The Irrawaddy
KNU Offers Logging Contracts in Brigade 6
By LAWI WENG  Wednesday, December 16, 2009

The Karen National Union (KNU) has permitted logging companies to cut
down more than 1,000 tons of timber from the two main hardwood forest
reserves in Kawkareik District since the beginning of December,
according to local businessmen at the Thai-Burmese border.

A local businessman in Three Pagodas Pass told The Irrawaddy on
Wednesday that about 13 businessmen in the town were permitted
unlimited logging across the border in southern Karen State by paying
tax in advance to the KNU.

¡§We can log as much timber as we want if we pay a tax advance to the
KNU,¡¨ he said. ¡§They are demanding 1,300 baht [US $40] for one ton of
timber,¡¨ he said.

A source close to the KNU, however, said the KNU was charging about
4,000 baht [$120] per ton in tax.

Sources say that logging companies also have to pay a similar tax to
several other armed groups, such as the Democratic Karen Buddhist army
(DKBA), the Karen Peace Force, the New Mon State Party (NMSP) and the
Burmese government forces, all of which have checkpoints in the area.

One ton of ironwood in Three Pagodas Pass is currently wholesaling at
33,000 baht [$1,000], which allows investors profits of about 35
percent after all expenditures, said the sources.

A KNU military official from the KNU's Brigade 6 told The Irrawaddy  on
Wednesday that the local Karen commander has allowed logging in the
area recently and added that he believed Thai companies were involved.

According to KNU Forestry Department data, the KNU has preserved two
main forests in Kawkareik District¡XMae Kathr and Kyunchaung. Mae Kathr
forest covers some 50,000 acres while Kyunchaung covers 20,000 acres.
Both forests are rich in virgin hardwoods, including teak and ironwood.

¡§All those woods are good quality because they last for a long time,¡¨
said a furniture retailer in Three Pagodas Pass. ¡§We can manufacture
high-quality furniture to sell in Thailand.¡¨

The Mae Kathr forest had been undisturbed for more than 60 years. It
lies in a KNU-controlled area, Brigade 6, about nine kilometers [5.5
miles] from the Burmese border town of Three Pagodas Pass.

Business sources in the town said they expect the timber business in
Three Pagodas Pass will grow rapidly now that the KNU has allowed
logging in the forests.

Speaking to The Irrawaddy on Wednesday, another businessman who
recently invested about 4 million baht [$120,000] into a logging
business in Three Pagodas Pass said, ¡§I have dreamt of  doing this for
a long time. Today my dream came true.¡¨

Previously, while the border crossing was closed, timber companies such
as Thailand's Sia Hook company had to bribe Burmese border guards in
order to transport logs into Thailand. The businessmen said profits
were lower before, because border guards demanded 30,000 baht [$900]
per truck and each truck would normally be carrying about 12 tons of
timber.

Snr-Gen Than Shwe's business crony Tay Za was one of the first to
become involved, according to a member of the NMSP. Over the past year,
the KNU has permitted Tay Za's logging company to extract about 2,000
tons of hardwood from the Mae Kathr forest, he said.

Revenue from logging contracts is reportedly the KNU's major source of
income, from which it subsidizes its war against the Burmese army by
purchasing arms.

The local businessmen in Three Pagodas Pass said that the KNU had
permitted logging recently  because they are worried about losing
Brigade 6 to a joint military force of the Burmese government troops
and the DKBA when they launch a dry season offensive.

The sources said this might have forced the KNU¡¦s hand into accepting
the quick cash from logging contracts.

The KNU, one of the oldest surviving rebel groups in Southeast Asia,
has been fighting for autonomy since 1949.

========================================================
American citizen Kyaw Zaw Lwin (also called Nyi Nyi Aung) was arrested
in Burma on Sept. 3, 2009, accused of aiding the political opposition
and reportedly tortured and starved during interrogation. Amnesty
International¡¦s Urgent Action [still valid after 10/09; he is currently
on trial]: www.isavelives.be/en/node/4106
------------------------------------------------------------------------
---------------------------
Donations to help the people of Burma can be made to:
Global Health Access Program, funding indigenous medical teams and
clinics:
www.ghap.org/
Burma Humanitarian Mission, delivering medical supplies and training:
www.burmamission.org/
------------------------------------------------------------------------
----------------------
"DOWN THE RAT HOLE: Adventures Underground on Burma's Frontiers"
is the latest book by Edith Mirante (author of "Burmese Looking Glass")
published by Orchid Press:
<http://d30021575.purehost.com/indiv_titles.html#rathole>
Available at Powells.com:
<http://www.powells.com/s?kw=down+the+rat+hole>
It can also be requested from your local bookshop or ordered at:
<www.amazon.com>

Gold mining precedes dam construction on Irrawaddy River

Written by Kachin News Group   
Friday, 18 December 2009
http://www.kachinnews.com/

Gold mining activity has begun in areas to be flooded by the dam on
Burma’s famous Irrawaddy River confluence in Kachin State before the
contentious dam construction starts, said local sources.

Seven large companies including the Burma-Asia World Company, the prime
contractor for constructing the dam project and Yuzana Company have
swung into full-scale gold mining activities. Dozens of bulldozers,
power shovels, trucks and other mining machines are in evidence since
December 4, said local residents.

Many new camps, tents and huts for gold miners have been constructed
near the mines in the dam project site and around the Irrawaddy
confluence village Tang Hpre, 27 miles north of Myitkyina. The gold
mining activities are on day and night, according to Tang Hpre’s
villagers.

Meanwhile, foreign and local visitors to the confluence are being
disturbed by the gold mining work. One of the most popular places to
relax in the country is turning ugly because of the gold mines, said
locals.  

About 2000 Chinese labourers under the Asia World Company are also into
logging, gold mining and digging tunnels at the dam project site. They
have been secretly transported to the site at night in groups from
China through the border in Kachin State since late October, said
sources among them.

The junta has granted special gold mining permits in the zones to be
affected by floods to the two ethnic Kachin armed groups that dissolved
their organizations and came under the control of the Burmese regime
recently. They are the former New Democratic Army-Kachin (NDA-K) and
Lasang Awng Wa Peace Group (LAWPG), said sources in the two groups.

Before the gold mining grants were handed out, former NDA-K leader
Zahkung Ting Ying and former LAWPG leader Lasang Awng Wa submitted
proposals to the military leaders in Naypyitaw asking for gold mining
permits in the predicted flood zones of the Irrawaddy dam, said sources
close to the two leaders.

The proposals stated that digging out gold from the dam’s flood zones
is better than wasting it in flood waters, and that the revenue from
the gold can be used for development projects, according to local
companies.

Local companies desirous of getting gold mining blocks in the dam
project sites were told to apply to the junta under the names of former
NDA-K and LAWPG by the military authorities in Myitkyina, said company
sources.

People of Tang Hpre and other residents around Irrawaddy dam sites have
been increasingly persuaded or pressurized in different ways to
relocate by the military authorities after Burma and China signed in
Beijing in June to implement the Myitsone hydropower project and other
hydropower projects in Mali Hka River and N’Mai Hka River in Kachin
State, said local residents.

Before the latest agreement, officials of the Chinese government-owned
China Power Investment Corporation (CPI) and the Asia World Company
were into inspection activities on the confluence as of 2006.

Kachin people has appealed to the junta to put a halt to the confluence
dam project since 2007 because ethnic Kachins are worried the flood
waters from the dam will damage their invaluable natural heritage---
the Confluence, or Mali-N’Mai Zup in Kachin. It is known for its beauty
and is historically linked to ancient Kachin civilizations in northern
Burma.

--
If you want to read more related stories, please log on to
www.kachinnews.com
========================================================
American citizen Kyaw Zaw Lwin (also called Nyi Nyi Aung) was arrested
in Burma on Sept. 3, 2009, accused of aiding the political opposition
and reportedly tortured and starved during interrogation. Amnesty
International’s Urgent Action [still valid after 10/09; he is currently
on trial]: www.isavelives.be/en/node/4106
------------------------------------------------------------------------
---------------------------
Donations to help the people of Burma can be made to:
Global Health Access Program, funding indigenous medical teams and
clinics:
www.ghap.org/
Burma Humanitarian Mission, delivering medical supplies and training:
www.burmamission.org/
------------------------------------------------------------------------
----------------------
"DOWN THE RAT HOLE: Adventures Underground on Burma's Frontiers"
is the latest book by Edith Mirante (author of "Burmese Looking Glass")
published by Orchid Press:
<http://d30021575.purehost.com/indiv_titles.html#rathole>
Available at Powells.com:
<http://www.powells.com/s?kw=down+the+rat+hole>
It can also be requested from your local bookshop or ordered at:
<www.amazon.com>

December 16, New Light of Myanmar
Senior General Than Shwe inspects greening of Mt. Popa

Nay Pyi Taw – Chairman of the State Peace and Development Council
Commander-in-Chief of Defence Services Senior General Than Shwe,
accompanied by SPDC Member General Thura Shwe Mann, SPDC Secretary-1
General Thiha Thura Tin Aung Myint Oo, SPDC Member Lt-Gen Tin Aye, the
Commander-in-Chief (Navy), the Commander-in-Chief (Air), senior military
officers of the Ministry of Defence, commanders, ministers and officials
left Bagan for Mt. Popa region by helicopter yesterday morning and
arrived
there at 9:40 am.

At the briefing hall of private tea plantations in Kyinma camp of Mt.
Popa
Park, Minister for Forestry Brig-Gen Thein Aung submitted reports to the
Senior General, saying that in accord with guidance of the Head of State
on greening of Mt. Popa region, such tasks as forests conservation and
afforestation were undertaken thoroughly; that private sector had been
permitted to grow tea since November 2008 after trial cultivation of
one-acre tea plantation that grew well under shade trees.

The minister continued to say that if cultivation of tea became a
success,
it would not only create new jobs but provide tea and dried tea to the
region. The minister then elaborated on tea plantations of private
sector
and future plans.

A one-acre pilot tea plantation with 5,400 plants that are suitable to
climate of the region has been grown in the eastern part of Mt. Popa
region.

With regard to private sector, Tin Tun Win Producers Company has so far
grown over 0.7 million tea plants on 200 acres with application of
contour
system near Yenge camp at Mt. Popa and planned to establish as many as
500
acres of tea plantations. It is learnt that about 0.3 million of tea
saplings have been grown in the nursery of the company and monsoon,
groundnut and orange have been grown in the plantations as mixed-crops.

The minister added that for greening the environs of Mt. Popa region and
long-term benefit of local people, banana plantations inside forest
reserves and public protected forests had been replaced with trees,
plants
and perennial crops.

The minister went on to say that the replacement of over 5,000 acres of
banana plantations with trees, plants and perennial crops in period
between 1996 and the rainy season of last year was a cent per cent
success
and over 1.3 million of trees including teak, ironwood, Gmelina arborea,
kapok, eucalyptus, belleric myrobalan were planted in addition to
perennial crops such as cashew, tamarind, sweet sop, jack fruit and so
on.
The minister gave a detailed account on income per acre of perennial
crops
grown in the region, locals’ interests in cultivation of perennial
crops,
accomplishment of replacing banana plantations with perennial crops in
collaboration with local people.

The Senior General in his guidance said that Mt. Popa region was an
invaluable natural resource for arid central Myanmar that had hot and
dry
weather; that Mt. Popa and climate of the region had direct relation and
thus Mt. Popa region was pivotal for favourable weather condition; that
Mt. Popa region was major watershed for central Myanmar as most of
rivers
and creeks flowing through the region originated from Mt. Popa region.
He
said that dams constructed in the surrounding areas also were somewhat
related with Mt. Popa region; that strenuous efforts had been made for
greening of the region so as to keep the region, an invaluable natural
resource, under preservation; that Mt. Popa region had now become
greener
with trees as a result of over 10 years of thorough conservation.

He said that geographical condition of Mt. Popa and its environs were
suitable for cultivation as the region being an extinct volcano; that it
was necessary to be aware of the value of Mt. Popa; that perennial crops
that were likely to grow well including tea plants were to be grown
extensively for higher income of the local people and greening of Mt.
Popa.

Next, the Senior General and party viewed thriving one-year old tea
plants
and mixed-crop groundnut plantations in pilot tea plantation of a
private
company.

The Senior General and party viewed onemonth old tea saplings in the
nursery and looked round the plantation in a motorcade.

Afterwards, the Senior General and party proceeded to Popa Mountain
Resort
from which the Senior General viewed flat top of Mt. Popa, greening of
Mt.
Popa region and forest conservation.

The Senior General then met with personnel concerned and inquired about
harvest of seasonal crops, water inflow into Kyetmaukytaung dam, supply
of
irrigation water and socio-economic conditions including increase in per
capita income.

The Senior General and party left Mt. Popa region in the afternoon. –
MNA

______________________
========================================================
American citizen Kyaw Zaw Lwin (also called Nyi Nyi Aung) was arrested
in Burma on Sept. 3, 2009, accused of aiding the political opposition
and reportedly tortured and starved during interrogation. Amnesty
International’s Urgent Action [still valid after 10/09; he is currently
on trial]: www.isavelives.be/en/node/4106
------------------------------------------------------------------------
---------------------------
Donations to help the people of Burma can be made to:
Global Health Access Program, funding indigenous medical teams and
clinics:
www.ghap.org/
Burma Humanitarian Mission, delivering medical supplies and training:
www.burmamission.org/
------------------------------------------------------------------------
----------------------
"DOWN THE RAT HOLE: Adventures Underground on Burma's Frontiers"
is the latest book by Edith Mirante (author of "Burmese Looking Glass")
published by Orchid Press:
<http://d30021575.purehost.com/indiv_titles.html#rathole>
Available at Powells.com:
<http://www.powells.com/s?kw=down+the+rat+hole>
It can also be requested from your local bookshop or ordered at:
<www.amazon.com>

December 18, New York Times
Dams and development threaten the Mekong – Thomas Fuller

SOP RUAK, Thailand — Basket loads of fish, villagers bathing along the
banks of the river, a farmer’s market selling jungle delicacies — these
are Pornlert Prompanya’s boyhood memories of a wild and pristine Mekong
River.

Mr. Pornlert — now 32 and the owner of a company that organizes
speedboat
outings for tourists in this village in northern Thailand, where Myanmar
and Laos converge — peers across the Mekong today at a more modern
picture: a newly constructed, gold-domed casino where high-rollers are
chauffeured along the riverbanks in a Bentley and a stretch Cadillac
limousine.

The Mekong has long held a mystique for outsiders, whether American
G.I.’s
in the Delta during the Vietnam War or ill-starred 19th-century French
explorers who searched for the river’s source in Tibet. The earliest
visitors realized the hard way that the river was untamed and
treacherous,
its waterfalls and rapids ensuring it would never become Southeast
Asia’s
Mississippi or Rhine.

But today the river, which courses 3,032 miles through portions of
China,
Myanmar, Thailand, Laos, Cambodia and Vietnam before emptying into the
South China Sea, is rapidly being transformed by a rising tide of
economic
development, the region’s thirst for electricity and the desire to use
the
river as a cargo thoroughfare. The Mekong has been spared the pollution
that blackens many of Asia’s great rivers, but it is no longer the
backwater of centuries past.

China has built three hydroelectric dams on the Mekong (known as the
Lancang in Chinese) and is halfway through a fourth at Xiaowan, which
when
completed will be the world’s tallest dam, according to the United
Nations
Environment Program.

Laos is planning so many dams on the Mekong and its tributaries — 7 of
about 70 have been completed — that government officials have said that
their ambition is to turn the country into “the battery of Asia.”
Cambodia
is planning two dams.

At the same time, the dashed dreams of French colonizers to use the
river
as a southern gateway to China are being partly realized: After Chinese
engineers dynamited a series of rapids and rocks in the early part of
this
decade, trade by riverboat between China and Thailand increased by close
to 50 percent.

The cargo passes through increasingly populated areas, erstwhile sleepy
cities in Laos that are now teeming with tourists and defying the
economic
downturn with swinging construction cranes. Many parts of the Mekong
were
once a star-gazer’s dream; now nights on the river are increasingly
aglare
with electric lights.

Environmentalists worry that the rush to develop the Mekong,
particularly
the dams, is not only changing the panorama of the river but could also
destroy the livelihoods of people who have depended on it for centuries.
One of the world’s most bountiful rivers is under threat, warns a series
of reports by the United Nations, environmental groups and academics.

The most controversial aspects of the dams are their effects on
migrating
fish and on the rice-growing Mekong Delta in Vietnam, where half of that
country’s food is grown. The delta depends on mineral-rich silt, which
the
Chinese dams are partially blocking.

Experts say the new crop of dams will block even more sediment and the
many types of fish that travel great distances to spawn, damaging the $2
billion Mekong fishing industry, according to the Mekong River
Commission,
an advisory body set up in 1995 by the governments of Cambodia, Laos,
Thailand and Vietnam. Of the hundreds of fish species in the river, 87
percent are migratory, according to a 2006 study.

“The fish will have nowhere to go,” said Kaew Suanpad, a 78-year-old
farmer and fisherman in the village of Nagrasang, Laos, which sits above
the river’s great Khone Falls.

“The dams are a very big issue for the 60 million people in the Mekong
basin,” said Milton Osborne, visiting fellow at the Lowy Institute for
International Policy in Sydney and the author of several books on the
Mekong. “People depend in very substantial ways on the bounty of the
Mekong.”

Some analysts see the seeds of international conflict in the rush to dam
the river. Civic groups in Thailand say they are frustrated that China
does not seem to care how its dams affect the lives of people
downstream.

In August, the Vietnamese province of An Giang began a “Save the Mekong”
campaign that opposes the construction of the dams in the lower part of
the river, according to Carl Middleton, the head of the Mekong program
at
International Rivers, an organization campaigning against the Mekong
dams.

Neither China nor military-ruled Myanmar, the two northernmost countries
through which the river passes, are members of the Mekong River
Commission, freeing them from the obligation to consult other countries
on
issues such as building dams and sharing water.

And yet, for now, the dams are not national preoccupations in any of the
countries along the river.

“Most of the voices that are shouting in the wilderness about these dams
are still very little heard outside of academic circles,” Mr. Osbourne
said.

There have been no major protests and for many people in the region the
dams are the symbol of progress and avenues to greater prosperity. The
development of the Mekong is also an affirmation of a new Asia that is
no
longer hidebound by ideological conflict.

Jeremy Bird, the chief executive officer of the Mekong River Commission,
says the dams are likely to even out the flow of the river, mitigating
flooding and making the river even more navigable.

“You could have launches like you have on the Rhine,” Mr. Bird said. He
added: “With dams there are always negatives and positives.”

For Mr. Pornlert, whose boyhood village of Sop Ruak has now grown into a
town with five-star resorts and restaurants catering to tourists, the
negatives seem to outweigh the good.

He says the river behaves unpredictably, it is more difficult to catch
fish, and he is uneasy about swimming in the river because there is “too
much trash and pollution.”

“The water level used to depend on the seasons,” Mr. Pornlert said. “Now
it depends on how much water China wants and needs.”


========================================================
American citizen Kyaw Zaw Lwin (also called Nyi Nyi Aung) was arrested
in Burma on Sept. 3, 2009, accused of aiding the political opposition
and reportedly tortured and starved during interrogation. Amnesty
International’s Urgent Action [still valid after 10/09; he is currently
on trial]: www.isavelives.be/en/node/4106
------------------------------------------------------------------------
---------------------------
Donations to help the people of Burma can be made to:
Global Health Access Program, funding indigenous medical teams and
clinics:
www.ghap.org/
Burma Humanitarian Mission, delivering medical supplies and training:
www.burmamission.org/
------------------------------------------------------------------------
----------------------
"DOWN THE RAT HOLE: Adventures Underground on Burma's Frontiers"
is the latest book by Edith Mirante (author of "Burmese Looking Glass")
published by Orchid Press:
<http://d30021575.purehost.com/indiv_titles.html#rathole>
Available at Powells.com:
<http://www.powells.com/s?kw=down+the+rat+hole>
It can also be requested from your local bookshop or ordered at:
<www.amazon.com>

China media urged to focus more on Mekong upstream condition

Monday, 14 December 2009 11:36 Hseng Khio Fah
S.H.A.N.

The Mekong media have strongly urged one of its partners, China media
to report more stories about the circumstances of the upstream region
of the Mekong River at a four- day long Mekong Media Forum held in
Chiangmai, Thailand from 9-12 December.

Media from the downstream countries such as Cambodia, Vietnam, Laos and
Thailand said the China media indeed need to inform what is going to
happen on the upper region to downstream countries and to report more
about the government’s operation on dams.

In addition, they need to promote not only the Chinese government’s
awareness but also the people’s in order to understand what the bad
impacts might reach to the people along the downstream areas if they
continue to run mega projects on the river.

Most people see that the Chinese media do not report stories about what
their government is planning on the river such as dam constructions.


Currently, China is planning to construct eight dams on the river; one
of them would be the world’s tallest, at 292 m (958 feet). So far it
has completed three of dams: Manwan in 1993, Dachaoshan in 2002 and
Jinghong in June of 2008.

Due to the completed dam constructions, the lives of the downstream
have been threatened and have also been causing low flow of the water.

"Since the dams began constructing, water levels have gone up and
down," a participant from Cambodia said.

The Mekong region is comprised of China, Cambodia, Vietnam, Laos, Burma
and Thailand countries along the Mekong, one of the famous and
important rivers in the South-east Asia as millions people are relying
on the river to survive.

“China must feel sympathy for people who rely on the river,” said
another participant in the forum.

There were about over 200 participants in the forum including analysts,
media professionals, experts and environmentalists.
“The Chinese Media are responsible to bring and produce more stories of
people from downstream would be suffering from Chinese actions,” he
said.

A senior journalist from China Daily said the China media are alike
Burmese media, all are controlled by the government.
Many news agencies were banned by the government because of reporting
about Dalai Lama, Tibet’s exiled spiritual leader, according to him.

However he said, they will try their best to inform what is going to
happen  in the upstream regions and will also try to raise people
awareness in the upstream regions that how the people in the downstream
countries are suffering from the government’s actions.

Another Chinese journalist commented even the media was not aware of
how the downstream countries think of their country, not to mention the
general public.

 “If I don’t come to the forum I would never know that the downstream
people are dissatisfied with us Chinese people,” she said.

Nguyen Ngoc Tran, Journalism Professor, University of Social Sciences
and Humanities in Ho Ch Minh City of Vietnam said dam constructions on
the Mekong can create serious environmental problems and bad impacts to
downstream countries.

According to the professor, Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen has also
voiced his concerns with the dam constructions and initiated a study on
downstream impacts.


========================================================
American citizen Kyaw Zaw Lwin (also called Nyi Nyi Aung) was arrested
in Burma on Sept. 3, 2009, accused of aiding the political opposition
and reportedly tortured and starved during interrogation. Amnesty
International’s Urgent Action [still valid after 10/09; he is currently
on trial]: www.isavelives.be/en/node/4106
------------------------------------------------------------------------
---------------------------
Donations to help the people of Burma can be made to:
Global Health Access Program, funding indigenous medical teams and
clinics:
www.ghap.org/
Burma Humanitarian Mission, delivering medical supplies and training:
www.burmamission.org/
------------------------------------------------------------------------
----------------------
"DOWN THE RAT HOLE: Adventures Underground on Burma's Frontiers"
is the latest book by Edith Mirante (author of "Burmese Looking Glass")
published by Orchid Press:
<http://d30021575.purehost.com/indiv_titles.html#rathole>
Available at Powells.com:
<http://www.powells.com/s?kw=down+the+rat+hole>
It can also be requested from your local bookshop or ordered at:
<www.amazon.com>

(logging mentioned)

NDA-K transforms to BGF with 30 per cent strength

Written by KNG 
Saturday, 12 December 2009
http://www.kachinnews.com/

A divided New Democratic Army-Kachin (NDA-K) has had to transform to
the Burmese Army controlled Border Guard Force with only 30 percent of
its troops, said former NDA-K sources.

This situation arose following fissures in the NDA-K after 70 per cent
of its veteran military personnel including the NDA-K Vice-chairman We
Dau and Lagwi Bawm Lang left the organization before conversion to the
BGF, said sources close to the two.

The NDA-K had about 800 active military personnel but over 500 left
before the official transformation to the BGF.  About 250 troops
remained in groups for conversion of the NDA-K to three battalions of
the BGF, said a retired officer.

Some NDA-K military personnel, who were over 50 years old, had to step
down in keeping with the junta's BGF rules. Interestingly most who left
the NDA-K before the conversion were under 50, according to former
NDA-K officers.

Those who deserted the fold made it clear that they cannot serve with
Burmese soldiers in the new battalions and operate under the command of
Burmese officers, said sources close to former NDA-K Vice-Chairman We
Dau.

The junta's BGF rules make it mandatory that each battalion is to have
a total of 326 military personnel and the majority must be from ethnic
ceasefire groups while 27 officers playing lead roles will be from the
Burmese Army.

Even before the NDA-K changed to BGF, the Burmese Army started to
entrench itself in the NDA-K headquarters in Pangwah east of Kachin
State near the China border since early October.

The junta is rewarding retired NDA-K officers with special business
opportunities and permits such as in jade, gold mining and logging,
which are difficult for private companies to procure, said sources
close to NDA-K retired officers.

Now, the junta is telling local business companies to apply for
business permits for gold and jade mining and logging in Kachin State
in the names of two former Kachin peace groups--- the NDA-K and Lasang
Awng Wa Peace Group for quick approval, said local company sources.

NDA-K, the former 101st Army Division of the Communist Party of Burma
(CPB) led by Zahkung Ting Ying was the second largest ethnic Kachin
armed group in Kachin State before it converted to the Burmese
junta-controlled BGF.

Earlier, Zahkung Ting Ying and former NDA-K general secretary Ze Lum
split from the Kachin Independence Organization (KIO) in 1968 and
joined the CPB.
--
If you want to read more related stories, please log on to
www.kachinnews.com


========================================================
American citizen Kyaw Zaw Lwin (also called Nyi Nyi Aung) was arrested
in Burma on Sept. 3, 2009, accused of aiding the political opposition
and reportedly tortured and starved during interrogation. Amnesty
International’s Urgent Action [still valid after 10/09; he is currently
on trial]: www.isavelives.be/en/node/4106
------------------------------------------------------------------------
---------------------------
Donations to help the people of Burma can be made to:
Global Health Access Program, funding indigenous medical teams and
clinics:
www.ghap.org/
Burma Humanitarian Mission, delivering medical supplies and training:
www.burmamission.org/
------------------------------------------------------------------------
----------------------
"DOWN THE RAT HOLE: Adventures Underground on Burma's Frontiers"
is the latest book by Edith Mirante (author of "Burmese Looking Glass")
published by Orchid Press:
<http://d30021575.purehost.com/indiv_titles.html#rathole>
Available at Powells.com:
<http://www.powells.com/s?kw=down+the+rat+hole>
It can also be requested from your local bookshop or ordered at:
<www.amazon.com>

December 9, Kachin News Group
Burmese military junta thrives on cycle of corruption

The Burmese military junta thrives on a cycle of corruption, which has
spread its tentacles to all the government's civil sectors as well, said
locals.

According to the International Corruption Perception Index-2009 released
by Berlin-based Transparency International on November 17, Burma is the
world's third most corrupt country.

Companies dealing in jade, timber, mineral and gold in Burma's northern
Kachin State have to give bribes in large amounts of cash or gold bars
for
business permits, mainly to five top generals in Naypyitaw. They are
Snr-Gen Than Shwe, Vice Snr-Gen Maung Aye, Prime Minister Gen Thein
Sein,
Gen Thura Shwe Mann, Secretary 1 and Brig-Gen Ohn Myint of the Minister
of
Mines, alleged business sources.

Again, the bribes, which amount to multi-million kyats or gold bars,
equivalent to the amount in currency, have to be paid to the
Myitkyina-based Northern Regional command commander Maj-Gen Soe Win and
his wife.  Junior military officers in the command are also
beneficiaries
along with military battalions and columns at the local levels, added
business sources.

In the Hpakant jade mining areas in western Kachin State, the companies
are granted official jade mining blocks and permits annually, depending
on
the amount of bribe and the selection by one of the five top generals in
Naypyitaw, said jade businessmen.

The amount of bribe is the highest for Snr-Gen Than Shwe and Vice
Snr-Gen
Maung Aye. If companies can bribe the two top generals, they are quickly
granted the finest jade mining blocks and permits, added local jade
businessmen.

To get a jade mining permit, a private company without direct links with
the junta, has to spend more than 200 million kyats (over US$163,934) as
bribe to the top five generals in Naypyitaw, said sources in jade
companies.

Again all timber companies or businessmen, except Yuzana Company and the
Htoo Trading Company owned by Teza also spelled Tay Za, the son-in-law
of
Snr-Gen Than Shwe, have to pay bribe to the Burmese military and
multi-government departments for log transportation and to operate
logging
fields, said local timber businessmen.

For Burmese troops in Kachin State, the three checkpoints on the illegal
Sino-Burma border trade routes in Kachin State--- Laja Yang, Loije and
Kai
Htik are the best places for making filthy lucre than in any other place
in the state, said sources close to Burmese soldiers.

At the checkpoints, soldiers and other security agents forcibly collect
tax from all goods trucks and illegal timber trucks, said sources close
to
the checkpoints.  But, the Burmese Army battalion in the three
checkpoints
is appointed in a rotational system every three or four months, added
local sources.

They also need to bribe their senior officers up to the level of the
Northern Regional command commander Maj-Gen Soe Win as long as they man
and make money from the checkpoints.

On the other hand, government employees in all sectors are also steeped
in
corruption in different ways for extra income, which has become a
culture
because they receive low salaries, said local sources.

Nowadays, civilians in Kachin State are victims of corruption of the
military and government employees in myriad ways because they do not
have
a chance of making money from business.

People believe that corruption will not decrease in Burma as long as the
military junta rules the country, according to local sources.

========================================================
American citizen Kyaw Zaw Lwin (also called Nyi Nyi Aung) was arrested
in Burma on Sept. 3, 2009, accused of aiding the political opposition
and reportedly tortured and starved during interrogation. Amnesty
International’s Urgent Action calling for his release:
http://smu.edu/humanrights/aiurgent%20No.%201.html
------------------------------------------------------------------------
---------------------------
Donations to help the people of Burma can be made to:
Global Health Access Program, funding indigenous medical teams and
clinics:
www.ghap.org/
Burma Humanitarian Mission, delivering medical supplies and training:
www.burmamission.org/
------------------------------------------------------------------------
----------------------
"DOWN THE RAT HOLE: Adventures Underground on Burma's Frontiers"
is the latest book by Edith Mirante (author of "Burmese Looking Glass")
published by Orchid Press:
<http://d30021575.purehost.com/indiv_titles.html#rathole>
Available at Powells.com:
<http://www.powells.com/s?kw=down+the+rat+hole>
It can also be requested from your local bookshop or ordered at:
<www.amazon.com>

The Irrawaddy


Burma Taking Severe Hit from Climate Change: Watchdog
By WAI MOE  Wednesday, December 9, 2009

Burma is one of the countries worst affected by extreme weather
resulting from climate change, according to a new report that assesses
the impact of global warming over a period of nearly two decades.

Published by the Berlin-based climate watchdog Germanwatch on Tuesday,
the report, the Global Climate Risk Index, says that Bangladesh, Burma
and Honduras were the countries most affected by extreme weather events
from 1990 to 2008.

The report was launched in the Danish capital of Copenhagen, where the
United Nations Climate Change Conference is underway.

In addition to Burma and Bangladesh, four other Asian countries were in
the 10 worst-hit list: Vietnam, India, the Philippines and China. The
other region most adversely affected was Central America, where
Nicaragua, Haiti and the Dominican Republic, along with Honduras, were
among the 10 most vulnerable countries.

The group noted that poor countries had suffered the worst from the
effects of climate change over the period covered by the report.

“All of the 10 most-affected countries … were developing countries in
the low-income or lower-middle income country group,” Germanwatch said.

“Poorer developing countries are often hit much harder. These results
underscore the particular vulnerability of poor countries to climate
risks, despite the fact that the absolute monetary damages are much
higher in richer countries,” the group said.

The report also ranked Burma as the worst-hit country in the world in
2008 due to the impact of Cyclone Nargis, which devastated the
Irrawaddy delta in early May, killing tens of thousands of people.

“The huge number of fatalities in Myanmar [Burma] were caused by
Cyclone Nargis and revealed the low adaptive capacity of the country
which, however, is also a result of the political failure to embark
upon serious disaster preparedness,” the report said.

The report puts the death toll from the disaster at a relatively low
figure of 85,000, while estimating the cost of damages at US $4
billion. However, other organizations, including the UN, have said that
the cyclone killed as many as 134,000 people and left more than 2
million homeless.

The report notes that during the 18-year period it covers, almost
600,000 people died in more than 11,000 extreme weather events, causing
losses of $1.7 trillion.

As one of the world's least developed countries, Burma’s carbon
footprint is not as big as that of industrialized countries such as
Australia, the US and China. However, widespread deforestation in the
country means that it has contributed significantly to global warming.

Although forests covered 344,237 km2, or 50.9 percent, of the country
in 1989, Burma's forest area is now 322,218.6 km2, or 47.62 percent of
the total land area, according to official statistics—a loss of more
than 3 percent over the past two decades.

According environmental researchers in the country, Burma’s
deforestation is a result of  unsustainable logging, particularly
during the early years of the current military regime's rule in the
1990s. At the time, the junta sold Burma’s forests cheaply to foreign
companies, particularly from neighboring countries, to shore up its
foreign exchange reserves.

The regime first noticed the risk of deforestation in 1992, when then
Forestry Minister Lt-Gen Chit Swe announced the Forest Law, which
designated reserved forests for environmental and biodiversity
conservation. At the same time, Burma signed onto the UN Framework
Convention on Climate Change and the UN Conference on Environment and
Development.

In the following years, the regime adopted legislation for sustainable
forests such as the “Protection of Wildlife and Wild Plant and
Conservation of Natural Areas Law” in 1994, the “Myanmar Forest Rules”
in 1994, the “Myanmar Forest Policy” in 1995, and the  “Protection of
Wildlife and Wild Plant and Conservation of Natural Areas Rules” in
2002.

Burma ratified the Kyoto Protocol in 2003 and authorized the National
Commission for Environmental Affairs to focus on environmental issues.

But deforestation in the country is ongoing, despite forest protection
laws. Burmese environmental researchers say that agricultural
expansion, infrastructure projects, including dams projects, and
excessive consumption of firewood are challenges for sustainable forest
management in Burma.

However, researchers say that logging—both legal and illegal—for
commercial purposes is the worst cause of deforestation. Companies
owned by cronies of the regime, such as Tay Za’s Htoo Trading, are
permitted sell timber to foreign companies, while cease-fire groups are
doing the same in territories under their control.

Burma's low level of economic development is also a factor in
deforestation, according to some observers.

“The use of firewood by the public causes both deforestation and the
release of carbon dioxide,” said an environmental researcher in
Rangoon. “From a street-side teashop in Rangoon to a village household,
burning firewood is still necessary for cooking.”

Others attributed this problem partly to a lack of knowledge of
environmental issues. Awpi Kyal, a well-known cartoonist who often
focuses on the environment, said: “Some information about the
environment is available in Burmese journals and magazines, but they
are very academic and not written for the general public.”


========================================================
American citizen Kyaw Zaw Lwin (also called Nyi Nyi Aung) was arrested
in Burma on Sept. 3, 2009, accused of aiding the political opposition
and reportedly tortured and starved during interrogation. Amnesty
International’s Urgent Action calling for his release:
http://smu.edu/humanrights/aiurgent%20No.%201.html
------------------------------------------------------------------------
---------------------------
Donations to help the people of Burma can be made to:
Global Health Access Program, funding indigenous medical teams and
clinics:
www.ghap.org/
Burma Humanitarian Mission, delivering medical supplies and training:
www.burmamission.org/
------------------------------------------------------------------------
----------------------
"DOWN THE RAT HOLE: Adventures Underground on Burma's Frontiers"
is the latest book by Edith Mirante (author of "Burmese Looking Glass")
published by Orchid Press:
<http://d30021575.purehost.com/indiv_titles.html#rathole>
Available at Powells.com:
<http://www.powells.com/s?kw=down+the+rat+hole>
It can also be requested from your local bookshop or ordered at:
<www.amazon.com>

December 5, Forum of Burmese in Europe
Statement of the Forum of Burmese in Europe on the visit of Myanmar’s
Representatives to the International Climate Change Conference in
Copenhagen/DK in Dec. 2009

The International Climate Change Conference will be held in Copenhagen /
DK starting from December 07, 2009, to which world government leaders
including EU ministers will be attending. It is expected that Thein
Sein,
so-called prime minister of the notorious Burma/Myanmar military regime,
will as well be attending the Conference, accompanied by his foreign
minister Nan Win and followers.

Burma is a country in South-East Asia, which has been ruled by
successive
military dictators since more than 50 years. Once a rice-bowl nation of
Asia, the country is becoming at present one of the poorest nations in
the
world under the military-dictatorial rule. Burma is rich in natural
resources, such as oil and gas, precious minerals like gems and uranium,
forest and marine products, etc. Due to the mismanagement and corruption
of the ruling military dictators, poverty in Burma is one of the highest
among the third-world countries, and as well environmentally
catastrophic.

Thein Sein is likely to brief the Conference that since Myanmar is an
agricultural country, it is not responsible for the climate change in
the
area and his government is doing everything possible for the betterment
of
the environment in the region, such as plastic bags have been banned to
use in Nay-Pyi-Daw (new capital), Rangoon and some cities. But what he
would not be going to brief are impacts of deforestation, mineral and
mine
productions, and oil and gas explorations and transportations. He would
not be going to describe the destructions after the 2004 Asian Tsunami
and
Burma’s Cyclone Nargis in 2008. He would shut his mouth on destruction
of
environmental health and biodiversity in Burma.

The military regime of Burma has signed recently with neighbouring
countries like China, India, Thailand, and South Korea related to the
exploration, production, development, operation, transportation and
management of the oil and gas pipeline projects. The oil and gas
pipelines, which begin in the Bay of Bengal and pass through diagonally
across entire Burma to Kunming and further destinations in  China will
be
nearly 4,000 km long, having a security corridor of about 50 km. It
means
that all living beings including the rare species in the area of at
least
60,000 square-km in Burma alone will be affected due to the
environmental
destruction. An estimated of 20,000 well-armed Burmese soldiers are
currently securing the pipeline route, in which forced labour, forced
relocation, land confiscation, deforestation, human rights abuses by the
soldiers will be on the daily routine. Mangrove forests, which provide a
vital natural protection against cyclones, storm surges, tidal waves,
global warming, would be disappearing day by day. But estimated revenues
from the sale of only natural gas would reach around 1 - 2 billion US$
annually for 30 years and go into the pockets of the military elites and
their cronies.

We, the Forum of Burmese in Europe in cooperation with the friends of
democratic Burma, would like to urge the leaders of the EU and of the
world
1) NOT to support the illegitimate military rulers, their 7-step
roadmap,
and their financial programs,
2) NOT to shake with their blood-stained hands caused by crimes against
humanity,
3) To refrain from wining and dining with Thein Sein and his thugs,
4) To respect the resolved EU Common Position including visa ban on
them.

We, the Forum of Burmese in Europe in cooperation with the friends of
democratic Burma, will stage strong protest demonstrations to the
military
lackeys during the Conference.

Contact persons:

Myint Wai, Denmark,            +45 21 28 74 62,
MyintWaiNLD@...
Tayza Thura, Denmark,         +45 52 22 46 23,
Tayzathura@...
Kyaw Thwin, MP, Norway,   +47 90 88 34 48,       Kyawthwin2004@...




========================================================
American citizen Kyaw Zaw Lwin (also called Nyi Nyi Aung) was arrested
in Burma on Sept. 3, 2009, accused of aiding the political opposition
and reportedly tortured and starved during interrogation. Amnesty
International’s Urgent Action calling for his release:
http://smu.edu/humanrights/aiurgent%20No.%201.html
------------------------------------------------------------------------
---------------------------
Donations to help the people of Burma can be made to:
Global Health Access Program, funding indigenous medical teams and
clinics:
www.ghap.org/
Burma Humanitarian Mission, delivering medical supplies and training:
www.burmamission.org/
------------------------------------------------------------------------
----------------------
"DOWN THE RAT HOLE: Adventures Underground on Burma's Frontiers"
is the latest book by Edith Mirante (author of "Burmese Looking Glass")
published by Orchid Press:
<http://d30021575.purehost.com/indiv_titles.html#rathole>
Available at Powells.com:
<http://www.powells.com/s?kw=down+the+rat+hole>
It can also be requested from your local bookshop or ordered at:
<www.amazon.com>

hydropower  mentioned:

The Irrawaddy

Than Shwe Confounds His Peers
By WAI MOE  Friday, December 4, 2009

Burma's military despot Snr-Gen Than Shwe surprised and confused his
fellow generals at a four-monthly military commanders' meeting in
Naypyidaw by ignoring pressing political issues and instead devoting
his speech to the development of the country's economy in the
post-election era, according to military sources in the capital.

Than Shwe reportedly told his fellow generals at the meeting on Nov.
23-28 that Burma is ready for a new government in line with his vision
of a “disciplined democracy,” and addressed numerous economic
developments and projects for the future.

A source who provided The Irrawaddy with a document on Friday analyzing
the proceedings at the closed-door meeting said regional commanders and
top-ranking generals were caught off-guard by the dictator's lofty
aspirations and apparent far-sightedness, because he normally dwells on
petty internal matters, and methods of quelling political dissent and
securing power.

Than Shwe instead spoke of establishing solid business foundations in
the country in the post-election period, of developing Burma's human
resources and of the state's responsibility to promote a solid
middle-class in the country.

During the meeting, sources say Than Shwe spoke confidently about the
development of the national economy and effused about the prospects of
billions of dollars in investment from China, referring to the
Sino-Burmese oil-gas pipeline projects and the development of the
Kyaukpyu deep sea port off the Arakan coast and related railway systems.

At the meeting, he apparently advocated expanding industry, especially
factories related to oil and gas exploration and production. He also
alluded to the Dawei deep sea port project in southern Burma, spoke of
expanding the shipping industry and services sector, and predicted the
Burmese economy would soon be “booming,” the source said.

The military dictator reportedly went on to pledge that Burma will
furthermore be immune from electricity shortages because the country's
hydroelectric projects would soon produce some 16,000 MW of power per
year.

According to the military sources, the fact that Than Shwe did not
address the upcoming election and pending political concerns, such as
Aung San Suu Kyi's request for a meeting, suggests he is confident that
his current strategy is working and that events are playing out in his
favor.


========================================================
American citizen Kyaw Zaw Lwin (also called Nyi Nyi Aung) was arrested
in Burma on Sept. 3, 2009, accused of aiding the political opposition
and reportedly tortured and starved during interrogation. Amnesty
International’s Urgent Action calling for his release:
http://smu.edu/humanrights/aiurgent%20No.%201.html
------------------------------------------------------------------------
---------------------------
Donations to help the people of Burma can be made to:
Global Health Access Program, funding indigenous medical teams and
clinics:
www.ghap.org/
Burma Humanitarian Mission, delivering medical supplies and training:
www.burmamission.org/
------------------------------------------------------------------------
----------------------
"DOWN THE RAT HOLE: Adventures Underground on Burma's Frontiers"
is the latest book by Edith Mirante (author of "Burmese Looking Glass")
published by Orchid Press:
<http://d30021575.purehost.com/indiv_titles.html#rathole>
Available at Powells.com:
<http://www.powells.com/s?kw=down+the+rat+hole>
It can also be requested from your local bookshop or ordered at:
<www.amazon.com>

The Irrawaddy

Looking for the Switch to Light Up Burma’s Cities
By WILLIAM BOOT  Thursday, December 3, 2009

Efforts by Burma’s military regime to improve the country’s unreliable
electricity supply ahead of promised national elections next year face
big hurdles.

A new hydroelectric dam near the central city of Mandalay is being
tested this month and in theory it could expand Burma’s power
generating capacity by over 40 percent.

Additionally, a 150-kilometer pipeline is to be built in the south to
carry gas to Rangoon, seemingly to alleviate perpetual power shortages
there.

An inadequate and decrepit infrastructure, however, is likely to result
in wastage of much of any extra electricity—if it isn’t sold to China
anyway.

Chinese developers are this month conducting tests on the 790-megawatt
capacity Yeywa hydro dam nearing completion on the Myitnge River.

The project, which has been under construction since 2004 and has
reportedly cost more than US $600 million, should raise Burma’s
electricity generating capacity by more than 40 percent. However, with
so much Chinese involvement—including investment of about $200
million—some of the power might be pumped north into China’s equally
hungry Yunnan province, observers believe.

The Yeywa dam, 50 kilometers south of blackout-plagued Mandalay, is
about 300 kilometers from the Chinese border.

Burma has one of the world’s worst electricity generating capacities—a
mere 1,700 megawatts for a population of around 50 million.

In comparison, neighboring Thailand has about 30,000 megawatts for a
population of about 60 million people.

Burma’s power predicament is exacerbated by the fact that more than 25
percent of the electricity generated is lost “in transmission and
distribution” through poor cable equipment, according to figures
published in a report by the United States Central Intelligence Agency.

Burmese state-controlled media have said the Yeywa electricity will be
pumped into what passes for a national grid via 230-volt cable.

“Burma’s electricity grid system is far from national because it’s
concentrated in the central belt between Rangoon and Mandalay,”
Bangkok-based energy industries analyst-consultant Collin Reynolds told
The Irrawaddy.

“Under half of it has a 230-volt capacity, so even within the limited
transmission region much of the cable is probably inadequate for
handling a big boost in supply such as might come out of the Yeywa
[power plant],” Reynolds said.

Even within the electricity transmission belt, noisy and polluting
diesel generators are in daily use as essential backup.

Most of northern and southeast Burma and nearly all border areas have
no connection to the grid.

Despite these infrastructure failings, the Burmese military government
has approved at least 12 hydro dams across the country.

If they are all built they would have a generating capacity of over
22,000 megawatts. But much of this is earmarked to be pumped into
China, India or Thailand.

Many dam projects are still at the drawing board stage and involve
Chinese and Indian state engineering companies. China’s Sinohydro
Corporation—a principal developer at Yeywa—figures in a number of them.

China is especially interested in using Burma as a proxy for hydro dams
because back home it is facing increasingly vociferous opposition from
environmentalists. Protests led Prime Minister Wen Jiabao to curtail
river dam developments in neighboring Yunnan.

The NGO Burma Rivers Network, a rights and environmental organization
that monitors river developments, says dams in Burma lead to
“displacement, militarization, human rights abuses, and irreversible
environmental damage, threatening the livelihoods and food security of
millions. The power and revenues generated are going to the military
regime and neighboring countries.”

The Yeywa dam completion coincides with the award of a $77 million
contract to Singapore engineering firm Swiber to build a pipeline to
carry gas from the Yadana gas field in the Gulf of Martaban to Rangoon.

The contract was issued by the junta-controlled Myanmar Oil and Gas
Enterprise (MOGE), which has a stake in Yadana managed by Total of
France. MOGE says the gas is to fuel Burma’s largest city and
commercial center.

Most of the 780 million cubic feet of gas produced daily by Yadana goes
to Thailand, but MOGE says it intends to have 200 million cubic feet a
day delivered to Rangoon for domestic use by mid-2010.

Several small gas turbine plants exist in the greater Rangoon area, but
wider use of gas to fuel more power plants would require new
investment, and there is little backup capacity when problems strike.

In July, for instance, the Myanmar Electric Power Enterprise cut power
supply in Rangoon to just six hours a day because of infrastructure
damage caused by bad weather.

About 70 percent of Thailand’s electricity is generated by gas, and at
least half of it comes from Burma.

But while Burma sits in the blackout dark, neighboring Thailand has a
power glut, caused by over-development coupled with a sharp drop in
domestic demand for electricity due to a recession triggered by the
global financial crisis.

Thailand's surfeit could be good news for Shan communities living along
the Salween river near the Thai-Burmese border.

The Electricity Generating Authority of Thailand is having second
thoughts about its agreements to cooperate in the construction of up to
five hydro dams on the Salween, which would produce thousands of
megawatts it probably no longer needs.


========================================================
American citizen Kyaw Zaw Lwin (also called Nyi Nyi Aung) was arrested
in Burma on Sept. 3, 2009, accused of aiding the political opposition
and reportedly tortured and starved during interrogation. Amnesty
International’s Urgent Action calling for his release:
http://smu.edu/humanrights/aiurgent%20No.%201.html
------------------------------------------------------------------------
---------------------------
Donations to help the people of Burma can be made to:
Global Health Access Program, funding indigenous medical teams and
clinics:
www.ghap.org/
Burma Humanitarian Mission, delivering medical supplies and training:
www.burmamission.org/
------------------------------------------------------------------------
----------------------
"DOWN THE RAT HOLE: Adventures Underground on Burma's Frontiers"
is the latest book by Edith Mirante (author of "Burmese Looking Glass")
published by Orchid Press:
<http://d30021575.purehost.com/indiv_titles.html#rathole>
Available at Powells.com:
<http://www.powells.com/s?kw=down+the+rat+hole>
It can also be requested from your local bookshop or ordered at:
<www.amazon.com>

The Irrawaddy
US Teacher Deported
By BA KAUNG  Thursday, December 3, 2009

An American English teacher working for the American Center in Rangoon
was deported on Saturday, according to a source close to the US Embassy
in Rangoon who spoke to The Irrawaddy on conditions of anonymity.

Christina Peterson was briefly detained at a highway bus station in
Rangoon on her way back from the American Consulate in Mandalay, where
she had given a talk on environmental issues. Some members of the
National League for Democracy (NLD) also participated in the talk,
according to the source.

“She just talked about environmental issues in Mandalay. The moment she
got off the bus in Rangoon, she was immediately taken to the airport
and wasn't even allowed to go back to her room,” the source said.

Drake Weisert, Assistant Public Affairs Officer of the US Embassy in
Rangoon, confirmed the news but declined to give details, citing
privacy reasons.

Peterson had been working for the American Center in Rangoon as an
English teacher since 2007, and she was also an organizer of an
environmental club for the center. The American Center provides English
language courses and runs a library popular among young people in
Rangoon.

Last May, US citizens Jerry Redfern and his wife Karen Coates, who were
teaching feature writing and photography in Mandalay, were also forced
to leave the country.

========================================================
American citizen Kyaw Zaw Lwin (also called Nyi Nyi Aung) was arrested
in Burma on Sept. 3, 2009, accused of aiding the political opposition
and reportedly tortured and starved during interrogation. Amnesty
International’s Urgent Action calling for his release:
http://smu.edu/humanrights/aiurgent%20No.%201.html
------------------------------------------------------------------------
---------------------------
Donations to help the people of Burma can be made to:
Global Health Access Program, funding indigenous medical teams and
clinics:
www.ghap.org/
Burma Humanitarian Mission, delivering medical supplies and training:
www.burmamission.org/
------------------------------------------------------------------------
----------------------
"DOWN THE RAT HOLE: Adventures Underground on Burma's Frontiers"
is the latest book by Edith Mirante (author of "Burmese Looking Glass")
published by Orchid Press:
<http://d30021575.purehost.com/indiv_titles.html#rathole>
Available at Powells.com:
<http://www.powells.com/s?kw=down+the+rat+hole>
It can also be requested from your local bookshop or ordered at:
<www.amazon.com>

Seven Chinese jailed for a night by Burmese police

Written by Kachin News Group   
Wednesday, 02 December 2009
http://www.kachinnews.com/

Seven Chinese loggers were secretly put in a prison cell for a night
after their belongings were seized by Burmese policemen in a partially
successful attempt at extortion in Bhamo district in Burma's northern
Kachin State, said local sources.

The Chinese loggers were stopped in Jan Mai village in Manje Township
at about 5:30 p.m. on November 27. Their personal belongings such as
two mobile phones, a camera, a clock and Chinese Yuan 1,000 (about
US$147) were looted by the police and forest authorities of Manje, or
Mansi in Burmese, said residents.

The secret operation was led by Kyaw Hsan Oo, the deputy in-charge of
the Manje police station along with police sergeant Maw Zee and Than
Aung and office staff of the Township Forestry, according to sources
close to them.

After the seizure of their personal belongings, the Chinese citizens
were asked to shell out 5,000,000 kyat (US$5,208) in cash by the
policemen. The Chinese  had their hands tied with ropes and taken to
Kyauk Taung village from Jan Mai village, near Manje after they said
that they had given all they had, said the sources.

In Kyauk Taung, they were kept like hostages from 6:45 p.m. to 8 p.m.
to allow them to call their Chinese boss and tell him to come with five
million kyat in cash. The ruse did not work and they were secretly put
in a prison cell in Manje police station for the night, said police
station sources.

The fact remains that the police cannot arrest anyone and put him in a
prison cell without asking permission from the ruling junta's Manje
Township Administration Office (Ma-Ya-Ka), said local people.

The Chinese loggers had their belongings looted and were put in a
prison cell for one night for an extortion campaign for two police
officers and an office staff of the Forestry Department, added locals.

The campaign is locally known as "Phar-Yike", which means that the
authorities demand cash from selected persons like businessmen,
loggers, border traders and timber merchants from whom they can get
extortion money, said residents of Manje.

In random "Pha-Yike campaign", police, soldiers and civil workers in
multi-governmental departments make extra money, said local people.

Deputy police officer Kyaw Hsan Oo came to Manje in September.

The Chinese government has warned its citizens to stop cross-border
travel and business ventures in neighboring Burma in apprehension of
civil war since August. However Chinese loggers have been entering
forests in Kachin State and Northeast Shan State since late October.

Border timber merchants said, Chinese log trucks are transporting teak
and hardwood to border timber camps from Kachin State and Northeast
Shan State since early November.

In Bhamo district, Chinese timber businessmen have to pay the highest
amount of bribe for permission to log, to the two key Burmese Army
officers--- Maj-Gen Soe Win, commander of Myitkyina-based Northern
Regional Command and Col. Khin Maung Maw, commander of Momeik-based
Military Strategic Command, said timber traders.

--
If you want to read more related stories, please log on to
www.kachinnews.com

========================================================
American citizen Kyaw Zaw Lwin (also called Nyi Nyi Aung) was arrested
in Burma on Sept. 3, 2009, accused of aiding the political opposition
and reportedly tortured and starved during interrogation. Amnesty
International’s Urgent Action calling for his release:
http://smu.edu/humanrights/aiurgent%20No.%201.html
------------------------------------------------------------------------
---------------------------
Donations to help the people of Burma can be made to:
Global Health Access Program, funding indigenous medical teams and
clinics:
www.ghap.org/
Burma Humanitarian Mission, delivering medical supplies and training:
www.burmamission.org/
------------------------------------------------------------------------
----------------------
"DOWN THE RAT HOLE: Adventures Underground on Burma's Frontiers"
is the latest book by Edith Mirante (author of "Burmese Looking Glass")
published by Orchid Press:
<http://d30021575.purehost.com/indiv_titles.html#rathole>
Available at Powells.com:
<http://www.powells.com/s?kw=down+the+rat+hole>
It can also be requested from your local bookshop or ordered at:
<www.amazon.com>

"Thailand’s energy oversupply problem"

The Irrawaddy

Weekly Business Roundup (November 28, 2009)
By WILLIAM BOOT  Saturday, November 28, 2009

Rats Undermine Regime’s Rice Export Hopes

An infestation of rats caused by Cyclone Nargis is threatening to
devastate rice crops in the Irrawaddy delta—in contradiction of
government claims that Burma is set to produce a one million tons
surplus for export.

The rat plague—affecting over 700,000 hectares—has developed because
the cyclone killed off natural predators such as snakes, dogs and cats,
according to the UN Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO).

The FAO estimates that although 2.5 million rats have been exterminated
in the past few months, their fast breeding rate means there could be
as many as 10 million of them still in the delta.

There are no estimates on the extent of rice crop damage, but an FAO
official told the United Nations-sponsored news service IRIN that more
funding is needed to ward off “further damage and a possible spread of
the rodents to crops not currently affected.”

“If we are to prevent further damage to the monsoon rice crop and
damage to the following dry season crops, we must continue the current
preventative measures and emphasize an integrated pest-management
approach for the coming winter season,” FAO representative Shin Imai is
quoted by IRIN as saying.

The regime-linked Myanmar Rice and Paddy Association claimed earlier
this month that Burma’s rice exports could reach one million tons for
the 2009-2010 fiscal year. That figure would be about 300,000 tons more
than Burma claims to have exported in 2008-2009—the year Nargis struck.

Thailand Slump Offers Glimmer of Hope for Salween Dam Opponents

A slump in demand for electricity in Thailand could shelve or slow down
plans to build a controversial large hydro dam on Burma’s Salween River.

The global economic slump has hit Thailand’s economy hard and power
demand has consequently dropped—by more than 2,000 megawatts over the
last 12 months.

That’s more than the entire generating capacity of Burma.

The Electricity Generating Authority of Thailand (Egat) is the leading
license holder to build the 1,200 megawatt Hatgyi dam on the Salween in
Karen State near the border with Thailand.

Much of the power generated is earmarked to be pumped into Thailand,
despite acute electricity shortages in Burma itself.

But Thailand’s energy ministry last week announced that due to the
slide in electricity demand it was canceling plans to issue a new round
of power plant development licenses in the country.

The cancellation will affect power development plans for the next ten
years.

Thailand already has 20 times more electricity generating capacity than
neighbor Burma, even though they have similar sized populations.

Many Burmese have little or no access to electricity.

Thailand’s energy oversupply problem emerged as human rights
campaigners staged a protest gathering outside the Thai government
headquarters this week, urging it to abandon the Hatgyi project.

Many Burmese would be forced to move from the dam’s area and there are
concerns about its effects on fishing livelihoods and the environment.

Singapore Firm gets Burma Gas Pipeline Contract

Singapore’s marine oil and gas engineering firm Swiber has won a
contract to build a 150 kilometer pipeline which the Myanmar Oil and
Gas Enterprise says will carry gas to Rangoon.

The US $77 million pipeline will be linked to the offshore Yadana field
operated by Total of France.

Most of the 780 million cubic feet per day (mcfd) of gas produced by
Yadana goes to Thailand, but MOGE says it intends to have 200 mcfd
delivered to Rangoon for domestic use by mid 2010.

Work on the mostly onshore pipeline is expected to begin in early 2010,
according to the industry newspaper Upstream. It will come ashore at
Daw Nyein.

Vietnam Presses its Business Ambitions in Burma

More than 50 Vietnamese businesses have showcased their goods at a
trade fair in Rangoon as Vietnam bids to raise its economic presence in
Burma.

The fair, featuring producers of goods ranging from cosmetics to
fertilizers, follows trade delegation exchanges between the two
countries.

Vietnam has been increasing imports of wood, furniture, and seafood
from Burma in the last two years, and is seeking to find Burmese
markets for its steel, medicines and chemicals.

Two-way trade between the countries grew 11 percent in 2008 over the
previous year, but was still only worth about US $110 million.

Burma and Vietnam are members of the Association of Southeast Asian
Nations and would benefit from a planned drop in tariff barriers within
the association from 2010. But some observers say Vietnam’s traditional
rivalry with China is also a factor in its efforts to strengthen trade
ties with Burma.

Earlier this month, Myanmar Hoteliers Association said Vietnamese money
will finance a new hotel in Rangoon, and there have been reports that
Hanoi wants to establish regular air links with Rangoon.

========================================================
American citizen Kyaw Zaw Lwin (also called Nyi Nyi Aung) was arrested
in Burma on Sept. 3, 2009, accused of aiding the political opposition
and reportedly tortured and starved during interrogation. Amnesty
International’s Urgent Action calling for his release:
http://smu.edu/humanrights/aiurgent%20No.%201.html
------------------------------------------------------------------------
---------------------------
Donations to help the people of Burma can be made to:
Global Health Access Program, funding indigenous medical teams and
clinics:
www.ghap.org/
Burma Humanitarian Mission, delivering medical supplies and training:
www.burmamission.org/
------------------------------------------------------------------------
----------------------
"DOWN THE RAT HOLE: Adventures Underground on Burma's Frontiers"
is the latest book by Edith Mirante (author of "Burmese Looking Glass")
published by Orchid Press:
<http://d30021575.purehost.com/indiv_titles.html#rathole>
Available at Powells.com:
<http://www.powells.com/s?kw=down+the+rat+hole>
It can also be requested from your local bookshop or ordered at:
<www.amazon.com>

Kachin village threatened with demolition by Yunaza Company

Written by Kachin News Group  
Thursday, 26 November 2009
http://www.kachinnews.com

Yuzana Company, which has the backing of the Burmese military junta,
has threatened to demolish a Kachin village in Hukawng Valley following
a dispute between the company's workers and local youth in western
Kachin State, said village sources.

There was a quarrel between Yuzana Company workers and native Kachin
youth in Sahtu Zup village on Stilwell Road also called the Ledo Road
between Namti and Danai on November 18, said Sahtu Zup villagers.

A Yuzana company's factory is under construction beside Ledo Road in
Hukawng Valley, Kachin State

The dispute went on for several hours and the company's workers entered
Sahtu Zup village and threatened to demolish the entire village with 11
power-shovels, according to villagers.

The root cause of the problem between native Kachin youth and alien
Burman workers in the valley is yet to be ascertained but people in the
valley do not like the company grabbing their land, said residents of
the valley.

With political and military support of the junta, the country's former
capital Rangoon-based Yuzana Company headed by Chinese-Burmese U Htay
Myint bought over 200,000 acres of land in the Valley in 2006.

The land occupied by the company, includes local people's paddy fields,
crop plantation and farms along with forests from where traditional
wood and bamboo is collected, said locals.

Since late 2006, the company cleared forests in these areas to
cultivate crops, cassava plants and sugarcane, said residents.

The company transports tens of thousands of Burman workers from lower
or southern Burma to the Valley for cultivation with the support of the
ruling junta, according to local residents.

Now two Thai-style factories are under construction in the company's
occupied land by Thai technicians, added local residents.

Since the Yunaza Company arrived in the Valley in 2006, social and land
related problems have been erupting between local Christian Kachins and
Buddhist Burman settlers, said natives of Hukawng Valley. Domestic
animals of locals are always secretly slaughtered by the company's
workers, added local people.

In Kachin history, the Hukawng or Hugawng Valley was ruled by 12 Kachin
Duwas before Burma received independence from the British in 1948.

The Hukawng Valley was declared as the world's largest tiger sanctuary
by US-based Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) in 2004.

--
If you want to read more related stories, please log on to
www.kachinnews.com


========================================================
American citizen Kyaw Zaw Lwin (also called Nyi Nyi Aung) was arrested
in Burma on Sept. 3, 2009, accused of aiding the political opposition
and reportedly tortured and starved during interrogation. Amnesty
International’s Urgent Action calling for his release:
http://smu.edu/humanrights/aiurgent%20No.%201.html
------------------------------------------------------------------------
---------------------------
Donations to help the people of Burma can be made to:
Global Health Access Program, funding indigenous medical teams and
clinics:
www.ghap.org/
Burma Humanitarian Mission, delivering medical supplies and training:
www.burmamission.org/
------------------------------------------------------------------------
----------------------
"DOWN THE RAT HOLE: Adventures Underground on Burma's Frontiers"
is the latest book by Edith Mirante (author of "Burmese Looking Glass")
published by Orchid Press:
<http://d30021575.purehost.com/indiv_titles.html#rathole>
Available at Powells.com:
<http://www.powells.com/s?kw=down+the+rat+hole>
It can also be requested from your local bookshop or ordered at:
<www.amazon.com>

Chinese loggers enter Burma despite warning

Written by Kachin News Group   
Wednesday, 25 November 2009
http://www.kachinnews.com

Hundreds of Chinese loggers and log-trucks have sneaked into logging
forests west of Salween River in northeast Burma despite being
cautioned not to do so by the Chinese government, said local sources.

Ignoring the warning of the Chinese border guard force not to enter
Burma for any business because there could be strife in Burma soon,
Chinese loggers are entering northeast Shan State for timber and
charcoal business, said border sources.

Chinese citizens from east of Burma have been told to return home by
the Chinese border guard force as of late August after the military
conflict between Kokang rebels and Burmese soldiers in northeast Shan
State. Cross border travel was also discouraged.

Since the last week of October, about 300 log-trucks and about 700
loggers crossed Mongkoe border gate in northeast Shan State opposite
Manghai border town in China's southwest Yunnan province and entered
different logging forests, said a resident of Mongkoe.

Logging activities in the forests in northeast Shan State now involves
11 businessmen. Cooperation is being provided by local militia groups,
which have been granted logging permits by Burma's ruling junta,
residents of Mongkoe added.

The main logging areas are the forests along the west of Salween River
in northeast Shan State including the forests close to Lashio, Kutkai
and Loikang, said residents of those areas.

Since early this month, an average of five to 10 trucks loaded with
timber are heading for temporary log camps on the Chinese border town
of Manghai every night, said eyewitnesses.  A truck can carry between
10 to 12 tons of timber.

Mongkoe border gate is manned by Burmese soldiers from the Namtu-based
Light Infantry Battalion No. 324. They collect Chinese Yuan 1,800
(US$265) per truck, which come back to the China border with timber,
said sources close to the border gate soldiers.

Currently, about 70 trucks have arrived in the forests near Hpawng
Seng, said local people. The loggers procure white charcoal from trees
for export to Hong Kong, Taiwan and South Korea, said residents of
Hpawng Seng.

White charcoal production is unusual and was never heard of in these
areas in previous years, said local people.

Many ready-to-export boxes of white charcoal are also being transported
to Hpawng Seng. Businessmen from China, Taiwan and South Korea are
behind the production of white charcoal, said sources close to them.

Every year, Chinese businessmen produce tens of thousands of tons of
charcoal in Mongkoe, Hpawng Seng and Pangsai for domestic sale and
export, border sources said.

An eyewitness told KNG today smoke is coming out from every forest
around Hpawng Seng because of production of white charcoal.  Local
people are living under a cloud of smoke.

About 20,000 tons of timber from northeast Shan State were transported
to Manghai from October, 2008 to May, 2009, said timber traders in
Manghai.

--
If you want to read more related stories, please log on to
www.kachinnews.com



========================================================
American citizen Kyaw Zaw Lwin (also called Nyi Nyi Aung) was arrested
in Burma on Sept. 3, 2009, accused of aiding the political opposition
and reportedly tortured and starved during interrogation. Amnesty
International’s Urgent Action calling for his release:
http://smu.edu/humanrights/aiurgent%20No.%201.html
------------------------------------------------------------------------
---------------------------
Donations to help the people of Burma can be made to:
Global Health Access Program, funding indigenous medical teams and
clinics:
www.ghap.org/
Burma Humanitarian Mission, delivering medical supplies and training:
www.burmamission.org/
------------------------------------------------------------------------
----------------------
"DOWN THE RAT HOLE: Adventures Underground on Burma's Frontiers"
is the latest book by Edith Mirante (author of "Burmese Looking Glass")
published by Orchid Press:
<http://d30021575.purehost.com/indiv_titles.html#rathole>
Available at Powells.com:
<http://www.powells.com/s?kw=down+the+rat+hole>
It can also be requested from your local bookshop or ordered at:
<www.amazon.com>

November 24, Bangkok Post
Abhisit cool to opponents of Salween River dam plan

Ethnic villagers and civilian groups yesterday rallied outside
Government
House to demand the government abandon a proposed mega-dam construction
on
the Salween river.

"We urge you to abandon the Hutgyi dam project to defend human rights,
sustain the environment and protect local livelihoods for generations to
come," the group stated in a petition it had drawn up to present to the
government.

An Electricity Generating Authority of Thailand (Egat) development, the
1,360-megawatt hydropower dam is to be built on the Salween river in the
strife-ridden Karen state, 47 kilometres from the Thai-Burma border in
Sop
Moei district, Mae Hong Son province.

The project is a joint venture between Egat International, a Chinese
state-owned enterprise Sinohydro Cooperation, and Burma's Hydropower
Department within the country's Ministry of Electric Power.

Around 50 protesters, representing 189 environmental and human rights
organisations, said the dam, if built, would intensify human rights
violation in Burma and destroy the ecological system of the free-flowing
Salween river.

"The Hutgyi dam will change the width of the Salween river, flooding
some
areas of Sop Moei village, where an official border demarcation has not
yet been determined.

"Given this situation where the border will be distorted, the project's
implementation must strictly comply with Section 190 of the 2007
Constitution," the petition said.

The colourful protest, with enlarged pictures of the fertile Salween
river
and placards condemning Egat for ignoring the plight of villagers, met
with a cool response from the Abhisit government.

The demonstrators demanded Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva meet them
and
receive the petition himself. But he reportedly assigned an Egat
executive
to accept the letter instead.

"This shows the government's ignorance of our petition and our
information. I think the government wants to build the Hutgyi dam, so
they
are turning a blind eye to us," said Karen villager Pairote
Panapraisakul,
who travelled from Ban Tha Ta Fang on the bank of Salween river in Mae
Hong Son.

The protesters later handed a protest letter to Asean Human Rights
Committee member Sriprapha Petharamesree.


========================================================
American citizen Kyaw Zaw Lwin (also called Nyi Nyi Aung) was arrested
in Burma on Sept. 3, 2009, accused of aiding the political opposition
and reportedly tortured and starved during interrogation. Amnesty
International’s Urgent Action calling for his release:
http://smu.edu/humanrights/aiurgent%20No.%201.html
------------------------------------------------------------------------
---------------------------
Donations to help the people of Burma can be made to:
Global Health Access Program, funding indigenous medical teams and
clinics:
www.ghap.org/
Burma Humanitarian Mission, delivering medical supplies and training:
www.burmamission.org/
------------------------------------------------------------------------
----------------------
"DOWN THE RAT HOLE: Adventures Underground on Burma's Frontiers"
is the latest book by Edith Mirante (author of "Burmese Looking Glass")
published by Orchid Press:
<http://d30021575.purehost.com/indiv_titles.html#rathole>
Available at Powells.com:
<http://www.powells.com/s?kw=down+the+rat+hole>
It can also be requested from your local bookshop or ordered at:
<www.amazon.com>

November 23, Mizzima News
Burma to commission ‘Ye’ hydro-power project in December – Kyaw Thein
Kha

Chiang Mai – The Burmese Ministry of Electric Power (1) will commission
the Ye village hydro-power project in December, billed as the biggest in
the country.

“We will begin operating one turbine of the four for hydro-electricity.
We
will begin in December and run the turbines one after another in the
following months. We are still unsure of the exact date but it might
probably be the end of December,” Aye Aye Thant, Director
Hydro-Electricity Department of the ministry told Mizzima.

For the commissioning of the hydro-power-project, several engineers from
the engineering department were said to have reached the hydro-power
plant.

The hydro-project on the Myittha River, located between Ye-Yamann
villages, about 31 miles southeast of Mandalay city, is being
constructed
by the Department of Hydro Power Implementation (DHPI) No. (2) of the
Ministry of Electric Power (1).

According to the ministry’s press release, the project cost is over US $
600 million. While the US$ 200 million was taken as loan from China, the
ministry has borne the rest.

According to Burma River Network, a Thailand-based activists group that
monitors Burma’s hydro-projects -- Hydro Power Generation Enterprise
along
with China International Trust and Investment Co. (CITIC) and Sinohydro
Corporation signed an agreement in 2004 for the project and was later
joined by five other Chinese companies.

The initial design of the project was by a Japanese company Nippon Koei.
For details of the design and construction the Burmese government signed
an agreement with a Swiss company Colenco Power Engineering in 2003.

The hydropower plant is 2264 feet wide and 433 feet high. It will
produce
an estimated 790 megawatts.

The project, once completed, is expected to supply electricity
throughout
the country through Kyaukse, Meikhtila, and Mandalay towns via 230 KV
(Kilo Volt) cable lines.

Currently the Ministry of Electric Power (1) operates over 15
hydropower-projects located across the country’s Kachin, Shan, Kayah,
and
Karen states.

However, rights activists have expressed concern over the appalling
human
rights violations including forced relocations of villages, forced
labour,
and environmental degradation. Besides, campaigners also expressed fear
of
a possible break in the dams and its consequences for inhabitants and
residents downstream.

According to a report by Xinhua, Burma’s current electricity generation
is
1684 megawatts, and the statistics of the government shows that Burma
consumed 6.62 billion kilowatts in 2008-2009.

However, Burmese, including urban residents of Rangoon and Mandalay say
they are facing problems as electricity supply is inadequate. Residents
of
Rangoon and Mandalay, the two largest cities in Burma, said they receive
electricity supply for only six to seven hours a day.


========================================================
American citizen Kyaw Zaw Lwin (also called Nyi Nyi Aung) was arrested
in Burma on Sept. 3, 2009, accused of aiding the political opposition
and reportedly tortured and starved during interrogation. Amnesty
International’s Urgent Action calling for his release:
http://smu.edu/humanrights/aiurgent%20No.%201.html
------------------------------------------------------------------------
---------------------------
Donations to help the people of Burma can be made to:
Global Health Access Program, funding indigenous medical teams and
clinics:
www.ghap.org/
Burma Humanitarian Mission, delivering medical supplies and training:
www.burmamission.org/
------------------------------------------------------------------------
----------------------
"DOWN THE RAT HOLE: Adventures Underground on Burma's Frontiers"
is the latest book by Edith Mirante (author of "Burmese Looking Glass")
published by Orchid Press:
<http://d30021575.purehost.com/indiv_titles.html#rathole>
Available at Powells.com:
<http://www.powells.com/s?kw=down+the+rat+hole>
It can also be requested from your local bookshop or ordered at:
<www.amazon.com>

Orchards being converted to Chinese gold mines

Written by Kachin News Group   
Monday, 23 November 2009
http://www.kachinnews.com

Orchards famous for its oranges in Burma's northern Kachin State is
being converted to Chinese-owned gold mines by Zahkung Ting Ying,
leader of a former Kachin armed group, who is loyal to the repressive
Burmese junta, said local sources.

Mandung orange fields in Waingmaw Township are located about 20 miles
east of Myitkyina, the capital of Kachin State. Local orchard owners
have been pressurized to sell their orange fields to Chinese gold
mining companies by former New Democratic Army-Kachin (NDA-K) leader
Ting Ying since October, said villagers of Mandung.

On October 29, over 10 orchard owners in Mandawng sold about 90 acres
to Chinese gold mining companies for over 50 million Kyat (over
US$52,083) on Ting Ying’s say so, said Mandung's villagers.  Ting Ying
is also a land contractor for all gold mines, added locals.

Currently, gold mining activities are undertaken with large
sophisticated machines in Kachin State such as bulldozers,
power-shovels, trucks and modern gold filtering equipment, said Salang
Tsa Ji, General Secretary of Kachin Development Networking Group
(KDNG), who recently visited the gold fields.

Relatives of Ting Ying and dozens of Chinese gold mine workers are
stationed in the areas known as Chaung Sone and Hka Wan, on the
riverbank of N'Mai Hka in several plastic-fibre-roof tents, said local
eyewitnesses.

Earlier in October, Ting Ying warned owners of orange and paddy fields
in Kachin villages along the east riverbanks of N'Mai Hka---Mandung,
Hka Wan, Sha-ngaw, Chaung Sone and other small villages that the
villages are in the flood zone of the Myitsone dam project on the
Irrawaddy River, according to villagers.

Ting Ying also told them that mining gold early in the orchards and
crop fields will be more beneficial to them instead of allowing the
land to be gobbled up by floods caused by the Myitsone dam, villagers
added.

Tsa Ji told KNG today, "The owners of orange and crop fields in the
villages were psychologically tricked by Zahkung Ting Ying to sell
their land to the Chinese gold company".

There are thousands of acres of orchards and paddy-fields in Mandawng
and the areas close to it is. Now the area is threatened with
conversion to gold mines, said local villagers.

In Kachin State, oranges are mainly produced in Mandawng and Ga Ra Yang
in Waingmaw Township, Puta-O district and Hukawng valley. It tastes
unusually good and is sought after by people in the country.

--
If you want to read more related stories, please log on to
www.kachinnews.com
========================================================
American citizen Kyaw Zaw Lwin (also called Nyi Nyi Aung) was arrested
in Burma on Sept. 3, 2009, accused of aiding the political opposition
and reportedly tortured and starved during interrogation. Amnesty
International’s Urgent Action calling for his release:
http://smu.edu/humanrights/aiurgent%20No.%201.html
------------------------------------------------------------------------
---------------------------
Donations to help the people of Burma can be made to:
Global Health Access Program, funding indigenous medical teams and
clinics:
www.ghap.org/
Burma Humanitarian Mission, delivering medical supplies and training:
www.burmamission.org/
------------------------------------------------------------------------
----------------------
"DOWN THE RAT HOLE: Adventures Underground on Burma's Frontiers"
is the latest book by Edith Mirante (author of "Burmese Looking Glass")
published by Orchid Press:
<http://d30021575.purehost.com/indiv_titles.html#rathole>
Available at Powells.com:
<http://www.powells.com/s?kw=down+the+rat+hole>
It can also be requested from your local bookshop or ordered at:
<www.amazon.com>

Nov. 23, 2009
Earth Times

Thai activists demand pull-out from Myanmar dam project
http://www.earthtimes.org/articles/show/295818,thai-activists-demand-
pull-out-from-myanmar-dam-project.html

Bangkok - Thai civil society leaders representing 189 organizations
demanded Monday the government withdraw from the controversial Hutgyi
dam project in Myanmar or face dire consequences. The group delivered
a letter to Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva saying that international
talk of engagement with Myanmar's military regime in no way negated
the many objections to the Hutgyi dam and others along the Salween
River that are designed to supply power to Thailand.

"We are extremely worried that local people will be devastated if dams
like the Hutgyi go ahead because outsiders mistakenly think there has
been a political breakthrough of some kind," said Pianporn Deetes,
coordinator of the Living River Siam-Southeast Asia Rivers Network.

Plans have been in place for years to build seven large dams on the
Salween to supply electricity mainly to Thailand and China. So far no
progress has been made beyond minor preparatory work, but activists
fear that Thailand's state-run Electricity Generating Authority of
Thailand is determined to build at least some dams.

The letter said the proposed 1,360-megawatt Hutgyi dam, 47 kilometres
from the Thai-Myanmar border, would lead to major human rights abuses
against minority peoples opposed to the regime and flood a great area
on both sides of the border. It said there would not be a transparent
enquiry into the need for construction in a country where military
rule remains controversial and contested.

Thailand's close economic ties with the regime are in stark contrast
to those of most Western democracies, which have imposed economic
sanctions on the country.

Such sanctions are deemed ineffective as long as Myanmar's main
trading partners - Thailand, India and China - refuse to follow suit.


========================================================
American citizen Kyaw Zaw Lwin (also called Nyi Nyi Aung) was arrested
in Burma on Sept. 3, 2009, accused of aiding the political opposition
and reportedly tortured and starved during interrogation. Amnesty
International’s Urgent Action calling for his release:
http://smu.edu/humanrights/aiurgent%20No.%201.html
------------------------------------------------------------------------
---------------------------
Donations to help the people of Burma can be made to:
Global Health Access Program, funding indigenous medical teams and
clinics:
www.ghap.org/
Burma Humanitarian Mission, delivering medical supplies and training:
www.burmamission.org/
------------------------------------------------------------------------
----------------------
"DOWN THE RAT HOLE: Adventures Underground on Burma's Frontiers"
is the latest book by Edith Mirante (author of "Burmese Looking Glass")
published by Orchid Press:
<http://d30021575.purehost.com/indiv_titles.html#rathole>
Available at Powells.com:
<http://www.powells.com/s?kw=down+the+rat+hole>
It can also be requested from your local bookshop or ordered at:
<www.amazon.com>

Hundred elephants to pull logs for the Irrawaddy dam contractor

November 20, 2009
Kachin News Group
http://www.kachinnews.com

A hundred elephants have been requisitioned to pull logs from the
forests near the hydropower project site on the Irrawaddy River to the
log camps, by Burma-Asia World Company in northern Kachin State, said
company's sources.

Owners of the pachyderms in Myitkyina, the capital of Kachin State
said, they were summoned by the company. The deal involves pulling
timber from the forests, about three miles north of Tang Hpre village
in the Irrawaddy dam project site, 27 miles north of Myitkyina, said
villagers.

Tang Hpre is where Burma's longest Irrawaddy River joins Mali Hka River
and N'Mai Hka River. The confluence is called Mali-N'Mai Zup or
Myitsone in Burmese.

Local elephant owners said they were called by the company and were
told that the payment for drawing logs from the forest to the log camp
would be 8,000 Kyat per ton. Groups of 10 elephants need to be
mobilized and each group has to have ten animals, they added.

The company will pay one at a time, whenever it has drawn 1,000 tons of
timber, a local elephant owner said.

An eyewitness in Tang Hpre told KNG today, three elephants left for the
forests carrying rations, cooking pots and tarpaulins last Sunday.

Villagers of Tang Hpre said the forests were surveyed by the company's
personnel before felling of trees since early this month.

Asia World Company had links with former Burma’s drug lord Lo Hsing
Han. The company began operations on the Irrawaddy River's confluence
on the hydropower project in late 2006.  The project is being jointly
implemented by Asia World Company and the Chinese government-owned
China Power Investment Corporation (CPI).

The two companies plan to build a total of seven hydropower plants in
Mali Hka River, N'Mai Hka River and the Irrawaddy River's confluence in
Kachin State.

According to local people near the dam project sites, Burma's ruling
junta has given areas 30 miles outwards from the Irrawaddy dam project
site to the Asia World Company for mining, logging and other business
activities since 2006.

Villagers of Tang Hpre said, the company is also exploring and mining
minerals from the areas around the project site but they do not
identify the type of minerals.

--
If you want to read more related stories, please log on to
www.kachinnews.com
========================================================
American citizen Kyaw Zaw Lwin (also called Nyi Nyi Aung) was arrested
in Burma on Sept. 3, 2009, accused of aiding the political opposition
and reportedly tortured and starved during interrogation. Amnesty
International’s Urgent Action calling for his release:
http://smu.edu/humanrights/aiurgent%20No.%201.html
------------------------------------------------------------------------
---------------------------
Donations to help the people of Burma can be made to:
Global Health Access Program, funding indigenous medical teams and
clinics:
www.ghap.org/
Burma Humanitarian Mission, delivering medical supplies and training:
www.burmamission.org/
------------------------------------------------------------------------
----------------------
"DOWN THE RAT HOLE: Adventures Underground on Burma's Frontiers"
is the latest book by Edith Mirante (author of "Burmese Looking Glass")
published by Orchid Press:
<http://d30021575.purehost.com/indiv_titles.html#rathole>
Available at Powells.com:
<http://www.powells.com/s?kw=down+the+rat+hole>
It can also be requested from your local bookshop or ordered at:
<www.amazon.com>

The Irrawaddy
Kachin against Irrawaddy Dam Project
By AMY SMITH AND JOHN CAMPBELL  Thursday, November 19, 2009

If there is one confluence of the Irrawaddy River that is famous
throughout Burma, it is the Mali and N’Mai rivers, located 27 miles
from Myitkyina, the capital of Kachin state.

The confluence is many things to the Kachin people: a source of
livelihood; a location of amazing biodiversity that attracts tourists;
a potent emblem of identity; and a historical beacon (legend says that
it’s the birth place and residence of the Father Dragon and his two
sons, Hkrai Nawng and Hkrai Gam).

Since August, the sole road leading to this sanctuary has witnessed a
spike in vehicle traffic. The dragon’s sleep has been disturbed by a
continual convoy of shinny white Mitsubishi jeeps, their occupants
obscured through smoked colored windows. The convoy’s route is a 7 mile
stretch between the river and the newly established offices of the
Burmese regime friendly Asia World Company, a construction company that
contracted with the Power Investment Corporation, a Chinese state
company developing the hydro scheme project that will send most of the
electricity into China's energy-hungry Yunnan Province, according to
International Rivers, a nongovernmental agency.

Asia World has started the construction of the hydroelectric projects
at Chibwe, on the N’Mai River, that will lead to the resettlement of
hundreds of villagers. For local residents, the vehicles and the
buildings are the foreboding signs of the coming social and
environmental storm.

The confluence will be home of a 152-meter high dam; the 7th and
largest in the dam network on the N’mai and Mali rivers. The network
will generate thousands of megawatts of hydroelectricity (capacity of
3,600 MW for the confluent dam alone).

The design is the brainchild of the China Southern Power Grid Company
and its construction was authorized by the SPDC.  The dams represent a
huge financial windfall for the SPDC and an energy bonanza for China.

The custom with economic deals of this nature in Burma is that the
decision making is centralized and the contract details are kept from
public view. The contract was signed in 2007. While the details are
murky, the costs, financially and environmentally, will be significant.
The dam’s construction will be ecologically ruinous, razing the
confluence’s biodiversity. Perhaps more profound will be the social
repercussions: 15,000 villagers face imminent displacement.


Up to a few weeks ago, these local communities, living for generations
in the 60 villages on the 766 km square to be flooded by the dam, have
never officially been told that they would have to move. Now, they have
received eviction notices and ordered to leave.

Most of their livelihoods will be destroyed as well as their houses and
other assets. If the scenario is similar to what has happened at other
dam construction sites, they will receive no compensation. The army is
expected to increase its presence in the region, and with it the number
of human rights likely will rise.

The villagers are manifestly poor, the victims of decades of civil
strife and government neglect. They have no allies and face powerful
adversaries. Their plight appears hopeless. Yet, out of their
desperation, a resistance has swelled among the local communities.

Undeterred, villagers held protests at the planned construction site in
October, as 20,000 Chinese workers were waiting to be transferred to
the area. Local communities, deprived of the minimum to insure their
survival, refuse to leave the site.Many villagers said they would
rather die in their villages than leave the confluence.

The tension has been ratcheted up and support for opposition has
increased among the villagers. This has already produced a tangible
result: the arrival of the Chinese workers has been delayed to avoid
any confrontation.

In a move to diffuse the situation, the army’s northern commander
called for a public meeting in October. More than 100 residents
attended, voicing their opposition to the project. At an enormous risk
to their personal safety, the villagers have chosen to fight a decision
that will destroy their homes and livelihoods. How long can they stem
the dam’s construction? one can question the actual position of the
KIO, which has been unusually silent on the issue.

Many villagers are demanding that the government stop the dam project.
An open letter addressed to the Snr-Gen Than Shwe and other officials
has been widely disseminated:

“It is our wish that these Chinese hydropower companies realize the
danger and disastrous effects upon the people to be caused by the
construction of the dam. Local residents do not want to leave their
homeland which they inherited from their ancestors.”

Predictably, it remains unanswered. The delay of the arrival of the
Chinese workers is an encouraging sign of the impact of the local
protests, but how long can the villagers hold out without wider support?

Can David challenge Goliath in Burma? In other words: can a handful of
determined and brave villagers influence the Burmese junta’s decision
without the active support of more individuals and public groups, both
inside Burma and abroad?


========================================================
American citizen Kyaw Zaw Lwin (also called Nyi Nyi Aung) was arrested
in Burma on Sept. 3, 2009, accused of aiding the political opposition
and reportedly tortured and starved during interrogation. Amnesty
International’s Urgent Action calling for his release:
http://smu.edu/humanrights/aiurgent%20No.%201.html
------------------------------------------------------------------------
---------------------------
Donations to help the people of Burma can be made to:
Global Health Access Program, funding indigenous medical teams and
clinics:
www.ghap.org/
Burma Humanitarian Mission, delivering medical supplies and training:
www.burmamission.org/
------------------------------------------------------------------------
----------------------
"DOWN THE RAT HOLE: Adventures Underground on Burma's Frontiers"
is the latest book by Edith Mirante (author of "Burmese Looking Glass")
published by Orchid Press:
<http://d30021575.purehost.com/indiv_titles.html#rathole>
Available at Powells.com:
<http://www.powells.com/s?kw=down+the+rat+hole>
It can also be requested from your local bookshop or ordered at:
<www.amazon.com>

guidebook includes dam areas:

Forbidden places in disturbing Burma
The Nation (Thailand) Nov. 17, 2009


Human rights activists on Tuesday launched a guidebook that revealed
the dark side of the tourist sites in Burma' Shan State as part of a
campaign to get foreign visitors to rethink their planned vacation to
the trouble plagued military-run state.

The book "gives tourists an alternative view of Shan State by providing
a pictorial exposé of the deliberate neglect, destruction and
reinvention of local cultural and historical sites," said a press
statement from the Chaing Mai-based Shan Women's Action Network (Swan).

The majority of war-torn Shan State is off limits to tourists, but some
areas are open to foreign travelers but the "Forbidden Glimpses of Shan
State" provides a unique insight into these areas, according to the
statement.

"The guide depicts how Burma's military regime is erasing the last
remaining palaces of the 34 former Shan principalities. This includes
the demolition of the historic Kengtung Palace in 1991 to make way for
a garish modern hotel," it said.

"The destruction of remnants of former Shan self-rule is contrasted
with the regime's construction of new monuments that extol ancient
Burmese kings and numerous replicas of the "Shwedagon" pagodas across
Shan Stat."

"Photos of these lavish structures are juxtaposed with images of
historic local Shan temples that have been desecrated and left derelict
during the Burma Army's ongoing scorched earth campaigns," the
statement added.

"We have not only been robbed of our rights, lands and resources. The
regime is also robbing us of our culture and history," said Swan
spokesperson Moan Kaein.  "We want visitors to open their eyes to the
repression going on around them, even in the cultural sites they are
visiting." 

The book also has photos of the scenic views from areas off-limits to
outsiders but are under threat by the junta's development plans.

The book also displayed locations of jails in Shan State where
prominent Burmese political prisoners are being incarcerated.

The book has been launched to coincide with the Shan New Year,
celebrated this year on November 17, 2009. English, Shan, Burmese and
Thai versions of the book can be viewed on www.shanwomen.org

http://nationmultimedia.com/2009/11/17/pda/regional_30116791.html


========================================================
American citizen Kyaw Zaw Lwin (also called Nyi Nyi Aung) was arrested
in Burma on Sept. 3, 2009, accused of aiding the political opposition
and reportedly tortured and starved during interrogation. Amnesty
International’s Urgent Action calling for his release:
http://smu.edu/humanrights/aiurgent%20No.%201.html
------------------------------------------------------------------------
---------------------------
Donations to help the people of Burma can be made to:
Global Health Access Program, funding indigenous medical teams and
clinics:
www.ghap.org/
Burma Humanitarian Mission, delivering medical supplies and training:
www.burmamission.org/
------------------------------------------------------------------------
----------------------
"DOWN THE RAT HOLE: Adventures Underground on Burma's Frontiers"
is the latest book by Edith Mirante (author of "Burmese Looking Glass")
published by Orchid Press:
<http://d30021575.purehost.com/indiv_titles.html#rathole>
Available at Powells.com:
<http://www.powells.com/s?kw=down+the+rat+hole>
It can also be requested from your local bookshop or ordered at:
<www.amazon.com>

mention of forestry products:

November 18, Bermana (Malaysia)
Vietnamese businessmen to invest in Myanmar's hotel industry

Yangon -- Vietnamese businessmen will invest in Myanmar's hotel industry
for the first time, as part of its engagement in the country, sources
with
the Myanmar Hoteliers Association said on Wednesday.

The planned hotel is to be built near Myanmar's current top-level one,
the
Sedona, located on the Kaba Aye Pagoda Road in the biggest city of
Yangon,
the sources said without disclosing further information, China's Xinhua
news agency said.

There are some other foreign-invested hotels operating in the city,
which
are three from Thailand, one from Singapore and the other from China, it
said.

Meanwhile, a Vietnamese airline is also planning to fly Myanmar as a new
destination, it added.

According to official statistics, Vietnam's investment in Myanmar hit
some
US$23.4 million in nearly 21 years up to the end of May this year since
the country opened to such investment in late 1988.

Vietnam stands the 16th among Myanmar's exporting countries and 11th
among
importing ones.

Myanmar mainly exported its forestry products to Vietnam, followed by
agricultural produces, seafood and electrical spare parts, while it
imported from Vietnam steel, electronic goods, pharmaceuticals,
medicines,
industrial products, chemical products, computer and accessories,
plastic,
cosmetics and engine oil.

Official statistics show that Myanmar-Vietnam bilateral trade in the
first
nine months of 2009 hit some US$60 million.

Of the total, Myanmar's export to Vietnam took some US$42 million, while
its import from Vietnam stood at US$18 million, enjoying a trade surplus
of US$24 million.
========================================================
American citizen Kyaw Zaw Lwin (also called Nyi Nyi Aung) was arrested
in Burma on Sept. 3, 2009, accused of aiding the political opposition
and reportedly tortured and starved during interrogation. Amnesty
International’s Urgent Action calling for his release:
http://smu.edu/humanrights/aiurgent%20No.%201.html
------------------------------------------------------------------------
---------------------------
Donations to help the people of Burma can be made to:
Global Health Access Program, funding indigenous medical teams and
clinics:
www.ghap.org/
Burma Humanitarian Mission, delivering medical supplies and training:
www.burmamission.org/
------------------------------------------------------------------------
----------------------
"DOWN THE RAT HOLE: Adventures Underground on Burma's Frontiers"
is the latest book by Edith Mirante (author of "Burmese Looking Glass")
published by Orchid Press:
<http://d30021575.purehost.com/indiv_titles.html#rathole>
Available at Powells.com:
<http://www.powells.com/s?kw=down+the+rat+hole>
It can also be requested from your local bookshop or ordered at:
<www.amazon.com>

November 8, Xinhua
Traditional medicine practitioners in Myanmar urged to take part in
heath
promotion plan

Yangon – Myanmar official media Monday urged traditional medicine
practitioners in the country to take part in the national health
promotion
plan, designed to give better healthcare to the people with traditional
medicine.

The New Light of Myanmar also urged in its editorial the medicine
practitioners to work hard in the drive for Myanmar traditional medicine
to earn good reputation at the global level as a perfect traditional
medicine by reviving and improving Myanmar traditional medicine with
advance methods.

Myanmar's national health policy -- "To encourage improving Myanmar
traditional medicine and doing medical research at the international
level
and to participate in community, healthcare" is in the process of
execution, the editorial said.

Myanmar people had a long life span due to potent traditional medicine
compounded of herbal plants from tubers and bulbs, animal products and
marine and land resources that are abundant in the nation, the editorial
noted, saying that Myanmars were globally recognized as a people with
high
physical and mental prowess.

Myanmar traditional medicine is part of the national integrity because
it
is a well-established medicine reflecting Myanmar's geographical
features,
climate patterns, cultural heritage, customs and traditions, the
editorial
added.

Meanwhile, the 10th Annual Myanmar Traditional Medicine Practitioners'
Conference was held in Nay Pyi Taw last weekend, attended by First
Secretary of the State Peace and Development Council General Thiha Thura
Tin Aung Myint Oo.

The conference of its kind has been held yearly since 2000 with the
objectives of improving Myanmar traditional medicine and raising the
role
of the medicine practitioners.

========================================================
American citizen Kyaw Zaw Lwin (also called Nyi Nyi Aung) was arrested
in Burma on Sept. 3, 2009, accused of aiding the political opposition
and reportedly tortured and starved during interrogation. Amnesty
International’s Urgent Action calling for his release:
http://smu.edu/humanrights/aiurgent%20No.%201.html
------------------------------------------------------------------------
---------------------------
Donations to help the people of Burma can be made to:
Global Health Access Program, funding indigenous medical teams and
clinics:
www.ghap.org/
Burma Humanitarian Mission, delivering medical supplies and training:
www.burmamission.org/
------------------------------------------------------------------------
----------------------
"DOWN THE RAT HOLE: Adventures Underground on Burma's Frontiers"
is the latest book by Edith Mirante (author of "Burmese Looking Glass")
published by Orchid Press:
<http://d30021575.purehost.com/indiv_titles.html#rathole>
Available at Powells.com:
<http://www.powells.com/s?kw=down+the+rat+hole>
It can also be requested from your local bookshop or ordered at:
<www.amazon.com>

www.arakanrivers.net

November 10, Arakan Rivers Network
India-Burma transport project to devastate local livelihoods and
cultures

Local civilians in Western Burma (Myanmar) face severe negative
consequences from the planned construction of the Kaladan Multi-Modal
Transport Project; these include heavy damage to the environment and
therefore livelihoods, as well as widespread human rights abuses.  A
preliminary report from the Arakan Rivers Network (ARN) presents some of
these local voices and highlights their concerns; it provides a
comprehensive update on the status of the project and an expert analysis
of its expected impacts. The report will be released on November 10,
2009.

The Kaladan Project aims to connect the landlocked area of Northeast
India
with the sea via the Kaladan River in Western Burma’s Arakan and Chin
states, opening up trade routes to Southeast Asia.  However, this
progressive leap for India’s “Look East Policy” will also have a broad
range of devastating effects on the people of Arakan and Chin States,
most
of whom already live in extreme poverty and have not had any input in
the
planning and construction of this project.  The communities inhabiting
areas that will be affected by the Kaladan Project will see no benefit
to
their local economies or their level of development; in fact, the
project
will make it harder for locals to pursue their livelihoods, secure their
basic necessities, and provide for their families.

ARN Director Aung Marm Oo, summarized the link between rivers and local
livelihoods in Arakan, and the consequences of the Kaladan Project: The
Kaladan is the most important of Arakan State’s four main rivers, with
more than one third of the state’s population residing close to its
banks.
Over 90% of these people totally depend on the river for fishing,
farming
and travel. If this project goes ahead under the rule of Burma’s
oppressive military regime, people from not only Arakan, but also Chin
State, will suffer enormously. At the same time, the regime will send in
more troops, confiscating hundreds of acres of farmland from local
farmers
for military use. The military presence and the execution of the Kaladan
development will also lead to numerous human rights abuses,
environmental
degradation and the decimation of ecosystems, biodiversity and the
migratory paths of important species.”

ARN has been following the developments of the Kaladan Project since the
first agreement on the project was signed in April 2008.  This report is
the first of its kind, and compiles information from a number of primary
and secondary sources. Enlisting the support of experts in many fields,
from river development to Burma’s foreign relations, this Preliminary
Report gives a comprehensive overview of the project’s local
implications
and its wider significance amid the current Asian political climate.

The ARN aims to protect regional ecosystems from deterioration and
prevent
the destruction of habitats that are home to endangered species. We
endeavour to bring an end to the persistent abuse inflicted on the
people
of Arakan and Chin States as a result of development projects that
favour
Burma’s oppressive military regime.

For further information please contact:
Aung Marm Oo, Director (ARN): + (0) 81- 6736326
JJ Kim, Volunteer: + (0) 85- 4784971

Download the preliminary report at
http://www.arakanrivers.net/wp-content/uploads/2009/11/Preliminary-
Report-of-Kaladan-Multi-Mulda-Transit-Transport-Project.pdf



========================================================
American citizen Kyaw Zaw Lwin (also called Nyi Nyi Aung) was arrested
in Burma on Sept. 3, 2009, accused of aiding the political opposition
and reportedly tortured and starved during interrogation. Amnesty
International’s Urgent Action calling for his release:
http://smu.edu/humanrights/aiurgent%20No.%201.html
------------------------------------------------------------------------
---------------------------
Donations to help the people of Burma can be made to:
Global Health Access Program, funding indigenous medical teams and
clinics:
www.ghap.org/
Burma Humanitarian Mission, delivering medical supplies and training:
www.burmamission.org/
------------------------------------------------------------------------
----------------------
"DOWN THE RAT HOLE: Adventures Underground on Burma's Frontiers"
is the latest book by Edith Mirante (author of "Burmese Looking Glass")
published by Orchid Press:
<http://d30021575.purehost.com/indiv_titles.html#rathole>
Available at Powells.com:
<http://www.powells.com/s?kw=down+the+rat+hole>
It can also be requested from your local bookshop or ordered at:
<www.amazon.com>