Confiscated farmland turned into brick making factories, building military camps

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On the occasion of the Mon Kingdom Honsawaddy founding day, we from the core family in Manipur, India extends heartiest congratulations and best wishes to the Mon people over the world!

We join you all in your celebrations and extend our strongest solidarity to the demands of the Mon people for fundamental freedoms and human rights.

NGO in Special Consultative Status with the Economic and Social Council of the United Nations

There are many ways to support our common goal and to show unity. The following joint statement provides a good example of national unity. This kind of statement shares common goals, respect to each other, and draw everybody's attention to our differences.

Thank you for posting it up. (“Celebration of freedom: thousands participate in Mon National Day”) Because of Kaowao Newsgroup, it helps people to know updated info. It's good news and I am glad to see a huge crowd of Mon people. This is amazing and I feel proud of being a Mon. Wish that we can celebrate Mon National Day inside Burma very soon.

Bangkok -- Thousands of Mon migrants recently arrived in Thailand to register for a work permit during the labour shortage in the fishing and construction industries, farming, and road construction have started to head back to Burma, leaving them stranded, without a job, and open to exploitation after learning they need to pay a 50,000 baht registration fee required to work legally.

With an estimated 200 crossing the border daily due to human rights abuses including fear of persecution and land confiscation, in addition to the poor economic state of the country, the 50,000 baht registration fee would be impossible for those escaping poverty, especially those escaping human rights abuses.

Social workers also fear that migrants unable to pay will be obliged to accept any kind of job, such as within the sex or fishing industry in which a good portion are confined in places by their employers for months on end without contact to the outside world.

“Some migrant workers looking for work in Samut Sakorn province are preparing to go back to Burma because they cannot afford to pay 50,000 thousand baht,” said Nai Lun, a Mon volunteer labor worker.

“Nobody can pay fifty thousand baht.” Meanwhile the Thai Ministry needs a further 500,000 workers from the three poorer nations: Burma, Laos and Cambodia, he said. The meeting on February 15th among the three countries agreed to allow 200,000 workers to enter into Thailand to fill the labour shortage, but even that number falls short to satisfy the huge demand for cheap labour, observers say.

Migrant workers with prior permission have to pay a 10,000 baht fee according to an agreement available in Burmese language in the province. Legal migrant workers in Samut Sarkhun province number in at around 70,000, 75% are Mon nationals.

According to a 1996 cabinet resolution and the subsequent 1997 Constitution of the Kingdom of Thailand, the rights of migrant workers are protected from exploitation, however, most migrants are at the mercy of their employers who often get away with paying less the minimum wage and prevent migrants to form unions, a situation which leads to gross exploitation of a large migrant workforce, while employers have immediate access to a cheap labour pool.

“With a lack of legal protection for these people it is difficult to get a reliable census of how many migrants there are here,” said Lun. “Unofficial estimates put the figure of migrant workers living in Thailand at about 3 million, here there are 200,00 Burmese migrant workers in Samut Sarkhun, but most are illegal, then there are those that work in the informal sector like domestic workers and waiters,” Lun pointed out.

A good number of the workers with registration cards are prevented from traveling because their registration cards are withheld by employers, making it difficult for them to quit because of abuse and therefore cannot look for another job.

While those with only a photocopy of their work permit are subject to extortion by the Thai police and unscrupulous individuals, because of this they are treated the same as illegal workers. “Even migrants with registration cards are denied the services granted to them with many going without medical care and education,” said Lun.

While the Mon National Day was celebrated worldwide, the Mons in Canada also celebrated with particular joy the founding of the Mon Kingdom with their Canadian hosts on a unusually, mild winter night in Canada on 18 February.

The planning and coordination of the successful event was jointly organized by the Mon National Day celebration committee, the Mon Women Organization, Mon Canadian Society, and the Mon Buddhist Temple, who all wanted to make sure that everyone would be happy and impressed with the evening’s performances held at the Southeast Community Association Center in Canada’s ‘cow town’, the city of Calgary’s nickname.

Supporters and friends came from across Canada, Quebec and British Columbia; and others came up from the United States, Ohio and Indiana by bus and plane to Calgary, Alberta.

The family oriented event also garnered a lot of attention from friends and coworkers from the Calgary area who turned the event into a fun and merry evening that started at 7 p.m with the Master of Ceremony, Cham Toik, thanking everyone in attendance by starting the event with a Mon Than-Chat (Antiphonal, Group Chant).

The happy hosts served up Mon foods, such as noodles and curries, and cultural performances were well received by all who marveled at the Mon women’s synchronized dance moves. A joint statement was read by Mehm Tala Rot from Bishop’s University of Quebec who traveled by plane and bus from eastern Canada. Outstanding politician and Alberta’s Member of Legislative Assembly (MLA), Mr. Wane Cao, Head of Asian Heritage Foundation along with Ms. Teresa Woopaw, and Cambodian community leaders also delivered solidarity messages, and last but not least, 78 year old, Nai Nyunt Tin, who came all the way from Vancouver by car to take part in the special event.

The Mons in Fort Wayne celebrated 59th Mon National Day in the evening on February 11 where more than five hundred people crowded into the South Side High School of Fort Wayne, Indiana.

The Mon National Day celebration was the biggest event for Mons in US. For the Mon community here, the event is most exciting; with a united will to show their national pride. They seemed eager and active for the participation to preserve their identity as a nation with a rich culture that once established kingdom and sovereignty.

The well-organized celebration attracted diverse nationalities of Laotian, Thai, Vietnamese, Burmese and many Americans. There was a high sense of energy and passion; the ceremony was quite lively with merrymaking; featuring portraits and cooperation. Ushers were busy with guiding the guests to the seats and people were graciously served.

At the entrance of South Side High School’ auditorium, the people were signing up at the reception desk, viewing photos of Mon culture, literature, old palm leaf, books and posters, buying Mon shirts that featured the national symbol, and picking up information papers. On the right side of the state, a big screen was playing the documentation of Mon refugees how they were suffered on the Burma-Thailand border.

The stage was colorfully lit; set in the background on the back wall was the large banner that read "The 59th Anniversary Mon National Day". 2 MCs Nai Michael Mon and Mi Pakao Rot announced the agendas both in English and Mon to the audience. A group led by Nai Cheem Hongsar marched to the front of the stage, proudly holding up the national flag which commenced the celebration. All people stood up to salute the flag and, sang the Mon and American National Anthems. The chorus of "Reh Ni Gom" National Anthem filled up the hall when they hoisted up the Mon flag gradually.

Nai Mon Chai, the President of convening committee, explained the aim of MND followed by Nai Maha Mon’s welcoming message. A statement was read by Mehm Rot Chan in the Mon and Mi Kyae Loon in English language.

"We have prepared for four months for this occasion" said Nai Htaw Ong. The beautiful dancers performed gracefully in unison and were gratefully applauded several times. Mon traditional foods were served in thirty-minute intervals. "I like the Mon food", said an American guest.

“US government won’t forget the ethnic issues in Burma” said by Congressman Mark Souder when he gave a speech on Mon National Day. Mrs. Rosalie Hamilton, Fort Wayne Community School, delivered a keynote speech. “Speaking about Mons, I have to rely on books of Mon Nationalism and Civil War in Burma that written by Ashley South and the Mon people without a country published by MUL” said Mrs. Rosalie.

While New-Generation Mon Music band later entertained the guests with Mon songs, children, men and women came to the front and danced together.

The Mons from Ohio, Illinois, Wisconsin and Chicago also traveled to Fort Wane to participate in this auspicious occasion. "I joined the event every year since it’s not only important to us but it’s enjoyable and brings us more solidarity” said Nai Sukha who came from Ohio State.

Since its founding in 1825, Akron has been the home of wave after wave of immigrants. Pioneers from the East Coast and New England came first, followed by people from around the globe.

On Sunday, about 160 people who escaped persecution and a dictatorship in the Asian country of Burma, celebrated their national heritage in their American home of Akron.

The Mon community of Akron took part in the 59th Mon National Day in festivities at the Akron-Summit County Public Library Auditorium downtown.

“It's a day to commemorate our national pride,'” said Saikong Raman, 40, who came to Akron in 1993 from Burma and later served in the U.S. Army.

He said Mon National Day also is a day to let the world know about the plight of the Mon people in Burma, who lost their independence as a kingdom in 1757, 19 years before the United States declared its independence from England.

The oppression of the Mon persists today. ``We were freedom fighters'' in Burma, Raman said.

At the beginning of the program, videotaped comments by President Bush about the lack of freedom in Burma from this year's State of the Union address were shown on a large screen.

The day's activities included dancing in traditional Mon costumes, as well as Mon food and speeches by local residents.

Some members of the Mon community began settling in Akron in 1992 through the International Institute of Akron, which assists immigrants and resettled refugees.

Buddhist Monk Ashin Wareinda is from Burma and has lived in Akron for nearly eight years.

He said in the last year, the Mon community has opened a temple, the Mon Buddhist Temple, on Chaffin Road in Coventry Township.

“This day is very important for our Mon people,'' he said. ``We want to show people our faith, pastimes and traditions.''

Akron and Fort Wayne, Ind., are the two main cities where Mon people live in the United States, said Goran Debelnogich, International Institute Resettlement Services Coordinator.

Nai Soeng, 30, arrived in Akron four years ago, after leaving Burma many years ago and spending several years in Thailand.

Soeng is studying political science at the University of Akron and wants to work for democratic change in Burma.

“We are free,'' he said, ``but we are concerned for the people we left behind.''

Bangkok -- The Mon people’s most festive celebration of the year, Mon National Day, was held in the heart of Thailand’s massive exporting center, Mahachai, a port city, on the outskirts of Bangkok on February 13^th. The star of the evening, the famous Mon singer, Nai Talavi, fired up the evening with a country ballad in front of over 10, 000 migrant workers.

“I think it’s a great way to showcase local talent,” said Zahan Ong, a young patriot wearing the traditional red sarong armed with his digital camera. “There was an enormous amount of energy coming from the music, it sounded like thunder, and everybody enjoyed the music, dancing, singing, and eating.”

Mon National Day, a blend of historical tradition, pageantry and music, is held in a variety of locations around the world, in Mon State, around Thailand, Malaysia, Sri Lanka, North America, and Europe. The whole Mon National Day celebration in Mon and Karen States encouraged the audiences to have a good time without any problems.

According to Sunthorn Sripanngern, General Secretary of Mon Unity League, migrant Mons and Thai Mons celebrated their 59^th anniversary in different venues in the kingdom.

All Mon love to listen to music with many coming to see new talent from Mon State. The most famous singers and musicians, Nai Parmokha Chan and Nai Anakhea, who themselves look like they just walked off a factory floor and whose band didn’t take long to win the appreciative crowd of Mahachai with their affable manner and hometown charm.

The evening conversation revolved around how many people showed up, “Some migrant workers here are illegal and for just having a good time, risk being arrested,” Zahan pointed out. A Mon journalist, Miss Mi Loahtaw, thinks it’s not easy to estimate the people in Mahachai, “The temple grounds are at capacity, maybe it’s less than ten thousand,” she figures.

Moving into the 59^th Mon National Day, local Mon communities face critical issues concerning human rights in both Thailand and Burma. Health, worker’s rights, freedom of expression, and economic development, just to name a few are central to how the Mon will define their role in the modern world. The New Mon State Party released a statement reaffirming its pledge that the party would never surrender if pressured to do so by the State Peace and Development Council, Burma’s military government. The party is currently watching the situation of ceasefire groups in the north.

“There is still no sign of national reconciliation or of a peaceful dialogue between all ethnic groups and the Burmese government.” The message of the NMSP President said, “the SPDC is relocating some Burmese population into Mon State and it may bring trouble for the Mon people.”

The General Secretary of Karen National Union, Pado Mahn Shar, attended the Mon National Day in Mae Sod sponsored by the Mon National League for Consolidation and Aid along with other ethnic and Democratic groups, Nai Akhea, a working committee member from Mae Sod said.

Mon National Day joint-statement by ten organizations in exile, including three groups in Thailand proudly stated that the Mon, over 1500 years ago, brought Theravada Buddhism in Thailand and Burma from southern India along with the ancient arts of sculpture and Indian architecture.

The Mon community from European countries, North America, Australia, Malaysia and Thailand urges the international community to support their call for a tripartite dialogue and to bring the Burma issues to the United Nation’s Security Council.

On Michael Aung-Thwin’s The Mists of Ramanna: The Legend that was Lower Burma

Reviewed for H-ASIA by Michael W. Charney, Department of History, School of Oriental and African Studies

Michael Aung-Thwin is Professor of Asian Studies at the University of Hawai'i (Manoa) and has published extensively on Burmese history. The present work is divided into thirteen chapters, including the introduction and the conclusion ("Without the Mon Paradigm"). The main goal of the book is to debunk what Aung-Thwin calls the "Mon paradigm, "which, he argues, was the result of the work of colonial historians who combined two indigenous myths into one interpretation of Burmese history. As the author explains:

"In the nineteenth century ... Dhammazedi's fifteenth-century claim that the ancient Suvannabhumi was Ramannadesa and U Kala's eighteenth-century account of the conquest of Thaton--two temporally, causally, and textually unrelated narratives--were combined for the first time by colonial scholarship and synthesized into a new theory that the Mon Theravada Buddhist culture of Lower Burma 'civilized' Burman Upper Burma. This is the thesis that I call the Mon Paradigm.... Because Pagan is considered to have been the 'Golden age' of Burma's culture and therefore also the foundations upon which the country's subsequent culture was built, the Mon Paradigm implies that the Mon people and the culture of Lower Burma were the ultimate origins not only of Pagan civilization, but also of Burma's culture in general" (p. 2).

This paradigm was maintained, Aung-Thwin argues, because specialists on the country did not heed the reservations of non-specialists on Burma, especially of those external specialists not trained in indigenous languages, such as Pierre Dupont. In other words, had scholars on the country not been trapped by their own historiography and been able to view Burmese history without knowledge of it, they might have seen the inconsistencies of the paradigm (pp. 4, 6). This sets up a demanding case for Aung-Thwin to demonstrate, but unfortunately, the present study fails to convince the present reviewer, as discussed below.

The present reviewer has examined Burmese myths, also using a textual approach as well as the same indigenous chronicles used here regarding the Abhiraja myth.[1] Thus, he is in a position to comment on the merits of Michael Aung-Thwin's analysis of the emergence of one of the "myths"--the Thaton conquest story in Burmese history--which was integrated into Aung-Thwin's Mon paradigm. This story or "myth" holds that upon the advice of his teacher, Shin Arahan, the eleventh-century Burmese king, Anawrahta, marched against and took the town of Thaton in Lower Burma. From Thaton, Anawrahta took back to Pagan thirty sets of the Pali Canon (the Pitakas) and they were used to instruct Burmese monks in the correct religious teachings. Aung-Thwin argues that this myth does not appear in its full form until the twentieth century in Mon texts and only in the 1730s in Burmese texts. Thus, he argues, the story's acceptance represents a Mon paradigm used by colonial historians and others later to understand Burmese history in a particular way that allowed them (and the Mons) to view the Burmese as the recipients of culture from the Mons. Aung-Thwin draws attention to the lineage of the story and to the fact that inscriptions do not support it and thus draws the Mon paradigm into question. He makes use of a limited number of indigenous texts, some translated into English and some into Burmese. It is unclear if Aung-Thwin understands Mon, but other than Burmese chronicles, he relies on translated versions of a small sampling of Mon texts and a translated version of a Pali chronicle.

An important problem with this work is that Aung-Thwin, likely unwittingly, selectively presents part of the historical context that would support his claims, but remains silent on changing aspects of this context that would work against them. A good example, one that would call the entire argument of this book into question, was the alternating mood of Bodawhpaya (r. 1782-1819). Certainly, Bodawhpaya did favour the Thaton story--initially. However, when he and the monastic order were at odds concerning his claims regarding the religion, he attempted to undercut their position by making a similar claim as that made by Aung-Thwin in the present book, that Ramannadesa was not an ancient country, in order to challenge the authenticity of the religious texts taken from from Thaton.[2] Bodawhpaya thus had his own special reasons to obstruct the historical record regarding Thaton. This is important, as Bodawhpaya--who spent much of his reign collecting extant copies of chronicles, religious texts, and other works, as well as inscriptions, and then culled them to support his views on the religion and society--presents a serious obstacle to our understanding of what was written (or inscribed) before his time. While Bodawhpaya could not collect and correct everything, it makes it extremely difficult to say--concerning views not shared by Bodawhpaya--what did not exist prior to his time, as asserted in the present study. Thus, while one might be able to confidently trace the Abhiraja myth, a myth supported by the court at this time, one wonders whether the argument can really be made that the Thaton story definitely did not exist. Certainly, this problem should have been discussed. The Twinthin taik-wun is clearly an exception and an understandable one. As one of the men put in charge of collecting and revising, the Twinthin taik-wun wrote his chronicle, which was not officially sanctioned by the court, prior to Bodawhpaya's shift regarding the Thaton story and after much of the text collecting had been completed. This cannot be said of earlier manuscripts.

The discussion of Bimala Churn Law's translation of Shin Pannasammi's Sasanavamsa is also problematic for several reasons.[3] First, the translation is frequently poor. Grammatical errors, contradictions, and the like, pepper the book. For those of us unable to read Pali, understanding what the translation is supposed to say, requires examining Shin Nyanabhivamsa's “Thathanalinkaya-sadan” (from which the Sasasanavamsa borrows extensively verbatim) for sections on which they share coverage. A re-translation is necessary from the original Pali (which the present reviewer is not able to read). Pending that re-translation, the passage cited does not clearly show a contradiction with a later passage, as argued by Aung-Thwin, regarding the Thaton 'myth.' Admittedly, it is under the heading of Ramanya, but the paragraph in which is included is less geographically circumspect than this heading would suggest:

"the king named Anuruddha of the town of Arimaddana brought an Order of monks from there together with the Pitakas. After that ... the great king Sirisamghabodhi-Parakkamabahu purified the religion in the island of [Sri] Lanka. Six years after that ... the Elder named Uttarajiva became famous in the religion" (Pannasammi, p. 44).

No mention is made of the place to which Anuruddha (Anawrahta) brought the pitakas--although Aung-Thwin inserts "Pagan" within brackets to make it so--"from there" could refer to either Pagan or to Thaton (the subject of the previous paragraph), or, given the problematic translation (or of the Pali original, if a new translation demonstrates this), it could refer to any range of places (Aung-Thwin, p. 146).

Pannasammi actually includes two accounts of the "Thaton Conquest" episode. The second is a full elaboration of the story, as rejected by Aung-Thwin. The first, quoted by Aung-Thwin, is a nearly verbatim repetition of the version of the episode found in the Pali section of the Kalyani Inscriptions, probably preserved in an intermediary text.

[Kalyani] "King Anuruddha, the Lord of Arimaddanapura, brought a community of priests together with the Tipitika (from Ramannadesa), and established the Religion of Arimaddanapura, otherwise called Pugama" (Kalyani, p. 49).[4]

[Pannasammi A]: "the king named Aniruddha of the town of Arimaddana brought an Order of monks from there together with the Pitakas" (Pannsammi, p. 44).

[Aung-Thwin quotation of Pannasammi A]: "the king named Aniruddha of the town of Arimaddana [Pagan] brought an Order of monks from there [Pagan] together with the Pitakas" (p. 146).

Clearly, Aung-Thwin's adjustment of the sentence has the effect of single-handedly replacing Ramannadesa with Pagan, not presenting new evidence that contradicts the Kalyani Inscription. As demonstrated above, the Pannasammi story [version A] is not an entirely different version of the episode, but the same Mon version of the story datable at least to 1476, and, certainly, it can be read any way that one wishes to, depending on which name they insert into the brackets, even as evidence supporting the Thaton conquest account. What makes this problem important is that Aung-Thwin then makes a jump, by ignoring the more reliable account [Pannasammi B] and then telling his readers that Pannasammi (A) provides a unique third version of events, that Anawrahta "took the scriptures to Thaton" (p. 147), which is only conjecture on the part of Aung-Thwin. In fact, the only precolonial tradition (Aung-Thwin cites three competing traditions) that offers an alternative story is derived from a text that can be reliably dated only to the nineteenth century.

The overall argument of the book is sometimes not supported by the evidence cited. Oddly, Aung-Thwin expends a considerable amount of effort discussing chronicles and other texts that would not logically mention the Thaton story in an effort to demonstrate that their failure to include the Thaton story constitutes some sort of proof that the story did not exist at the time they were written. ‘Zatatawpon Yazawin’ and ‘Yazawinkyaw’ are not histories per se, but deal almost exclusively with royal lineage (and the latter, especially with horoscopes), with little discussion of anything but regnal titles, dates, and filial relations. ‘Razadhirat Ayeidawhpon’ as well was not intended to cover the Pagan era (pp. 133-135). Further, one, the ‘Zambu Kungya’, cannot be dated to the pre-nineteenth century period, although its contents can be traced in part to U Kala in the early eighteenth century and to the ‘Maniyadanabon’ in the late eighteenth century, but is nonetheless presented as evidence that the earliest Burmese chronicles had a different version of the Thaton story than that provided in U Kala (p.123).

The author also fails to put his work into the broader range of literature on myths and their emergence in Burmese history. In neglecting related work in the field, _Mists of Ramanna_ remains only important to those concerned with the relevance of the Mons to Burmese history per se, rather than realizing its potential value within the broader context of the study of history writing. Further, in directing readers to other work on specialized topics and regions, Aung-Thwin's suggestions are sometimes unrepresentative of the state of the field (at least for the past decade). Closer attention to more recent decades of Burmese historiography would have helped to prevent this problem.

As Aung-Thwin explains, his study is "not an indictment of evidence but of methodology; of the way data have been assessed and used to conform to a preconceived notion" (p. 3). This criticism was directed at colonial scholars, but might be appropriately redirected at the present study. The case against the Mon paradigm remains unproven. The data is sometimes poorly handled in the present volume; vague references and observations by the author based on equivocal evidence he mobilizes in defense of his thesis represent questionable methodology.

In sum, “Mists of Ramanna” presents an interesting journey through a particular set of indigenous source materials and is easy reading. An unconvincing analysis of the chronicles and a failure to place the current study into the broader context of research on myths in Burmese history, however, hinder the book's value. Perhaps a revised edition will help the author make _Mists of Ramanna_ a stronger contribution to the body of research on premodern Burmese history.

[1]. Michael Walter Charney, "Centralizing Historical Tradition in Precolonial Burma: the Abhiraja/Dhajaraja Myth in Early Kon-baung Historical Texts, "South East Asia Research” 10, no. 2 (2002): pp. 185-215.

[2]. Royal Edict, 7 August 1817, in Than Tun, ed., _The Royal Orders of Burma, A.D. 1598-1885_ (Tokyo: Centre for Southeast Asian Studies, Kyoto University, 1988), 7: p. 390.

[3]. Shin Pannasammi. “The History of Buddha's Religion (Sasanavamsa)”, trans. Bimala Churn Law (Delhi: Sri Satguru Publications, 1952).

[4]. The full citation is The Kalyani Inscriptions Erected by King Dhammaceti at Pegu in 1476 A.D. Text and Translation (Rangoon: Superintendent, Government Printing, Burma, 1892).

Honolulu: University of Hawai'i Press. 2005. xi + 433 pp. Maps, photographs, notes, bibliography, index. $ 59.00 (cloth), ISBN0-8248-2886-0.

The local army unit has been threatening villagers in Mi-Htaw-Hlar Kyi village, southern Ye Township Mon state after two deserters escaped from near their village.

Troops from Infantry Battalion No.31 based in Kawzar sub-town have forced six villagers on a rotational basis to patrol the village everyday.

The two deserters escaped to join the Mon rebel group on January 8 and took away three MA (Myanmar Army) guns and one artillery M-79 gun with them. When the two deserters reached the village periphery, they fired one round into the village with the M-79. No one was hurt.

The two deserters also took two men from the village as hostage and to show them the way. Next day the two hostages were released. But the hostages were arrested by the army for investigation.

“Our villagers are being used as porters to track down the deserters. At least two or three men were used and they had to carry supplies for the soldiers. Sometimes we were used for four days,” a villager explained.

The Burmese Army troops regularly lunches operations in the area in search of their men and had a fight with a deserter in mid of January and got back a gun.

Troops also bar villagers from going to the farms and plantation during the operation. Following the desertions Col. Saw Than Thit and his officers in the battalion are under pressure and are being investigated.

Confiscated farmland turned into brickmaking factories, building military camps

Sangkhalaburi -- The State Peace and Development Council has been confiscating land in Mon State to build forced labour camps for brick factories, the bricks are used to construct military camps, a young Mon environmentalist said.

“I want to do research on brick industries in Ye Township because these operations are having a huge impact on the local people and the environment. They (Burmese military) have not only confiscated the land but are destroying it by digging these large pits to mine clay for making bricks used to build army bases. The pits are as big as soccer pitches and are about 10 to 30 meters in depth, what happens is that we cannot grow anything in the future,” says Nyan Seik, an environmental researcher and a recent graduate from the Nationalities Youth Forum Programme based in Chiang Mai.

About 7 to 8 acres of confiscated lands are being used for the interests of the Burmese military’s brick making factories that renders the land useless. The Mon farmers face instant impoverishment and have no hope in regaining their land when the transitional period comes. Many have fled as migrant workers to Thailand.

Those villagers who could not flee are forced into making the bricks, a labour intensive operation which requires villagers to work up to 12 to 15 hour shifts per day. “They stand up all day long making bricks, molding the clay with their hands into bricks which are dried in the hot sun, then they’re fired in a kiln,” Seik said. “I’m guessing about 5,000 bricks are made a day,” he added.

Another problem is that trees from the surrounding forest and from gardens belong to local people are being cut down for fuel to fire the bricks which promotes deforestation and erosion, and the huge pits, along with the erosion will spoil the water wells.

There are over 10 new Battalions built in southern Mon State since 1995 after the New Mon State Party reached a ceasefire with the Burmese government. The unofficial estimates by sources figure that about 10,000 acres of land were confiscated by the SPDC military in Ye township, who exploit every available niche to build new military camps as per its self- sufficient policy.

Sangkhalaburi -- The collection of wild orchids and wild bee honey found high above the jungle floor, in the tree canopy in southern Burma, is further destroying the environment in Mon State. The exotic flowers, collectors say, are too difficult to get and not wanting to risk their lives climbing the trees, chop them down instead to get at the plants, a source from border of Three Pagodas Pass said.

There are over 850 species of wild orchids in Burma’s forests, many of which are rare, but in spite of the Burmese government’s strict prohibition on cutting down trees to collect orchids (Thit Khwa for orchid in Burmese, which means ‘fork of the tree’ where the orchid is usually found), people with no other means of making a living, go searching deep into the jungle clad mountains for orchids and other tropical flower plants to sell to Thai buyers.

“I am no expert on botany, but the plants are like jewels,” said the resident. The collectors make from 400 to 3,000 kyat a day (roughly 3 US dollars) and collection occurs from November to the end of January. “It’s a sure way out of poverty that provides food on the table for the people,” Nai Rot added.

The flowers are then smuggled to Bangkok and sold to merchants. “They cut down big trees when they find the orchids and other beautiful flowers because it is difficult to climb up, many people get injured trying to climb, some have died,” the resident said. “It’s as if a herd of elephants has uprooted all the trees and striped the bark off the trees,” he said.

The Burmese jungles are full of orchids and other kinds of flowering plants which are also sold in shops on the border. “The price of jungle flowers is high and some small beautiful and exotic flowering plants are worth over a 1,000 baht,” the resident said. There are an infinite variety of flower species, but the price varies depending on the color and the size of the plant.

The area along the motor road to Three Pagodas Pass to Thanbyu Zayat of Mon State is especially rich in flora and fauna, including many species of wild orchids. “The orchid hunters do not climb trees, instead they just cut down the trees to get at them easily,” the residents from the Thai Burma border say.

Some orchid hunters also hunt honey made from bees in the jungle. Pure honey or raw honey unlike honey produced by farm bees is of higher quality and more delicious with no pesticides or chemicals; loaded with pollen, vitamins, and minerals and is a tasty delicacy among Thai tourists on the border that sells at 120 baht for one litre.

As the 58^th anniversary of the Chin National Day is approaching day by day, the Chinland Guardian believes that our audience would be interested in hearing and reading a special message on this auspicious Chin National Day by the leading Chin political figure like Salai Kipp Kho Lian. With that intention, our comments editor Salai Za Ceu Lian conducted an exclusive interview with Salai Kipp Kho Lian.

Chinland Guardian: What does the Chin National Day mean to you? In your opinion, what do you think we should learn from the birth of CND? Can you reflect on that?

Salai Kipp Kho Lian: We should celebrate Chin National Day with the true spirit of nationalism and national unity enshrined DEEPLY at the core of THIS auspicious day. On this da more than half a century ago the Chins achieved a victory over the ancient aristocratic system by means of a higher LEVEL OF POLITICAL CONCIOUSNESS, ie national consciousness (contrary to tribal one) and national unity thus effectively paving the way for the transformation of the whole Chin society to a new democratic era. We should let the true spirit of Chin National Day cut across all tribal and geographical divides.

Chinland Guardian: On this special occasion of our historic day, what message you would like to send to the Chin people globally?

Salai Kipp Kho Lian: Let us pledge our full support to the Political Affairs Committee of Chinland, the united front of the Chin democratic struggle! Let us join hands firmly with all nationalities of our country, including our Burman brothers! Let us unitedly support the efforts of Mr. Kofi Annan in his efforts to address our country's issue at the UNSC.

Chinland Guardian: Thanks a lot for your time and once again reminding our readers the importance of reaffirming the true spirit of nationalism as opposed to divisive tribalism. Happy Chin National Day!

Burma was admitted to the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) on July 23, 1997.^[1] Burma had gained observer status in the organization on July 17, 1996.^[2] Burmese opposition groups along with Australia, Japan, the European Union, and the United States of America pressured the association to reconsider Burma’s admission in its association due to a poor human rights record and the repression of opposition groups.^[3] The United States of America openly opposed ASEAN’s decision to include Burma in their group, and President Clinton accused the military regime of lacking rule of law and criticized it for failing to recognize Nobel Laureate Aung San Suu Kyi’s democratically elected government. The US believed that only pressure and isolation would bring about change Burma. US Secretary of State Madeleine Albright warned ASEAN members that Burma’s problems would become ASEAN’s problems.^[4] Japan, the former largest donor of Burma, did not oppose ASEAN’s rhetoric of “constructive engagement,” but Prime Minister Ryutaro Hashimoto cautioned that Burma’s entry into ASEAN would constitute a “pardon” for the military junta.^[5] The European Union (EU) stated that welcoming Burma as an observer and eventually as a full member in the association was a problem because Burma lacked democracy and had a terrible human rights record.^[6] Australian Foreign Minister Alexander Downer maintained that pressuring Burma was an essential tool because Burma’s attitude toward its opposition had not improved since Burma gained observer status in 1996.^[7] Democratic leader Aung San Suu Kyi sent a thirty minute video to ASEAN leaders urging them to reconsider Burma’s admission before a legitimate government takes offices.^[8]

ASEAN ignored the advice to continue putting pressure on Burma and supported Burma’s membership. Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad openly endorsed Burma’s membership in ASEAN in 1997. He also said that ASEAN would prevent Burma’s admission if "something unusual appens...perhaps if the government slaughters five million people in Burma." ^[9] He added, "The Myanmar (Burma) of today is not the Myanmar of many years ago…It is because of our constructive engagement that it has changed. If anyone says constructive engagement has not had a constructive effect, they must be thoroughly blind."^[10]

ASEAN’s leaders adopted “constructive engagement” rhetoric and accepted Burma in the association. They argued that constructive engagement was a means of improving the lives of Burmese and of persuading the ruling State Law and Order Restoration Council (SLORC) to change. Philippine Foreign Minister Domingo Siazon argued that if Burma became a family member, ASEAN would not have shout, only whisper.^[11] But the US Senate Chairman of the State, Foreign Operations and Related Programs Appropriations Subcommittee Mitch McConnell does not agree. He believes that sanctions are more effective as a punitive measure that strikes at the junta’s lifeblood, namely its monopoly on all investments and total dominance of the economy.

The ASEAN catch-phrase “constructive engagement” has its roots in US President Ronald Regan’s doctrine toward South Africa’s apartheid regime in 1980s. The policy of engagement was outlined by Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs Chester Crocker.^[12] His theory holds that a human rights abusing state should not be isolated and cut off from international economic aid, but rather gently prodded towards change, with a stronger, more positive influence being possible for outside states if they keep economic ties intact for use as bargaining chips.^[13]

President Regan gave up the policy of engagement under pressure from the US Congress and imposed sanctions against the South African regime in 1986. After facing international pressure, President F.W. de Klerk allowed African National Congress (ANC) leader Nelson Mandela to enter open elections. The ANC registered as a legal political party in 1994 in advance of the first free South African elections and after eighty-one years of struggle. It won over sixty percent of the vote in the elections, and Nelson Mandela was elected president of South Africa.^[14]

Senator Mitch McConnell agrees that sanctions will work in Burma as they worked on South Africa. The sanctions cut the lifeblood of the regime’s economics and politics, especially in the international arena. He recently wrote an article in Time Asia and challenged proponents of engagement with Burma.

Proponents of engagement with Burma, who wrongly believe the SPDC can be swayed to undertake political and economic reforms through dialogue alone, claim that the people hurt by the sanctions are the very ones we are trying to help. But sanctions don’t pull the trigger of a gun or discriminately rape ethnic-minority women and girls. Proponents of engagement say that sanctions don’t work, and they offer no incentives for Burmese generals to change their hard-line positions. They could not be more wrong. The efforts of Thailand and Japan over the years to reform Burma through engagement have yielded no results. Further, with the sacking and imprisonment of SPDC Prime Minister Khin Nyunt last year, Bangkok and Tokyo have lost their primary interlocutor in the Burmese government.^[15]

Mr. McConnell believes that sanctions will bring the military regime and opposition groups to the negotiation table.

The cause and solution to Burma’s problems are political. Through sanctions and unwavering support for the forces of freedom in Burma, democratic nations must secure the immediate release of (Aung San) Suu Kyi and all prisoners of conscience, the first necessary step toward a credible process of national reconciliation. The NLD and Burma’s ethnic minorities must have a seat at the negotiation table, and the phony efforts by the SPDC to hold a sham constitutional convention must be roundly denounced. Only then will freedom come to Burma.^[16]

Even though ASEAN’s funding father nations - Indonesia, Malaysia, The Philippines, Singapore, and Thailand - previously collectively supported an engagement policy in Burma, Malaysia and The Philippines have disclosed their uneasiness in engaging with the hardliner generals that rule Burma despite holding a non-interference policy. In the December 2005 ASEAN summit in Kuala Lumpur, ASEAN’s leaders issued a formal call for the junta to “expedite” democratic reform and release all political prisoners.^[17]

Dr Mahathir, who spearheaded the movement to bring Burma into ASEAN in 1997 and advocated the constructive engagement policy, criticized Burma after the Burmese junta rearrested Aung San Suu Kyi in 2003. He called for her immediate release and warned that Burma could face expulsion from the group even though he did not have the power to enforce such a threat.^[18] Malaysia came to oppose Burma for the group’s chairmanship in 2006 due to a lack of democratic reform and the continued imprisonment of Aung San Suu Kyi. In 2005, Indonesia, The Philippines, and Singapore stated that Burma should not chair ASEAN unless it made certain reforms.^[19] Burma finally gave up the seat during the ASEAN annual meeting in Laos last year.

Open criticism by some ASEAN leaders of the Burmese junta is merely a reaction to the junta, rather than a proactive policy for implementation of reform in Burma. The United Nations General Assembly, on the other hand, has drafted a resolution recommending that a national reconciliation program be introduced by holding dialogue between the NLD, SPDC, and ethnic nationalities forces. UN Special Envoy to Burma Razali Ismail revealed his discomfort with the lack of support by ASEAN leaders for the UN reconciliation program. He told journalists that ASEAN leaders did not even have regular contact with the regime.

Company executives, investors, and diplomats in Asian regions wonder why the West is sacrificing profits for human rights. They see Burma as an opportunity for cheap labor and abundant natural resources. Generals in power do not have much knowledge about macro economics and management skills. These factors attract Asian investors to come to Burma while the US and EU impose partial sanctions against Burma. As long as Asian states are investing in Burma, the impact of sanctions on Burma will be very limited.^[20]

According to the International Monetary Fund, Burma boasted only a US$ 82 million hard currency reserve in 1988; by 2004 it held US$ 685 million. Most of their earnings come from Asia, US-based UNOCAL and France-based TOTAL.^[21]

According to Chinese government statistics, trade between Burma and China in 2004 amounted to US$ 1.1 billion. China exports household appliances, chemicals, and medicines. Burma exports black jade, seafood, and timber.

In 2005, China National Offshore Oil Corp. (CNOOC) signed six contracts with the Burmese junta to explore for gas. Hong Kong-based PetroChina signed a memorandum to buy natural gas from Burma from Block A-1 in Arakan state, along Burma’s west coast.^[22] South Korea’s Daewoo International and Korean Gas Corp., as well as India’s Oil and Natural Gas Corp. Videsh and the Gas Authority of India, have discovered the largest gas reserve in Block A-1. A total investment of US$ 2 billion may be needed to develop the field.

France’s TOTAL and Malaysian state oil company Petronas provided Burma with about US$ 1 billion in revenue in 2005.^[23] US-based UNOCAL, now owned by Chevron, invested US$ 340 million in the Yadana gas pipeline that transports gas from Burma to Thailand.

Thailand Central Bank statistics show that Thailand's import from Burma in 2005 amounted to US$ 1.5 billion. Its telecom giant Shin Corp., founded by Prime Mister Thaksin Shinawatra, is Burma’s state communication company. In 2002, Shin expanded more phone services to rural areas in Burma, and a Thai state bank in 2004 granted a US$ 97 million credit line to Burma’s state phone company to purchase telecom equipment from Shin.

Singapore has invested nearly US$ 1.6 billion into 72 projects since 1990. European investors in Burma include England and Denmark.

Despite the fact that foreign investment in Burma is up, forty percent of South Korean textile firms have left the county in the past three years. Japanese companies have been pulling out since 2000. Singaporean companies are calculating losses incurred by dealing with Burmese generals’ economic mismanagement, irrational regulation making, and abrupt policy changing.

The debate between the East and the West regarding the efficiency of sanctions on Burma is ongoing. ASEAN is still reluctant to put pressure on the junta because some of its member countries bilaterally conduct business with the junta. On the other hand, the West believes that the national reconciliation program is a plausible solution for change in Burma. The first step towards this would be to balance power between the junta and its opposition. To do so, the West wants to impose unilateral sanctions against the junta and support opposition groups. They believe this will work in Burma as it did in South Africa.

In South Africa, Nelson Mandela was the icon of freedom. In Burma, Aung San Suu Kyi is the leader of democracy. The ANC won a majority of seats in the 1994 elections. Similarly, the NLD won eighty-two percent of parliamentary seats in the 1990 elections. Mr. Mandela and his ANC were allowed to form a collation government. But Aung San Suu Kyi and her NLD are still denied any decision-making power.

President of the African National Congress and Nobel Laureate Albert Lutul said in 1959 that the economic boycott of South Africa would entail undoubted hardship for Africa, but if it was a method which shortened the day of bloodshed, the suffering to South African people would be a price they were willing to pay. If killings, rapes, lootings, and other brutal acts could be stopped in Burma by imposing unilateral sanctions against the perpetrators, that policy should be enforced. If sanctions could bring Aung San Suu Kyi and ethnic nationalities parties into Burma’s political decision making process, they would be justified.

(The views expressed here are solely the opinion of the author. Nyi Nyi Lwin educated in USA with Criminal Justice, JD (Jurist Doctor). He is Head of Economic Department for Ethnic Nationalities Council (ENC) and Assistant Director of Arakan National Council. (Kao-Wao Editor)

^[1] ASEAN. “Establishment and Memberships: Document Sources on the Internet.” 16 Feb. 2000. (http://www.ASEAN.org)

^[2] Waterly. “Burma vs. ASEAN.” Online posting. 18 July 1996. <news:social.culture.burma>.

^[3] “ASEAN Says Burma Will Become Member, but Does not Say When.” 30 Nov. 1996. Reuter News.

^[4] “Albright Blasts over Burma.” Date to put. Associated Press.

^[5] “Japan Warns on ASEAN Burma’s Entry.” 2 July 1997. Thailand Time.

^[6]Kynge, James. “EU Gives Way to ASEAN over Burma.” 23 July 1996.

^[7] Marukatat, Saritded. “West to Put Pressure on ASEAN and Burma.” Bangkok Post. 27 July 1997.

^[8] Lee, Michael. “Suu Kyi says entry ASEAN and nod to Burma could mean more oppression.” Reuters. 30 May 1997.

^[9] Bernstein, Dennis and Kean Leslie. “ A Bing Shell for Terror in Burma.” 7 July 197. Boston Glove.

^[10] “ASEAN says Burma will become member but doesn’t say when.” Reuter. 30 Nov. 1996.

^[11] Tarrant, Bret. “ASEAN on Burma: Its Family Affair.” 21 July 1996. Reuter.

^[12] De Lancey, Blaine. “The Politics of Sanction.” The Alternative Orange. Vol.1 No.3 (pp.4-5). Syracuse University. Dec.1991-Jan.1992.

^[13] “B.U.R.M.A. “ASEAN Report.” 19 Jan. 1993.

^[14] “S. Africa Rivals Accept Nobel, Mandela and de Klerk Lauded in Oslo.” Boston Globe. Page 10: National/Foreign. 11 Dec. 1993.

^[15] McConnell, Mitch. “Sanctions Are the Most Effective Weapon against Burma’s Military Regime.” Time Asia. 23 Jan. 2006.

^[16] McConnell, Mitch. “Sanctions Are the Most Effective Weapon against Burma’s Military Regime.” Time Asia. 23 Jan. 2006.

^[17] Schuman, Michael. “Going Nowhere by doing business with Burma, Asian countries help its brutal military regime stay in power-while the Burmese people remain trapped in a time wrap of poverty, opposition and economic misrule.” Time Asia. 23 Jan. 2006.

^[18] “Burma could face ASEAN expulsion.” BBC News. 20 July 2003.

^[19] “Laos will listen to Rangoon before deciding.” 19 Mar. 2005. <http;//www.soc.culture.Laos />.

^[20] Schuman, Michael. “Going Nowhere by doing business with Burma, Asian countries help its brutal military regime stay in power-while the Burmese people remain trapped in a time wrap of poverty, opposition and economic misrule.” Time Asia. 23 Jan. 2006.

^[21] Schuman, Michael. “Going Nowhere by doing business with Burma, Asian countries help its brutal military regime stay in power-while the Burmese people remain trapped in a time wrap of poverty, opposition and economic misrule.” Time Asia. 23 Jan. 2006.

^[22] Ranjan, Amitav. “Myanmar gas sale to India with a rider.” Financial Express. 24 Jan. 2006.

^[23] Schuman, Michael. “Going Nowhere by doing business with Burma, Asian countries help its brutal military regime stay in power-while the Burmese people remain trapped in a time wrap of poverty, opposition and economic misrule.” Time Asia. 23 Jan. 2006.

(Nyi Nyi Lwin is Assistant Director of Arakan National Council’s Administration)

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