READERS’ FRONT

NEW LEADERS OF NMSP SEEN AS MODERATES

NMSP PRESIDENT NAI HTIN PASSES AWAY

SOUTHERN YE: HORROR, HUMANITY… HOPE?

AGRICULTURE EMPLOYEES GET SACKED BY SPDC

NAI SHWE KYIN’S MEMORIAL LIBRARY OPENS

TWO MPs ARRESTED BY JUNTA

ETHNIC COUNCIL WARNED JUNTA

IRISH FOREIGN MINISTER MEETS EBO DIRECTOR

FORGOTTEN HEROINE: BY CHAM TOIK

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 Burma . And we hope that it will become an important forum for discussion and debate and help readers to keep abreast of issues and news.  We reserve the right to edit and reject articles without prior notification. You can use a pseudonym but we encourage you to include your full name and address.

Regards,

Editor (kaowao@hotmail.com)

Kaowao News Group

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On “NMSP President Nai Htin Passes Away”

We are very sad to learn that such an outstanding gentleman has passed away. A great loss to the Mon national movement.

With condolences,

Ashley & Bellay Htoo South

(via monnet)

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Today I feel the day is much darker because the President of NMSP, Nai Htin passed away. Even though I knew he was sick, I was shocked by the news. I know it is a great loss for our Mons ' freedom movement.

The more I've learned about our great President, the more I admire and love him. He sacrificed his life and struggled for the Mons ' freedom for many decades together with the late President Nai Shwe Kyin and President Nai Non Lar.

Our great Presidents possess their individual abilities and inner qualities to be true leaders. They have shown their leadership skills through their actions. They have paved the way towards the Mons ' freedom for us to follow. We must look at them as great figures in our history.

Our great leaders passed away one after another before they could achieve their goal of the freedom of the Mons . We fully understand that our leaders are not really dead because they will always be in the Mons ' heart. We will carry their names and their beliefs in every cell of our body. As long as Mons exist, our presidents exist. We must carry on their unfinished movements to show our loyalty. We must truly believe that their goals will soon be fulfilled.

The Mon movement must go on, and the Mon National Flag will never fall to the ground. If one leader falls, another one must carry the flag. Hongsar Bob Thaw must always be flying gloriously in the air.

To all the late president's families and comrades who were left behind, please accept my sincere condolences.

With Love,

Nai Simon (Chit)

Calgary , Canada

(via monnet)

On “Forgotten Heroine” by Cham Toik

What a thoughtful and passionate portrayal of your mom. I was really impressed and would like to meet her.

Ms. Indiana Jones

Canada

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Thank you very, very much for that, from the bottom of my heart.

Zena Ukisu

( Calgary , Canada )

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Very moving story.  Thanks for sharing.

ES

( Victoria , BC )

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What an outstanding piece of work. You should put this in article somewhere. It is really touching.

Ondarai ( Toronto , Canada )

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Dear Editor,

Reading news and info is quite boring sometimes.  It is a wonderful to read the essay that you share with us which include emotional mood.  Some short stories and feature articles in Kaowao’s Mon version are also interesting.  You should translate it into English.

Mi Chan (BKK, Thailand )

Mon national affairs

NEW LEADERS OF NMSP SEEN AS MODERATES

(Kaowao: March 19, 2005)

After the death last week of President Nai Htin, the New Mon State Party will not likely change its position with the Burmese government despite criticism among members of the Mon movement to challenge the ceasefire agreement, say Mon political observers.

A Mon politician commented that the Mon general public will not see any major changes toward the cease fire agreement with the Burmese regime in the near future after the passing of the NMSP or New Mon State Party’s president last week. The new acting President, General Htaw Mon is unlikely to challenge the cease-fire agreement and party policy.

The Mon politician who spoke on condition of anonymity said that even though the new leaders Nai Htaw Mon and Nai Rotsa are honest and committed, they will likely not develop any new initiatives.  The two leaders are considered too moderate and are not viewed as decision makers within the organization.

Secretary General of NMSP Nai Hongsar also said that they will not change the party’s policy and its position with the government sponsored National Convention because of the new leadership.  The party’s decisions are made by collective leadership he confirmed.

Nai Hongsar said the NMSP has already prepared to replace the leadership before the death of Nai Htin.  Even though the NMSP will hold a congress to elect the new President in the future, Vice President 1 General Htaw Mon and Vice President 2 Nai Rotsa who have a long experience in the armed revolution movement for 40 and 35 years respectively will likely be elected based on seniority.

The body of Nai Htin was brought from Moulmein to the Mon’s liberated area at Wae Zin in eastern Ye where the funeral service will be held today with the NMSP members and supporters.  It is reported that the crowd may not be a large community gathering in the thousands as it was with the funeral of the late President Nai Shwe Kyin.  The New Mon State Party organized some vehicles for special guests and says that it would be difficult to bring together all mourners to the funeral from urban and rural areas in Mon state.

The NMSP was founded by Nai Shwe Kyin in July 1958 when the Mon Peoples Front (MPF) surrendered to the U Nu’s Parliamentary government claiming to the Mon supporters that it was an exchange of arms for democracy.  The Party controls some rural areas in Mon State .  The founder and long time President Nai Shwe Kyin passed away on March 7, 2003.  Nai Htin, 85 years old, who succeeded him, passed away on March 14, 2005 in Moulmein , the capital of Mon State , southern Burma .

NMSP PRESIDENT NAI HTIN PASSES AWAY

(Kaowao: March 14, 2005)

Sangkhalaburi -- The President of New Mon State Party, Nai Htin passed away on March 14 in Moulmein , the capital of Mon State , southern Burma .  He was 85 years old.

The liaison office of New Mon State Party released the news that the NMSP President passed away at 6:50 a.m local time at the Party’s residence in Moulmein .

According to Nai Aye Mon, a senior leader of the party, before he died he intensely wished to be buried near the NMSP Headquarters by his followers and grass root supporters.

He was taken to the capital of Mon State from Chang Luk Christian Hospital , Karnchanaburi province near the Thailand Burma border last week. He had been receiving hospital care after suffering from a bout of malaria. When his health situation deteriorated he wished to be taken from the hospital and die at home in Monland.

Nai Htin was chosen as President of the New Mon State Party replacing Nai Shwe Kyin who passed away in March 2003 at the same residence.  He was well-respected by the majority of the Mon population for his strong commitment for Mon autonomy.  Despite his age he was active in the affairs of NMSP, he was known to be loyal and always spoke in a cheerful and positive manner.

Up until the day he took ill, he lived with his comrades at the NMSP’s jungle Headquarters, BeeRee Camp in Mon State before being taken to the hospital for treatment.

The NMSP office said it will elect the new leader in the next party caucus; however, Vice-President 1 General Htaw Mon is in charge before the party’s meeting.  The funeral service will be announced to the general public soon.

SOUTHERN YE: HORROR, HUMANITY… HOPE?

(By Kun Yekha)

Human rights violations and oppression on villagers in Southern Ye township continues. Thousands of local villagers have fled their villages daily to escape direct attacks by the Burmese military. The southern Ye area has been under the control of the New Mon State Party for years, but since the signing of the ceasefire agreement in 1995 with the Burmese junta, they are now facing the worst possible scenario, their political position has weakened and their people are living in constant hell. In southern Ye township many villagers live as internally displaced people, scattered throughout the jungle without medical care, trying to find a safe area to live for their families.

It is apparent that the Burmese Military troops attempt to gain some influence and control over the ethnic nationality areas not under their direct control. These areas are under the stronghold of patriotic rebels fighting for their rights, for equality and self-determination. Soon after reaching the cease-fire agreement between the Burmese Military and NMSP, several groups decided to split from the NMSP and take up arms and continue to fight for the rights of the Mon. They believed the cease-fire agreement would not benefit the people, and that it would do nothing to solve the whole national problem in Burma . They felt that they had no choice but to take up arms and fight back to gain their rights over their land. Over the past 2 decades the Burmese army has stepped up its program of assimilation and is slowing taking over land village by village, land which has belonged to the Mon for centuries. The Burmese military and their cohorts brutally assault anyone who gets in their way.

We have seen that there has been no progress made on politics, development, education, health and other issues relevant to the security of the state and its people. This present situation is the result of over (50) years of civil war in Burma . The former chief of Military Intelligence and Prime Minister Gen. Khin Nyunt vowed in 1995 that Mon State would be developed within (3) years. After the agreement was signed, the Burmese troops with several Battalions walked right in and confiscated thousands of acres of land and farms from the Mon people, land which has been used efficiently and productively by the Mon for generations.

The NMSP tolerantly abides by the gentlemen’s agreement. The troops of the State Peace and Development Council (SPDC) take full advantage of this situation and implement their strategy to suit their interests by using many tactics to appease the people. They have gradually moved into the Mon territory and have taken over thousands of acres in the Mon rural area by forcibly pushing the people off their land. The farmers receive no compensation. Most of this territory had been under the direct control of NMSP. To avoid armed conflict from the ruling government, the NMSP must stand back and let it happen. When troops are deployed into the Mon villages to expel the people from the land, the Burmese troops perpetrate gross human rights violations and then seize thousands of acres of the best farm land for themselves. In many situations good farm land which feeds the people is turned into military battalions.

The reasons for this strategic push into Monland are crude, among others, it is to root out and eliminate the insurgents who have been ambushing Burmese troops. But overall the Burmese main strategy is to influence the Mon people through assimilation called Burmanization. In addition to intimidating the villagers and frightening them into submission another more efficient tactic is to allow the Burmese troops to use sexual violence against Mon women. This represents vividly the ugly nature of ethnic cleansing; this mix-blood policy is their long range missile of Burmanization.

When deploying troops into the Mon area, they bring along and install many Burmese government civil servants to run offices in the newly built Khawza Township . It’s a simple tactic to gain control over the populace in the Ye township area by setting up administrative zones and regulations. They built Khawza village to be the new township and there are several types of offices being opened and run by the Burmese servants who speak Burmese in all transactions, different to the local peoples’ mother tongue. There are going to be many problems in the near future about the use of different languages, the government demands that everyone speak Burmese as the official language in these areas for administrative purposes. Many Mon don’t speak Burmese and are often berated if they don’t speak Burmese properly.

As soon as the Burmese troops arrived in this area, they showed their inner mind and original behaviors - killing innocent villagers, raping Mon girls and women, brutally beating the ordinary farmers and collecting money. It’s a method they’ve used for centuries – burning down the villagers’ houses, using porters and forced labor for their construction works and operations, with arrest, torture and disciplinary punishment meted out to the local Mon people. When villagers are thrown off their land they are left to starve in the jungle, they are shot if they try to go back to their land for food and other necessary items for survival.

The Burmese army uses disciplinary punishment such as beatings and threats to any villagers suspected of having contact with the rebel groups. Nobody knows in reality whether the villagers are involved with the rebels or not, suspicion is enough to invite their wrath. Some villagers may support the rebels while others avoid of having anything to do with either supporting or protesting against the Burmese troops and the splinter armed groups.

The area (free fire zone) is totally ungovernable and the Burmese soldiers act like a roving band of barbarians. Even an ordinary soldier can do whatever he wants. They can kill a villager like an animal, they can rape Mon girls at will, they can burn down the villager’s house if they so desire, they can seize the farmers properties for themselves on a whim – at any place, anytime they can do whatever they please. The only escape for the villagers is to offer money to be left alone.  The villagers are rounded up routinely as force laborers and whenever the Burmese soldier claps his hands and shouts Porter! They must obey or risk being beaten or shot. The villagers work all day in the hot sun and work at night providing village security by patrolling the village perimeter with a group of ten villagers for every night. “We have no breathing space, we have no choice but to comply with whatever they tell us,” said Pauk Pin Kwin (Wae Kwao) a local villager.

As freely as they kill, the Burmese troops commit rape as if they have a license to do it. They say the reason they do this is because they suspect the Mon women and girls of having contact with the rebel groups and so will have to detain them for questioning. Under detention, the women and girls are separately gang raped by the soldiers. After being detained for two nights or a week, they are released only if they are able to pay the money for the bribe. Some Mon girls are forced to entertain their commander by giving massage, dancing and providing sex. The tactical commander Myo Win is the most notorious figure who enjoys his time in Southern Ye area.

The reports on violence committed by the soldiers are tragic to hear and fully demonstrate this whole idea of “crimes against humanity” and the vulnerability of the people at the hands of soldiers. Late last year a young couple was attending a religious event in Kwan Ta Moi, near Hang Gam village. The girl went for a walk around the village with her friends and walked into a group of Burmese soldiers who gang raped the young girl. Nearby her boyfriend heard his girlfriend shouting for help and took off to rescue her only to be shot dead on site.

Along with killing and raping they also loot the villagers’ properties. Late last year, a Yang Ree villager who fled to Thailand told stories about how the Burmese go about their daily affairs in an area with no law or authority. They are free to do and take whatever they want. One night when the villagers were all asleep, two soldiers just walked into a house and stole the betel nuts stored under a villager’s house. The house owner not quite asleep jumped up and shouted at them to get out of his house. The two soldiers pointed the gun. “If you make a move or shout we will kill you now.” The villager kept silent and went back to bed without saying a word fearing for his life.

Village looting by the Burmese is a common daily experience. No one can stop the onslaught of it; they act and indeed think as if they have the power to take anything they want – money, rice, chickens, ducks, cows, people, and personal property. If you own a car or a motorcycle, you can be sure you only own half of it. “The Burmese soldiers are used to getting what they want, they order and shout at people all the time,” recalled a Changu villager explaining his experience of it, who recently fled from his own village to find a job in Thailand .

Another government policy is to convert the Mon national schools into Burmese state schools. The Burmese army has been forcing the villagers in Khaw-zar (newly created Township) and villagers from the nearby villages to build the government high school to compete against the Mon National School in the southern Ye township, Mon state. Mon National School teachers have complained to the Burmese Army officers to be set free from forced labor and have asked the soldiers not to force the villagers to work building the school.

The SPDC has built Burmese primary schools in seven Mon villages nearby Khaw-zar area in the southern part of Ye township in 2004 where the Mon National Schools are located. Most SPDC schools are built with forced labor and forced money contribution out of the villagers’ pockets.

In mid 2004, 63 of Mon National Schools in this area were forced to close down and to convert to the state Burmese Schools run by the Burmese army. This event happened when the New Mon State Party (NMSP) was at the National convention demanding for a federal state with ethnic nationality rights together with (13) other ceased-fire ethnic groups.

Most Mon National Schools are headed by the NMSP Education Department. This has been the case for over three decades. Now the Burmese Army commanders say they are going to force Mon school students to attend the newly built state government school in eight villages included Khaw-zar, which are competing against the Mon National School in the coming academic school year in 2005-2006.

Villagers are caught in the middle between the guerrilla groups who threaten them not to follow the rules of the Burmese and the Burma Army’s instructions to follow the rules. The threat from both sides has forced the people to flee from the area.  Some have fled to a Mon resettlement site as internally displaced person (IDP) and some have risked their lives to escape across the border to Thailand, according to Mon Relief and Development Committee, based in Sangkhalaburi, Thai Burma border.  A village headman says some villagers have moved to a religious site in northern Ye township where (they believe) a famous Buddhist monk will be able to give them some protection.

The Burma Army has launched an offensive to wipe out the Mon armed group and the insurgents in turn use ambush tactics and guerrilla warfare. I wanted to contribute some information about Burma after learning about what happened in Cambodia . How systematic murder of this kind can happen and why it is so important to learn in order to prevent this from ever happening again.

How so many thousands of people were brutally killed in such a short period of time by the Khmer Rouge?  Like the Nazis during the Second World War and the génocidaires in Rwanda in 1994, the Khmer Rouge were meticulous in keeping records of who to kill and how. Upon visiting the remains of the Khmer Rouge crimes at Tuol Sleng Museum and the Killing Fields of Choeung Ek made me think of the horrible murder committed on such a massive scale and that nothing was done to save them. That so many Cambodian (Khmer) people had been tortured and killed by Khmer Rouge, led by Pol Pot of blood brother No.1. Men, women, children and infants including foreigners was such a terrible even in human history. It’s not even known how many Cambodians died at the hands of the Khmer Rouge over the three years, eight months and 21 days of their rule. During the Khmer Rouge regime in Cambodia from April 1975 to January 1979, the total death toll is estimated at more than one million. During three years in power, the Khmer Rouge declared there were 200,000 Cambodians enemies of the state and had them executed, thousands more died of starvation, overwork, and disease.

Several hundred thousand people were executed by the Khmer Rouge leadership. The Vietnamese claim three million people had died, while other experts believe the number closer to one million. In early 1996, Yale University researchers investigated and estimated it to be at least two million. In 1995, the Documentation Center of Cambodia (DC-Cam) was established to research and document the crimes of Khmer Rouge and to learn about the past. When visiting Killing Fields of Choeung Ek, more than 8,000 skulls, are arranged by gender and age and are clearly visible behind the glass panels of the Memorial Stupa which was built in 1988.

We should learn as much as we can about the past. The next generation of Cambodians and others must try to understand how genocide came about and to try to prevent this from ever happening again. There must be a global effort to stop the suffering of innocent people who are unable to protect themselves from crimes against humanity, the past can be our teacher, and we must put the pieces together from the past to find an answer and bring hope for people.

In Southern Ye horrible actions and discrimination of this kind are happening now. Like the Cambodian people, the Mon people are the lonely victims of crimes against humanity, caught on the battleground of government troops and the rebel armed groups who care nothing about life. These people desperately plead for peace, but are forced to live in hell. After learning about what is happening in Southern Ye, we must draw some conclusions to find an answer. Who is to blame?  Who are the victims? How can it be stopped? How should we solve these problems? Is it necessary to go to war or should we resolve it through dialogue? Should we record and document the crimes of the regime and their followers to reveal their guilt in the near future?

There are some leaders from Mon organizations leading the armed group, the political and national affair sectors, but overall the Mon movement for self-determination is in danger of fragmenting into pieces. The New Mon State Party (NMSP), Mon National Democratic Front (MNDF) and oversea organizations led by Mon Unity League (MUL) should be united in representing the one voice of the Mon people to fight the injustices, terrorism and human rights violations committed by the Burmese Army in the Southern Ye.

AGRICULTURE EMPLOYEES GET SACKED BY SPDC

(Independent Mon News Agency, March 8, 2005)

The State Peace and Development Council dismissed thousands of employees from the Ministry of Agriculture and Irrigation (MAI) according to a manager of Township Myanmar Agricultural Service (MAS).

The Military government started it dismissal process at the beginning of February 2005, and dismissed 9600 civil service (3800 employees from MAS and 5800 from 12 other departments under MAI) said a MAS manager who had worked in MAS for thirty years.

“MAS can’t manage its programs efficiently such as agricultural education for farmers, providing fertilizer and pesticides. That’s why MAS lost 3000 millions Kyat of its investment in this service. Because of serious financial losses, Senior General Than Shwe felt the employees in MAS were redundant and dismissed them for non-performance. He named the employees as ‘extra employees’ and dismissed them from the department,” said a 60 year old manager.

According to the dismissed manager, “the whole process was completely unfair.”  The skills and experience of the employees are ignored, however the authorities let their relatives stay,” said Yin Aye, a fired employee.

“The employees now have to sign in every day in the office and receive salary from the Township PDC office, but not from their department. They haven’t received other costs for travel and expenses. The authorities have cut back the number of employees to 7 from the average of 20-30 employees in each office”, Ma Yin Aye added.

“The government didn’t issue a clear probation period and the dismissed employees do not want to take their salary or compensation in the TPDC office. I think the government was concerned that if they dismissed government servants en masse, it would be against the labour laws”, said the Manager who worked in the department in Tenasserim Division, Mon State , Arakan State , and Pegu division.

According to a manager, the mismanagement in the government is not at the level of departmental civil servants, it is at the level of ministerial managers.

“The MAS lost investment in its services because the Ministry doesn’t conduct a needs assessment survey among the farmers in the country. They just import these chemicals and fertilizers and try to sell them to the farmers without any foresight and the farmers in turn do not purchase these materials,” said the manager.  Ministries are administrated by the army Generals, who have no background knowledge or education in agriculture and which created this serious problem.

According to the manager, there are 28 agriculture consultants with PhDs from abroad in agriculture studies and 20,000 employees are employed in MAI before the current massive dismissal process.

“ Burma ’s agriculture sector will be worse in 2008 if the dismissal of employees and experts continue. Due to the lack of skilled people in this field and the total dissatisfaction with the way things are run by the department, along with the reduction of agricultural experts, the problems in the future will only intensify and create serious problems for the agriculture industry,” the manager explained.

According to MAS employees, the government removed four departments under MAI to No. 1 Ministry of Industry. Nonetheless, the SPDC claims through its controlled media, that there has been economic improvement in all sectors.

NAI SHWE KYIN’S MEMORIAL LIBRARY OPENS

(Kaowao: March 8, 2005)

Nai Shwe Kyin’s Memorial Library opened in the capital of Mon State on March 7, 2005 by senior leaders of New Mon State Party.

According to Independent Mon News Agency based in the Thai Burma border, the cease-fire NMSP leaders and about sixty supporters attended the 2nd memorial ceremony of the late President Nai Shwe Kyin with the opening of the library in Ngan Tay, Moulmein (Mawlamyine), the capital of Mon State .  Nai Rot Sa, Vice-Chairman No. 2 and NMSP members laid out 20 x 35 feet of floor space for the library.

“Nai Shwe Kyin loved reading.  Before he died, the President had intended to open this library,” said Nai Than Thut.

The library was completed in January 2005. The librarian says they will seek donations to expand the building and collect more books.  “Everyone is welcome to the library. It is open to the public from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday to Friday. The NMSP collected 44,000,000 Kyat from the Mon community since October 2003 to foot the bill.

TWO MPs ARRESTED BY JUNTA

(Kaladan News: March 19, 2005)

Rangoon -- U Kyaw Min (a) U Anwar and U Kyaw Hsan, the two MPs were picked up from their Rangoon homes by the Burmese military ruling junta on 17^th March 2005, said a relative of U Kyaw Min from Rangoon on condition of anonymity.

The police agents went to U Kyaw Min’s house at around midnight and told him to follow them for some questioning and then was taken away by car.

U Kyaw Min, 55, is an ethnic Rohingya who is the elected representative  (MP) of No.1 Constituency of Buthidaung township, Arakan State, and a  member of National Democratic Party for Human Rights (NDPH), led by ethnic Rohingya people. He is also a member of Committee for Representing People’s Parliament (CRPP), he further added.

According to his colleagues, he did not have any significant political activities expect being the member of CRPP.

U Kyaw Hsan, 73, is also an elected MP, Sagaing Division NLD Chairman and retired Lieutenant Colonel and who has been detained several times since he was elected in a 1990 election.

Both of their relatives didn’t know the whereabouts of the MPs and the reason for their arrest.

After the sacking of the Prime Minister and military intelligence chief General Khin Nyunt in October last year, the SPDC has released more than 14,000 prisoners in which only around 80 of these have been political prisoners.

However, the releases have also coincided with the arrest of several prominent Shan ethnic minority leaders, NLD members, CRPP members and democracy activists, dampening hopes that Rangoon’s isolated generals are considering abandoning their seize on power.

On the other hand, some of the Burmese student activists such as Ko Min Ko Naing, Ko Saw Min, and Ko Ko Gyi were set free.

ETHNIC COUNCIL WARNED JUNTA

(Kachin Post: March 11, 2005)

The Ethnic Nationalities Council, or ENC, a Burmese opposition group based in Thailand , urged the Burmese military government to adopt their propositions as a means to reach a political solution, according to a statement released by the ENC on last Saturday.

ENC released a statement after concluding a two day meeting in Kawthoolei, Karen National Union control area near Thai-Burma border. During the meeting, ENC members, advisor and Ethnic Nationalities Solidarity and Coordination Committee, or ENSCC, members discussed the current political situation in Burma .

The ENC said that if the government did not follow their suggestions, they would strongly oppose the junta’s new constitution. The current National Convention is establishing guidelines through which to draft a new constitution. The ENC said that if the SPDC did not accommodate their suggestions towards finding a political solution, they would hold the SPDC responsible for all consequences including the resumption of hostilities.  

At the National Convention, the junta dismissed a proposal, which suggested power sharing between the ethnic states and the central government, submitted jointly by 13 ethnic ceasefire groups. The ENC urged the junta to allow ethnic ceasefire groups to freely organize and participate in the constitution drafting process. Just before the National Convention reconvened on February 17, several ethnic leaders, including chairman of Shan Nationalities League for Democracy Hkun Htun Oo, were arrested for unknown reasons. This suggests that the junta is not interested in allowing the full participation by the ethnic groups in the political process.

The ENC does not believe the SPDC’s claim that the current National Convention will lead to a democratic Burma , noting that the National Convention does not include the political parties that received support in the 1990 general elections. Additionally, the ENC claims that the NC does not reflect the aspirations of the ethnic ceasefire groups, who have repeatedly called for a dialogue on the future of Burma . The statement calls for the government to “amend the procedures of the National Convention to allow free and open debate on the constitutional articles proposed by the SPDC.”

ENC urged the junta to allow the international community, especially ASEAN, to observe the National Convention, the proposed referendum for the new constitution, and the projected general elections under the new constitution.

The Ethnic Nationalities Council is committed to finding a political solution to Burma ’s crisis through a Tripartite Dialogue as called for by United Nations General Assembly resolutions since 1994. The ENC was founded by members of Ethnic Nationalities Solidarity and Coordination Committee, or ENSCC, in March 2004, aiming to proceed a “United Ethnic Nationalities Voice and Platform” for the Tripartite Dialogue.

The ENSCC, established in 2001, proposed an ethnic version of Burma ’s Road Map to Democracy plan, which reflects the interests of ethnic groups, six days after Burmese junta announced its seven steps Road Map to Democracy in 2003.

Ireland’s Minister for Foreign Affairs meets with Harn Yawnghwe, Director of the European Office for the Development of Democracy in Burma

IRISH FOREIGN MINISTER MEETS EBO DIRECTOR

(Kaowao: March 2, 2005)

The Minister for Foreign Affairs met for the first time with the Director of the European Office for the Development of Democracy in Burma , Mr. Harn Yawnghwe today at Leinster House.

According to Ireland ’s Mission of Foreign Affairs, the situation in Burma and the ongoing actions of the regime to frustrate democracy in that country were discussed at the meeting.  The minister emphasized the Irish Government's determination to secure the release of Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, and to support a political process aimed at delivering democracy and national reconciliation.

The forthcoming EU-ASEAN ministerial meeting, to be held in Jakarta from 10-11 March 2005, where the Irish Government will be making clear its position to the representatives of the Burmese regime, and the impact of the tsunami on Burma were also in the agenda.

Cited from the Press Section of Ireland’s Mission of Foreign Affairs, the Minister for Foreign Affairs, Mr. Dermot Ahern, T.D, said: “I am very pleased to have had this opportunity to meet with Mr. Yawnghwe, a committed and long standing advocate of democracy in Burma , together with representatives of Burma Action Ireland.  I found our exchanges very constructive and useful at this critical time for the people of Burma . We agreed to remain in contact on all the issues discussed.”

The Minister's meeting with Mr. Harn Yangwhe is part of a regular dialogue between the Department of Foreign Affairs and the key NGOs concerned with the situation in Burma .  The Euro-Burma Office is a joint-project of the European Commission and the Olof Palme International Centre of Sweden, to promote democracy in Burma .

Mr. Yawnghwe is the youngest son of Sao Shwe Thaike, the last ruler of Yawnghwe, who became the first president of Burma at independence in 1948.  He escaped to Thailand in 1963 at the age of fifteen when the Burmese military seized power, killed his brother and arrested his father who died in prison.

Online Essay

FORGOTTEN HEROINE

(By Cham Toik)

When I think of her, I first remember a soft and sweet voice trying to wake me up.  Her daily routine began at 7 a.m. in the morning, the same time as BBS (Burma Broadcasting Service) started their morning radio program.  Being the only son of a successful businessman in the community, I was a spoilt and lazy boy in primary school in Mon State of southern Burma .  On those mornings, I normally closed my eyes and turned my face down on the pillow to avoid the sunlight almost for an hour, until 8 o’clock.  From my comfortable bed in the newly built wooden house, I constantly heard her voice, “Oh my baby, let’s wake up.  It’s time to get up,” like a Kaowao songbird singing in the early spring of our rainforest.  She patiently tiptoed back to my bedroom and encouraged me with her gentle voice to get up almost every day.  Despite being a busy housewife and taking care of all external and internal family matters, she was my perpetual alarm clock.

She attuned herself to my small sorrows too. I remember, I was named “Mr. Radio” by our neighbor, Nai Ein, because when my father traveled for trading and could not come home on the lonely monsoon nights, I constantly cried like Thachin Gyi (a long classical Burmese song); then, she always comforted me.

Everybody in our community acknowledged that she was a hard- working woman.  With the energy of an automaton, she woke up early in the morning, cleaned our house and store, put every thing in order and cooked breakfast and lunch for all of us.  While waiting for customers, she never let the time pass idly, but did something else; for instance, cutting betel nuts or organizing other things for our family and the grocery store. And when she was not inside the house, we always saw her working in the garden, watering the plants or feeding the pets.

In high school, when I returned home to Mon State from Mandalay in central Burma during the summer holidays, I began to investigate the perceptions of my mother, for I occasionally heard people say, “You are your mother”.  Then I asked my relatives about her.  Every body told me that they rarely saw her get angry.  I repeatedly heard that she was open-minded and spoke frankly, although softly.  All the neighbours saw her as a hard-working, gentle lady with a positive attitude.  She never had arguments with others, but presented herself with a smile.  Even now, I fully agree with them because I actually have never, in my whole life, heard her shout or yell, or use bad words to me or anyone else. The only way one can realize that she is angry is that her usually placid face turns red.

Being raised as a typical Mon national in Ye, southern Burma , the first thing I learned from her was discipline and respect. All these years, I have remembered what she told us each night about our ancestors and Lord Buddha.  At our bedtime, she imparted to us the manner in which we should behave in society and adjust to any environment, before we even started formal education at the primary school.  She was our private tutor, who taught us the value of good citizenship and a tradition to respect parents, teachers and elders.

I still remember the night when some robbers intruded into our house.  A gang of armed men banged their guns and slammed the door, announcing their entry like unexpected night shoppers in our unguarded store.  Like a rat that heedlessly runs from a cat at random, our father jumped out of the house, leaving me and my younger sister behind.  But our mother, the captain of a hundred armies, firmly remained strong for us and talked to the robbers, asking them not to endanger our lives.  The gang only took the money from our business and left us safe on that cold winter night.

When our father left us; my sisters and I were raised by a strong, committed single woman – our mother.  Incredibly, she never blamed others, but always supported us with a good income, keeping our family abreast of others.  Apart from managing all the business, she normally changed our clothes, combed our hair and gave us a shower almost every day.  Our neighbors said she was always ready to help others in need and eager to keep our surroundings clean.  She was Visakha, the lady in the legend who always showed generosity and never hesitated to donate (give Dhana) to the poor, the temples and other social agencies, as she enjoyed tirelessly volunteering in the village’s various community development programs.

In my travels away from her, I have encountered many difficulties and struggles.  While a dissident student leader, a guerrilla (freedom fighter) of the New Mon State Party in the jungle, an activist and a community leader, I easily learned how to face terrible dangers bravely, stay calm and solve the problem without emotion.  I often met coarse and rude people -people who tried to destroy my goals, who threatened my security and who abused my rights. Yet I could adjust to the circumstances, control myself, and react appropriately.  Some people say this is a priceless characteristic and spirit, which I have inherited from her.

While I studied at Rangoon University , I was black-listed for political activities, after publishing a newsletter that expressed our opinions.  The Military Intelligence Service (MIS) men were searching for me everywhere on the campus and in the city.  They arrested my friends and inhumanly tortured them.  Even when I sometimes met them face-to-face, I invariably escaped from these brutal spies by staying calm and pretending to be a different person.  People say that I inherited from my mother an ability to calm myself and to stay cool at the critical moment.  My mother never was frustrated nor ran away, but in a chaotic situation faced reality bravely… as a heroine.

Now we are thousands of miles apart; but the good traditions I reluctantly learned in my childhood have become a protocol for me to be a responsible human being.  I have gradually improved and enjoyed my life as the person I am, but I also realize that my present position could not have been achieved without the ideals I learned from my mother.  Like other mothers in this world, her important role is not well- recognized, but is instead frequently forgotten.   Just as it is true that without a mother, a general cannot be born, nor can a leader exist, I would not be myself without her.  She stands as a symbol of courage, passion and commitment, and deserves to be honored on this day and all others.

Dedicated to all women on this International Women’s Day, March 8, 2005.