.
(d) Future activity
-The last thing I want to say is, I, Htet Aung Kyaw will inevitably
have to go through the phase of unemployed life due to current
situation. Beyond this phase, I will continue to carry out
revolutionary duties and media duties either at media that has no
direct relation with DVB administration team (or) revolutionary
organizations (or) social organizations or as an individual.
(e) What I want to urge democracy activists, DVB audience, media within
and without Burma is –
If DVB regards itself as an organization for democracy, democracy
activists including Daw Aung San Suu Kyi must study and investigate
whether the decisions within DVB and other factors are democratic or
not, whether these decisions are giving impetus to democracy movements
or weakening it, and advise people responsible in DVB accordingly.
Another thing is, I want to urge other colleague media, internet
media, ethnic national media to study this incident for the truth to
come out.
At the same time, I want to alert international news reporter
protection organizations including CPJ, RSF, Burmese media association
outside Burma and news reporter protection organization just formed
inside Burma to study and assess this incident, and strive for the
emergence of independent news organization and more protection of the
rights of each news reporter.
Respect to all
Htet Aung Kyaw
28-02-2011
Oslo, Norway.
..................................................................................................
from DVB's Journalist.
280211 (Htet Aung Kyaw)
(a) The latest situation
-An official letter stating the dismissal of 3 persons; Htet Aung
Kyaw, Khin Hnin Htet and Nang Kham Kaew from DVB was given by board
team on 22 February. Therefore, we have ceased all our daily
activities last Friday 25 February.
(b) Explanation on dismissal from job– indiscrepancy
-Regarding dismissal from job, in the first section (initially), as
there is difference in some places between the notice letter of board
team sent to all staff and what are really happening, I write this
letter so that all staff will know the true sequence of events.
1. according to the email sent around 9pm on 19 January to all DVB
staff from DVB board team, it was not said that we 3 are to be
dismissed, just that if we desire, we could go and work in Chiangmai
office, (and) that we will be given entitlements given to staff of
Chiangmai office, (and) that we will be given help as much as possible
on our Norwegian refugee travel documents we are holding, by
negotiating/cooperating with Norway Immigration department officials.
(It was also said at the plenary meeting on the following day). Board
chairman himself said and promised.
But at the individual meeting between us who were going to be
dismissed from job and board chairman, DVB director and deputy
director, only 4 people on 7 February, all these words were put aside
(withdrawn) and, as the current Norwegian refugee travel document you
are holding is not valid for living outside Norway for more than 7
months, the original statement of (you) going to carrying out in
Chiangmai office for years is not possible anymore. At least you
should try to get a permanent document/status in Norway first and
re-apply for the job. Only then we will reconsider it, the three
authorities said. To sum up, in the first section (initially), it was
not said directly that we are dismissed from job, but that we are to
be transferred to Chiangmai to carry out duties. Then, we were made to
appear as if we want to cling on to Norway and that we do not want to
return to Chiangmai with Chiangmai salary, in a dishonest way and
dismissed us. (In fact, with current document we can stay outside the
country for six months each.)
2. Before the decision was made, the points we put forward both in
letters and orally to board team, were; we have no objection to the
fact that the administration team needs to decide to reduce staff for
budget deficit, the cessation of broadcast and such a thing. This is
their rights, but what we did argue was (We had said it to the
administration team and board team, both orally and by letter more
than twice) why we three were chosen for dismissal; isn’t it possible
not to dismiss staff who served more than 15 years and couldn’t it be
possible to solve it by other means, isn’t it possible to reduce the
budget of all departments by percent (to recover) just 3 millions
deficit out of 23 millions, is it not possible to recheck the budget
of internal network properly which uses much budget to get a little
bit more (money), couldn’t we get a bit more if we take out Youth
Voice which is not made up with permanent staff and appointed while
there was donor and now that there is no donor, and that there are
people who are already Norwegian citizens and got permanent status who
should go and work in Thailand in terms of work, (and) currently if we
give Thai salary to those who are taking Norway salary and living in
Thailand, could we not get a bit more (money) for the deficit money?
Moreover, according to the rule and regulations of organizations and
companies, when it is inevitable to dismiss (someone), we argued that
there is the nature that, (it is done) in accordance with the
years/length of service; people with the highest years of service are
dismissed only after people with lowest years of service are
dismissed.
3. And although this case is titled budget case, I questioned that if
there are other hidden agendas of the two directors. The fact that
triggered such a question thus is, just before we the letter notifying
our dismissal from job, (an incident) occurred. News editor Ko Moe Aye
was suspended from the duty of news editor in relationship with
disputes/rows in TV broadcast room, internal network problems and
other matters. But he was not dismissed from DVB. The emergence of the
decision and thinking to dismiss us 3 from job who have been carrying
out duties under him (his supervision) during the days he was
suspended from editor duty, could not just be a coincidence.
Another coincidence is, all the 3 people who are dismissed from job
are singles with no family, (and) people who could not afford to buy
house. What I mean is, by dismissing us from job, is it done (with the
thinking that) we could not face family problems like others and (our)
house could not be repossessed because we could not pay monthly house
debts/rents – is a point.
(c) Our views ignored
These facts were put forward at the meeting on 7 February and
explained properly in a letter sent to board team before the meeting
but, 6 board members (board chairman said on 22 there are 8 board
members and Prime Minister and another person didn’t give their
opinion during the job dismissal letter giving meeting) and two
directors didn’t reconsider (to) amend their decision. And on 22
February, we were all summoned and given dismissal from job letter.
I state thus so that all DVB staff can know about it because as I said
at the last meeting, this decision has no strong reason, the thinking
that caused this decision has no strong reason, (and that) as they are
only thinking and decision without thinking properly from every
viewpoint, every corner, I could not agree with it, (that) although I
have no plan to file lawsuit in accordance with the law regarding the
decision, I would continue to expose the true states to the public and
audience by using every means.
(d) Future activity
-The last thing I want to say is, I, Htet Aung Kyaw will inevitably
have to go through the phase of unemployed life due to current
situation. Beyond this phase, I will continue to carry out
revolutionary duties and media duties either at media that has no
direct relation with DVB administration team (or) revolutionary
organizations (or) social organizations or as an individual.
(e) What I want to urge democracy activists, DVB audience, media within
and without Burma is –
If DVB regards itself as an organization for democracy, democracy
activists including Daw Aung San Suu Kyi must study and investigate
whether the decisions within DVB and other factors are democratic or
not, whether these decisions are giving impetus to democracy movements
or weakening it, and advise people responsible in DVB accordingly.
Another thing is, I want to urge other colleague media, internet
media, ethnic national media to study this incident for the truth to
come out.
At the same time, I want to alert international news reporter
protection organizations including CPJ, RSF, Burmese media association
outside Burma and news reporter protection organization just formed
inside Burma to study and assess this incident, and strive for the
emergence of independent news organization and more protection of the
rights of each news reporter.
Respect to all
Htet Aung Kyaw
28-02-2011
Oslo, Norway.
..................................................................................................
မွတ္ခ်က္-...။ က်ေနာ္တုိ့ကုိထုတ္တာ တနွစ္နီးပါးျကာပီျဖစ္ေပမဲ့ ထုတ္ရျခင္းအေျကာင္းျပစာပါ အခ်က္ေတြအတုိင္း မနက္ပုိင္းေရဒီယုိကိုလဲ ရပ္တန့္ျခင္းမရွိေသးပါ။ ေရဒိယုိ-အခန္းျဖစ္တဲ့ တတိယ ထပ္ကိုလဲ ျပန္လည္အပ္နွံျခင္းမရွိေသးပါ။ ေနာက္တခါ ဘတ္ဂ်က္မရွိလုိ့ ျဖုတ္လုိက္ပါတယ္ဆုိတဲ့ ဒီဗီြဘီ အင္တာေတးမင္းဌာနလဲ ရွိျမဲရွိေနဆဲျဖစ္ပီး အခု ဆုိရင္ အင္တာေတးမင္းတာ၀န္ခံဆုိသူဟာ အဲဒီေခါင္းစဥ္နဲ့ စင္ကာပူအထိေတာင္ နုိင္ငံေတာ္ ေငြနဲ့ ခရီးဆန့္ေနပီျဖစ္ပါတယ္။
တခ်ိန္တည္းမွာဘဲ့ ေငြမရွိလုိ့ အလုပ္ထုတ္ပီးကာမွ ဒီဗြီဘီ-အတြင္း ေဒၚလာ ၄-သိန္းနီးပါးတန္ လာဒ္စားမႈ ျကပီးျဖစ္ေပၚလာပါတယ္။ အဲဒီအမႈကိုေဖၚထုတ္နုိင္ဖုိ့ ေဒၚလာ ၂-သိန္းတန္ ေရွ့ေန့အဖြဲ့ကို ငွားရမ္းခဲ့ပါတယ္။
ဒါေျကာင့္ က်ေနာ္တုိ့ကို အလုပ္ထုတ္တာဟာ ေငြေျကးအက်ပ္တည္းေျကာင့္မဟုတ္ဘဲ နုိ္င္ငံေရးေျကာင့္။ ဒီဗီံၤြဘီ- အုပ္ခ်ဳပ္ေရးအဖြဲ့ရဲ့ မတရားလာဒ္စားမႈ။ ျခစားမႈ။ အရည္ခ်င္းမျပည့္၀မႈေတြအေပၚ ေ၀ဖန္မႈ ေျကာင့္ ဆုိတာ တေျဖးေျဖးထင္ရွားလာေနပါတယ္။ ပရိသတ္ေတြ ဆက္လက္ေလ့လာေစခ်င္ပါတယ္။
အားလုံးကိုေလးစားလ်က္။
တခ်ိန္တည္းမွာဘဲ့ ေငြမရွိလုိ့ အလုပ္ထုတ္ပီးကာမွ ဒီဗြီဘီ-အတြင္း ေဒၚလာ ၄-သိန္းနီးပါးတန္ လာဒ္စားမႈ ျကပီးျဖစ္ေပၚလာပါတယ္။ အဲဒီအမႈကိုေဖၚထုတ္နုိင္ဖုိ့ ေဒၚလာ ၂-သိန္းတန္ ေရွ့ေန့အဖြဲ့ကို ငွားရမ္းခဲ့ပါတယ္။
ဒါေျကာင့္ က်ေနာ္တုိ့ကို အလုပ္ထုတ္တာဟာ ေငြေျကးအက်ပ္တည္းေျကာင့္မဟုတ္ဘဲ နုိ္င္ငံေရးေျကာင့္။ ဒီဗီံၤြဘီ- အုပ္ခ်ဳပ္ေရးအဖြဲ့ရဲ့ မတရားလာဒ္စားမႈ။ ျခစားမႈ။ အရည္ခ်င္းမျပည့္၀မႈေတြအေပၚ ေ၀ဖန္မႈ ေျကာင့္ ဆုိတာ တေျဖးေျဖးထင္ရွားလာေနပါတယ္။ ပရိသတ္ေတြ ဆက္လက္ေလ့လာေစခ်င္ပါတယ္။
အားလုံးကိုေလးစားလ်က္။
Until now, they not yet return the third flood as they say in statement to return after dismissed ours.
best
