The Irrawaddy magazine has covered Myanmar, its neighbors and Southeast Asia since 1993.
EDITOR-IN-CHIEF: Aung Zaw
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POWERSHARING: COULD IT HAPPEN?
DAWEI BEACHES A GREAT GETAWAY
CASH BONANZA IN YANGON’S GOLDEN VALLEY
AIRPORT SPOOKS!
GHOSTS SPOTTED IN COCKPITS AND ARRIVALS HALLS
16 | Culture: Ghosts Haunting Airports
Spirits have been spotted everywhere from cockpits to arrivals halls
20 | Contributor: A Power-Sharing Alternative?
As the 2015 election looms, a deal between elites could mean a government with the space to focus on problem-solving
24 | Politics: Does the West Really Want a Suu Kyi Presidency? Washington and its allies care more about stability than human rights in Myanmar
28 | Politics: A Lifetime of War
A Kachin IDP recalls decades of fighting against—and for—the Tatmadaw
30 | COVER Trickle Town
As Yangon's Golden Valley enjoys an unexpected cash bonanza, questions arise about some surprise reforms beneficiaries
35 | Interview: In the Zone
U Myat Thin Aung on prospects for the Hlaing Tharyar Industrial Zone and the nation's manufacturing sector
38 | Luxury Cars: Peace Drive
Efforts to end decades of war put some flashy wheels on the roads
42 | Property: Tax Change Sparks Payments Rise
44 | Extractive Industries: Myanmar accepted for EITI
46 | Signposts: Thilawa success crucial for future prospects
48 | Chinese Town Trades Lead Poison Test Results for Milk
Villagers accuse local officials of covering up the health effects of environmental damage by offering milk for medical records
P-58
Publisher U Thant Thaw Kaung, head of the Myanmar Book Aid and Preservation Foundation and the mobile library project under the Daw Khin Kyi Foundation, recently visited the United States as part of a three-week study tour as the Asia Foundation’s Chang-lin Tien Visiting Fellow. The Foundation’s In Asia editor Alma Freeman sat down with Dr. Thant Thaw Kaung to discuss Myanmar’s vibrant reading culture and how he helped keep books and literary life alive in Myanmar during decades of isolation.
At 95 percent, Myanmar’s literacy rate is among the highest in the region, but access to quality books and reading remains a challenge. Why?
The literacy rate is high as a result of a few big campaigns that the government started in 1975 where volunteers and college students went to rural areas across the country promoting the value of reading and books. The government received an award for this campaign from UNESCO, and it has continued until recently. People are able to read in Myanmar. But accessibility to quality books and affordability are our two biggest challenges now. When we began the mobile library we found out that people were eager to borrow a lot of books – they want to read. That’s why the mobile library project under the Daw Khin Kyi Foundation, named after the late mother of noble laureate Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, is successful: it goes to people’s homes; they don’t have to go to the library. So far, the library has had 90,000 checkouts and we have 8,000 members.
Where does the enthusiasm for reading and education come from?
In the villages and at every corner of the road you will find at least one booklending shop. People really appreciate the value of education in Myanmar. In fact, in the 1930s and ‘40s, students from Southeast Asian countries wanted to attend Yangon University as a first
choice, and still today they are proud to say they are alumni from there. The monasteries have also played an enormous role in teaching rural children how to read from a very early age. As such, Myanmar’s education system was historically very strong, but from 1962-1988 and from 1988 to 2010, after the military coup, the country was ruled under a socialistic and military system until the recent political shift. These governments did not give attention to the quality of education.
Moreover, teaching methods have followed a rote learning and memorization style of teaching and learning, rather than on approaches that encouraged critical thinking. The government is trying to introduce a more “student-centric” approach, but that will take some time to change.
Myanmar’s budget for education remains extremely low. What challenges does this present?
This shows that the government is emphasizing defense over health, which accounts for 3 percent, and education, which accounts for just 5.4 percent of the budget (compared to Vietnam which allocates almost 21 percent to education). Myanmar defense’s budget is almost 23 percent of the total budget. There is a big discussion in Parliament about this now, and in January, the government announced that the budget for health and education would increase slightly.
By the time the teachers’ salary is paid, which is also very low at only about $100 a month, the education budget is used up.
Myanmar is also poor: 26 percent of the population is still living under $1.25 a day. And there’s a severe lack of electricity. Because of poverty, school dropout rate is high: there are 8 million students studying right now from K-12. But there are only 400,000 students in university which means there is an 85 percent dropout rate from kindergarten to high school and only 5 percent reach university-level.
While in New York, you received the prestigious Jeri Laber International Freedom to Publish Award for your leading role in keeping books and literary life alive in Myanmar. Can you talk about how the environment has changed since you began?
In those days, the censorship board could confiscate books at any time if they felt that they were sensitive. According to the law, every single book had to get the approval from the censorship board. The board could require that a word, paragraph, or even a whole page be torn off if they declared it to be too sensitive. For example, even a tiny photograph of Daw Aung San Suu Kyi was not allowed. Sometimes, they asked us to use white ink to blot it off. Our books were carefully checked and sometimes we had to withdraw them from the shelves. Many times we even thought of closing down our business.
We had doubts initially in 2010 whether the government would loosen censorship over publications and the media. But they did it step by step, initially lifting the censorship of weekly journals, on health, sports, and education. Two months later, they
introduced more categories, including news journals. The government’s recent decision to abolish the censorship board had an enormous impact on the entire publishing industry and we all welcome this. We have donated over 800,000 books to over 800 libraries.
70 percent of Myanmar’s population lives in rural areas, and as you say, paved roads and other basic infrastructure services are still largely missing in these areas, including electricity for libraries, making it difficult for rural communities to benefit from the rapid development experienced by the country’s urban centers.
We are starting to see these big gaps. Most of the 70 percent of rural residents are farmers. Most of the working age groups now work overseas – 2 million are working in Malaysia or Thailand – where they are more highly paid. There is a shortage of manpower even for farming. In order to narrow this gap, we need to create jobs for them so they work at home and don’t migrate. That’s why we are involved in rural libraries because they can play a major role in access to information in rural areas. At present, we are constructing rural libraries and equipping them with books and computers. Moreover, we are offering training opportunities for modern librarianship to public librarians.
While English-language books are sought after in the urban centers, there is a great need for local-language books in rural libraries. To meet this need, we have arranged with our donor to be able to sell 30 percent of our donated English language books so we can buy local books. We hold what we call book buffets twice a year in urban centers where people can buy books at low rate.
While only 2 percent of Myanmar’s population has access to the Internet, mobile penetration is rising sharply. How do you
see technology playing a role in improving access to education?
Mobile penetration is now at 10 percent, and could be nearly 50 percent in just one year. The younger generation is leapfrogging straight to smart phones, which are becoming very popular in urban centers. At present, we are negotiating with local and international
partners such as Beyond Access and Ooredoo to provide internet and computers at public libraries in rural areas. People are can now access a far broader range of topics, such as health, education, and the economy.
This article originally appeared in the In Asia section of The Asia Foundation's website, www.asiafoundation.org.
“There is a great need for local-language books in rural libraries.”
—Christian-Ludwig Weber-Lortsch, the German Ambassador to Myanmar, speaking
—Daw Khin Htay Kywe of the National League for Democracy (NLD) speaking about the legal cap on monthly alimony payments during a session of the Lower House of Parliament in July.
—Gen. Tanasak Patimapragorn, supreme commander of Thailand’s armed forces, following a visit to Bangkok by Snr.-Gen. Min Aung Hlaing, commander-in-chief of Myanmar's armed forces
“100 kyats is nothing today. Even a cup of tea costs more than that.”
“I have to say, as a true friend of Myanmar, I was shocked, I was shocked, to hear about the recent sentence for journalists, investigative journalists, a sentence of ten years plus hard labor.”
to DVB.Off the Leash, But Still Muzzled
“Myanmar’s government agrees with what Thailand is doing in order to return stability to the nation. Myanmar had a similar experience to us in 1988, so they understand.”
Two men—a Buddhist and a
around a dozen others injured.
In response to the second day of violence, Mandalay District authorities declared a curfew on July 3. However, the next day a mob of angry Buddhists burned down an orphanage, a rest house and a farm at a Muslim section of a cemetery north of Mandalay following a funeral for the Buddhist victim, U Tun Tun.
An ethnic Kayin girl from Myanmar who suffered horrific abuse after being kidnapped and forced to work as a maid for a couple in Thailand has been awarded more than US$140,000 in damages by a local court, according to a Thai human rights agency.
Muslim—were killed in Myanmar’s second-largest city after communal clashes broke out on July 1 and continued for two days, until a heavy security presence brought the situation under control.
Around 1,000 police were deployed after the first night of rioting, which resulted in only five people being injured, but clashes resumed the following evening, leaving the two men dead and
The violence—the latest in a series of incidents that have raised tensions between Buddhists and Muslims in the country—was initially sparked by an inflammatory post on social media claiming that a Buddhist woman had been raped by her Muslim employers.
A fake statement claiming to be by the National League for Democracy also circulated on Facebook shortly after the clashes, apparently in an effort to portray Myanmar’s main opposition party as pro-Muslim.
The IrrawaddyThe Human Rights and Development Foundation said the Kampaeng Phet Provincial Court ordered the girls’ accused abductors, Nathee Taengorn and Rattanakorn Piyavoratharm, to pay her 4.6 million baht (US$143,000) in compensation for torturing her while she was in their custody.
The 12-year-old girl, known only by the pseudonym “Air,” was kidnapped five years ago and escaped from the couple on Jan. 31, 2013. After previous unsuccessful attempts to flee, the couple poured boiling water over her body, leaving her severely disfigured.
Despite the seriousness of the charges against them, the Thai couple was released on bail and later fled. They are still at large, and prosecutors have yet to bring any formal charges against them.
—Nyein Nyein
condemned by journalists and media freedom groups, who said it signaled a return to harsh repression of the press.
Four journalists and the CEO of the Unity Journal were sentenced to 10 years in prison with hard labor on July 10 for publishing a report alleging that a military facility in Magway Region was being used to manufacture chemical weapons.
The five men—CEO U Tin Hsan and journalists U Lu Maw Naing, U Sithu Soe, U The Yazar Oo and U Aung Thura—were arrested shortly after the report first appeared on Jan. 25. The President’s Office had filed a lawsuit against them on charges of publishing state secrets and trespassing.
The move was widely
Two days after the sentence was handed down by a court in Pakokku, Magwe Region, journalists in Yangon staged a silent protest to condemn the action. Police later said that about 50 people—including journalists who did not take part in the protest, but reported on it—would be charged under Article 18 of the Peaceful Assembly Law, which requires prior permission for public gatherings.
The protesters said they did not plan to hold the demonstration, but had simply gathered outside the Myanmar Peace Center after they were denied entry to an event attended by President U Thein Sein because they were wearing t-shirts that said “Stop Killing Press.”
—Zarni Mann, Kyaw Phyo Tha and May Sitt Paing
Gen. Maung Maung Ohn, the newly appointed chief minister of Rakhine State, has vowed to come down hard on anyone caught smuggling Rohingya Muslims into or out of the state.
The pledge, made on July 2 during his first speech to the state’s legislature, came after reports that two people had been arrested near Kyaukpyu with eight Rohingyas hidden inside their vehicle.
Under Myanmar’s 1982 Citizenship Act, the Rohingya are not recognized as one of the country’s 135 ethnic groups, rendering them effectively stateless. Among other restrictions, they are not allowed to leave Rakhine State for other parts of the country.
Speaking in the state capital Sittwe, Gen. Maung Maung Ohn called the accused smugglers “traitors of their national race” and vowed to punish them to the full extent of the law.
“He [Maung Maung Ohn] said he would have zero tolerance of anyone who violated the country’s citizenship laws,” said U Thet Tun Aung, a state legislator from the Arakan National Party. —Lawi
WengThailand’s ruling military regime said in July that it would send more than 120,000 refugees back to Myanmar.
The announcement, made on July 14, came days after Myanmar’s armed forces commander in chief, Snr.-Gen. Min Aung Hlaing, met with the Thai junta leader, Gen. Prayuth Chan-ocha, to discuss returning the refugees to their homeland.
A spokesperson for the Thai junta said the two countries would cooperate to ensure that the repatriation was carried out effectively.
“There are around 100,000 people who have been living in the camps
for many years without freedom. Thailand and Myanmar will help facilitate their smooth return,” said Thai army deputy spokesman Veerachon Sukhontapatipak.
“They can make it happen if they do not consider how our human rights will be affected,” said Naw Day Day Poe, deputy secretary of the Mae La refugee camp, the largest of 10 refugee camps in Thailand with about 40,000 residents.
A later statement from Thailand's Ministry for Foreign Affairs stated that there was no time frame for the refugees' return.
'Preparedness for a sustainable return of these displaced persons in safety and dignity is vital,' the statement said. —Saw Yan Naing
Soldiers from the Ta’ang National Liberation Army (TNLA) at rest near Lwel Khan village in Kyauk Mae Township in northern Shan State in early July. The ethnic Ta’ang, better known as the Palaung, have waged an armed struggle against the Myanmar government since 1963.
With 1,500 troops, the TNLA, founded by the Palaung State Liberation Front (PSLF), has no fixed headquarters but runs mobile operations in northern Shan State. President U Thein Sein’s government has met with PLSF and TNLA leaders at least two times, most recently in 2013, in a bid to strengthen trust, but clashes have continued.
to impress the British who occupied lower Myanmar, Mindon sent some of his sons to study in an Anglican missionary school.
In more recent times, Mandalay residents owed gratitude to U Razak, a minister for planning and education who died along with independence hero Aung San. A former headmaster of Mandalay National High School who helped build Mandalay College (now Mandalay University), U Razak, respected Muslim and a scholar of Pali and Buddhism, was a true national hero.
By AUNG ZAWIn 2012, during my second trip to Myanmar after spending 24 years in exile, I made a point of visiting Mandalay. For me, traveling to the country’s secondlargest city was a bit like going on a pilgrimage: It was here, after all, that King Mindon established the Yadanabon newspaper (known in English as The Mandalay Gazette), one of Southeast Asia’s first newspapers.
King Mindon, Myanmar’s penultimate monarch, was an enlightened leader who understood that the best way to withstand Western influence was by embracing some of the same institutions that made the West so strong. Famously, he declared that the press was to have free rein when it came to reporting on affairs of state.
“If I do wrong, write about me,” he said. “If the queens do wrong, write about them. If my sons and my daughters do wrong, write about them. If the judges and mayors do wrong,
write about them. No one shall take action against the journals for writing the truth. They shall go in and out of the palace freely.”
But it wasn’t just the press that benefitted under King Mindon’s rule. Although he took his traditional role as the protector of Buddhism seriously, he also respected other religions. Under his reign, Christians and Muslims were allowed to build places of worship and practice their faiths freely. Muslims and Portugese served in the royal army and custom’s department, and were allowed to marry Myanmar women.
Many Muslims were royal bodyguards, couriers, interpreters and advisers in the royal court. It is said that the King, who hosted the Fifth Great Buddhist Synod in 1872, even helped to build a hostel in Mecca for Muslim pilgrims from his country.
Thais descended from prisoners of war after the sacking of Ayutthaya also lived on peacefully in Mandalay. And
Mandalay also has an important place in more recent history. In 1988, it was a major center of the prodemocracy uprising that sought to overthrow the military dictatorship. The city produced many well-known activists, but Buddhist monks played an especially prominent role in opposing the country’s rulers. When the generals refused to respect the results of elections held two year later, the monks earned the admiration of the entire nation by rejecting alms from military families—a powerful gesture that showed the ruling regime lacked all legitimacy. For their defiance, many monks were arrested in raids on monasteries and tortured in prison.
All of this makes it especially depressing to realize that Mandalay is now better known as hotbed of religious intolerance, thanks to the acts of a few extremists intent on stirring up trouble as a way of undermining Myanmar’s efforts to restore democracy.
U Wirathu, the monk who calls himself the “Burmese bin Laden,” is no heir to Mandalay’s noble past. Although he is the abbot of one of the city’s largest monasteries, he does not spread the Buddha’s message of peace, but propagates a gospel of fear and hatred directed at Myanmar’s Muslim minority. But it comes as no surprise that his hateful incitement has gone unchecked: Photographs on social media sites have shown him receiving alms from hardline leaders of the ruling Union Solidarity Development Party (USDP) and others who unashamedly proclaim him a true defender of Buddhism.
If Myanmar wants to move forward, it should look more deeply into its past
The violence that shook Mandalay in early July followed a pattern that we have seen many times in the past two years, and which we will no doubt see many more times between now and next year’s crucial elections. Two Muslim men were accused on social media of raping their Buddhist maid, and after a period of growing tension between the city’s Buddhists and Muslims, all hell broke loose.
Although there was relatively little loss of life or damage to property in this latest incident, reporters on the ground in Mandalay say they feel there may be worse to come.
Indeed, many observers of Myanmar’s dirty and often deadly politics are growing increasingly wary of the direction the country seem to be taking as it heads towards elections that will decide its fate for years to come. As one ethnic leader told me, the current government—which came to power through a rigged vote in 2010—“doesn’t
have the courage” to hold free and fair elections in 2015.
The fear is that instability will be used as an excuse to spare the militarybacked USDP another resounding electoral defeat like the one it suffered at the hands of the National League for Democracy (NLD) in by-elections held in 2012 (the NLD boycotted the 2010 election). If that happens, Myanmar’s reforms could rapidly unravel, and the country would return to a political impasse that would only benefit hardliners from the former regime who preferred the pre-2011 order.
It seems that the leaders of the old regime had calculated that five years of relatively relaxed rule would be enough to win their party another lease on life. Now that their time seems to be running out, however, they are getting more desperate and more willing to resort to their tried-and-true tactics of violence and divide and rule to perpetuate their hold on power.
After a brief period of hope, when the administration of President U Thein Sein made all the right moves— releasing political prisoners, lifting media censorship, and suspending the unpopular Myitsone hydropower project, among others—it is easy to despair as country appears to be sliding back into the repressive habits of the past. With activists and journalists being locked up again, the sense of déjà vu is almost oppressive.
But at such times as this, it is important to remember that Myanmar’s history has not been entirely one of woeful misrule. Mandalay’s proud past, for instance, points to other possibilities. If Myanmar once had leaders who valued press freedom and religious tolerance, there’s no reason it can’t have them again.
By SAMANTHA MICHAELS / YANGON
Myanmar’s grim air safety record can be blamed on many causes: an undeveloped air traffic management system, antiquated aircraft and poor pilot training, to name a few.
But sometimes, officials at the country’s airports point their fingers to more spiritual—even supernatural—culprits.
Local ground crews, baggage handlers and tower communications workers have been known to cite ghosts and spirits as occasionally interfering with aviation logistics, while linking fatal accidents to the poor karma of airline owners, according to Southeast Asia scholar and anthropologist Jane M. Ferguson, who wrote a report titled “Terminally Haunted: Aviation Ghosts, Hybrid Buddhist Practices, and Disaster Aversion Strategies Amongst Airport Workers in Myanmar and Thailand.”
Ghosts have reportedly been spotted everywhere from immigration halls to aircraft cockpits.
“On two separate occasions, Myanmar Airways pilots reported that the auto-start was already engaged, even though they had just entered the cockpit and hadn’t touched the instruments,” Dr. Ferguson cited as an example of ghostlore in her report, published earlier this year in The Asia Pacific Journal of Anthropology. “This was very disturbing for the Myanmar Airways pilots, but they were not allowed to leave the cockpit, or abort the flights. In both cases, the flights went as planned and without incident.”
In Myanmar and elsewhere in Southeast Asia, ghosts are a common theme in travel stories. Many Buddhists believe they have the best chance of being
reborn to a higher status if they die at home, surrounded by caring family members. If they suffer a violent death while traveling outside the home, they miss out on the proper send-off.
Along roadsides in Myanmar, shrines can be found, often at particularly dangerous curves, to appease the lingering spirits of those who have been killed in car crashes. On the so-called Death Highway, a hastily built road stretching from Mandalay to Yangon that has seen more than 430 accidents over the past four years, Buddhist monks and activists have even organized spiritual interventions, including meritmaking ceremonies to prevent more crashes.
Similar stories carry over to air travel, in a country whose air accident rate is reportedly nine times higher than the global average, according to an official with the Department of Civil Aviation. At Mandalay International Airport, an official for a regional airline recounted to Dr. Ferguson the time she came upon a phantom in the immigration hall. “I saw a man standing next to me at the counter, not doing anything but looking at me. …It must have been a thayay
ritual attended by monks and hundreds of airport staff, a parcel inspector was then said to have become possessed by a guardian spirit that warned of future problems if shrines were not erected in his honor. His warning was heeded and shrines were promptly built, with statues of snake deities placed inside them for good measure.
The airport’s construction also led to ghost stories, Dr. Ferguson says. According to one local legend, a female airport worker from Myanmar fell into the molding of a column being built in the customs hall, and she died a gruesome death as concrete was poured inside. Today, airport workers still visit the column—distinguished by its uneven surface—and they bring offerings such as snacks to appease the woman’s ghost.
“Different cultures offer a different set of symbolic tools to understand danger and uncertainty,” Dr. Ferguson told The Irrawaddy, adding that folklore or spiritual beliefs were not symptoms of irrationality. Most people understand that car crashes are due to driver error, bad weather or poor road construction, she said, but they turn to ghost stories in a bid to explain why these unfortunate happenings occurred exactly when they did, or how they did, to harm somebody.
[ghost] because nobody else saw him but me,” the official was quoted as saying.
Sometimes airport workers point to karmic explanations for accidents, such as on Christmas in 2012, when a 24-ton Air Bagan aircraft crashed into and killed a motorbike driver while approaching Heho Airport in Shan State. “Air Bagan is unlucky from the beginning. Tay Za has done so many bad deals to become the richest man in Myanmar,” an official was quoted as saying by Dr. Ferguson. U Tay Za is a crony who owns the airline and made much of his wealth through deals with the former military regime.
Of course, Myanmar is not the only source of supernatural aviation tales. Before Thailand’s Suvarnabhumi Airport opened in 2006, the director of the state-owned airport enterprise saw a large cobra slither in front of his car in a parking garage, which he took as an omen, according to Dr. Ferguson. Before the airport’s launch, at a merit-making
Even in the United States, where the average person is perhaps less likely to link mishaps with the workings of spirits, alleged supernatural sightings do crop up from time to time. After an Eastern Air Lines flight crashed during its approach to Miami International Airport in 1972, killing 101 people, airline officials claimed to see the ghosts of flight crew members that had died in the accident. In another incident at Chicago’s O’Hare International Airport in 2006, about a dozen United Airlines employees said they saw a metallic saucer-shaped object hovering over a concourse, prompting speculation of UFOs. The story was picked up by major news networks, though the Federal Aviation Administration dismissed the sightings as a weather phenomenon.
Whether or not phantoms are actually haunting roads and airports is beside the point, said Dr. Ferguson. More important, she said, is studying how people talk about ghosts and what these stories say about their culture.
“Ghost stories come across as strange to international eyes, but there’s very much a logic to them,” she said. In Myanmar, airport officials “can successfully operate all the machines, and they know the culture of international civil aeronautics. The tower operators know the NATO alphabet and can operate all the radar successfully.
“But just because they are operating international machinery doesn’t mean they have abandoned their local cultures. And that’s true everywhere, it’s not unique to Southeast Asia.”
“I saw a man standing next to me at the counter, not doing anything but looking at me. …It must have been a ghost because nobody else saw him but me.”
—Airport official
In 1974, there were only 35 democracies in the world, among them the United States, Canada, western and northern European countries, India, Japan, Australia and New Zealand. That was less than 30 percent of the world’s countries. A lot has changed since that time. By 2013, the number of democracies had expanded to about 120 countries, or more than 60 percent of the total.
But if we look at what has happened more recently, we will find a pretty discouraging picture. In many nonfree countries, we have witnessed numerous, sometimes quite exciting popular uprisings—such as the Orange and Maidan revolutions in Ukraine and the Tahrir Square revolution in Egypt. In different continents and cultures, people have risen up against corrupt governments and have shown strong aspirations for freedom, their rights, and life with dignity. However, these mass uprisings have yielded a “modest harvest” (in reference to a paper written by political scientists Jason Brownlee, Tarek Masoud and Andrew Reynolds).
In the last 10 to 15 years, transitions to democracy have more often failed than succeeded. There are several factors that have undermined democratization efforts. In some countries, stubborn regimes were ready to use extreme repression while enjoying the loyalty of the army (think Iran, Syria, Bahrain, Belarus and
Venezuela). Many countries were deeply divided along identity lines, so after the removal of the previous authoritarian, repressive regime, they slipped into fragmentation, destabilization, civil war and state failure (Iraq, Afghanistan, Georgia, Ukraine, Libya and Syria). As we have long known, oil and natural resources are more often than not a curse, rather than a blessing.
In many countries where democratization failed, we find disunited, fragmented opposition (Libya, Syria, Ukraine and Egypt). In a bad neighborhood, active external spoilers can be pretty detrimental. Just look at the extent to which Vladimir Putin’s Russia played an active role in undermining democratization efforts in Georgia, Ukraine and Belarus, or the role of Saudi Arabia in Bahrain and Egypt, or the Iranian and Russian role in Syria.
We also know that it is harder to consolidate democracy in poor countries, and in countries lacking historic experience with political pluralism.
If we now compare these negative spoilers of successful democratization with the situation in Myanmar, we see that Myanmar has all the spoilers and obstacles. Myanmar is a poor, undeveloped country that lacks historic experience with political pluralism. Its military has internal command
the 2015 election looms ever closer, a deal between elites prepared to put the country first could mean a government with the space to focus on problem-solving, national reconciliation and unity
cohesion and is most likely still ready to use harsh measures to protect its own interests. Myanmar is a deeply divided society, abundant with natural resources and with more nondemocratic neighbors than democratic neighbors. So without wishing to be doom prophets, we can conclude that Myanmar’s transition will be rocky.
Elections in 2015 will create a high-risk situation. High stakes, high emotions and heated competition can easily lead to violence. In Myanmar, many factors are already instigating
mistrust, hate, tensions and violence today.
One more insight is important. Whoever wins the 2015 elections will have a very hard task. He or she will be squeezed between many inherited and deep problems, with huge pressure from the public for quick changes and improvements in welfare. Many problems are not easy to fix, even if the best government in the world were to come to power. After decades of predatory military rule, any elected government will need to run a largely
dysfunctional state that is incapable of collecting taxes or controlling natural resource revenues and has a low level of capital in domestic banks, poor roads and railways, a chronic lack of electricity, as well as broken education and health care systems. None of these problems can be solved in a short time, but people will not be patient, so any government will be under huge popular pressure. If that government is additionally engaged in constant competition with political opponents, it will not be able to focus on problem solving.
For these reasons, the best scenario for Myanmar will be “cooperative competition” between key political players and a pre-election deal about a power-sharing government for after the election. A power-sharing government focused on national reconciliation and unity would include the ruling Union Solidarity and Development Party (USDP), the opposition National League for Democracy (NLD), the military and key ethnic parties— depending on the results of the free and fair election.
According to a power-sharing deal, the winner of the parliamentary election could nominate the president and 50 percent of ministries, including the Home Affairs Ministry. The second best in the election (the de facto “loser”) could, according to the power-sharing deal, take the post of Lower House speaker and 25 percent of the ministries. Ethnic parties that were successful in the election could nominate one vice president, the Upper House speaker and 25 percent of ministries, including the Border Affairs Ministry. The military could keep 25 percent of the reserved seats in Parliament and the post of the defense minister.
With such an arrangement, there would still be much room for competition in the 2015 election, but all key players would be included in the future government. The government would be legitimate, popular, inclusive and with a strong mandate to focus on problem solving—and on deepening reforms, kicking off economic growth and undertaking major developmental reconstruction in the country. On
the other side, Parliament would be legitimate, representative and inclusive enough to start serious discussions and consultations about amending or re-writing the Constitution. It is also important that Parliament has enough time and is not pressured by the impending election to discuss constitutional changes.
Unfortunately, things are not developing in that direction because the military, the USDP and President U Thein Sein’s government are, according to events in the last six months, not ready for genuine negotiations and a deal. It seems that they believe in the possibility of electoral victory that would keep post-military junta elites in positions of dominance. It seems the strategic goal is to keep the executive power for five more years so that post-junta elites can finish the job of concentrating even more economic power in their hands, and keeping the army in the role of supervisor and arbiter (as in Pakistan and Thailand).
It seems more and more obvious that the post-military pseudo-civilian “reformist” regime does not want to bring democracy, but rather a hybrid, semi-authoritarian regime (like in Cambodia). Behind the friendly face of the reformist government, we have the Iron Triangle (from a political theory known as the “iron law of oligarchy”) of military, economic elites and an ultra-religious movement. The Iron Triangle can easily capture and control all changes so that the underlying interests of keeping privilege and dominance are not endangered by
opening, liberalization and elections. The strategic intention of the Iron Triangle is not democracy, but a stable, pro-business hybrid, semiauthoritarian regime (“disciplined democracy”). This choice is putting the country on a highly risky path.
Opposition leader Daw Aung San Suu Kyi and her NLD party are activating their own support base and mass politics. On the other side, the government and military are allowing (and probably also instigating, through intelligence services networks) the development of an ultra-nationalist and ultra-religious movement. Mass politics has been activated on both sides, and now two bulls are running straight at each other. They are not running at full speed and full strength, but that might happen if there is no compromise between competing political elites. If the two bulls crash into each other in 2015, in an election year when stakes are high, this country could go to hell.
I hope that will not happen. As somebody who has personally experienced democratization going wrong in many places, starting with my own former Yugoslavia and Bosnia, I hope Myanmar’s political leaders on all sides will understand the risks and dangers of further escalation of political confrontation. I hope they will return to the elites’ negotiations and reconnect in some sort of minimum consensus before we enter the highly emotional and inevitably highly competitive year of 2015.
A zero-sum attitude—“I win, you lose”—can easily create in Myanmar a “lose-lose” situation for everybody. Just ask ex-Yugoslavs, Syrians or Egyptians. Compromise seeking and a power-sharing deal before the election can lead all players, and the country as a whole, into a win-win situation. Ask the Poles, the South Africans and the Tunisians.
WITH POWER-SHARING, THE GOVERNMENT WOULD BE LEGITIMATE, POPULAR, INCLUSIVE AND HAVE A STRONG MANDATE TO FOCUS ON PROBLEM-SOLVING
Having established cordial relations with Myanmar’s government, Western nations are now contemplating whether they should also re-establish links with the country’s military, known as the Tatmadaw.
Low-key meetings have been held between representatives of the US military and Myanmar officers, and Britain has conducted what it calls human-rights training with the Tatmadaw. Australia is said to be exploring the possibility of having soldiers from Myanmar take part in UN peacekeeping missions.
Critics, among them Burma Campaign UK, argue that this fledgling cooperation is with the same military that they say is responsible for abuses and atrocities, especially in the parts of Myanmar where ethnic minorities live.
In June 2011, the Tatmadaw launched a major offensive against the Kachin Independence Army (KIA) in the north, using heavy artillery, Russian-supplied Hind helicopter gunships and attack aircraft. More than 100,000 people have been displaced as a result of the fighting, and Human Rights Watch has documented
numerous cases of murders of civilians, rapes and the destruction of entire villages. The KIA has been accused of committing atrocities as well, but not nearly on the scale of the Tatmadaw.
The West is no doubt aware of these abuses and has occasionally expressed its concern. But that hasn’t stopped, for instance, Washington from pressing ahead with its defense outreach, including considering whether to allow Myanmar military officers to train in the United States.
In fact, military cooperation between Myanmar and the United States was quite extensive before the massacres of pro-democracy demonstrators in 1988. It is important to remember that Washington saw Gen. Ne Win’s 1962-88 regime as a bulwark against communist expansion in Asia. It may have called itself “socialist,” but the Tatmadaw fought against the Chinese-supported Communist Party of Burma (CPB). In September 1966, Gen. Ne Win paid a state visit to the United States and met then US President Lyndon Johnson. At the time of that visit, China was beginning to export Maoist revolution to Southeast Asia.
When President U Thein Sein was received in the White House in May last year—the first such visit since 1966— another, business-oriented China was emerging, a China that wants to expand its influence over the region, dominate its markets and exploit its natural resources. Even if Beijing’s agenda this time is different, the United States and China are still at opposite ends of the strategic contest in Asia.
Washington wants Naypyidaw to be on its side in the new Cold War that’s sweeping over Asia—and a military re-engagement with Myanmar should be seen in this context. It is clear that the United States has always had other,
more important priorities than human rights and democracy in strategically located Myanmar.
As early as 1957, at least two Myanmar intelligence officers were sent to the Central Intelligence Agency’s training facility on the US-held island of Saipan in the Pacific. One of these was Brig.-Gen. Tin Oo, or “Spectacles Tin Oo,” as he was known at home. After the 1962 coup, he became the de facto chief of Myanmar’s Military Intelligence and was once considered Ne Win’s heir apparent. He served as spy chief until he was ousted, charged with corruption and jailed in 1983.
The other Saipan-trained Myanmar
officer, Col. Lay Maung, rose to become Myanmar’s foreign minister in the early 1980s. At the same time, a CIAsponsored “research unit” was formed in Yangon, and the main common enemy was of course the CPB and its Chinese backers. The United States also sent weapons to Myanmar to help fight the CPB, although this kind of military aid was modest and the Tatmadaw continued to depend mainly on arms produced in its own defense industries.
Several Tatmadaw officers also received training in the United States, among them Col. Kyi Maung, who attended staff college at Fort Leavenworth in 1955-56. In 1962,
Col. Kyi Maung became a member of the Revolutionary Council set up by Ne Win, but later broke with him and became one of the founding members of the National League for Democracy (NLD). Another, Gen. Kyaw Htin, was trained at the same US facility in the early 1960s and remained loyal to the government throughout his life, as chief of staff of the Tatmadaw from 1976-85 and defense minister from 1976-88.
The 1988 uprising changed that cozy relationship. Relations were brought to an all-time low and did not improve until the November 2010 election and, especially and significantly, after U Thein Sein’s government in
September 2011 decided to suspend the Chinesesponsored hydroelectric power project at Myitsone in Kachin State. That was music to Washington’s ears, and in December that year the then US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton visited Myanmar, followed by President Barack Obama in September 2012. Then, in May last year, the red carpet was rolled out for U Thein Sein in Washington.
Ravi Balaram, a US military researcher and the son of a Myanmar-born ethnic Indian, has already compiled a list of Myanmar officers who once took part in International Military Education and Training (IMET) in the United States, and could, therefore, be seen as potentially “friendly” to Washington. Those identified by Mr. Balaram in a February 2013 paper are U Nyan Tun, former commander-inchief of the navy and now vice president; Col. Myint Thein, who became a defense attaché in the embassy in Washington; the commodore of the Naval Training School, Commodore Tin Aung San; the commanding general of the army ordnance department, Gen. Hla Win; a deputy defense minister and former ambassador to Japan, Col. Aung Thaw; and U Aye Pe, a member of the Lower House of Parliament.
It is an open question to what extent other Western powers are also involved in this re-engagement with the Myanmar military. But if history is anything to go by, Australia may play an important role as well.
Australia recognized at a very early stage Myanmar’s strategic importance. When in the 1950s it was too sensitive for the former colonial power Britain to support the then government
headed by U Nu, Australia became one of Myanmar’s most generous aid donors—and, at that time, it was the communist specter that hovered over the region. A 1953 Australian government report titled “The Strategic Basis of Australia’s Defense Policy” stated that “under anti-communist regimes, Burma [Myanmar], Thailand and Indochina would come under the category specified as countries whose defense will assist the defense of Australia.”
In other words, Australia concluded that the defense of Myanmar was of utmost importance to its own national security, and a number of places on the Australian army’s Command and Staff College were set aside for military officers from Myanmar. In
November 1953, two senior Tatmadaw officers, Col. Maung Maung and Lt.-Col. Tin Soe, visited Australia and were met on their arrival in Melbourne by the Australian army’s directorate of military training, the legendary Lt.-Col. F.P. “Ted” Serong.
By August 1954, no less than 16 Tatmadaw officers were undergoing training in Australia. Lt.-Col. Serong, who was also an expert in counterinsurgency warfare and founder of Australia’s Jungle Warfare Training Center at Canungra in Queensland, arrived in Yangon in 1957 to continue his mission there. The 1962 coup brought all that to an end, but there are indications that Australia may be interested in reestablishing militaryto-military relations with Myanmar. And, now as in the 1950s, it is the China factor that is of overriding importance.
There is fertile ground to build on but, in the end, Myanmar may find itself in the middle of a new big-power game over which it would have little or no control. It is also plausible to assume that the West would prefer continuity and stability in Myanmar to any abrupt change after the 2015 general election.
While Western powers continue to pay homage to the opposition leader Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, it is more likely that they would prefer for the next government to be more or less the same as the present one. Because, as always, regional security is more important for the West than human rights and genuine democratic development.
By SEAMUS MARTOV /
Lazum Htang, a 92-yearold Kachin man living at the Nhkawng Pa camp for internally displaced persons (IDP) near Kachin State’s border with China, doesn’t think very highly of Myanmar’s military. “I am very unhappy now because of the army,” he says, expressing a view shared by many of his fellow Kachin.
Unlike the vast majority of the estimated 100,000-plus Kachin people displaced by the current conflict in their home state, however, Lazum Htang has a special reason to be displeased with Myanmar’s Tatmadaw, or armed forces: He was once on their side.
It was while serving in the Tatmadaw in Nyaung Lay Bin in 1949 that he got shot in the arm by rebels from the Karen National Defense Organization (the precursor to the Karen National Union) during a massive Kayin offensive which began shortly after Myanmar achieved independence. The bullet passed through his arm, leaving a scar that is still visible nearly 70 years later.
Lazum Htang originally joined a Kachin unit in the military in 1946 during the brief resumption of colonial rule that followed the country’s liberation from the Japanese. Like many other ethnic people of his generation, his memories of that period
were positive. “We were free during the time of the British,” he says.
He was discharged in 1957, but his 11-plus years of service in the Tatmadaw, most of which were spent in the 2nd Kachin Rifles, would come in handy when the Kachin uprising began in 1961.
Like many of his fellow Kachin, Lazum Htang joined the Kachin Independence Organization's (KIO) village militia forces. It was an extremely difficult time, he says. Unlike the wellsupplied KIO of today, in those days, the group had only the barest of necessities. “We only had one set of clothes and homemade guns,” he recalls.
While he and his unit were going hungry deep in the forest, his wife Gaw Lu Hkang, now in her mid-eighties, was left to look after the kids. Things got particularly bad after she and her children were forced to flee their village for the first time in 1964 and again the next year. “The army rounded up the villagers many times. The first time we fled was very difficult; we had no food,” she recalls. It was while they were on the run from the military that three of their 15 children succumbed to illness.
After the KIO made gains in their area in the 1960s, Lazum Htang returned to farming and raising his large family. Life was difficult but manageable. The resumption of hostilities in Kachin State in 2011 once again meant that Lazum Htang and his family were displaced. “If this was a good government, we wouldn’t need to run,” he says.
According to Lazum Htang, this latest episode in the Kachin conflict has been worse for civilians than those that came before. “Now the army troops are worse. Whatever they see, they kill,” he says—a view supported by numerous human rights reports highlighting the army’s targeting of civilians during their ongoing operations in Kachin State.
Hard of hearing and having difficulty walking, Lazum Htang is resigned to the fact that he isn’t likely to outlive the conflict. “We’re just staying here to die,” he says. But, he adds: “We don’t want to die in the camp. We want to die at home.”
At these words, his wife of 60 years, who is sitting quietly next to him, breaks down in tears.
As Yangon's Golden Valley enjoys an unexpected cash bonanza, questions around some surprise beneficiaries of the current reform period are unlikely to go away
By AUNG ZAW / YANGONBack in the early 1980s, whenever fellow students told me that they lived in Yangon’s Golden Valley, I knew at once that they were from elite families. In those days, we called this high-end neighborhood “Bogyoke Ywa,” or “Generals’ Village,” because it was home to many high-ranking members of Myanmar’s military ruling class.
Now, three decades later, the area is still home to Yangon’s privileged few. These days, however, residents are more likely to be foreign officials sent by UN agencies or international aid organizations to help get Myanmar back on its feet after half a century of military misrule. Needless to say, their landlords are the same generals who grew rich even as the country descended into economic ruin.
In every country where the aid industry takes root, there is controversy about how it spends its money. A common complaint is that international staff and consultants receive the lion’s share of funding, leaving only a fraction of the total for those most in need.
In Myanmar, another major source of concern for those who worry about how aid money is used is the fact that the country’s economy is still very much in the hands of military men (both serving and retired) and their families and cronies. For instance, fully 60 percent of the property in Yangon is believed to be owned by a handful of individuals who owe their wealth to an oppressive regime that denied citizens their basic rights for decades.
One consequence of this is that rents for properties in Yangon are outrageously high. As The Irrawaddy revealed in May, the United Nations Children’s Fund (Unicef) pays more than US$1 million a year for a Golden Valley property owned by Gen. Nyunt Tin, a former minister for agriculture and irrigation under the regime that ruled until 2011. Although he was sacked in September 2004, allegedly for his involvement in a foreign exchange and import license scam
worth more than $10 million, Gen. Nyunt Tin was apparently allowed to retain his ill-gotten gains, including the compound now rented by Unicef, which is currently valued by realtors at $27 million.
The irony of this is that Unicef last year issued a report urging Myanmar’s government to increase its spending on health and education, which it estimated to be less than 2 percent of the country’s GDP, despite increases since the current quasicivilian government assumed power. “While Unicef strongly supports the current Myanmar reform process, the time for enhanced spending on children is now,” the agency’s country director Bertrand Bainvel said at the time.
While Unicef is certainly correct in its assessment of the government’s misplaced priorities, it appears that its own spending in Myanmar is not immune to the influence of an economy warped and distorted by the greed of generals and their cronies.
And Unicef is not alone. When asked by The Irrawaddy how much it was paying for its offices on Pyay Road in Mayangone Township, the World Health Organization (WHO) admitted that its rent for the property was $79,000 a month—a figure that represents more than a tenth of the
agency’s annual budget in Myanmar of $9 million.
In a press release, the WHO said that the property “belongs to a landlady [named] Daw Khin Nwe Mar Tun.” But whoever holds the deed to the property, the real owner is likely to be someone with ties to the former regime.
Last year, one of Myanmar’s wealthiest businessmen told me that before the military junta stepped down from power, Deputy Snr.-Gen. Maung Aye, the regime’s number two, invited a group of tycoons close to him to divide Yangon among themselves.
Sitting with a map of the city open before them, the powerful general told them to take their pick of prime real estate. They wasted no time in snapping up properties that are now worth millions of dollars.
What makes this story even more galling is the fact that virtually none of the money from these transactions or subsequent rental revenues ever makes it into the national coffers. In June, an official with the Department of Internal Revenue admitted “more than 80 percent” of property owners have been evading tax on income earned from rent for many years.
What this means is that Myanmar—a resource-rich country
that is attracting massive amounts of foreign direct investment—could remain dependent on foreign aid for years to come.
As a nation that prides itself on its independence, this is a depressing thought, indeed. But for some of our “development partners,” it may be music to their ears. The aid business is an extremely lucrative one for some companies.
Take, for instance, Development Alternatives Inc. (DAI), a Washington, D.C.-based private development company that in 2010 received more than $380 million in contract funding from USAID (the US federal government agency responsible for administering civilian foreign aid) to deliver “development services” to countries around the world.
DAI’s office in Yangon is located at 70(P) Golden Valley Avenue, an address owned by relatives of Gen. Khin Nyunt, Myanmar’s former spymaster, whose role in imprisoning and torturing dissidents earned him the epithet “the prince of evil.”
Writing in a commentary for The Irrawaddy, independent human rights consultant Mr. Jonathan Hulland asks a question that has been on the lips of many outraged by the way money intended for the victims of the former junta keeps ending up in the wrong pockets: “But rather than enriching these tyrants, doesn’t
the international aid industry have an obligation to help Myanmar break from its dictatorship past?”
It isn’t just the aid industry that is raising troubling questions about who is benefiting most from Myanmar’s much-applauded opening up: The rush to invest in one of Asia’s most promising frontier markets is also rife with ethical problems that many seem happy to sweep under the rug.
This was highlighted in early June, when the Canadian government made the embarrassing mistake of allowing Steven Law, scion of a business empire founded on profits from one of Southeast Asia’s largest heroin-trafficking operations, to enter Canada as part of an official trade mission. Rather than addressing how this could have happened, officials played down the significance of the error, which said much about how poorly many foreign governments understand who they’re dealing with in Myanmar.
In an article titled “Myanmar: The ‘next economic frontier’
for Canadians,” Bryon Wilfert, Myanmar’s honorary consul to Canada, wrote that The Irrawaddy’s revelations that Mr. Law, son of notorious Kokang Chinese warlord Lo Hsing Han, had joined the Myanmar delegation under his Chinese name, Lo Ping Zhong, should not be a cause for concern.
“Certainly this was not something Canadian authorities were aware of prior to the visit and anyone who met him during his time here did not break Canadian rules if they did business with him,” Mr. Wilfert wrote on a Canadian diplomatic news website.
Indeed, if you’re serious about doing business in Myanmar, you had better get used to shaking hands with some shady characters. Even the EU, which regularly touts its commitment to “responsible investment” to allay concerns about the impact of a growing European corporate presence in Myanmar, has found it impossible to avoid unsavory connections.
To accommodate its expanding mission in the country, the European Commission has rented office space at the Hledan Center in Yangon. The
owner of the center is Asia World, a huge conglomerate run by none other than Steven Law and his Singaporean wife, Cecilia Ng.
What could be more questionable than signing a lease with a USblacklisted businessman with known connections to the illegal drug trade? In Myanmar, the only thing more likely to provoke the anger
of ordinary citizens would be to establish ties to one of the country’s former dictators. And that is precisely what the EU has managed to do with its choice of location for the new EU ambassador’s residence.
Located on May Kha (formerly Ady) Road, the new residence was upgraded to international standards last year in preparation for the arrival of newly appointed ambassador Roland Kobia, a Belgian whose last posting was in Azerbaijan. Next door is the former home of Gen. Ne Win, the late dictator who first imposed military rule on Myanmar, and whose family still owns several other properties in this once secluded area, including the one that is now home to the EU ambassador.
The EU has declined to say how much it is paying for the residence, and members of the Ne Win clan say that they are not at liberty to disclose the rental fee.
In an article I wrote for the online version of The Irrawaddy, I cited a source who said it was in the same ballpark as the Unicef office—about US$1 million a year. Rather than challenge this figure, the EU has chosen to remain silent, hoping the issue will go away.
Clearly, nothing is going to stand in the way of the quest to turn Myanmar’s resources into riches. Even a proposal to establish a European Chamber of Commerce in Myanmar with €2.7 million ($3.7 million) in EU funding—despite the fact that there is already a similar body that serves the same function— looks like little more than an effort to exploit the “Myanmar mania” that has taken hold in the EU.
Hand in hand with the push for more trade will come more and more projects that ostensibly aim to alleviate Myanmar’s profound poverty and other deficits.
While the country’s people certainly need all the help they can get after decades of neglect, the danger is that some of such efforts will only enrich those who have kept the country down for so long, and who are now undeservedly reaping the rewards of “reform.”
Virtually none of the exhorbitant rental money makes it into the national coffers.
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U Myat Thin Aung on prospects for the Hlaing Tharyar Industrial Zone and the nation's manufacturing sector
As chairman of the Hlaing Tharyar Industrial Zone, U Myat Thin Aung understands the challenges facing Myanmar’s manufacturing sector. Despite concerns about whether local manufacturers will be able to compete when the country becomes part of the Asean Free Trade Area next year, however, Hlaing Tharyar—Yangon’s largest industrial zone, with nearly 600 factories employing some 60,000 workers—continues to attract investors. U Myat Thin Aung (who is also the chairman of Yoma Bank and the sole distributor of Samsung products in Myanmar) recently spoke with The Irrawaddy’s Kyaw Hsu Mon about the outlook for the country’s manufacturing sector.
Has the number of factories in the Hlaing Tharyar Industrial Zone increased since Myanmar’s transition to civilian rule?
Yes, before military rule ended in 2011, there were only 500 factories, but now we have 600. We don’t have any more
land available now, so newcomers are going to other industrial zones.
What kind of factories do you have in this industrial zone?
Most are factories for consumer goods. Food products come next. There are
also a lot of garment factories. Until 1998, when the US and EU imposed sanctions on Myanmar, there were 96 garment factories here, but then more than 30 closed. It didn’t happen all at once: US sanctions took effect gradually. Then more orders came from Japan, but not for high-quality clothes. They just ordered workers’ uniforms, and didn’t pay very much for them.
Is it true that most of the factory owners are local people backed by foreign investors?
Many foreign investors prefer to do it this way because it’s cheaper and easier. Local people can use kyat to rent space, but foreigners have to pay in dollars. There are also restrictions on foreigners renting private land. That’s why 90 percent of [foreign] factory owners register under local names. This is still the case, although some Korean investors set up factories under their own names. But Taiwanese mostly register their factories in the names of local people.
Do you think local manufacturers are ready for the establishment of the Asean Free Trade Area next year? Many say they’re worried they won’t be able to compete with goods imported from other Asean countries.
It’s definitely true that they are at a competitive disadvantage. But there’s not much the government can do to support them, because it doesn’t
have the money. However, recently the government has been providing technical training for factory workers, with funding from donors. The trainers come right into the industrial zones. That’s progress, compared to the past.
So what will happen to local manufacturers when zero-tariff imports start coming in from other Asean countries?
Actually, it’s hard to say, as some products will be zero-tariff, but others will still be taxed at a rate of zero to five percent. In fact, there are three kinds of applicable taxes: customs duties, sales taxes, and corporate taxes. Of these, only the customs duties will be removed. All companies—both local and foreign—will have to pay the other two types of tax after 2015.
As for whether local businesses can compete under these circumstances, we should bear in mind that in the past, customs duties were 15 percent, and now they’re just five percent. If taxes were any higher, consumers would be the losers—or goods would just be imported illegally.
After 2015, I expect some local factories will be forced to shut their doors if they can’t compete with imported goods. The quality and quantity of the products will not be the same [as those produced in Myanmar]. But I think the government will give local manufacturers until 2018 to become more competitive, because Myanmar
is a CLMV country [one of the lessdeveloped members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations: Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar and Vietnam].
Why hasn’t there been very much investment in heavy industry in Myanmar so far?
There are many factors. The major one is that the government can’t provide enough electricity. For example, Samsung has told me that they want to build electronics factories here. They could employ 40,000 people, but the government has only offered them the land, with no guarantees of a reliable supply of electricity. They need more than 50 megawatts per day. The government has told them they can produce their own electricity, but they’re not power producers. If the government provided natural gas, it might be possible, but most of the natural gas is being sold to foreign countries.
Labor, on the other hand, is no problem. Wages are still much cheaper than in neighboring countries. In Thailand, for example, the basic monthly salary is US$300 a month. People here would be happy to work for less than half that amount.
Another concern is the unstable political situation here. Foreign investors are worried that the country might revert to military rule. This is an especially big concern for heavy industry, which must make very large investments.
With its bumpy roads and deep poverty, Myanmar is one of the last places you expect to come across a flashy new Ferrari sports car. But in late May, that is what I saw sitting on the back of a truck in the border town of Myawaddy.
Actually, as the main hub for border trade between Myanmar and Thailand, Myawaddy is the kind of place where you wouldn’t be surprised to see almost anything. It’s a town built on contraband: For decades, everything from vegetables and consumer goods to high-end electronics and secondhand cars has crossed the border into Myanmar here—sometimes legally over the Friendship Bridge, but more often undeclared through 20 or so checkpoints controlled by various armed groups. Local traders say that at least US$3 million worth of goods enter the country this way every day.
But it is only since last year that luxury vehicles have begun to make an appearance on the border, according to Yangon-based car traders. Until then, they say, there was probably only one Ferrari in the entire country— the one owned by U Tay Za, a USblacklisted crony who had his flown in to add to a fleet that also included
Myanmar’s only Lamborghini. Now, they claim, there are at least 10 Ferraris, 10 Lamborghinis and 40 Rolls-Royces in the country, all of them imported through Myawaddy.
So what’s driving this sudden influx of luxury vehicles? Although growing demand—Myanmar has a tiny elite with a pent-up desire for the finer things in life, largely denied them during the era of international isolation—undoubtedly plays a role,
the real impetus appears to be more political than economic.
Since assuming power as head of a quasi-civilian government in 2011, President U Thein Sein has made efforts to end decades of ethnic conflict a centerpiece of his agenda. Although military objections to federalism—a key ethnic demand—have stood in the way of reaching a comprehensive settlement, the push for peace has had some notable successes, particularly
in Kayin State. It’s here that the Karen National Union (KNU), Myanmar’s longest-running insurgent army, has made unprecedented moves towards détente with the central government, a development that has earned the government international praise.
Critics say, however, that much of this progress has been based on economic inducements, rather than real compromise. They note that U Aung Min, the president’s chief
Car dealers estimate there are now at least 10 Ferraris, 10 Lamborghinis and 40 Rolls-Royces on the roads
peace negotiator, has handed out hundreds of car registration permits to armed groups as “peace gifts” that many see as little more than a form of bribery.
Sources close to the peace process have confirmed that the number of permits handed out so far has been significant. According to U Hla Maung Shwe, a special adviser to the governmentbacked Myanmar Peace Council (MPC), permission had been granted to register 800 cars in total—270 of them completely tax free. He said only three out of the 17 ethnic armed groups remaining in the country have yet to be given any registration permits.
U Aung Min has denied, however, that the permits—many of them handed out with his signature on them on Feb. 12, 2013, during a ceremony to mark Union Day—are of any economic value.
“They are not permits, as others are saying. It is just allowing their [ethnic groups’] unlicensed vehicles to be registered as they have vehicles without licenses,” he told The Irrawaddy, adding: “The decision did not come from me or the president. It was the
decision of the relevant government meeting.”
But whatever their professed purpose, it’s clear that the armed groups see the permits as a source of income. Saw Kwe Htoo Win, the KNU’s general secretary, confirmed that his group had received some 120 car permits, most of which had been sold to convert the government gift into cash for organizational needs. (Other large groups, including the United Wa State Army and the New Mon State Party, have reportedly received the
same number of permits, while smaller outfits such as the All Burma Students’ Democratic Front have been given 60 permits, sources said.)
According to one car dealer, the value of the permits depends on the type of permit (some, for instance, are only valid in the state where the armed group is active) and the value of the vehicle. With most cars now much cheaper since the government relaxed import restrictions in 2011, dealers use the permits to buy the most expensive cars possible, paying up to US$50,000 for one that can be used to buy a Rolls-Royce. For the dealers, who would normally have to pay as much as $600,000 in taxes for a vehicle of this value (which can sell for $800,000 in Myanmar), the “peace permits” are a bargain.
So far, however, there has been limited peace dividends for civilians living in areas where conflict has been suspended but not ended, and standoffs between government and ethnic army troops still result in fresh clashes.
The introduction in April of a new tax system that reduces rates on lower-value properties has prompted many owners to register sales and pay taxes, while Yangon sales in this market segment have increased, realtors have said.
“The most sales in Yangon are now taking place in lower-end properties… because after the new tax system started, these properties will pay a low tax,” said U Than Oo, a member of the Myanmar Real Estate Association.
He said more sales of lower value property were being registered for tax payment after the government reduced rates on these properties on April 1.
“Under the old system, all properties sellers had to pay 37 percent tax for any type of properties… Now, small real
estate owners register property sales as they don’t need to pay much under this tax system,” he said.
The new system sets a 3 percent tax rate for buyers of property valued at less than 50 million kyat (about US$51,000), 10 percent for properties under 150 million kyat and a 30 percent tax rate for real estate worth more than 300 million kyat (about $306,000). Sellers of property pay a flat 10 percent tax rate.
In addition, property sales in Myanmar are subject to so-called stamp duty for buyers, set at 5 percent of value in Yangon, Mandalay and Naypyitaw, and 3 percent in other cities.
Under the old system, introduced in 2012, buyers paid a flat 37 percent rate on property transfers, while sellers paid 10 percent. Because of this flat rate, many buyers and sellers agreed
not to register the change of property ownership in order to avoid taxes.
U Than Oo said this situation was now changing for the low-end market segment, adding that this would result in more tax collection from this segment.
“Due to this new tax system, the government will get more tax, and more people can buy small property and pay tax,” he said. “They can be a full owner now; they don’t need to avoid tax because 3 percent tax is nothing for them. This is a better tax system for both government and [small] owners.”
At the same time, the government has been trying to tighten tax controls on higher-value properties, which had seen skyrocketing prices across Yangon since President U Thein Sein introduced a raft of reform measures.
In October, the government introduced an improved property valuation method that is used when sales of properties occur in high-value areas.
It estimated the highest property rates are in Yangon’s Bahan Township— known locally as the Golden Valley, where many wealthy people own homes—with an average value of 325,000 kyat ($331) per square foot.
Other expensive townships include Dagon, Mayangone, Kamaryut, Hlaing and Sanchaung, where land is valued at 275,000 kyat. Latha, Lanmadaw, Pabedan, Kyauktada, Pazuntaung and Botahtaung townships come in at an average of about 240,000 kyat per square foot.
As a result, the booming property market has cooled significantly and sales have dropped in recent months, while most high-end property deals tend to go unregistered in order to avoid taxes.
Real estate agents said they heard that the government might further expand the estimation of high-value properties to other parts of Yangon, adding that they feared the move could put further downward pressure on the already sluggish high-end market.
“The government has not yet announced [this plan], but if they expand these property estimation [to other areas], the property market will surely remain sluggish for a time to come,” U Zaw Zaw, a manager of Unity real estate agency, said.
have serious doubts over the government’s commitment to ensuring a safe environment for NGOs that are supposed to participate in the international scheme.
EITI sets a global transparency standard for extractive industries to combat high-level corruption, and governments that want to join the international scheme are required to follow rules on publishing oil, gas and mining project payments. EITI is based in Norway and supported by international governments and 80 global oil and gas companies.
By PAUL VRIEZE / YANGONThe Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (EITI), a global anti-corruption scheme, announced in early July that Myanmar was accepted as a candidate country.
The decision means Myanmar has to comply with an international transparency standard for oil, gas and mining earnings in the coming years and marks a significant step toward addressing corruption in the country.
“Myanmar’s admission to the EITI comes at a critical time as the country is now opening up its vast natural resources for foreign
investment… [T]he government has made a commitment to the people of Myanmar: that they will have the right to see how these resources are managed,” EITI chair Claire Short said in an announcement.
U Zaw Oo, the government’s national coordinator for EITI, said, “EITI gives us a useful tool to design our escape from the resource curse; and it is an important catalyst for ongoing reforms. We pledge to overcome many challenges facing the implementation of EITI standards.”
Myanmar civil society organizations (CSOs) warn, however, that they
The scheme also recommends disclosure of details of company ownership, contract terms, state-owned extractive industries, and allocation of resource revenues. The EITI statement said Myanmar will consider implementing these recommendations and reveal the ultimate ownership of companies that won the 2013-2014 oil and gas bidding round, the country’s first after international sanctions were lifted.
Global Witness, an international extractive-industries transparency watchdog, criticized the oil and gas bidding in June and said it was marked by high levels of corporate secrecy, with only two of 47 firms revealing who ultimately owned them.
Joining EITI has been a key reform measure by President U Thein Sein’s government as it seeks to attract foreign direct investment and shake off Myanmar’s reputation for large-scale corruption and mismanagement in extractive industries under the former military regime.
The move to improve transparency in the extractive industries sector could also increase space for civil society groups, but doubts remainA segment of the oil and gas pipelines being built from the Arakan coast to the Chinese border PHOTO: NYEIN CHAN / THE IRRAWADDY
Myanmar’s rich resources comprise an estimated 2.5 trillion cubic meters of gas and 3.2 trillion barrels of oil reserves, abundant mineral wealth, large-scale hydropower potential and vast forests.
In March, U Thein Sein said his government wanted to join EITI “to encourage responsible investments, [and] to ensure that investment related to extracting natural resources will not affect the environment and socioeconomic situation.”
The World Bank, which assists Myanmar in the EITI process, said through a spokesman that yearly reports will disclose government revenues from resource extraction that “can then be used by government, Parliament, and civil society to affect how revenues are spent, but EITI itself does not dictate how revenues are to be spent.”
The bank said Myanmar also needs to start “setting and enforcing standards for environmental and social impact assessment” for extractive projects.
Myanmar joins a group of 44 EITI candidate countries. It has to complete its first report on implementing EITI requirements within 18 months and become fully compliant by Jan. 2, 2017.
Civil society involvement is central to EITI, and the Myanmar government and oil, gas and mining firms are required to jointly implement the EITI process together with local NGOs in a multi-stakeholder group.
In recent months, the group prepared Myanmar’s application for EITI candidacy, and now it will have to agree on the exact scope of EITI transparency standards and whether it wants to apply these to other sectors beyond oil, gas and mining.
“We are not yet decided on what scope we are going to work with… CSOs for the moment want to include oil, gas, hydropower and forests. The government seems ready to accept inclusion of oil, gas and some mining sectors, such as jade and gems,” said Daw Tayar Maung, national coordinator at
the Myanmar Alliance for Transparency and Accountability (MATA).
Juman Kubba, of Global Witness’ oil, gas and mining team, said, “Whether the scheme actually makes a difference depends on whether [Myanmar] is willing to go beyond bare minimum EITI. In the coming months, [Myanmar] has the chance to show it is serious about transparency.”
A key point of concern for local NGOs is whether the government is committed to implementing the scheme’s requirements to guarantee “an enabling environment” for NGO participation.
Dyveke Rogan, regional director at the EITI International Secretariat, said the board recognized that “the situation for civil society remains challenging,” but it believes “that EITI is an opportunity to increase the space available to civil society to participate in key discussions” about extractive industries.
The next EITI International Board meeting will be held in Myanmar in October.
Air Kanbawza (Air KBZ) plans to launch its first international routes later this year, to Mae Sot and Chiang Mai in northern Thailand, a senior airline official said.
Air KBZ will operate a Yangon-Chiang
Mai flight four times weekly starting Nov. 1, Air KBZ general manager U Myat Thu told The Irrawaddy. He said the airline would sign a code sharing agreement with Mann Yadanarpon Airlines, another Myanmar carrier, allowing both to sell tickets for the same flight.
Chiang Mai has a large Myanmar population and receives many visitors from Myanmar. Currently, only one Myanmar airline, Air Bagan, owned by tycoon U Tay Za, services a flight to the city from Yangon.
Air KBZ will launch the Yangon-Mae Sot route five days weekly, starting Oct. 27, the general manager added. He said the airline would cooperate with Thai budget carrier Nok Air, which recently stopped servicing the same route on its own. No other airline currently flies to Mae Sot, a border town where many Myanmar migrants live.
Air KBZ will operate both routes with 68-seat ATR- 72 aircrafts. The airline plans to buy one new aircraft this month and another in January next year. It currently operates 16 domestic routes with six aircrafts. – Kyaw Hsu Mon
Air Mandalay has signed a definitive agreement to buy up to 10 Mitsubishi Regional Jets (MRJ), the airline announced in July at the Farnborough Airshow in the United Kingdom.
The order is reportedly worth over $280 million.
Deliveries are due to start in 2018.
The MJR jets being built by Mitsubishi Aircraft Corp are
Future foreign investment in infrastructure development in Myanmar hinges on the outcome of the Thilawa Special Economic Zone (SEZ), a business analysis company predicted.
“We believe the outlook of [Myanmar’s] construction sector is significantly dependent on the success of the Thilawa SEZ and future SEZs such as Dawei and Kyaukphyu,” said a study by Business Monitor International (BMI).
The strong investment in Thilawa, on the edge of Yangon—mostly by Japanese firms—was positive and pointed to further foreign investment in Myanmar’s “severe deficit in infrastructure, industrial and commercial buildings,” BMI said. But many overseas businesses are waiting to see how successful the Thilawa project turns out to be.
Japanese companies have taken the majority investment share in Thilawa, primarily with the backing of conglomerates Mitsubishi, Marubeni and Sumitomo, plus the Tokyo government-financed Japan International Cooperation Agency.
These Japanese interests have a combined 49 percent stake in Thilawa.
Plans for SEZs at Dawei on the southeast coast and Kyaukphyu, where China has already invested in an oil transhipment port, are unlikely to progress much until Thilawa is completed and working, said BMI.
– William BootJapan’s first passenger jets. Based in Yangon, Air Mandalay operates scheduled services to 15 domestic destinations, as well as air charter services for oil companies.
Japan’s MRJ planes seat 7092 passengers and is powered by Pratt & Whitney’s Geared Turbofan engines.
–Reuters / The Irrawaddy
Mining companies will soon be allowed to resume jade mining operations in northern Myanmar, following a two-year hiatus due to armed conflicts.
The Ministry of Mines announced in July that small- and large-scale miners can return September 1 to the resource-rich Kachin State.
Mining operations were suspended in the state in 2012 due to fighting between the government’s military and the Kachin Independence Army (KIA). After the suspension, small-scale miners and hand-pickers moved in illegally to try their luck.
The Ministry of Mines said progress had been made recently in peace talks between the government and the KIA, although a bilateral ceasefire remains elusive.
The decision to resume mining operations follows an annual gems emporium in the capital Naypyitaw, which saw fewer lots of jade than previous years. Even so, jade sales surpassed expectations, reaching about US$3.4 billion, compared with $2.6 billion last year. – Kyaw Hsu Mon
After a test showed farmer Zhao Heping’s toddler grandson had high levels of lead in his blood two years ago, local offi cials in China’s Hunan Province offered the child medicine, he says—and milk. In return, Zhao says, offi cials asked that he hand over his grandson’s blood test results.
Zhao was not alone. Eight residents of Dapu, a rural town of about 62,000 dotted with smelters and chemical plants, say families of children diagnosed with lead exposure were offered milk, but only if they surrendered their test results. The milk, residents recall officials saying, would flush the lead out of the children’s bodies.
“I still give my grandsons milk, but it’s useless,” said Mao Baozhu, 61, a local resident who says her three grandchildren have all been diagnosed with high lead levels. “Isn’t the residents committee just trying to deceive us by distributing milk and saying all the kids have to do is drink it and they’ll be cured?”
Allegations by villagers of the crude attempts by local officials to cover up the health effects of the environmental damage in Dapu by offering milk for medical records underscores the challenges China faces in waging the “war on pollution” premier Li Keqiang announced in March.
Environmental pollution is increasingly a source of social unrest in China. In agricultural areas like Dapu, air, soil and water pollution from local factories can deprive farmers of their livelihoods and rob them of their health. Cancer rates in some polluted villages are so high that they are known as “cancer villages.”
The belief that milk can treat lead poisoning is widespread in China. The National Health and Family Planning Commission recommends “nutritional intervention” for children exposed to lead because they may have nutritional deficiencies, among other treatments.
Better nutrition does not lower lead levels, though, according to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). It recommends eliminating the source of pollution and, in extreme cases, treatment to remove heavy metals from the body.
In response to questions from Reuters, the National Health and Family Planning Commission reiterated its nutritional guidance and noted that dairy and bean products could be offered to children suffering from lead exposure.
But it added that its guidelines went well beyond nutrition, and it was neither “complete nor correct” to say that milk flushed lead out of the body. It also recommended removing the source of lead pollution and medical treatment in severe cases.
A spokeswoman for the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CCDC) said it was not involved in the investigation in Dapu and could not comment. She directed inquiries to local health authorities in Hunan. Local health authorities declined interview requests. One official at a regional information office said she had never heard of anyone distributing milk and collecting blood test results.
Milk has a complicated history in China. In 2008, six children died and hundreds of thousands became
sick after milk producers added the chemical melamine to milk powder. Six years on, parents who can afford to still buy imported infant formula, and foreign-made milk is popular in Chinese cities.
There is no evidence to suggest officials did not believe that milk was an effective treatment for excessive lead levels, but several villagers in Dapu said they thought it was just a tactic to pacify the public. “They slap you on the face, then they give you candy. That’s how the government operates,” said Li Wanming, a resident whose grandchildren had elevated blood lead levels.
Lead poisoning is among the most serious, if least visible, side effects of China’s rapid economic growth. Exposure to lead is particularly dangerous for children: It inhibits intellectual and physical development, and can cause poor concentration, disruptive behavior, even death at high levels. Its effects are irreversible.
Local governments often organize medical tests and distribute medicine, vitamins or food in Chinese regions affected by heavy metal pollution, said Liu Jinmei, a lawyer at the Center for Legal Assistance to Pollution Victims in Beijing. Often, local officials would not disclose the results of tests they had organized for villagers, she said.
“Mainly this is to prevent the villagers from learning the truth, or to prevent them from passing this information on to people outside the village,” Liu said.
In a 2011 report on lead poisoning in China, Human Rights Watch also documented how local hospitals in polluted areas withheld and, parents believe, manipulated or falsified test results.
There are no national data on lead levels in China. The Capital Institute of Pediatrics in Beijing, which conducted a survey in 15 cities between 2004 and 2008, found 7.6 percent of those surveyed had lead levels above 100 micrograms per liter (ug/L), China’s threshold for safe lead exposure.
Dapu’s lead problem made national headlines last month in an exposé by state broadcaster CCTV, in which the mayor was shown saying children
might have raised their own blood levels by chewing on pencils. After the broadcast, which claimed that more than 300 children had high lead levels, officials opened an investigation and Meilun, a local chemical plant and smelter, was forced to stop production.
Bao Zhu, a member of the local residents’ committee—typically the lowest level of local government— confirmed the distribution of milk to children with elevated lead levels, but refused to answer any more questions.
A woman at the Hengdong information office who would only give her surname, Tan, said the county was only now testing children for lead exposure so it was impossible to say how many children had been exposed. She said she had not heard of anyone distributing milk and collecting test results.
Hunan has significant deposits of lead, zinc, mercury, antimony and
tungsten but is also the country’s largest producer of rice. In 2003, Dapu officials set up an industrial zone which, by 2013, had expanded to include at least 12 smelting factories producing tungsten, copper, lead and zinc.
An April study of the area by environmental advocacy group Greenpeace found high levels of cadmium and lead in local rice samples, some as much as 22 times the national standard.
“The water and soil here are ruined. We don’t farm anymore,” said Li Wanming.
Residents said they brought their concerns about lead pollution to local officials, submitting a petition in late 2012. They said milk had been distributed by the residents’ committee or the local branch of the CCDC to people with excessive lead blood levels three times since 2012, most recently last month.
Only residents who turned in their blood test results received milk and only those that provided the
originals—rather than a copy—would be reimbursed for costs of the tests, said Mao Baozhu, the grandmother of three sick children.
Many handed in their test results in order to be reimbursed and get the free milk, residents said. When asked, two said they had not considered consulting a lawyer because they couldn’t afford one. Mao said subsequent tests showed one of her grandson’s levels are down from three times the national limit for lead exposure in children to twice that level; another is often dizzy and complains of stomach pains.
Farmer Li Laiyin, 64, broke into tears describing his two grandchildren, who tested at nearly five times the Chinese national threshold for safe lead exposure two years ago. They are thin, with little appetite. They can’t sit still or sleep, or concentrate long enough to finish their homework. “I worry about their future. What if they develop more symptoms later?” he asked.
For years, Dawei has been the promised land of Thai developers who have long dreamed of turning this southern Myanmar port city into a gateway to the Andaman Sea.
Located just 230 miles (370 km) west of Bangkok, it is ideally situated to become a new hub for Thailand’s industrial heartland. Ambitious plans to build a special economic zone in the area have faltered, however, as rival projects at Thilawa, near Yangon, and Kyaukphyu, in Rakhine State, have generated more interest among deep-pocketed Japanese and Chinese investors.
But none of this has deterred smaller operators from betting big on Dawei’s future.
According to Steve Bushby, a New Zealander who has lived in Dawei for more than a year, the number of hotels in the city has tripled in the past year, from just four in April 2013 to 12 now (with another three under construction).
It seems that even as the big money stays away, another avenue of opportunity has opened up—tourists, whose arrival has been facilitated by the construction of roads originally built to serve the proposed SEZ.
Long an almost-forgotten backwater because of its inaccessibility, Dawei is now a short flight or a long bus ride away from Yangon. And it’s just a minibus ride away from the Thai border at Phu Nam Ron,
in Kanchanaburi Province. Others coming from Thailand can, if they are adventurous, take a speedboat ferry that can get them there in eight hours from Kawthoung, opposite the southern Thai town of Ranong.
Those who make the trip like what they find: long, pristine beaches that rival much of what you’ll find along Thailand’s famed coastline and the better-known strands of Ayeyarwady Region.
It was not so long ago (until last August, in fact), that Dawei’s seaside charms were almost entirely unknown to foreigners. The only way foreigners could reach the city was by air, and when you got there, you had to stay within a six-mile (10-km) limit. Now, however, you can travel overland all the way from Mawlamyine to Kawthoung— something that was impossible just a year ago.
According to Mr. Bushby (whose website, southernmyanmar.com, is an invaluable resource), this once remote part of the country is already finding its way onto the region’s travel circuit. “People who do the north of Myanmar and
want to finish in Bangkok or Phuket are coming here,” he says.
Dawei sits at the northern end of a 40-mile (65-km) peninsula, with the Andaman Sea coast to the west and the Dawei River to the east. Beaches line the coastal side, offering an almost unbroken stretch of white sands punctuated by the sight of golden pagodas.
One of the nicest beaches is Teyzit Beach, about 20 miles (35 km) away from Dawei. Like many others, it is at the end of a dirt track. It is several miles long, with a few moored fishing boats bobbing in a clear sea; just beyond them, you can see two small islets, each surmounted by a pagoda. The only people to be seen are a few fishermen and local children playing in the sea.
Nearer to Dawei is Nabule Beach, another sandy expanse several miles long with a temple at one end, which is easily reachable by road. But its future
Left: Fishing is a way of life in the south. Above: People enjoy a stroll on the beach. Left, below: Traditional refreshments.
as a beach is uncertain, as this is the site of the proposed deep-sea port. Behind the beach there is a showroom with pictures and models of the still non-existent port with an industrial park larger than Singapore behind it. Whatever the fate of the project, Dawei is clearly destined for greater regional prominence. If you want to experience its beaches before they succumb to investment on a massive scale or are overrun with tourists, you would be well-advised to visit sooner rather than later.
Getting There: The easiest way to reach Dawei is by air from Yangon. You can also catch a modern air-conditioned inter-city bus from Yangon to Mawlamyine and on to Dawei for around $18. (The road south of Ye about halfway between Mawlamyine and Dawei is very poor and the going is slow). You can also travel to Dawei from Thailand by crossing the Thai-Myanmar border at Phu Nam Ron (accessible by bus from Bangkok) and taking a minibus (approx. US$30). And you can catch a speedboat ferry from Kawthoung in Thailand for about $40.
Places to Stay: For budget accommodation, the Sein Shwe Mo Guesthouse ($7 for a clean single room with outside bathroom) is a good option. For $10, the Dream Emperor offers single rooms with fans and attached bathrooms. For the best mid-range value, the Shwe Moung Hotel has clean, modern double rooms with air conditioning and attached bathrooms starting at $15.
The Zayar Thet San is the best business hotel in town, with rooms for $40-$60.
Getting to the Beaches: You can rent a motorcycle for about $8-10 per day or take a taxi (around $15 for a round trip by motorcycle or $70 by car, depending on the distance). The best way to arrange transportation is to ask one of the motorcycle taxi drivers outside the supermarket by the hotels.
For more info: The website www.southernmyanmar.com has lots of useful information for visitors.
BY SIMON ROUGHNEEN / YANGON
It’s a hot Tuesday evening just before the start of the rainy season, and Daw Ni Ni Shein has parked next to Junction Mawtin, a shopping mall on Anawrahta Street just a few minutes’ walk from Chinatown.
“Just to take a minute’s rest,” the 60-year-old mother of three, who has been cruising Yangon’s streets in search of fares since noon, explained.
Daw Ni Ni Shein first got behind the wheel of one of the city’s taxis a decade ago. At the time, her husband had just retired, and her children were reaching adulthood, so the full-
time housewife decided to begin a new—and, for a woman in Myanmar, rare—career as a taxi driver.
According to the Yangon City Development Committee, there are over 26,000 taxis in the commercial capital, but only five of those are driven by women.
“We have around 90 drivers, but we don’t have any lady drivers,” said U Kyaw Lin, a director at Golden Swallow, a taxi firm based near Yangon’s international airport.
Asked if he would ever consider hiring a woman for the job, U Kyaw Lin was noncommittal.
“Maybe this is not popular in Myanmar,” he said, adding that it might be a problem for a woman to
drive at night, when many customers are men who have been drinking.
Whatever the reasons for their scarcity, female drivers are a rare breed in many countries as well as Myanmar. According to the International Women’s Day website, only 1.1 percent of the taxi drivers in New York City are women, with a similar figure for Toronto. In France, by contrast, women make up a relatively high 9 percent of the taxidriving workforce.
Safety is, of course, an important issue for many women who might consider driving a cab for a living—
and for passengers, with specialized taxi firms in Western cities offering the reassurance of female-only drivers for female customers. But Ma Nyein Shin, another one of the handful of female cabbies in Yangon, said that it wasn’t a major concern for her.
“I work 9 to 5 every day,” she said, agreeing with U Kyaw Lin’s take that working after dark verges on taboo, but arguing that there was no reason a woman couldn’t drive during the day.
Ma Nyein Shin previously worked in real estate. Now just one month after working as a taxi driver, her take was that the work was fun, but sometimes trying.
If she worries about anything, she said, it was Yangon’s traffic, which is growing more frenetic by the day.
The number of vehicles on the country’s roads has shot up dramatically since economic reforms were introduced in 2011. According to figures released by the Ministry of Transport, Myanmar had a total of 400,000 registered cars and trucks last year, up from 260,000 in mid2012.
Together with Yangon’s maniacal bus drivers, who careen through crowded streets as if seeking pedestrians to mill into, the sheer volume of traffic on Yangon’s roads can be stressful even for the most experienced driver.
But despite the heavy traffic, both women say they make a decent living. Ma Nyein Shin said she gets, on average, between 10 and 15 passengers a day—enough to keep her busy, though a lot of time is lost in Yangon’s sometimes glacial downtown traffic.
Daw Ni Ni Shein said she takes in around 30,000 kyat (US$30) a day in fares. “I only spend 3,000 kyat on gas, so it’s a good job,” she said while leaning over the steering wheel, her head almost touching the windshield as she peered left while stalled at a traffic
light—the only source of illumination on the nighttime street apart from other cars.
While many taxi companies may be reluctant to take on female drivers, there is clearly some demand for women who can handle a car. Barbara Myint Sein, the chief operations officer at Yangon’s Parkroyal Hotel, said the hotel previously employed two female drivers, both of whom have moved on. “One left because she got a better salary to work as a secretary and driver,” she said.
For her part, Daw Ni Ni Shein sees no reason to give up a job that has served her well these past 10 years. “No plan to stop. I will run, run all the time,” she said.
Unlike Ma Nyein Shin, the more experienced Daw Ni Ni Shein is unperturbed by driving Yangon’s usually quiet nighttime streets; and while both women mostly stick to the city’s busy downtown core—the area centered around Sule Pagoda, from Chinatown to Botahtaung Township—Daw Ni Ni Shein is happy to do the occasional airport run.
Until just a few years ago, when foreigners were still a fairly rare sight in Yangon, a driver was lucky to pick up a passenger who wanted to make the 40-minute run to the airport in the city’s northern outskirts. These days, however, most drivers charge 7,000 or 8,000 kyat for the trip—and some more entrepreneurial spirits will tack on an extra 1-2,000 kyat for running the air-conditioning.
“Oh, some drivers charge too expensive for foreigners!” Daw Ni Ni Shein—whose standard rate for the same route is 5,000 kyat—exclaims when she hears this.
Then—demonstrating that she’s mastered the fine art of snagging a fare as well as any of her male colleagues—she offers me her phone number.
“Next time you fly, you call me.”
Today in Yangon, an increasing number of events and venues are providing vital platforms for artists of all backgrounds to showcase their talents, and consequently inspire the artistic passions of others in the community.
Thanks to this growing frequency, artists have something to look
forward to, and therefore are encouraged to continue creating and refining their material.
Sometimes a feeling of “arts in the air” even wafts so far as to embolden those who are less likely to take the stage to consider unlocking their own latent or forgotten artistic potential.
In early July, TS.1 Yangon hosted its inaugural My Word Open Mic. TS.1, or Transit Shed No.1, was designed as a space to nurture the
arts and celebrate culture. With the help of My Word founder Nikita West, they succeeded
in bringing a diverse community together to hatch their inclusive open mic concept.
“I started My Word because I know there are artists in Yangon who want a safe and supportive space to share their talents or side projects,” Ms. West explained. “More open mics will encourage people to keep going.”
Adding that “A person’s day job may be totally unrelated to their artistic side,” she said she hopes that open mics “provide a platform to express that other side.”
Ms. West plans to make My Word a monthly happening, and would like to bring in spoken-word artists, poets, and comedians for a genre-crossing evening of artistic expression.
Ja Som Laban, the quirky and explosive singer of Yangon band The Myth, delivered the standout performance of the night.
Weaving strong, catchy melodies with indie-pop tendencies, her songs and stage-presence, while unique,
contain the same energy that fills clubs in cities like Seattle, London, and Tokyo.
Just days after the gathering at TS.1, the National Theatre in Yangon hosted a grand and harmonious Handshake Concert, which brought together world-class musicians and dancers from across Myanmar and India, with strong representation from India’s northeastern state of Nagaland, bordering Myanmar’s Sagaing Region.
The event, presented by the embassy of India in Yangon and the Rattle & Hum Music Society of Nagaland, in cooperation with Myanmar’s Ministry of Culture, showcased acts transcending the historic, cultural, and linguistic ties of the two countries.
A sizeable audience, including a large group of school children,
watched in awe as Myanmar drummer Thandar Lin never dropped a beat while incrementally adorning her body with drums hung from straps and held over her shoulders.
In the following act, the Tetseo Sisters, beloved cultural ambassadors of Nagaland, donned traditional Naga dress and sang in Chokri to deliver a mesmerizing triad of traditional, ethereal songs.
Dedicated to preserving the music from their Chakhesang tribe, the sisters’ voices (and grunts) swirled and reverberated around the hall in a ghostly echo.
The classically trained singers of Nagaland’s first show choir, Voices of Hope, also belted out ballads and drew audible excitement from the crowd during their rendition of the song “Jai Ho,” from the awardwinning film, Slumdog Millionaire.
In a rounding out of musical styles, Grammy Award winner and world charmer Pandit Vishwa Mohan Bhatt from Jaipur headlined the night with a hypnotic performance on the mohan veena (slide guitar) accompanied by entrancing tabla tapping.
As these two events show, truly inspiring and extraordinary artists from the local and international community are gaining increasing exposure in Yangon, strengthening a sense of optimism for the future of the city’s arts scene.
J Kieran C Way—also known as DJ K.C., or by his Myanmar name Nay Myo—has lived in Australia since 1977, but originally hails from Myanmar. An accomplished DJ, he runs the United DJ Mixing School, and now hopes to open schools in the land of his birth, he tells The Irrawaddy’s Kyaw Hsu Mon.
How did you get started as a DJ?
I started out in university. I just started mixing, DJing at parties, and then more and more parties invited me. Slowly I got involved full-time as a DJ.
When did you decide to set up a DJ school?
I started my DJ school in Australia after winning the Australian DMC National DJ competitions in 1992, 1993 and 1996. I placed 5th in the world and a lot of people asked me to teach them, so I thought maybe I could open a school. After three or four years of experimenting and trying different ways of teaching, it became a success and I saw good results with my students.
Why do you want to open a DJ school in Myanmar?
I came here for the first time in 30 years in 2007. I visited a few nightclubs and got the idea to open a school here because I didn’t meet many DJs and felt a need to help the local music scene and help create more Myanmar DJs. I didn’t open a DJ school at that time, but made plans for the school with my family, friends and sponsors here.
I came back again last year and DJed during the water festival. I also came last November to DJ at GTR Club and organized a Hip Hop 40th Anniversary Seminar with many Myanmar hip-hop artists. This time, I was surprised to see so many talented DJs here. I wanted to do something for them because I felt the world is closed to them and they are not known outside Myanmar. So I had the idea to organize the DMC DJ Competition in Myanmar so they can compete on a world stage and we can put Myanmar on the map.
When and where will your DJ schools open in Myanmar?
We are planning to open a school in November. The locations will be Yangon and Mandalay.
Who is eligible to attend your school, and how much will it cost?
The course is open for all ages and the fee is still to be decided but will be based around the same structure we have used in Australia. I want to use the same structure we have used in Australia for the last 20 years, which has proven results. We will work together with [Daw] Tin Moe Lwin, [whose talent and modeling school] has offices in Yangon and Mandalay.
Can you guarantee that your students will succeed after attending your school?
At the end of the course, they will receive the United DJ certificate, which is recognized around the world. After that, we will give them extra time to practice with our equipment. When they are ready, we will get them to perform together onstage to graduate.
We will then pick the best student and take him or her to Australia to perform in the nightclubs we operate there. We have a big agency there, so we can really promote the top student. So basically, we are offering a guaranteed job placement overseas [to the top student].
By GRACE HARRISON / YANGON
An exciting new offering for health-conscious diners seeking whole rather than fast food has emerged downtown. Tucked down a lane opposite Gallery 65 on Yaw Min Gyi Street in Dagon Township, Sprouts is a hidden haven. But the secret is out, and the bicycles are parked outside.
With just six tables and friendly counter service, Sprouts keeps things simple. Made fresh each day, the soups, salads and breads scream ruddy goodness. Open 8 am to 8 pm daily, you can pop in for a breakfast of granola, fruit and yoghurt (3,500 kyat) or fruit only (2,000 kyat). It’s a natural, powerpacked start to the day that you can enjoy with a fruit smoothie (2,500 kyat), delicious lime and mint cooler (2,000 kyat) or drip coffee (1,000 kyat).
For lunch, dinner or anytime in between, Sprouts’ versions of all-time classic salads like Greek or Niçoise (5,000 kyat) are offered alongside original creations inspired by a musical bent, such as the Rocket Man, Jitterbug and Pomelo Yellow for 4,500 kyat, or the Salad of a Thin Man for 3,500 kyat. Or you can also do the Build a
Salad (3,500 kyat) with a selection of crisp lettuce leaves, including red oak, romaine and rocket, served together with your choice of carrot, cucumber, tomatoes, pomelo, peppers, onion, chickpeas, corn, broccoli, roast vegetables, boiled egg, green beans, mango or seeds. Cheeses are 1,000 kyat extra, but you can get olives, bread or beetroot for just 500 kyat more. The idea of feta and pumpkin seeds in the mix makes this salad hunter salivate. Tossed with tasty tart dressings, such a small feast becomes a lifeenhancing experience.
For a bit more oomph to carry you through the day, you must order Sprouts’ now-legendary carrot and ginger soup (which is strongly challenged by their hearty tomato), available by the cup (2,000 kyat) or bowl (3,000 kyat) and served with bread.
Some sweet desserts (a berry crumble or some honey oatmeal slice would do nicely here) might be welcome additions to the menu, but
Sprouts
68A/2 Yaw Min Gyi Street Tel: 01-240 172, 094-2107 4086
Email: sproutsmyanmar@gmail.com Website: www.sproutsmyanmar.com
Facebook: www.facebook.com/sproutsmyanmar
the Sprouts team seems focused on healthy, low-sugar diets. And thanks for that.
Reminiscent of the container cafés that sprang up in post-earthquake Christchurch in New Zealand, Sprouts is chilled out, informal, stylish, and clean with a personal touch. Some may find the setup a bit bare and the square wooden stools just a tad uncomfortable, but that’s just a question of taste. And for cellular excitement, Sprouts raw food is probably the best in town. Find it or phone in an order and the Sprouts team will deliver to your door in the Yaw Min Gyi Street and Bogyoke Market area for an extra 1,000 kyat, or for the round taxi fare to other areas.
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A neglected historic site is still well worth a visit
By KYAW HSU MON / THANBYUZAYATOn the River Kwai, the award-winning film, as a child, I always wanted to visit the place where the Death Railway begins in Myanmar.
The railroad, which stretches from Thanbyuzayat Township in Mon State to Thailand’s Kanchanaburi District, was built during World War II by allied prisoners of war, including Myanmar soldiers, as well as by local people, who were forced to work by the Japanese empire.
More than 16,000 prisoners of war died during the construction, or about 38 prisoners for every kilometer of the 257-mile (415-kilometer)
railway. With little or no medical care, they succumbed to sickness, malnutrition and exhaustion. Many suffered horribly before their deaths.
At the Death Railway memorial in Thanbyuzayat, an old steam locomotive is a reminder of decades long ago. A damaged statue of a standing soldier can also be seen, its upper body lying in the grass. Though the railway started here, only a small strip of tracks remain. At the end of it, a large concrete signboard reads, “MyanmarThailand-Japanese death railway line starts here.”
The Myanmar government has failed to attract many tourists to the site. By contrast, in Thailand, hundreds of people go every day to Kan-
chanaburi to see the famous bridge that opened in 1988. In Mon State, it seems no maintenance has been done, and the potential tourist attraction has been neglected. I hope it can be developed so that more people can visit soon.
If you do go to Thanbyuzayat, you can also stop at a war cemetery where thousands of allied soldiers were buried between 1939 and 1945. A record at the cemetery says, “The land on which this cemetery stands is the gift of the Burmese people for the perpetual resting place of the sailors, soldiers andairmen who are honored here.”
