KAOWAO NEWS NO. 112
News letter for social justice
and freedom in Burma
June 16-
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World Cup gambling enthusiasts
undaunted by threats of arrest
Malaria on the rise in Three
Pagodas Pass
Barriers to education for poor
families in Southern Burma
Villagers forced to guard MOGE
gas pipeline
Canadian lawmakers call for
UNSC action on Burma
World Cup 2006:
Open and close door policy on
a Free Market Economy
Are the Asians morally
inferior than the West?
Population transfer threatens Mon community
Discussion on Population Transfer
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Readers’ front
Dear
readers,
We
invite comments and suggestions on improvements to Kaowao newsletter. With your
help, we hope that Kaowao News will continue to grow to serve better the needs
of those seeking social justice in
Regards,
Editor
Kaowao
News
[email protected], www.kaowao.org
__________________________________________
World Cup gambling enthusiasts
undaunted by threats of arrest
(Kaowao,
People betting on the World Cup
Soccer matches in
Police Major Hla Than of Thanbyu
Zayut Town raided the houses which hosted the soccer gambling at the beginning
of the World Cup, but ended up accepting bribes for 50,000 Kyats from the small
dealers and 100,000 Kyats from the big dealers, reported Nai Ban from the town.
In Moulmein, the capital city of
Mon State, there is no report on betting since the local authority warned the
gamblers will be arrested, with satellite owners serving up to three years in
jail and having their satellite dish confiscated. However, the
Million of Kyats were bet in
Thanbyu Zayat and Ye Townships. Most gambling enthusiasts are male from 16 to
50 years old.
As
***************************************
Malaria on the rise in Three
Pagodas Pass
(Kaowao:
Two third of patients along the
Sangkhalaburi Thai Burma border are suffering from malaria during this raining
season, according to medical workers.
Many refugees and internally
displaced persons including New Mon State Party leaders have contracted
malaria," said a medic from the Halockhanee Mon resettlement camp.
“About
65 per cent of 700 patients in the
“Because
of mosquitoes that thrive in this region during the rainy season, a high number
of people crossing the border, the lack of mosquito nets and proper
anti-malarial drugs, there have been more patients than in previous
years. When Medecins Sans Frontieres (MSF) was in this area, malaria
treatment was much better,” commented a social worker from Waeng Ka Mon
village. They could get access to people inside
Following the withdrawal of the
MSF, Mon medical workers working in refugee camps and rural areas in Tavoy,
Yebyu, Ye and Three Pagoda Townships face difficulties due to lack of support
and technical assistance. They are worried that they will not have enough
medicine to treat the high number of patients and the incidence of malaria will
increase as a result. The MSF provided treatment for the Mon refugees in
southern
The malaria warning was issued to
tourists planning to visit the Burmese-Thai border area near Mae Sot in
********************************************
Barriers to education for poor
families in Southern Burma
(Kaowao:
Even with the support of the
Total Oil Company, school tuition fees around the Yadana gas pipeline have
increased with families having difficulties paying for their children’s
education.
Nai Ong from northern Yebyu
reported that higher tuition fees were introduced for the school year 2006-7 at
13 villages around the Yadana pipeline area in Kanbauk, Klein Aung and
The financial burden of paying
for school repairs and additional building falls upon children and their
families. The principal of
The principal reasoned that the
school had not received enough funds from the government for school repairs and
the construction of new buildings. The local community is faced with extremely
expensive costs in maintaining the running of the schools.
Many poor Tavoyans and Mon
families are not able to pay for these costs and schools have turned these
children away who are unable to pay. In addition to informal costs, other
additional fees of keeping their children out of school are books, uniforms,
supplies, food and transportation. According to the local villagers, they
are happy due to additional support for community development provided by the
Total Company. Special teachers from the YMCA and medical doctors are
hired from
There are 2 government run high
schools and 2 joint-high schools (government recognized self-supported school)
in the gas pipeline area.
At the
In the rural areas, Mon children
are learning their basic education in self-supported Mon national schools run
by MNEC (Mon National Education Committee). These Mon national schools
are regarded as illegal institutions and are shut down often due to threats
from the Burmese authorities.
Although the Burmese authorities
claim 90 per cent enrollment for education in the country, UNICEF says it’s
more likely 55 per cent enrollment.
**************************************
Villagers forced
to guard MOGE gas pipeline
(Kaowao:
The Burmese Army in Mudon
Township have continued to conscript local villagers to guard the Kan Bauk -
Myaingkalay gas pipeline which passes through their area.
According to the local sources,
every village adjacent to the pipeline has to provide five persons each to
guard the pipeline and those who fail to do so must pay the guard 3,000 Kyats
in fines to the Burmese army.
A farmer from Klot Sort village,
who does not want to be named, said some children and women have to go on duty
if their household fails to provide the people. They have to remain at
the guard hut and wait until the Burmese troops arrive to check their
patrol. The BA also punishes the local militia if they cannot find the
quota from their village.
An explosion close to the Kan
Bauk - Myaingkalay gas pipeline occurred near Kwan Hlar village central
The pipeline transports gas from
the Yadana Gas offshore field in Tenasserim to a cement factory in Myaingkalay
village in
*********************************
Canadian lawmakers call for
UNSC action on Burma
(Kaowao:
Fifty Members of Parliament call
for United Nations Security Council action on
The Canadian MPs urged
UN chief and members of Security Council, by signing and adding their names on a letter, to put
the situation in
According to a statement from the
CFOB (Canadian Friends of Burma) based in Ottawa, the Parliamentarians
noted that the UNSC briefings were only a first step and increasingly unstable
situation in Burma represents a threat not only to the people of Burma, but
also to international peace and security. The UNSC has rendered two briefings on
“
Recently, Canadian Foreign
Minister Peter MacKay issued a statement calling on UN Security Council to
tackle
Canadian Friends of Burma (CFOB)
lobbied MPs to support this letter in
*************************************************
World Cup 2006:
(Kaowao,
Even though the SPDC authorities
ban the World Cup 2006 from betting, people in
Kaowao has learned that millions
of Kyat (Burmese currency) was placed in bets on World Cup Soccer matches in
Germany 2006 in Ye township. Gambling enthusiasts are mostly male from 16 to 30
years old hoping to win big. Children, women and Buddhist monks, give
full intention and gather in homes with a TV satellite by paying entrance fees
that varies on whether it is a private video house or a theatre. In some
privately own theatre, the audience can watch the game with a glass of beer or
soft drink.
The price of satellites has
jumped to 150-175% prior to the world cup season, from its normal price.
“A 200,000 satellite dish was 300,000 or 350,000 in early June. My
children know all the soccer stars such as Rooney, Ronaldhino and Beckham,”
said Nai Phu from Durae.
Mr. Shwe Nan Tin, a member of the
cease-fire DKBA, hosts the main gambling venue of the Three Pagodas Pass Thai
Burma border town. Gamblers from around the region come to place a huge amount
of money on their winning teams.
A Mon community leader from
The
**********************************************
Local Perspective on
ASEAN
Open and close door policy on
a Free Market Economy
(By Banya Hongsar and Lita
Davidson)
The Union of Myanmar needs the
protection of the Association of Southeast Asia Nations to cover up its
deplorable treatment of human beings, while ASEAN needs the United Nations to
shirk its duty to provide the Southeast Asian region with a secure working environment
based on human development, the foundation for a thriving economy. Since
1967, ASEAN has opened its borders to economic integration, but has a hands off
policy to develop tolerance and freedom to address human suffering within its
regions. The stage is set, but there are no actors to promote a free market
economy in
While having set up a Security
Community to be established by 2020, there has been little incentive to develop
protocols to deal with human security given its stance on its so-called
non-interference policy. In particular, it does not acknowledge the rights of
people, address international reports on human rights violations, such as rape
as a weapon of war, and turns it back away from thousands of refugees and the
rights of migrant workers residing within their borders.
The Joint Communiqué of the ASEAN
Ministerial Meeting held in
Socio-economic integration is at
the core of ASEAN policy. But does ASEAN have the wherewithal to develop
ASEAN Protocols should be
encouraged to acknowledge these people’s rights from
According to a media release (6
March 2006) of the Families and Friends for Drug Law Reform of ACT, Australia,
the production of opium in Myanmar in metric tons in 2004 was between 300-400
tons. This press release showed that
ASEAN members who want to lead
their nations into a globalized world economy need to start promoting freedom
and liberty if they want economic development on a much broader scale. But
there is a tendency for Asian leaders, for example, Lee Kwan Yew, former Prime
Minister of Singapore, to argue that authoritarian governments are much better
at leading their people to economic success. With
ASEAN neglects its core values by
sticking to its non-interference policy.
Without cheap labour from
The State Peace and Development
Council (SPDC), the current government of the Union of Myanmar does not
represent the welfare of its citizens that number over a million migrant
workers. But only seeks ways to benefit from the labour of these people, as
demonstrated recently in arguing for migrant worker processing centres to be
set up in
Former Czech President Vaclav
Harvel and Nobel Peace Prize laureate Archbishop Desmond Tutu called for the UN
Security Council to take immediate action against
ASEAN has provided aid to these
countries as part of their lip service, but alleviating poverty alone will not
eradicate the many social problems
Furthermore, there is no support
from ASEAN allowing people to have access to instruments of expressions in a
modern economy. For example, radio and TV programs are offered by the west,
such as BBC world services and ABC. Over 80% of the population has to rely on
BBC and RFA radio to listen to daily news on local and international issues.
Where is ASEAN? If it is committed to peace and stability, why doesn’t it
provide people with better access to exercise their economic and political
rights to achieve peace? The ASEAN leaders have to think again what is an
open market economy, so the people have accurate information about their
government’s daily business at home. Reading newspaper published by a
democratic group from
ASEAN is now in a position to
tackle these social problems, but the regional body lacks the commitment and
the teeth to defend human development or human rights in its own countries.
Marwaan Macan-Markar reported on
IPS September 2005 that
The regional body’s only objective
is to engage with
The ASEAN Secretary-General Mr
Ong keng Young told, ACB Asia Pacific program on 2 June “we are trying our best
to work with the
The political elite of the ASEAN
sends their children overseas to study new technology and advanced education.
The SPDC sends their children to
An open economy is anathema to
the Burmese government, as it will not tolerate any competition from the ethnic
groups. Over 2000 Mon teachers and 40,000 children were eligible for aid from
Lack of political progress at the
national or state levels has resulted in frustration within the nationalist
communities. Since signing truces with
For example, over 1,000 Mon
nurses, 2,000 Mon national teachers and 40,000 Mon children are not protected
by the Government of Union of Myanmar, this is a question for the regional
leaders to clarify within SPDC administration. If 6-7 million people of the
Karen and Mon populations in southern of
ASEAN plans to move towards
greater economic integration, emphasizing sustainable and equitable growth,
according to its policy papers. If this is the case, corruption would be
targeted and the private sector would be developed in
The ICRC,
The H.E. Secretary-General Ong
Keng Young addresses to ASEAN-EC Symposium in November 2005 said that the state
creates a conducive political and legal environment for a market economy.
The private sector generates jobs and income and civil society is mobilized and
political and social interactions are allowed. The SPDC itself and the
In July 2004, the 13 cease-fire
groups submitted proposals at the National Convention, which has been in recess
while demanding self-determination for their own territories, but the military
authorities of
Human Rights Foundation of
Monland reported from 1998-2006, that over 40 local civilian were killed by the
government troops, in which there was no legal action allowed to be taken by
the victims family against the SPDC authority. Instead, they were all accused
of supporting anti-SDPC troops in Ye township in
ASEAN lacks the political will to
develop its regions. The majority of its members are ruled by a one party
system in which military personnel are above the law.
**********************************************************
Asian Values in the
Burmese Context
Are the Asians Morally
Inferior Than the West?
(By Kanbawza Win)
"There would be a
euphoria in the Japanese leadership with the news that Daw Aung San Suu Kyi is
hospitalized," commented the man in the street. I enquire why, and he
replied that Daw Suu, is not only a thorn to the Junta but also to the Asians
and he reasoned that the Burmese army was founded in Japan and the Japanese
leaders has all the time supported them, as even now they prevented Burma from
putting in the UNSC agenda, lest the former would take action and the Burmese
army would be no where. He sadly added that the inhuman cruel ways, which the
Japanese Kampeti had taught to the Burmese army during the Second World War was
being brush up and augmented by the Burmese tatmadaw (armed forces) up
to this day. He lamented that these sons of the Sun would not be able to
comprehend of how the tatmadaw can mechanize an assassination that look
like an accident, such as putting lead water (which can lead to slow death,
that has been practices so much on the political prisoners inside jails) in the
water pipe line that flows into Daw Suu's residence.
As an average man his hypothesis
seems to be strong and I dared not defend the Asian morality now that both
giant neighbors like China and India, not to mention ASEAN countries, have come
out strongly on the side of the Burmese Junta vis a vis the Burmese
Democracy Movement. The last nail in the coffin being what the Indian leaders
(the biggest democratic country in the world) said, that they could not export
democracy to
There are more intriguing issues
to explore within this context of Asian values. How can the region of
Former Prime Minister of
Malaysia, Mahathir pointed that Asian nations have highly varying historical
and religious backgrounds; Malaysia is a predominantly Muslim country, Japan is
somewhat Confucian (as is South Korea) with Shintoism and Buddhist playing a
role too, and Thailand is Hinayana Buddhist, while Philippine is a Christian
country. However, there exist a stratum of common values and beliefs that most
Asians follow as a guide through the world; these formed the concept of Asian
Values. But how did it reflect in the Burmese dictatorial concepts? Asian value
system emphasizes the importance of the community and family. Fulfilling
individual responsibility towards family and community is prioritized over the
consideration for individual interest and privileges. Asian values also include
respect for authority, which are seen to guarantee stability for the entire
society; and placed importance on hardworking attitude in pursuing progress and
harmony in the global economic world.
From the Burmese scene, we can
see that disparity exists in the priority of social values given by the Asian
and Western groups. Even though both the Asians and Western emphasized the
importance of new ideas and public accountability, Asian prioritized order,
harmony and respect for authority while the Western placed more value on the
rights of the individual and the need for open debate. In short the long custody
of Daw Suu, supported by the great Asian countries of
Leaders of some of the Asia
countries criticized the West for refusing to accept the legitimacy of Asian
values because it cannot accept that East Asia is becoming a centre of World
power and that a psychological revolution is taking place in East Asia as
Asians recover from their colonial past and are discovering that they can do
things as good as, or even better than the West. However, they refuse to sees
that the Asian region as benefiting from and strengthened by the fusion of the
best practices and values from many rich civilizations, Asian and Western; that
many Asian values should obviously be destroyed, including feudalism, excessive
anti-materialism and excessive deference to authority; that no one should be
allowed to hide behind the cloak of cultural relativism or dictatorial.
Dr Mahathir called for “mutual
respect” among nations; as many in the West deemed that their values and
beliefs were universal while the advocates and champions of Asian values were
condemned as merely there to justify oppression, dictatorship and uncivilized
behavior as what the Burmese Junta is doing on its own ethnic nationality.
Perhaps, Asian Values is a concept to encourage Asian people to free themselves
from their own low esteem, the legacy of years of Western colonization. The
perception that "West is the Best and
Notions of rationality and
progress are defined in the West; while the East was mired in religion and
despotic, patrimonial political systems susceptible to constant internecine
struggles and incapable of progress. Inversely, the people accused that the
Asian values is being used to justify the undemocratic and hypocrisy of the
authority to confine the human rights. Western leader, scholars and media
always claimed that Asian's authority is ignoring the human rights,
particularly in
Daw Suu's argument that
development can and must occur in a democratic "culture of peace" has
not moved
It is populism, rather than
democratic theory, which explains the nature of the new Asian politics.
Most Burmese view the
Human rights questions have been
on and off the agenda of world politics since the end of the Second World War.
The holocaust in
The post-Cold War international debates on human rights have been
referred to as a clash between the post-colonial approach and the neo-colonial
approach. The post-colonial approach, developing from the liberal tradition,
emphasizes the interdependence of states and the triumph of the liberal
democracies over authoritarianism. remarkable economic success of a number of
East Asian countries since the mid-1960s The East Asian challenge can be seen
in cultural, economic and political terms. Culturally, they assert that the
Western approach ignores the specific cultural traditions and historical
circumstances of Asian societies, whose interpretations of human rights are
different from the Western tradition. Economically, they maintain that the
priority of developing Asian societies has to be the eradication of poverty: the
right to survival must come first. Therefore, political stability under the
capable leadership of good government is essential. They also question the
motives of the West by accusing the Western countries of having double
standards and using human rights merely as an instrument for advancing Western
economic or security interests. In some ways the East Asian reaction to Western
pressure on the human rights question can be characterized as a realist
response: Western human rights policy has been seen as "power politics in
disguise" - an instrument for advancing Western political and economic
interests. As human rights issues return to the international agenda, the
records of East Asian countries has been subjected to critical scrutiny by the
international community. While there may be some scope for interpreting human
rights differently and perhaps even assigning different priorities to specific
human rights according to the region's special circumstances, East Asian states
are on the defensive, e.g.
The importance of economic and
social developments in measuring human rights conditions is widely accepted
throughout the human rights community. A study commissioned by the United
Nations Centre for Human Rights identified poverty as a key obstacle to the
advancement of human rights. As the report suggests, worldwide poverty and
increasing disparity between the North and the South "is endangering the
ethical foundation of our Planet". But in the case of
In spite of the growing
importance of human rights issues in world politics, Asian states prefer to
deal with human rights within their own domestic jurisdiction, resisting
international monitoring. They are reluctant to sign major instruments of
international human rights protection. Countries such as
It was shocking to the Burmese
people when Japanese apposed the Burmese case in the agenda of the UN Security
Council, although it is understandable that
But In the post war period he is
the only Japanese Prime Minister that sent Japanese naval tankers to the
Last
week, in a brilliant parting shot, Koizumi announced the withdrawal of Japanese
troops from
He had
poked a sharp stick in his neighbors' eyes by visiting the controversial
Yasukuni Shrine in
**********************************************
Population transfer threatens Mon community
(By Cham Toik)
Palean
is a Mon village community of extended families located in western Ye of Mon
State and was a good representation of Mon culture. This way of life formed the
basis of Theravada Buddhism in Southeast Asia that delivered a message of peace
transmitted from generation to generation in not only the Mon culture but also
was adopted by the Burman and Thai cultures.
The
Palean community is a perfect example of how people can live within
self-sustained communities on fertile and productive land according to a
traditional life style. The people enjoyed a peaceful life and felt no fear and
left their doors unlocked at night, their farms were un-fenced, and the women
hung their day’s laundry outside. Following Mon rural culture, a visitor
dropping by is always offered fruit or vegetables, fresh water to drink or
betel nut to chew and a wholesome dessert.
The
whole village helps to ensure that a ‘Haeng’ is built behind their homes for
the long-term storage of rice paddy for the coming year, enough to feed family
members and visitors. The women go to the Haeng only when paddy is needed
where it is pounded by hand to remove the rice husks, a long and labour
intensive process that makes the most delicious and nutritious rice. This has
been their way of life since Mon language was first recorded in 500 A.D. and
which verifies Mon’s existence as a people. Mon culture was born from the
village community and is the foundation of a unique language and has been since
the advent of sedentary rice agriculture in
Today
throughout the area, the Palean community faces the loss of their traditional
way of life brought on not only by the demands of the global economy in which
Mon leave to
Day after day, villagers have reported their
rice and their clothing being stolen and indiscriminate attacks by Burmese
migrants. Human rights violations such as murder, loss of land and disruption
of agriculture practices, cultural repression and the continued migration of
young Mon to neighboring countries add to the growing threats of the Mon
culture. However it may be regarded elsewhere, the political crisis in
Increased crime
On
Burman robbers attacked, robbed,
and beat Ms. Mi Hla, aged 43, on her way back from her farm in Durae. Another
lady from Lamine sub-town said she is scared of the Burmese migrants who come
around as a gang intruding her farm at night stealing anything they can get
their hands on leaving scattered debris in their wake. “They don’t
respect local laws and our way of life, we don’t dare complain because they
will destroy our garden plots. Some of our gardens were burned down after
we complained,” said the villager.
A border trader says more
migrants have moved into her community and comments on the loss of peace in the
village, “In the past we could leave our belongings outside, now
everything is stolen.”
The village headman of Andaeng
who organizes festivals said petty crimes such as pick pocketing and looting
often occur and children have their jewelry stolen when they walk around in
public gatherings. Most of the criminals are Burmese speaking men and
women and no efforts on part of the Burmese government to address these crimes
and its threat to Mon culture have been made.
New
settlers and migrants to the Ye area have committed several crimes these days.
Many believe the main cause for these crimes is due to poverty and lawlessness,
but Mon political leaders, as well as local people, say that the population
transfer from the north is the main factor behind the high crime rate.
In
need of a labour force
Faced with a rapid loss of
labourers after thousands of Mon left to
Nai Khin, a local businessman
from Durae told Kaowao that he was quite happy about having a migrant housemaid
in his house to do the work. Young people including boys and girls from
his village have left to
The daily wages for a farm
laborer are about 3000 Kyat a day (about 2.5 US dollars) in Ye Township, while
wages in the north are considerably lower at 1000 Kyat per day in upper
“They
are hard working people and much easier to deal with. Even though I was
advised by a monk to hire local workers, it is impossible to find anyone
nowadays,” said Nai Dut from Mawkanin.
Tighter government control
While the military regime
regularly checks the household registration in the remote areas, its sole
purpose is to monitor the movement of opposition groups. No information related
to the internal immigration has been released to the general public in
The
Burmese Army classifies the remote areas as black, brown and white in its war
on controlling the ethnic population. The black area is where most of the
non-Burman people live and is under the opposition-armed group’s control. The
brown area falls within both government and rebel control depending upon
influence, while white is under the government control. The black and
brown areas have seen the worst human rights violations including forced
labour, execution, rape and extortion.
Particularly
in southern
The
ceasefire between the military government and the New Mon State Party was to
produce political stability and a future of peace, but all it did was open the
doors to more abuse of power including land confiscation and the relocation of
civilians from the north. The ceasefire agreement proved to be a hidden motive
of assimilation policy by the ruling Burmese junta to exercise complete control
over land previously held by the Mon and other ethnic nationalities, aptly
referred to as the “Population Transfer Policy.”
“There
is no fighting and we don’t have to flee but slowly many outsiders have
arrived, this is different from the past,” said Nai Zin, a betel nut gardener
from Andaeng, northern Ye.
The Burmese Army confiscated
thousands of acres of land in
Nyan
Saik, of Mon Environmental Group, reported that the Burma Army
operates 3 brick factories on confiscated land in Ye Township and about 300
Burmans are employed with a wage paying 2000 Kyats per day. According
to a local source from Zobbu, “the BA is coloring it white and needs Burmans to
speak the same language or who understand Burmese for military instruction
during security patrol.”
The
source from the New Mon State Party said a military base in Mokanin village,
northern Ye, was built for the sole purpose of relocating retired military
personnel and disabled war veterans. The military camp is near local Mon
villages where the Burman soldiers are free to engage in social activities and
mix with the local girls and women in the community, while many Mon farmers
have left their homes to escape human rights violations perpetuated by these
people and economic impoverishment brought on through land confiscation.
“We are powerless and will soon
become the minority in our land. The Burmese authorities favor those
(Burmese migrants) for the well paying jobs and use them in their divide and
rule tactics. Many strangers are appointed as militia and some have
become the village headmen and interfere in our daily affairs,” said a leader
of Mon Youth Association.
Community
concern
Nine
years ago at the 50th Golden Anniversary of Mon National Day
sponsored by the Palean community in 1997, a Mon community leader Nai Sadao
Htow said that villagers should stay close to their homeland to live a
traditional way of life rather than leaving their homes to seek jobs in
Thailand. He delivered a speech in front of 10,000 participants on the
auspicious occasion. Not many people were worried about population
transfer at that time since only a handful of outsiders were working in their
community and were warmly welcomed.
The situation rapidly changed
within nine years with a significant increase of Burman settlers into the area.
Most villages in southern
In local teashops, their morning
gathering place, Burmese conversation controls the crowd. Some villages have
a Burmese abbot in their monastery. This situation has alarmed Mon
nationalists and Rehmonya Nikaya Buddhist monks in examining the increase of
non-native people mixing in their villages. They say the concern now is
not only with increasing crime, but also the threat of loosing their
traditional way of life, an issue that may take on negative consequences and
which is a matter of concern for all. They share the general feeling that
the ceasefire agreement between the NMSP and the Burmese military government,
land confiscation and population transfer are connected to each other and that
it may create problems with Mon and Burman alike.
The serious threat for the Mon
led to disturbances between the Mon and Burmese and, unfortunately, resulted in
a negative aspect in the community. Being accused as robbers, some Burman
migrants were killed by a Mon armed group last year. As a result, the
Burman are often looked down upon by the local community.
During
the 3rd Mon National Conference held in Nyisar hosted by the New Mon
State Party (NMSP) in April this year, the delegates discussed a policy paper
prepared by overseas Mon organization regarding the population transfer into
Population transfer as a global issue
Population transfer for the Mon
community is a case for international human right’s law. While
travelling around the world during the past ten years raising awareness about
the plight of the Mon, this writer was extremely shocked to learn about the obstacles
faced by other indigenous peoples in their struggles for peace and
justice. I was able to participate in several meetings related to the
rights of minority people and indigenous populations including the United
Nations Draft Declaration on Indigenous Peoples and Working Group on Indigenous
Populations. During these occasions, indigenous friends raised the issue
of the population transfer and reports were sent to the High Commissioner for
Human Rights (HCHR) in
The Unrepresented Nations and
Peoples Organization, which serves the interests of unrepresented
indigenous peoples and minorities (UNPO) in which the Mon people are members, held a Conference on Human
Rights of Population Dimension of Population Transfer in Tallinn, Estonia in
1992 that sought to raise concern on the problems of population transfer faced
by its members around the world.
The
population transfer is
defined as the movement of people as a consequence of political or economic
processes in which the State government or State authorized agencies
participate. The International Law, in Article 49 of the Fourth Geneva
Convention of 1949 states, “The occupying power shall not deport or transfer
parts of its own civilian population into the territory it occupies” and
Article 85, paragraph 4 of the Additional Protocol 1 80 states, “... the
following shall be regarded as grave breaches of this protocol, when committed
willfully and in violation of the Convention or Protocol: (a) the transfer by
the occupying power of its own civilian population into the territory it
occupies... in violation of Article 49 of the Fourth Convention”.
While the state organizes the
population transfer policy, the local people fall under the hand of the
majority people in all spheres of economic, social and political life that will
undermine and displace our way of life.
Interestingly,
the British colonial rule had at least some degree of protection for the
minority people or the population transfer. Article 52 of the Chittagong
Hill Tracts protected the Jumma people in
However,
the situation changed under independent
According
to Mr. Suhas Chakma, Director of Asian Centre for Human Rights, if the present
population transfer programmes are carried out, the populations in the CHTs
will increase by over 25% the total population of the CHTs and all of them are
mainstream plains people. This will destroy the distinct identity of indigenous
peoples. Similarly, the issue on transmigration of
In the case of
A new era of Burman domination
The
new global economy has been the other driver behind diverse populations moving
across borders to seek secure employment and the Mon have constituted the
biggest population to journey across the southern Thai Burma border.
However, Burmese settlers and the military government have again challenged the
Mon’s existence as a people.
For
over two hundred years, the Mon people have migrated from and into
Since
The military repression of the
entire population has taken a heavy toll on the people who suffer continually
from economic poverty, from forced labour and armed conflict. The
Burmese Army has intensified its military offensive over the past decade in the
ethnic nationalities areas forcing thousands to flee to neighbouring countries
to maintain its grip on power. As a consequence, Arakanese, Karen, Shan,
Mon and others have left their villages. Sooner or later, the Burmese
Army with its administrative staff and their families will relocate to these
areas and Burmese settlers from central
The
relocation of the Burmese population to the ethnic areas today is done with little
thought to the consequences and is carried out within the context of greed,
ignorance, mismanagement and lack of a political will. Unless the SPDC
makes an effort to work with the ethnic nationalities and democratic forces to
solve the country’s political crisis, the cultures of the ethnic nationalities
will disintegrate and the diversity of
*********************************************************
Discussion on Population
transfer threatens Mon community: By Cham Toik
Thank you for this article. It reports details about what's going on in
mks (
______________________________________
Thanks for pointing out a very
important issue, population transfer of Burmese migrants into Mon areas and
threatening our Mon communities. The writer closed the well written
article with "Unless the SPDC makes an effort to work with the ethnic
nationalities and democratic forces to solve the country’s political crisis,
the cultures of the ethnic nationalities will disintegrate and the diversity of
What we can do about it? Let's
put it into few practical steps;
1. Stop complaining about it
and do something. You and I know very well that there is strength in
unity, it is high time that the Mon get together and unite, but we have got to
have a clear plan on how we can build unity among us and really implement the
plans.
2. Ask NMSP to reconsider its
unsigned ceasefire agreement. You and I also know very well that the ceasefire
agreement was never signed, it is just a trick of Burmese Junta to fool NMSP
and Mon people, why the hell do we have to keep it?
3. Form a Mon National
Government, because the Burmese Junta will never protect our population, why
don't we form our own government to protect our own people instead?
4. Get the UN Security Council to
really act. Why don't we put our heart and soul into getting the UNSC to solve
the problems in Burma? You and I also know very well that one of the reasons
for Burmese Junta to move its capital from Yangon to Pyinmana was to avoid the
risks of being attack by US-led UN forces. UNSC is our only hope, but
Burmese Junta's only fear.
5. Talk to our Burmese friends
that they are not our enemy and that they can help us for the benefit of all
people in Burma. They have to pay the debts of their ancestors' bad deeds. The
Burmese have got to take the responsibility if Burman is to survive
as a race.
With these 5 simple steps, I believe that the situation will positively
change. These ideas are just basic strategies; we can work together to have a
more effective one.
In unity and solidarity,
Sumit
Thailand
______________________________________
I am very impressed with Cham
Toik's well written article "Population Transfer Threatens Mon
Community" itself, and with responses and comments made by Mon patriots
around the globe. It is very encouraging to see that everyone is aware and
concerned about the issues that could threaten the survival and the very
existence of our Mon even though there are differing views on this issue.
Yes, as the author mentioned in
his article, population transfer is an important issue and, frequently used by
many governments as a strategy to dominate ethnic minorities areas and
territories. As a consequence, an article on this issue has been drafted and
ratified in the Internal Law. The article 49 of International law prevents a
large scale and systematic transfer of civilian population by the states and
governments. If this happened to any ethnic nationalities inclusive of our Mon,
all measures have to be taken in order to stop it. However, regarding
population transfer to our Mon state, there is still differing views whether it
is a "Population Transfer" or, "Population Movement". In
its very definition, population transfer is the large scale transfer of civilian
population conducted by the governments in order to dominate politically,
economically and socially.
With regard to our Mon State, my
personal view is that of "population movement" not in a state of
"population transfer" yet. Even though increasing numbers of
battalion and infantry are sent to our Mon states, it is hard to say that there
is a large scale transfer of civilian population into our Mon areas. In
addition, in making a large scale population transfer into our Mon state in
order to dominate us, the Burmese military government has to have a stronger
support, control and cooperation from its own Burmese people. In current
political situation, even Burmese people themselves are against Burmese
military government and it has no control and cooperation whatsoever from its
own people.
Even the Burmese military
government has to move and try to secure its power base from Rangoon to
Pyinmanar for afraid of revolt by its own people. So, I would rather put that
it is an economic migration and a population movement based on economic
conditions. In this age of globalization and global economy, there is a
population movement across territories and borders of nation states. For
instance, Mon from Mon states move to Thailand, Thai people move to Singapore,
and Singaporean move to more developed nations in search of a better pays and
working conditions. At the same time, people from upper Burma and other states
and divisions move to our Mon state in search of works.
These movements are temporary and
cannot be categorized as permanent population transfer as Mon will come back to
Mon State, Thais will come back to Thailand and Singaporean will come back to
Singapore after the termination of employments. However, it will affect, one
way or another, our ways of life in our Mon states or else by the presence of
people from different cultures and people from other states and countries. We
used to hear complaints frequently made by Thais local peoples and Thai
authority by the presence of our Mon economic migrants in Thailand. However, as
the Thai cannot prevent and stop our Mon economic migrants, they have
alternatively to find a solution to register and control it.
So, in our Mon case too, we
better find a realistic and a practical solution to tackle the issue of
population movement in our Mon state. It does not necessarily mean that it is
not an important issue and we do not need to worry and be concerned about a
threat to our Mon national identity as a result of the presence of other
nationalities in our land. As Mon, we all have to constantly keep it in mind
and prepare how to deal with it if it happen to us. However, we should separate
our worry from the reality. Worry is based on subjective analysis, our
assumption and our feeling. The reality is based on the unbiased situation analysis
and then make an informed decision. It should be realistic and practical. The
major concern among us are about the domination on our Mon by Burmese or others
culturally, socially, economically and politically. So in order to prevent the
domination of other people on our Mon, we better build a stronger Mon civil
society and encourage the awareness of, and attachment to our Mon culture and
Mon identity. We all are well aware that national identity cannot be
overwhelmed by the other nationalities as long as we are aware and strongly
attached to our national identity. National identity and national culture are
not confined to a geographic location or a territory.
Population movement across
borders of nation states is very common in this age of globalization. So we
have to strengthen our national unity, national awareness and attachment to our
national identity wherever we are. As long as we can manage to strengthen the
awareness and attachments to our Mon national culture and identity no matter
whether we are in our Mon state, in Karen state, Rangoon division or abroad we
can maintain our Mon national identity and can survive as Mon in the world.
Siri Mon Chan
(Canberra, Australia)
_______________________________
Dear Editor,
I really enjoy reading your
article and agree that the SPDC’s population transfer is a threat for the Mons
and other ethnic. Burma is a diverse and complex state, population
transfer is not only between the Burman and non-Burman; as I have heard Wa
people in northern Shan State are brought to the south. Even though the
SPDC may not directly involve in the larger scales, all of these chaos are due
to the SPDC’s centralization policy.
Min Min (UK)
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