Myanmar: China Gets The Wrong Answer

There is general agreement that there should be a major effort to expand the 2015 NCA (nationwide ceasefire agreement) to include all rebel groups operating along the northern and eastern border areas. To that end another meeting of all groups involved (government, army, most rebels) will be held in August. The NCA effort has been going on since the 1990s but has had problems with finding ceasefire terms that everyone can agree to and, more importantly, that the army can be trusted to abide by. Decades of military rule ended in 2011 but many of the rebel tribes didn’t believe it meant soldiers would behave in tribal areas. They were right because in the border areas the military still did as they pleased. The elected government has made some progress in curbing the military misbehavior and the August NCA meeting is supposed to take advantage of that. This is not a sure thing as there have been NCA meetings in 2012, 2013 and 2015 and none of those deals were completely effective. That said, since 2011 there has been more peace and less army misbehavior in the border areas where lawlessness was long the norm. This is costing corrupt army officers a lot of money as they got rich by “taxing” or controlling a lot of illegal activities (mining, lumbering, smuggling in general). The corrupt officers also arranged for the illegal removal of tribes on land that had been “sold” to the Chinese for major development projects (mines, hydroelectric dams, pipelines). A new and improved NCA doesn’t make the Chinese happy either but officially they can’t express that because the official Chinese attitude is that they are doing everything legally. (Courtesy of strategypage.com)

Suu Kyi plans visits to China, US and Bangladesh

State Counsellor Aung San Suu Kyi’s staff are making plans for her to visit China and the USA.

“Other countries have invited her to visit. We will announce dates when they are confirmed,” said Aye Aye Soe, deputy director-general of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

She is planning to visit China first, before going to the USA, Bangladesh and Malaysia later this year. (Courtesy of elevenmyanmar.com)

Myanmar: Missteps or new directions?

When the National League for Democracy (NLD) and its iconic leader, Aung San Suu Kyi, swept to power at the 2015 elections, the international community roared in approval. Now, some 100 days after the NLD took power, many foreign pundits are becoming more critical.

There were expectations that The Lady would be a beacon for human rights in the region and for progress on the issue of Muslims in the Rakhine state. Foreign investors hoped that the NLD government would speed up the opening of this frontier economy started by the preceding administration.

So far, there does not seem to be progress on either front. From the outside, the new government appears uncertain and hesitant. (Courtesy of themalaymailonline.com)

EU steps up with new strategy to support Myanmar's transition

European Union Ambassador Roland Kobia is upbeat about prospects of stepped up engagement between the EU and Myanmar following the new Myanmar government coming to power.

In the following interview conducted recently with Mizzima Editor-in-Chief SoeMyint, EU Ambassador Kobia talks about engagement, trade and investment, the peace process, and the development of Myanmar.

The 28 European Union foreign ministers recently adopted a new strategy for the EU relations with Myanmar. Can you tell us more about this new EU strategy on Myanmar? What are the changes or what are the key areas? (Courtesy of mizzima.com)

Buddhism still dominant in Myanmar

Buddhism still rules in Myanmar despite the increasing popularity of other religious faiths.

According to a report, Muslim population constitutes 4.3 per cent with the addition of an estimated 1.09 million Muslims in Rakhine State, compared to 3.9 per cent in the census conducted in 1973 and 1983.

The Ministry of Labour, Immigration and Population’s report on religion was released subsequently to the 2014 census. (Courtesy of nationmultimedia.com)

German ambassador congratulates journalism graduates

This week the German Ambassador to Myanmar congratulated graduates of the Myanmar Journalism Institute saying they had chosen a noble profession.

Speaking at the event on July 21 at the institute German Ambassador Christian-Ludwig Weber-Lortsch said the foreign partners of Myanmar Journalism Institute, including the German Embassy, are proud of their commitment and success.

“You have chosen a noble guild. After all, it makes a difference whether one sells news or nuts,” he said. (Courtesy of mizzima.com)

Hindu numbers constant in Myanmar over 40 years

The proportion of Hindus in Myanmar has remained constant at around 0.5 per cent over the forty year period, according to Myanmar Census 2014 Report on Religion released this month.

In Myanmar’s enumerated population, there were 252,763 (0.5%) Hindus. Largest number of Hindus, 100,166 (2.0% of Region’s enumerated population), were in Bago Region (southern-central part of the country); while smallest number of Hindus, only 106, were in Chin State (least developed area of the country) in western Myanmar.

Distinguished Hindu statesman Rajan Zed, in a statement in Nevada today, urged Myanmar Hindus to continue with the traditional values of hard work, higher morals, stress on education, sanctity of marriage, etc.; and keep on contributing to the progress of Myanmar. (Courtesy of oyetimes.com)