Burma’s President’s Office sent a warning on Wednesday to a media company who they allege gave a large monetary gift to a government official during Burma’s Thingyan festival last week.
The statement released by the office reported that a media company took part in the annual Thingyan New Year water festival in Naypyidaw by staging a pavilion and inviting ministerial officials to the performances that followed.
The announcement did not mention the media company’s name.
“Among them was a personal assistant of a ‘VIP’ who was given a package filled with five million kyats as present [by the media company],” the statement said.
It added that the individual later found the money upon inspection and complained about it to his senior officer.
President’s Office Minister Aung San Suu Kyi released guidelines on gifts for civil servants on April 4, barring any government employee from accepting anything worth more than 25,000 kyats, or just over US$20, in an attempt to fight against rampant corruption in the country. (Courtesy of Rohingya Vision TV)
April 21, 2016
Singapore Ambassador discusses long Myanmar friendship
In an exclusive interview, Ambassador of Singapore Mr Robert Chua discusses Singapore’s long friendship, relationship and trade with Myanmar.
The interview was conducted by Mizzima Editor-in-Chief Soe Myint.
I would like to start with the bilateral relationship. What would you say are the priorities for Singapore’s relationship with Myanmar?
Well I think first and foremost, we regard Myanmar as an old friend and neighbour. We have known each other since the time of Singapore’s self-government in 1959 because many friends in Myanmar said Mr Lee Kuan Yew sent many civil servants to come to then Burma to learn development. So that is one starting point of our relations and from there, there was a very strong building of relations at the political leaders level. Then of course businessmen from both sides built a relationship and as more Myanmar people came to work and study in Singapore, we had the foundation of people-to-people relations. My Myanmar friends tell me there are over 100,000 Myanmar people living in my country. Now the number of Singaporeans living in Myanmar is growing, a few hundred. So with such exchanges, I think this strengthens the relationship between our countries. People-to-people ties are a very strong element between our countries. I think on our priorities, we will continue to be a good and friendly neighbour to Myanmar and continue to support Myanmar in a practical area where we have learned and benefitted from many developed countries and that is human resource development, capacity building. (Courtesy of Mizzima)
The interview was conducted by Mizzima Editor-in-Chief Soe Myint.
I would like to start with the bilateral relationship. What would you say are the priorities for Singapore’s relationship with Myanmar?
Well I think first and foremost, we regard Myanmar as an old friend and neighbour. We have known each other since the time of Singapore’s self-government in 1959 because many friends in Myanmar said Mr Lee Kuan Yew sent many civil servants to come to then Burma to learn development. So that is one starting point of our relations and from there, there was a very strong building of relations at the political leaders level. Then of course businessmen from both sides built a relationship and as more Myanmar people came to work and study in Singapore, we had the foundation of people-to-people relations. My Myanmar friends tell me there are over 100,000 Myanmar people living in my country. Now the number of Singaporeans living in Myanmar is growing, a few hundred. So with such exchanges, I think this strengthens the relationship between our countries. People-to-people ties are a very strong element between our countries. I think on our priorities, we will continue to be a good and friendly neighbour to Myanmar and continue to support Myanmar in a practical area where we have learned and benefitted from many developed countries and that is human resource development, capacity building. (Courtesy of Mizzima)
Myanmar Police to Drop Charges Against Remaining Political Prisoners
Myanmar’s police force is working to drop charges against remaining political prisoners over the next several days under the direction of State Counselor Aung San Suu Kyi, a police official said Wednesday.
“There could be more than 100 charges that we will consider dropping,” officer Tun Min of the Myanmar Police Criminal Department told RFA’s Myanmar Service.
“The procedure for this is that police must request that judges at courts abolish the charges first,” he said. “Everything will be done in a short time after we have received orders from courts to drop the charges.”
Charges will be dropped against those prosecuted under Articles 505(b) and 143 of the country’s penal code, as well as Article 18 of the country’s Peaceful Assembly and Peaceful Procession Law, Tun Min said. (Courtesy of RFA)
“There could be more than 100 charges that we will consider dropping,” officer Tun Min of the Myanmar Police Criminal Department told RFA’s Myanmar Service.
“The procedure for this is that police must request that judges at courts abolish the charges first,” he said. “Everything will be done in a short time after we have received orders from courts to drop the charges.”
Charges will be dropped against those prosecuted under Articles 505(b) and 143 of the country’s penal code, as well as Article 18 of the country’s Peaceful Assembly and Peaceful Procession Law, Tun Min said. (Courtesy of RFA)
Bangladesh-Myanmar rail connectivity
Bangladesh has finally taken the decision to get connected to the Trans-Asian railway, one of the most comprehensive networks of rail lines that connect Europe with Asia. The 129 km rail track will span from Dohazari to Gundum near Myanmar border via Cox's Bazaar. The original project was supposed to start in 2010. The delays we have faced in land acquisition and access to funding has meant inordinate delay, with the project cost shooting up from Tk1,852 to Tk18,034 crore. The feasibility study carried out by the Asian Development Bank necessitated changes in the original plan, for instance the move from metre gauge to broad gauge, all contributed to project delay.
Regardless of the hold-up in coming to a decision on this most strategic of connectivity issues, the construction of this rail line will facilitate massive cross border trade between the country with Myanmar and China. The movement of bulk goods from China to Bangladesh and vice versa by rail should shorten lead times significantly and open up new areas of business such as tourism. That we have lost valuable time which has raised the cost of this project manifold is not the question to ponder upon at this stage. (Courtesy of The Daily Star)
Regardless of the hold-up in coming to a decision on this most strategic of connectivity issues, the construction of this rail line will facilitate massive cross border trade between the country with Myanmar and China. The movement of bulk goods from China to Bangladesh and vice versa by rail should shorten lead times significantly and open up new areas of business such as tourism. That we have lost valuable time which has raised the cost of this project manifold is not the question to ponder upon at this stage. (Courtesy of The Daily Star)
No smooth ride: many bumps on India-Myanmar-Thailand road plan
After the initial rush, the India-Myanmar-Thailand (IMT) road project has hit a slow track. According to sources, among the issues slowing implementation are a relatively cold Thailand and infrastructure inadequacies in Myanmar.
Mid-2015, India had proposed seamless movement of cargo, scheduled (bus) and non-scheduled (private) passenger vehicles between Moreh in Manipur and Mae Sot in Thailand. This was similar to the Bhutan-Bangladesh-India-Nepal (BBIN) motor-vehicles pact (MVA) inked outside SAARC in June 2015.
However, unlike BBIN, the three IMT countries are yet to complete the agreement scheduled to be signed in March. No consensus emerged during negotiations among India, Myanmar and Thailand alternately at Bangkok and Delhi last year. (Courtesy of thehindubusinessline.com)
Mid-2015, India had proposed seamless movement of cargo, scheduled (bus) and non-scheduled (private) passenger vehicles between Moreh in Manipur and Mae Sot in Thailand. This was similar to the Bhutan-Bangladesh-India-Nepal (BBIN) motor-vehicles pact (MVA) inked outside SAARC in June 2015.
However, unlike BBIN, the three IMT countries are yet to complete the agreement scheduled to be signed in March. No consensus emerged during negotiations among India, Myanmar and Thailand alternately at Bangkok and Delhi last year. (Courtesy of thehindubusinessline.com)
Rohingya boat victims ‘forced’ to travel by sea
Witnesses to a boat capsize off Myanmar that left some 20 people dead, including children, say the victims were from the persecuted Rohingya Muslim minority and blamed the tragedy on travel restrictions that forced them to journey by sea.
At least 21 people, including nine children, died after a packed boat capsized in choppy waters on Tuesday as it approached the Rakhine state capital of Sittwe, according to the United Nations.
Most of the passengers were inhabitants of Sin Tet Maw, in Paukaw township, a camp for Rohingya Muslim minority members forced from their homes by bouts of communal violence.
“It (the boat accident) happened because of unsafe transport… we cannot use direct transport (overland) to Sittwe to buy goods or medicine,” Rohingya activist, Kyaw Hla Aung, said from Sittwe. (Courtesy of Saudi Gazette)
At least 21 people, including nine children, died after a packed boat capsized in choppy waters on Tuesday as it approached the Rakhine state capital of Sittwe, according to the United Nations.
Most of the passengers were inhabitants of Sin Tet Maw, in Paukaw township, a camp for Rohingya Muslim minority members forced from their homes by bouts of communal violence.
“It (the boat accident) happened because of unsafe transport… we cannot use direct transport (overland) to Sittwe to buy goods or medicine,” Rohingya activist, Kyaw Hla Aung, said from Sittwe. (Courtesy of Saudi Gazette)
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