THE BEST HELPER FOR NARGIS CYCLONE APPEAR IN THE PRISON COURT

The source said Zarganar and Zaw Thet Htwe will probably be tried on August 7.
Zarganar was one of the leaders of a volunteer cyclone relief group made up of more than 400 people. The group provided food and relief material to 42 villages in the Irrawaddy delta, a number of which had received no help in the cyclone’s aftermath.
Following Zarganar’s arrest, the group’s relief efforts were halted.The Burmese authorities arrested Zarganar on June 4, seizing a computer from his home and about US $1,000 (1,140,000 kyat) in cash, which he had collected in donations for cyclone refugees. Authorities also confiscated three CDs, including one which reportedly showed the opulent wedding of Thandar Shwe, the youngest daughter of Snr-Gen Than Shwe, and a “Rambo 4” movie, in which Hollywood star Sylvester Stallone battles Burmese soldiers to rescue kidnapped Westerners. Some sources say Zarganar was arrested by authorities because he talked frequently to the foreign press, who saw him as a reliable source of information inside Burma.
Relatives of Zarganar said they were not informed that he would appear in court.

Cyclone-hit Myanmar struggling to find its feet

According to a joint assessment by the United Nations, Myanmar and Southeast Asian governments, three quarters of households have inadequate access to clean drinking water, making water-borne diseases such as cholera and dysentery a constant threat.
In addition, more than 40 percent have little or nothing by way of food, having lost their stocks in the May 2 storm and the sea surge that smashed into the delta, leaving 138,000 people dead or missing.
Another 800,000 were displaced in a disaster that the U.N. says affected 2.4 million people in the former Burma, where most people rely on farming for a living.
"The window of opportunity for planning crops has now closed. Farmers will have to wait until November 2009 for their next decent harvest and will struggle to find enough food," leading charity Save The Children said.
While UN children's agency UNICEF said malnutrition was not yet a cause for concern, Save The Children said that if food and employment needs were not addressed, the number of malnourished youngsters could rise to emergency levels.
Fears of funding shortages have been compounded by recent revelations that aid agencies are losing money due to Myanmar's distorted official exchange rate. The United Nations admitted this week it had lost $10 million so far.

THAI COURT IS READY TO TAKE ACTION ON FELON EX-PRIME MINISTER

The Supreme Court announced that its first hearing on the case was scheduled for September 16. The case was originally filed by the now-dissolved Assets Examination Committee (AEC), which was set up after a military coup ousted Thaksin in September 2006.
The case relates to a 4 billion baht (US $120 million) loan the Exim Bank made to the Burmese military regime in 2003. The loan agreement was made between Thaksin and former Burmese Prime Minister Gen Khin Nyunt. The funds were earmarked for improvements to Burma’s Internet system.
The loan approval drew criticism that Thaksin, who supervised the bank at the time, had conducted foreign policy for the benefit of his family-owned company, Shin Corporation, which the Shinawatra family sold to Singapore’s Temasek Holdings in January 2006. The AEC investigated a number of other officials and former ministers in Thaksin’s cabinet in relation to the case, but found evidence to suggest that Thaksin was directly responsible for ordering an increase in the loan from 3 billion to 4 billion baht.
The AEC claimed that the order represented a conflict of interest, since it required the Thai Ministry of Finance to pay around 100 million baht ($3 million) per year over the 12-year term of the loan.
Total interest on the loan, which was linked to Shin Corp’s investments in Burma’s IT infrastructure, was expected to reach 2 billion baht ($54 million) in 2006.
Former Foreign Minister Surakiart Sathirathai and senior officials at the East Asian Affairs Department opposed the increase in the size of the loan, saying it would lead to criticism from the international community.
The case is the second against Thaksin accepted by the court this week, after judges on Monday agreed to consider charges against the former prime minister and his aides concerning a lottery scandal.

US clamps down on firms linked to Myanmar

Any bank accounts or other financial assets found in the United States that belong to those named Tuesday must be frozen. Americans also are prohibited from doing business with them.
It marked the latest administration move to financially punish the repressive junta in Myanmar, also known as Burma, and its backers for a crackdown on pro-democracy protesters.
The United States last week blasted the Myanmar junta's oft-repeated promise to democratize as a "kind of mockery." The U.S. also renewed criticism of Myanmar for initially refusing international help after Cyclone Nargis in May, when several countries including the United States were sitting offshore with ships loaded with aid.
"The regime's refusal to protect and allow relief to reach the Burmese people as Cyclone Nargis devastated their country is but another example of the regime's heartless neglect of its people," said Adam Szubin, director of Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control, which enforces the sanctions program.
Three mining companies and an export-import firm also were targeted Tuesday. Myanmar Ruby Enterprise Co. Ltd., Myanmar Imperial Jade Co., Myawaddy Bank, and Myawaddy Trading Ltd. also were covered by the department's order.

UN AID LOSES GAME IN BURMA AND REGIME APPROVES CYBER INVESTMENT

UNITED NATIONS -- The top U.N. humanitarian affairs official said Monday that the world body had suffered significant losses while delivering cyclone aid to Myanmar because of a distorted official exchange rate.This month, the United Nations issued an appeal for more than $300 million in extra aid to cope with the effects of Cyclone Nargis, which left about 140,000 people dead or missing when it struck the Irrawaddy delta region in early May.Humanitarian affairs chief John Holmes told reporters that the United Nations has lost about $10 million in currency exchanges so far as it pays for goods and services in Myanmar."We were arguably a bit slow to recognize . . . how serious a problem this has become for us," Holmes said, adding that the spread between the market and official rates widened suddenly in June."It's not acceptable," he added.The market rate for the local currency, kyats, is around 1,100 per dollar but the U.N. rate is around 880, according to the Inner City Press, a blog that covers the United Nations and first raised the currency exchange issue.Holmes, who spoke at the United Nations after returning from a trip to the Irrawaddy River delta, said relief efforts were improving, with almost everyone affected by the cyclone now having been reached with items such as food or materials for shelter.A revised appeal for aid of $482 million had raised about $200 million so far, he said, adding that initial indications from donors were "quite positive."He later said he was not aware of any countries refusing to contribute because of the currency loss but that donors were only just realizing the extent of the problems.Inner City Press reported last week that the military government in Myanmar, also known as Burma, had changed the official exchange rate since the cyclone struck.

Junta Approves Investment in Cyber City

The Burmese companies include the semi-government-owned Myanmar Teleport and eight privately-owned companies, including FISCA Enterprise, MCC and Fortune International, Htoo Trading, Myanmar World Distribution, Nibban, Tamoenyel Chanthar Tun Wai Thar, Yadanabon Cyber Corporation and Myanmar Info-Tech.

Three foreign companies have received the go-ahead: the Russian-owned firm CBOSS, Maxinet of Australia and Global Technology, which is believed to be based in either Thailand or the UK.
According to well-informed sources, the regime rejected proposed investments by Shin Satellite of Thailand, ZTE and Alcatel Shanghai Bell of China and Malaysia’s IP Tel Sdn Bhd.
The 12 companies agreed to spend a total of US $22 million at the Yadanabon site. They have been assigned 12 plots, with a combined area of 70 acres, according to a report in The Myanmar Times weekly, published in Rangoon.
Several sources from computer universities said that the objective of the Yadanabon Cyber City project is to tighten control over Internet connections across the country and prevent users from gaining access to or distributing information critical of the regime.
The 10,000-acre Yadanabon site was established in June 2006. It includes seven training and human resources development buildings, 30 factory plots, a convention center and a research and development area. There are also fiber-optic cables connecting the site with other cities in Burma and satellite connections with India, China and Thailand.
Over one-fifth of the total area of the site will be used for the production of software and hardware. The project is located in the town of Yadanabon Myothit, near Pyin Oo Lwin (Maymyo), about 67 km east of Mandalay.
A journalist from Mandalay said that IT professionals based in the city have shown little interest in investing in the Yadanabon Cyber City because it is too remote from urban areas.
Burma has three Internet service providers—the state-owned Myanmar Posts and Telecommunications (MPT), BaganNet/Myanmar Teleport (formerly known as Bagan Cybertech) and Information Technology Central Services (ITCS), launched by the government-aligned Union Solidarity and Development Association in 2007. All are based in Rangoon.
Meanwhile, the Burmese military regime approved http://www.khitlunge.com.mm/, a Web site launched by ITCS to spread government propaganda and counter media attacks by exiled Burmese media groups.
Burma has some of the world’s most restrictive Internet policies, banning blogs and exiled news providers critical of the country’s ruling junta. However, access to prohibited Web sites is often possible through use of proxy servers.
According to the Open Net Initiative Bulletin, Burma is one of 30 counties that have less than one percent Internet penetration, with an estimated 300,000 Internet users nationwide in 2005.

US PRESIDENT HAS TO MEET BURMESE IN THAILAND

The White House had been reluctant to confirm Bush's plans for the opening event, although there was no doubt he would attend the Olympic Games. While other world leaders have talked of boycotting the Aug. 8 opening ceremonies, Bush's aides have signaled for weeks he was unlikely to do so.
White House press secretary Dana Perino said Bush will travel in August to South Korea, Thailand and China and will attend the opening ceremonies of the games with first lady Laura Bush. The specific dates of travel were not released.
Bush's trip is built around the Olympics, which the White House long has said Bush plans to attend as a celebration of sports.
Bush also will be dealing with the tense matters of U.S. beef imports in South Korea and the six-country effort to rid North Korea of nuclear weapons.

US president likely to meet Burmese activists during visit Thailand

The source said Bush may have a luncheon meeting with a few Burmese activists and political observers in Bangkok, during his two day visit to Thailand.George and his wife Laura Bush are scheduled to arrive Thailand on August 6 to mark the 175th bilateral relationship between the two countries. It will be his last visit to Asia before his term as president expires.Bush, who will visit Bangkok on August 6 and 7, will hold bilateral talks with Thailand's Foreign Minister Samak Sundaravej and commemorate 175 years of bilateral relations between the two countries, according to Thailand's daily newspaper, Bangkok Post.During the visit, Bush will also deliver a speech in Bangkok."President Bush will deliver a speech on Asia while he is in Bangkok," the paper quoted Thailand's Foreign Ministry spokesman Tharit Jarungvat as saying. "The importance of the speech is that it will be his last speech on Asia during his presidency."Bush is also expected to raise Burma issue during his talks with Thai officials including Foreign Minister Samak.During his term as the President of the United States, Bush implemented stricter economic and financial sanctions against Burma's military rulers and pushed for a United Nations Security Council resolution on Burma.But his effort, which was backed by the United Kingdom and France, however, failed to yield any result and ended up as a UNSC's Presidential statement, as two other veto wielding countries – China and Russia – objected to the resolution.Bush will fly to China after ending his visit to Thailand for the Beijing Olympics, which will have its opening ceremony on August 8.

Lloyd's insurers underwrite military dictatorship's aircraft and shipping, claims new campaign

Three Lloyd's of London operators will be named as helping to insure the junta's state-owned airline Myanma Airways earlier this year. They are Kiln, Atrium and Catlin. All were contacted by The Observer and asked to explain their involvement but refused to comment.Other Lloyd's syndicates have shared the risk of insuring the junta's shipping interests. Without shipping and aviation insurance, the Burmese government would not be able to export gems, timber, clothing, oil and gas, which would lead to economic ruin for the generals running the oppressed south-east Asian nation.The London insurance involvement, to be exposed this week in a report by Burma Campaign UK, will acutely damage the reputation of the City. It is likely to trigger a wave of campaigns aiming to force Lloyd's of London to recommend that its members pull business from Burma. Campaigners are demanding a face-to-face meeting with Lloyd's chairman Lord Levene.'The insurance industry is helping to fund the Burmese dictatorship. Insurance companies, including members of Lloyd's, are putting profits before ethics. They don't care that they're helping Burma's brutal regime fund the purchase of guns, bullets and tanks for their campaigns of repression and ethnic cleansing. In an age where companies like to claim they behave ethically, the truth is these companies are helping to finance a regime that rapes, tortures and kills civilians,' said Johnny Chatterton, Burma Campaign UK's campaign officer.Lloyd's this weekend argued that its members were not breaking the law by insuring Burma's key infrastructure. While the US has imposed across-the-board sanctions on Burma, the European Union has taken a limited stance. EU sanctions cover gems and timber but not financial services. Despite pressure from the European parliament to extend sanctions, heads of state have failed to unanimously approve the measure. Last night, Lloyd's said: 'Unless there are official international sanctions in place, we do not instruct the market where it can and cannot write business.'Lloyd's intransigence will put pressure on the UK government to intervene. Gordon Brown has in the past made plain his disapproval of any business trading with Burma. It is unclear whether the Foreign Office has raised the issue with senior Lloyd's officials.The Burma Campaign report will expose eight other insurance companies. While Lloyd's is vital to the regime, much business goes to Singapore and Thailand. By Burmese law, all insurance has to goes through Myanma Insurance, in which the state is the sole shareholder. It is an imprisonable offence to get insurance through any other organisation.

DR, RICE AND UN ON BURMESE AFFAIRS

UN senior official urged junta for greater collaboration
UN secretary for humanitarian assistance John Holmes urged Burmese military for greater collaboration to help rebuild the country.
Mr Holmes was speaking after his three days trip to the cyclone-affected areas.
It was his second visit to the country which was hit by the cyclone in early May, leaving more than a hundred thousand people dead or reported missing.
He said there are positive developments in humanitarian work in his second visit.
In the mean time, New York-based human rights group called for the establishment of independent body to oversee the distribution of foreign aids in order to prevent manipulation by its 'repressive' government.

UN MEETS ONE OF MILITARY TERRORISTS AND TO CONTINUE AID

Myanmar storm aid must reach people, not junta
(AFP) - A leading human rights group on Thursday urged donors to ensure any money they pump into reconstruction work after the cyclone in Myanmar stays out of the hands of its ruling generals.
In a letter to donor governments and organisations, New York-based Human Rights Watch said aid was still needed in the nation formally known as Burma, but funds must be monitored to make sure they reached the people in need.
"For many years, Burma's generals have hindered rather than helped the delivery of aid," said Brad Adams, Asia director at Human Rights Watch.
"Basic principles should be agreed by donors, and they must press the government to adhere to them every step of the way."
Southeast Asian bloc Asean estimated on Monday that it will cost about one billion dollars to rebuild after the cyclone pounded southern Myanmar in early May, leaving more than 138,000 people dead or missing and over two million survivors in need of aid.
Human Rights Watch warned against channelling funds directly to a military regime accused of atrocities against its people, and said donors must push for an independent monitoring system to ensure aid ends up where it should.
The group said donors should monitor for abuses such as forced labour, land seizure or relocations, and humanitarian workers must be given free access to the areas hit by Cyclone Nargis.
In the crucial days after the cyclone hit, Myanmar's notoriously paranoid leadership blocked access for foreign relief workers, raising fears thousands more people would die after being denied life-saving aid.

US ACTRESS EXPOSES AND UN GAMBARI SETS A TRIP OR TRICK ON BURMA

American actress Mia Farrow said Friday the world should use the upcoming Beijing Olympics as a platform for demanding that China end its support for Burma's military junta.
Farrow also said US President George W Bush missed an opportunity to take a strong stand against China's ties with Burma by agreeing to attend the opening ceremonies of the August 8-24 games.
"If there is enough international pressure and if voices are raised loud enough, we can push China to change its position on Burma," Farrow told The Associated Press in Bangkok. "Using the Olympics Games as tool to effect change is important."
Bush, who plans to stay in Beijing for the first few days of the Olympics, said earlier this week he was "fired up" to watch some of the competition.
"I wish that (Bush) had not agreed to attend the Olympics, because that represents a missed opportunity for the United States to stand strong by its own principles," Farrow said. "A statement could have been made by skipping the opening ceremonies."
China is Burma's most important ally, providing economic, military and other assistance while Western nations shun the military-ruled country because of its poor human rights record and failure to restore democracy. China objects to Western criticisms of Burma's junta, saying conditions in the Southeast Asian country have improved since its violent crackdown on peaceful protests last September.
"China must use its unique position with Burma—its business alliance, its seat on the (UN) Security Council—not to protect Burma and its own interests, but to effect change and to improve human rights in Burma," Farrow said.
Farrow has campaigned around the world to urge China to help stop killings in Sudan's western Darfur region. China has been one of Sudan's biggest trading partners, buying oil from the African nation and selling it weapons.
Farrow held a news conference in Bangkok after visiting the Burma-Thailand border with a delegation from the Nobel Women's Initiative, a group founded by female recipients of the Nobel Peace Prize.
The actress urged the United Nations and the international community to take action to protect women in Burma from sexual exploitation and abuse in areas hit by a devastating cyclone in May, which killed more than 84,500 people and left 54,000 missing, according to the junta.

Cooperate with UN or face more pressure: US tells Myanmar

In their hour of despair, Burma’s beleaguered people continue to find comfort in humor. New jokes reflect new frustrations. The latest target is Ibrahim Gambari, United Nations special envoy for Burma.
One revolves around the nickname that has been coined by local comedians for the Nigerian diplomat. He is labeled as "Kyauk yu pyan" (pronounced chow-u-peean), which in Burmese refers to a man who receives precious stones from the government as a bribe. (Burma is renowned for its gems.)

Other nicknames are harsher, like "Gan pha lar" (pronounced gun-pa-la), a play on the envoy’s name, which is the word for the receptacle that Burmese use to wash themselves after going to the toilet.
The jokes are a slice of a growing mood within the Southeast Asian country that reveal a contempt for Gambari’s mission to secure concessions from Burma’s military regime—chiefly an open and inclusive, free and fair political process to usher in a democratic culture.

Gambari’s failure to produce even a whiff of change was confirmed on May 10, when the junta forced people to vote at a referendum to approve a new constitution that was drafted by a junta-appointed committee. The plebiscite, which was rife with fraud, was held as the country was getting over the shock of the powerful Cyclone Nargis that crashed through the Irrawaddy Delta a week before, killing tens of thousands and affecting millions.

REGIME DENIES NO POLITICAL PRISONERS IN THE CELLS

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No Political Prisoner in Burma: Junta’s Mouthpieces

Burma’s state-run newspapers rejected the use of the term “political prisoners” to describe imprisoned dissidents, saying in a series of articles published ahead of Thursday’s commemoration of the United Nations’ Declaration on Prisoners of Conscience that detained activists were actually guilty of criminal offenses. From July 22 to 24, The Mirror and Myanma Alin, two of the ruling junta’s mouthpieces, ran a three-part article, “Political Cases, Political Prisoners and the Definition of Burmese Law,” which addressed the question of whether there are any political prisoners in Burma. Referring to Article 5 (j) of the State Emergency Act and Article 124 (a) of the State Offence Act, which are often used by the authorities to charge and imprison political dissidents, the newspapers claimed that since Burmese law does not use the term “political prisoner,” they cannot possibly exist in Burmese prisons.The newspapers argued that the Articles 1-8 of the State Emergency Act, which has been in effect since 1950, cover a wide range of issues, including security, administration, communications, taxation and the economy, but do not relate to political affairs. Article 5 (j) of the State Emergency Act serves to deter acts that threaten the security of the state, law and order, and public morality, The Mirror and Myanma Alin said. They also noted that under the Election Law for the People’s Assembly No. 11, promulgated in 1989, elected persons can lose their right to represent their constituencies if they break any military decree related to law and order.“Although the laws do not use the term ‘political prisoners,’ political activists are charged because of their political work,” Aung Thein, a lawyer for several political detainees, told The Irrawaddy on Wednesday. Meanwhile, the United States’ representative to the Economic and Social Council of the United Nations, T. Vance McMahan, is scheduled to moderate a panel discussion at the United Nations headquarters in New York to underscore commitments made in the Declaration on Prisoners of Conscience.The UN General Assembly issued the Declaration on Prisoners of Conscience on June 11 with the support of 64 nations, including the US and 27 European Union members. A Burmese human rights group in exile, the Assistance Association for Political Prisoners-Burma (AAPP) welcomed the declaration on July 22. “[The] AAPP wholeheartedly welcomes the commitment of these 64 nations andencourages all other nations—especially the Burmese military regime, which is holding over 2,000 political prisoners—to reaffirm their commitment to the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and to adopt the Declaration on Prisoners of Conscience,” the group said in a statement.

BURMA IS STANDING ON MOCKERY ROAD FOR DEMOCRACY

Burma should "take bolder steps toward a peaceful transition to democracy in the near future," the ministers said in statement, a final draft of which was obtained by The Associated Press.
The statement also urged the ruling generals to ensure general elections in 2010 are free and fair.
Rice renewed criticism of Burma for initially refusing international help in the aftermath of Cyclone Nargis in May, when several countries including the United States were "sitting literally offshore" with ships loaded with aid.
"When you have a situation (with) the junta refusing to let people in need be helped, you wonder how can the international community stand by and allow that to happen," she said.
She praised Asean for persuading Burma to accept help eventually.
Asean should find a way to move the country toward political reforms that would "make something of what is right now a kind of mockery, which is this roadmap to democracy which is going nowhere," she said.
Asean, which has been taken to task for not doing enough to pressure Burma's junta, held back its criticism after Nargis struck, fearing it would complicate efforts to convince the ruling generals to allow the entry of outside aid.
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RICE URGES ASEAN & US CONGRESS APPRIVES ANOTHER BAR ON MYANMAR

Rice urges ASEAN to push Myanmar to reform

ASEAN foreign ministers, frustrated after years of fruitless overtures to Myanmar to reform, expressed "deep disappointment" in a statement on Sunday that the ruling generals had extended Suu Kyi's house arrest.
They called for her release and that of other political detainees "as part of Myanmar's National Reconciliation process."
That was the first time ASEAN had ever specifically mentioned Suu Kyi in one of its communiques, diplomats said.
Myanmar is testing ASEAN's coherence as the group ratifies a charter that would turn it into a rules-based, EU-style bloc.
Included in the charter would be a human rights body that could possibly be empowered to monitor and investigate human rights violations.
The body, whose terms of reference are still being hammered out, has generated great debate within ASEAN, particularly from Myanmar, which sees an empowered body as possibly transgressing one of ASEAN's cardinal principles -- non-interference in members' internal affairs, diplomats said.
Rice said the best way for ASEAN to become stronger was to expand democracy and the rule of law among its members.
ASEAN's members are Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.

US Congress approves legislation to bar Myanmar gems

Despite a longstanding ban on all Myanmar imports, gems from the impoverished country have entered the United States via third nations such as Thailand, China, Taiwan, Malaysia and Singapore, rights groups have said.
The gems trade is one of the most lucrative sources of profit for the military rulers, accused of blatant human rights abuses and stifling democratic opposition.
"This is bipartisan legislation that is now on its way to the president for his signature," said Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell after the bill was unanimously approved.
"By focusing the sanctions on the (military rulers), this bill sends a clear message to the junta that the United States stands squarely with the freedom-loving people of Burma," McConnell said, using Myanmar's former name.
The bill also makes the generals and their families ineligible for visas to the United States and enhances existing financial sanctions against the regime.
They include new reporting requirements which will provide greater transparency about the junta in terms of their financial holdings, information about countries that provide military aid to the regime and background on Myanmar's timber trade, McConnell said.
"We cannot allow this regime to prosper financially while they continue to violate the human rights of their own people," said Howard Berman, Democratic chairman of the House foreign affairs committee.
"This bill hits the Burmese leaders where it hurts -- in the wallet. It's our hope that these sanctions will push other countries to examine their own financial dealings with Burma," Berman said.
The Jewelers of America, representing more than 11,000 jewelry stores nationwide, supports the ban on gem imports, and major retailers such as Tiffany's and Bulgari have voluntarily implemented a ban.
The European Union and Canada have similarly banned the import of Myanmar gems.
"The 'blood' color of rubies not only brings (Senior General) Than Shwe's military regime 300 million dollars per year, it signifies all the blood lost by innocent civilians in our struggle for human rights," said Aung Din, a former political prisoner and co-founder of the US Campaign for Burma.
"We want to thank the United States Congress for taking strong and meaningful action."
An earlier version of the legislation was introduced last fall by human rights advocate Tom Lantos, a senior lawmaker who died of cancer in February, in response to the junta's deadly crackdown of peaceful protests.
But Congress began to consider it in the aftermath of a cyclone that ravaged the country earlier this year, when the junta blocked entry to many foreign aid workers and relief shipments, relenting only after a personal visit by UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon.
The disaster left at least 138,000 missing or dead.
The new legislation also urged US energy giant Chevron to consider divesting from a lucrative gas project if the junta did not embrace reforms.
Lawmakers had dropped a plan to impose sanctions that would have pressured Chevron to pull out from the Yadana gas project after the company argued that other firms from nations such as China and India could easily take over its stake if divested.

HOW DO YOU FEEL WHEN YOU SEE THIS CARTOON?

Please take a feel by heart for this cartoon show in Rangoon.

For the time being, many cartoonists in Burma open The Carton Exhibition, in which many cartoonists express their feels in the way of cartoon art and some of hard drawing pictures are removed from the show by the censor board of regime. Whatever, one of a expressionism carton by Saya Aul Pe Jeal is still showing on the market. That canton shows that when everything is going by the eddy of Nargis Cyclone, but one of the men is firmly holding his chair not to going with others into the eddy tide of cyclone for fearing of losing chair than lives.

(please leave your comment)

POSTED BY ANH

A WAR CRIMINAL UNDER ARREST AND BURMA REGIME WILL BE NEXT

Burma's junta has indicated it will oppose any effort to give a Southeast Asian human rights body the power to monitor or investigate rights violations in the region, diplomats said Tuesday.
A high-level panel of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations started work Monday to set up the rights body. The panel will lay down the body's future makeup, role and powers, which will be presented to a summit of Asean leaders in December.
But in a closed-door session with the panel Monday, Burmese Foreign Minister Nyan Win said the human rights body should uphold Asean's bedrock policy of noninterference in each other's affairs, a diplomat present at the meeting told The Associated Press.
The diplomat spoke on condition of anonymity because she was not authorized to speak to the media.
Another diplomat who attended a separate meeting between all 10 Asean ministers and the panel also said Nyan Win made clear his opposition to the rights body having any monitoring authority.
Burma's military government, which has been strongly criticized by Western governments and even fellow Asean members for its dismal human rights record, has used the bloc's policy to parry any attempt by outsiders to intervene on behalf of human rights victims in the military-ruled nation.
It has already been decided that the rights body will not have the power to impose sanctions or seek prosecution of violators. But Burma's objections, if honored, will make the body even less effective.
A majority of other Asean foreign ministers, led by Indonesia, the Philippines and Thailand, separately told the panel that the human rights body should at least be empowered to monitor violations and offer advice to prevent such problems, said the diplomat.
Burmese officials were not immediately available for comment but in the past they have said the human rights body should only serve as a "consultative mechanism" and that it should not "shame and blame" any Asean nation.
The rights body is being set up as part of Asean's proposed new charter, which seeks to make the organization rule-based.
Asean Secretary-General Surin Pitsuwan said the charter will serve as a guide to the panel drafting the terms of reference for the rights body.
"They're going to follow the charter very, very closely—its principle of promoting, upholding and protecting human rights," Surin said.
The international community has condemned Burma's junta for its refusal to restore democracy and release pro-democracy leader and Nobel laureate Aung San Suu Kyi and other political detainees. Asean has also been criticized for not doing enough to pressure Burma's military leaders.

HOW CAN ASEAN TRAIN A WILD DOG IN BURMA

"We urged Myanmar to take bolder steps toward a peaceful transition to democracy in the near future," the statement said.
The ten members of ASEAN, the region's main bloc, usually avoid interference in each other's domestic affairs, although that appears to be changing in a bid to give the group greater relevance.
ASEAN's statements reflect its deep frustrations with Myanmar's junta, which has kept Suu Kyi in detention for 12 of the last 18 years. ASEAN is also fed up with criticism from the international community for not putting enough pressure on Myanmar.
On Sunday, ASEAN foreign ministers issued their strongest rebuke yet, expressing "deep disappointment" that Myanmar's junta had extended Suu Kyi's detention.
Commenting on the border feud between Thailand and Cambodia, Singaporean Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong warned that ASEAN "could not stand idly by without damaging its credibility."
"The situation has escalated dangerously," Lee said.
The two countries are disputing an area near an ancient temple in Cambodia that was recently designated a World Heritage Site. Both countries have sent troops to the area and talks on Monday failed to resolve the dispute. Cambodian Defense Minister Tea Banh said progress was made but he acknowledged that tensions remain high.
In their statement Sunday, the ASEAN ministers urged the two nations to "exercise utmost restraint" in the dispute.
Other topics expected to be discussed at the five-day enclave in Singapore include North Korea's nuclear program, inflation and cooperation in disaster relief.
Asia may be a much more stable and peaceful region than before, but its "long-standing tensions and rivalries" give ASEAN an opportunity to play a useful role as "a neutral platform" for mediation, Lee said in his opening remarks.
"ASEAN is no longer just a talk shop, but a maturing community of nations," he said.
The ministerial conference of ASEAN will be followed by a series of meetings with counterparts from China, Japan and South Korea, India, Australia and New Zealand.
It will culminate Thursday with the ASEAN Regional Forum, the premier security dialogue of Asia-Pacific between ASEAN and 16 other countries plus the European Union. It includes the United States and Russia.
On the sidelines of the forum will be the most keenly watched event: a meeting of U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, North Korean Foreign Minister Pak Ui Chun and their counterparts from China, Japan, South Korea and Russia _ the participants in six-party talks on North Korea's nuclear program.
It will be the highest-level meeting in the six-country negotiations, which began in 2003 with the aim of convincing North Korea to dismantle its nuclear program.

SUU KYI LOSES A HOPE

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The mayor, Brigadier General Aung Thein Linn, some government officials and family members of the country's late leaders all attended the 61st anniversary event.But invitations to foreign embassies were cancelled by the foreign affairs ministry without reason, the diplomats confirmed.Suu Kyi was only two-years-old when she lost her father. Burma got its independence a year later in January 1948.Aung San Suu Kyi has spent most of the last 18 years under house arrest and has currently been detained since 2003.About 300 NLD members gathered in front of party headquarters on Saturday morning, saluting the spot where the leaders were gunned down.Amid tight security and with armed police trucks present, the gathering was peaceful with no shouting or marching as has been known in previous years.But the NLD reiterated its call for the immediate and unconditional release of Aung San Suu Kyi and other political prisoners.Earlier this month 14 Suu Kyi supporters were charged for protesting against the extension of her house arrest.Burma has been ruled by the military since 1962. The NLD won a landslide victory in 1990 elections but the junta never allowed them to take office.

Myanmar starts five key highway projects in cyclone-hit regionYANGON,

July 20 (Xinhua) -- Myanmar has started implementation of five key highway projects in cyclone-hard-hit Ayeyawaddy delta region as part of its prevention program against natural disaster in the region, the local Biweekly Eleven reported on Sunday in this week's issue.The five highways respectively stretch as Maubin-Mawgyun, Mawgyun-Pinzalu, Laputta-Pinzalu, Bogalay-Katonkani and Laputta-Teikzun.These roads, which will be built as concrete ones within three years, will have facilities to resist storm and tide, the report said, adding that some of these roads will be built a height of 6-9 meters near villages to create shelter for villagers in case of natural disaster onslaught.During a recent cyclone storm in early May, communications and road transport in the hardest-hit Ayeyawaddy delta region and villages near the sea were severely disrupted, creating much difficulties for carrying out relief work.Meanwhile, Myanmar will also build and renovate 37 embankments in the cyclone-hit areas in a bid to prevent from flood in the future, according to earlier local report.Due to the storm, over one million acres (405,000 hectares) of farmland in Mon state were flooded and killed more than 200,000 cows and cattle killed.The United Nations has set up an emergency telecommunication center (ETC) in Yangon to help for quick communication access in disaster relief and restoration works.Myanmar is now entering into a second phase of resettlement and reconstruction after its first phase of rescue and relief was claimed to have finished up to a certain extent.Deadly tropical cyclone Nargis hit five divisions and states on May 2 and 3. Myanmar estimated the damages and losses caused by the storm at 10.67 billion U.S. dollars with 5.5 million people affected. The storm killed 84,537 people and left 53,836 missing and 19,359 injured, according to the latest official death toll.

NOONE CAN FORGET ,BUT REGIME WANTS TO FORGET

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Burma's Martyr's Day, commemorating the deaths of nine independence heroes including Aung San - the father of opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi, will be downgraded this year from a national to a city-level ceremony, sources said Friday.Martyr's Day is a national holiday commemorating the assassination of Aung San, his brother Ba Win, six cabinet ministers and three others on July 19, 1947, on the orders of rival politician U Saw.In the past a ceremony marking the assassination was held at the Martyr's Mausoleum in Rangoon presided over by the Minister of Culture, but on Saturday for the first time the event will be only hosted by Rangoon Mayor Brigadier General Aung Thein Linn, said an official at the Yangon City Authority, who asked to remain anonymous. Invitations to foreign diplomats to attend the ceremony have been cancelled, an Asian diplomat confirmed.No official reason for the downgrading of the ceremony has been announced.Aung San, who was only 32 when he died in a hail of bullets, is still a revered figure in Burma, as the founder of the military and one of the key players in winning the independence from the British, which was granted months after his death in 1948.Burma's current military leaders, who have ruled the country since 1988 under the equivalent of martial law, are known to have mixed feelings about Aung San and his family.Aung San's daughter, Aung San Suu Kyi, returned to Burma in 1988 after years studying abroad to tend her ailing mother and got swept up in nationwide anti-military demonstrations that year that forced former strongman General Ne Win to resign.Ne Win put an end to Burma's brief fling with democracy in 1962, when he toppled Burma's first elected Prime Minister U Nu with a coup and launched the country along the economically disastrous Burmese Way to Socialism. Although Aung San is remembered as the founder of the Burmese military, which became a separate force in 1942, Ne Win is seen as the father of the military dictatorship that has lorded over the country since 1962.

UN TO END MYANMAR AID ON AUGUST 10

"We're already dealing with a load that we didn't have enough helicopters for, so now the pressure will be compounded even more," he said. "If we have to go by road it means that supplies will be delayed."
Christine Kahmann, a spokeswoman for Action Against Hunger, agreed that ending the flights would hurt the relief effort.
The U.N. World Food Program's Paul Risley said the move to end the flights is a routine step as relief efforts in Myanmar shift to reconstruction following the May 2-3 cyclone that killed 84,537 people and left 53,836 more missing, according to the government.
The U.N. helicopters have allowed relief workers to reach remote stretches of the flooded delta that were cut off when the cyclone hit.
U.N. officials and aid groups have criticized Myanmar's military junta for its slow response to the disaster and for restricting access to the delta, saying it prevented enough food, water and shelter from reaching survivors.
The U.N. says many survivors still lack adequate food and water.
U.N. humanitarian chief John Holmes said last week that one out of two families in Myanmar have food supplies of only about one day or less and some 60,000 children are at risk of malnutrition. He said the cyclone wiped out 42 percent of the nation's overall food stocks.

Myanmar Should Release Detainees -SE Asia Officials

)--Myanmar should release all political detainees, senior Southeast Asian officials say in a recommendation to their foreign ministers.
"The SOM (senior officials' meeting)... called on the release of all political detainees," a senior Southeast Asian official said.
If endorsed, the recommendation will be included in a joint statement to be issued after a two-day meeting of the ministers that starts Sunday, the official said.
The proposed paragraphs on Myanmar also call on the junta "to take bolder steps in what they're doing to move along the roadmap to democracy," the official said.
However, it could still be amended by the ministers from the Association of Southeast Asian Nations.
The 10-member ASEAN has been widely criticized for its policy of "constructive engagement" regarding Myanmar, which is under EU and U.S. sanctions over its human rights record.
Myanmar's detainees include democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi, who has been held under house arrest for most of the past 18 years.

Myanmar to ratify ASEAN Charter: Singapore FM

July 18, 2008 (AFP) - Military-ruled Myanmar will accede next week to the ASEAN Charter, which commits Southeast Asian nations to notions of democracy and human rights, Singapore's foreign minister said on Friday.Myanmar's accession during an annual meeting of regional foreign ministers that begins in Singapore on Sunday will mean that just three of ASEAN's 10 members still need to ratify the deal.
"That leaves Thailand, Indonesia and the Philippines," George Yeo said in an interview with Dow Jones Newswires.
Singapore holds the rotating chair of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) but will hand over to Thailand this week.
ASEAN secretary general Surin Pitsuwan said recently he was hopeful the group would celebrate the charter's full ratification at its summit in Bangkok later this year.
The charter commits ASEAN members "to strengthen democracy, enhance good governance and the rule of law, and to promote and protect human rights and fundamental freedoms."

Myanmar court charges 14 for Suu Kyi protest

- A Myanmar court has charged 14 people for causing "public offence" during a protest marking the birthday of detained opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi, a defence lawyer said on Thursday. The group, arrested by pro-junta thugs outside the headquarters of Suu Kyi's National League for Democracy (NLD) on June 19, were also charged with unlawful assembly on Wednesday, NLD lawyer Aung Thein said.
"Three lawyers have received powers of attorney to defend them," he told Reuters.
The group had demanded the release of Suu Kyi, whose house arrest was extended in May despite international pressure on the military, which has ruled the former Burma since 1962.
The Nobel peace laureate has been confined to her Yangon home for nearly 13 of the past 19 years, with her latest detention beginning in May 2003.
Last week, a popular local blogger was also charged with causing "public offence" by posting caricatures of the country's ruling generals on the Internet.
The junta was caught by surprise last year when bloggers and citizen journalists relayed pictures and video to the outside world of the regime's crackdown on monk-led protests against military rule and economic hardship.

REGIME STANDS ON DEFENSIVE POSITION

Myanmar May Have Taken 'Defensive Positions' -Singapore Min

The minister was speaking ahead of a meeting of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, or Asean, in Singapore.
U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, Chinese Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi, Australia's Stephen Smith, North Korea's Pak Ui-chun, Japan's Masahiko Komura, and Myanmar's Nyan Win are among the 30-odd top diplomats who will be in Singapore for the Asean Regional Forum from Friday.
The meeting is Asia's largest security gathering, and Myanmar's political and humanitarian situations are among the topics on the table. As many as 2 million victims still need assistance, aid groups say.
A joint U.N.-Asean-Myanmar assessment will be presented Monday at the Forum, Yeo said.
He also said that Myanmar will officially accede next week to the Asean Charter, the 41-year-old group's first legally binding document designed to help it become a E.U.-type trading bloc but without a single currency.
"That leaves Thailand, Indonesia, and the Philippines," Yeo said. "With a united Southeast Asia, we can deal with the major powers on some basis of equality."
The charter needs to be ratified by Asean's end-of-year summit in Bangkok, or it may be junked.
Myanmar's junta had initial objections to its human rights chapters.
All of Asean's 10 members, who represent a mix of the world's political systems, have faced criticism for alleged rights violations.
The bloc comprises democracies Thailand, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Cambodia and Singapore; communist Laos; socialist Vietnam; military-ruled Myanmar and an absolute monarchy in Brunei.
Asean has a combined GDP of $1.3 trillion and a population of nearly 600 million. The grouping admitted Myanmar against pressure from the U.S. and the E.U. in 1997, and has also been criticized for its ongoing engagement with the junta, led by Senior General Than Shwe.
International civic and rights groups slammed the junta for the glacial pace of its response to victims of Cyclone Nargis, which tore through the country's rice-producing Irrawaddy Delta early in May. As many as 80,000 people were killed and over 50,000 missing.
The U.S. military sent its USS Essex Ready Group and Marines to positions offshore, where they waited weeks for approval from Myanmar to deliver supplies. It never came.
Myanmar has been military ruled since 1962, and observers have said the generals ruling the country are worried about preserving power. Many believe they resisted military help for weeks after Nargis struck because of invasion fears.
Some "had hoped that this would be the final push to bring down the regime. If that (push) had been done, we'd be playing with people's lives," Yeo said.
The Myanmar regime has been condemned for alleged human rights violations and the detention of pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi, a Nobel Peace Prize laureate who has spent 12 of the past 18 years under house arrest.
The U.S. and the E.U. have slapped sanctions on Myanmar, which sits on large oil and gas reserves and holds some of the world's biggest gem deposits.
Myanmar only met its Asean counterparts three weeks after the cyclone - the region's worst natural disaster since the Asia-wide tsunami of 2004.
"I was not optimistic because they seemed so beleaguered, the Myanmar government," Yeo said of the May 19 meeting. "It was quite a dramatic encounter because the other Asean Foreign Ministers confronted our Myanmar counterpart asking him: 'Look, what does Myanmar mean to us, and what do we mean to you?'"
Asean's response toward the regime has been unusually blunt recently, especially after last September's pro-democracy crackdown. Bloc members have said Myanmar would respond better to engagement rather than isolation.
"In the end, we agreed that Asean should help to build a bridge of trust between the Myanmar government and the international community so that it'd be an Asean-led international assistance effort," Yeo said.
The U.N. launched a fresh appeal for Nargis victims July 10, saying aid agencies need nearly half a billion dollars for the relief effort.
Yeo said the aftermath of Nargis wasn't as bad as many initially thought.
"The general conclusion is the situation is not as bad as we have feared - no mass starvation or outbreak of epidemics," Yeo said. "But of course, it is very difficult for those affected."

BURMA NOTORIOUS REGIME NEGLECTS MARTYR'S DAY IN JULY19

Burma may leave out Martyr's Day
Burmese government informed diplomats in Rangoon that they would no longer be invited to attend the annual event to remember Burma's national heroes which was planned to be held on Saturday.
Mark Canning, British ambassador to Burma, suggested possible security concern may be a reason for government to change the plan.
It is not yet clear if the ceremony is just postpone or scrapped altogether.
Martyr's Day ceremony has been held annually since Burma's independent leader, General Aung San, and his cabinet ministers were gunned down in 1947.
Pro-democracy activists accused Burmese leaders of undermining the role of General Aung San because of the political standing of his daughter Daw Aung San Suu Kyi.

REGIME INVITES UN AS TO USE FOR A TRICK

Security Council diplomats in New York say that enough time has past since Cyclone Nargis hit Myanmar two months ago, leaving 138,000 dead or missing, and that it is time to ratchet up the pressure on the junta to comply with council demands that it improve the state of human rights and democracy.

At their summit in Japan last week, Group of Eight leaders called on Myanmar's secretive military government to lift remaining restrictions on the flow of aid and improve access for foreign aid workers, initially shut out of the country.

Shortly before the summit, G8 foreign ministers issued a statement urging Myanmar "to foster a peaceful transition to a legitimate, democratic, civilian government ... (and) to cooperate fully with Special Adviser Ibrahim Gambari."

In May, weeks after Cyclone Nargis devastated the country formerly known as Burma, the military junta extended the house arrest of opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi, angering Western nations who had promised millions of dollars in aid to help the country deal with the aftermath of the cyclone.

Gambari has said his most recent visit to Myanmar was a disappointment and yielded no concrete results. One of the problems was that he was unable to meet senior junta leaders.

It was his third visit since authorities crushed pro-democracy marches in September in a crackdown that sparked worldwide outrage and a major diplomatic push for political reform in the former British colony, which has been under military rule since 1962.

House Votes To Squeeze Myanmar Junta
Unanimous House Vote Supports Economic Sanctions Against Corrupt Ruling Regime

(AP) The House of Representatives voted Tuesday to punish Myanmar's brutal ruling regime "where it hurts - in the wallet," by freezing assets of political and military leaders there and banning the importation of rubies from that country into the U.S. The unanimous vote sent the bill back to the Senate, which voted last year to also bar timber from Myanmar, also known as Burma. House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Howard Berman said the legislation would put financial pressure on a corrupt regime that failed to adequately help its citizens recover from a cyclone and famously put down democracy demonstrations by Buddhist monks last year. "The legislation before the House today hits the regime where it hurts - in the wallet," Berman, a Democrat, told the House. "By blocking the import of Burmese gems into the United States and expanding financial sanctions, the legislation will take hundreds of millions of dollars out of the pockets of the regime each year." He said the 11,000-store Jewelers of America supports a ban on Burmese gem imports. Retailers like Tiffany's and Bulgari have also voluntarily made the ban their policy, Berman said. The bill also gives Chevron incentives to divest its natural gas program in Myanmar. It aims to bring more pressure against the junta to restore democratic civilian government in Myanmar. U.S. officials say Myanmar has been evading earlier gem-targeting sanctions by laundering the stones in other countries before they are shipped to the United States. President Bush is eager to sign the bill, which will extend and harden sanctions Congress first passed in 2003. President Bush's wife, Laura, has emerged in recent months as a strong proponent of democratization in the Southeast Asian country. Myanmar has been under military rule since 1962. The current junta took power in 1988 after crushing pro-democracy demonstrations at a cost of an estimated 3,000 lives. Its soldiers similarly cracked down on Buddhist monks during the so-called Saffron Revolution in September. Human rights observers put the death toll among demonstrators in the hundreds.

CNF PREPARES TO USE SNIPER ATTACK TO REGIME

"First, we will give notorious military officials and USDA personnel a warning that we will take their lives in sniper attacks," said Pu Solomon.
"If they ignore the warning then we will take real action against them," the coordinator said.
"We have conducted special training for sharpshooters in our group for the sniper operations."
Pu Shwe Kha, joint-secretary of the CNF, said the group has also decided to cut taxes collected from the Chin people to the bare minimum.
"Before, we used to collect 3000 kyat annual tax from every household – but now we have reduced that to 10 kyat," said Pu Shwe Kha.
"Our operation aims to help the people in Chin state to deal with their struggles," he said.
"We will accept the 10 kyat tax from the people just to show them our appreciation of their contribution to the revolution."
The CNF previously held talks on a ceasefire agreement with the government military officials in March 2007 but these ended without an effective resolution except for an agreement on both sides to resume talks at a later date.
"We believe we will resume the talks in future – we are studying the strengths and weaknesses of the ceasefire groups and we will find a peaceful answer for our country's political situation," said Pu Shwe Kha.
The CNF was formed by fighters in Chin state after the 8888 uprising and it is a member of the Unrepresented Nations and Peoples Organisation.

THAI EMBASSY BARS BURMESE AND BOMB BLAST ON THE BUS

One Killed, One Injured In Myanmar Bus Blast
YANGON (AFP)--One man was killed and another injured when a bomb went off aboard a passenger bus headed to Myanmar's main city, state media reported Tuesday.
The explosion took place at 8:50 am (0220 GMT) Monday, en route to the country's economic hub Yangon, according to the official The New Light of Myanmar newspaper.
"One passenger died and another was injured in an explosion on a bus en-route from Kyaukkyi to Yangon," the paper said, noting that authorities are investigating the blast.
The man who died was a 55-year-old named Khant, it said. A 46-year-old man named Pa Pa received a stomach injury in the blast which took place near Daik Oo town, 85 miles northeast of Yangon.
Authorities immediately blamed insurgents for the bombing.
"Insurgents have committed destructive acts to jeopardize the stability of the state, community peace and prevalence of law and order to cause panic among the people," the paper said.
The bus journey started in Kyaukkyi near the border of Karen state where ethnic rebels have battled for decades against the military regime, who have run Myanmar since 1962, for autonomy in their region.
Earlier this month a small bomb exploded at the offices of the pro-junta Union Solidarity and Development Association on the outskirts of Yangon, causing no injuries but blowing a hole in the wall of the building.
Myanmar faces scores of organized resistance groups. Such small explosions are usually blamed on ethnic rebels or exiled dissident groups.

Thai Embassy in Rangoon Bars for Burmese Seeking Visas

The Royal Thai Embassy in Rangoon has made it more difficult for Burmese nationals to visit Thailand, say recent visa seekers. “It is difficult for first-time applicants,” said one Burmese man who recently applied for a visa. “They have to submit information about everything they own—their homes, their cars, even their phones.”
In the past, applicants only had to show that they had US $600; now, he said, “If you want a Thai tourist visa, you have to show that you have assets valued at 1.8 million kyat ($1,525) or more.”
A Burmese national who recently arrived in Thailand confirmed that the embassy was not readily accepting visa applications, and was penalizing those who used fake documents by making them wait several months before they could reapply.
“Nowadays very few people are applying for Thai visas—far fewer than before Nargis,” she said, referring to the devastating cyclone that hit Burma on May 2-3. “When I went the Thai embassy, I saw just two people waiting for visas.”
According to other recent applicants, there have been long delays in the visa-issuing process for new applicants since the first week of May.
Rangoon travel agencies said that it was unclear if the problems reflected a shift in Thai foreign policy or were simply the result of a decision by embassy officials.
Monsak Jangariyawong, the first secretary of the Royal Thai Embassy in Rangoon, told The Irrawaddy on Monday that there has been no change in tourist-visa policy for new applicants.
“We haven’t changed any practice since Nargis,” he said. “When new applicants apply for Thai tourist visas, they are required to submit financial documents as before. We have been doing this for the past few years.”
Some Burmese observers have suggested that the Thai government may be worried about a possible influx of Burmese seeking employment due to the economic impact of Cyclone Nargis.

NCUB INVITATION TO JOIN FOR UNITY TO TAKE ACTION ON REGIME IN UN

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Two months after cyclone, Myanmar farmers still can't return to fields

MR Kyaw Lwin and his wife stitched together thatch to make a new roof for the bamboo shack they now call home, after their farm was destroyed in the Myanmar cyclone more than two months ago.
They laboured beneath a plastic sheet, piecing together a roof and their lives with 45 dollars donated by the UN Development Programme and whatever resources they can scrape together on their own.
Their village of Kanyinkone in the Irrawaddy Delta, which suffered most of Cyclone Nargis's fury, is among the many farming communities where storm survivors have met their immediate needs, only to now wonder how they will make a living in the future.
Before the storm, Mr Kyaw Lwin said he owned a small shop in addition to his poultry farm and a fishing business in Kanyinkone, a village reachable only after a one hour boat ride from the nearest town of Labutta.
'We have nothing left. All of my business is gone. I don't know what to do now. My hope is far away,' he told AFP desperately.
'The important thing is to get a job first. Everything will be okay after that,' he said.
More than 138,000 people are dead or missing after the cyclone struck Myanmar on May 2, washing away entire villages and flooding fields.
Aid agencies say that their worst fears of hunger and disease in the immediate aftermath of the storm have not materialised, thanks largely to the efforts of local volunteers and the resourcefulness of residents in feeding themselves.
Although the delta is Myanmar's most important rice growing area, damage to the fields is not as extensive as initially feared.
But in the hardest-hit villages, often in remote areas reachable only by boat, residents are wondering how they will eat if they do not return to work to start growing food.
'Ordinary people like us have nothing except for the assistance from aid groups,' farm worker Mr Bo Htay, 44, said.
'Whenever government officials come here, the village headman tells them the reconstruction is complete. It might be complete for him, but it's not for us.' Many rice farmers whose fields were flooded have now missed the main planting season, meaning they will have to buy rice or hope for donations at least until next year.
'Every household is starting life from zero. We want paddy seeds, diesel, power-tillers and draught cattle. We are ready to work. But the problem is we have nothing,' said 55-year-old Mr Pan, another farmer here.
'Now farmers have to ask for rice to eat. We don't want this situation,' he said.
The United Nations on Thursday asked for US$481.8 million (653.34 million) for the aid effort, saying that two million people had been affected by the storm, but only 1.3 million had actually received any international help.
People in Kanyinkone said they were surviving on rice, beans and other supplies from UN agencies and other donors, but many wondered how long the aid would continue.
'We don't dare throw away even rotten rice. Then if the aid stops, we will have that rotten rice to eat,' farmer Mr Thein Myint, 56, said. 'We are ready to grow rice, but many farms are empty.' Ayuna, a 29-year-old Buddhist monk who travelled here from central Myanmar to escort a group of doctors to the delta, said that worries for the future were hanging over the region.
'The villagers can't do anything now. They are just surviving,' he said.
'If they could work, that would ease their mental stress

MILITARY REGIME CHALLENGES INTERNATIONAL GOVERNMENTS TO GIVE MORE MONEY

Burma's military government Friday challenged Western donors to give more aid to the cyclone-hit nation, state media reported.The ruling junta ran an editorial in the official New Light of Myanmar comparing Western nations' military spending with their aid donations.'Powerful countries have spent hundreds of billions of dollars on the Iraqi and Afghanistan issue. How much will they spend on rehabilitation of the victims to the storm 'Nargis'?' the newspaper editorial said.The article came a day after the United Nations and aid organisations more than doubled their appeal from an initial 201 million dollars, now 70 percent funded, to 481.8 million dollars.The revised appeal is to fund remaining relief needs as well as 103 early recovery projects. Cyclone Nargis left 138,000 dead or missing early May and Burma's authorities were strongly criticised for blocking emergency aid efforts.Despite retaining a 400,000-strong army and earning two billion dollars a year in revenue from natural gas supplies, the junta was slow to rally its own supplies to the 2.4 million people severely affected by the storm. The editorial also claimed journalists had falsely reported the extent of the need in the worst-hit Irrawaddy delta region.'In practice, make-up and imaginative news stories are contrary to prevailing objective conditions,' the paper said.'And if such a news story has an impact on the goodwill of the donors, that will harm the interests of the storm victims,' it added. Despite seeking further aid, the paper claimed life had returned to normal for cyclone victims, contradicting a joint assessment by the UN and the Southeast Asian bloc ASEAN last month, which reported only 45 percent of survivors were receiving food from international aid agencies.'Victims no longer need to stay in public rest houses, prayer halls of pagodas, and monasteries en masse ... they are ploughing fields that were flooded with saltwater.... Fishermen are having a good time with new fishing boats and fishing nets... schools are now lively with voices of studies,' the paper said.The military has ruled Burma since 1962, refusing to relinquish power to the opposition led by detained Nobel laureate Aung San Suu Kyi which won elections in 1990.

ICC IS READY TO TAKE ACTION FOR CRIMINAL FOR GENOCIDE

July 10, 2008 (WASHINGTON) – The Washington Post quoted UN officials and diplomats as saying that Sudanese President Omar Hassan al-Bashir will be charged by the International Criminal Court (ICC) with genocide and crimes against humanity.
Earlier today the ICC announced that its prosecutor Luis Moreno-Ocampo will hold a press conference on Monday revealing his new case “on crimes committed in the whole of Darfur over the last five years”.
It is not clear how countries will react to the indictement of Al-Bashir.
The international community was actively preparing itself for the possibility that the Sudanese president Omar Hassan Al-Bashir may be named as a Darfur war crimes suspect by the ICC next week.
Western diplomats and world officials appeared nervous that Khartoum may retaliate to charges against Al-Bashir by expelling aid organizations and peacekeeping forces from Darfur.
Sudan’s U.N. ambassador Abdel-Mahmood Mohamed told reporters that “all options are on the table” if Sudan president is indeed indicted.
Mohamed is scheduled to meet with the UN Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon tomorrow afternoon.
The UN chief refused to comment on the speculations of Al-Bashir’s indictments saying that “as a Secretary General I am not in a position to mention anything officially before the announcement by the ICC”.
“In principal I believe that peace and justice should go hand in hand. Justice can be part of a peace process but peace without justice cannot be sustainable” he added.
However Ban Ki-Moon said he will assess the situation after the suspects are named next week.
The UN mission in Sudan elevated its threats level in anticipation of the ICC announcement and the Inner City Press website reported that a visit by a key logistics official in the Darfur mission to New York fearing that Sudan “may order the UN out of Darfur”.
In his report to the UN Security Council (UNSC) last month, Ocampo made his harshest condemnation of Khartoum saying that he collected evidence of a “criminal plan based on the mobilization of the whole state apparatus, including the armed forces, the intelligence services, the diplomatic and public information bureaucracies, and the justice system”.
Ocampo said that his office is investigating who “is maintaining Haroun in a position to commit crimes; who is instructing him and others”.
The statements by Ocampo were taken to suggest that he is going after senior Sudanese officials.
But Sudan has so far refused to hand over two of its citizens charged by the ICC of war crimes last year saying the world court has no jurisdiction.
The judges of the ICC issued their first arrest warrants for suspects accused of war crimes in Sudan’s Darfur region in early May.
The warrants were issued for Ahmed Haroun, state minister for humanitarian affairs, and militia commander Ali Mohamed Ali Abdel-Rahman, also know as Ali Kushayb
Sudan has not ratified the Rome Statue, but the UN Security Council triggered the provisions under the Statue that enables it to refer situations in non-State parties to the world court if it deems that it is a threat to international peace and security.

"Now Global Justic Center(GJC) is trying to bring Burma's militayr regime and its elite in front of justic", the president of GJC says. 8888 Students' Generation inside Burma and 88 Generation Students' Exile cry for justice, especially to UNSC to bring SPDC into Internation Crime Court for military committing crime against humanity from 1962 to the present time since saffron movement in September,2007 in which over 5000 were arrested and over 600 were killed in several methods of military crackdown and interrogation system.

WEF CLAIMS FOR U WIN TIN

Burma has been ruled by the military since 1962 and under international sanctions since the junta overturned 1990 elections won by the NLD. The party's leader, Aung San Suu Kyi, 63, has spent 12 of the past 18 years under house arrest.U Win Tin is serving a seven-year sentence for sending testimony to the United Nations about human rights violations against political prisoners, according to the statement."His detention constitutes a clear breach of his right to freedom of expression, which is guaranteed by numerous international conventions,'' the groups said in the letter. "We respectfully but urgently call on your government to demonstrate strength and compassion by releasing U Win Tin immediately.''The Paris-based WAN defends and promotes press freedom and represents 18,000 newspapers. The WEF is the organization for editors within the World Association of Newspapers.

ILO slams Myanmar for keeping six 'labour activists' in jail

The International Labour Organization (ILO) on Friday blasted Myanmar's Supreme Court for denying an appeal by six activists to overturn their lengthy jail sentences for attending a Labour Day event. Thurein Aung, Wai Lin, Kyaw Min, Myo Min, Nyi Nyi Zaw and Kyaw Kyaw were arrested on May 1, 2007, after attending a Labour Day function at the American Centre of the US Embassy in Yangon.
A Myanmar court sentenced Nyi Nyi Zaw and Kyaw Kyaw to 20 years in jail and the other four to 28 years for assembling at a public place without authorization.
Myanmar's Supreme Court on June 27, this year, turned down an appeal by the six to reduce their lengthy jail terms for such a minor offence, said their lawyer Aung Thein.
"It was our hope that their appeal to the Supreme Court would result in the quashing of their sentences and their immediate release," said Kari Tapiola, ILO executive director in charge of standards and fundamental principles of rights at work.
"It would have been hoped that in view of the government of Myanmar's publicly expressed intent to take the country into general elections in 2010, that the fundamental freedom of association rights would be respected," added Tapiola.
Having recently pushed through a constitution that will assure the military's control over any elected government, Myanmar's ruling junta has promised to hold polls sometime in 2010.
Myanmar, also known as Burma, has been under military rule since 1962. The government has one of the world's worst records in human rights and labour rights abuses.

Regime Media Accuses Western Politicians, Media of Cyclone Opportunism

Burma’s state-run The New Light of Myanmar on Friday accused unnamed western politicians of making political capital out of the Cyclone Nargis disaster.In a commentary that also slammed the western press coverage of the catastrophe, the official daily said: “In truth, some politicians from the countries of the west bloc exploited the sufferings of storm victims for political gain.” Two US newspapers, The New York Times and The Washington Post, and The Times of London were accused of irresponsible and untruthful reporting. They and other western publications had concocted false stories and photos, “stolen news stories” and carried “mock interviews,” the newspaper charged. The reports weren’t believed by most Burmese but still impacted on the goodwill of aid donors, it complained.The New York Times was singled out for allegedly “creating” stories about starving farmers in the cyclone-devastated areas. Western press reports had also claimed cyclone victims were despairing and without hope, although that wasn’t the case, The New Light of Myanmar said.The newspaper’s commentator recalled the case of a Washington Post report in 1981 about a heroin victim. The report was disclosed as a fabrication after winning the writer, Janet Cooke, the Pulitzer Prize, the commentator said.The New Light of Myanmar also questioned the amount of aid “powerful countries” were offering Burma in comparison with the “hundreds of billions of dollars” spent on military engagement in Iraq and Afghanistan.

PRINCE CHARLES MEETS BURMESE STUDENTS

Round the clock security at USDA offices

In the wake of the bomb blast in the Shwepyitha office of the Union Solidarity and Development Association (USDA), members have been deployed in rotation round the clock for security.There was a low intensity bomb explosion in the USDA Ward level office on Sittang Street, No. 6 Ward, Shwepyitha Township, near the Township Peace and Development Council Office on July 1. Security was beefed up at all USDA offices in Rangoon Division the very next day. "Security in all USDA offices have been tightened in Rangoon Division," a weekly journal reporter told Mizzima on condition of anonymity. There is heightened security in USDA offices in Seikan, Dagon and other townships, he added. "Security personnel were deployed at all crowded places, key buildings and Ward level USDA offices on July 7 since 6 a.m. Over 10 USDA members are assigned for security duty at each USDA Ward level office in South Dagon, Hlaingtharyar, Dagon Satellite Town and Shwepyithar Townships," a local resident from Rangoon said. Rangoon Mayor and Rangoon Division USDA chief Brig. Gen. Aung Thein Lin met Rangoon based journalists on July 2 and said that special security measures were imposed to prevent bomb blasts and other attempts at sabotage. The day after the bomb blast, the Thai border based 'Vigorous Burmese Student Warriors' (VBSW) claimed responsibility in a statement. In the state-run newspaper, the regime said that the ground floor entrance, window panes, tables, chairs, typewriter sand telephones in the USDA office were damaged in the explosion but no one was injured. The Shwepyitha bomb blast is the fifth in a series of bomb explosions this year in three cities. A bomb blast in January this year near the Naypyidaw Pyinmana railway station killed a woman and another bomb exploded near Rangoon railway station injuring at least one person. A bomb blast in a bus near Phyu town, Pegu Division killed the bus conductor while another bomb exploded in Kyauktada Township, Rangoon Division on April 20 but no one was injured.

REGIME MAKES EASY DOLLARS FROM NARGIS CYCLONE

YANGON, July 10 ( -- Myanmar is planning to turn stem roots and branches of cyclone-downed trees in Yangon municipal area into sculpture products for auction, China's Xinhua news agency quoted a report in the local weekly 7-Day News Thursday.A total of 45 professional sculptors from two areas of the country are being selected and invited for the move, the report said, adding that they are from Dapain and Bago.A cyclone storm, that swept Myanmar in early May, blew down over 13,000 old-aged trees and shade-providing ones. Some of these downed trees and debris pressed and rested on houses, while residents dragged down lamp-posts and blocked roads in the city.So far after the disaster, almost all of the downed trees and debris on the roads had been cleared and accumulated on vacant plots in the city from where stem roots and branches are being sorted out for making sculpture products to be auctioned to domestic and foreign business entrepreneurs for foreign currency.These stem roots and branches of downed trees are of 30 to 100 years of age.Meanwhile, the Myanmar authorities have been planting 30,000 shade-providing trees by using forced labors to replace collapsed ones and so far 6,000 downed trees have been put upright in the Yangon municipal areas.