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B U R M A B U L L E T I N
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A month-in-review of events in Burma
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A L T E R N A T I V E A S E A N N E T W O R K O N B U R M A
 campaigns, advocacy & capacity-building for human rights & democracy
Issue 26
 
February 2009
 
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SPDC sabotages ASEAN Summit. ASEAN leaders:decide to deport Rohingya - if they really exist; adopta draft of toothless procedures for ASEAN’s humanrights body; and allow the junta to hijack meaningfuldialogue with civil society organizations.
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The Tripartite Core Group calls for additional Nargisaid, while the SPDC limits the TCG's mandate to mid-2010. Independent report concludes that SPDCabuses during post-Nargis humanitarian responsemay amount to crimes against humanity.
 
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UNODC says that poppy cultivation in Burmaincreased by 3% in 2008 - the second consecutiveannual increase. US State Department says thatBurma remains the largest source formethamphetamines in Asia.
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UN Special Advisor on Burma Ibrahim Gambarireturns to Burma and says his visit doesn’t yield any“tangible outcomes”. UN Special Rapporteur onhuman rights in Burma Ojea Quintana visits thecountry and says the human rights situation has notimproved.
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The regime sentences ten dissidents, including twomonks and two elected MPs, to prison terms. SPDCextends the house arrest of NLD Deputy ChairmanTin Oo by another year.
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SPDC releases 6,313 prisoners, mostly commoncriminals, in an attempt to defuse internationalpressure ahead of the ASEAN Summit. Only 24 ofthose released are political prisoners.
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ILO says that the SPDC’s use of forced labor isgetting worse. In February, three villagers die whileperforming forced labor.KEY STORYSPDC sabotages ASEAN Summit
From 27 February to 1 March, the delayed ASEAN summit convened in Hua Hin, Thailand, in its firstmeeting since the ASEAN Charter became effective. Despite numerous statements by ASEAN Sec-GenSurin Pitsuwan that the ASEAN Charter would ‘reinvent’ ASEAN, when the summit was over it wasclear that the SPDC had sabotaged the three days of meetings. At the end of its deliberations, ASEANhad failed to: 1) positively address the Rohingya issue; 2) establish enforcement powers for a humanrights body; and 3) initiate a meaningful dialogue with civil society organizations.
IN THIS ISSUEKEY STORY
1 SPDC sabotages Summit2 Rohingya to be deported2 Human rights “paper tiger”3 Dialogue with civil society
INSIDE BURMA
3 SPDC aid obstruction3 New democracy campaigns4 2010 election boycott4 SPDC reshuffle5 Opium poppy cultivation up5 UWSA-SPDC relations5 Youth denied
HUMAN RIGHTS
5 Ojea Quintana’s visit6 Arrests6 New prison sentences6 Prison sentence reductions7 Mass release of prisoners7 Forced labor getting worse
DISPLACEMENT
8 Burmese migrant workers
INTERNATIONAL
8 Gambari returns to Burma9 US to review Burma policy9 Chinese flee Burma
ECONOMY
9 Layoffs in Burma9 “Booming” kyat9 International trade10 Questionable tourism10
OTHER BURMA NEWS
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REPORTS
 _____________________________________Receive the Burma Bulletin monthly! email publications@altsean.org Online copies are available for download at www.altsean.org 
 
 
2
Rohingya to be deported
The summit convened against a backdrop of Rohingya boat people who continued to flee Burma andBangladesh. [See Altsean-Burma’s
 January 2009 Burma Bulletin
and briefer
Rohingya, asylum seekers& migrants from Burma: A human security priority for ASEAN 
] In the two months before the summit,the SPDC’s persecution of Rohingya caught the attention of the international community as numerousreports on the plight of Rohingya boat people surfaced.
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2 February:
Indonesia's Navy rescued 198 Rohingya boat people off the coast of Aceh. Rohingyasaid that Thai authorities towed them back to sea and they had drifted for three weeks on a boatwithout an engine.
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8 February:
It was reported that three Rohingya couples fled from Arakan State to Bangladesh dueto fear of torture and imprisonment for getting married without permission from SPDC authorities.
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9 February:
In a letter written to Hong Kong’s diplomatic community, the SPDC’s Counsel-Generalin Hong Kong Gen Ye Myint Aung denied that Rohingya were an ethnic group of Burma because of their dark brown skin and said Rohingya were as “ugly as ogres”.
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 In the run-up to the summit, Indonesia, Malaysia, and Thailand, as well as ASEAN Sec-Gen SurinPitsuwan, all said the Rohingya issue would be brought up for discussion at the ASEAN summit.
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 However, at the summit itself, ASEAN leaders were complacent and satisfied with SPDC PM GenThein Sein’s offer to repatriate the Rohingya if they could prove they were ‘Bengalis’ who had settledin Burma.
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Tragically, ASEAN’s acceptance of the SPDC’s offer does not address the root causes of theRohingya exodus and fails to provide adequate protection to Rohingya. The real sentiment in ASEANtoward Rohingya was expressed by Malaysia’s FM Rais Yatim who said: “Malaysia has accepted theRohingyas on humanitarian ground [but] please don't give us more. We already have a burdensomeresponsibility.”
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ASEAN leaders also agreed to shunt the Rohingya issue off to the “Bali Process”, anAsia-Pacific forum on illegal migration and trafficking issues.
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 Despite ASEAN’s submission to the SPDC’s stance on Rohingya, others in the internationalcommunity noted the reality of the persecution they face in Burma:
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1 February:
The ASEAN Inter-Parliamentary Myanmar Caucus (AIPMC) urged the governments of Thailand and Indonesia to treat the Rohingya boat people humanely and accord them protection.
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5 February:
The European Parliament called on the SPDC to restore citizenship rights to Rohingyaand urged Thailand not to repatriate Rohingya.
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8 February:
US Assistant Secretary of State Richard Boucher said the US wanted the SPDC to stopthe persecution of Rohingya.
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12 February:
Malaysian opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim called on the international community totake quick and decisive action to help alleviate the plight of Rohingya.
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Human rights body a ‘paper tiger’
On 27 February, hopes for meaningful enforcement of human rights issues in ASEAN through thenewly created human rights body were dashed when ASEAN FMs approved a draft terms of referencefor the body. As currently written, the terms do not empower the body to investigate human rights
1
IHT (03 Feb 09) Boat people set adrift by Thailand land in Indonesia
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Kaladan News (18 Feb 09) Three couples flee to Bangladesh for fear of torture and imprisonment
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AFP (11 Feb 09) Myanmar envoy brands boatpeople ‘ugly as ogres’: report
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AFP (20 Feb 09) ‘Regional’ solution for Myanmar migrants: Thai PM; Mizzima News (23 Feb 09) ASEAN leaders urged toaddress Burma's rights issues in upcoming; The Age (Australia) (23 Feb 09) Malaysia to put Burma under spotlight
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DPA (27 Feb 09) South-east Asia agrees to regional Rohingya approach
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Bernama (27 Feb 09) Rohingyas: Asean To Take One Step At A Time
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DPA (27 Feb 09) South-east Asia agrees to regional Rohingya approach
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AIPMC (01 Feb 09) Regional MPs concerned with deportations of Rohingyas, urges protection
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Mizzima News (06 Feb 09) European Parliament urges junta to restore citizenship rights to Rohingya
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Reuters (09 Feb 09) U.S. wants Myanmar to stop persecution of Rohingyas
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Irrawaddy (20 Feb 09) Thai PM to Discuss Rohingya in Jakarta
 
3
abuses in ASEAN member states if they are not welcomed by the host country.
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The document saidthat the rights body would "promote and protect human rights and fundamental freedoms" in the regionbut will abide by ASEAN's policy of non-interference in members’ internal affairs. In addition, theterms of reference say that any decisions on human rights violations "shall be based on consultation andconsensus," which gives the SPDC veto power over any matter before the body.
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SPDC and Cambodia scuttle dialogue with civil society
On 28 February, two ASEAN civil society representatives, Khin Ohmar from Burma and Pen Somonyfrom Cambodia, were forced to withdraw from meeting ASEAN leaders after SPDC PM Gen TheinSein and Cambodian PM Hun Sen threatened to boycott the event.
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Thai PM Abhisit Vejjajiva andThai FM Kasit Piromya met separately with Khin Ohmar and Pen Somony.
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INSIDE BURMASPDC obstructs aid
Even though international donors had funded two-thirds of the previous post-Nargis relief fundingeffort, the ASEAN-SPDC-UN Tripartite Core Group (TCG) appealed to the international communityfor more relief funds.
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On 9 February, the TCG drew up a three-year plan to begin in early 2009,urging international donors to provide the US$691 million needed to improve nutrition, health andlivelihoods in cyclone-affected areas.
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However, on 27 February it was reported that the SPDC hadbalked at the three year plan and only agreed to extend the TCG's work to mid-2010, as the regimegears up for a general election.
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 On 27 February, the relief group Emergency Assistance Team and Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health released an independent assessment of the post-Nargis humanitarian response. The reportoutlined the SPDC’s systematic obstruction and misappropriation of aid, intimidation of relief workers,forced relocation of survivors, and use of forced labor in the cyclone-affected areas. It concluded thatthese systematic abuses may amount to crimes against humanity and that the UN Security Councilshould refer the SPDC for investigation by the International Criminal Court.
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Meanwhile, the SPDC continued to hamper the delivery of aid in the Irrawaddy delta and beyond. On27 February, it was reported that SPDC authorities in Bogale Township, Irrawaddy Division, demandedmoney from farmers for fertilizers donated by the US-based charity International DevelopmentEnterprise. Local farmers said it would be better for donors to give aid directly into their hands in thefuture.
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On 9 February, a fire broke out in Chanmyatharzi Township, Mandalay Division, leaving over1,000 people homeless.
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While local residents provided food and aid for those affected by the fire,donors were discouraged by SPDC authorities from making private donations not channeled throughthe local authorities. The SPDC threatened those accepting private donations with prosecution.
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New democracy campaigns launched
In February, the SPDC’s ongoing political repression and economic mismanagement sparked newcampaigns across Burma.
12
DPA (28 Feb 09) ASEAN human rights body gets off to rocky start
13
Irrawaddy (27 Feb 09) Asean Human Rights Body Lacks Power to Punish
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Bernama (28 Feb 09) Myanmar, Cambodian Civil Society Representatives Stay Out Of Asean Talks
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Bernama (28 Feb 09) Myanmar, Cambodian Civil Society Representatives Stay Out Of Asean Talks
16
IRIN (12 Jan 08) Myanmar: Capacity challenges remain
17
AP (09 Feb 09) $700 million sought for Myanmar cyclone recovery
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Reuters (27 Feb 09) Myanmar curbs cyclone recovery plan ahead of election
19
Emergency Assistance Team (EAT) & Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health (Feb 09) After the Storm: Voices fromthe Delta
20
DVB (27 Feb 09) Authorities charge farmers for aid-donated fertilizer
21
DVB (12 Feb 09) Mandalay fire victims need blankets and nets
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DVB (18 Feb 09) Authorities ban direct donations to fire victims
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