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No. 667: February 25 - March 3, 2013 Heartbeat of The Nation www.mmtimes.com

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By Cherry Thein

A BUILDING at the centre of a religious conflict in Thaketa township was sealed by Yangon City Development Committee on February 19.

YCDC officials acted to close the site after several violent attacks during the previous two nights that led to a coalition of monks, police, firemen and volunteers mounting night-time security patrols and guarding of the site.

The building, between 18th and 19th streets in Thaketa’s Manpyay quarter, has been used as a school for Islamist teachings since 1962 but efforts by its overseers to renovate the building have been blocked until this year, when permission was granted by the township’s religious affairs office.

Renovation work began at night in mid-February but

residents grew concerned when reinforced concrete pillars were installed and the roof of the building was raised by several feet.

Concerned residents, most of whom are Buddhist, informed the administrative office on February 18 that the renovations were expanding the size of the building. Officials responded by issuing an order to tear off the roof, with labour provided by 15 residents, with the materials piled up outside the building.

A Manpyay resident told The Myanmar Times as the building was being sealed on February 19 that many people thought the school was being converted into a mosque – and that the school’s owners had lied to officials about their intentions when they asked to renovate.

“When they [the school’s backers] renovated the building it was no problem but they kept adding it, and it started

to look more and more like a mosque,” he said. “And that’s a big problem because we do not want a mosque on this street.”

Five Buddhist monks waited outside the building for three days to explain the situation to groups of people who arrived at the site. But as tensions increased on February 18, 20 police arrived to secure the area. Residents offered food to the police and other self-appointed guards.

“There were several violent attacks on the nights of February 17 and 18 when people rushed in and smashed things and then ran away. It was not serious but we do not know who did it or where they came from because it was dark,” said a woman cooking meals for the guards on the street.

“We don’t want any violence or a conflict on our street – we want to live in peace,” she added.

However, other residents said they feared for their safety during the night, with rumours

spreading of potential communal violence.

Resident Ko Kyaw Zin Oo said school exams were taking place and parents were worried the conflict might upset students.

“Everybody is worried about the situation, especially if it erupts during the exams period,” said Ko Kyaw Zin Oo, adding that 10th standard exams are held in early March, with exams for lower grades held last week.

“Some people want the street blocked for security reasons. But we don’t have any idea who is creating the problem,” he said.

U Aye Lwin, an official from the Islamic Centre of Myanmar, said on February 20 he would also object to the building being converted to a mosque but he could not pinpoint the source of the rumours about possible riots.

By Ei Ei Toe Lwin

THE UN has welcomed the discharge of 24 children from the Tatmadaw, but has called for more to be done, both to stop any further recruitment and to discharge other children still in the army. The UN also wants ethnic armed groups to discharge children and to stop recruiting them.

The government ordered the discharge, which took place at a ceremony on February 15, to keep the commitment it made to “end the grave child-rights violation of recruitment and use of children under 18 years of age in the armed forces”.

Senior military officers, representatives of UNICEF as co-chair of the UN Country Task Force on children and armed conflict, and member agencies of the task force attended the ceremony.

The government’s commitment led to the signing of an action plan last June.

Mr Ashok Nigam, co-chair of the Country Task Force on monitoring and reporting of grave violations of child rights in armed conflict (CTFMR), said in a press statement: “This release of 24 children is a welcome step in the implementation of the Action Plan by the government and reflects its commitment that children should not, and will no longer, be recruited and used for military purposes. I call for the acceleration of the release of all children from the Tatmadaw and for the non-state armed groups to do the same.”

UNICEF said that many more children were expected to be released as awareness of the action plan spread among the Tatmadaw and the general public.

“A series of discharges like this must accelerate in the coming months in order for the Tatmadaw to quickly achieve the double objective of zero underage recruitment and full discharge of those that are under 18 in the armed forces,” CTFMR co-chair and UNICEF representative Mr Bertrand Brainvel said at the ceremony.

Addressing the children who were discharged, Mr Brainvel said: “You have

UN urges Tatmadaw to speed up child soldier discharges

A notice banning any building work is nailed outside the site in Thaketa township’s Manpyay quarter last week after an Islamic religious school was torn down. Pic: Ko Taik

Thaketa conflict site sealedSchool’s backers had permission to renovate building but work went beyond approvals

More page 4

More page 4

By Frank Janmaat

THE boom in tourism has been excellent news for hotels. The surge in tourism arrivals and a limited number of rooms have enabled hotels to triple revenues over a few years ago. Myanmar’s undeniable attraction as a tourist destination is also luring foreign companies keen to invest in new hotels. The long-term outlook for the sector is bright.

But the short-term outlook is challenging. And one reason is that after years of very ordinary occupancy rates, hotels are revelling in the opportunities to cash in.

Maximising profit is important in every industry but it’s also important to consider long-term continuity and being prepared for increased competition in the future.

We have to realise that we are competing with the other ASEAN countries. While hoteliers in Myanmar were waiting and hoping for better times, hotels in other countries have been striving for years to increase standards and improve the quality of their service.

It is important to recognise that first-time visitors to Myanmar are probably not first-time travellers in Asia. They have been to other countries in the region and rate the satisfaction level of their Myanmar hotels against what they have enjoyed elsewhere in Asia. They have experienced standards of hospitality and room rates which are superior and cheaper, respectively, to what is available in Myanmar. Their expectations, therefore, of their Myanmar travel experience are high. And not necessarily likely to be realised.

Spoilt? Perhaps, but it’s a reality that negative publicity about disappointing travel experiences travels faster and reaches more people than the positive stories.

Under current circumstances, trying to attract the highest number of tourists might be counter-productive for the image of Myanmar as a travel destination. More visitors will mean even higher prices, more bad experiences and more negative publicity.

In this period of long-overdue euphoria, the hotel sector needs to adopt a long-term strategy aimed at ensuring that tourism in Myanmar will develop to its fullest potential.

As well as increasing the level

of hospitality to justify the room rates, there is another issue for the hotel sector to consider. The existing hotels in Myanmar need to understand that the hotels built by foreign companies will have a focus on maximising return on investment and profitability. The companies investing in these projects will employ modern management procedures, use state-of-the-art equipment and

employ international managers with international experience. They will be able to provide service and standards that will be considerably higher than what is already available in Myanmar. It may be a few years before the new hotels begin opening, but existing hotels in Myanmar need to be aware that they need to raise their standards of service and start offering value for money.

To position themselves so that they will be able to compete effectively against the newcomers, there are a number of options that

existing hotels can consider.One is to enter into a management

contract with one of the big multinational companies, such as Hilton, Accor or Sheraton, in which they run the business for a certain percentage of revenue and gross operating profit.

However, I have the impression that most Myanmar hotel owners would be unwilling to place their business under foreign management

or hire an expensive, internationally-experienced manager.

Another option is third party intervention through a consultancy, which, for the owner, has the advantage of leaving him or her in charge of the property. The consultancy conducts an assessment of the hotel, recommends and supervises changes to increase efficiency and optimise the use of resources so that the property offers the quality of service expected by international travellers.

Another key issue is the marketing of Myanmar as a destination.

Marketing campaigns have focused mainly on temples and pagodas. The travel experience of Myanmar has mainly involved Bagan, Inle Lake and Mandalay, and beach resorts such as Ngapali and Ngwe Saung.

But promoting a greater diversity of destinations makes good sense. Variety of choices will ease the pressure on transportation services and facilities and help to ensure

that the revenue from tourism is spread more equitably throughout the country.

Offering a bigger menu of destinations will mean that travel bans on some areas should be reviewed. A good place to start would be Mogok, which I am told is one of the most scenically beautiful areas in Myanmar. And perhaps it’s time to lift the ban on travel in Chin State, at least for the more accessible areas.

Priority should also be given to promoting Myanmar as a year-round destination. There’s clearly

potential for such a campaign to bring in more tourists because occupancy rates at Inle Lake and Bagan during the rainy season last year were sharply up on the previous year.

Human resources also need attention. Myanmar is fortunate in that work in the hospitality sector is highly regarded. But it is unfortunate that little advanced training has been available in recent years. Training schools for the hospitality sector were almost exclusively focused on preparing people to work in the Middle East and Singapore. The opportunities emerging in the hotel sector in Myanmar will attract many of those who have found work overseas to return to their homeland. Their overseas experience will be invaluable, though some returnees will be frustrated by the traditional management style of many Myanmar managers, which is based on power and control and a reluctance to accept input from middle management.

There are exceptions and the managers who embrace modern management methods are more likely to get the best out of their staff, in terms of efficiency.

Myanmar hotel employees, at least the ones I have been working for many years, are confident and ready to take responsibility and to demonstrate initiative. They are creative and ready to be critical in the interests of raising management standards.

But back to the beginning: what to do about hotel rates? Nothing. In a free market economy prices should be determined by the forces of supply and demand in the market, a system which seems to work in most capitalist nations.

From my perspective, it is not room rates alone that are causing most of the complaints from visitors who were expecting better value for money; it is a combination of room rates, the level of services offered and the standard of the hotel.

The challenges are daunting but I remain optimistic that collective responsibility and a shared vision will ensure a bright future for the hotel sector in Myanmar.

(Frank Janmaat is managing director of Lighthouse Hospitality, a group of internationally experienced hotel managers and independent consultants working in a joint venture with KMA Group of Companies.)

Long-term strategy needed for hotels

‘First-time visitors have been to other countries in the region and will rate their satisfaction level against what they have enjoyed elsewhere.’

The tourism industry should look to diversify the number of destinations marketed to tourists to reduce the pressure on infastructure at major sites like Bagan and ensure revenue from tourism is spread more equitably. Pic: Kaung Htet

Commentthe MyanMar tiMes

2February 25 - March 3, 2013

news3the MyanMar tiMes February 25 - March 3, 2013

By Soe Than Lynn

A THREE-CORNERED struggle has broken out over control of the constitutional process in Nay Pyi Taw. President U Thein Sein, and the speakers of both houses of parliament, the Pyithu Hluttaw and the Amyotha Hluttaw, have each nominated three members of the nine-member constitutional tribunal. The Constitutional Tribunal Law, which passed into law on January 15 means the tribunal chairman must be nominated after negotiation between the president and the two speakers. Under the old law, only the president was required to select the tribunal chairman.

However, the country’s three most senior elected off ic ials have now all n o m i n a t e d d i f f e r e n t candidates to serve as chairman.

C o n t r o v e r s y h a s surrounded the tribunal since it was first established. Last September, its members resigned en masse in the face of a parliamentary drive to impeach them. While representatives got the required two-thirds majority to impeach the tribunal, the proposal split military and elected representatives, with all 101 military MPs voting against impeachment and 308 elected MPs, including speaker Thura U Shwe Mann, supporting the motion.

Now the stage seems set for a bitter battle over control of the tribunal, which

lies at the heart of what could be a vitally important realignment of the relative power of the government and the parliament.

The three nominees of Pyithu Hluttaw Speaker Thura U Shwe Mann are retired director general of the Supreme Court U Mya Thein, high court advocate and retired director U Mya Thein and high court advocate U Myint Lwin. Thura U Shwe Mann has nominated U Mya Thein (formerly DG of the Supreme Court) as tribunal chairman.

President U Thein Sein’s three nominees are U Myint Win, retired deputy director of the attorney general’s office, U Than Kyaw, a presidential adviser, and Daw Hla Myo Nwe, deputy director of the ministry of foreign affairs. The president has proposed U Myint Win for chairman.

Amyotha Hluttaw Speaker U Khin Aung Myint has proposed U Tin Myint, Daw Kyin San and U Myo Chit, all three retired directors of the attorney general’s office. Of these, U Khin Aung Myint is proposing U Tin Myint as chairman.

“Since the constitutional tribunal is a judicial body, those who have experience in justice should be engaged as constitutional tribunal chairman. Therefore if U Mya Thein, who worked as director in the Supreme Court , i s engaged as tribunal chairman, it is appropriate,” Thura U Shwe Mann told the hluttaw on February 21. – Translated by Thit Lwin

President, speakers

grapple over constitutional tribunal chair

By Soe Than Lynn

THE Minister for Education has pledged to reallocate more than K30 billion from the budget on the basic education sector following a proposal submitted by a Pyithu Hluttaw representative last week.

U Tin Htut, the representative for Zalon, submitted a proposal to increase the budget allocated to the basic education on February 20.

He said rural residents are obliged to help themselves in educating their children by building schools and employing teachers with their own money.

He said the government must increase spending on basic education to pay for the renovation of dilapidated schools, hire sufficient numbers of teachers and should also increase the budget for the

higher education sector.Dr Mya Aye, the Minister for

Education, said some expenses included in the budget could re-allocated, especially some on “luxury items”.

“There’s about K31.27 billion planned for buying new furniture and luxury items such as 41-inch televisions,” he said. “I pledge to re-allocate this surplus from the higher education sector to the basic education sector to renovate old schools and build new schools, instead of spending it on unnecessary luxury items,” said the minster.

Dr Mya Aye added that the ministry faced some difficulties as a result of non-affiliated schools in some areas. However, he said the ministry could bring 1200 of the estimated 1500 non-affiliated schools into the legal fold as either primary or middle education facilities.

“And those who have passed

matriculation exams will be appointed as daily-wage teachers; we will train them during school holidays. We also plan to employ graduates as teachers directly because I know we have a shortage of teachers,” he said. He added that the ministry also plans to reduce the ratio of students per teacher to improve the quality of education.

Thura U Shwe Mann, speaker of Pyithu Hluttaw, also urged respective parliamentary affairs committees to evaluate proposed national plans quickly for the 2013-14 financial year.

“This proposal was defined as an important issue because this session was intended to discuss national planning and we have a length of time to evaluate plans that are drawn by union ministries. So we need to assess budgetary spending to determine what’s necessary and what’s surplus.”

– Translated by Zar Zar Soe

Education minister pledges to redirect K30 billion of budget to basic education

By Htoo Aung

POLICE are questioning a suspect in the murder of a woman whose headless and bound naked body was found in a bloody sack on Valentine’s Day.

The grisly find was made at 9am on February 14 in

Tha Pyay Hla village, in Bago Region’s Pyu township, underneath a bridge on the Yangon-Mandalay highway.

The head was found at 3.15pm the same day, east of the bridge in a field. Nearby, police also found a woman’s longyi, a shirt, and a man’s red longyi. They also found a piece of paper on which a

name was written.Police Lieutenant Colonel

Win Sein told The Myanmar Times: “We found a piece of paper beside the dead body on which a name was written, and we are now questioning a 30-year-old male from Tha Pyay Hla village.”

Acting on a tip off from the public, Pyu police

second lieutenant U Zaw Win, accompanied by village chief Chin Kin, went to a bridge over the Zahar creek and found a bloodstained sack, which they took to Pyu township hospital.

The sack was found to contain a naked female body with bound arms and legs. The body was headless.

Pyu police investigate Valentine’s Day murder

newsthe MyanMar tiMes


From page 1

Thaketa site sealed“We found two mistakes from the Muslim side: Firstly, the builders did not renovate the building in the former style, and secondly they built reinforced concrete iron pillars inside. These two mistakes shocked the residents,” he said.

A further point of contention for residents had been the building of a small cleaning pool.

“Being a religious school, teachers are responsible to teach students according to Quran and to be good Muslims. The first lesson is how to make prayers. Before holding the Quran Muslims must have a clean body, which requires a pool,” he said.

He added that he understood that residents did not want a mosque in the busy street.

“ I t h i n k t h e r e a r e troublemakers who fanned the flames of conflict on both sides. I do appreciate how shwe wah young-sangha (monks who participated in protests in 2007) are trying to cool tensions but we still need to cooperate better to prevent conflicts from occurring,” he said.

Leaders of the four main religions practiced in Myanmar plan to hold interfaith public talks in Thaketa township on March 30, he added.

“I expect that the event will be held and will show people in the community that their religious leaders are standing together for peace,” he said.

Venerable Sayadaw U Pyannawontha said it was necessary to cool the situation before it broke out into religious conflict.

“I heard about the situation from monks after they made their daily alms round. My friends and I came to the site and urged people on both sides not to react violently,” he said.

“Personally, I am not happy to see more mosques being built but we must be pragmatic and find ways to solve problems together. We should learn what our rights are. The transition of our country to the democratic path does not give everybody the right to protest anything they want or to riot,” he added.

He said every citizen has the right to religious freedom and people of different faiths needed to learn to live side-by-side without fighting.

“In my opinion, this case intensified because some people lack knowledge and education – they are ready to act aggressively without thinking and can easily be incited to conduct violent acts,” he said.

“There are many opportunists who profit from conflict within communities and we must be watchful of this threat,” he said,

adding “we don’t want to see anybody die here.”

U Ko Ko Gyi, a high-profile member of the 88 Generation students group, urged all people involved in the situation to respect the rule of law.

“The building has been officially sealed for the moment and no permission has been granted for it to reopen,” he said. “All people have to respect how the authorities manage the case according to the law,” he added.

U Ko Ko Gyi said the government should strengthen its supervision of laws concerning religious buildings.

“The religious issue is probably quite sensitive. The government should make more strict rules regarding the renovation or conversion of religious building before it leads to conflict.”

Child soldiers

not done anything wrong. You are being discharged because you were recruited by the army before you were 18 years old, and that is what was wrong.”

“It is another kind of courage that you will need now – the kind of courage that one finds to fulfil one’s dreams,” he added.Myanmar is one the 14 countries accused in the UN Secretary-General’s annual report to the Security Council of grave

violations against children. In addition to the Tatmadaw, the report lists seven parties engaged in the recruitment and use of children: the Democratic Karen Buddhist Army (DKBA), the Kachin Independence Army (KIA), the Karen National Liberation Army (KNLA), the Karen National Liberation Army – Peace Council, the Karenni Army, the Shan State Army-South and the United Wa State Army.

Children have also been recruited in the Border Guard Forces in conflict zones, says the NGO Child Soldiers International in its report Chance for Change: Ending the Recruitment and Use of Child Soldiers in Myanmar.

Child Soldiers International says that, despite recent progress, the situation is not improving as quickly as it might. “Recruitment of children by the Tatmadaw is ongoing, albeit on a reduced scale.

Effective safeguards to prevent future recruitment have not been put in place.

The BGFs under the command of the Tatmadaw have no program to verify the presence of children in their ranks, let alone plans to demobilise and rehabilitate them. And newly formed battalions of the BGF have been able to continue recruitment practices which lack basic safeguards to exclude children,” the report says.

By Aye Sapay Phyu

A RECENT proposal to form an Ayeyarwady River Commission was supplemented by the idea of creating a water sustainability body during the first consultative meeting of the Ayeyarwady Basin Research Organisation in Yangon in mid-February.

The Ayeyarwady Basin Research Organisation is a non-government body formed in May 2012 by experts in water, development and the environment.

The proposal to create an Ayeyarwady River Commission was submitted to the Amyotha Hluttaw on February 5 by U Myo Myint, a representative of Mandalay Region, and approved that day.

U Cho Cho, chairperson of Institute for Civil, Earth and Water Engineering, a non-government organisation, said efforts must be made to ensure the sustainability of the waterway.

“Myanmar and the Ayeyarwady can’t be separated, and the country developed based on the river,” he said on February 9. “We need to care for and love the Ayeyarwady because it is not an easy task to restore it,” he said.

U Cho Cho said development projects on or near the rivers should only be implemented after the possible downstream impacts had been analysed.

D a w D a v i T h a n t C i n , chief editor of Aung Pin Lae Environmental Magazine, said systematic management of water resources will become more important as the impact of climate change worsens. She added that the river’s tributaries must also be protected to ensure the whole basin remains healthy.

Daw Khon Ja, a member of the Kachin Peace Network, said environmental degradation in

the Ayeyarwady’s tributaries and in its watershed must be monitored and prevented.

“We can’t really say anything about the Ayeyarwady without including the Maykha and Malikha rivers,” she said. “There are gold mining projects within 3 furlongs (about 600 metres) of the Maykha’s banks.

“This affects the Ayeyarwady River and the evidence can be seen where the muddy water replaces the clear water at the Myitsone confluence. This creates sandbanks in the river and slows transportation. But the problems there will be passed on to the whole country downstream,” she said.

Hydropower projects with a total installed capacity of about 20,000 megawatts (MW) were agreed by the Ministry of Electric Power 1 and China

Power Investment Corporation in 2006, including seven dams in the upstream areas of the Ayeyarwady River.

The biggest of these, the 6000MW Myitsone dam, was suspended by President U Thein Sein in September 2011 following popular opposition. However, work on the other six dams has been halted since fighting broke out between the Kachin Independent Army and the Tatmadaw.

Daw Khon Ja added that the Ayeyarwady is also an important trade route between southwestern China and Myanmar.

U Win Myo Thu, the managing director of Ecodev, an NGO that focuses on environmental issues, said ecological engineering should be applied to the management of rivers.

“We still have huge gaps in our

knowledge concerned with the hydrological dynamic of rivers,” he said. “The problems will be magnified if we try to construct dams and water gates without paying attention to this issue. The best approach is to allow the water to flow naturally,” he said.

Dr Khin Ni Ni Thein, the founder and patron of the Ayeyarwady Basin Research Organisation, said one of the suggestions of the meeting is to request the President’s Office to form a Myanmar Water Resources Commission charged with maintaining the sustainability of the country’s water resources.

She added that the Chindwin, Sittoung and Thanlwin river systems were also important for the nation and must be properly managed.

Waterway commission proposed

U Cho Cho at the Ayeyarwady Basin Research Organisation’s first public meeting at the Royal Rose Restaurant in Bahan township on February 9. Pic: Boothee

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By Win Ko Ko Latt

A HLUTTAW member who spoke of using “bullets” in the Kachin peace process has received a death threat from someone calling himself “Kachin Bin Laden”.

U Hla Swe, Amyotha Hluttaw representative for the Union Solidarity and Development Party, said the letter arrived on February 18. “On the envelope, the sender’s name is given as ‘Kachin Bin Ladin’,” said U Hla Swe, a retired Lieutenant-Colonel, who

passed the letter on to the speakers of the Pyithu and Amyotha hluttaws.

The letter came after U Hla Swe spoke in the hluttaw debate on the Kachin Independence Army, saying: “If we can’t try to build peace by offering our hands, we are supposed to use bullets.” Daw Dwebu, Pyithu Hluttaw representative for Injaryan constituency, denounced his remarks on the Kachin conflict, which were reported in the media.

U Hla Swe is considered outspoken on a wide range of issues, and has criticised government ministries and

others in hluttaw.The threatening letter was dated

February 10, addressed to U Hla Swe, at Nay Pyi Taw hluttaw, and posted from Myitkyina post office, he said. Purporting to be from “a Kachin ethnic”, the letter described U Hla Swe’s words as “unforgivable”, and define him as “a sworn enemy for life”. The sender threatened to kill him.

“The letter isn’t worth losing sleep over,” said U Hla Swe. He added that KIA had only about 20,000 followers, or 2 percent of the state’s population. – Translated by Thiri Min Htun

USDP rep threatened over KIA comments

GENEVA – The UN’s refugee agency last week raised the alarm over the rising number of boat people perishing in the Indian Ocean, including Rohingya Muslims fleeing communal strife in Myanmar.

“It is clear that for people fleeing violence and conflict in their homelands, this has become one of the most dangerous stretches of water in the world,” said UNHCR spokesman Andrej Mahecic.

In 2012, some 13,000 people took to smugglers’ boats in the Bay of Bengal, of

whom 500 died at sea when the vessels broke down or capsized, said Mahecic.

“Already in 2013, several thousand people are believed to have boarded smugglers boats in the Bay of Bengal,” he added.

Among the most recent incidents, around 90 people are believed to have died of dehydration and starvation during a two-month journey, he said.

Around 30 survivors were rescued last weekend by Sri Lanka’s navy off that country’s coast.

“The repeated tragedies at sea demonstrate the need for a coordinated regional response to distress and rescue at sea,” said Mahecic.

D e s c r i b e d b y t h e UN as among the most persecuted minority groups in the world, Myanmar’s Muslim Rohingya have for years trickled abroad to neighbouring Bangladesh and , increas ing ly , t o Muslim-majority Malaysia.

M y a n m a r v i e w s i t s population of roughly 800,000 Rohingya as illegal

Bangladeshi immigrants and denies them citizenship.

Buddhist-Muslim unrest has left at least 180 people dead and more than 110,000 displaced in Rakhine State since June 2012.

“We are advocating with the Myanmar government to urgently address the root causes of the outflow,” said Mahecic.

“There are changes in Myanmar that are happening, and we believe that as part of these changes, this issue will be addressed,” said Mahecic. – AFP

UN refugee agency sounds alarm over boat people

Sri Lankan Navy sailors assist Myanmar nationals off a ship at the southern port of Galle on February 17, following their rescue at sea a day earlier. Pic: AFP/SRI LANKAN NAVY

By Sandar Lwin

LAWYER U Mya Thein is one of the three people nominated by Py i thu Hluttaw Speaker Thura U Shwe Mann to be a member o f the Const i tut iona l T r i b u n a l , w h i c h w i l l comprise nine lawyers or judges. U Mya Thein is also a member of Pyithu Hluttaw Legal Affairs and Special Issues Commission. The Myanmar Times spoke to U Mya Thein on the sidelines of an ASEAN Economic Community work at Traders Hotel, Yangon, on February 15.

Firstly, what is your o p i n i o n a b o u t t h e circumstances that lead to the resignation of the previous Constitutional Tribunal?It would not be appropriate to comment because of my nomination to join the new tribunal. The matter has to be collectively decided by the whole tribunal.

I t i s s a i d t h a t i n i m p l e m e n t i n g a democratic system it is important that the constitution functions effectively.No, it is not like that. The constitution is a document, it does not rule by itself but the people have to obey the constitution. If a person is conscious of what is right or wrong then it can be said that they live in accordance with the law.

But if a person believed a law was unfair it would be difficult for them to obey it, wouldn’t it?Correct. The laws stand on its fairness. If a law was enacted but difficult for some to obey, then they would say that law was unfair. They would make that judgement b a s e d o n t h e i r o w n v i e w s a n d o p i n i o n s . From their perspective, every opinion is correct. In those circumstances, we have to enact a law

which is acceptable to the majority.

One of the popular controversies is that the constitutional name of the country is Myanmar but many people keep using the old name, Burma. What is your opinion?My comment on this issue is that a citizen has the right to freedom of expression. If there is a law that says the people must use a certain usage, then we have to use it. But if there is no such law, then we don’t need to use such usage.

H o w s h o u l d a constitution be enforced if some citizens believe it is unfair?No law will get 100 percent support for the citizens of a country. If a law has majority support, we can say it is a good law. But there will be a minority which opposes the law. People will decide if a law is fair or unfair based on their own perspective.

What is your opinion about the previous C o n s t i t u t i o n a l Tribunal?It acted according to its thinking. It believed that its decisions were correct. Its decision were correct. There are many kinds of thinking.

What do you think of the level of understanding of the Constitution?I n m y o p i n i o n , e v e n w e l a w y e r s d o n o t completely understand the Constitution. That is why there have been disputes over interpretation. Does i t mean this or that? That is why we need to properly understand the Constitution. One of the five principle precepts of Buddhism is to refrain from taking life. But how do we define ‘life’? It can be controversial. That is why we need deep understanding of the Constitution and t h e d e f i n i t i o n o f i t s provisions.

The constitution, the law and the people


By Nuam Bawi

C H I N N a t i o n a l D a y w a s celebrated legally in Yangon on February 20 for the first time since 1988, though the ethnic group had marked the occasion under another name in previous years.

“We are very happy to hold our national day with the true title again, as this is the day which is the most significant for us,” Salai Thian Uk Thang, the secretary of Chin National Party, told The Myanmar Times after the event at Hlaing Mingalar Hall.

“It’s more profound for us that we can celebrate the day as Chin National Day; what we all (ethnic groups) want is a federal state,” Salai Thian Uk Thang said.

He welcomed the decision to allow the event to be celebrated as Chin National Day, saying it showed respect and an acceptance of equality.

In common with other ethnic groups, the Chin had previously marked the day by holding a celebration for university students.

The decision to allow Chin groups throughout the country to celebrate the event on February 20 fo l lowed an agreement between government negotiators and the Chin National Front at talks in the state capital, Hakha, on January 6. The agreement also provided for January 3 to be marked as Chin State Day.

On January 3, 1948, the Chin assembly voted to end feudalism and e l e c t r epresenta t ives democratically.

The first Chin National Day celebration was held at Mindat in

Chin State in 1951 and attended by Prime Minister U Nu.

Salai Thian Uk Thang said a federal state offered the best solution to many of the problems facing ethnic groups.

“A person best knows their own problems; others can only know the problem superficially,” he said.

“A federal system would ensure equality for all groups,” he said,

adding achieving such a goal would require changes to the 2008 Constitution.

Salai Thian Uk Thang said Myanmar would have a brighter future under a federal system.

“Otherwise, I don’t think it will go well,” he said.

The visit by President U Thein Sein to Chin State on February 16 and 17 was appreciated by the Chin people, said Salai Thian Uk Thang.

“His warm greeting to the local people was very different from those in the previous government who would visit and go back as soon as they had delivered a speech,” he said.

The general secretary of the Chin Progressive Party, Zung Hlei Thang, also expressed appreciation for the president’s visit.

“It shows concern … and we warmly welcome that,” said Zung Hlei Thang.

“The president saw for himself the difficulties in our state and we hope that leads to positive changes in the near future,” he said.

Zung Hlei Thang said Chin State was ignored by the previous government, in which there was no Chin at a senior level who could have spoken for interests of the people or the state.

C h i n p a r t i e s w e r e w e l l represented in the hluttaw and this was one of the reasons why more interest was being shown in Chin State, he said.

Chin national day marked in Yangon Members of the Chin ethnic group wearing traditional clothing attend a national day celebration at Hlaing Mingalar Hall in Yangon on February 20. Pic: Ko Taik

WASHINGTON – The United States relaxed sanctions on four banks in Myanmar on February 22, allowing them access to the US financial system as a reward for the country’s political reforms.

The Treasury Department issued a general license to the Myanma Economic Bank, Myanma Investment and Commercial Bank, Asia Green Development Bank and Ayeyarwady Bank.

Asia Green Development is owned by tycoon U Tay Za, who is on the US Treasury Department’s targeted Specially Designated National (SDN) list along with Ayeyarwady Bank owner U Zaw Zaw.

A genera l l i c ense eases restrictions and lets the banks deal with US citizens and companies, but leaves sanctions laws on the books, giving Washington leverage should Myanmar start to backslide on reforms.

“Increased access to Burma’s b a n k i n g s y s t e m f o r o u r companies and non-governmental organisations will help to facilitate Burma’s continued social and economic development,” said David Cohen, the Treasury undersecretary for terrorism and financial intelligence.

The announcement follows a similar move last July, when the US Treasury issued general licenses allowing US companies to invest in and provide financial services to Myanmar, as long as they make detailed disclosures about their dealings.

– Reuters

By Shwe Gu Thitsar

VILLAGERS who say the government confiscated their land to build a hotel complex in Nyaungshwe township, Shan State, have been charged with obstruction following a protest demonstration. If convicted, they face up to six months in prison or a fine.

Seven local residents face charges in Nyaungshwe township, near Taunggyi and the major tourist destination of Inle Lake, where land is being cleared for the hotel zone. They are U Zaw Min, U Thein Tun Oo, Daw Khin Win, U Kyaw Sein, U Aung Myint, U Chway Gal and U Aung Kyaw Myo from Inngyinkon and Kanbe villages. Nyaungshwe township administrator U Soe Win Maung accused them of incitement to impede administrative tasks.

“Nanpan police station filed a lawsuit charging impediment to official duty. We were among those who signed a bond today. It has come to our knowledge today that we were charged,” said U Aung Myint of Kanbe village.

The villagers deny defying the administrator’s order, or objecting to the hotel zone development, but claim the land belonged to them, and demand compensation so they can earn their living, according to farmers from Kanbe and Inngyinkone villages who spoke to The Myanmar Times on February 18.

“Why did they say that the land was not owned by us after awarding compensation for crops? We have all the receipts for making tax payments for the lease grant,” said one of the accused.

On February 14 , v i l lage

administrator U Nyo Tin, as well as Minister for Livestock and Fisheries U Ohn Myint and Hotels and Tourism Minister U Htay Aung met villagers claiming compensation of K40 million an acre for firewood land and K100 million an acre for farmland.

The fisheries minister said he would forward the matter to his superiors, and on February 20 negotiations with the villagers resumed.

“Nyaungshwe township ’ s administrator shouldn’t have filed suit while negotiations were in progress. Now the accused face a fine or six months’ imprisonment. People are aggrieved,” said advocate Daw Nan Thuzar, who represents the seven villagers.

On February 18, more than 100 villagers demonstrated in favour of the seven before the township court.

“We came from Kanbe and Inngyinkone villages. Though all the villagers from both villages staged a demonstration, only seven people were sued. We have

no idea why. Therefore we came here to be sued like them. There are more than 100 of us. We don’t object to the construction of hotel zone but want to regain our land or equivalent replacement,” Daw Sein Myint of Inngyinkone told The Myanmar Times.

“We would be prepared to accept equivalent compensation. But they haven’t made an offer. We didn’t touch our legacy, no matter how difficult life was for us.

“We didn’t sell the land – they acquired it. We are very sad about it. It is difficult to shift from one livelihood to another. Our children’s education and our families’ health totally depend on this land. Now we are confused and depressed. It would be nice if they would arrange for us to move elsewhere and have a livelihood there. We expect a sympathetic hearing from them,” said Daw Sein Myint, whose 50 acres of firewood land and farmland were acquired to make way for the hotel zone.

Farmer Ko Nyi Nyi Zaw, of Kenbe village, said no lawsuit

for obstruction should have been filed as long as compensation negotiations were in progress.

“My 14 acres was among the land acquired. I haven’t yet accepted compensation. I paid the market price for the land, and that should be take into account,” he said.

U Moe of Taunggyi-based Shan State Generation Force, told The Myanmar Times: “What is important is to negotiate in a conciliatory manner. If the farmers’ livelihood is guaranteed, it will pay off. The government should listen to the people’s voice. Negotiation is of prime importance in this regard. Can they live the rest of life with such a paltry amount of K0.3 million? If laws and powers are used instead of negotiation, it will bring adverse effects to the region. If so, it will be detrimental to the way the president is going.”

“Village administrators asked us to accept the compensation offered. In one case, of land jointly owned by brother and sister, a village administrator forced the younger to accept K1.2 million for 4 acres of land without the knowledge of the older. Both owners were frustrated and didn’t want to accept. It shouldn’t have been done like that,” said one resident.

Land was acquired for the hotel zone in the villages of Kanbe, Inngyinkone, Chaungba, Phayarphyu, Watthakai, and Nyaunwun.

“Sixty-five villagers from other villages have accepted crop compensation, but in Kanbe and Inngyikone, there are 18 who haven’t. There are a lot of firewood plantation owners who were not given compensation,” said U Aung Myint of Kanbe village. – Translated by Thit Lwin

Villagers protest the confiscation of their land outside an administrative office in Nyaungshwe township in Shan State on February 20. Pic: Khine Sabei Nyein

Seven charged over hotel zone protest

By Bill O’Toole

THE East-West centre, an education and research institution based in the United States, announced on February 21 that it would be expanding its media exchange programs into Myanmar during the coming year.

The East West centre began its life as a bill proposed by then-Senator

Lyndon Johnson to establish “a meeting place for the intellectuals of the East and the West”, according to a New York Times article from 1959. While originally focusing more on academic research, over the course of its nearly 50-year history the EWC has expanded into a variety of education and media-related fields.

The most immediate program will be a 21-day visit from the centre’s 2013

Jefferson Fellows. The EWC’s longest running program, the Jefferson F e l l o w s h i p p r o g r a m seeks to “enhance public understanding through the news media of cultures, issues and trends in the Asia Pacific region”. Since 1967, the fellowship has sponsored trips for journalists across Asia.

The group of American journalists will not only tour the nation, but assist

in training local reporters, “a first for the program”.

“The 2013 Jefferson Fellowships program will focus on how much change and continuity may be expected from these new national leaders and others in business, government, and civil society.”

Additionally, plans are underway for the Yangon to be the host of next year’s International Media conference. Held once

every two years in various Asian capitals by the EWC, the International Media Conference is a seminar in which journalists and other media experts converge to “discuss important news and media issues in Asia, the Pacific Islands, and the United States”. Like the visit from the Jefferson fellows, the seminar will highlight capacity building in Myanmar’s media.

Speaking in a phone

interview with The Myanmar Times, Yangon chapter president U Thein Lwin reported that most of his work under the EWC banner revolves around organising workshops and scholarships for journalism students of Yangon.

While he does not know any of the specifics of the upcoming visit, he applauded Myanmar media’s continued engagement with the outside world.

East-West Center to expand media exchange program to Myanmar

US eases sanctions on four banks

Commentthe MyanMar tiMes



By Cherry Thein

M O R E t h a n 1 6 0 , 0 0 0 Myanmar refugees living in border areas in Thailand are reportedly set to return home but information about their resettlement in their homeland remains murky, NGOs say.

The Thai and Myanmar governments are working w i t h t h e U N H i g h Commissioner for Refugees in preparing to resettle 3200 refugee households from nine camps in Thailand near the border.

H o u s i n g f o r t h e resettlement near Myawaddy in Kayin State has been under construction since last year but INGO experts said the residential quarters are neither suitable nor safe, especially since some are near minefields.

The Burma Partnership, a exile group formed by members of the 88 Generation student group and others who fled to Thailand for political asylum after 1988, showed a documentary film, “Nothing about Us without Us: Refugees’ Voices About their Return to Burma”, in Yangon last week.

The f i lm highl ights refugees’ feelings about their impending repatriation from camps along the border and features interviews with the UNHCR officials, academics and refugees.

D a w K h i n O h m a r , coordinator of Burma Partnership, said the government should follow the standards and commitments of international conventions and law.

“People in the camps are worried about moving,” she said. “They don’t know when or where they will move to, and whether they will be safe during the relocation or at their new homes,” she said.

“Refugees mostly want to return to their former villages but most of that land has been converted to rubber or palm oil plantations and they will

be expected to live in new areas,” she said.

However, despite their fears, refugees say the government has not provided them with detailed information.

“We’re trying to present the real situation of what is happening on the ground to the respective authorities, the media and international organisations in order to ensure that the proper actions are taking in regard to refugee rights,” Daw Khin Ohmar said.

Many different ethnic groups, including the Karen, Kachin, Mon, Pa-O and Palaung are represented in the camps in Thailand, some of which opened 30 years ago.

And although some refugees leave for third countries every year, the number of people living in the camps increases every year. There are also many more refugees living in unofficial border camps.

Daw Khin Omar said international organisations and donors want to know how the Myanmar government will handle the relocation issue and if it will respect refugee rights.

“How the government responds to this issue is critical. ... We expect the government to listen to the voices of refugees and cooperate with civil society groups to solve the issue,” she said.

Director of Karen Women Empowerment Group, Naw Susana Hla Hla Soe, said more transparency and information sharing is needed.

“Three months ago I attended a meeting in Nay Pyi Taw. My friend, who is a director of a government body, greeted me saying ‘Ma Susana, you’re coming about the return or 160,000 refugees’. I was surprised because my meeting was not about that,” she said.

A government official said it would be “alert” to the issue, Naw Susana Hla Hla Soe said but has failed to provide any detailed information on what it was doing to solve the problem.

“I wonder how we can keep alert about it. We want to know detailed information about when and how they [the refugees] wil l be brought back, where they will be resettled and what we need to do as civil society groups.”

The Burma Partnership’s d o c u m e n t a r y s h o w e d a resettlement map in Myawaddy but the map still has not been distributed to the refugee camps. The map is also available on the group’s website.

The Burma Partnership has posted the documentary on its website and is having it translated to English, Japanese and French.

Director of Karen Women Empowerment, Group Naw Susana Hla Hla Soe, speaks during before the recent screening in Yangon of a documentary about Myanmar refugees living in camps on the Thai border. Pic: Thiri Lu

Uncertainty clouds refugee plan: NGO By Thomas Kean

R E F U G E E S o n t h e M y a n m a r - T h a i l a n d border should only return home voluntarily “and in conditions of safety and dignity”, the United States said as it moved to end its resettlement program.

The program has seen more than 62,000 Myanmar refugees resettled in the US over the past seven years – about 78 percent of those who have been resettled from the border camps during that period.

In late January, David Robinson, the US principal deputy assistant secretary of state in the Bureau of Population, Refugees and Migration, visited the border camps to discuss the end of the resettlement program, the Irrawaddy reported at the time.

The US embassy in Bangkok said the number of “eligible” refugees has been reduced significantly and the program was reaching its “natural conclusion”.

Refugees eligible for the resettlement program were registered with the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees in 2005 and are also registered with the Thai

government.“Refugees still in the camps

are not being asked to make a decision about returning to Burma. Instead, the smaller number of refugees who are eligible for US resettlement are being asked to decide if they still want to pursue this opportunity. Those who do not exercise this option will be able to remain in the camps until safe and voluntary returns to Burma are possible,” said embassy s p o k e s p e r s o n W a l t e r Braunohler.

“The US government believes that refugees should only return home by their own choice and in conditions of safety and dignity. We do not believe those conditions have been achieved in Burma yet.

“The US government is committed to providing assistance to Burmese refugees residing in the camps until durable solutions are found.”

Ms Sally Thompson, executive director of The Border Consortium –formerly known as the Thai-Burma Border Consortium – said the announcement had “limited impact as most people who are eligible for resettlement have either left already or are in the process”.

About 60pc of eligible refugees have taken up the option of resettlement, she said, adding that about 68,500 of the 128,200 people in the camps are registered.In 2012, almost 7000 were resettled, bringing the total number of relocations since 2006 to 80,367.

“ D e p a r t u r e s f o r resettlement have declined each year since they peaked in 2008, mainly because only those registered in 2005 are eligible and most of those interested have already departed,” Ms Thompson said.

“For this reason the United States has announced that it will be closing group resettlement from the camps during 2013, starting with Mae La [camp] in June,” she said, referring to the largest of seven camps along the border.

“[D]epartures are unlikely to increase again but will probably stay around the same level in 2013-14 because there will likely be a final round of applicants before the closure dates.”

She said camp residents who were not eligible for resettlement or do not want to be resettled are still reluctant to consider returning home.

US moves closer to end date for border resettlement program



By Phyo Wai Kyaw

STONE carving workers ordered out of Mandalay’s Kyauksittan area are still refusing to move to a new site at Amarapura.

Mandalay City Development Committee announced the ban on stone carving workshops in April 2012, and Mandalay Mayor U Aung Moune met 43 workshop owners in August and confirmed they would have to leave.

MCDC says it put the ban in place because the workshops are noisy, block traffic and cause air pollution.

However, it did not provide an alternative location for the workshops, and most have rejected moving to a proposed district near a new jade market and pagoda in Amarapura. The proposed site was donated by a businessman, U Soe Naing, who runs gem trading company Aye Aye Khine. The stone carving workshop owners say they question his motives for inviting them to set up there.

Some workshops have remained open at their original location, while others have relocated to narrow workshops off the main road or on construction sites.

“The air pollution has become worse as some workshops are in narrow spaces just 9 feet wide,” said workshop owner Ko Hlaing.

“We can’t find a new place and are just waiting and hoping that MCDC has some alternative plan. I think we are in a bit of a standoff. No one from MCDC has come and taken action,” he said.

Most of the stone carving workshops in the Kyauksittan district of Chan Mya Tharsi township were on 84th Street, between the west gate of Mahamuni Pagoda and the Sagaing-Mandalay feeder road.

“MCDC has not taken any steps to force us to move but we heard they are planning to repair 84th Street,” said Ko Hlaing.

However, an MCDC official, who asked not to be named, said the committee had no plans to relocate the workshops.

“We planned to repair the road but there is no funding in this year’s

budget,” said the official from the Road and Bridge Department.

The confusion over the future of the workshops has diminished their status as a tourist attraction, Ko Hlaing said.

“At the moment you don’t see many foreigners visiting the workshops because they are no longer conveniently located.”

By Khin Su Wai

DIGGING wells for thirsty Mandalay is a booming business, summer and winter alike, industry sources say. Though the city’s development committee c o n t i n u e s t o s u p p l y “government water” to its one million inhabitants, the number of residents wanting their own well is keeping nearly a dozen digging companies busy.

“When I settled in Myothit quarter, we took government water, from a small tube that extended along 64th Street. There was also a big pipeline along 65th Street. At that time, the supply was more than enough and the flow of water was strong enough to fill the cistern above the bathroom without pumping,” said housewife Daw Nu Yin, a long-time Myothit resident.

“Our neighbours still get enough water because they have a small family and they can draw on the big pipeline. But for us the supply is too small, so we decided to have our own well dug,” she said.

Pensioner U Soe said: “Our well is running dry, but we won’t have a new one. Now we’re using government-supplied water, for which we need a small motor.

The work is tiresome and

doesn’t pay well, says Ko Zaw, who set up his own business pumping underground water for households. But at least that cuts down on the competition.

“Digging into the ground takes a lot of manpower and muscle. We have more work in the summer. We take on more people and still have to work every day. The rest of the year, we might have to dig 10 wells,” he said, adding that he had been in the business 16 years.

“A big drill would draw up more water, and faster, but it would cost about K1 million. To dig a well manually costs about K150,000 and takes three days. Whenever we break ground, we always make a devotional offering to the relevant nat (animist spirit) to bring us luck. But once we ran into a layer of stone below ground, and had to find another place to dig,” he said.

Most of the 10 well companies operating employ half a dozen diggers or more.

Mandalay residents use about 24 million gallons of water a day. MCDC is building a new water treatment and pumping station, which will draw water from the Ayeyarwady River, purify it and distribute it throughout the city, adding another 10 million gallons a day.

Tube well diggers in demand as households

in Mandalay go dry

By Aung Ye Thwin

S H O P K E E P E R S a n d traders at Mandalay’s gem and jade market have launched a petition opposing a proposed move to a new site in Amarapura township, and accused a regional minister of being out of touch with working class people.

The petition comes after Mandalay Region Minister for Forestry and Mines U Soe Myint was quoted in a Myanmar journal as saying the market would move to Myinmu village in Amarapura, from its current location in Mahar Aung Myay township.

U Than Htay, a member of the gem market’s social welfare group, said the petition was launched on February 7. Between 30,000 and 50,000 people work in the market and within three days more than 2500 signatures had been collected.

“The minister said that Mahar Aung Myay jade market’s standard is too low, that it looks like a vegetable market. If the minister has visited the Nay Pyi Taw gem emporium before he would know that rough and cut jade is also displayed on the

ground,” U Than Htay said.“The people who are

selling out the front of the Mahar Aung Myay market survive by selling gems of inferior quality. The minister should come and see how the working class people live their life instead of just looking at the high social classes all the time. While we had heard rumours about the market

moving, what the minister said implies that we should expect to have to leave. So this petition is a kind of precaution we are taking to prevent [the move] from happening,” he said.

U Zaw Zaw, vice chairman of the market’s support group, said the proposed site of the next market was far from Mandalay so workers would have to spend too much money on transport.

“Most workers are paid K3000 a day. If we have to move, it will take about one-and-a-half hours each day to reach the new market,” he said.

He said the existing market was a valuable source of employment and revenue and hoped the petition would dissuade members of the regional g o v e r n m e n t f r o m implementing the plan.

“We have not yet received any letters directing us to move. The petition is merely a precaution,” he said.

Land for the proposed new market in Amarapura township has been donated by U Soe Naing of gem trading company Aye Aye Khine, said U Zaw Zaw.

At a recent meeting of the Myanmar Gems and Jewellery Entrepreneurs Association, officials said the new market would have 1100 shops measuring 150 square feet. Businesses would be given a shop free of charge for two years, and the shops would be sold after three years.

The existing market is owned by MCDC and rooms of about 200 square feet can be rented for K100,000 to K200,000 a month. – Translated by Thit Lwin

Gem, jade traders fight market move

A worker carves a stone Buddha image beside 84th Street in the Kyauksittan area in April 2012. Pic: Phyo Wai Kyaw

Stone carvers struggle for new home

A woman looks at jade rings in Mandalay’s jade and gem market in Mahar Aung Myay township. Pic: Aung Ye Thwin

Shifting to proposed site in Amarapura will create difficulties for workers at Mandalay gem, jade market

‘We have not yet received any letters directing us to move. The

petition is merely a precaution.’


By Soe Than Lynn

A LEADING mining entrepreneur has called for sweeping changes to investment rules in the sector for Myanmar companies, admitting that under the present system many companies “have no choice” but to lie to reduce their tax bill.

U Nay Win Tun, the Amyotha Hluttaw representative for Shan State constituency 9, said on February 15 that the policies should “encourage the growth of the private sector and Myanmar entrepreneurs” and reduce the “unfair tax rates” in the mining sector that “lead to losses” for Myanmar businesses.

Speaking during a discussion of the 2013-14 national planning bill, the Pa-O businessman, who owns Ruby Dragon Group of Companies, said international tax regimes for mineral extraction should be studied and taxes assigned for each mineral.

Under the existing “profit-sharing” system in Myanmar, the state takes 40 percent of all revenue in the gems and jade sectors or 30pc in other sectors, along with a 3-5pc tax.

“Because under this system the profit is given to the state without deducting the production costs, entrepreneurs face too many difficulties and have no choice but to … deal with the problem by filing invented tonnage of

minerals [extracted] or a mineral content percentage that is less than reality, he said.

He said Myanmar mining companies have to pay their profit-sharing total for the coming year in advance, which means purchasing

it on the open market.“That’s why the price of gold is

not stable and [producers] meet difficulties in having enough capital to operate. There aren’t a lot of differences in the production costs for gold and other metals

and the profit-sharing ratio is the same. The market price of gold and other metals are different and I think [the profit-sharing proportion] should be set based to the price of the metal.”

He said the state needed to

conduct a proper survey and better define mining zones more clearly. He said investors also faced problems in how land is classified and whether it falls under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Agriculture and Irrigation, Ministry of Environmental Conservation and Forestry or Hydropower Planning Department.

He also said the national planning bill should be amended to include a policy to establish an independent central bank.

U Nay Win Tun said that the Central Bank of Myanmar should be free to set policies on offering mortgages and other low-interest, long-term loans, which he said could “contribute effectively” to national development.

“In developing countries like Myanmar, loans are urgently needed. For this reason, an international-standard mortgage system or lending long-term loans with low interest rates … should be added to the national planning,” he said.

“As we try to make our banking system catch up with international banking standards, the central bank needs to be independent. Central banks in other countries can formulate their policies, so a policy ‘to establish an independent central bank of the state and to let experts run it’ should be put into the financial and taxation” section of the bill, he said.

MP calls for taxation system overhaul

By Shwe Whar Lwin

MUCH has been written about Myanmar’s recent popularity as a tourist destination and the resulting shortage of accommodation, but some travel guides are also complaining that there are not enough venues around the country where foreign visitors can see traditional cultural shows.

“Myanmar does not have many theatres where visitors can be entertained by the country’s traditional culture, except for tiny stages located in some hotels and restaurants,” said Ko Kyaw Min Htike, a French-speaking tour guide.

“For foreign visitors who want to enjoy Myanmar traditional culture such as marionette shows, we need to encourage more theatres to be erected.”

He said that even Mandalay, which is considered the centre of traditional Bamar culture in the country, has only two theatres: Daw Ma Ma Naing’s Puppet Theatre

and Min Thar Theatre. “The other major tourist

destination such as Yangon and Bagan also have only a few theatres. There’s a real need to increase the number of venues where people can be entertained by our traditional dances,” he said, adding that those venues that already exist are too small to accommodate increasing

numbers of visitors. Marionette performer and

theatre owner Daw Ma Ma Naing said the increasing demand for cultural shows will lead to the opening of more theatres.

“At the moment there are

only a few venues, but I think more dance theatres will appear in the future in reaction to the influx of visitors as the country continues to open its doors,” she said.

“But there are many factors to consider in building marionette theatres, including sufficient space, money and the need for enough professionals who are dedicated to marionette theatre and traditional dance.”

Daw Ma Ma Naing said she has travelled to more than 20 countries, where investments have been made in theatres so that people can enjoy their own traditional arts and also see shows by performers visiting from other countries.

“Financial investment is also important because it allows performers who cherish their traditions to continue showcasing their art. But we can’t make huge profits even if there is a lot of capital investment,” she said.

“But I also expect that

new theatres will benefit if visitors who are interested in Myanmar’s marionette shows keep pouring into the country.”

She said her theatre enjoyed a large number of visitors in November, during which her group performed three shows a day.

“Generally, we offer

marionette shows at night because the musicians who accompany the performances are free then. But can also do daytime shows upon request,” she said.

But Ko Win Zaw Oo, a tour guide from the Myanmar Tourism Association, said he doubted whether there was much need for more

theatres.“Some visitors don’t go

to the existing theatres because they can see traditional dances at hotels and restaurants. They think the entrance fees of K8000 to K10,000 charged by the theatres are too expensive,” he said. – Translated by Zar Zar Soe

Stages for cultural shows in short supply in Mandalay

Villagers pan for copper from a mine dump near the Sabal hill copper mine project in Monywa in northern Sagaing Region in September 2012. Pic: AFP

Entrepreneur and Amyotha Hluttaw representative says current system encourages companies to avoid paying tax

‘There’s a real need to increase the number of venues where people can be entertained.’



By Soe Sandar Oo and Htoo Aung

ANGRY farmers in Pyu township, Bago Region, are demanding compensation for land confiscated for government p ro j e c t s , including highways, roads and dams.

“About 70 percent of people in Pyu are farmers. Up to 10,000 acres of land has been confiscated for those projects,” farmer U Khin Zaw told a press conference at Pyu on February 17.

T h e f a r m e r s a r e c o m p l a i n i n g a b o u t development projects such as the Kwin Chaung, Phyu Chaung, Nga Mwe dams, highways, and a bus station and recreation centre at Pyu.

T h e P y u C h a u n g development project started in October 2012 despite opposition from farmers who say they did not receive compensation under the 2012 land law, he said.

“That project is being c a r r i e d o u t b y t h e Department of Irrigation (under the Ministry of Agriculture and Irrigation).

They said they would compensate us and we s igned the agreement because we believed them. We know that the projects are supposed to improve the region, but we want compensation,” said U Tin Soe, of Late Thay village group.

U Hla Shwe, of Min Kan Yoe village, said 4 acres of his land were taken for dam construction. “At that time I was growing matpe beans. The department destroyed my field 10 days before the harvest. I asked them to wait, but they refused to stop,” he said.

U Nyunt Hlaing, USDP representative for Pyu in the Pyithu Hluttaw, said the authorities should have negotiated with the farmers before implementing the project.

“Most of the farmers a r e n a r r o w - m i n d e d and uneducated, so the

authorities have not only to compensate them, but also to comfort them after they lose their land,” he said.

The project is designed to provide water year round so that farmers can grow any crop they like, he said. But the farmers said Pyu receives 11 inches of rain

a year, enough to grow any crops without further aid.

One of the members of the agriculture and fisheries development committee of the hluttaw said: “We wi l l take our case to the department and the Pyidaungsu Hluttaw in detail. I want to inform every farmer that they will get their compensation soon. That has already been decided in hluttaw.”

This would take six to 12 months, he added.

A spokesperson for the Department of Irrigation said farmers had already been informed before the project started, and the department had their signed agreement. The department would accept the decision o f t h e c o m m i t t e e o n compensation.

“We will pay whatever compensation the committee decides. The committee wil l include township authorities, farmers, and agriculture sector people,” he said.

Once completed, the dam project will provide Phyu with 30 megawatts of electricity, and enough water to irrigate 100,000 acres, he added.

An irrigation channel being dug in Bago

Region’s Pyu township last week. Pic: Htoo Aung

Pyu farmers seek compensation for land

By Maria Danmark

REPRESENTATIVES of 50 political parties attended a twp-day seminar examining democratic transitions at Inya Lake Hotel in Yangon last week.

The “role of political parties in democratic transitions” seminar was the first activity of the Myanmar Multiparty Democracy Program, which is being organised by the Netherlands Institute for Multiparty Democracy (NIMD), DIPD and the Nyein Foundation.

Hanne Lund Madsen, a senior adviser from the Danish Institute of Democracy (DIPD) and one of the event’s organisers, said it had been a success.

“It was our hope to get high attendance and it succeeded,” she said. “This confirms that it was truly aninclusive dialogue across party lines. We saw that all parties showed a very keen interest in taking active part in the transition process.

“While very many spoke about the transition being very young, we also heard that many shared recognition that now is a time for dialogue and consensus building and supporting national unity.”

The main aim of the seminar was to create a platform for the political parties to start a dialogue about challenges and opportunities in the democratic transition. The seminar included international experts and practitioners, who shared experiences from countries that have recently undergone political transitions.

Thomas Cormier, a senior program officer in Myanmar for the International Institute for Democracy and Electoral Assistance (IDEA) with more than 20 years of international experience with democratic transition, spoke of the shared ground that political parties in Myanmar have.

“I have been in countries where parties have been much more divided and unwillingly to talk. But here there is consensus that the task is to help and share information on how to organise and create strong parties,” he said.

“The parties cannot alone generate the solutions. I think that there is already an understanding of what they need to do, and that they would like more engagement with people who have gone through these changes,” said Mr Cormier.

A point made repeatedly was that the democratic transition is a process and takes time.

Dr Nyo Nyo Thin, a Yangon Region hluttaw representative, said a presentation from

Dr Ignas Kleden, one of the founding members of the Indonesian Community for Democracy, on Indonesia’s Democracy Schools showed how similar institutions could work in Myanmar.

“We learned about these democracy schools from the panelists in the workshop. Politicians, government officials, academic experts and civil society members attend these schools in Indonesia and about 30 percent of the participants are females,” she said.

“We learned that it is a

very effective method to strengthen the political field in Indonesia and we had a lot of questions for the speakers because if we have these kind of schools in rural areas, that would be very useful for us,” she said.

Ms Lund Madsen said the political parties can use the seminar to forward the democratic transition.

“Myanmar Multi-Party Program will continue the cooperation with the political parties, and we will be responding to some of the areas of need that have been identified in terms of training of the political parties, how to mobilise, how to develop policies and how to be accountable,” she said.

“Secondly we heard that many parties said they will take it back to their own parties for internal discussion on the issues that were raised in the seminar and the cases from South Africa has showed examples of where this road may lead in terms of slowly building multi-party platforms,” she said.

P o l i t i c a l p a r t y representatives also showed interest in how to engage with the media.

“Many said that the they thought the media isn’t neutral, so we might plan a presentation for both the political parties and the media, so they can get an understanding for each others role in the democratic transition,” said Ms Lund Madsen.

The next activity in the Myanmar Multiparty Democracy Program has not been scheduled yet.

Democratic transition seminar attracts 50 political parties

The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) is seeking applications from dynamic and highly motivated Myanmar nationals for the following vacancy with UNDP Yangon. Detailed terms of reference are available at the bulletin board at No. 6, Natmauk Road, Tamwe Township, Yangon.Functional Title : National Project Manager/ Senior Economic StatisticianGrade : SC-9Type of Contract : Service ContractDuration of Assignment : One year with the possible extensionDuty Station : Based in Yangon (Frequently travel to Nay Pyi Taw and survey sites as required)Competencies Required: Demonstrating/safeguarding ethics and integrity; Demonstrates corporate knowledge and sound judgment; self-development, initiative-taking; acting as a team player and facilitating team work; facilitating and encouraging open communication in the team, communicating effectively; creating synergies through self-control; managing conflict; learning and sharing knowledge and encourage the learning of others. Promoting learning and knowledge management/sharing is the responsibility of each staff member; informed and transparent decision making.Qualifications: Master Degree in Applied Statistics, Development Studies, and Applied Economics or other relevant development master degree with at least minimum 2 years experience in survey design, price surveys; Knowledge and experience of project management and 1993/2008 System of National Account is highly desirable. Experience in project management, excellent knowledge and experience in large scale statistical survey design and analysis, experience in prices data collecting methods, expert user of database software such as Access and SPSS and relevant experience with government department and agencies. Fluency in both written and spoken English is a must. Female candidates are encouraged to apply.Candidates should clearly indicate the post title in their application, and should submit them together with complete P-11 Form. Applications should be addressed to Deputy Resident Representative (Operations) Attention: Human Resources Unit, No. 6, Natmauk Road, UNDP, Yangon or apply on line through [email protected]. Only those candidates in whose qualifications and experience the Organization has further interest will be contacted for subsequent interview(s). UNDP is an equal opportunity employer. UNDP regrets its inability to reply individual or attend to telephone queries on the advertised posts.Closing Date: 11 March 2013

Procurement Notice (UNDP-Myanmar)2013/UNDP/PN-007

The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) requires services of an individual for an assignment for the Poverty Environment Initiative Programme.

Assignment National Consultant for PEI ProgrammePeriod of Assignment 144 days (12 days/month spread over 12 months)Duty Station YangonRequirements University Degree in Economics, Environment or Development or

associated field; experience and a good track record in research, coordinating studies, report writing and editing; experience working on natural resources issues in Myanmar

Closing Date 8 March 2013 (Friday)Send application/proposals together with fees expected to Procurement Unit, UNDP, 6 Natmauk Road, Tamwe or by e-mail to [email protected] .Contact [email protected] , tel: 542910-542919, ext. 158 for detailed TOR.

UNITED NATIONS DEVELOPMENT PROGRAMMEVACANCY ANNOUNCEMENT

Empowered lives.Resilient nations.


THE Social Security Board is calling for support from within Myanmar and abroad to upgrade the Yangon Workers’ Hospital so it meets international standards, board president U Yu Lwin Aung said last week.

The 200-bed Yangon Workers’ hospital, one of the three social security hospitals in Myanmar, is about 50 years old. Workers’ hospitals provide services to those who take out insurance with the Social Security Board.

The hospital will be upgraded to meet the needs of workers, said U Yu Lwin Aung, who is also a director general in the Ministry of Labour, Employment and Social Security.

“There is a lot to be done so that workers can rely on this hospital for treatment. We need to install modern medical equipment. To be honest, at the moment it is providing poor medical service,” he said.

“As it is quite old, it would be better to demolish it and build a new one.”

Japan and Canada are interested in investing in the upgrade of hospital, he said.

“We have discussed it with them and are waiting for their reply,” he added. “We also welcome other local and international support.”

Myanmar’s two other workers’ hospitals are in Mandalay and Htantabin in rural Yangon Region. The board also operates 92 social security clinics and more than 600,000 workers from 110 townships have taken out insurance.

The workers’ hospitals provide free medical services and meals to insured workers if they are sick. After the Social Security Act is enacted, more workers will join the social security board, U Yu Lwin Aung said.

– Yamon Phu Thit

SSB calls for help to upgrade hospital

By Kyaw Hsu Mon

THE Briton behind the search for Spitfire Mark XIV aircraft apparently buried after World War II says the search is not over, despite the withdrawal of the major sponsor on February 15.

Hunt leader David Cundall said during a press conference at Parkroyal Hotel on February 19 that the search will continue and he plans to hire two Spanish ground radar technicians to probe for aircraft that he believes are buried at Yangon International Airport.

“We need more technical support to be sure, I hope we can tell you the good news for next a few days whether there will spitfires in buried or not,” Mr Cundall said.

The hunt ’ s main sponsor , Be larus -based on l ine game

portal Wargaming announced on February 15 that i t was withdrawing its support, stating that there were no buried planes.

But Mr Cundall said he remains confident.

“We haven’t finished our survey yet and need more time. We might need another two weeks to complete further surveys at Mingalardon,” Mr Cundall said.

M r C u n d a l l ’ s t e a m i s investigating the possibility that up to 140 Spitfires, believed to be Mark XIV models, could be buried in three locations - 35 at Mingalardon in Yangon, 18 in Myitkina (Kachin State) and six at Meiktila in Mandalay Region.

A spokesperson for Britain’s Ministry of Defense in Britain said there is no evidence to support the claim that Spitfires were buried in Myanmar in 1946.

But Mr Cundall said eyewitness reports prove the planes must be in Myanmar.

“I believe eyewitness reports and I’ve seen the wooden crate in the ground at Myitkyina, Stanley Combe a World War II veteran and eyewitness has been telling me the same story for 15 years about the buried planes.

“And I found my own evidence in the National Archive that 124 Spitfires were buried in Myanmar,” he said.

He added that he has also another eye witness who had seen the wooden crates which could believe spitfire were inside and push into the North Atlantic.

“I do have many stories about many Spitfires being buried in Myanmar, and the UK government has given me their support,” he said.

Wargaming said it would put up to US$1 million for the hunt but has pulled out, and withdrawn its funding. The hunt is continuing with backing from Shwe Taung Por, Myanmar’s Department of Civil Aviation and the DJC (David J Cundall) fund, said U Tun Kyaw, managing director Shwe Taung Por.

“We have further funding to keep continuing for this project, we can’t say more details at this time but we will keep surveying areas at Mingalardon airport,” he said.

The aircraft were said to have been buried, in their original packing crates reinforced with local teak, on the orders of Lord Louis Mountbatten, who was Supreme Allied Commander in Southeast Asia and later Viceroy of India.

Briton David Cundall (centre) speaks during a press conference in Yangon last week at which he said he will continue looking for Spitfires he believes are buried in Myanmar. Pic: Ko Taik

Spitfire hunter turns to ground radar



By Kyaw Hsu Mon

THE recent investigation into corruption at the Ministry of Communications and Information Technology is the first high-profile attempt by U Thein Sein to tackle graft in the government and follow through with rhetoric on “clean government and good governance”.

The case has attracted international headlines and is likely to improve perceptions about the government’s commitment to stemming corruption.

But quietly, a number of other ministries – particularly those at which government staff are regularly in contact with the public – have also been working to take on this controversial issue.

While results so far have been mixed, there are a few signs of improvement – not only in terms of reduced graft but also better service provision. A major complaint in the business community is not officials asking for bribes but the amount of time spent dealing with government departments, and President U Thein Sein touched on this in a speech in August where he emphasised the importance of “public service”.

F o r D a w N y o N y o Thin, a Yangon Region Hluttaw representative, tackling corruption is as much about improving the efficiency of low-ranking officials as catching high-level graft as seen in the t e l e c o m m u n i c a t i o n s investigation.

She says offering financial incentives is an important part of the process, along with senior officials having an accurate understanding of the real situation on the ground.

“Motivating rank-and-file members [of the public service] to change their attitude will require ... offering incentives and other perks,” she said.

However, she said for the most part little had changed, and questioned whether reports of legal action being taken against corrupt officials were having an impact. She said there were widespread issues with private fuel distribution s t a t i o n s , w h i c h s e l l government subsidised fuel, but no action had been taken to resolve the problems.

“Hasn’t the government learnt what is going on at the lower levels? Condoning such behaviour just creates opportunities for greedy businesspeople,” she said.

“Another example is tasks in which officials are dealing with the public, such as making a telephone bill payment. Officials and lower level staff haven’t yet changed,” she said, adding that phone customers have to wait a long time to pay their bill and also make regular payments to repair phone lines.

“In some law courts, cases only proceed after giving money, and it’s a similar situation at some police stations.”

But U Maung Maung Latt, deputy chairman of Yangon City Electricity Supply Board (YESB), told The Myanmar Times that efforts to improve service provision in his office were real.

The board has held training programs for staff, he said, and meter-reading clerks have been set a target of reading about 1000 meters every five days in response to complaints about slow service. Bills that previously

arrived at the end of the month, close to the payment deadline, or sometimes never arrived at all are now being delivered in the middle of the month, U Maung Maung Latt said.

“Now we start to send bills from the 11th day of each month. Payments are received the whole week, including Saturdays and Sundays. We are dealing with all queries raised about meter reading and

payments.”More staff have also

been assigned to accept complaints about power supply problems around the clock, he said.

“If people have complaints,

they can be lodged by phone,” he said.

YESB is also investigating bribery complaints, he said. It has “handled” a total of 300 cases and introduced policies to make bribery more difficult. He declined

to say how many staff had been punished, or what punishments they had faced, but said most cases related to taking money from residential and business customers.

“Now instead of staff receiving guests in their offices they have to meet them in the guest meeting hall. This is an example of one way in which the department is trying to strictly clamp down on bribery,” he said.

Like YESB, the Ministry of Rail Transportation’s Road Transport Administration (RTA), which handles car registration, is a regular target for complaints from the public.

Director U Thaung Lwin acknowledged that RTA staff needed to change and said senior officials had to take the lead and set an example for employees under their control.

“Ours is the most notorious [government body] and come under the most attacks [from the public]. But we are understaffed when compared to our workload so I would like to ask the public to also understand our position,” U Thaung Lwin said.

The rapid increase in car

imports – Mizzima reported recently that almost 130,000 had entered through Myanmar ports in the past 15 months – has prompted a “deluge” of complaints alleging incompetency at the RTA.

“Staff will have to work harder during this transition period and we have already instructed them to be more efficient,” he said.

“If you have losses because of our department you should send a complaint to the government,” he said.

“Now there have been ac t i on taken aga ins t bribery,” he added, declining to give specific details.

O n J a n u a r y 8 , t h e government also formed an anti-corruption committee as “part of efforts for the emergence of a good governance and c lean government after the new government took office”, it said. The committee is chaired by Vice President Dr Sai Mauk Kham and will “fight the corruption and bribery in governmental organisations”.

The government also revealed recently in a report to parliament that almost 17,000 state employees had been disciplined between April 2011 and December 2012 , wi th some 380 workers jailed, more than 4900 dismissed, and 80 forced to return money. The report said 689 police were also punished.

Presidential adviser U

Ko Ko Hlaing said all civil servants should be aware that the reform process in government ministries has begun and the i r performance and conduct is being watched closely.

“Employees have been used to the old system for many years so there may be some mistakes when they are making a fresh start,” he said.

He said he believed most civil servants welcomed the changes but agreed on the need for support and incentives.

“Despite the enthusiasm of government staff for bringing about change, ministries need financial support, technology and ideas to build up capacity among state employees,” he said.

But Daw Khin Swe, a retired civil servant from Mayangone township , said recent improvements in service provision did not go far enough. She said electricity bills have been arriving earlier but department staff rarely read her meter and the amount she had to pay varied significantly from month to month for seemingly no reason.

Similarly, her telephone line regularly stops working and she has to pay staff to come and fix it.

“Sometimes after they fix it the phone number is completely different. And whenever it is broken – and it is not clear how it breaks – I have to pay money for them just to take a look, otherwise they won’t bother to come.”

– Translated by Thit Lwin

Tackling corruption: carrot or stick?Behind the high-profile telecoms investigation, ministries are working to reduce corruption and improve service provision

‘Motivating rank-and-file members of the public service to change their attitude will require offering incentives and perks.’

By Yamon Phu Thit

A SOUTH Korea-based non-government organisation is to provide free healthcare to residents of a remote village. The message they are sending to other healthcare NGOs is: Come and join us.

South Korean medical crews from Korea Paju Angel Seat Movement Group will visit Ayeyarwady Region’s Kyonku village, Ngapudaw township, from February 22 to 27 to provide free medical services and medicines.

Nearly 2000 residents of Kyonku – the native village of President U Thein Sein – and neighbouring villages will benefit from the service, says U Zaw Min Khaing, managing director of Life Umbrella Tours.

U Zaw Min Khaing also comes from Kyonku and is helping to organise the service. He says residents have never before received outside help.

“The group made a pilot visit to the village in December. They observed the health situation of the residents, who have insufficient [access to] health facilities,” he said.

The group of 21 people will provide basic healthcare, dental care and operations to those in need.

Kyonku is a small village of nearly 500 people in a remote corner of the Ayeyarwady delta. Most residents are fishermen and farmers, and the nearest health facilities are in Pathein, U Zaw Min Khaing said.

“We’re organising this trip not only to provide medical services but also to inform other NGOs and donors that there are residents who are being ignored in remote areas. We want them to know this area is reachable, and would welcome their visit,” he said, adding: “We’re organising the documents required for the trip, travel plans, security and meals for the medical crews.”

South Korean health project to target president’s village


By Cherry Thein

A BELL donated by the Light of Buddhadhamma Foundation International of the United States will be inaugurated in Shwedagon Pagoda in March, said an official of the pagoda’s board of the trustees.

“The donor sent stands for the bell as well. With the help of an American technician, we’re now setting up the stands at the west gate, near a stupa donated by India. We plan to open it to the public in early March,” said U Win Kyaing, an official of the board.

The foundation ceremony for the bell shelter was held on February 9.

There are 30 bells on the pagoda site, of which the 2.5-tonne newcomer will be the third biggest, after the 42-tonne Tharyarwady and the Sinkumin bell, which weighs 24 tonnes.

In related news, the board of trustees held a graduation ceremony for the Buddhist literary exam hosted by the board on February 17. They offered certificates on Buddhist literature to six students and six trainers.

Meanwhile the board is

also preparing to host a htamane (glutinous rice) festival on February 24. They plan to accept 36 teams to enter the competition to cook the traditional Myanmar delicacy in huge iron cauldrons, starting at 5pm that day.

Festivals for the cooking of htamane – a mixture of glutinous rice, coconut slices, sesame seeds, peanuts and generous amounts of cooking oil – are held throughout Myanmar every year around the full moon of the lunar month of Tabodwe (February 26 this year) to celebrate and honour the achievement of the monsoon rice harvest.

Besides the contest , the board of trustees will accept orders for htamane at K25,000 per pan weighing 6.4 kilograms (14.4 pounds), of which one quarter should be offered to the pagoda at dawn on the morning after the great cookout – which is the full-moon day itself. The offering will in turn be donated to visiting pilgrims.

Teams who wish to participate in the contest should submit a list of team members to the board of trustees, U Win Kyaing said.

March ceremony for new Shwedagon bell

By Noe Noe Aung and Soe Than Lynn

HLEDAN residents have expressed support for a proposal to better manage street vendors in the area.

P y i t h u H l u t t a w representative for Kamaryut Dr Soe Yin told the hluttaw “undisciplined” vendors who sell their goods by candlelight were a fire risk at Hledan, near one of the city’s busiest junctions.

Hundreds of unofficial vendors set up stalls around the market, many selling street food and groceries.

Many of these vendors were violating the rules, he told the hluttaw. They kept their stalls open all night, operating by candlelight, instead of closing at the authorised time of 11pm, and dispose of their rubbish in the street. Dr Soe Yin said his constituents complained of the mess, the smell, the noise, the congestion and the danger of fire because fire engines could not get through.

Housewife Daw Kay Khine from Pyi Yeikmon housing near Hledan junction said the road known as “50-feet street”, which runs behind Hledan Market, is full of vendors every morning and night.

“They open their shops till late – until about 8pm or 9pm and sometimes even 11pm. For housewives, the market is convenient you have a good selection to

choose from. But sometimes the huge number of vendors is annoying. The section of street where they sell meat is always dirty and smelly. If we hire a taxi in the morning or evening, drivers refuse to go into Hledan’s streets because of the vendors block the traffic,” sid Daw Kay Khine sid.

Resident Daw Tin Tin Myint said the number of vendors had significantly increased over the past five or six years.

“There have always been vendors around Hledan market. But the amount of the vendors has increased significantly. The only time they stop selling is from 12pm to 3pm. If you go to U Tun Lin Road at about 6pm, you will see it is crowded with shops and people. It’s really difficult even to walk,” she said.

But vendors said they

tried to keep the streets as tidy as possible.

“We are allowed to sell our goods from 6am to 11am and 3pm and 11pm. I have been selling fruit here for five years. Vendors have to pay K100 to Yangon City Development Committee [cleaners] every day to clean the rubbish off the street,” said Daw Aye Thein.

“We keep our rubbish in bags and leave them at the roadside when we go home. The cleaners take them and clean the street. That’s usual. But because we are illegal vendors, we have to move to other places when YCDC officials come and check. When they are gone, we come to our places and sell again,” she said.

One vendor said that the vendors on 50-feet street have been working there for many years, while more recent arrivals congregate

on No 3 Street and do not pay any fees.

“I’ve been selling snacks here for nearly one year. I don’t have to pay any money to anyone but we have to run away when YCDC officials come to check. Most of the vendors are selling under the lamppost or with the light from big shops. But when the electricity is off, we sell by candlelight,” she said.

She said vendors who come from Hlaing Tharyar or Shwe Pyi Thar townships close their shops at 8pm, but others sometimes stay open until 11pm.

Meanwhile, a government official said in response to Dr Soe Yin’s query that the roof and ceiling of the market had been repaired in the current financial year at a cost of K5.203 million, and further K10 million had been set aside for a facelift next year. The minister said rules had been established last July to govern where and when the vendors could operate, and make them subject to inspection.

– Translated by Thit Lwin

Residents back changes to Hledan area management

A barbeque vendor at Hledan. Pic: Boothee


By Tim McLaughlin

WHILE ASEAN nations squabble over which sports will be included on the program at this year’s Southeast Asian Games, a n o t h e r c o u n t r y h a s quietly asserted itself as an important player in the regional sporting event.

C h i n a , M y a n m a r ’ s neighbour and a world sporting power, has been involved in nearly all aspects of the preparation for the SEA Games, from stadium construction to the planning of the elaborate ceremonies that will mark the event’s opening and closing.

The first discussions on receiving Chinese assistance to hold the games took place in May 2011, when President U Thein Sein’s travelled to Beijing and met Chinese President Hu Jintao, said Deputy Minister for Sport U Thaung Htike, who is also vice president of the Myanmar Olympic Committee.

Three visits from Chinese sports officials followed and five areas of cooperation were indentified.

It was decided that 28 Chinese coaches would spend a year in Myanmar training athletes, paid for by the Chinese government. Additionally, 176 athletes would be sent for specialised training in China.

China also agreed to donate training equipment, while Chinese experts were to be dispatched to provide technical assistance for game management systems like time keeping. Finally, theatre professionals would be sent to offer guidance to the Ministry of Culture on the event’s opening and closing ceremonies.

The 28 coaches, led by head coach Zhang Jingsheng, arrived on December 28, 2012 to begin their year long stay in country. Less than a month later, on January 12, 24 choreographers, directors and staging experts arrived for a four-day visit.

The technical experts are scheduled to arrive three months before the games open on December 11. U Thaung Htike said a major task for the experts was to introduce a timing system “that is to international s t a n d a r d s ” , s o a n y international records set at the games are definitive.

But even before the arrival of the coaches and experts, China had already managed to get a piece of the SEA Games action.

Engineering and design of the massive sporting complex in Nay Pyi Taw, started three years ago, planning was handled by a Chinese firm, information d i s t r i b u t e d b y M a x Myanmar, which is building the three stadiums, shows.

As the stadiums neared completion in December, U Khin Maung Kywe, director of construction at Max Myanmar, said that Chinese workers were busy finishing the roofing. The stadium that will host many of the SEA Games’ premier events, including football, athletics

and the opening and closing ceremonies, opened to much fanfare last month.

While Chinese state-run news agency Xinhua has covered Beijing’s support for the SEA Games extensively, Myanmar’s state-run media has barely mentioned China’s role. This is no accident: U Thaung Htike expressed concern that Myanmar citizens would be upset if they were aware of the extent on Chinese involvement in what is to be Myanmar’s regional coming-out party, just months before the country takes up its much-coveted role as chair of ASEAN.

He said some of Myanmar’s athletes were being trained by international coaches. Myanmar’s football team is headed by a South Korean, while its boxers are receiving guidance from a coach from Kazakhstan. Meanwhile, a Bulgarian is instructing the

weightlifting team.Neither China’s role nor

concerns about China’s role are new to the SEA Games. At the 25th SEA Games in Laos in 2009, underlying negative feelings towards China were fanned by the proposed location of the National Sports Complex, said Simon Creak, an associate professor at Kyoto University’s Centre for Southeast Asian Studies who has researched and written extensively on the past two SEA Games.

“Chinese finance and developers were enlisted to fund and construct the new National Sports Complex on the outskirts of Vientiane, reputedly worth US$100 million. In return, the developers were granted a concession to develop 1640 hectares of land in the That Luang Marsh in central Vientiane – near the revered That Luang Stupa, the country’s most important Buddhist site and national

symbol,” Mr Creak said.“This project and popular

responses to it exacerbated existing antipathies towards t h e g r o w i n g C h i n e s e presence – and visibility – in Laos,” he said.

“The project was slammed by locals – including, apparently, members of the ruling Lao People’s Revolutionary Party, who had not been consulted – with much of the criticism framed in anti-Chinese terms. Anonymous online critics accused Somsavat Lengsavat, the government minister [and a senior deputy prime minister] of ‘treason’, based on the perception that his Chinese heritage made him unduly favourable to Chinese interests.”

Eventually the complex was moved to a l e ss controversial location.

In Myanmar, the SEA Games represents an opportunity for China to assert its soft power at a time when its political, if not economic, influence in the country appears on the wane. Sport could provide a new and potentially low-risk avenue for the Chinese government and Chinese firms to expand engagement with Nay Pyi Taw.

China has also been on the receiving end of this kind of diplomatic manoeuvring. Eighteen years before it hosted the 2008 Olympics, Beijing hosted the Asian Games.

It was a little more than a year after the Tiananmen Square protests and the fallout from the massacre left China with few friends willing to assist in them to organise what, at that time, was the largest international sporting event China had hosted.

“According to diplomatic sources, many multinational corporations still active in China have withdrawn their support for the games since last year’s crackdown, which left several hundred people dead. These sources said that international outrage over the crackdown has all but eliminated China’s hopes of persuading the International Olympic Committee to hold the Summer Olympics of 2000 in Beijing,” Mark Fineman reported in The Los Angeles Times in January 1990.

B r e a k i n g w i t h t h e international community, South Korea, the host of the

1986 Asian Games and 1988 Olympics, stepped forward to lend its expertise to China, despite the two countries not

having formal diplomatic ties. Two years later, in August of 1992, the once bitter foes normalised relations.

But Myanmar and China already have strong ties and there is some scepticism over Chinese intentions in providing assistance, and potential strings that may be attached to the support.

“There are some countries that have assisted Myanmar and they never expect anything. But I believe this Chinese assistance for the SEA Games was the kind of a give and take with the expectation of returns from Myanmar, rather than a pure goodwill,” said U Khine Maung Yi, the Pyithu Hluttaw representative for Ahlone and a member of the Pyithu Hluttaw Sport, Culture, Literature and Art and People Relations Committee.

“They [China] try to enter Myanmar through any means … but they usually just see business opportunities.”

China tests soft power with SEA Games aid

‘They [China] try to enter

Myanmar through any means …

but they usually just see business opportunities.’

China is quietly playing a key role in the organisation of

the Southeast Asian Games in Myanmar, helping the

hosts by supplying coaches, while Chinese companies are

also contractors in stadium construction projects. Pic: AFP

JOB PROFILEJob Title: Liaison Advisor Grade: -Reports to: Country Director and Program Director / GFTAMReporting to position: NoneBudget Responsibility: NoneChild Protection Level: -Work Place -Nay Pyi TawJob PurposeThe Liaison Advisor has the responsibility to represent Save the Children and its mission, values and programs to the Government structures of Myanmar. Save the Children has programs under Health, Education, Livelihoods, Micro-Finance, Nutrition, child protection. Save the Children works with the Ministries by programming under each Sector Strategic Plan and being actively involved in Technical Working Groups. Save the Children is a co-Principal Recipient of Round 9 Global Fund Grants for HIV/AIDs, Tuberculosis and Malaria.

Representation Represent Save the Children and promoting Save the Children’s mission and agenda •in Ministerial meetings and working groups. Strengthen strategic partnerships through proactive active liaison with the •Government of Myanmar To proactively ensure that relevant Ministerial authorities are kept aware of •necessary information. To liaise with ministries and relevant authorities and respond to queries about Save •the Children Network and negotiate with the Line Ministries (MOH, DOH, DSW, RRD, MOFA, •MOD, IMMIGRATION) for programmatic and sometimes administrative issues Dissemination of government strategies, policies and procedures and the changes to •the SMT and for Ministry of Health to the Global Fund Program Director Provide organizational program information to line ministries as and when needed.• Provide monthly reports to SC SMT on any changing or new government strategies, •on activities. Provide input to SC overall strategic goals.•

RequirementsDemonstrated ability to build and maintain relationships with senior-level •colleagues, particularly interacting productively, proactively, and comfortably with government agencies, INGOs, NGOs private sector groups, and donor organizations. Demonstratedstrategicability,diplomacy,conflictmanagement,writtenandoral•communication, and negotiation skills. Written and oral presentation skills in English is required.• Develop a solid strategy for building partnerships with key Ministries• Act as liaison in particularly with Ministry of Health, but also other Ministries to •share evidence, best practices and engage in dialogue with key stakeholders; Facilitate strong collaboration with SC government counterparts• Master’s degree• Worked with Ministry of Myanmar (preferable MOH) for 7 plus years or in a •position where there was over 50% interaction with the government of Myanmar for a minimum of 10 years. Experience working with an INGO is an asset•

Closing Date: March 11th 2013

TiMESbusinessthe MyanMar tiMes


By Tim McLaughlin

WHILE tea shops remain Myanmar’s venue of choice for leisure, international brewers are hoping that the country’s consumers will soon be reaching for beer mugs instead as they expand their Southeast Asian presence.

I n e a r l y F e b r u a r y , Carlsberg announced a joint venture with Myanmar Golden Star to construct a brewery in Bago: about 80 kilometres (50 miles) outside of Yangon. Carlsberg will be a 51 percent shareholder of the newly formed Myanmar Carlsberg Co Ltd.

According to Myanmar Carlsberg chairman U Thant Zin Tun, primary construction, levelling of the foundation and laying a new road has begun at the site for a 1 million hectrolitre facility. He said full construction will begin within three months, with a scheduled completion date of June or July 2014.

“We expect that the Myanmar beer market will grow strongly in coming years as the economy expands,” said Roy Bagattini, head of Carlsberg Asia.

The planned Myanmar brewery will be Carlsberg’s ninth in the ASEAN region. The company operates two in Laos, one in Cambodia, four in Vietnam and one in Malaysia. The existing facilities have a production capacity of 1.25 billion litres.

The deal ended a rough year for the world’s fourth l a r g e s t b r e w e r y . O n February 18, the group posted 2012 figures that fell short for industry analysts’ expectations, signalling stalled growth that sent stock prices diving.

P e r f o r m a n c e w a s hampered in Western Europe by an unseasonably cold and damp summer, along with challenging consumer habits and economic performance, the company’s financial report said.

In Russia, Carlsberg’s second largest market

where it took full control of leading brewery Baltika in November 2012, increased government restrictions on where beer can be bought and advertising limited growth of sales to 2pc in a flat market.

“The Group delivered a good performance in 2012, despite a challenging Western European beer market,” said Carslberg’s chief executive officer Jorgen Buhl Rasmussen.

“In Asia, we continue to deliver impressive growth and strengthen our market positions,” he said, citing particularly strong volume growth in ASEAN member-states Cambodia, Vietnam, Laos and Malaysia.

He added that in 2013, “We will look to capitalise on the attractive growth opportunities available.”

Carlsberg says the average beer consumption per capita in Myanmar is 4 litres, while the average consumption per capita in Southeast Asia is 30 litres. Mr Rasmussen said that he expects growth in Myanmar to be around 6-7pc over the next few years.

Carlsberg is not the only beer company eyeing M y a n m a r . T h a i B e v became a new player in the opening sector following the announcement on February 18 that TCC Assets , contro l led by Thai billionaire Charoen S i r i v a d h a n a b h a k d i , had bought over 90pc of Singaporean conglomerate Fraser and Neave (F&N).

Through the acquisition of F&N, ThaiBev gained a 55pc stake in Myanmar Brewery, producers of the popular Myanmar Beer and ABC Stout. The other 45pc is owned by Union of Myanmar Economic Holdings Limited (UMEHL), one of two military economic holding companies still under sanctions by the United States.

“F&N’s 55pc stake in Myanmar Brewery offers entry into one of the region’s most intriguing emerging markets, with the potential for massive expansion over the next decade,” said

Michael Schaefer, head of Beverages and Foodservice Research at Euromonitor International.

The takeover came after a six month legal battle that saw ThaiBev manoeuvre both Indonesia-led Overseas Union Enterprise (OUE) and Japanese based Kirin.

Mr Charoen, 69, is worth an es t imated US$6 .2 billion according to Forbes Magazine, making him the third wealthiest citizen in Thailand.

ThaiBev did not respond to inquiries from The Myanmar Times on its plans for Myanmar Breweries or the Myanmar market, saying it had received an unusually high number of media requests in the aftermath of the F&N deal.

But Kelvin Chan, head

of Country Research at Euromonitor International, said that the deal brings production of ThaiBev beers to Myanmar: including the flagship Chang range of beers as well as Archa and Federbrau.

“We can expect ThaiBev to inject their own beer brands into Myanmar Breweries. This will give ThaiBev a head start over competitors that have yet to set a firm foot in Myanmar.”

Beer is still prohibitively expensive for many in Myanmar, where per capita GDP is one of the lowest in the region at just $860, says the Asian Development Bank (ADB). But the bank also believes Myanmar could grow at up to 8pc a year, tripling per capita income by 2030.

Beer companies are hoping this predicted growth will lead to the increased spending power of an expanding middle class of consumers.

“With foreign investments f lowing in, consumers will naturally have more disposable income – which will contribute to beer sales in Myanmar,” said Mr Chan.

Additionally, Myanmar has few of the same restrictions on the hours and locations of beer sales that have hurt sales in main markets.

Though the country does impose advertising restrictions across print and broadcast media for alcoholic beverages, creative solutions – such as Myanmar Beer’s creation of a casual clothing line – have provided

producers with a loophole. Myanmar’s poor border

regulation, however, is still of concern to beer companies. Carlsberg’s U Thant Zin Tun said he was worried over the fiscal impact of untaxed beer brought in f rom neighbouring countries.

Illegal imports are not only bad for brewers, but also for the country’s finances. In August 2012, a government official told The Myanmar Times that Myanmar loses about $27 million a year in taxation to illegal beer imports.

Main entry points include M y a w a d d y - M a e S o t , Kawthoung-Ranong and Tachileik-Mae Sai along the Thai border and Muse-Shweli on the Chinese border in Kachin State.

Carlsberg, ThaiBev eye growing beer market

ThaiBev is looking to introduce its Chang range of beers to Myanmar in a bid to get a headstart over competitors that are yet to invest in the country’s untapped beer market. Pic: AFP

20Businessthe MyanMar tiMesFebruary 25 - March 3, 2013

By Aye Thidar Kyaw

ABOUT 50 de l egates representing large Japanese f i r m s m e t M y a n m a r businesspeople to discuss cooperation in infrastructure development, manufacturing and human resources at a business matching session in Yangon on February 19.

The meeting was held at the Union of Myanmar Federation of Chambers of Commerce and Industry ( U M F C C I ) a n d w a s spearheaded by Kyushu Economic Federation. At the end of the business matching session, officials from both organisations signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to cooperate in business affairs.

Japanese delegates were especially interested in asking what infrastructure projects were priorities, how much is invested in on human resource development and the situation of and small- and medium-sized enterprises (SME).

“The government has reformed its economic policies, as well as the

f o r e i g n i n v e s t m e n t rules and regulations to attract investors [but] we need Japan’s support to industrialise in a short period,” said U Zaw Min Win, UMFCCI vice president.

He added that it’s time

for Myanmar’s business c o m m u n i t y t o m e e t international compatriots to jointly invest in the country’s special economic zones, such as Thilawa (Yangon Region), Kyaukphyu (Rakhine State) and Dawei (Tanintharyi Region) and take advantage of the Foreign Investment Law, which was enacted in late 2012.

K y u s h u E c o n o m i c Federation chairman Mr Shingo Matsuo said the body has already signed MoUs with regional competitors such as China, Indonesia, Thailand and Vietnam. However, he said the federation is interested in being involved in business in Myanmar too.

UMFCCI joint-secretary g e n e r a l U A y e L w i n said Myanmar wants to invite more investors in manufacturing, transport, property development and tourism because the US$2-billion invest in those sectors was dwarfed by the extractives sector (mining, oil and gas and timber), where $19 billion has been invested.

“Our country needs foreign investment in these

sectors, and I think Japan is likely to overtake China as our top foreign investor,” he said.

D i r e c t o r a t e o f Investment and Company Administration figures show Japan’s investment in Myanmar amounted to about $268 million by January 31.

U Aye Lwin also invited Japanese investors to take part in the SME sector, especially in production of food, which accounts for more than 65 percent of the sector.

He added that investors could also build factories outs ide o f the ma jor cities, and suggested that Ayeyarwady, Sagaing and Tanintharyi regions, as well as Kayin State would be ideal, even though they lack quality infrastructure.

U Aye Lwin added that SMEs need assistance.

“We needs support in terms of finance, technology and market reach to boost our manufacturing and SMEs because most of our production is by hand. And I hope that Japan will be able to provide some of that support.”

UMFCCI vice chairman U Zaw Min Win and Kyushu Economic Federation chairman Mr Shingo Matsuo shake hands after signing an MoU in Yangon last week. Pic: Thiri Lu

Japan inks deal with UMFCCI SINGAPORE – A Thai tycoon last week acquired o v e r 9 0 p e r c e n t o f Singapore conglomerate Fraser and Neave (F&N) as its takeover offer closed, breaching a threshold that allows him to delist the company.

TCC Assets, controlled by Thai billionaire Charoen Sirivadhanabhakdi, said in a statement issued late on February 18 that it owned 90.32pc of F&N at the conclusion of its offer, including acceptances by shareholders.

With the 90pc ownership t h r e s h o l d b r e a c h e d , Charoen has the option to delist F&N from the Singapore Exchange, but the statement was silent on the tycoon’s next move.

“We cannot comment on that right now,” a TCC spokeswoman told AFP when asked about plans to delist the company.

TCC Assets had offered to buy F&N shares it does not already own at S$9.55 (US$7.71) apiece, valuing the drinks, property and publishing conglomerate at S$13.75 billion in what the local media described as the biggest takeover in Singapore’s corporate history.

Shareholders had been given until February 18 to accept the offer.

Indonesia-led property f i rm O ver seas Un ion Enterprise (OUE) averted a bidding war last month when it declined to match

the offer by the Thais. OUE is linked to Indonesian tycoon Mochtar Riady.

F&N became a takeover target after it sold off its most prized asset, Tiger Beer maker Asia Pacific Breweries, to Dutch giant Heineken in September last year.

It stil l has lucrative beverages, property and publishing operations.

Charoen’s takeover bid got a major boost early this month when Japanese beverage g iant K i r in decided to sell its entire 15pc stake in F&N to the Thais. Kirin had sided with OUE at the start of the bidding process.

While shareholders were accepting its offer, TCC Assets was also steadily snapping up F&N shares in the open market to increase its stake.

– AFP

Thai tycoon secures over 90 percent of F&N

By Justin Heifetz

ANDRITZ HYDRO, part o f t h e i n t e r n a t i o n a l t e c h n o l o g y g r o u p ANDRITZ, has opened a representative office in Yangon.

“We have followed the dynamic opening and t rans i t i on process in Myanmar over the past few years and are happy to announce they now have a representative office in this dynamic market,” said Josef Ullmer, president o f A N D R I T Z H Y D R O Southeast Asia, during the office’s opening ceremony on February 1.

“This wil l enable us to better analyse the market, its needs and opportunities,” he added.

ANDRITZ HYDRO has been working in Myanmar since 1983. It has been invited by local partners a n d t h e M i n i s t r y o f Electric Power to work more intensively in the country in the future.

“ T h i s i s a h u g e o p p o r t u n i t y . W e a r e working closely with our local partners on [new] projects, which help us combine our international e x p e r t i s e a n d l o c a l

knowledge,” said ANDRITZ HYDRO’s regional director for Indochina, Martin Koubek in a company press release.

ANDRITZ HYDRO’s goal is to work closely with government agencies to identify effective short-t e r m m o d e r n i s a t i o n projects that will meet the increasing energy needs of Myanmar, the company press statement said.

A N D R I T Z H Y D R O supplies electromechanical equipment for hydropower stations. It holds a top position in the growing hydropower plant service, r e f u r b i s h m e n t , a n d upgrade market.

ANDRITZ HYDRO has entered a cooperation with the Ministry for Electric Power, to analyse some exist ing power plants and examine production potential and production sa fety i ssues , Harald Friedl , representative for ANDRITZ HYDRO M y a n m a r , t o l d T h e M y a n m a r T i m e s o n February 21.

T h e p u b l i c l y l i s t e d A N D R I T Z g r o u p i s headquartered in Graz, Austria and has a staff of about 17,700 employees worldwide.

ANDRITZ HYDRO opens representative

office in Yangon

Charoen Sirivadhanabhakdi. Pic: Bloomberg

Trade Mark CauTionden Braven Sealants B.V., a company incorporated in The Netherlands, and having its registered office at Denariusstraat 11, NL-4903 RC Oosterhout, The Netherlands, is the owner and proprietor of the following Trademarks:

DEN BRAVENreg. no. 4/13532/2012 (29.11.2012)

ZWALUWreg. no. 4/13536/2012 (30.11.2012)

reg. no. 4/13531/2012 (3.12.2012)In respect of “Chemicals used in industry and in building construction; unprocessed artificial resins; adhesives used in industry and building construction; sealants; draught excluder profiles; flexible profiles made of plastic” in Classes 01 and 17;

reg. no. 4/13533/2012(29.11.2012)“Chemicals used in industry and in building construction; sealants; silicone sealants draught excluder profiles; flexible profiles made of plastic” in Classes 01 and 17.

Fraudulent or unauthorised use, or actual or colourable imitation of the said Trademarks shall be dealt with according to law.

u Than Maung, AdvocateFor den Braven Sealants B.V.,

C/o kelvin Chia Yangon Ltd#1508-1509, 15th Floor, Sakura Tower, Yangon,

The republic of the union of Myanmardated 25 February 2013 [email protected]

Trade Mark CauTionSankei industry Co., Ltd., a company incorporated in Japan, and having its registered office at 305, Takano, Ritto-cho, Shiga, Japan, is the owner and proprietor of the following Trademark:

Myanmar reg. no. 4/3653/1999 (9 Sept 1999)In respect of “Steering and suspension parts for automobiles, such as tie rod end, rack end, side rod assy, ball joint, center link, inner arm shaft kit, idler arm, pitman arm, bell crank, lower control arm assy, cross rod, drag link; other automobile parts” in Int’l Class 12.Fraudulent or unauthorised use, or actual or colourable imitation of the said Mark shall be dealt with according to law.

u Than Maung, AdvocateFor Sankei industry Co., LtdC/o kelvin Chia Yangon Ltd

# 1508 -1509, Sakura Tower, Kyauktada Tsp.,Yangon, The Republic of the Union of Myanmar

dated 25 February 2013 [email protected]

21 Businessthe MyanMar tiMes February 25 - March 3, 2013

By Aye Thidar Kyaw

CHINA Union Pay and Myanmar Payment Union began offering payment services to foreign nationals on February 23, government officials announced at a press conference at Sedona Hotel on the same day, following a Memorandum of Understanding signed on November 24.

Union Pay is China’s largest banking card service, launched in 2002. It operates under People’s Bank of China and it can be used in 141 countries and regions worldwide, representatives announced at the conference.

Union Pay occupies the most shares in the world

payment card market, officials added.

U Than Nyein, chairman of Myanmar’s Central bank, said that local banks need to upgrade payment systems in anticipation of hosting the Southeast Asian Games in December 2013.

“We have to try to make

our payment systems more secure in the trading sector and services sector,” he said.

MPU is a cooperation of three state-owned banks and 14 private banks. In September 2012, each member bank provided MPU with K20 million (about US$23,000) – a total of K340 million (about

$4 million) – to establish 198 ATMs and 465 points of sales throughout Myanmar, MPU officials announced at the press conference.

“We would like to help strengthen MPU. Myanmar is an important market in Southeast Asia because of its new reforms and spike in tourists since 2013, so we need to keep up a modernised payment system,” said Mr Yang Wen Hui, Southeast Asia’s chief representative for Union Pay.

U Ye Min Oo, secretary of MPU’s Management Committee, said at the press conference that Japanese Credit Bureau will begin payment services in Myanmar this March. MPU and JCB signed an MoU in November 2012.

Union Pay services start

By San Yamin Aung

C L O T H I N G m a k e r s in Yangon say the rising demand for clothing made from imported raw material and cotton, combined with a spike in local retailers, has lead to fiercer market competition throughout February.

“Sales have increased compared to last month because of [the demand for lighter clothing in the hot season], but because there are so many suppliers now, sales have not increased as much as they should,” said U Zaw Win on February 18, executive director of sales at BFC Men’s Fashion wholesale and retail centre in Yangon.

B F C i m p o r t s r a w materials from both Thailand and China. However, the company has started to focus on importing polyester and cotton mostly from China because it is cheaper than Thailand, U Zaw Win said.

However, locally produced clothing is seeing a sales boost amid stronger competition.

The owner of Shwe Wutt San ladies’ wholesale and retail clothing, who asked not to be named, told The Myanmar Times on February 18: “Locally made cotton clothes are selling more than in previous months because it’s hotter, but compared to last year, sales haven’t risen. I think suppliers need to make more of an effort now, because the number of

suppliers who are now selling locally made clothing has increased significantly.”

The owner added that although suppliers offer imported clothes, it does not affect the local clothing market as locally made clothing is good quality while selling at a fair price.

“Locally made clothes have a higher quality than Chinese-made clothes and they are not as expensive as clothes made in Thailand, so locally made clothes have a high demand,” the owner said.

Wholesale prices for young men and women’s clothes produced locally range from K5,000 to K10,000. This February, sales for locally made clothing have increased up to 50 percent, said U Tun Kyaw, managing director of Yangon-based Step Fashion.

“The main problem with clothing that is not locally made is that takes about two months to settle on new fashion designs, and then the supplier must wait for materials for about one month. It cannot be made instantly,” he said.

This year, workers’ salary in the sector has risen. In an average factory, U Tun Kyaw said, there are about 600 workers who are paid between K70,000 and K100,000 a month.

In Myanmar, polyester and full percent cotton yarn are mostly imported from China, one of cotton’s largest world producers.

Clothing sales spikeA woman unpacks clothing at BFC Men’s Fashion in Yangon’s Yuzana Plaza on February 18. Pic: Thiri Lu

Mr Yang Wen Hui, Southeast Asia’s chief representative for China Union Pay, at the Sedona Hotel on February 23. Pic: Thiri Lu

Trade Mark CauTionNOTICE is hereby given that SuMiToMo CHeMiCaL CoMPanY, LiMiTed a joint stock company duly organized under the laws of Japan and having its principal office at 27-1, Shinkawa 2-chome, Chuo-ku, Tokyo, Japan is the Owner and Sole Proprietor of the following trademarks: -

SumiShield(reg: no. iV/12934/2012)

Quaforce(reg: no. iV/12935/2012)

The above two trademarks are in respect of:-“Chemicals for use in the manufacture of insecticides, fungicides and herbicides” – Class: 1“Insecticides, fungicides, herbicides, and preparations for killing weeds and destroying vermin” – Class: 5

Any fraudulent imitation or unauthorized use of the said trademark or other infringements whatsoever will be dealt with according to law.

U Kyi Win Associates for SuMiTioMo CHeMiCaL CoMPanY, LiMiTedP.O. Box No. 26, YangonPhone: 372416 Dated: 25th February, 2013

22Businessthe MyanMar tiMesFebruary 25 - March 3, 2013

Job watch

Opinion by Dr Min Thu Maung

It appears that many advanced economies have solved corporate governance to some extent. A glance at the amount of capital invested in their capital markets would suggest this: after all, investors would not have invested enormous amounts in capital markets if they were to believe that they would not receive anything back. However, this problem is far from resolved. Some Japanese kiretsu (similar to Korean chaebol) have been accused of charging exorbitant fees to subsidiaries to benefit parent companies. Despite regulations and laws that have been put in place to promote transparency and to enhance investor protection, severe conflict of interest still exists between investors and the executives in the US capital markets. For instance, as recently as in early 2012, investors learnt that the then-chief executive officer of Chesapeake Energy (an oil and natural gas company in the US) had lent himself more than US$1 billion of the firm’s money.

While some outright managerial expropriation is easier to detect and can be enforced in courts if the country has strong investor protection laws, some of the cases are more subtle and are harder to detect and enforce. Until recently, executive perks (and compensation) is one such issue. It is not illegal for company executives to travel on corporate jets and have luxurious offices. Nonetheless, this act destroys shareholder wealth. Hewlett Packard is known for awarding its failed and ousted exectives tens of millions of dollars as severance packages. Morgan Stanley and Goldman Sachs are also facing lawsuits from investors for excessive compensation to their executives while the financial industry has been on a downward slope since 2008. While the examples provided have been mainly focused on the US markets, similar instances can be seen in other markets. For instance, the median total remuneration of FTSE100 chief executive officers rose from an average of 1 million pounds to 4.2 million pounds during the

2008-2010 period. The role of external auditors and

independent rating agencies is also dubious. It is useful to recall that the demise of Arthur Anderson (one of the so-called big five accounting firms during its heyday) started when the firm was found guilty of its cover-up in the Enron scandal. Enron was given an investment-grade credit rating until a few days before its bankruptcy, although rating agencies had known the firm’s financial situation for months. The most recent financial crisis that initiated in the US could also be partly blamed on the rating agencies that provided better-than-deserved ratings to mortgage bonds that were mostly junk. Savings, pensions, and countless jobs have been lost while

the executives and the agencies that were mainly responsible have come out unscathed. Therefore, believing that the auditing firms and rating agencies, which Myanmar does not have and most are not even aware of, would monitor the public corporations is optimistic at best.

Now the question arises as to how to solve these governance issues. There is no simple answer to this. If the answer were as simple as noting down a few governance principles and implementing them, corporate scandals would be non-existent. While new principles are implemented, corporations and the financial systems also become more complex, and loopholes emerge. To my knowledge, no best corporate governance

system exists and there seems to be little consensus on what should be done.

However, all is not lost. To start with, strong investor protection laws are needed. Saying that the market will determine price is simply not good enough, especially when markets are inefficient. It is in the best interests of everyone to have necessary financial regulations in place – this is necessary to instil investor confidence before they put up money. Without this, investors have little reason to invest in capital markets. It is noteworthy that markets with weak investor protection laws and inadequate governance systems are also those where little capital flow into capital markets. Afterward, financial regulations are necessary to prevent expropriation and to avoid subsequent meltdowns.

While a few individuals might benefit from this, there is a general loss of social welfare. The investing public also needs to be financially literate. Only when investors are financially literate, can they make informed decisions. History has taught us that investor euphoria and excessive fear create bubbles and market crashes. Finally, and perhaps ironically, corporations also need to be aware that it is in their best interest to be socially responsible and to display strong governance practices. Research has shown that in the long run firms with good corporate governance practices are valued more by investors. After all, it would be a daunting task to convince an ordinary investor to part with his 8pc annual savings account and entrust his money to some strangers with nothing but the hope that he might get it back one day.

This is the conclusion of a two-piece opinion article on corporate governance contributed to The Myanmar Times by Dr Min Thu Maung, an Assistant Professor of Finance at the Department of Finance and Management Science , the University of Saskatchewan, Canada. He received his PhD in Finance from the University of Alberta, Canada.

Why corporate governance is good for all: Part II

By Barry Parker

SYDNEY – BHP Billiton said last week its boss Marius Kloppers will leave in May, just weeks after the head of rival miner Rio Tinto stepped down, with profits plunging on weak commodity prices as Chinese demand abates.

After nearly six years at the helm, South African Kloppers will be replaced by Andrew Mackenzie, the chief executive of non-ferrous business at the world’s biggest miner.

The departure of Kloppers, who led the firm through the global financial crisis, came on the same day BHP reported that first half net profit plunged 58 percent to US$4.2 billion.

Chairman Jac Nasser gave credit to Kloppers for BHP outperforming rivals.

Demands for change surfaced in November as Kloppers failed to finalise big deals – including a bid for Rio Tinto – while he lost his bonus over hefty US shale gas and oil purchases.

However, the succession process had been expected to take a year or two.

Scotland-born Mackenzie, 56, who has spent 30 years working in oil, gas, petrochemicals and minerals, joined BHP Billiton in November 2008.

His appointment was “very aggressive from a timing point-of-view”, said IG Markets strategist Evan Lucas.

“We knew it was coming, but this shows BHP is looking to get on to the front foot with a division it has been keen to invest in over the last few years – petroleum,” he said.

The resignation of Kloppers comes weeks after the head of rival Rio, Tom Albanese, stepped down owing to $14.4 billion in impairment charges, while on February 14 it logged its first annual loss in 18 years.

And in October Ang lo American’s US-born chief executive Cynthia Carroll said she would step down as it was hit by weak performance as well as slumping platinum output

following strike action by workers in South Africa, which resulted in dozens of deaths.

Anglo American on February 15 posted an annual net loss of $1.49 billion – its first in a decade – after taking a $4.6 billion hit on the value of an iron-ore project in Brazil and platinum assets.

A fall in global commodity prices has hit industry giants hard, with key market China in 2012 seeing its worst year of economic growth since 1999, although recent figures point to a strong pick-up in the Asian giant this year.

Despite the fall in commodity prices, BHP said it had fared

better than others.On February 20 it reported

underlying earnings of $9.8 billion for the July-December 2012 period, ahead of a consensus of $9.5 billion.

Excluding one-off writedowns, earnings dropped 43 percent to $5.7 billion, in line with analyst forecasts.

The result for the six months to December 31 saw revenues fall 14 percent to $32 billion, BHP said in a statement, declaring an interim dividend of 57 cents a share, up four percent from a year ago.

BHP described the results as “solid” in a challenging half-year for the global resources industry but remained guarded about the future.

“ S u b s t a n t i a l l y l o w e r commodity prices and resilient producer currencies, such as the Australian dollar and the Chilean peso, weighed on margins and profitability,” it said.

“Measured economic stimulus has helped stabilise China’s economy,” the statement said.

“In the short term, we expect a general improvement in the global economy to support demand and prices for a number of commodities. However, the addition of low cost supply in many markets is expected to dampen the pricing upside.”

The Australian government has denied the mining boom is over but analysts say commodity prices appear to have peaked.

– AFP

BHP Billiton chief executive officer Marius Kloppers (left) listens as company chairman Jac Nasser announces Kloppers is retiring and will be replaced by Andrew Mackenzie, in Sydney on February 20. Pic: AFP

BHP Billiton chief steps down

‘It is in the best interests of everyone to have necessary financial

regulations in place – this is necessary to instil investor confidence before they put

up money.’

International Management Group

VACANCY ANNOUNCEMENTThe International Management Group is an international organization with an office established in Yangon and is seeking the following positions for EU-funded capacity building project. (a) Trade OfficerThe Trade Officer will support the implementation of activities of IMG in the areas of trade policy, customs, standards, food safety and regional integration matters. The Officer will have at least completed a degree in economics, trade, international relations or development and show an interest in trade and private sector development. He/she will demonstrate strong research skills, excellent computer skills, and a strong command of the English and Myanmar languages.(b) Migration OfficerThe Migration Officer will liaise with government line ministries, facilitate the implementation of IMG’S migration project activities, assist to refine project design, strategy and timelines. The Officer will have at least completed a university degree in economics, law, social sciences. A good understanding of and interest on migration issues. Knowledge of ASEAN’s economic and social integration agenda. He/she will demonstrate strong research skills, excellent computer skills, and a strong command of the English and Myanmar languages.(c) Secretary/AssistantThe position requires at least 3 years professional in similar position. Experience in arranging workshops, missions and administration essential. Experience in liaison with authorities preferred. Proficiency in spoken and written English is required as well as excellent computer skills (Microsoft Package, internet and email). More detailed information can be found on IMG website at www.img-int.org. Applicants should submit a CV and cover letter to the IMG Office at : Room 506, 5th Floor, Royal Yaw Min Gyi Condominium, No.52, Yaw Min Gyi Road, Dagon, Yangon, or via email to [email protected] date: March 8th, 2013.

AusAID - 5 VacanciesThe Australian Agency for International De-velopment (AusAID) is the Australian Govern-ment’s agency responsible for managing Aus-tralia’s overseas aid program. AusAID is seeking to recruit candidates for the following vacancies at its office at the Austra-lian Embassy in Yangon:• Executive Assistant• Human Resources Officer• Program Manager – Governance, Liveli-

hoods, & Humanitarian• Senior Program Manager – Governance,

Livelihoods, & Humanitarian• Senior Policy Advisor – EducationThe duty statements can be obtained from the Australian Embassy, 88 Strand Road, Yangon, Myanmar, or at the Australian Embassy web-site: http://www.burma.embassy.gov.au/rang/aboutus.htmlClosing date for the applications will be 4PM (Yangon time) 28 February 2013.

The Asian Development Bank is inviting qualified candidates to apply for the following national consultant position:Position: Transport Specialist Places of Assignment: Yangon/Nay Pyi TawDuration: from April 2013 for 8 months with a possibility for extensionEOI Submission Deadline: 28 February 2013Interested and qualified candidates are requested to visit https://uxdmz06.adb.org/OA_HTML/OA.jsp?OAFunc=XXCRS_CSRN_PROFILE_PAGE&selNo=106326 for further details, and for submitting expressions of interest (EOIs). Terms of reference of this assignment are also available at http://themimu.info/jobs/index.php. Inquiries may be sent to: [email protected].

23 Businessthe MyanMar tiMes February 25 - March 3, 2013

By Myat May Zin

ALTHOUGH the Yangon C i t y D e v e l o p m e n t Committee set a deadline to move Myanmar’s biggest c a r t r a d i n g m a r k e t , Hantharwady, to former vegetable market Thiri Mingalar on February 20, employees and residents at Hantharwady are not going easily.

On February 20, more

t h a n 5 0 0 p r o t e s t o r s d e m o n s t r a t e d f o r their rights to stay at Hantharwady while U Kyaw Min, head of YCDC’s financial department, met leaders of the automobile t r a d i n g a s s o c i a t i o n

spearheading the protest.H a n t h a r w a d y

automobile trading square has been earmarked by the city for building a d e p a r t m e n t s t o r e , residential apartments, automobile showrooms and a public car park, U Kyaw Min said. YCDC has sold Hantharwady to Shwe Taung Development Company, owned by U Aik Htun, for the project after it won a tender released in March 2012.

Vendors and residents at Hantharwady responded b y e s t a b l i s h i n g t h e Hantharwady automobile trading association’s anti-relocation committee.

“We can on ly a l l ow automobiles to move from Hantharwady to Thiri Minga lar . We cannot allow food and tea shops, or automobi le service centres to move to Thiri Mingalar because of space limitations. If automobile trading is successful at Thiri Mingalar, YCDC will allow it permanently,” said U Kyaw Min during his meeting with leaders o f the ant i - re locat ion committee.

“Thiri Mingalar market comprises 210,700 acres. If more automobile service centres are needed there, we will arrange for them. So far, there are some inconveniences at [Thiri

Mingalar] and there is no water supply yet. We will improve all needs step by step,” he said.

The chairman of the anti-relocation committee, U Min Ko Oo, said: “None of us want to move to another place. The general secretary of YCDC, U Kyaw Soe, promised us that we would be able to trade in this square through the construction. We have three squares for automobile trading. When YCDC does construction on the main square, we can move to other squares t e m p o r a r i l y . N o w , they haven’t kept their promises.”

“We would like to know what YCDC’s plan is for long-term management. Now they are preparing t h i s p r o j e c t w i t h o u t transparency. They didn’t tell us any details of the plan. If they decide to move all automobiles to a new place, how long will we be allowed to stay there? When will we have to move again? How will other shops, brokers, and service workers be managed?” U Min Ko Oo added.

M o r e t h a n 3 5 0 0 brokers, 3000 dealers, 200 automobile service workers, 100 small shops and 22 restaurants are now occupying Hantharwady square, the anti-relocation

committee said.H a n t h a r w a d y

automobile trading square was officially founded on January 29, 1997 with permission from YCDC.

“Eighteen years ago, this place was only a cemetery. We arrived here in 2001 and we lived with the graves. YCDC cleaned out the graves and allowed automobile trade here. I opened my tea shop and restaurant 15 years ago. In 2001, we paid K35,000 a month for rent and now it ’s K90,000 a month. We’ve been looking for new spaces since we have to move, but we haven’t found anything. It is not fair that we were not considered in this new project,” said U Nay Min Thit, owner of

Super Matta Restaurant in Hantharwady.

U Aung Myat, a broker at Hantharwady, said: “My customers always come here to find me when they can’t contact me on the phone. They know where I am. The space at the new place is not sufficient for automobiles. The main area at Hantharwady a u t o m o b i l e s q u a r e includes trucks and six-wheel automobiles, while Thiri Mingalar’s market is not big enough for larger automobiles.”

H a n t h a r w a d y ’ s automob i l e square i s comprised of four parts, each split into 50 acres.

“Thiri Mingalar market is a private location owned by Auto Farmer Company.

The company’s official said it will take a K1000 commission for keeping each car in a lot a day. We have to pay only a K200 commiss i on [a t Hantharwady] and K300 if we keep our car in a lot overnight,” U Aung Myat added.

The chairman of Myanma Central Association for Automobile Purchase and Selling (Yangon), said: “More than 200 people have already signed an anti-relocation petition and we will send letters to President U Thein Sein, Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, Thura U Shwe Mann, the mayor and YCDC. We will do our best until [YCDC] discusses the needs of those at Hantharwady.”

Auto traders ask YCDC for transparencyMembers of the Hantharwady anti-relocation commitee demonstrate in Hantharwady Square during a 500-wide protest on February 20. Pic: Aung Htay Hlaing

Construction is set to begin at Myanmar’s biggest car trading market, but occupants find the city’s solution inadequate

‘None of us want to move to

another place. The general secretary

of YCDC... promised us that we would be able to trade in this square through

the construction.’

The United Nations Office for Project Services (UNOPS) in Myanmar is inviting qualified candidates to ap-ply for the following positions:Sr. Title and level Duty Station Position Deadline1. Office Helper (LICA 1A) Yangon National 28-Feb-20132. Compound Helper (LICA 1A) Yangon National 28-Feb-20133. Contracts Assistant (MNCH ATM) (LICA3) Yangon National 28-Feb-20134. Contracts Assistant (Database) (LICA3) Yangon National 28-Feb-2013For details please visit UNOPS website https://gprs.unops.org/pages/ viewvacancy/VAListing.aspx and click on the post you are interested in applying for. All applications must be made through UNOPS E-recruitment system. For title No. 1 and 2, applicants are kindly requested to submit by manual application (paper) to HR Unit, UNOPS Myanmar at 3rd Floor, Inya Lake Hotel, Yangon.

ProPertythe MyanMar tiMes


IN Myanmar, as in many developing countries, historic buildings are often seen as roadblocks i n t h e f a c e o f progress. Too often,

it is simply seen as easier and more profitable to just knock them down and erect new, modern structures in their place.

But people and countries invariably come to regret such an approach, quickly realising that their historic buildings are a treasure, a unique and integral part of their culture that, once lost, can never be retrieved.

Colliers International, a worldwide property services company that provides research, consultancy and agency services for companies in Myanmar, has a department that provides advice on how owners, developers and governments can make the most out of the country ’s historic buildings. The service, Col l iers International Destination Consulting, is based in London but works all over the world. There are two categories of heritage buildings the firm works on: heritage townscapes and heritage landmarks.

Heritage townscapes are groups of historic structures. The individual structures might not be particularly important in their own right, but collectively they constitute an important histor ica l or cul tural legacy.

One Colliers survey, involving 35,000 people living across the UK, asked what people thought of different cities and towns as tourist destinations. The survey found that there was a high correlation between the number of historic buildings in towns and cities and their popularity as visitor destinations.

Simply put, the areas with the most historic buildings are usually the places that are most popular to visit, and are often also the most popular places to live and work.

But historic buildings do not constitute the only attraction these towns have to offer – the ways that historic buildings tend to be used is also critically important.

Historic parts of towns and cities in many parts of the world are vastly different from other sections of towns and cities. They tend to have more hospitality destinations – restaurants and bars tend to l ike historic buildings because they have more character than modern buildings and present a natural edge over the competition. For the same reasons, historic areas usually have unique shops not found in other parts of town. Businesses in creative industries tend to like the qualities of older buildings and older neighbourhoods because they prov ide inspiration to designers and artists.

While it is easy to lose these historic areas during a development boom, it is almost always regretted. The Colliers Destination Consulting team recently worked in the English port city of Plymouth, famous as the location where Sir

Francis Drake sighted the Spanish armada while playing bowls. The most historic part of Plymouth, around the old harbour, or the Barbican, became a slum by the first half of the 20th century, and by the end of World War II plans were in place to replace much of the area with new housing. Fortunately, a group of locals realised what Portsmouth would lose with the redevelopment of this historic harbour area, and set up an organisation to take ownership of the buildings and restore them. The Barbican is now full of restaurants, shops, offices and up-market houses. It is the most popular tourist attraction in the city and amongst the most popular places in the city to live and work. Quite simply, people like it because it is different.

But Plymouth isn’t alone, and there are plenty of similar cases around the world.

A case in point: Carnaby Street, London The London-based company Shaftesbury is one of the best developers of historic buildings in the world. The company’s approach is to buy property in sections of central London and turn them into urban villages. Shaftesbury’s projects on Carnaby Street in London’s West End have received particular praise. The hub of the “Swinging 60s” in London, it is an area of relatively small, historic buildings.

Shaftesbury works by establishing a vision for the type of occupier they want before creating a name and brand for the area and improving the local area, working in partnership with local authorities. As a result of the company’s work Carnaby is again one of the most popular and commercially successful parts of London.

Heritage landmarks, the second category that Colliers deals with, are structures that make an impact in their own right and come in many different forms, from temples to factory buildings.

Another success story: Gladstone Conservatory, LiverpoolThe Gladstone Conservatory is a Victorian palm house located in a historic park sandwiched between the stadiums of Liverpool’s two famous football clubs: Liverpool FC and Everton FC. The building, built 150 years ago, was derelict, and Liverpool FC wanted it to be restored, and Colliers recommended that it be turned into a function centre.

The iron and glass top section was taken away, restored and replaced, while a lower building was built. The centre contains a restaurant, kitchens and other services. The glass house on top is a large, open space for functions with all the services underneath. The venue is extremely successful, and is used by Liverpool FC for entertaining guests before matches.

T h e r e a r e t h r e e considerations to make when deciding on the best

1

2

3

use for an historic building, beginning with the physical nature of the building and its surroundings, which determine the possibilities. Colliers starts by making

an assessment of which elements of the building are important from a heritage perspective and must be retained, and which are less important and can be

changed. Colliers is assessing

options for a historic Baptist chapel built in the 18th century. Located in a prosperous town, it has

several possible futures. However, an important decision will have to be made about whether the wooden benches are essential to the character of the building; the

Making the most of a city’s historic buildings

ProPerty25the MyanMar tiMes February 25 - March 3, 2013

Making the most of a city’s historic buildingsor historically interesting and can be made into tourist attractions, museums or other cultural centres, these rarely have significant commercial value on their own.

Region success: the National Art Gallery, Singapore

The Singapore City Hall and adjacent Supreme Court have witnessed many important events in the country’s history. Admiral Mountbatten accepted the surrender of the Japanese forces in the City Hall on September 12, 1945, and the building housed the office of Lee Kuan Yew when he became the first pr ime min i s ter . C i ty Hall continued to house government departments until it was vacated in 2005. The Supreme Court Building, built between 1930 and 1939, served the judiciary system of Singapore. Its façade was designed to match City Hall, with classical architecture a n d c o r r e s p o n d i n g Corinthian columns. Both buildings were listed as national monuments in 1992, and are now being remodelled to a design by the French architectural firm, Studio Milou, to form a National Art Gallery, which is scheduled to open in 2015. It is designed to strengthen Singapore’s role as a regional and international hub for visual arts through the display, promotion, research and study of Southeast Asian and Singapore art. At 60,000 square metres it will become one of the largest visual arts venues in the region.

However, the estimated cost of the project is US$430 million, which shows how costly restorations can be. Colliers International c o n s u l t an t s p r o v id e d master planning, concept development and business planning advice for the project.

Historic buildings often, however, also have intrinsic commercial value if restored properly.

Businesses often like to occupy older buildings because of their character, and historic buildings are useful as features for modern developments. Upmarket businesses in particular tend to occupy historic buildings where possible because their exclusive nature lends itself well to their brand. The luxury shops in Cabot Circus, a new shopping centre in the English city of Bristol, overlook Quakers Friars, a chapel that is one of Bristol’s most historic buildings and has been developed as an upmarket restaurant. The same approach has been taken in the northern city of Leeds, where the smartest designer fashion shops are in restored Victorian Arcade,

now called the Victoria Quarter. It is known as the Knightsbridge of the North.

London’s famous Regent Street is a classic example o f h i s t o r i c b u i l d i n g development. The street was not performing well in the 1980s, so its owners, the Crown Estate, revamped the entire road, envisioning an upmarket locale occupied by f lagship s tores o f international brands. Most of the buildings have been redeveloped to create modern interiors behind the historic facades. The combination of historic architecture and modern interiors makes the area extremely attractive to international firms looking to move into London. The street now boasts the flagship stores of several international brands, in addit ion to i ts i conic traditional tenants, such as Liberty Department Store and Hamleys toy shop.

Heritage plays a significant role in this.

Regent Street and nearby Bond Street have become two of the most sought after shopping streets in the world because they have been able to put modern retail space behind historic façades.

The lesson here is that great things can be done with Myanmar’s historic buildings. Finding a way to do it, rather than losing the buildings, will have an important impact on the success of the country as a place to invest, visit and live.

Closer to home, what does the future hold for Yangon’s Secretariat building?

The Secretariat building in Yangon is a perfect example of a heritage landmark. It is central to the country’s history, occupies prime land in the middle of the downtown area and its architecture is a unique example of a bygone era. There have been calls to turn it into a heritage attraction and/or a museum, similar to what has been done in Singapore, and that is one option that should be examined.

The building is very large, however, and using it entirely or predominantly for that purpose and for other cultural purposes would be expensive – both to build and to operate. It may be that a mix of uses, some commercial and some non-commercial, would be a better use of the building. The building is well-suited to hosting a hotel, conference facilities, residential facilities and offices. If properly planned, these can all comfortably sit alongside a museum and cultural icon that respects the history of the building.

This opinion article was contributed by Colliers International Destination Consulting.

1. A couple walk hand-in-hand through one of the two arcades that form a part of the Victoria Quarter in Leeds, often described as one of the UK's most beautiful shopping centres.

2. The interior of Gladstone Conservatory in Liverpool before it was renovated. 3. Gladstone Conservatory before its renovation. 4. High-end retailers have flocked to renovated heritage buildings on London’s Carnaby Street, making it a

commercial success. 5. The renovated Gladstone Conservatory is used by English Premier League football side Liverpool FC to host

special guests before home games. Pics: SUPPLIED/ Colliers International Destination Consulting

4

5

benches will determine the possible uses for site.

A second consideration is what use the building can serve in future. An historic building might be perfect as

a hotel in one place because there is a market for it but in many locations there’s no need for such lodgings and another use must be found.

A third consideration

concerns funding and project management: where the money will come from and who can take charge of completing the work. This is challenging because

historic buildings are often quite expensive to restore and require significant maintenance.

And while some old buildings are architecturally

Advertorial

A HOME CONTEST THAT’S ALL ABOUT STYLE is jointly organized by The Myanmar Times, NatRay Co.,Ltd and the Association of Myanmar Interior Design (AMID).

The week the Myanmar Times’ property issue editor, Htar Htar Khin interview with Ma Khin Swe Myint who is the owner of “New Excellent Condo” apartment located at Pantra Street, Dagon Township. She planned to compete in Best Beautiful Home Contest for her home.

Q. I want to know how you happen to take part in Best Beautiful Home Contest sponsored by the MyanmarTimes Journal?

A. Furnitures in this apartment a r e a l l f r o m L o r e n z o furniture shop. I am quite familiar with Ma Malar from Lorenzo shop. One day when Ma May Myant Kyaw from Lorenzo came to set up curtains. She advise me to take part in this contest for my house.

Q. As you are planning to compete for your home in the contest, how confident

are you about it?A. T h i s “ N e w E x c e l l e n t

Condo Housing” war was constructed by Naing Group. This place is unique with every location facility. We bought this apartment since it started constructing. So we could prepare everything like the width of every room with the support from Naing Group. It was not supervised by any interior designer but by myself. So all the design is at my will.

Q. So do you think which advantages you can get with a house with your own design?

A. Designing one’s own home w o u l d b e m u c h m o r e convenient, I think. We used all the raw materials we like. So I think it will be better. My husband is interested in home decoration too. The design will also be quite simple.

By consulting with Naing

Group’s personnels we receded the bedroom’s wall a little backward to make way for the living room’s width. In arranging the furnitures, we priorietized in making more space. We used doors and ceremic-walls that match well with the room itself. The doors are bought from Home Plus, the ceremic-walls are from Roma and for the kitchen cabinet we used outlee kitchen.

Q. How do you define a perfect home?

A. I think a perfect home must be clean, attractive to live in and bring about peacefulness for the dwellers.

Q. How would you benefit b y c o m p e t e i n t h e “Best Beautiful Home” Contest?

A. I can share my views for a home with the readers and get views of the other participants.

Interior design and decoration are not the same thing. Interior design involves hardware like ceremic walls and marble - floor. Interior decoration involves choice of colour for pillows and where to put up a painting in a room.

From our work expericnes, we notice that customers who come to us ordered for both interior design and decorations. They never do it alone. Rarely, very few customers come to us to order for a home with classical design with modern decoration. That is not the acceptable design and decoration. They don’t match well.Q. What should we do to

improve our interior design industry?

A. To improve our interior design industry in Myanmar, we should allow to import only good quality products. B e f o r e , s o m e c h i n e s e imported materials are such a law quality that a ceremic

plate may wears off within a year. It is not good for the designer and the customers. Designers are to get blamed for the products longevity. So I want to recommend you to use only the good quality products. But recently, many more good quality products are imported to Myanmar. So we can now choose which one to use. It is good for the designer’s and the customers. The more products to choose from the better the design will be. If we don’t have enough materials to choose from, the design will be some what unsatisfactory. Moreover it will be convenient for the designer also. But now there has already been many more interior design and decoration products imported to Myanmar. So it can be said that we can choose whatever we like at some level.

A home must be clean as well as attractive to live in

Interview with U Zaw Moe, Pricipal Architect

of Spime Architect

teChnologythe MyanMar tiMes


WASHINGTON – NASA, universities and private groups in the US are working on asteroid warning systems that can detect objects from space like the one that struck Russia on February 15 with a blinding flash and mighty boom.

But the US space agency reiterated that events like the one in the Urals, which shattered windows and injured about 1000 people, are rare.

“We would expect an event of this magnitude to occur once every 100 years on average,” said Paul Chodas of NASA’s Near-Earth Object Program Office at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California.

NASA estimates that before entering the Earth’s atmosphere above Russia, the asteroid measured 17 metres (56 feet) in diameter and weighed 10 tons.

Fragments of the asteroid caused an explosion equivalent to 500,000 tons of TNT when they hit.

The same day, a 45-metre in diameter asteroid known as 2012 14 whizzed harmlessly past the Earth, its passage overshadowed by the bright arc drawn across the Russian sky that same day.

But had it hit ground, 2012 DA14 could have obliterated a large city.

Ten years ago, NASA would not have been able to detect 2012 DA14, Lindsey Johnson, near earth object (NEO) project manager at NASA said recently.

But he said NASA has made progress on learning how to detect small asteroids.

Johnson said there are many of these objects flying around near the Earth – say, half a million – and they are hard to track because they are small.

In line with a goal set by Congress in 1998, NASA has already discovered and catalogued about 95 percent of the asteroids of a kilometre or more in diameter that are in the Earth’s orbit around the sun and capable of causing mega-destruction.

The NEO program at NASA detects

and tracks Earth-approaching asteroids and comets with land-based and orbiting telescopes. Scientists estimate their mass and orbit to gauge whether they pose a danger.

With this system, the Arecibo radio telescope in Puerto Rico can observe with great sensitivity a third of the night sky and detect big asteroids.

All asteroid observations made anywhere in the world must be passed on to the Minor Planet Center, which is financed by NASA and run by the Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory for the Paris-based International Astronomical Union.

But in times of tight budgets like these, NASA is trying to develop other systems specifically capable of tracking small objects in space.

It is financing to the tune of US$5 million a project at the University of Hawaii called Atlas, or Asteroid Terrestrial-Impact Alert System.

Researchers say ATLAS, which will

monitor the entire visible sky every night, will be able to detect objects 45 metres (yards) in diameter a week before they hit our planet.

For those measuring 150 metres (yards) in diameter, the system – which could be operational in late 2015 – will give a three week heads up. The system has enough sensitivity to detect a match flame in New York City when viewed from San Francisco, for instance.

But NASA’s efforts are deemed insufficient by former agency astronauts and scientists who last year launched a project to finance, build and launch the first private space telescope to track asteroids.

The foundation called B612 is trying to raise $450 million to build and deploy a space telescope that would be called Sentinel and placed in orbit around the sun, at a distance of 273 million kilometres from the Earth to detect most objects that are otherwise not visible. – AFP

Asteroid detection today and tomorrowMajor facilities and plans

Arecibo radio telescope305m-diameter antenna,part of NASA’s programto track, estimate massand orbit of large asteroids

Collects data on asteroidobservations from around theworld, including from amateurs

Nearly 1,000 people were injuredon February 15 when a 10-tonmeteor exploded and triggered ashockwave that shattered windows

Chelyabinsk

NASA-financed project to monitor visible skyScheduled for operation by 2015Detection capability:- 45m objects with one week advance warning- 150m objects with three weeks warning

Minor Planet Center

Project launched in 2012 by former NASA personnelfor space telescope to orbit sun at 273 million km from Earth and detect objects currently not visible

Sentinel

Asteroid Terrestrial-Impact Alert System(ATLAS)

Hawaii

Puerto Rico

Cambridge,MASSACHUSETTS

Russian blast a fillip forasteroid warning systems

SYDNEY – The quest for rare earths vital to some of modern life’s most indispensable technologies may see mining robots jet to the stars within decades, a world-f irst conference in Australia was told on February 20.

Yttrium, Lanthanum and the other 15 minerals which make up the group of elements known as rare earths are crucial to everything from wind turbines and hybrid cars to cruise missiles and the ubiquitous smartphone.

As technology advances so too does demand for the elements which, although relatively abundant, require laborious and waste-intensive processing to be freed from surrounding rock.

They are a precious commodity – so precious scientists are looking beyond Earth’s reaches for new supplies, with moon and asteroid mining becoming a lucrative prospect , s a i d researchers and tech f i r m s gathered in Sydney for the world’s first formal “Off-Earth Mining Forum”.

“It’s about joining the dots,” said conference convenor Andrew Dempster from the Australian Centre for Space Engineering. “I think we’ve got to the point where people are saying ‘yeah, I think we can do this’.”

Rene Fradet, of NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory – the organisation behind the current Mars Curiosity Rover mission – believes space mining will be possible and economical within 20-30 years.

But Dempster thinks it could be quicker than that.

“Most of the technology already exists, but there needs to be a business case. It depends on making that business case.”

Like the challenges, the costs are substantial:

to transport a kilogram to the moon is US$100,000, and none of the cutting-edge completely automated technology is cheap.

One delegate, NASA affiliate Berok Khoshnevis from the University of Southern California, has developed technology to make waterless sulphur-based cement from the loose rubble on Mars and Earth’s moon.

Matthew Dunbabin, from the Australia’s government’s science agency CSIRO, has done a large-scale simulation of using mining machinery in space and told delegates the main issue was electrical power.

Few space miss ions had attempted significant excavations – the sum total of all NASA’s Apollo missions had been 382 kilograms and the Mars program had netted in the order of “grams”,

Dunbabin said.

S p a c e d r i l l i n g also throws u p t h e quest ion: who owns the moon’s

resources?SingTel Optus lawyer

Donna Lawler likened it to the law of the high seas, where energy firms can mine in international waters without claiming territorial ownership.

More than 100 countries including the US have ratified the 1967 Outer Space Treaty, which holds signatory nations responsible for activities in space but it is as yet untested.

It may be soon if space mining joins the moon landings in the annals of science fiction-turned-reality.

“There’s nothing really science fiction about any of this. In many ways a lot of the technology already exists, I don’t think we really have to invent much science,” said Dempster. – AFP

Rare earths searchto head for space,mining forum told

‘There’s nothing really science fiction about any of this.’

Trade Mark CauTionNOTICE is hereby given that HuGo BoSS Trade Mark Management GmbH & Co. kG, of Dieselstrasse 12, Metzingen 72555, Germany is the Owner and Sole Proprietor of the following trademark: -

(reg: no. iV/1311/2010)in respect of : - “Soaps, perfumeries, essential oils, preparations for body and beauty care hair lotions, dentifrices” – International Class: 3

Any fraudulent imitation or unauthorized use of the said trademark or other infringements whatsoever will be dealt with according to law.

U Kyi Win Associatesfor HuGo BoSS Trade Mark Management GmbH & Co., kGP.O. Box No. 26, Yangon. Phone: 372416 Dated: 25th February, 2013

TiMESWORLDthe MyanMar tiMes


DAMASCUS – A huge car bomb near the headquarters of Syria’s ruling party last week killed nearly 60 people and caused widespread destruction in the deadliest attack to hit Damascus since the civil war erupted.

The bombing on February 21, which both the regime and its opponents blamed on “terrorists”, rocked the city centre and sent thick smoke scudding across the skyline, shortly before a mortar bomb attack on a nearby military headquarters.

The attacks came as opposition umbrella group the National Coalition met in Cairo to discuss proposals for conditional talks with President Bashar al-Assad’s regime.

State television showed images of charred bodies next to mangled vehicles and said children were among those wounded in the blast, near a school in the central district of Mazraa.

Police said the bomb exploded at 16 November Square near the Baath party’s head offices.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said the blast killed at least 59 people, including 15 soldiers, and

wounded more than 200.That would make it the

deadliest such attack in Damascus since bombers first targeted the city about a year ago. On May 10, 2012, 55 were killed in twin suicide bombings in the capital.

State media said the bombing killed 53 people.

There was no immediate claim of responsibility.

The office of UN Secretary General Bank Ki-Moon said he condemned the bombings. “The secretary general renews his call on all parties to end the violence and respect international humanitarian law,” said a spokesman.

The blast was followed by a mortar bomb attack on a military headquarters, state television and the Observatory reported, without giving information on casualties.

The Observatory also said two other car bombs exploded next to security posts in the north Damascus district of Barzeh, with five soldiers among eight people killed.

The attacks came two days after two mortar rounds exploded near Tishreen presidential palace in Damascus, increasingly targeted in the past year

by suicide bombings, some claimed by the jihadist Al-Nusra Front.

They added urgency to the National Coalition meeting in Cairo, where discussions focused on an offer by the opposition group’s chief to talk

directly with the regime.Coalition chief Ahmed Moaz

al-Khatib has offered to talk to regime officials without “blood on their hands” – an initiative welcomed by the Arab League and the United States as well as Assad allies

Iran and Russia.But the Syrian National

Council, a key part of the Coalition, has rejected any talks until Assad quits, and the regime says it will negotiate only without preconditions. – AFP

W A S H I N G T O N – U S President Barack Obama pledged with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe on February 22 to take a firm line on a defiant North Korea but the two sides also tried to calm rising tensions between Tokyo and China.

Abe carefully avoided disagreements with Obama after previous Japanese governments’ rifts and declared: “The alliance

between Japan and the United States is back now. It’s completely back.”

Obama promised to work closely with the Abe, whose Liberal Democratic Party swept back into power in December on a platform that includes boosting defence spending and aggressively stimulating a sluggish economy.

“You can rest assured that you will have a strong partner in the United

States throughout your tenure,” Obama told Abe in the Oval Office, calling the alliance with Japan “the central foundation” for US policy in Asia.

Obama said the two leaders discussed “our c o n c e r n s a b o u t t h e p r o v o c a t i v e a c t i o n s that have been taken b y N o r t h K o r e a a n d our de terminat i on to take strong actions in response.”

North Korea carried out its third nuclear test on February 12.

Abe sa id he agreed with Obama’s position of not offering “rewards” to Pyongyang and on the need for a new UN Security Council resolution.

But the White House appeared to want to lower the temperature between Japan and China, which has increasingly sent vessels near Japanese-

controlled islands known as the Senkaku in Japanese and Diaoyu in Chinese.

Abe said the US-Japan alliance was “a stabilising factor” and – in remarks he nudged his translator to read out – added: “We have always been dealing with the Senkaku issue in a calm manner and we will continue to do so.”

The Japanese leader later spoke in stronger terms in an address at a

think tank. While saying he wanted to cooperate with China’s incoming leader Xi Jinping, Abe insisted that the islands belonged to Japan.

“ W e s i m p l y c a n n o t tolerate any challenge now and in the future. No nation should make any miscalculation about the firmness of our resolve,” Abe said at the Center for Strategic and International Studies. – AFP

Obama, Abe firm on North Korea, measured on China

An injured victim is carried from the scene of the car bomb in Damascus on February 21. Pic: AFP/Syrian Arab News Agency

Dozens die in massive Damascus blast

HYDERABAD – India hunted on February 22 for perpetrators of twin bomb attacks that killed 14 people and wounded dozens more near a cinema and a bus stand in a busy neighbourhood of Hyderabad the previous evening.

Militant Islamists told police interrogators last year of plans for a possible attack in the Hyderabad ne ighbourhood where the blast occurred, S.N. Shrivastava, a Delhi police commissioner, told AFP.

The bombings, the first in India since 2011, hit a mainly Hindu district in Hyderabad, a hub of India’s computing industry which has a large Muslim population.

Witnesses said one of the devices went off about 15 metres (yards) from the cinema as movie-goers were leaving at the end of a show.

The attacks came as India was on alert after the recent hanging of a separatist unleashed protests in the Muslim-majority region of Kashmir. – AFP

Bombs kill 14in Hyderabad

CAIRO – Egyptian Presi-dent Mohamed Morsi on February 21 called parlia-mentary elections starting on April 27, said a presi-dential decree.

MADRID – Spanish au-thorities in the Canary Islands have seized a ton of hamburgers destined for eateries in the popular tourist destination, an offi-cial said on February 21. • Related report, P. 32.

UNITED NATIONS – The United Nations on Febru-ary 21 formally rejected a multi-billion-dollar dam-ages claim for a cholera epidemic in Haiti that has killed about 8000 people and has been widely blamed on UN peacekeepers.

BEIJING – China web-users on February 21 ridi-culed plans to ban barbe-cues in big cities to help reduce pollution. “I wonder when the government will start banning breaking wind,” said a user of Weibo, China’s version of Twitter. – AFP

Briefly

PRETORIA – South African Paralympic icon Oscar Pistorius was freed on bail on February 22, pending a high-profile trial for killing his girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp.

Pretor ia magistrate Desmond Nair ruled the “Blade Runner” was not a flight risk and did not pose a danger to society after an emotionally charged four-day bail hearing that transfixed South Africa and the world.

“I come to the conclusion that the accused has made a case to be released on bail,” Nair said to cries of “yes!” from Pistorius’s supporters in court.

It was a first victory in what is expected to be a long legal battle with the state, which accuses Pistorius, 26, of premeditated murder.

Bai l was set at one million rand (US$112,770) and Pistorius will have to surrender his passport, firearms and report to Pretoria’s Brooklyn police between 7:00 am and 1:00 pm on Monday and Friday.

As the two-hour ruling was read, Pistorius stood in the dock weeping and quivering as his family looked on, riven with tension.

Pistorius will stay at a relative’s house rather than return to the Pretoria estate where Steenkamp was killed.

“He doesn’t want to go back to the house,” said his lawyer Barry Roux.

His arrest on February 14 shocked the world and gripped South Africa, where he is still considered a national hero after becoming the first double amputee to compete in the Olympics.

Pistorius spent more than a week at a Pretoria police station charged with the premeditated Valentine’s Day killing of Steenkamp, 29 , a mode l and law graduate.

If found guilty he faces a possible life sentence.

He denies the charge, s a y i n g t h a t h e s h o t Steenkamp repeatedly through a locked bathroom door having mistaken her for a burglar.

Despite the victory, Pistorius may have a tough task to avoid a jail sentence.

Hours before the bail decision, Roux appeared to admit the star sprinter could be convicted on lesser charges of homicide.

That charge , which entails negligence rather than murderous intent, could carry a sentence of up to 15 years in prison.

The prosecution will be worried that its evidence was so easily picked apart by the defence.

Serious doubt was cast on the work of the detective who investigated the crime scene, Hilton Botha, who admitted under oath he may have contaminated the crime scene and appeared to undermine a neighbour’s accounts of an argument between Pistorius and Steenkamp before she died.

He has since been sacked after it emerged he faces seven attempted murder charges for having opened fire on a minibus in 2011.

– AFP

Weeping Pistorius freed on bail Trade Mark CauTionunilever Plc., a Company incorporated in England, of Port Sunlight, Wirral, Merseyside, CH62 4ZD, United Kingdom, is the Owner of the following Trade Marks:-

BrYLCreeMreg. no. 605/1983

in respect of “int’l Class 3: Toilet preparations for the hair, medicated and non-medicated; hair dressings”.

reg. no. 612/ 1983in respect of “int’l Class 3: Perfumery; toiletry preparations for the hair, medicated and non-medicated, hair dressings”.

Fraudulent imitation or unauthorised use of the said Trade Marks will be dealt with according to law.

Win Mu Tin, M.A., H.G.P., D.B.Lfor unilever Plc.P. O. Box 60, YangonE-mail: [email protected]: 25 February 2013

worldthe MyanMar tiMes


NAIROBI – Last year’s record shrinkage of Arctic sea ice and a spell of catastrophic droughts, floods and storms highlight the risk to the planet from climate change, the UN Environment Program (UNEP) said on February 18.

In 2012, summer sea ice in the Arctic covered a record low area of 3.4 million square kilometres (1.31 million square miles), which was 18 percent below the previous recorded minimum in 2007, and 50pc below the average in the 1980s and 1990s, UNEP said in an annual review of the world’s environment

coinciding with ministerial level talks in Nairobi.

Land ice in Greenland also showed signs of melting and permafrost in high latitudes was in retreat, it said.

“Changing environmental conditions in the Arctic, often considered a bellwether for global climate change, have been an issue of concern for some time, but as of yet this awareness has not translated into urgent action,” UNEP executive director Achim Steiner said.

He referred to a rush to extract the oil and gas in the Arctic’s seabed as the ice retreats and cautioned

that the outcome could be even greater emissions of greenhouse gases.

“What we are seeing is that the melting of ice is prompting a rush for exactly the fossil-fuel resources that fuelled the melt in the first place,” said Steiner.

“The rush to exploit these vast untapped reserves has consequences that must be carefully thought through by countries everywhere, given the global impacts and issues at stake.”

The report -- the UNEP 2013 Year Book -- also noted a string of weather disasters, of which the United States

bore the brunt, including its worst drought in decades as well as Hurricane Sandy, which flooded parts of New York City and the coastline of New Jersey.

“Extreme weather events... in 2012 draw attention to the need to prepare for and make efforts to prevent heavy losses” as a result of climate change, it said.

It quoted previously published estimates that Sandy will cost the insurance business between $20 and $25 billion, and building new flood defences to protect the city could cost $20 billion or more. – AFP

Shrinking sea ice highlightsclimate change threat: UN

NAIROBI – The green beans are fresh, the broccoli crunchy and the baby corn sweet, but having failed “cosmetic” tests of international supermarkets, the Kenyan-grown food was hurled out as waste.

But on February 19, vegetables considered too ugly for shop-shelves were served at a special dinner for some 100 global environment ministers and top-level delegations to highlight the “scandal” of large scale but entirely unnecessary food wastage.

T h e m e a l , h e l d a t the Nairobi-based UN Environmental Program, was organised by British anti-food waste campaigner Tristram Stuart, who collected 1600 kilograms of unwanted fruit

and vegetables in Kenya for the meal.

UNEP is campaigning to slash the current 1.3 billion tonnes of food lost or wasted each year as part of efforts to ease the environmental impact on an “already straining global food system”.

Kenya is a key market for export of fresh vegetables to European supermarkets, especially to Britain.

But similar displays of the “disproportionate power of supermarkets” over farmers producing for export are

found worldwide, Stuart said, showing images of rotting bananas in Ecuador, oranges in Florida or tomatoes in Tenerife.

“It is a huge scandal, but also a huge opportunity” for change, said Stuart, who said he was “genuinely shocked and distressed” at the amount

of vegetables in Kenya rejected by supermarkets and thrown away.

Stuart criticised the “particularly pernicious practices” of international supermarkets with overly s t r i c t s t a n d a r d s f o r

appearance that will bin beans for being too long or not green enough.

“Supermarkets do not need to enforce such strict cosmetic standards,” he said.

Supermarkets also cancel orders after vegetables had been harvested, added Stuart.

While some unwanted produce is sold on the local market or donated, so much is rejected that much is left to rot or fed to livestock, prompting resentment amongst Kenyan farmers hit with the lost revenue, he added.

One farmer supplying a British supermarket chain said he wasted up to 40 tonnes of vegetables every week, or 40pc of his production, Stuart said. – AFP

‘Supermarkets do not need to enforce such strict cosmetic standards.’

Food waste a ‘scandal’, says activistWASHINGTON – So much for Mars being “The Red Planet.”

NASA said on February 20 that its Curiosity rover has scooped up a sample from the interior of a Martian rock and found that the powdery soil just beneath the planet’s rust-colored exterior is actually a light grey colour.

“Something that the science team is really excited about, is the fact that the tailings from our drill operation aren’t the typical rusty orange-red that we associate with just about everything on Mars,” said Joel Hurowitz, sampling system scientist for Curiosity.

“When things turn orange, it’s because there’s a rusting process of some kind going on that oxidizes the iron in the rock,” he told a press conference at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) in Pasadena, California.

NASA said earlier this month that Curiosity had succeeded in obtaining the first sample collected from the interior of a rock on another planet, which the JPL scientists hailed as an “historic” breakthrough.

NASA scientists said the

hue of the Martian rock, once the sample is subjected to further study, may reveal some intriguing clues about the history and composition of Earth’s closest neighbour.

“It may preserve some indication of what iron was doing in these samples without the effect of some later oxidative process that would have rusted the rocks into the orange colour that is typical of Mars,” Hurowitz said.

The powder was released after the drill on Curiosity’s robotic arm bored a 6.4-centimetre (2.5-inch) hole into flat Martian bedrock on February 8.

The rover team plans to have Curiosity sieve the sample and analyse it with instruments aboard the rover.

The sample was taken from a fine-grained, sedimentary rock selected for the first sample drilling because it may hold evidence of the presence of water long ago.

The US$2 .5 b i l l i on Curiosity mission, is set to last at least two years and prepare for a possible future manned mission.

– AFP

An image released by NASA on February 20 showing the powdered rock sample collected by the Mars rover, Curiosity. Pic: AFP/NASA

‘Red Planet’ soil probeyields grey dirt sample

Trade Mark CauTionNOTICE is hereby given that Kumiai ChemiCal industry Co., ltd., a joint stock company duly organized under the laws of Japan, Manufacturers and Merchants of 4-26, Ikenohata 1-chome, Taito-ku, Tokyo, Japan is the Owner and Sole Proprietor of the following trademarks: -

NOMINEE(reg: no. iV/5754/2003)

(reg: no. iV/5755/2003)The above two trademarks are in respect of:-“Herbicides, fungicides, insecticides, miticides, nematicides” Int’l Class: 5

Any fraudulent imitation or unauthorized use of the said trademarks or other infringements whatsoever will be dealt with according to law.

U Kyi Win Associates for Kumiai ChemiCal industry Co., ltd.P.O. Box No. 26, Yangon.Phone: 372416 Dated: 25th February, 2013

world31the MyanMar tiMes February 25 - March 3, 2013

A French armoured vehicle near Bourem, northern Mali, on February 17. Mali’s Prime Minister, Diango Cissoko, said after meeting French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius in Paris on February 19 that major military operations against Islamist rebels were winding down. France plans to begin bringing its 4000 troops home next month, handing over to the Malian army and 6000 troops sent by other African countries. Pic: AFP

NAIROBI – The number of African elephants killed by poachers in 2012 will most likely exceed the 25,000 illegally killed the previous year, the head of UN wildlife trade regulator CITES said on February 19.

“Right across the range of the African elephant, in 2011 25,000 elephants were illegally killed, and based upon our analysis done so far, 2012 looks like the situation deteriorated rather than improved,” said CITES secretary general John Scanlon.

The 25,000 killed in 2011

included 17,000 elephants recorded by CITES in some 40 percent of the animals’ range, with the rest an extrapolation.

Iain Douglas-Hamilton, the founder of Save the Elephants, said that while in terms of sheer numbers killed the 1970s and 1980s was worse, the situation today was a “very big crisis” and in “other ways it is much worse.” Today “there are fewer elephants and demand for ivory seems to be even higher”, Douglas-Hamilton told reporters, on the sidelines of a meeting

at the United Nations Environment Program (UNEP) headquarters in Nairobi.

David Higgins, chief of Interpol’s environmental crime division, said that poaching involved organised crime gangs, in addition to noting links to insurgent groups in Afr i ca and possible links to terrorist organisations.

“Unless we break these criminal networks, it will continue,” Higgins said.

Africa has seen a sharp rise in the illegal trade in wildlife products such as

ivory and rhino horn.Poaching has spiked

recently in Africa, with whole herds of elephants massacred for their ivory.

One kilogram (about two pounds) of ivory is estimated to be worth about US$2000 on the Asian black market.

Rhino horn can sell for as much as $80,000 a kilo, and poachers have killed some 2000 rhinos in the past two years, a huge number considering only about 25,000 rhinos remain.

The illegal ivory trade is mostly fuelled by demand in Asia and the Middle East,

where elephant tusks and rhinoceros horns are used to make ornaments and in traditional medicine.

Trade in elephant ivory, with rare exceptions, has been outlawed since 1989 after elephant populations in Africa dwindled from millions in the mid-20th century to some 600,000 by the end of the 1980s.

Africa is home to an estimated 472,000 elephants, whose survival is threatened by poaching as well as a rising human population that is causing habitat loss.

– AFP

Elephant toll to exceed 25,000 in 2012: CITES

WASHINGTON – A US senator has said an estimated 4700 people, including some civilians, have been killed in the contentious bombing raids of America’s secretive drone war, a news website reported on February 20.

It was the first time a lawmaker or any government representative had referred to a total number of fatalities in the drone strikes, which have been condemned by rights groups as extrajudicial assassinations.

The toll from hundreds of drone-launched missile strikes against suspected al-Qaeda militants in Pakistan, Yemen and elsewhere has

remained a mystery, as US officials refuse to publicly discuss any details of the covert campaign.

But Republican Senator Lindsey Graham, a staunch supporter of the drone raids, openly cited a number that exceeds some independent estimates of the death toll.

“We’ve kil led 4700,” Graham was quoted as saying by the Easley Patch, a website covering the small town of Easley in South Carolina.

“Somet imes you hi t innocent people, and I hate that, but we’re at war, and we’ve taken out some very senior members of al-Qaeda,”

Graham told the Easley Rotary Club.

The figure cited by Graham matches the high end of a tally by the London-based Bureau of Investigative Journalism. It says the number killed in drone strikes in Pakistan, Yemen and Somalia is between 3072 and 4756.

The Washington-based New America Foundation says there have been 350 US drone strikes since 2004, most of them during Barack Obama’s presidency. The foundation estimates the death toll at between 1963 and 3293, with 261 to 305 civilians killed.

– AFP

Drones toll 4700, says US senator

CHARLOTTESVILLE, Virginia – Secretary of State John Kerry warned on February 19 against “senseless” spending cuts to the State Department, saying the United States needed robust engagement to remain an “exceptional” nation.

In his first speech since taking over as the top US diplomat, the former longtime senator focused on the latest fiscal showdown between the White House and Congress and the threat of massive automatic spending cuts on March 1.

Declaring that “deploying diplomats today is much cheaper than deploying troops tomorrow,” Kerry said: “In many ways the

greatest chal lenge to America’s foreign policy today is in the hands not of diplomats, but of policymakers in Congress.”

“My credibil ity as a diplomat working to help other countries create order is strongest when America at last puts its own fiscal house in order – and that has to be now,” Kerry said at the University of Virginia.

“Think about it: It’s hard to tell the leadership of any number of countries that they have to resolve their economic issues if we don’t resolve our own,” he said.

“Let’s reach a responsible agreement that prevents these senseless cuts. Let’s not lose this opportunity because of politics,” he

said.Kerry delivered the speech

four days before he heads off on his first foreign trip as secretary of state, visiting nine countries in Europe and the Middle East.

“Foreign assistance is not a giveaway. It is not charity. It is an investment in a strong America and free world,” he said.

“The State Department’s conflict stabilisation budget is about $60 million a year now. That’s how much the movie The Avengers took in on a single Sunday last May,” Kerry said.

“The difference is, the folks that we have on the ground doing this job are actually real superheroes,” he said. – AFP

Kerry warns against spending cuts

BEIJING – Chinese state media stepped up the war of words on February 21 over allegations of sophisticated cyberattacks on US firms, branding the accusations a “commercial stunt” and accusing Washington of ulterior motives.

A m e r i c a n i n t e r n e t security firm Mandiant said earlier last week that a Chinese military cyberspy unit is targeting US and other foreign firms and organisations with hacking attacks.

But an editorial in the state-run China Daily said: “One cannot help but ask the real purpose of such a hullabaloo.”

“With the US economic r e c o v e r y dragging its f e e t , i t i s reasonable t o t h i n k that some in Washington may want to make China a scapegoat s o t h a t public attention is diverted away from the country’s economic woes,” it added.

T h e n e w s p a p e r quoted defence ministry spokesman Geng Yansheng as saying the People’s L iberat i on Army had itself been the target of a “significant number” of cyberattacks.

“A considerable number” of them originated in the United States, judging from the IP addresses involved, he said, but added that he did not accuse the US government of being involved.

In its report, Mandiant alleged the hacking group “APT1” – from the initials “Advanced Pers i s tent Threat” – was part of the Chinese military’s Unit 61398 and had stolen hundreds of terabytes of data from at least 141 organisations across 20 industries.

Targeted companies included some involved with significant sections of the American domestic infrastructure.

U S o f f i c i a l s v o i c e d concern about the charges in the report but were cautious. White House spokesman Jay Carney said US officials “regularly ra i se th is i s sue wi th Chinese officials, including officials in the military.”

S e n a t o r D i a n n e Feinstein, head of the intelligence committee, said that the Mandiant study showed the need for an international agreement on cyberattacks along the lines of codes that cover crime and war.

A strongly w o r d e d commentary by the state-r u n n e w s a g e n c y X i n h u a s a i d t h e M a n d i a n t d o c u m e n t “reeks of a

commercial stunt”.“Next time, the CEO could

simply say: ‘See the Chinese hackers? Hurry up, come and buy our cyber security services’,” it went on.

It said the US had a “matchless superiority and ability to stage cyberattacks across the globe”, and that the US military had “established a significant cyber force, including the 780th Military Intelligence Brigade, which is a regular m i l i t a r y u n i t t a s k e d with carrying out cyber missions”.

Washington, it added, had a “habit of accusing other nations based on phony evidence”.

“Facts will eventually prove that the cyberattacks accusations are groundless and will only tarnish the image and reputation of the company making them, as well as that of the United States,” it said. – AFP

‘One cannot help but ask the real purpose of such

a hullabaloo.’

US cyberattackaccusations a‘stunt’, says

Chinese media

US warns Iran over centrifuges

WASHINGTON – The United States warned Iran on February 21 that the installation of next-generation centrifuges at one of its main nuclear plants would be a “provoc-ative step.”

The warning came after the International Atomic Energy Agency reported that Iran started installing the new IR-2m centrifuges this month at the Natanz plant.

The IAEA report came five days before the so-called P5+1 – the United States, China, Russia, Britain, France and Ger-many – and Iran are due to meet in Kazakhstan for the latest round of talks on the Islamic republic’s nuclear program.

Mystery illness toll rises to 7

GENEVA – Another person suffering from a SARS-like virus has died in Saudi Arabia, the World Health Organisation said on February 21, bringing the worldwide number of fatalities from the mys-tery illness to seven.

The Saudi health min-istry told the UN agency that the patient was hospi-talised on January 29 and had died on February 10, WHO said in a statement.

A laboratory had con-firmed on February 18 that the person had died from the so-called novel coronavirus, or NCoV, it added.

Saudi women join consultative body

RIYADH – Thirty Saudi women took seats for the first time in Saudi Ara-bia’s Shura Council after being sworn in before King Abdullah at his palace in Riyadh on February 19.

The women were sworn in together with their 130 male colleagues, state tele-vision said.

On January 11, the king appointed the women, who include university gradu-ates, human rights activ-ists and two princesses, to the body, also known as the Saudi Consultative Council.

Zambia takes over Chinese company

LUSAKA – The Zambian government has seized control of a Chinese-owned coal company due to poor compliance with safety and environmental standards, the mines min-ister said on February 20.

“Collum Coal mine has had a history of poor safety, health and environmental compliance,” Mines Minis-ter Yamfwa Mukanga said in a statement.

In addition to safety wor-ries at Collum, the mine had not been paying min-eral royalties, Mukanga said. – AFP

Briefs

worldthe MyanMar tiMes


PARIS – The fallout from Europe’s horsemeat scandal has spread far outside the continent, with an imported lasagne brand pulled from shelves in Hong Kong.

A host of top players have been caught up in the spiralling scandal including Nestle, the world’s biggest food company, top beef producer JBS of Brazil and British supermarket chain Tesco.

Hong Kong authorities ordered ParknShop, one of the biggest supermarket chains in the city, to remove lasagne made by frozen food giant Findus, one of the firms at the centre of the scandal.

The product was imported from Britain and made by French firm Comigel.

Hong Kong’s Centre for Food Safety said on February 20 that the item “might be adulterated with horsemeat which has not undergone tests for veterinary drugs”.

The chain, owned by tycoon Li Ka-shing, has about 280 stores in Hong Kong and the neighbouring gaming hub of Macau.

In Europe, the Czech Republic became the latest country embroiled in the horsemeat affair, with food inspectors ordering Tesco to withdraw Nowaco brand frozen “beef” lasagne after detecting horsemeat.

Supermarkets in Belgium, Britain, Denmark, Ireland, Finland, France, Austria, Norway, The Netherlands, Germany, Italy, Spain, Portugal, Sweden and Slovenia have all removed meals from shelves.

Spanghero, the French firm that sparked the food alert by allegedly passing off 750 tonnes of horsemeat

as beef, was on February 18 al lowed to resume production of minced meat, sausages and ready-to-eat meals.

But the company, whose horsemeat found its way into 4.5 million “beef” products sold across Europe, will no longer be allowed to stock frozen meat.

The firm’s sanitary licence was suspended on February 14 after it was accused of passing off huge quantities of mislabelled meat over a period of six months.

Investigators on February 20 conducted a second day

of raids on Spanghero’s h e a d q u a r t e r s i n Castelnaudary in southern France, a source close to the probe said, adding they had already seized several documents and copied computer records.

Most Swiss supermarkets on February 20 withdrew horsemeat products from their shelves, not due to the spiralling fake labelling scandal but over allegations of cruel conditions on farms where horses are bred for meat.

The move came after an investigative consumer

program on Swiss public television on February 19 showed images taken by animal protection activists of starving and visibly sick and suffering horses on farms in a number of countries that provide meat to Swiss stores.

The Zurich-based Animal Protection Association had sent investigators to large horsemeat producing countries Canada, the United States, Mexico and Argentina to probe how the animals were kept, transported and slaughtered. – AFP

Spain

Some 750 tonnes of horsemeat mislabelled as beef and soldby French firm Comigel in more than 4.5 million frozen meals

NetherlandsFood and consumer watchdog opens probe, officials suspend a meat processing plant

February

FranceSupermarkets pull ready-made meals from shelves

Spanghero license suspendedon Feb 14

Comigel withraws productssupplied by Spanghero

SpainNestle withdraws 2 pasta meals

BritainTests detect horsemeat in29 out of 2,501 products,including Findus lasagnemade up of 100% horsemeat.3 arrested for fraud

Findus withdraws tainted products from Comigel

SloveniaAuthorities find traces of horsemeat in frozen lasagne

FinlandLidl withdraws goulash and tortellini from shelves

BulgariaAuthorities order lasagne pullout from major distributor

PortugalPullout of frozen lasagnesupplied by Nestleto restaurants

AustriaBeef tortelloni supplied by Lidlis pulled from shelves

DenmarkAuthorities probe slaughterhouse that supplies meat to pizza makers,Lidl withraws pasta dish

ItalyNestle withdraws 2 pasta meals

SwitzerlandSupermarket chain Coopfinds traces of horsemeat in frozen lasagne

BelgiumLidl (German distributor) withdraws frozen penne bolognaise from shelves

GermanySupermarket chains Real, Aldi andKaiser’s Tengelmann say they areaffected by tainted meat

SwedenRetailers pull 6 brands of lasagne meals madeby Comigel

Norway3 food retailers findhorsemeat in frozen lasagne

600 km

Main developments across Europe

LONDON – British novelist Hilary Mantel faced a right royal backlash on February 19 after describing Prince William’s wife Catherine a s a “ s h o p w i n d o w mannequin” with a “plastic smile” whose only purpose is to breed.

Prime Minister David Cameron waded in to the row by criticising the double Booker Prize-winning author’s comments as “completely wrong”, while Britain’s patriotic press leapt to the defence

of the pregnant Duchess of Cambridge.

Mantel, 60, said Kate had neither the personality of William’s late mother Diana, princess of Wales, nor the presence of historical heavyweight Anne Boleyn, who features heavily in Mantel’s novel Wolf Hall.

In a lecture given two weeks earlier at the British Museum and reprinted last week in the London Review of Books literary journal, Mantel added that Kate appeared “machine-made”

when she first emerged in public.

“Kate Middleton, as she was, appeared to have been designed by a committee and built by craftsmen, with a perfect plastic smile and the spindles of her limbs hand-turned and gloss-varnished,” Mantel said.

Mantel said the duchess had gone from being a “jointed doll on which certain rags are hung” to someone whose “only point and purpose” was to have children.

Before marrying second-

in-line to the throne William in 2011 and falling pregnant last year, Kate, 31, was a “shop-window mannequin, with no personality of her own, entirely defined by what she wore.”

“Kate seems to have been selected for her role of princess because she was irreproachable: as painfully thin as anyone could wish, without quirks, without oddities, without the risk of the emergence of character,” Mantel said.

“She appears precision-

made, machine-made, so different from Diana whose human awkwardness and emotional incontinence showed in her every gesture.”

A spokeswoman for the royal couple declined to comment on Mantel’s lecture when contacted by AFP.

Speaking during a trip to India, Cameron told the BBC when asked about Mantel’s comments: “I think she writes great books, but I think what she’s said about Kate Middleton is completely

misguided and completely wrong.”

Britain’s Daily Mail newspaper described Mantel’s comments as an “astonishing and venomous attack on the Duchess of Cambridge.”

A spokesman for Mantel told the Daily Telegraph n e w s p a p e r t h a t t h e speech was not intended as c r i t i c i sm but was “remarkably sympathetic” to the predicament of Britain’s royals, who have complained for years about media intrusion. – AFP

Novelist under fire over criticism of ‘plastic smile’ Kate

MINSK – Belarus has convicted and jailed for two years a border guard for failing to report that a foreign plane full of teddy bears had crossed into national airspace from Lithuania last July, the Belarus Supreme Court said on February 19.The decision by a military tribunal is the first jailing in connection with the stunt by a group of Swedish activists who flew illegally into Belarussian territory to release hundreds of teddy bears carrying protest signs in support of freedom of speech.

A border guard who was

on duty on July 2, 2012 received his conviction on January 4 in a closed trial for not reporting the teddy-bear fly-by, the spokeswoman of the Supreme Court of Belarus Maria Lapo said.

He was found guilty of violating border service rules, she said.

The activists from a Swedish advertising agency crossed into Belarus in a small plane flew over the town of Ivan.

After the stunt President Alexander Lukashenko sacked his top border control official, air force commander, and foreign minister. – AFP

Teddy bears: guard jailed Horsemeat scandal spreads,hits HK supermarket chain

THE HAGUE – Ivorian ex-president Laurent Gbagbo bears responsibility for some of the worst crimes committed during a bloody post-election standoff in the west African nation two years ago, the International Criminal Court’s chief prosecutor said on February 19.

“We will show that Mr Gbagbo and forces under his control are responsible for the death, rapes, serious injuries to, and arbitrary

detention of countless law abiding citizens,” Fatou Bensouda told judges at the Hague-based ICC.

Gbagbo, 67, faced a first day of hearings after which the ICC’s judges will decide whether there is enough evidence to try him for masterminding post-vote violence between late-November 2010 and mid-May 2011, which the UN said claimed 3000 lives.

Gbagbo, the first former

head of state before the court, faces four counts of crimes against humanity for fomenting a wave of violence which swept the Ivory Coast after he refused to admit defeat in November 2010 presidential polls won by Alassane Ouattara.

Gbagbo has denied the charges against him.

Prosecutors and the defence are to spend just over a week arguing their cases before a three-judge

bench, who will then decide if there are “substantial grounds to believe that Gbagbo committed the crimes” and should be charged.

G b a g b o , a f o r m e r historian-turned-politician, was arrested on April 11, 2011, when Ouattara’s forces with French and UN backing overran his heavily fortified compound in Abidjan after days of heavy fighting. – AFP

ICC begins deliberations on Gbagbo case

Trade Mark CauTionNOTICE is hereby given that de rigo S.p.a. of Zona Industriale Villanova 12, 32012 Longarone (BL), Italy is the Owner and Sole Proprietor of the following trademarks: -

POLICEThe said trademark is registered under registration numbers:-reg: nos. iV/4646/2009 & iV/5738/2012 in respect of:- “Leather and imitations of leather, and goods made of these materials and not included in other classes; animal skins, hides; trunks and traveling bags; umbrellas, parasols and walking sticks; whips, harness and saddlery” – Class: 18

reg: nos. iV/4647/2009 & iV/5739/2012 in respect of:- “Clothing, footwear, headgear” – Class: 25

reg: nos. iV/4645/2009 & iV/5741/2012 in respect of:- “Precious metals and their alloys and goods in precious metals or coated therewith, not included in other classes; jewellery, precious stones; horological and chronometric instruments” – Class: 14

(reg: nos. iV/367/1995 & iV/5740/2012)in respect of:- “Eye glasses, sun glasses, eye glass frames, eye glass chains, eye glass cases, eye glass cords, eye glass lenses, contact lenses, containers for contact lenses” – Class: 9

STING(reg: nos. iV/3499/1994 & iV/5742/2012)

in respect of:- “Spectacles, sunglasses, eyeglasses, frames, lenses” – Class: 9

Any fraudulent imitation or unauthorized use of the said trademarks whatsoever will be dealt with according to law.

U Kyi Win Associates for de rigo S.p.a. P.O. Box No. 26, Yangon.Phone: 372416 Dated: 25th February, 2013

Features33the MyanMar tiMes February 25 - March 3, 2013

WASHINGTON – The image-savvy White House denied squelching media access on February 19, after Tiger Woods unwittingly teed off a new storm between President Barack Obama’s spin team and reporters who cover him.

The row erupted when Woods joined Obama for a round on February 17, lifting the lid on a simmering dispute between journalists and a White House machine pumping out news, opinion, photos and video, bypassing traditional media.

The match-up of the most powerful man in the world, and the man still regarded by many as the planet’s greatest golfer, was by any account a big story – but White House officials declared it off limits to the press.

Grumbling White House reporters were sent into apoplexy when a Golf Digest writer tweeted details of the round from the swish Florida resort and appeared on the Golf Channel to sell his scoop.

R e p o r t e r s a n d photographers in the small pool that trails Obama everywhere – be it to Kabul or on a date night with his wife – fumed about missing what was likely to be a front page story.

Twitter rained derision on journalists seen as pampered prima donnas on a glamor beat, but reporters protested they were guarding the cherished privilege and

public service of their access to the president.

“There is a very simple

but important principle we will continue to fight for today and in the days ahead: transparency,” said White House Correspondents’ Association president Ed

Henry, who works for Fox News.

Jay Carney, spokesman for a White House that brands itself the most transparent in history, denied that Obama’s team had broken with precedent that granted access to other golf games by this president and others.

He scoffed that the media wanted a picture of the president simply playing with a “golf pro,” mockingly understating the news value of Obama’s encounter with a 14-times major champion tainted by a sex scandal.

“I doubt that there’s ever been a White House Press corps that’s ever been wholly satisfied with the level of access that they’ve been afforded,” said Carney, a poacher-turned-gamekeeper as a former Time White House correspondent.

Carney listed Obama’s 35 news conferences since taking office in 2009 and 591 interviews as evidence of his boss’s openness to the media.

But r epor te rs f r om traditional media question the nature of that interaction – as many interviews are

with local television networks which often lob softball questions.

Obama and top aides also avoid rigorous cross-examination on forums such

as “Google Plus hangouts” or “Facebook townhall events” exploiting the reach of social media.

Reporters for traditional outlets, including the New York Times and the Wall Street Journal, complain that their long-cherished capacity to get interviews with the president has been compromised.

And in off-the-cuff remarks, the president has sometimes let slip his disdain for some news coverage, which he sees as obsessed with trivia.

Tensions always come to the boil between administrations and the press.

But the clash has been exacerbated under Obama by his team’s mastery of social and online media. In a Politico article on February 19, the president was dubbed a “puppet master” manipulating coverage of his White House.

The unwanted competition comes as traditional media fight for survival and the internet devours traditional revenue sources.

Former Obama campaign spokesman Ben LaBolt tweaked the media by saying

many Americans do not watch traditional news or read papers.

“The White House has found more ways to engage Americans in

the conversation directly, so should the media,” he said on Twitter.

Most in fur iat ing to journalists is the daily stream of behind-the-scenes pictures

by official White House cameraman Pete Souza on Twitter and Flickr.

T h e p i c t u r e s o f t e n encroach into territory – bill signings for instance – that the White House press corps say should be open to all, and free from propagandising influence of Obama’s spin team.

Top news agenc ies , including Agence France-Presse, mostly refuse to

distribute such pictures on editorial grounds, though they are often featured on social media platforms.

White House aides argue, sometimes rightly, that the feed is an exercise in transparency –revealing scenes never before open to the media – as in the famous picture of the president’s national security team during the raid that killed Osama bin Laden. – AFP

CARACAS – He’s fought for leftist revolution and he’s fought cancer. President Hugo Chavez, who returned home on February 18 in muted triumph after two months in Cuba for surgery and treatment, is the man in Venezuela.

First elected in 1998 and winner of every election he’s run in since then, Chavez is an indefatigable populist who’s made friends and foes at home and abroad with his vision of 21st century socialism.

The former paratrooper, 58, took a blow in June 2011 when he was diagnosed with cancer. The only real detail the government has given is that it was in his pelvic region.

Chavez won a new six-year term in office last October after declaring himself cancer-free, even though he was not his usual vibrant self during the campaign. In December, he returned to Havana for his fourth round of cancer surgery.

Cuba was the ideal place for his treatment as he is an old friend of Fidel and Raul Castro and the island’s communist government could be relied on to keep his condition a state secret.

When he won re-election last year, Chavez’s aim was to keep governing until 2030 in the country with the world’s largest proven oil reserves, pressing on with his drive to aid the poor with handouts and subsidies and keep up ties with like-minded leftist governments elsewhere in Latin America.

Along the way he has irked Venezuela’s business elite, which says he makes life miserable for them with strict hard currency controls and other heavy-handed

economic measures, and the United States, which he derides as an imperialist monster, by aligning Venezuela with countries such as Iran and Syria.

After Chavez returned to Cuba in December for more surgery, Venezuelans – used to his booming voice at every turn, his call-in television show and his Castro-like speeches that went for hours – heard nothing. Not a peep.

The prolonged absence fueled speculation over whether he would be able to stay in charge. It remained unclear on February 18 if Chavez’s much-delayed swearing-in would now finally take place.

Born in 1954 to school teachers,

Chavez – a twice-divorced Roman Catholic with four children –got a first taste for socialism by drawing inspiration from Simon Bolivar, the 19th century liberator who led wars to free South America from Spain.

Chavez staged a failed coup in 1992 against then-president Carlos Andres Perez and spent two years in jail. Paradoxically, that made him very popular.

Six years later, he was elected president with 56 percent of the vote.

He has built his approval on providing health and education programs for the poor in a country that suffers from gaping inequality between haves and have-nots.

The poorest in Venezuela are

crazy about the man, even if his approach to economic management causes high inflation and shortages of basic foodstuffs.

Critics say he uses the tools of the state and the country’s oil wealth with just one goal in mind: staying in power.

Chavez is a one-man orchestra as a politician: hyperactive, charismatic and brutal with his enemies. In the same speech, he can blend passages from songs, insults and flashes of impressive erudition.

Until he got sick, he slept little and did not take holidays. This has prompted him to acknowledge he made a fundamental error by not looking after himself for years.

A f t e r a n a t t e m p t e d coup in 2002 in which he was brief ly removed from power, Chavez is said to have concluded the

world can be divided into two kinds of people: friends and enemies. The latter were traitors, and in his absence the government has kept up this kind of talk.

Outside Venezuela, Chavez was a role model and bank-roller for other leftist leaders.

Chavez also struck up strategic alliances with Russia, China and Iran, besides supporting people such as the late Moamer Kadhafi of Libya and Syria’s President Bashar al-Assad.

But a dollar is a dollar, and Chavez has shown he’s pragmatic too, never suspending oil exports to the United States even as he denounced “Yankee imperialism.”

– AFP

Hugo Chavez, the indefatigable populist

US President Barack Obama during a round of golf at the Mid Pacific Country Club in Kailua, Hawaii, on December 28, 2010. Journalists say a White House decision banning them from covering the Obama-Tiger Woods game on January 17 was out of bounds. Pic: AFP

‘There is a very simple but important principle we will continue to fight for…’

Jilted journalists take a swing at the White House

A supporter of Hugo Chavez at celebrations in Caracas on February 18 after the Venezuelan president’s surprise return earlier that day from Cuba, where he undergone treatment for cancer. Pic: AFP

Critics say Chavez uses the tools of the state and the country’s oil wealth with just one goal in mind: staying in power.

Trade Mark CauTionThe Siam Cement Public Company Limited, a company incorporated in Thailand, of 1 Siam Cement Road, Bangsue Sub-district, Bangsue District, Bangkok, Thailand, is the Owner of the following Trade Mark:-

reg. no. 13791/2012in respect of “Class 6: Channels Steel, Round Bars Steel, Deformed Bars Steel, Wire Rod, Steel Wire, Wire Guide, Structural Steel, PC Strand”.

Fraudulent imitation or unauthorised use of the said Trade Mark will be dealt with according to law.

Win Mu Tin, M.A., H.G.P., D.B.Lfor The Siam Cement Public Company LimitedP. O. Box 60, YangonE-mail: [email protected]: 25 February 2013

Featurethe MyanMar tiMes


THE Chinese New Year, which began on February 10, marks the season when Chinese everywhere give voice to their wishes for the future. A controversy last month in the offices of Southern Weekly, one of China’s more liberal publications, appeared to be mainly about censorship. It spread to the streets and widely on the internet, and the focal point was indeed freedom for journalists. At a deeper level, though, the issue was a precursor of the new year. It was about alternative national dreams.

Xi Jinping, who was installed as the Communist Party leader in November, o p e n e d t h e “ d r e a m ” discussion with these words in his acceptance speech at the 18th Party Congress:

“Our people love life; they hope for better education, more stable jobs, more satisfactory incomes, more reliable social guarantees, h i g h e r - l e v e l m e d i c a l a n d h e a l t h s e r v i c e s , more comfortable living conditions, a more beautiful environment, and they hope that their children can grow up better, work better and live better. The wishes of our people for better lives are the goals of our struggles.”

Xi spoke of material matters , but soon he seemed to realise that his “dream” should include more spiritual elements. In a speech two weeks later, he said:

“Everyone has ideals and pursuits . . . . The greatest dream of the Chinese people in recent times has been to realise the great renaissance of the Chinese nation . . . . The future and the fate of every Chinese person is tightly bound to the future and fate of the state and the nation . . . . No one will be well off

unless the state and the nation are well off.”

Now Xi’s version of the China dream had two levels: a daily-life material level and spiritual aspirations at the level of state and nation.

Editors at Southern Weekly , a publ icat ion based in Guangdong, saw a crucial gap, right at the dream’s centre: It left out dignity for citizens. So they drafted an editorial, “China’s Dream: The Dream of Constitutionalism,” that

said in part:“Our dream today cannot

possibly end with material things; we seek a spiritual wholeness as well. It cannot possibly end with national strength alone; it must include self-respect for every

person . . . . We will continue to dream until every person, whether high official or peddler on the street, can live in dignity.”

This thirst for dignity, not quenchable by money or the success of a state, does much to explain why the

Southern Weekly statement drew explicit support from many – public intellectuals, students, movie stars, popular bloggers such as Han Han and countless other internet users, including the editors of major news

Websites. People responded to the “dignity” issue because they had seen it in their own experience. Southern Weekly’s fine contribution simply put the issue into the public arena; no one needed to be told the problem was there.

In an essay written shortly before he was sent to prison for “inciting subversion of the state,” Nobel Peace Prize laureate Liu Xiaobo observed, “Whenever a conflict breaks out between government and citizens, internet opinion reflexively heads for the citizens’ side.” People naturally flock to the defence of strangers, Liu noted, because, though the victim may be unknown, the nature of the problem is all too familiar. In many cases in recent years, the underlying cause of public protests is that people feel an affront to their dignity.

One might ask why Southern Weekly’s notion of dignity cannot simply be inserted into Xi Jinping’s China dream.

Why should it conflict w i t h e i t h e r m a t e r i a l improvement or national strength? The problem – and Southern Weekly editors wrote the point plainly – is that personal dignity

depends on personal rights, and such rights can be secure only under a constitutional system of government.

“ C o n s t i t u t i o n a l government is the basis for the entire beautiful dream,” they wrote. “Only

when we have established constitutional government, only when the powers of government have been limited and separated, will citizens be able to voice their criticisms of authority with confidence and be able to live in freedom, in accordance with their inner convictions. Only then will we have a free country and a country that is truly strong . . . . The real ‘China dream’ is a dream for freedom and constitutional government.”

This i s the par t o f the editors ’ statement that Communist Party authorities could not abide. The language does not go quite as far as Charter 08, the citizen manifesto largely responsible for Liu Xiaobo’s 11-year prison sentence. Charter 08 had called for elections and a multiparty system. But the echo is unmistakable. Some lines are almost identical, such as “after the fall of the Qing dynasty in 1911, our forebears set up the first republic in Asia, yet a constitutional China – free, democratic, and strong – was not the result.”

After officials of the C o m m u n i s t P a r t y ’ s Propaganda Department “revised” the Southern

Weekly statement, all of the lines quoted above had been removed and were replaced with words from Xi Jinping’s speeches about materialism and state power. It was announced that the editors had made these changes,

and the result was published as “Message for 2013: We Are Closer to Our Dream than Ever Before.”

Propaganda officials’ actions sparked popular outrage in Guangdong and online. At the same time, the strong-arm tactics show the weakness of the party’s position. China’s rulers are well aware that something is missing in their version of the dream. Charter 08 and the original Southern Weekly statement both put “individual dignity” at the dream’s centre. If it were true, as the regime often maintains, that such ideas are “Western” and stirred up only by “external hostile forces,” then there would be no reason to censor them or to jail their proponents. Authorities could simply publish the ideas and then watch the Chinese people inoculate themselves by rejecting them as “un-Chinese.” But no one is clearer than China’s rulers that this would not be the case. – The Washington Post

(Xiao Qiang is founder and chief editor of China Digital Times, a bilingual news Website, and an adjunct professor at the University of California, Berkeley’s School of Information. Perry Link, who was a co-editor of The Tiananmen Papers, teaches Chinese literature at the University of California, Riverside).

COMMENTby Xiao Qiang and Perry Link

The Chinese have their dreams, too

‘China’s rulers are well aware that something is missing in their version of the dream.’

Police officers confront protesters demonstrating for greater media freedom outside the offices of Southern Weekly in Guangzhou on January 10. Protests outside the popular liberal weekly, the first against press censorship in China for two decades, followed a decision by Communist Party apparatchiks to remove an editorial that said in part: “The real ‘China dream’ is a dream for freedom and constitutional government.” Pic: AFP

world35the MyanMar tiMes February 25 - March 3, 2013

BANGKOK – A US rights envoy last week appealed to Laos for more information on a prominent activist missing for two months, saying the case was having a “chilling effect” on civil society groups.

Sombath Somphone, 62, the founder of a non-government organisation campaigning for sustainable development, disappeared in Vientiane while driving home on December 15.

CCTV images showed

him being taken away from a police post by two unidentified individuals.

“It ’s been incredibly frustrating to not have more visibility into the progress of the investigation,” Daniel Baer, deputy assistant secretary for the State Department’s Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor, told AFP by telephone from Vientiane on February 18 after talks with the Lao vice foreign minister.

“I was assured that they are investigating – that’s what the vice minister told me – but I made sure that he understood that not having more information is not helpful,” Baer said, expressing disappointment that he was unable to meet any officials from the ministry of public security.

The Lao authorit ies have previously suggested Sombath might have been abducted over a personal dispute but said they had

no information about his whereabouts.

The campaigner won the 2005 Ramon Magsaysay Award for Community Leadership for his work in poverty reduction and sustainable development.

The secretive one-party communist state –- which exerts total control over the media and does not tolerate criticism – has in recent years gradually given local civil society groups more room to operate.

B u t S o m b a t h ’ s disappearance has sent jitters through the activist network.

“There’s no question that it’s had a chilling effect,” Baer said.

“For as long as the case remains unresolved and Sombath doesn’t come home to his wife, the international community as well as many people here who know and love him will continue to ask questions,” he added.

– AFP

US official presses Laos over missing activist

MANILA – The Philippines said on February 20 it was on “the right track” in seeking to have a UN t r ibuna l s t r ike down China’s claims to most of the South China Sea, after the Chinese government rejected the process.

P r e s i d e n t B e n i g n o Aquino’s chief aide, Rene A l m e n d r a s , s a i d t h e government expected China to ignore the plan to bring the matter up at the United Nations and stressed the case could still proceed without Beijing’ approval.

“We will follow the process whether they agree to it or not,” Alemndras told reporters.

“Of course, we are of the opinion that we are on the right track... we would not have started it if we did not think that we would have enough basis to file all these issuances.”

The Philippines announced last month it had applied for its dispute with China over the South China Sea to be arbitrated under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, a 1982 treaty

signed by both countries.The Philippines wants the

tribunal to declare Chinese claims to most of the sea as unlawful.

But China says it has sovereign rights over nearly all of the South China Sea, even waters near the coasts of the Philippines and other Southeast Asian nations.

On February 19 China announced it had rejected the Philippines’ call for UN arbitration, insisting on bilateral negotiations with its less powerful neighbour.

Although China has recently sent ships into the South China Sea to enforce its claims and established a local government to rule over the contested waters, it warned the Philippines not to increase tensions.

“The Philippine side (should) keep its word not to take any action that magnifies and complicates the issue,” foreign ministry spokesman Hong Lei told reporters in Beijing.

Under the UN convention’s rules, the arbitration can proceed even if China declines to participate. – AFP

Manila ‘on right track’over China challenge

TOKYO – Japan vowed on February 21 to continue its whale hunt in the Southern Ocean after clashes with the militant conservationist Sea Shepherd group, which claimed Tokyo had been forced to end the mission.

“We are keeping our whaling program,” an official at Japan’s Fisheries Agency told AFP, denying a report that Japan was forced to suspend its whale hunt after collisions with boats crewed by anti-whaling campaigners.

T h e o f f i c i a l a l s o repeated Tokyo’s claim that the conservationists had rammed Japanese whaling ship the Nisshin Maru on February 20, their worst confrontation in the Southern Ocean in three years.

The anti-whaling group accused the Japanese side of deliberately colliding with its vessels.

Sea Shepherd captain Paul Watson told the Australian Associated Press news agency on February 20 that the whalers were refuelling at sea in an area where such activities are prohibited by an Antarctic treaty.

“I feel that this is the

end of it,” he was quoted as saying, referring to the 18 days remaining in the short whaling season and deriding the Japanese fleet’s moves as “like a case of road rage”.

A spokesman for Japan’s Inst i tute o f Cetacean Research said on February 21 that the ship could not be refuelled “due to Sea Shepherd ’s dangerous activities”.

Sea Shepherd is chasing the Japanese fleet hunting whales off Antarctica, as it has done for years in a bid to harass the whalers and prevent the mammals being slaughtered.

Australian Environment Min is ter Tony Burke has described Japan’s whale hunt as cruel and unnecessary but has so far rejected calls to send an Australian government vessel to monitor the hunt.

Japan claims it conducts vital scientific research using a loophole in an in ternat i ona l ban on

whaling agreed at the International Whaling Commission, but makes no secret of the fact that the mammals ultimately end up on dinner plates.

Japan defends whaling a s a t r a d i t i o n a n d accuses Western critics of disrespecting its culture. Norway and Iceland are the only nations that hunt whales in open defiance of a 1986 IWC moratorium on

commercial whaling.Sea Shepherd founder

Watson is wanted by Interpol after skipping bail last July in Germany, where he was arrested on Costa Rican charges

relating to a high-seas confrontation over shark finning in 2002.

Canadian Watson stepped down from key roles last month, passing the Antarctic harpoon chase mantle to former Australian politician Bob Brown.

Watson’s whereabouts had been a mystery until D e c e m b e r , w h e n h e confirmed that he was back on board a Sea Shepherd vessel and ready for the group’s annual Southern Ocean expedition against the Japanese whaling fleet.

– AFP

Japan vows to keepwhale hunt after

clashes with activists

An image taken in the Southern Ocean on February 15 and released by militant group Sea Shepherd Australia on February 18 shows the Japanese whaling fleet’s harpoon vessel, Yushin Maru No 2, with a minke whale. Pic: AFP/Sea Shepherd Australia

‘We are keeping our whaling program.’

Pakistan army says no links to group

ISLAMABAD – Pakistan’s army has denied any links to an outlawed extremist group which claimed bomb attacks against Shia Mus-lims that killed more than 200 people in recent weeks.

“The armed forces were not in contact with any mili-tant organisation, including Lashkar-e-Jhangvi (LeJ),” chief military spokesman, Major General Asim Bajwa, was quoted as telling report-ers by Dawn newspaper.

LeJ claimed a January 10 attack in Quetta that killed 92 Shias, a February 1 at-tack in the northwest that killed 24 Shias and a Febru-ary 16 bomb that killed 89 Shiites in Quetta.

Sanctions urged for illegal ivory trade

BANGKOK – Conserva-tionists on February 21 called for sanctions against the world’s top offender nations in the illegal ivory trade to tackle a surge in poaching of African el-ephants.

Wildlife groups WWF and TRAFFIC issued a joint call for governments due to meet in Bangkok under the Convention on Interna-tional Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) to take ac-tion against host country Thailand as well as Nigeria and the Democratic Repub-lic of Congo. The meeting from March 3 to 14 will be attended by officials from 177 governments.

Military helicopter shot at in Indonesia

TIMIKA, Indonesia – Gun-men opened fire on a mili-tary helicopter at Sinak in Indonesia’s Papua region as it tried to retrieve the bodies of soldiers killed in an earlier attack, a mili-tary official said on Febru-ary 22.

The helicopter was forced to return to Jayapura with-out picking up the seven soldiers shot dead in Sinak the previous day, said Jay-apura city military airbase chief Diah Yudhanardi.

National police spokes-man Agus Riyanto said four civilians were also killed in the Sinak attack.

NZ plans plain cigarette packets

WELLINGTON – New Zealand announced plans on February 19 to force to-bacco companies to sell cig-arettes in plain packaging, becoming only the second country in the world after Australia to introduce the measure.

Associate Health Minis-ter Tariana Turia said ban-ning tobacco branding and selling cigarettes in drab boxes plastered with ex-plicit health warnings “will remove the last remaining vestige of glamour from these deadly products”.

– AFP

Briefs

Vacancy Notice(For Myanmar Nationals only)

Post Title: Monitoring and Evaluation Specialist Level: NO-C with good benefitsPurpose: To assist in the development of national capacities for monitoring, evaluation and research and to ensure that UNI-CEF Myanmar Country Office has useful, valid and reliable information on the performance of UNICEF-supported pro-grammes and the situation of children's and women's rights.Requirements:• Advanced University degree in Social Sciences preferably with

specialized training in Social Statistics, Economics or related field. Training in project monitoring and evaluation essential and 5 years of progressively responsible professional work experience in programme monitoring and evaluation, statistics or social science research including experience in computer analysis of social services data.

• Myanmar national with excellent spoken and written English and Myanmar.

• Skills and personal characteristics: knowledge of recent development and technology in monitoring and evaluation; analytical, negotiating, communication and advocacy skills, supervisory and managerial capability; knowledge of computer management and applications. Good interpersonal skills and the ability to work as part of a team as well as individually. Prior UN/INGO and field experience an advantage.

Detailed Job Description may be requested by writing to UNICEF Myanmar: [email protected] and [email protected]

Please note that:1. UNICEF does not discriminate in regard to race, ethnicity and

gender or persons living with disabilities.2. UNICEF fosters a climate of impartiality, fairness and

objectivity and assures the equitable application of UNICEF regulations, rules and policies.

3. Female qualified candidates are encouraged to apply.4. UNICEF is a smoke free environment.

Qualified candidates may submit application with updated CV form to UNICEF Myanmar Office (Ms. Wai Wai Myint, HR Unit,

email address: [email protected])Closing date: 10th March, 2013

asiathe MyanMar tiMes


JAKARTA – Indonesia has announced a new shark and manta ray sanctuary, the first to protect the species in the rich marine ecosystem of the Coral Triangle, known as the “Amazon of the ocean”.

Environmentalists on February 20 welcomed the creation of the 46,000-square-kilometre (18,000-square-mile) protection zone, in an area at risk from both overfishing and climate change.

The local government in the Raja Ampat archipelago on the western tip of New Guinea island announced the move last week, issuing regulations to ban the finning and fishing of sharks in the area, a tourist destination popular with divers.

Rizal Algamar, Indonesia director of the Nature Conservancy, described the regulations in a joint statement with Conservation I n t e r n a t i o n a l a s a “breakthrough in policy”.

“Sc ient i f i c ev idence

states that the value of live sharks and manta rays far outweighs the one-time profit of dead sharks and manta rays, benefiting a growing world-class and increasingly popular marine tourism and dive destination,” he said.

Scientists have warned that the Coral Triangle is under threat, with heat-trapping

carbon gases blamed for creating acidic seas hostile to much marine life.

Overfishing has also been a problem, but the sanctuary will support existing no-take zones that have helped shark numbers slowly recover.

“Sharks in particular play an important role, as apex predators at the top of the food

chain, maintaining fisheries and ecosystem health,” the statement said.

The sanctuary is also expected to prevent a drop in manta ray numbers, with the species’ gills increasingly used in Asian medicines.

Indonesia is the world’s largest exporter of sharks and rays. – AFP

An image released by Conservation International on February of coves and islets in Indonesia’s Raja Ampat archipelago. Pic: AFP/Conservation International

Indonesia wins praise for sanctuary move

ISLAMABAD – China took control last week of a strategic Pakistani port on the Arabian Sea, as part of a drive to secure energy and maritime routes that also gives it a potential naval base, sparking Indian concern.

The Pakistani cabinet approved the transfer of the port at Gwadar from Singapore ’s PSA International to the state-owned China company on January 30.

Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari presided over the signing of a memorandum of understanding on February 18 that was broadcast live by local television.

“The contract of operation of Gwadar port is formally given to China. Today, the agreement is transferred from the Port of Singapore Authority to China Overseas Ports Holding Company Limited,” Zardari said.

The Pakistanis pitched the deal as offering an

energy and trade corridor that would connect China to the Arabian Sea and Strait of Hormuz, a gateway for a third of the world’s traded oil, overland through an expanded Karakoram Highway.

Experts say it would cut thousands of kilometres off the distance which oil and gas imports from Africa and the Middle East have to travel to reach China.

“Gwadar port will enhance trade and commerce not only between Pakistan and China but also in the region,” said Zardari.

C h i n a p a i d a b o u t 75 percent of the initial US$250 million used to build the port but in 2007 PSA International won a 40-year operating lease.

Gwadar is the most westerly in a string of Chinese-funded ports in Sri Lanka, Myanmar and potentially Bangladesh that encircle its rival, India.

– AFP

Chinese firm takes overstrategic Pakistani port

SINGAPORE – Singapore and Malaysia announced plans last week to build a high-speed rail link, fuelling hopes that Southeast Asia could one day enjoy a rapid European-style train system connected to China.

Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong and his Malaysian counterpart Najib Razak hailed the project, which would cut to 90 minutes the travel time between the city-state and Kuala Lumpur, a distance of about 350 kilometres (220 miles). The target year for completion is 2020.

“This is a strategic development in bilateral relations that will dramatically improve the connectivity between Malaysia and Singapore,” the leaders said in a joint statement issued after meeting in Singapore on February 19.

“It will facilitate seamless travel between Kuala Lumpur and Singapore, enhance business linkages and bring the peoples of Malaysia and Singapore closer together.”

The existing rail link between the two countries dates to the period of British colonial rule over both, with stops at

several Malaysian towns. The current Singapore-Kuala Lumpur service takes more than seven hours.

No cost estimate was given for building the new rail link.

“(We) have some very preliminary figures but I am not inclined to mention those figures because it will tend to stick in people’s minds,” Najib said at a joint news conference with Lee.

“It’s a strategic project for the two countries. It will change the way we see each other,” said Lee, likening it to the heavily used London-Paris connection.

The 90-minute travel time for the new train compares with four hours by car, including clearing immigration, and five hours by bus.

Flights take less than an hour that does not take into account the time taken to check in, pass immigration and pick up luggage.

Both countries belong to the 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations, which hopes to one day link its mainland member states by rail and extend the connection to

China and possibly India.ASEAN is contemplating a link that

will run from Singapore to Kunming in southwestern China, thereby tapping into the country’s vast high-speed network – the world’s longest at more than 9300 kilometres and rapidly expanding.

To link up with China, ASEAN estimates that there are 4069 kilometres of missing links that need to be built, or existing railways that need to be upgraded, in several countries.

A Singapore-Malaysia high-speed railway was first mooted in the 1990s by Francis Yeoh, head of Malaysian infrastructure conglomerate YTL, which built an express train service from Kuala Lumpur’s main airport to the city centre.

The idea was repeatedly shelved largely due to cost concerns. Malaysian media reports said in 2009 that the project’s cost was estimated at US$2.5 billion to $3.5 billion.

Hopes for the project were revived in 2010 after Najib became prime minister. – AFP

Singapore, Malaysia unveilhigh-speed rail link project

DHAKA – Bangladesh on February 20 signed a loan deal with a Japanese development agency to build the country’s first metro rail system, costing US$2.8 billion and intended to ease Dhaka’s traffic jams.

Traffic in Bangladesh capital, home to 15 million people, is among the slowest in the world with commuters spending three-to-four hours in jams daily. A mix of 200,000 motor vehicles and another half-million cycle-rickshaws clog the roads.

Officials said the proposed 20.1-kilometre (12.5-mile) ground and elevated railway will stretch across Dhaka from north to south with 16 stations and will ferry four million commuters every day, easing the jams substantially.

The project will cost an

estimated $2.8 billion, Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) Bangladesh chief Takao Toda said, adding that his agency will finance 85 percent of the cost at an interest rate of 0.01 percent.

“The metro-rai l wil l reduce travel time to 36 minutes (to cross from north to south Dhaka), which now takes hours,” Toda said at the signing of the first phase of the loan deal entailing $116.3 million for consulting services.

T h e m e t r o - r a i l construction will start in 2016 and end in 2021.

The metro will be the country’s second-largest infrastructure project after a $3-billion bridge project over the river Padma. The government says it plans to finance the bridge on its own. – AFP

Dhaka to build $2.8b metro

Trade Mark CauTionCaTerPiLLar inC., a company incorporated in the State of Delaware, United States of America, of 100 N.E. Adams Street, Peoria, Illinois 61629-9620, U.S.A., is the Owner of the following Trade Marks:-

reg. no. 401/1992

reg. no. 402/1992in respect of “Internal combustion engines, diesel engines and other power-supplying machinery adapted for employment as the source of power for self-propelled vehicles, and as stationary or portable power units for industrial, marine and agricultural uses; scraping, carrying and dumping units adapted to be employed for scraping and collecting earth, rock, or like materials and transporting and dumping said materials; power and manually controlled loaders, graders, wagons, scarifiers, scrapers, bulldozers, rippers, tool bars and plows adapted to be employed for the construction and maintenance of roads, for moving and removing of earth, rock, snow and like materials, for preventing soil erosion and for other industrial and agricultural uses; wheel and track type tractors adapted to be employed in farming operations, road building, mining, logging, earth moving, hauling, pushing and for other industrial and agricultural purposes; cable-control units for controlling cable actuated equipment for earth-moving and agricultural purposes; hydraulic-control units for controlling hydraulically actuated equipment for earth moving and agricultural purposes; rust inhibitors; bellows seal cement; chemical solutions for application of decalcomania; electric generators and diesel electric generator sets for furnishing electric power; agricultural equipment; and parts, tools, attachments, accessories and equipment associated with all of such products. MOTOR TRUCKS”.

Fraudulent imitation or unauthorised use of the said Trade Marks will be dealt with according to law.

Win Mu Tin, M.A., H.G.P., D.B.Lfor CaTerPiLLar inC.P. O. Box 60, Yangon E-mail: [email protected]: 25 February 2013

Trade Mark CauTionViTaL koGYo kaBuSHiki kaiSHa, a company incorporated in Japan, of 2-2-9, Yasuda, Tsurumiku, Osaka, Japan, is the Owner of the following Trade Mark:-

reg. no. 459/1998in respect of “chain blocks, hoists, winches and cranes”.

Fraudulent imitation or unauthorised use of the said Trade Mark will be dealt with according to law.

Win Mu Tin, M.A., H.G.P., D.B.Lfor ViTaL koGYo kaBuSHiki kaiSHaP. O. Box 60, YangonE-mail: [email protected]: 25 February 2013

Time out 37The Myanmar Times February 25 - March 3, 2013

By Zon Pann Pwint

TWO paintings by exiled artist Chaw Ei Thein were on display, along with the work of 40 other artists, at an exhibition being held at Lokanat Gallery in downtown Yangon from February 18 to 23.

The exhibition marked the 34th anniversary of the founding of Gangaw Village

Art Group by art students at the University of Yangon in 1979.

Chaw Ei Thein, a member of the Gangaw group, was awarded a fellowship by the Asian Cultural Council in New York to study contemporary art, and she has remained there since February 2009.

“Since I have been in the United States, I haven’t often been invited to showcase

my paintings at galleries in Myanmar. If invited, I sometimes have trouble sending my pa int ings. Therefore, my paintings are hardly displayed at art shows in Myanmar,” Chaw Ei Thein told The Myanmar Times by email.

“But it’s not that I am debarred from displaying my paintings in Myanmar,” she added.

While in the US, Chaw Ei Thein has appeared in a number of performance art pieces in New York, Chicago and Boston.

“I have considerable freedom in painting and doing performances in the US, but being born under a military government, the liberty of my mind is still restricted. My mind is not independent yet,” she said.

Chaw Ei Thein’s sister, Ma Phyu Ei Thein, said that what has happened in Myanmar is visible in all of Chaw Ei Thein’s artwork.

“In 2006 she did a street performance in Yangon to satirise commodity prices and was arrested for a few days,” Ma Phyu Ei Thein said.

Chaw Ei Thein said she will eventually return to Myanmar but has not yet made definite plans.

“I will paint and make performances, but I don’t know to what extent I will have freedom in Myanmar,” she said.

“The legacy of military rule still lingers, and I am in doubt and in fear. But I hope that I can paint and make performances in Myanmar with independence of mind.”

Lokanat Gallery is located at 62 Pansodan Street, First Floor, Kyauktada township.

Artist’s mind ‘restricted’ by military legacy

A visitor scrutinises a painting at the ‘Gangaw Village Art Exhibition’ at Lokanat Gallery in Yangon on February 18. Pic: Aung Htay Hlaing

By Zon Pann Pwint

THE best photo-essays produced during the 5th Yangon Photo Festival were awarded at a ceremony held at the French Institute in Yangon on February 16.

“This year we had the amazing number of 75 entries,” Christophe Loviny, the festival’s artistic and training program director, told The Myanmar Times by email.

First prize was given to Sandra Wint Tun, author of the photo-essay “My Endless Quest”, in which the artist placed a papier mache dog in different street settings to express her feeling of being an outsider among others.

Second prize went to Pyi Phyo for the essay “Night and Day”. Third place was awarded to Chan Nyeint Aung for “The Last Fat Belly Bus”.

S p e c i a l j u r y p r i z e s went to work by Reuters photographers Soe Zeya Tun, whose essay chronicled the conflict in Rakhine State, and Min Zayar. The jury was presided over by Daw Aung San Suu Kyi.

The theme of the exhibits at th is year’s fest ival was “Liberty, Equality, Fraternity”. At least 30 photo-essays were presented to the public.

“We had both fantastic artistic and conceptual photo-essays, like work by Sandra Wint Tun, and great photojournal i sm like the works of Reuters photographers,” Mr Loviny said.

He described the selection committee’s task of choosing 17 nominees f rom 75 submissions as “extremely difficult”.

“The quality is improving every year, especia l ly with our former trainees becoming more and more professional,” he said.

At the awards ceremony on February 16, third prize was originally given to Pho Wa Lone for his photo-essay “Copper Mine in Letpadaung”.

However, he returned his award to the organising committee after it was discovered that he had used two photos taken by Aung Nay Myo, without giving proper credit.

Pho Wa Lone said he forgot to credit Aung Nay Myo, a friend who lives in Monywa in Sagaing Region, and who had given permission for his photos to be used.

“I asked permission to use his two photos in my submitted photo-essay and he allowed me to use them, but I was negligent in giving proper credit,” he said. “I gave back my prize [a Canon 650D camera] to artistic director Mr Loviny on February 18.”

Mr Loviny credited Pho Wa Lone for acting with grace during the incident.

“The two photos were impo r t an t documen t s representing the kind of a m m u n i t i o n u s e d b y the pol ice against the protesters,” he said.

“A l though Aung Nay Myo gave Pho Wa Lone his permission to use the photos, they should have

been credited with Aung Nay Myo’s name. Pho Wa Lone has apologised to Aung Nay Myo and decided to give back his prize to the YPF organising committee.”

Mr Loviny said Pho Wa Lone “has shown courage in the way he has handled this s ituation”, adding that he still believed the photo-essay was of “great quality”.

With Pho Wa Lone out of the running, third prize was given to Chan Nyeint Ko, whom Mr Loviny said “received the highest marks from the jury”.

Pho Wa Lone, a senior reporter at Pyi Thu Khit (The People’s Age) political j o u r n a l , a r r i v e d a t Letpadaung just days before the government crackdown against the protesters.

“I took pictures of the protest against copper mine. Then a riot broke out and Daw Suu Kyi visited the scene. I had to photograph throughout,” he said. “Aung Nay Myo and I photographed the scenes together. I wanted to use his photos as a witness to my photo-essay, so I asked permission and he agreed.”

Before Pho Wa Lone

created his photo-essay, Aung Nay Myo was asked to contribute his photos for publication in Pyi Thu Khit.

“It was my own weakness that I failed to credit the photos and obey the rules of the competition. Therefore, I returned my award without anyone’s urging,” he said. “It taught me a lesson that I have to give credit if I use other photos.”

Record participation for photo festival

Daw Aung San Suu Kyi and Christophe Loviny (right) enjoy the exhibitions at the Yangon Photo Festival, held at the French Institute in Yangon, on February 16. Pic: Aung Htay Hlaing

timeoutthe MyanMar tiMes


Understanding the old kingdom in the new MyanmarBy Bill O’Toole

SPEAKING at the Yangon Literary Festival in early February, author and historian Thant Myint U bemoaned how little the national dialogue in Myanmar brought up the past.

Though his statement is applicable to many tumultuous periods that rarely get mentioned in popular discourse, he was talking specifically about Myanmar’s transition from monarchy to colony, and how it set the country on its current path.

“It’s important to understand what happened, as well as why it happened,” he told the festival audience.

This disconnect is compounded by the fact that for many decades, discussions about the royal family were expressly forbidden by the government.

Before and after the coup in 1962, there was a general feeling among the country’s rulers that the royal family could be used to rally more traditional Burmans to a nationalistic uprising. If the royal family was mentioned at all in state news or educational materials, it was only to paint them as puppets of the British.

Daw Hteik Su Paya Gyi, the eldest of King Thibaw’s surviving grandchildren, recalls a childhood of being forced to move by the military government, and rarely being allowed contact with her extended family.

Though many of her neighbours knew about her royal lineage, Daw Hteik Su Paya Gyi and her family lived modestly, enjoying none of the perks normally afforded to nobility.

Speaking to The Myanmar Times at the literary festival, she said, “We had to paddle our own canoe,” with a hearty laugh.

However, that seems likely to change with Sudha Shah’s new book The King in Exile: The Fall of the Royal Family in Burma.

Although in wide release since last summer, it was not officially available in Myanmar until the festival. The non-fiction work offers what might be the most complete history of King Thibaw’s family before, during and after the Konbaung dynasty was deposed by the British.

Ms Shah said at the festival that her goal was to tell a “human interest” story about one family.

Her research has stretched all the way back to 2004, when she was inspired to learn more about the royal family after reading Amitav Ghosh’s novel The Glass Palace.

“When I saw no history had been written about the royal family, I

knew there was an opportunity,” she told The Myanmar Times in a telephone interview from her home in Mumbai,

Arriving in Yangon at the height of state censorship, Ms Shah reported that she never had any experience with the government censoring or impeding her research, but said their presence was still keenly felt.

“I’m pretty sure the government read my letters,” she said, “but by 2008 it seemed to stop. I think they had other problems to deal with and I just wasn’t much of a bother. I honestly had no trouble.”

But she was shocked to learn just how open and willing the people

of Myanmar were to discuss their king, as if they were hungry for the opportunity.

For help with translations she relied on U Than Htay, a retired doctor and history buff living in Yangon. Not only was Dr Than Htay living in a home with no electricity, but also he was confined to his bed for much of the research process, making even sitting at a manual typewriter impossible.

Undeterred, he translated countless news articles and personal letters for Ms Shah by hand.

Ms Shah also could not say enough about her time working in the Yangon archives.

“It was the most friendly archive I’ve ever worked with,” she said. “I had an assistant who helped me any time I got stuck. I spent four days there in comparison to six months in Mumbai.”

King Thibaw and Queen Supayalat remain controversial and often despised figures in Myanmar’s history. While Ms Shaw is by no means seeking to rehabilitate their images, she at least wanted the book to provide a more nuanced portrait of the couple.

“[Thibaw] was not a particularly competent king. He was a clever man, but not particularly interested in politics,” she said, adding that the royal ministers deserved much of the blame for his many missteps.

“He was totally ignorant. He believed he was the king of the universe, he believed what his ministers told him.”

As for Queen Supaylalat, who is today most remembered for her conniving and allegedly murderous ways, Ms Shah makes no excuses, but is also quick to place her actions in context.

“She was a very selfish woman, her grandchildren say she had a cruel streak. I think with the right education and advising she could have been a good queen, but she was ill-advised [by the royal court]. I have a lot of empathy for her, for her circumstances.”

When asked about the audience for her book, Ms Shah said she hopes it can resonate with readers in Myanmar and the rest of the world.

For the people of Myanmar, it’s a chance to connect with their own history, she said. “I had the luxury of being able to spend so much time [researching]. For the average Burmese person, it is information that has not been available to them.”

For the foreigners, “It’s interesting just learning how this period worked ... and it’s an interesting story of a family.”

Thant Myint U (left) poses with Daw Hteik Su Paya Gyi (centre) at the Yangon Literary Festival.

By Zon Pann Pwint

AMONG the many notable topics discussed at the Irrawaddy Literary Festival in Yangon earlier this month were stories written by local authors about women driven to become prostitutes or mistresses.

At one seminar during the festival, local authors Tu Tu Thar, Thoon Hnin Eain and Thin Thin Thar discussed four different stories about characters who became “fallen women” because of poverty and other negative influences

One of the stories under discussion was writer Nu Nu Yi’s short story “Nan Hmar Lar Maung Yae Hmway Tae Shin” (Will You Smell It? It Smells Sweet), which raised a storm of controversy when it was published in Thara magazine in 1987.

The magazine’s editor received about 300 letters concerning the story, both supportive and disapproving.

The story is about a third-year university student who pays for her studies by serving as a part-time mistress for a rich, middle-aged man. Every Friday he picks her up at her hostel and takes her to his apartment for the weekend.

Ma Tu Tu Thar said during the seminar that the four stories under discussion were published during Myanmar’s Socialist era.

“We picked stories that portray the reality of women who are faced with difficult situations where money is tight, driving them to become mistresses or prostitutes,” she said. “These stories still reflect prevailing social and economic conditions, and they still mirror the situation of some women in Myanmar society.”

In 2011 Nu Nu Yi published a collection of short stories that included “Nan Hmar Lar Maung Yae Hmway Tae Shin”, whose main character is based on a real-life university student.

“I met her in 1980s. She was beautiful,” Nu Nu Yi told The Myanmar Times.

“Her appearance made me think she was just an ordinary university student like the others. I couldn’t believe my ears when she talked about her life. I was very shocked, just as my readers were shocked by reading the story.”

The girl was originally supported in her studies by her uncle, but after he died during her third year at university, her financial situation became dire.

“She said her motive was pure. She worked for the sake of her studies and to save money, so that she could buy a house with her boyfriend after they got married. I wrote the story just as she told it to me,” Nu Nu Yi said.

She said some of the people who wrote angry letters following publication of the story accused her of “pushing girls to go wrong”. Some of the critical letters were

published in Thara and other magazines at the time.

“I accepted that the reality of this girl’s life was almost unheard-of in 1980s, so many readers were astounded and responded angrily to my story,” she said.

Nu Nu Yi said that meeting the student raised her curiosity about extent of the problem in Myanmar society.

“I found two more women, one from a village who had to cross the river to sleep

with men working on an oil tanker,” she said.

“The other was a woman who was a government office worker and her husband was government staff too. But their income was too low, and to provide food for their children she had to sell herself.”

N u N u Yi s a i d s h e originally wrote a single magazine article about these three women, but the editor separated it into three different stories and

published the section about the university student first.

I n the midst o f the controversy over the first story’s publication, the editor decided to wait to publish the other two, and he eventually lost them.

Following the seminar, writer-turned-doctor Dr Nu Nu Swe told The Myanmar Times: “We need to work on this issue a bit more”.

“Though the era has changed, the state of women hasn’t changed,” she said.

Plight of ‘fallenwomen’ the subject of Myanmar fiction

Writer Nu Nu Yi holds a collection of her short stories. Pic: Supplied

Pic: Bill O’Toole

timeout39the MyanMar tiMes February 25 - March 3, 2013

THE 66th Mon National Day will be marked on February 26 , w i th ce lebra t ions i n c l ud i n g a s e r i e s o f fundraising concerts and cultural performances at People’s Park on Pyay Road from February 23 to 26.

T h e e v e n t w i l l b e organised by Hinthar Media Group in cooperation with the Mon Nat iona l Day Celebration Committee.

Committee member Daw Mi Kon Chit said that last year, Mon National Day celebrations were held for only one day.

Ma Win Shwe Yee Myat, s a l e s a n d m a r k e t i n g manager at Hinthar Media Group, added: “This year the committee wanted to do more with the program, so we are arranging more entertainment events.”

Until last year Mon people celebrated their national day in private ceremonies with family and friends, because the government would not give permission for big public events.

“ T h e c o m m i t t e e i s holding this event so that Mon people can gather in

the same place in Yangon and celebrate their national day together,” said Ma Win Shwe Yee Myat.

Festivities will kick off on February 23 with a concert featuring Chit Kaung, Kaw Ni, Htun Eaindra Bo, Alex, Phyo Gyi, Phyu Phyu Kyaw Thein, Shin Phone, Lin Lin and Ni Ni Khin Zaw, along with the Trees, Plus Three, Ugly and Heroes bands.

T h e M y i n t t a r S h w e Sin troupe will present a t r a d i t i o n a l d a n c e performance (a nyeint) on February 24 at 6pm.

The evening of February 25 will feature a traditional htamane (glutinous rice) making ceremony, while February 26, Mon National Day, wi l l see cu l tura l pe r f o rmance s by Mon people.

“We will establish our Mon culture and history with a concert, and with dance and t rad i t iona l songs,” said Daw Mi Kon Chit.

All money raised from the concert will go to the Mon National Committee.

— Lwin Mar Htun

DANISH pop-rock band Michael Learns to Rock (MLTR) will perform live at People’s Square Park in Yangon on March 31, according to a spokesperson from concert organiser Pastel Communications and Friendship Entertainment.

Myanmar singers Zaw Win Htut and Phyu Phyu Kyaw also will also perform at the concert.

F o u r - m e m b e r M LT R formed in 1988 and gained a huge global following with their song “Take Me to Your Heart”, which won a Gold Preis Award for the most downloaded single of the year for 2006.

MLTR songs such as “Blue Night”, “Paint My Love”, “Sleeping Child” and “Wild

Women” are well-known among Myanmar music fans, and are frequently covered by local singers.

In a press statement released last week, the concert organiser said members of the band will spend a short period in Myanmar and are “excited to experience the world-renowned warmth of the Myanmar people, pay their respect to the land of the Shwedagon Pagoda and sample Myanmar cuisine”.

They are also hoping to bring to Myanmar “an exhilarating night of musical extravaganza”.

Full details about the concert, including the price of tickets, will be announced on March 1. — Nuam Bawi

Multiday festivitiesfor Mon National Day

Danish pop bandcoming to Yangon

By Zon Pann Pwint

CANADIAN photographer and food writer Naomi Duguid launched her cookbook Burma: Rivers of Flavour at Monument Books in Yangon on February 16.

From the fried bananas with sesame seeds sold on the street in Yangon, to chicken in tart garlic sauce offered at fine restaurants, Ms Duguid savoured the c u l i n a r y d e l i g h t s o f Myanmar before writing the cookbook.

She originally came to Myanmar in 1980, and again in 1998, to work on her cookbooks, including Hot, Sour, Salty, Sweet with co-author Jeffrey Alford.

“Myanmar i s r i ch in culture, and I am impressed by the great richness of cuisine throughout the whole country. The food and cuisine are very fabulous,” Ms Duguid told The Myanmar Times.

She said each visit inspired her to explore the culinary diversity of Myanmar, which formed the foundation for writing Burma: Rivers of Flavour.

She spent more than three years working on the book, travelled to regions such as Dawei, Sittwe, Mrauk Oo, Kalaw, Pathein and Hsipaw.

The book was published in Canada in 2012.

“My book details the r e m a r k a b l e c u l i n a r y tradition of Myanmar. Food

and dishes are wonderful in central Myanmar. I delight in Kachin food, which is very fabulous, and in Rakhine State the traditions and cuisine are very wonderful,” she said.

Ms Duguid said her book has he lped the wor ld become more aware of Myanmar.

“Myanmar is a big country that I didn’t know about and hadn’t explored. I wanted to understand and learn how things work here,” she said. “During sanctions, few people came here. I felt it was important for people to understand how interesting the country is.”

She advised foreigners to enjoy Myanmar cuisine by eating it at lunchtime.

“[Westerners] are used to eating big meals at night, but the best way to eat Myanmar food is to eat big meals at lunchtime. If you eat out at night, the food is not fresh so it doesn’t have its best taste,” Ms Duguid said.

Burma: Rivers of Flavour is priced at K35,000, and is available at Monument Books on Dhamazedi Road in Bahan township.

By Lwin Mar Htun

A N e x h i b i t i o n t i t l e d “Resource Curse” was held in Yangon from February 2 0 t o 2 2 , a i m e d a t educating viewers about the conservation of natural resources in Myanmar.

The exhibit ion, held at Royal Rose Restaurant on Shwegondine Road, featured 98 artworks by t h ree pho tog r aphe r s , five cartoonists and two designers.

Soe Win Nye in , the event’s organiser and one of the photographers, said “Resource Curse” was the sixth exhibition he has put together about resource conservation.

“Viewers first need to know about the social impacts of resource exploitation, such as how it affects farmers, and they also need to know about the health impacts and the environmental impacts,” he said.

The artwork in “Resource Curse” focused on copper mining at Letpadaung in Sagaing Region, and how the project has affected people living in the area.

T h e p h o t o g r a p h e r s involved in the exhibition spent a month collecting images around the mining area, said Soe Win Nyein.

“When we chop down a tree we can replant a new one, but if we destroy a mountain we can’t build a new one,” he said. “After we sell our resources, there will be no more resources for the next generation. That’s

why I called the exhibition ‘Resource Curse’.”

While the photographs allowed viewers to see the present situation at Letpadaung, the cartoons

provided some additional food for thought.

“I l ike the cartoons because they can give an extra message to the audience. They’re all very

clever,” said one viewer, U Hla Myint.

The exhibition will be held again in Mandalay next month, said Soe Win Nyein.

Canadian food writer delves into diverse cuisine from around Myanmar in new book

Art exhibition explores exploitation of resources

Naomi Duguid signs a copy of her book ‘Burma: Rivers of Flavour’ at Monument Books in Yangon on February 16. Pic Aung Htay Hlaing

A cartoon on display at the ‘Resource Curse’ exhibition, held at Royal Rose Restaurant in Yangon from February 20 to 22. Pic: Lwin Mar Htun



By David Watkins

HONG KONG — Increasing numbers of Western chefs are looking to Asia to offset the dreary economies of the US and Europe, but the recipe for Eastern success depends on more than simply exporting expertise.

“What works in New York does not necessarily work in Hong Kong,” said Sandeep Sekhri, whose company Dining Concepts manages a stable of restaurants in the Chinese city and Macau that include ventures with Mario Batali and New York chef Michael White.

Batali last year opened a US$3.2 million version of his famed New York family-style restaurant Lupa, situated in Hong Kong’s high-rent Central district.

L i k e i t s M a n h a t t a n counterpart, it offers dishes such as ricotta gnocchi with sausage and fennel, or veal-lined saltimbocca. But its glossy take on Roman trattoria fare makes for a higher-end ambiance.

“People in Asia expect a higher comfort level, it needs to be a little bit more plush,” said Sekhri, who is managing director of Dining Concepts and says more Batali projects are in the pipeline.

With Asia’s economies in better shape than those in the Eurozone or the United States, “someone who wouldn’t speak to us three, four or five years ago is now much more willing to talk”, said Sekhri of the so-called “celebrity chefs”.

The company, which last year posted gross annual revenue of $65 million, also boasts ventures with Michelin-starred chefs Sergi Arola from Spain and Australia’s Greg Malouf.

“The bigger the names the higher the expectations. We try to do a family-style trattoria with Lupa, but people compare us to a three [Michelin] star restaurant — which was totally not the price point or the idea.”

Batali has also recently opened two restaurants at Marina Bay Sands in Singapore, where casino investments have helped lure the likes of French master Joel Robuchon, US-based Wolfgang Puck and Australia’s Tetsuya Wakuda.

Singapore’s dining scene has seen radical change, in stark contrast to the street cuisine of chilli crab and chicken rice it is more famous for, with some in the industry saying expansion has been too fast.

“Singapore had a massive explosion of Michelin star chefs because of the casinos,” said Yenn Wong, owner of Jia Boutique Hotels, which operates restaurants and bars in the city and in Hong Kong, as well as a Shanghai hotel.

“There’s now an oversupply of restaurants making it a very challenging environment. Some are just so expensive and not what a typical Singaporean can afford.”

Wong recently teamed up with British chef Jason

Atherton, another Michelin starred chef and a protégé of Gordon Ramsay with restaurants in Singapore, to open 22 Ships, a Hong Kong tapas joint that has created both buzz and long queues in its first months.

“Sometimes you never know whether it’s going to be difficult working with big chefs,” said Wong, adding that Atherton’s understanding of the Asian palette and market has been crucial to his success.

“The dishes aren’t very heavy, they’re clean which suits Asian tastes, they’re easy to understand. There is a creative twist but not too much.”

Wong contrasts it to one of her first projects, a Hong Kong restaurant called Opia that offered Australian cuisine but which has since closed down.

“When we first opened there was a very good response. After two years it started to tail off, because you can’t really pinpoint what ‘modern Australian’ cuisine is. We learned and decided to focus more.”

Even if the food is right, transplanting a chef into a new kitchen thousands of kilometres from home can be tricky. It is not just the menus that need to be adapted.

“In terms of having a new kitchen crew, that’s a huge change for, say, a chef coming from New York,” said Sekhri. “There are five different languages being spoken in the kitchen for a start.”

At 28 years old, Vincent Lauria is head chef with IHM Group in Hong Kong, which operates a cluster of restaurants including the Italian Linguini Fini in Central.

He quit Batali’s upscale Babbo restaurant in New York for an opportunity to work in Asia in 2009 before being approached by IHM.

“When I first came to Asia, I still had the New York mentality and I was very aggressive,” he said. “In New York it is so competitive and cut-throat. Everyone wants to be at the top, everyone wants your position. Here you have to look after people, nurture your staff as they get used to your recipes.”

Like many Western chefs, Lauria said Asian diners sometimes found his recipes too salty. “But I’m not going to change the way I cook, because if you adapt, it’s more difficult for the dining scene to evolve.”

Lauria said his philosophy is about using as much local produce as possible.

“Like locally dried shrimp to infuse pastas, using local greens like choy sum instead of broccoli rabe. We work closely with local farms. It tastes better and you can control the products you are getting.”

Those in the industry see more chefs, particularly from the US, venturing East in 2013. “There’s already a huge influx and it’s going to get bigger,” said Lauria. — AFP

Western chefsseek recipe forEastern success

By Aaron Tam

HONG KONG — After queuing on the street, diners are sat next to strangers in the cramped Hong Kong restaurant before rinsing their own cutlery. Welcome to the world’s cheapest Michelin-starred experience.

Ho Hung Kee (Ho Hung’s restaurant) was first awarded a coveted star in 2011 and on any given day is packed with local and foreign diners ordering bowls of wonton or fried flat noodles with beef for around HK$35 — less than US$5.

Wontons, a traditional dish served in Hong Kong and in China’s southeastern province of Guangdong, are similar to dumplings but their skin uses less dough, into which succulent shrimp and pork servings are wrapped.

Like hundreds of other Hong Kong “tea restaurants” or “Cha chaan teng” in the Cantonese dialect, Ho Hung Kee also serves quick, simple dishes ranging from congee and fried rice to a selection of Western-style sandwiches.

Squeezing onto tables with strangers is a normal dining experience in the cramped restaurant that seats about 50, nestled between towers of retail in the teeming shopping district of Causeway Bay.

Chefs start from 7am to batter shrimp and wrap wontons for the roughly 1000 customers served daily at the family-run restaurant, which began life as a humble street stall in the 1940s before it opened up as a full shop in 1964.

Patty Ho, the daughter-in-law of the restaurant’s founders and its current owner, said she has stuck

to original recipes because she wants customers to experience a “traditional eating culture”.

“More modern restaurants have already changed the culture of making wontons, where they only use shrimp, but we have continued to use our original recipe which includes pork, which preserves the meaty flavour,” said Ho.

She believes that staying true to tradition was one of the reasons Ho Hung Kee was awarded a star.

“ T h e y m u s t h a v e recognised our methods,” she said of the anonymous Michelin inspectors. “The fact that such a local shop was awarded a Michelin star,

it is a recognition of Hong Kong’s dining culture.”

Taiwanese diner Jerry Lin, 55, arrived at the restaurant early to avoid the lunchtime crowds.

“I have tried other Michelin restaurants in Shanghai, but this is a restaurant that is very accessible for normal people, we really like it,” he said.

“The price is great for a Michelin-starred restaurant and the taste is really good,” 45-year-old Riamida Ichsami from Indonesia said, while waiting outside Ho Hung Kee with her family five minutes after it opened.

M i c h e l i n g u i d e ’ s international director Michael Ellis said it was a surprise for

diners to discover inexpensive starred restaurants in the Asian financial hub, which is better known for its courting of expensive luxury experiences.

“To have a one-star experience for around HK$50 is something unique to Hong Kong,” Ellis said. “You do have, at extremely affordable prices, just some absolutely stunning food. Obviously it’s going to be cramped quarters, you’re going to be waiting in line, you’ll rinse your eating utensils with hot tea before you eat.”

Ellis was speaking after Michelin awarded 10 new restaurants with a one-star rating in the fifth edition of

its guide for Hong Kong and Macau for 2013, where the cachet of the star continues to carry allure for diners.

Ho Hung Kee, along with dim sum restaurant Tim Ho Wan and Pang’s Kitchen, a new addit ion to the list, make up “the least expensive, most affordable starred experience” in the world, Ellis said, with dishes for as little as HK$30 to HK$60 (US$3.80 to US$5.60)

Tim Ho Wan is famous for its steamed dumplings and its barbecue pork bun, all staple dim sum selections, while Pang’s Kitchen serves home-style renditions of Cantonese cuisine with specialties including baked fish intestines in a clay pot

and seasonal snake soup.Howeve r, t he gu i de

is not without its critics, who question whether the most deserving eateries have been recognised or if the food quality of Hong Kong’s cheaper restaurants can compare to ones in Europe despite the price difference.

“I’ve eaten at the one-star Benoit in Paris, and it’s on another level, in terms of quality of food, service and ambience, to Tim Ho Wan,” wrote the South China Morning Post’s food and wine editor, Susan Jung, soon after the 2013 guide was launched in December.

The Michelin guide has for more than a century recommended restaurants throughout Europe and now covers 23 countries across three continents.

It gives one star for “a very good restaurant in its category”, two for “excellent cooking, worth a detour”, and the top three stars for “exceptional cuisine, worth a special journey”. Hong Kong has four three-star restaurants.

“After our restaurant got one Michelin star, we have seen a lot more people come in, not just people from Southeast Asia, but people from Europe and the US have also increased,” Patty Ho said.

Ho Hung Kee has braved the city’s notoriously high rents to open a second branch in a gleaming shopping mall to handle the influx of customers who discovered the restaurant through the guidebook. The new branch offers a wider selection but at the same price range.

“We hope that by increasing the selection, customers will spend more,” she said.

— AFP

Hong Kong: home of world’s cheapest Michelin restaurants

A staff member prepares wontons at the one-Michelin-starred restaurant Ho Hung Kee in Hong Kong on December 27, 2012. Pic: AFP

‘To have a one-star experience for around HK$50 is something unique

to Hong Kong. You do have, at extremely affordable prices, just some absolutely stunning food.’

Food & drink43the MyanMar tiMes February 25 - March 3, 2013

Roll out the fresh veggies, Vietnam style

Phyo’s Cooking AdventurePhyo cuts through culture to reveal life’s true taste

Main TipsDon’t wet the rice paper too much, only enough to become soft.Dry all the vegetables and herbs before rolling them; excess water will make the rolls too wet.Prepare the fillers but don’t make the rolls ahead of time; rolling should be a fun part of the meal itself.

AS a Burmese I love all types of kaw pyant (spring rolls) — fried,

steamed or fresh. They are the perfect size for

nibbling, and make good filler for a

hungry stomach. Plenty of innovative fried spring rolls are

available at street stalls these

days, from savoury to sweet. I prefer fried spring rolls with corn, as well as with fried banana.

A few weeks ago while grocery shopping I found packets of rice paper that can be used for Vietnamese-style rolls. I was excited that I could make rice paper rolls for my family in Myanmar.

Vietnamese rice paper rolls are different from fresh kaw pyant. In Myanmar, when we roll fresh spring rolls, we stir-fry the vegetables and meat, then wrap them with thin spring roll sheets. Vietnamese rice paper rolls use fresh vegetables, herbs, steamed noodles, and cooked or grilled meat, which are wrapped with soft, thin, clear rice sheets. They are a bit healthier than fried rolls.

This week I am introducing two types of Vietnamese rice paper roll: one from the country’s south with prawns, and one from the north using grilled pork.

Vietnamese rice paper roll (summer roll)INGREDIENTS

(6 servings)12 sheets of rice paper

(khun yuy)70g of rice vermicelli

(moh hin gar phat)6 big prawns (cooked, de-

shelled and chilled)A bunch of lettuce A bunch of garlic chives

(khu sai; cut into 4-5cm lengths)

A couple bunches of mint (pick leaves)

A bunch of Asian basil (pick leaves)

3 big green shallots (white and light green parts only; cut bigger pieces into halves or quarters)

PREPARATIONFresh rice vermicelli

can be bought at local markets, while dry packets are available at bigger supermarkets. Prepare according to package instructions.

Wash the prawns thoroughly and cook them for 3-4 minutes in slightly salty, boiling water. Rinse

with fresh water and drain well, then de-shell and de-vein. Halve them from the back and set aside.

Wash the lettuce, garlic chives, mint, basil and green shallots. Drain well and let them dry.

Prepare lukewarm water in a shallow bowl that can fit the size of the rice paper. To prepare the rice paper, slowly dip one sheet into the water by holding it at one end and gently moving it around. Make sure it becomes slightly soft but not soaked through. Lay the sheet on a chopping board or plate.

Place a 7-8cm length of lettuce about 1/3 of the way from one end of the rice paper. Arrange a handful of rice vermicelli, two chives, five or six mint leaves, and basil leaves on top of the lettuce as filling.

Fold the bottom end of the rice paper over the

filling and roll upward. Handle gently and don’t pull it tight. Fold the left and right ends of the rice paper toward the centre and roll upward again.

Lay two pieces of prawn and a piece of shallot over the prawn along the length of the rice paper, then roll tightly toward the top end. Arrange the roll on a plate with the prawns on the upward side.

Dipping sauceINGREDIENTS

60ml (¼ cup) of fish sauce 60ml of white vinegar45ml (2½ tablespoons) of

lime juice2½ tablespoons of sugar3 garlic cloves (crushed)1 big red chili (diced)½ cup of water

PREPARATIONDissolve the sugar into

the water and mix all the ingredients (except the

chili) together in a jar. Garnish with the chili

Vietnamese rice paper rolls with pork mincePork mince pattiesINGREDIENTS

300g of pork mince1 tablespoon of sugar1 teaspoons of salt2 cloves of garlic (crushed)1 teaspoon of white

pepper¼ teaspoon of baking soda1½ tablespoons of

vegetable oil

PREPARATIONThe pork mince used

in this recipe is normally grilled, but I have fried it using a nonstick frying pan with a little bit of vegetable oil. Fresh herbs are used, and you can add shredded carrots and cucumber if you prefer.

Pat dry the pork mince with kitchen paper. Combine all the ingredients (except vegetable oil) in a food processor, or pound them well. Form the pork mince into small patties and store in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes.

Heat the vegetable oil in a nonstick frying pan over low-medium heat. Fry the pork patties and cover with a lid. Turn the pork from one side the other side, allowing the meat to turn golden brown. Fry until the meat cooks through, keeping the pan covered with the lid.

Drain the excess oil on kitchen paper, and slice the patties into pieces 1.5cm thick.

Follow the previous instructions to roll the ingredients, substituting pork mince for prawns.

8/10

Score BOX

White Wine

Red WineChateau Greysac Chateau de By Medoc 2007

This French cabernet and merlot blend entices with a spicy aroma, and follows through with a rich, fruity flavour that matches beautifully with rare red meat.

RestauRant RevieW

Centrally located on the ground floor of Thamada Hote l near downtown Yangon, 365 Café is a 24-hour venue, making it a great place to stop for a post-nightclub beer or two when you just can’t face the horrifying prospect of returning home before daybreak.

The atmosphere lends itself to such late-night visits, the décor aping the baroque bordello aesthetic that, inexplicably, seems all the rage among the new generation of coffee shops that have cropped up in Yangon in the past several years. The music here is invariably terrible, but at least it’s never too loud.

T h e e c l e c t i c i s m i s carried through to the vo luminous f ood and drink menus, featuring postmodern juxtapositions of incongruous cuisines from throughout Asia and

the West. This is definitely the place to go on those occasions when you hanker for a side of sushi with your spaghetti, or if you want to wash down your burger and fries with some miso soup.

I’ve always found the

food to be pretty good — well above the standard fare at some of the other coffee shops in Yangon — although a coworker recently described some of the Western options at Café 365 as “sloppy” (whatever

that means). During my most recent daytime visit I opted for the single-bowl meal of fried beef and kimchi over rice (K3300), which was very good and very filling even if the beef was a bit on the tough side.

The drink menu has something for everyone, from numerous hot and cold coffee options, to soft drinks and smoothies. I had a blueberry smoothie (K2850), from which I gained nearly 2 kilos just looking at the huge dollop of whipped cream that had been added to the top. But it was just what the doctor ordered on a hot afternoon when I was feeling down over the realisation that winter in Yangon is gone, gone, gone for another nine months.

Although it can sometimes be tricky to get a waiter’s attention, I’ve never had really bad service at 365

Café. On my last visit my order arrived with fast-food swiftness, the brain-freezing blueberry smoothie first, followed about two minutes later by the fried beef and kimchi.

A café for 24 hours a day, 365 days a year

Gustav Lorentz Pinot Gris Reserve 2010

Spicy in a mellower way than the above wine, this pinot gris is characterised by a pleasant acidity and soft sweetness that lingers enjoyably on the palate.

Quaffing Quote“If you can organise your kitchen, you can organise your life.” — Louis Parish (author of Cooking as Therapy)

next WeekVietnamese-style nan gyi thoke: rice spaghetti noodles and grilled pork salads

Ks19,800

Ks20,700

Pic: Phyo

365 Café5 Alanpaya Pagoda Road at Thamada Hotel, Dagon township, Yangon

Food: 7Drink: 8Atmosphere: 7Service: 8X Factor: 7Value for Money: 7

7/10

Score BOX

8/10

Score BOX

February 25 - March 3, 2013

soCialite 44the MyanMar tiMes

Model @ Myanmar

Beauty Expo 2013

U Shine Win @ Shwe Parami Scholarship Ceremony

Model @ Myanmar Beauty Expo 2013

Daw Pyone Pyone Mon, Thanda Bo, Mr Naron Skikriengthong and Kyaw Myo Tun @ Myanmar Beauty Expo 2013

Pa Pa Win Khin @ Shwe Parami Scholarship Ceremony

Ma Arkar Htet Yee @ MTVins Bordeaux Wine Launchand Tasting

Contestants @ Sein Gay Har Valentine’s Day Model Competition

Eaint Chit, Sithu Lwin and @ Nescafe “Stupid Cupid” Album Launch


Mr Damien Boudet @ MT Vins Bordeaux Wine Launch and Tasting

Phwe Phwe @ Nescafe“Stupid Cupid” Album Launch

Ms Nang Li Jun @ MT Vins Bordeaux Wine Launch and Tasting

Saw Hlaing Bwar @ HTC Press Conference


Prof Ye Mint Kyaw @ Prof Ye Mint Kyaw Book Launch

Jerry Ant Khin @ Prof Ye Mint Kyaw Book Launch

Yan Yan Chan @ Run Ygn Fashion Shop Opening

Owner @ Run Ygn Fashion Shop Opening Staff @ Grand Royal 15th Anniversary Lucky Draw

Mr James Marsden @ MT Vins Bordeaux Wine Launch and Tasting

Daw Aung San Suu Kyi @ Yangon Photo Festival

Baby Maung @ Nescafe “Stupid Cupid” Album Launch

L Sai Ze @ Grand Royal 15th Anniversary Lucky Draw

Hae Lay @ Grand Royal 15th Anniversary Lucky Draw

Chit Kaung @ Grand Royal 15th Anniversary Lucky Draw

U Tin Aung Saw and Ye’ Min Aung @ Lolane Sales Promotion


soCialite45the MyanMar tiMes

THIS week was a busy one for Socialite, partly due to the Valentine’s Day events around town. She started the week on February 12 by attending three events: Shwe Parami Foundation’s scholarship ceremony, Prof Ye Myint Kyaw’s book launch at Sedona Hotel and Grand Royal’s 15th anniversary lucky

draw at Capital Hyper Market. On February 14, Socialite appeared at the Run Ygn fashion shop opening on Bo Aung Kyaw Road, followed the Happy Valentine’s Contest at Sein Gay Har Hledan, Nescafe’s “Stupid Cupid” album launch and the Lolane program at Myanmar Convention Center. The next day she was seen at the Myanmar Beauty Expo at MMC, and in the evening at the MT Vins Bordeaux wine launch and

tasting event. She ended the week by attending HTC’s press conference, and celebrating the Yangon Photo Festival at the French Institute on February 16.

SOCIALITE W I T H N U A M B A W I

Ko Tun Naing @ Grand Royal15th Anniversary Lucky Draw

Ko Ye’, Aunty Nu Nu Yee and Yin Yin Tint @ Lolane Sales Promotion

Marina @ Nescafe “Stupid Cupid” Album Launch

Contestants @ Sein Gay Har Valentine’s Day Model Competition

Dr Soe Lwin @ Prof Ye Mint Kyaw Book Launch

Khat Ther, Ma Han Po Thein and Hnin Wut Yee @ HTC Press Conference

Ma Thet @ Prof Ye Mint Kyaw Book Launch

Soe Ngwe Ya @ HTC Press Conference

Sein Honey @ Shwe Parami Scholarship Ceremony

Chit Thu Wai @ Shwe Parami Scholarship Ceremony

KUWAIT AMBASSADOR & DIPLOMATIC STAFFS & LOCAL STAFFS @ The Anniversary of 52nd National Day and 22nd Liberation Day of The State of Kuwait

MR MYO NYUNT AUNG & MRS OHN MAR WIN @ The Anniversary of 52nd National Day and 22nd Liberation Day of The State of Kuwait

HE.MR ESSA YOUSEF ALSHAMALI and HE U MYINT SWE @ The Anniversary of 52nd National Day and 22nd Liberation Day of The State of Kuwait

HE MR.TALAL M.S. ABDUL SALAM @ The Anniversary of 52nd National Day and 22nd Liberation Day of The State of Kuwait

CHIEF MINISTERS & AMBASSADORS @ The Anniversary of 52nd National Day and 22nd Liberation Day of The State of Kuwait

travel www.mmtimes.com/2012/flight/flight.pdf


By Michael Kaminer

THE jetboat shot through Lake Wakatipu at 90 kilometres an hour, the pilot stoically hot-dogging around trees and rocks. Every few minutes, he’d rotate an index finger – a signal that we were about to whirl around at whiplash speed. My stomach lurched with every spin as I clutched the safety bar and clenched my teeth.

I was in Queenstown, the adventure capital of New Zealand. Visitors schlep to this South Island town to zipline, kayak, skydive, bungee and bike through scenery as otherworldly as it looks in such movies as The Hobbit, which was filmed here.

For a traveller like me, whose idea of thrill-seeking involves a new book and a double espresso, this is not an asset. So it was painfully ironic that a planning mix-up dropped me here for five days in November, at the expense of time in bigger cities that I’d wanted to explore.

I tried a few “when-in-Rome” act iv i t ies that challenged gravity; vertigo from the twirling jetboat finally made me swear to keep both feet on the ground. That’s a challenging prospect in a place whose entire economy seems engineered to serve adrenaline junkies.

But then the manager at my hotel, who listened patiently as I vented about my lack of options, made an intriguing suggestion.

An hour later, Alice Blackley pulled up in a black Volkswagen passenger van. Art Adventures, the name of her year-old business, was splashed on the side; the company logo was emblazoned on her crisp blue

blazer. And we embarked on a day-long tour of local galleries and studios, the first stop of which couldn’t have surprised me more if it had been an audience with an actual hobbit.

A short drive took us to a small, bright gallery just outside downtown Queenstown, where pop-goth canvases by Damien Hirst – yes, he of megawatt art-world fame – shared the walls with clover-shaped abstractions by Max Gimblett, a legendary Kiwi artist now based in New York.

Nadene Milne Gallery, as I learned, is one of Hirst’s global representatives. And the exhibit, tantalizingly titled “The Beauty and Brutality of Fact”, provided my first glimpse of a Queenstown that rarely makes the radar of adventure-craving tourists – a happening, heterogeneous art scene that’s uniquely New Zealand in its blend of hip and homey.

“There’s a misconception that Queenstown is all about the adrenaline-seeking thrill,” Blackley told me as we bounced along to our next destination, the tidy gallery of Tim Wilson, whose hyper-realistic fantasy landscapes got snapped up by The Hobbit cast members during their long shoot here. “People are surprised how art is evolving here. There’s a lot of wealth in the region and a lot of generous patronage. And there are some very big private art collections here of a reputable international standard.”

Wilson, whose paintings can fetch six figures, agreed. “Art and culture does seem sometimes to take a back seat while the outdoor-thrill-seeker scenario is pushed, sometimes to the extreme,” he told me by email after

Artist Lewis Gardiner’s work is displayed in the foreground at the quirky Kapa Design Gallery. Pic: Claire Frooms

Air Bagan Ltd.(W9)56, Shwe Taung Gyar Street, Bahan Tsp, Yangon. Tel : 513322, 513422, 504888, Fax : 515102

Air KBZ (K7)33-49,Corner of Bank Street & Maha Bandoola Garden Street, Kyauktada Tsp,Yangon, MyanmarTel: 372977~80, 533030~39 (Airport)Fax: 372983

Air Mandalay (6T)146, Dhammazedi Road, Bahan Tsp, Yangon Tel : (Head Office) 501520, 525488, Fax: 525937. Airport: 533222~3, 09-73152853. Fax: 533223.

Asian Wings (AW)No.34(A-1), Shwe Taung Gyar Street, Bahan Township,Yangon.Myanmar.Tel: 951 516654, 532253, 09-731-35991~3.Fax: 951 532333

Yangon Airways(YH)166, MMB Tower, Level 5, Upper Pansodan Rd, Mingalar Taungnyunt Tsp, Yangon. Tel: (+95-1) 383 100, 383 107, 700 264, Fax: 652 533.

FMI Air Charter - Sales & ReservationsNo.380, Bogyoke Aung San Rd., FMI Centre, Yangon, Myanmar. Tel: (95-1) 240363, 240373 / (+95-9) 421146545, E-mail: [email protected] [email protected]

Domestic Airlines

Subjectto change

without notice

Domestic6T = Air Mandalay

W9 = Air Bagan

YJ = Asian Wings

K7 = AIR KBZ

YH = Yangon Airways

UB = FMI UB Charter

Y5 = Golden Myanmar Airlines

DOMESTIC FLIGHT SCHEDULES Days Flight Dep Arr Days Flight Dep Arr Days Flight Dep Arr Days Flight Dep Arr Days Flight Dep Arr Days Flight Dep Arr

SAT YJ 891 06:10 08:15YH 917 06:10 08:306T 401 06:20 08:256T 341 06:30 07:55YH 909 06:30 08:10K7 222 06:30 08:40K7 244 06:45 08:10Y5 131 08:00 09:00YJ 761 11:00 12:55YJ 601/W97601 11:00 12:55YH 729 11:15 14:15YJ 109/W97109 14:30 16:256T 501 14:45 16:45YH 731 15:00 17:10

SUN YJ 891 06:10 08:15YH 917 06:10 08:306T 401 06:20 08:25YH 909 06:30 08:106T 403 06:30 08:35K7 222 06:30 08:40Y5 131 08:00 09:008M 6603 09:00 10:10YJ 211 09:30 10:55YJ 751/W97751 11:00 12:55YH 737 11:15 13:25K7 622 12:00 13:25YH 731 14:00 15:406T 501 14:15 16:20YJ 129/W97129 14:30 16:25

MANDALAY TO YANGONMON YH 910 07:40 10:30

YJ 902 08:20 09:45YJ 892 08:30 10:25YH 918 08:30 10:256T 402 08:45 10:45K7 223 09:00 11:05W9 502 09:10 11:05Y5 132 09:30 10:30W9 504 15:45 17:106T 502 16:05 17:30W9 109 16:10 18:15YJ 762 16:35 18:00K7 623 16:40 18:05YH 728 16:45 18:106T 342 16:45 18:50YH 732 17:10 19:15W9 120 17:50 19:15YJ 792 17:55 20:00

TUE YH 910 07:40 10:30YH 918 08:30 10:25YJ 892 08:30 10:256T 402 08:45 10:45K7 223 09:00 11:05W9 143 09:05 11:00Y5 132 09:30 10:30YJ 762 16:00 17:55W9 109 16:10 18:156T 502 16:20 17:45K7 623 16:40 18:05YJ 792 16:40 18:456T 342 16:45 18:508M 6604 17:20 18:30YH 732 17:40 19:45YH 730 18:00 19:25K7 823 18:00 19:25W9 252 18:35 20:00

WED YH 910 08:10 10:156T 332 08:30 09:55YJ 892 08:30 10:25YH 918 08:30 10:256T 402 08:45 10:45K7 223 09:00 11:05W9 144 09:05 11:10Y5 132 09:30 10:30K7 623 16:40 18:05YJ 792 16:40 18:456T 502 16:50 18:55YH 732 17:10 19:15YH 738 17:25 18:50W9 129 17:40 19:45W9 120 17:50 19:15YJ 752/W97752 17:50 19:15

THUR W9 205 07:40 09:45YH 910 08:10 10:15YJ 892 08:30 10:25YH 918 08:30 10:256T 402 08:45 10:45K7 223 09:00 11:05W9 143 09:05 11:10Y5 132 09:30 10:30YJ 202 10:30 11:55YJ 117/W97117 13:10 15:05YJ 202 14:30 15:55K7 227 15:50 17:156T 502 16:05 17:30YJ 501/W97501 16:10 17:35YJ 762 16:35 18:00YJ 762 16:35 18:00W9 129 16:40 18:056T 342 16:45 18:50YH 732 17:10 19:158M 6604 17:20 18:30

FRI YJ 901 07:40 10:30YH 910 07:40 10:30YJ 892 08:30 10:25YH 918 08:30 10:256T 402 08:45 10:456T 404 08:55 10:55K7 223 09:00 11:05Y5 132 09:30 10:306T 502 16:05 17:30YH 728 16:45 18:106T 342 16:45 18:50YH 732 17:10 19:15YH 732 17:10 19:15K7 825 17:40 19:05YJ 752/W97752 17:50 19:15

SAT YH 910 08:10 10:156T 342 08:15 10:20YJ 892 08:30 10:25YH 918 08:30 10:256T 402 08:45 10:45K7 223 09:00 11:05Y5 132 09:30 10:30YJ 762 16:35 18:00YJ 109/W97109 16:40 18:05YH 732 17:10 19:156T 502 17:50 19:10YH 730 18:00 19:25

SUN YH 910 08:10 10:15YJ 892 08:30 10:25YH 918 08:30 10:256T 402 08:45 10:456T 404 08:55 10:55K7 223 09:00 11:05Y5 132 09:30 10:30YJ 212 14:30 15:55YH 732 15:40 18:40K7 623 16:40 18:056T 502 16:40 18:45YJ 129/W97129 16:40 18:458M 6604 17:20 18:30K7 823 17:20 18:45YH 738 17:25 18:50

YANGON TO NYAUNG UMON YJ 901 06:00 07:20

W9 501 06:00 08:10YH 909 06:00 08:25YH 917 06:10 07:45YJ 891 06:10 07:306T 401 06:20 07:40YJ 141/W97141 06:30 07:506T 351 06:30 07:50K7 222 06:30 07:50W9 141 06:30 07:50W9 143 07:00 08:20YJ 911 10:00 12:10W9 109 14:00 16:40YJ 109/W97109 14:00 16:40YJ 211/W97211 15:00 17:106T 341 15:00 17:15YH 731 15:00 17:55YJ 791 15:45 18:25

TUE W9 205 06:00 07:20W9 141 06:00 08:10YH 909 06:00 08:25YJ 891 06:10 07:30YH 917 06:10 07:456T 401 06:20 07:406T 351 06:30 07:50YJ 141/W97141 06:30 07:50K7 222 06:30 07:50W9 143 06:45 08:05YH 711 11:00 13:20W9 109 14:00 16:40YJ 791 14:30 17:106T 341 15:00 17:15YH 731 15:30 18:25

WED YJ 901 06:00 07:20YJ 891 06:10 07:30YH 917 06:10 07:456T 401 06:20 07:40YJ 141/W97141 06:30 07:50K7 222 06:30 07:50W9 141 06:30 07:50YH 909 06:30 08:55W9 143 06:45 08:05K7 242 06:45 08:056T 351 11:15 12:35YJ 129/W97129 14:30 17:106T 501 14:30 17:20YJ 791 15:00 17:10YH 731 15:00 17:55W9 129 15:30 18:10

THUR W9 205 06:00 08:10YJ 891 06:10 07:30YH 917 06:10 07:456T 401 06:20 07:40YJ 141/W97141 06:30 07:50K7 222 06:30 07:50W9 141 06:30 07:506T 351 06:30 07:50YH 909 06:30 08:55W9 143 06:45 08:05YH 711 10:30 12:50W9 501 15:00 17:106T 341 15:00 17:15YH 731 15:00 17:55

FRI YJ 901 06:00 08:10YH 909 06:00 08:25YJ 891 06:10 07:30YH 917 06:10 07:456T 401 06:20 07:40YJ 141/W97141 06:30 07:506T 403 06:30 07:50K7 222 06:30 07:50K7 242 06:45 08:056T 341 15:00 17:15YH 731 15:00 17:55

SAT YJ 911 06:00 07:20YJ 891 06:10 07:30YH 917 06:10 07:456T 401 06:20 07:40YJ 141/W97141 06:30 07:50K7 222 06:30 07:506T 341 06:30 08:45YH 909 06:30 08:556T 451 10:45 12:056T 501 14:45 17:35YH 731 15:00 17:55

SUN YJ 901 06:00 08:10YJ 891 06:10 07:30YH 917 06:10 07:456T 401 06:20 07:40YJ 141/W97141 06:30 07:50K7 222 06:30 07:506T 403 06:30 07:50YH 909 06:30 08:55YH 731 14:00 17:20K7 224 14:15 16:256T 501 14:15 17:10YJ 129/W97129 14:30 17:10

NYAUNG U TO YANGONMON YJ 902 07:35 09:45

YH 918 07:45 10:25YJ 891 07:45 10:256T 401 07:55 10:45YJ 141/W97141 08:05 11:056T 351 08:05 11:10YH 910 08:25 10:30W9 502 08:25 11:05W9 144 08:35 09:55YJ 911 11:40 14:45K7 225 16:40 18:00W9 109 16:55 18:15YJ 211/W97211 17:25 18:456T 342 17:30 18:50YH 732 17:55 19:15YJ 792 18:40 20:00

TUE YJ 891 07:45 10:25YH 918 07:45 10:256T 401 07:55 10:45YJ 141/W97141 08:05 11:056T 351 08:05 11:10W9 143 08:20 11:00YH 910 08:25 10:30W9 141 08:25 11:25YH 712 13:20 15:15W9 109 16:55 18:15YJ 792 17:25 18:456T 342 17:30 18:50YH 732 18:25 19:45

WED YJ 902 07:35 09:40YJ 891 07:45 10:25YH 918 07:45 10:256T 401 07:55 10:45YJ 141/W97141 08:05 11:05W9 141 08:05 11:05YH 910 08:55 10:15W9 144 09:50 11:10YJ 911 12:25 15:306T 351 12:50 15:55K7 225 16:40 18:00YJ 129/W97129 17:25 18:45YJ 792 17:25 18:456T 502 17:35 18:55YH 732 17:55 19:15W9 129 18:25 19:45

YANGON TO NAY PYI TAWMON UB-A1 07:45 08:45

UB-B1 11:30 12:30UB-C1 16:00 17:00

TUE UB-A1 07:45 08:45UB-B1 11:30 12:30UB-C1 16:00 17:00

WED UB-A1 07:45 08:45UB-B1 11:30 12:30UB-C1 16:00 17:00

THUR UB-A1 07:45 08:45UB-B1 11:30 12:30UB-C1 16:00 17:00

FRI UB-A1 07:45 08:45UB-B1 11:30 12:30UB-C1 16:00 17:00

SAT UB-A1 08:00 09:00

SUN UB-A1 15:30 16:30

NAY PYI TAW TO YANGONMON UB-A2 09:15 10:15

UB-B2 13:00 14:00UB-C2 17:30 18:30

TUE UB-A2 09:15 10:15UB-B2 13:00 14:00UB-C2 17:30 18:30

WED UB-A2 09:15 10:15UB-B2 13:00 14:00UB-C2 17:30 18:30

THUR UB-A2 09:15 10:15UB-B2 13:00 14:00UB-C2 17:30 18:30

FRI UB-A2 09:15 10:15UB-B2 13:00 14:00UB-C2 17:30 18:30

SAT UB-A2 10:00 11:00

SUN UB-A2 17:00 18:00

YANGON TO MANDALAYMON W9 501 06:00 07:25

YH 909 06:00 07:40YJ 901 06:00 08:05YJ 891 06:10 08:15YH 917 06:10 08:306T 401 06:20 08:25K7 222 06:30 08:40Y5 131 08:00 09:00YJ 911 10:00 11:25YJ 761 11:00 12:55YH 727 11:15 13:25W9 119 11:45 13:40K7 622 12:00 13:256T 501 13:45 15:45W9 109 14:00 15:556T 341 15:00 16:25YJ 211/W97211 15:00 16:25YH 731 15:00 17:10YJ 791 15:45 17:40

TUE W9 141 06:00 07:25YH 909 06:00 07:40YJ 891 06:10 08:15YH 917 06:10 08:306T 401 06:20 08:25K7 222 06:30 08:40W9 143 06:45 08:50Y5 131 08:00 09:008M 6603 09:00 10:10YJ 761 11:00 12:55YH 729 11:15 14:15W9 251 11:30 12:55K7 822 11:30 12:55K7 622 12:00 13:25W9 109 14:00 15:556T 501 14:00 16:00YJ 791 14:30 16:256T 341 15:00 16:25YJ 731 15:30 17:40

WED YJ 891 06:10 08:15YH 917 06:10 08:306T 401 06:20 08:25YH 909 06:30 08:10K7 222 06:30 08:406T 331 06:45 08:10W9 143 06:45 08:50W9 201 07:30 08:55Y5 131 08:00 09:00YJ 911 10:00 11:25YJ 751/W97751 11:00 12:55YH 737 11:15 13:25W9 119 11:45 13:40K7 622 12:00 13:25W9 501 12:00 13:25YJ 129/W97129 14:30 16:256T 501 14:30 16:30YJ 791 15:00 16:25YH 731 15:00 17:10W9 129 15:30 17:25

THUR W9 205 06:00 07:25YJ 201 06:00 07:25YJ 891 06:10 08:15YH 917 06:10 08:306T 401 06:20 08:25YH 909 06:30 08:10K7 222 06:30 08:40W9 143 06:45 08:50Y5 131 08:00 09:008M 6603 09:00 10:10YJ 761 11:00 12:55YH 737 11:15 14:15K7 226 12:00 13:256T 501 13:45 15:45YJ 501/W97501 14:00 15:55W9 129 14:30 16:256T 341 15:00 16:25W9 501 15:00 16:25YH 731 15:00 17:10

FRI YJ 901 06:00 07:25YH 909 06:00 07:40YJ 891 06:10 08:15YH 917 06:10 08:306T 401 06:20 08:256T 403 06:30 08:35K7 222 06:30 08:40Y5 131 08:00 09:00YJ 751/W97751 11:00 12:55YJ 727 11:15 13:25K7 824 13:00 14:256T 501 13:45 15:456T 341 15:00 16:25YH 731 15:00 17:10

THUR YJ 891 07:45 10:25YH 918 07:45 10:256T 401 07:55 10:45YJ 141/W97141 08:05 11:05W9 141 08:05 11:056T 351 08:05 11:10W9 143 08:20 11:10W9 205 08:25 09:45YH 910 08:55 10:15YH 712 12:50 14:456T 342 17:30 18:50YH 732 17:55 19:15

FRI YJ 891 07:45 10:25YH 918 07:45 10:256T 401 07:55 10:456T 403 08:05 10:55YJ 141/W97141 08:05 11:05YJ 902 08:25 10:30YH 910 08:25 10:30K7 225 16:40 18:00YJ 792 17:25 18:456T 342 17:30 18:50YH 732 17:55 19:15

SAT YJ 911 06:00 07:20YJ 891 07:45 10:25YH 918 07:45 10:256T 401 07:55 10:45YJ 141/W97141 08:05 11:05YH 910 08:55 10:156T 342 09:00 10:206T 451 12:20 14:25YJ 602/W97602 16:25 17:45K7 225 16:40 18:006T 502 17:50 19:10YH 732 17:55 19:15

SUN YJ 902 07:35 08:55YJ 891 07:45 10:25YH 918 07:45 10:256T 401 07:55 10:456T 403 08:05 10:55YJ 141/W97141 08:05 11:05YH 910 08:55 10:15K7 225 16:40 18:00YH 732 17:20 18:406T 502 17:25 18:45

YANGON TO MYITKYINAMON W9 503 11:00 13:55

K7 622 12:00 14:55TUE W9 251 11:30 14:25

K7 622 12:00 14:55WED K7 622 12:00 14:55THUR YJ 201 06:00 08:50SUN YJ 211 09:30 12:20

K7 622 12:00 14:55

MYITKYINA TO YANGONMON W9 504 14:15 17:10

K7 623 15:10 18:05TUE K7 623 15:10 18:05

W9 252 17:05 20:00WED K7 623 15:10 18:05THUR YJ 202 09:05 11:55SUN YJ 211 12:35 15:55

K7 623 15:10 18:05

YANGON TO HEHOMON YH 909 06:00 09:20

YJ 891 06:10 09:00YH 917 06:10 09:156T 401 06:20 09:20W9 141 06:30 08:456T 351 06:30 08:45YJ 141/W97141 06:30 08:45K7 828 10:00 11:15YJ 911 10:00 13:05YJ 761 11:00 12:10YH 727 11:15 12:40W9 119 11:45 12:556T 501 13:45 14:55W9 109 14:00 15:10K7 224 14:15 15:30YH 731 15:00 16:25YJ 791 15:45 16:55

TUE W9 141 06:00 09:05YH 909 06:00 09:20YJ 891 06:10 09:00YH 917 06:10 09:156T 401 06:20 09:206T 351 06:30 08:45YJ 141/W97141 06:30 08:45W9 143 06:45 09:35W9 201 09:30 10:40YJ 761 11:00 12:10YH 711 11:00 12:25K7 822 11:30 13:456T 501 14:00 15:10W9 109 14:00 15:10YJ 791 14:30 15:40YH 731 15:30 16:55

WED YJ 901 06:00 08:15YJ 891 06:10 09:00YH 917 06:10 09:156T 401 06:20 09:20YJ 141/W97141 06:30 08:45W9 141 06:30 08:45W9 201 07:30 09:40YJ 911 10:00 12:10YH 711 10:30 11:55YJ 751/W97751 11:00 12:10YH 737 11:15 12:406T 351 11:15 13:30W9 119 11:45 12:55K7 826 12:30 13:45K7 224 14:15 15:306T 501 14:30 15:40YJ 129/W97129 14:30 15:40YH 731 15:00 16:25W9 129 15:30 16:40

THUR YJ 901 06:00 08:15YJ 891 06:10 09:00YH 917 06:10 09:156T 401 06:20 09:20YJ 141/W97141 06:30 08:456T 351 06:30 08:45W9 141 06:30 08:45W9 143 06:45 09:35K7 828 10:00 11:15YH 711 10:30 11:55YJ 761 11:00 12:106T 501 13:45 14:55YJ 501/W97501 14:00 15:10W9 129 14:30 15:40YH 732 15:00 16:25

FRI YH 909 06:00 09:20YJ 891 06:10 09:006T 401 06:20 09:20YJ 141/W97141 06:30 08:456T 403 06:30 09:30K7 242 06:45 09:00YJ 751/W97751 11:00 12:10YH 727 11:15 12:406T 501 13:45 14:55K7 224 14:15 15:30YH 731 15:00 16:25

SAT YJ 911 06:00 08:15YJ 891 06:10 09:00YH 917 06:10 09:156T 401 06:20 09:20YJ 141/W97141 06:30 08:45K7 224 06:45 09:00YH 711 10:30 11:556T 451 10:45 13:00YJ 761 11:00 12:10K7 826 12:30 13:45K7 224 14:15 15:306T 501 14:45 15:55YH 731 15:00 16:25

SUN YJ 891 06:10 09:00YH 917 06:10 09:156T 401 06:20 09:20YJ 141/W97141 06:30 08:456T 403 06:30 09:30YJ 751/W97751 11:00 12:10YH 737 11:15 12:40K7 822 11:30 13:45YH 731 14:00 16:256T 501 14:15 15:25K7 224 14:15 15:30YJ 129/W97129 16:40 18:45

HEHO TO YANGONMON W9 141 09:00 11:05

YJ 141/W97141 09:00 11:056T 352 09:00 11:10YJ 892 09:15 10:25YH 918 09:15 10:25YH 910 09:20 10:306T 402 09:35 10:45K7 223 09:50 11:05W9 502 09:55 11:05YJ 912 13:20 15:30YJ 109/W97109 14:00 15:106T 501 15:10 17:30W9 109 15:25 18:15YJ 762 15:50 18:00YH 728 16:00 18:10YH 732 16:25 19:15K7 829 16:30 17:45W9 120 17:05 19:15YJ 791 17:10 20:00

TUE YJ 141/W97141 09:00 11:056T 352 09:00 11:10YJ 892 09:15 10:25YH 918 09:15 10:25YH 910 09:20 10:30W9 141 09:20 11:256T 402 09:35 10:45W9 143 09:50 11:00K7 223 09:50 11:05W9 202 10:55 12:05YH 712 12:25 14:306T 501 15:25 17:45W9 109 15:25 18:15YJ 791 15:55 18:45YJ 762 16:45 17:55YH 732 16:55 19:45K7 823 17:10 19:25

WED YJ 902 08:30 09:40W9 141 09:00 11:05YJ 141/W97141 09:00 11:05K7 243 09:15 11:30YJ 892 09:15 10:25YH 918 09:15 10:256T 402 09:35 10:45K7 223 09:50 11:05W9 201 09:55 11:05YH 712 11:55 14:00YJ 912 12:25 14:356T 352 13:45 15:55YJ 129/W97129 15:55 18:456T 501 15:55 18:55YH 732 16:25 19:15K7 827 16:30 17:45YH 738 16:40 18:50W9 129 16:55 19:45W9 120 17:05 19:15YJ 791 17:10 20:00

THUR YJ 141/W97141 09:00 11:056T 352 09:00 11:10YJ 892 09:15 10:25YH 918 09:15 10:256T 402 09:35 10:45K7 223 09:50 11:05W9 143 09:50 11:10YH 712 11:55 14:456T 501 15:10 17:30YJ 501/W97501 15:25 17:35YJ 762 15:50 18:00W9 129 15:55 18:05YH 732 16:25 19:15K7 829 16:30 17:45YH 730 18:00 19:10

FRI YJ 141/W97141 09:00 11:05YJ 892 09:15 10:25YH 918 09:15 10:25K7 243 09:15 11:30YH 910 09:20 10:306T 402 09:35 10:456T 404 09:45 10:55K7 223 09:50 11:056T 501 15:10 17:30YH 728 16:00 18:10YH 732 16:25 19:15

SAT YJ 912 08:30 10:40YJ 141/W97141 09:00 11:05YJ 892 09:15 10:25YH 918 09:15 10:256T 402 09:35 10:45K7 223 09:50 11:05YH 506 11:55 14:006T 452 13:15 14:25YJ 762 15:50 18:00YJ 109/W97109 15:55 18:056T 501 16:10 19:10YH 732 16:25 19:15K7 827 17:10 18:25

SUN YJ 892 09:15 10:25YH 918 09:15 10:256T 402 09:35 10:456T 404 09:45 10:55K7 223 09:50 11:056T 501 15:45 18:45YJ 129/W97129 15:55 18:45YH 732 16:25 18:40YH 738 16:40 18:50YJ 752/W97752 17:00 18:10

YANGON TO SITTWEMON 6T 611 11:30 12:55TUE K7 422 06:45 08:40

6T 611 11:30 12:55WED 6T 607 10:15 11:40THRU 6T 611 11:30 12:55FRI 6T 611 11:30 12:55SAT 6T 607 11:15 12:40SUN K7 422 06:45 08:40

6T 611 11:30 12:55

SITTWE TO YANGONMON 6T 612 13:15 14:40TUE K7 423 08:55 10:50

6T 612 13:15 14:40WED 6T 608 12:00 12:50THUR 6T 612 13:15 14:40FRI 6T 612 13:15 14:40SAT 6T 608 13:00 15:05SUN K7 423 08:55 10:50

6T 612 13:15 14:40

YANGON TO MYEIKMON K7 319 07:00 09:05TUE K7 319 07:00 09:05

YJ 301 07:00 09:10WED K7 319 07:00 09:05THUR K7 319 07:00 09:05

YJ 301 12:15 14:25FRI K7 319 07:00 09:05SAT K7 319 07:00 09:05SUN K7 319 07:00 09:05

MYEIK TO YANGONMON K7 320 11:30 13:35TUE YJ 302 11:25 13:35

K7 320 11:30 13:35WED K7 320 11:30 13:35THUR K7 320 11:30 13:35

YJ 302 16:40 18:50FRI K7 320 11:30 13:35SAT K7 320 11:30 13:35SUN K7 320 11:30 13:35

YANGON TO THANDWEMON W9 141 06:30 10:00

6T 351 06:30 10:00YJ 141/W97141 06:30 10:00K7 420 06:45 07:40YH 503 11:00 12:056T 601 11:15 12:10

TUE W9 141 06:00 10:206T 351 06:30 10:00YJ 141/W97141 06:30 10:00K7 422 06:45 07:40YH 711 11:00 14:256T 601 11:30 12:25YJ 309/W97309 12:00 12:50

WED W9 141 06:30 10:00YJ 141/W97141 06:30 10:00YJ 911 10:00 13:256T 607 10:15 12:50YH 711 10:30 13:106T 351 11:15 14:45

THUR W9 141 06:30 10:00YJ 141/W97141 06:30 10:006T 351 06:30 10:00K7 420 06:45 07:40YH 711 10:30 13:556T 601 11:15 12:10

FRI 6T 351 06:30 10:006T 601 11:15 12:10YH 503 11:00 12:05

SAT YH 505 10:30 13:106T 451 10:30 14:006T 607 11:15 13:50

SUN 6T 351 06:30 10:00K7 422 06:45 07:40YH 505 10:30 13:356T 601 11:15 12:10

THANDWE TO YANGONMON K7 421 07:55 08:50

W9 141 10:15 11:05YJ 141/W97141 10:15 11:056T 352 10:15 11:10YH 504 12:05 12:556T 602 12:25 13:20YJ 912 14:35 15:30

TUE K7 423 09:55 10:50YJ 141/W97141 10:15 11:056T 352 10:15 11:10W9 141 10:35 11:256T 602 12:40 13:35YJ 310/W97310 13:05 13:55YH 712 14:25 15:15

WED W9 141 10:15 11:05YJ 141/W97141 10:15 11:056T 608 13:05 14:00YH 712 13:10 14:00YJ 912 13:40 14:356T 352 15:00 15:55

THUR K7 421 07:55 08:50YJ 141/W97141 10:15 11:05W9 141 10:15 11:056T 352 10:15 11:106T 602 12:25 13:20YH 712 13:55 14:45

FRI 6T 352 10:15 11:10K7 243 10:35 11:30YH 504 12:05 12:556T 602 12:25 13:20

SAT K7 245 10:35 11:30YH 506 13:10 14:006T 608 14:10 15:05

SUN K7 423 09:55 10:50YH 506 11:35 12:256T 602 12:25 13:20

The thrilling art of Queenstown NZ

travelwww.mmtimes.com/2012/flight/flight.pdf


The thrilling art of Queenstown NZ

my visit. “But I’ve lived in big cities around the world, and Queenstown’s incredibly nurturing. The landscape’s unlike anywhere on earth, the light’s unique and the atmosphere translucent.”

W i l s o n ’ s i n t r i c a t e , painstaking work reflects those characteristics. With an Old Masters-inspired technique that he developed himself, he applies as many as 30 layers of glazes so that canvases seem to glow with the ambient light of their surroundings. The effect is entrancing.

Back on Earl Street in Queenstown’s tourist-clogged downtown core, Blackley led me to the airy, bi-level Milford Galleries, where we were the only visitors at a just-opened exhibit by one of New Zealand’s great living artists.

Dick Frizzell is a onetime commercial illustrator who mashes pop art, comics and traditional painting into uncategorisable work that bridges tradition and sedition. The exhibit I saw, titled “Grand Central”, included deceptively stark landscapes, portraits of rural shops and views of abandoned storefronts.

Blackley then took me around the corner to Kapa, a quirky gallery above a souvenir shop where Frizzell’s son Otis, an emerging star himself, was having his own opening. The space had just premiered “Recent History”, an exhibit of prints by

Weston Frizzell, the “high-performance art partnership” Frizzell runs with Auckland scenester Mike Weston.

Their work consisted of a series of metaphorical middle fingers. One print mocked a classic logo that Frizzell’s father had created for a New Zealand grocery chain; another savagely satirised an Auckland civic-pride campaign. It wasn’t what I expected to see in a city whose year-round population tops out at around 9000.

And until recently, it wasn’t what you’d find here, according to gallerist Nadene Milne.

“Over the past decade, the Queenstown demographic has changed considerably, with many internationals and New Zealanders who have lived internationally now living here. So there’s an increasing audience for a more sophisticated cultural conversation,” Milne said.

The next stop on our tour took us to a tin-roofed hut a few kilometres outside downtown Queenstown, where Spike Wademan was adding the final touches to one of his photorealistic marine paintings. A former commercial i l lustrator based in London and Sydney, Wademan settled in Queenstown 13 years ago for “a lifestyle change”.

His fanatically detailed oil portraits of battleships and warplanes have earned him fans such as The Hobbit director Peter Jackson,

an obsessive collector of World War I memorabilia. Wademan receives visitors by appointment only; it’s worth booking Blackley’s tour just to gain access to his memento-packed rabbit hole of a studio.

A workshop belonging to Wademan’s wife was just as fascinating. Sue Wademan is New Zealand’s leading textile artist; in a converted schoolhouse near downtown Queenstown, she maintains a fabric-strewn studio and art academy. The day of our visit, she interrupted a class of rapt students to share new work with us. I watched, mesmerised, as she arranged a seemingly random handful of ribbons into a graceful, painterly landscape.

“The landscape is why Spike and I chose Queenstown,” said Sue, whose work can command as much as US$20,000. “And it’s very much become the art hub of the area. We have a lot of part-time residents who appreciate the kind of work that Spike and I do. That kind of population gave us an audience and helped us grow.”

I wasn’t able to take home one of Sue Wademan’s beautiful pieces. But thanks to Blackley, I did leave Queenstown with a new perspective on a destination I’d pretty much written off.

And for me, that’s the best kind of travel adventure you can have.

– The Washington Post

Sue Wademan, second from left, is New Zealand’s leading textile artist; Alice Blackley, second from right, owns a business called “Art Adventures” and is an artist herself. Pic: Julian Aspe

INTERNATIONAL FLIGHT SCHEDULESDAyS Flight Dep Arr Days Flight Dep Arr Days Flight Dep Arr Days Flight Dep Arr

YANGON TO BANGKOKMON PG 706 07:15 09:30

8M 335 08:40 10:25TG 304 09:50 11:45PG 702 10:45 12:40TG 302 14:45 16:408M 331 16:30 18:15PG 704 18:45 20:40TG 306 19:40 21:35

TUE PG 706 07:15 09:308M 335 08:40 10:25TG 304 09:50 11:45PG 702 10:45 12:40TG 302 14:45 16:408M 331 16:30 18:15PG 704 18:45 20:40TG 306 19:40 21:35

WED PG 706 07:15 09:308M 335 08:40 10:25TG 304 09:50 11:45PG 702 10:45 12:40TG 302 14:45 16:408M 331 16:30 18:15PG 704 18:45 20:40TG 306 19:40 21:35

THUR PG 706 07:15 09:308M 335 08:40 10:25TG 304 09:50 11:45PG 702 10:45 12:40TG 302 14:45 16:408M 331 16:30 18:15PG 704 18:45 20:40TG 306 19:40 21:35

FRI PG 706 07:15 09:308M 335 08:40 10:25TG 304 09:50 11:45PG 702 10:45 12:40TG 302 14:45 16:408M 331 16:30 18:15PG 704 18:45 20:40TG 306 19:40 21:35

SAT PG 706 07:15 09:308M 335 08:40 10:25TG 304 09:50 11:45PG 702 10:45 12:40TG 302 14:45 16:408M 331 16:30 18:15PG 704 18:45 20:40TG 306 19:40 21:35

SUN PG 706 07:15 09:308M 335 08:40 10:25TG 304 09:50 11:45PG 702 10:45 12:40TG 302 14:45 16:408M 331 16:30 18:15PG 704 18:45 20:40TG 306 19:40 21:35

YANGON TO DON MUENGMON FD 2752 08:30 10:20

FD 2756 12:50 14:40FD 2754 17:35 19:25

TUE FD 2752 08:30 10:20FD 2756 12:50 14:40FD 2754 17:35 19:25

WED FD 2752 08:30 10:20FD 2756 12:50 14:40FD 2754 17:35 19:25

THUR FD 2752 08:30 10:20FD 2756 12:50 14:40FD 2754 17:35 19:25

FRI FD 2752 08:30 10:20FD 2756 12:50 14:40FD 2754 17:35 19:25

SAT FD 2752 08:30 10:20FD 2756 12:50 14:40FD 2754 17:35 19:25

SUN FD 2752 08:30 10:20FD 2756 12:50 14:40FD 2754 17:35 19:25

YANGON TO SINGAPOREMON MI 509 00:25 05:00

8M 231 08:30 13:00SQ 997 10:25 14:458M 6232 11:30 16:053K 586 11:30 16:05MI 517 16:40 21:15

TUE 8M 231 08:30 13:00SQ 997 10:25 14:453K 586 11:40 16:258M 6232 11:40 16:25MI 517 16:40 21:15

WED 8M 231 08:30 13:00SQ 997 10:25 14:458M 6232 11:30 16:053K 586 11:30 16:05MI 517 16:40 21:15

THUR 8M 231 08:30 13:00SQ 997 10:25 14:453K 586 11:40 16:258M 6232 11:40 16:25MI 517 16:40 21:15

FRI 8M 231 08:30 13:00SQ 997 10:25 14:453K 586 11:30 16:058M 6232 11:30 16:053K 586 11:40 16:258M 6232 11:40 16:258M 233 13:45 18:15MI 517 16:40 21:15

SAT 8M 231 08:30 13:00SQ 997 10:25 14:458M 6232 11:30 16:053K 586 11:30 16:058M 233 13:45 18:15MI 517 16:40 21:15MI 509 00:25 05:00

SUN 8M 231 08:30 13:00SQ 997 10:25 14:453K 586 11:40 16:258M 6232 11:40 16:258M 233 13:45 18:15MI 517 16:40 21:15

YANGON TO KUALA LUMPURMON AK 1425 08:30 12:45

8M 501 08:55 12:55MH 741 12:15 16:30AK 1421 17:15 21:30

TUE AK 1425 08:30 12:458M 501 08:55 12:55MH 741 12:15 16:30AK 1421 17:15 21:30

WED AK 1425 08:30 12:458M 501 08:55 12:55MH 741 12:15 16:30AK 1421 17:15 21:30

THUR AK 1425 08:30 12:45MH 741 12:15 16:30AK 1421 17:15 21:30

FRI AK 1425 08:30 12:458M 501 08:55 12:55MH 741 12:15 16:30AK 1421 17:15 21:30

SAT AK 1425 08:30 12:458M 501 08:55 12:55MH 741 12:15 16:30AK 1421 17:15 21:30

SUN AK 1425 08:30 12:45MH 741 12:15 16:30AK 1421 17:15 21:30

YANGON TO BEIJNGTUE CA 906 14:15 21:55WED CA 906 14:15 21:55THUR CA 906 14:15 21:55SAT CA 906 14:15 21:55SUN CA 906 14:15 21:55

YANGON TO FRANKFURTWED DE 2369 05:35 16:40

YANGON TO GAUNGZHOUMON CZ 3056 17:40 22:15TUE 8M 711 08:40 13:15WED CZ 3056 11:20 15:50THUR 8M 711 08:40 13:15FRI CZ 3056 17:40 22:15SAT CZ 3056 11:20 15:50SUN 8M 711 08:40 13:15

YANGON TO TAIPEIMON CI 7916 10:50 16:10TUE CI 7916 10:50 16:10

BR 288 11:35 17:20WED CI 7916 10:50 16:10THUR CI 7916 10:50 16:10FRI CI 7916 10:50 16:10

BR 288 11:35 17:20SAT CI 7916 10:50 16:10

BR 288 11:35 17:20SUN CI 7916 10:50 16:10

YANGON TO KUNMINGMON MU 2032 14:40 18:00TUE CA 906 14:15 17:35

MU 2032 14:40 18:00WED CA 906 14:15 17:35

MU 2032 14:40 18:00THUR CA 906 14:15 17:35

MU 2032 14:40 18:00FRI MU 2032 14:40 18:00SAT CA 906 14:15 17:35

MU 2032 14:40 18:00SUN CA 906 14:15 17:35

MU 2032 14:40 18:00YANGON TO KOLKATA

MON AI 234 13:40 16:55FRI AI 234 13:40 16:55

AI 228 18:45 19:45YANGON TO CHIANG MAI

THUR W9 9607 14:20 16:10SUN W9 9607 14:20 16:10

YANGON TO HANOIMON VN 956 19:10 21:30TUE VN 956 19:10 21:30WED VN 956 19:10 21:30THUR VN 956 19:10 21:30FRI VN 956 19:10 21:30SAT VN 956 19:10 21:30SUN VN 956 19:10 21:30

YANGON TO HO CHI MINHTUE VN 942 14:25 17:10THUR VN 942 14:25 17:10SAT VN 942 14:25 17:10SUN VN 942 14:25 17:10

YANGON TO GAYAMON 8M 601 07:00 08:20

AI 234 13:40 15:00WED 8M 601 07:00 08:20FRI 8M 601 07:00 08:20

AI 234 13:40 15:00SAT 8M 601 07:00 08:20

YANGON TO DOHAMON QR 619 08:00 11:45TUE QR 619 08:00 11:45WED QR 619 08:00 11:45THUR QR 619 08:00 11:45FRI QR 619 08:00 11:45SAT QR 619 08:00 11:45SUN QR 619 08:00 11:45

YANGON TO PHNOM PENHWED 8M 403 16:45 19:10SAT 8M 403 16:45 19:10

YANGON TO SEOULMON KE 472 00:05 08:00TUE KE 472 00:05 08:00WED KE 472 00:05 08:00THUR KE 472 00:05 08:00FRI KE 472 00:05 08:00SAT KE 472 00:05 08:00SUN KE 472 00:05 08:00

YANGON SIEM REAPMON 8M 401 17:05 19:15FRI 8M 401 17:05 19:15

YANGON TO HONGKONGMON KA 251 01:00 06:00TUE KA 251 01:00 06:00THUR KA 251 01:00 06:00SAT KA 251 01:00 06:00

YANGON TO TOKYOMON NH 914 22:00 06:40+1WED NH 914 22:00 06:40+1SAT NH 914 22:00 06:40+1

MANDALAY TO DON MUENGMON FD 2761 11:05 13:30TUE FD 2761 11:05 13:30THUR FD 2761 11:05 13:30SAT FD 2761 11:05 13:30

MANDALAY TO KUNMINGMON MU 2030 14:40 17:20

MU 7524 18:20 21:00TUE MU 2030 14:40 17:20WED MU 2030 14:40 17:20

MU 7524 18:20 21:00THUR MU 2030 14:40 17:20FRI MU 2030 14:40 17:20

MU 7524 18:20 21:00SAT MU 2030 14:40 17:20SUN MU 2030 14:40 17:20

MANDALAY TO GAYATUE 8M 603 11:10 12:15THUR 8M 603 11:10 12:15SUN 8M 603 11:10 12:15

BANGKOK TO YANGONMON 8M 336 06:40 07:25

TG 303 08:00 08:45PG 701 09:05 09:55TG 301 13:00 13:45PG 703 17:05 17:55TG 305 17:55 18:408M 332 19:20 20:05PG 705 20:15 21:30

TUE 8M 336 06:40 07:25TG 303 08:00 08:45PG 701 09:05 09:55TG 301 13:00 13:45PG 703 17:05 17:55TG 305 17:55 18:408M 332 19:20 20:05PG 705 20:15 21:30

WED 8M 336 06:40 07:25TG 303 08:00 08:45PG 701 09:05 09:55TG 301 13:00 13:45PG 703 17:05 17:55TG 305 17:55 18:408M 332 19:20 20:05PG 705 20:15 21:30

THUR 8M 336 06:40 07:25TG 303 08:00 08:45PG 701 09:05 09:55TG 301 13:00 13:45PG 703 17:05 17:55TG 305 17:55 18:408M 332 19:20 20:05PG 705 20:15 21:30

FRI 8M 336 06:40 07:25TG 303 08:00 08:45PG 701 09:05 09:55TG 301 13:00 13:45PG 703 17:05 17:55TG 305 17:55 18:408M 332 19:20 20:05PG 705 20:15 21:30

SAT 8M 336 06:40 07:25TG 303 08:00 08:45PG 701 09:05 09:55TG 301 13:00 13:45PG 703 17:05 17:55TG 305 17:55 18:408M 332 19:20 20:05PG 705 20:15 21:30

SUN 8M 336 06:40 07:25TG 303 08:00 08:45PG 701 09:05 09:55TG 301 13:00 13:45PG 703 17:05 17:55TG 305 17:55 18:408M 332 19:20 20:05PG 705 20:15 21:30

DON MUENG TO YANGONMON FD 2751 07:15 08:00

FD 2755 11:35 12:20FD 2753 16:20 17:05

TUE FD 2751 07:15 08:00FD 2755 11:35 12:20FD 2753 16:20 17:05

WED FD 2751 07:15 08:00FD 2755 11:35 12:20FD 2753 16:20 17:05

THUR FD 2751 07:15 08:00FD 2755 11:35 12:20FD 2753 16:20 17:05

FRI FD 2751 07:15 08:00FD 2755 11:35 12:20FD 2753 16:20 17:05

SAT FD 2751 07:15 08:00FD 2755 11:35 12:20FD 2753 16:20 17:05

SUN FD 2751 07:15 08:00FD 2755 11:35 12:20FD 2753 16:20 17:05

SINGAPORE TO YANGONMON SQ 998 07:55 09:20

3K 585 09:10 10:408M 6231 09:10 10:408M 232 14:10 15:40MI 518 14:20 15:45

TUE SQ 998 07:55 09:203K 585 09:10 10:408M 6231 09:10 10:408M 232 14:10 15:40MI 518 14:20 15:45

WED SQ 998 07:55 09:203K 585 09:10 10:408M 6231 09:10 10:408M 232 14:10 15:40MI 518 14:20 15:45

THUR SQ 998 07:55 09:203K 585 09:10 10:408M 6231 09:10 10:408M 232 14:10 15:40MI 518 14:20 15:45

FRI SQ 998 07:55 09:203K 585 09:10 10:408M 6231 09:10 10:408M 232 14:10 15:40MI 518 14:20 15:458M 234 19:15 20:45MI 520 22:10 23:35

SAT SQ 998 07:55 09:203K 585 09:10 10:408M 6231 09:10 10:408M 232 14:10 15:40MI 518 14:20 15:458M 234 19:15 20:45

SUN SQ 998 07:55 09:208M 6231 09:10 10:403K 585 09:10 10:408M 232 14:10 15:40MI 518 14:20 15:458M 234 19:15 20:45MI 520 22:10 23:35BEIJNG TO YANGON

TUE CA 905 8:05 13:15WED CA 905 8:05 13:15THUR CA 905 8:05 13:15SAT CA 905 8:05 13:15SUN CA 905 8:05 13:15

FRANKFURT TO YANGONTUE DE 2368 12:40 04:25+1

KAULA LUMPUR TO YANGONMON AK 1424 06:55 08:00

MH 740 10:05 11:158M 502 14:00 15:00AK 1420 15:40 16:45

TUE AK 1424 06:55 08:00MH 740 10:05 11:158M 502 14:00 15:00AK 1420 15:40 16:45

WED AK 1424 06:55 08:00MH 740 10:05 11:158M 502 14:00 15:00AK 1420 15:40 16:45

THUR AK 1424 06:55 08:00MH 740 10:05 11:15AK 1420 15:40 16:45

FRI AK 1424 06:55 08:00MH 740 10:05 11:158M 502 14:00 15:00AK 1420 15:40 16:45

SAT AK 1424 06:55 08:00MH 740 10:05 11:158M 502 14:00 15:00AK 1420 15:40 16:45

SUN AK 1424 06:55 08:00MH 740 10:05 11:15AK 1420 15:40 16:45

GUANGZHOU TO YANGONMON CZ 3055 14:45 16:35TUE 8M 712 14:15 15:50WED CZ 3055 08:40 10:30THUR 8M 712 14:15 15:50FRI CZ 3055 14:45 16:35SAT CZ 3055 08:40 10:30SUN 8M 712 14:15 15:50

TAIPEI TO YANGONMON CI 7915 07:00 09:50TUE CI 7915 07:00 09:50

BR 287 07:30 10:35WED CI 7915 07:00 09:50THUR CI 7915 07:00 09:50FRI CI 7915 07:00 09:50

BR 287 07:30 10:35SAT CI 7915 07:00 09:50

BR 287 07:30 10:35SUN CI 7915 07:00 09:50

KUNMING TO YANGONMON MU 2031 13:30 14:00TUE CA 905 13:00 13:15

MU 2031 13:30 14:00WED CA 905 13:00 13:15

MU 2031 13:30 14:00THUR CA 905 13:00 13:15

MU 2031 13:30 14:00FRI MU 2031 13:30 14:00SAT CA 905 13:00 13:15

MU 2031 13:30 14:00SUN CA 905 13:00 13:15

MU 2031 13:30 14:00KOLKATA TO YANGON

MON AI 227 10:10 12:55FRI AI 227 10:10 12:55

AI 233 13:30 16:00CHIANG MAI TO YANGON

THUR W9 9608 17:20 18:10SUN W9 9608 17:20 18:10

HANOI TO YANGONMON VN 957 16:35 18:10TUE VN 957 16:35 18:10WED VN 957 16:35 18:10THUR VN 957 16:35 18:10FRI VN 957 16:35 18:10SAT VN 957 16:35 18:10SUN VN 957 16:35 18:10

HO CHI MINH TO YANGONTUE VN 943 11:40 13:25THUR VN 943 11:40 13:25SAT VN 943 11:40 13:25SUN VN 943 11:40 13:25

GAYA TO YANGONMON 8M 602 09:20 12:30WED 8M 602 09:20 12:30FRI 8M 602 09:20 12:30

AI 233 15:00 16:00SAT 8M 602 09:20 12:30

GAYA TO MANDALAYTUE 8M 604 13:15 16:20THUR 8M 604 13:15 16:20SUN 8M 604 13:15 16:20

DOHA TO YANGONMON QR 618 21:05 06:29+1TUE QR 618 21:05 06:29+1WED QR 618 21:05 06:29+1THUR QR 618 21:05 06:29+1FRI QR 618 21:05 06:29+1SAT QR 618 21:05 06:29+1SUN QR 618 21:05 06:29+1

PHNOM PENH TO YANGONWED 8M 404 20:10 21:35SAT 8M 404 20:10 21:35

SEOUL TO YANGONMON KE 471 18:40 22:55TUE KE 471 18:40 22:55WED KE 471 18:40 22:55THUR KE 471 18:40 22:55FRI KE 471 18:40 22:55SAT KE 471 18:40 22:55SUN KE 471 18:40 22:55

SIEM REAP TO YANGONMON 8M 402 20:15 21:25FRI 8M 402 20:15 21:25

TOKYO TO YANGONMON NH 913 11:10 17:05WED NH 913 11:10 17:05SAT NH 913 11:10 17:05

HONGKONG TO YANGONMON KA 252 21:35 23:35WED KA 252 21:35 23:35FRI KA 252 21:35 23:35SUN KA 252 21:35 23:35

DON MUEANG TO MANDALAYMON FD 2760 09:10 10:35TUE FD 2760 09:10 10:35THUR FD 2760 09:10 10:35SAT FD 2760 09:10 10:35

KUNMING TO MANDALAYMON MU 2029 14:00 13:50TUE MU 2029 14:00 13:50WED MU 2029 14:00 13:50THUR MU 2029 14:00 13:50FRI MU 2029 14:00 13:50SAT MU 2029 14:00 13:50SUN MU 2029 14:00 13:50

FD & AK = Air Asia IC = Indian Airlines LimitedTG = Thai Airways W9 = Air Bagan8M = Myanmar Airways International

3K = Jet StarAI = Air India

PG = Bangkok Airways QR = Qatar AirwaysMI = Silk Air KE = Korea AirlinesVN = Vietnam Airline NH = All Nippon AirwaysMH = Malaysia Airlines SQ = Singapore AirwaysCZ = China Southern DE = Condor AirlinesCI = China Airlines MU=China Eastern AirlinesCA = Air China BR = Eva AirlinesKA = Dragonair DE = Condor

International

Subject to change without notice

Air Asia (FD) 33, Alan Pya Pagoda Rd, Ground Flr, Parkroyal Hotel, Yangon. Tel: 251 885, 251 886.

Air Bagan Ltd.(W9)56, Shwe Taung Gyar Street, Bahan Tsp, Yangon. Tel : 513322, 513422, 504888, Fax : 515102

Air China (CA)Building (2), corner of Pyay Rd and Kaba Aye Pagoda Rd, Hotel Yangon,8 miles, Yangon, Myanmar.Tel : 666112, 655882.

Air India75, Shwe Bon Thar St, Pabedan Tsp, Yangon. Tel : 253597~98, 254758. Fax: 248175

Bangkok Airways (PG)#0305, 3rd Fl, Sakura Tower, 339, Bogyoke Aung San Rd, Kyauktada Tsp, Yangon. Tel: 255122, 255 265, Fax: 255119

Condor (DE)Unit 10-05, 10th Flr, La Pyayt Wun Plaza, 37, Alanpya Pagoda Rd, Dagon Tsp, Yangon, The Republic of the Union of Myanmar, Tel: + 95 1 -370836 up to 39 (ext : 810)

Dragonair (KA)Unit 1107, 11th Flr, Sakura Tower, 339 Bogyoke Aung San Rd, Kyauk-tada Tsp; Yangon. Tel: 95-1-255322

Malaysia Airlines (MH)335/357, Bogyoke Aung San Rd, Pabedan Tsp, Yangon. Tel : 387648, 241007 ext : 120, 121, 122 Fax : 241124

Myanmar Airways International(8M)08-02, Sakura Tower, 339, Bogyoke Aung San Rd, Kyauktada Tsp, Ygn. Tel : 255260, Fax: 255305

Silk Air(MI)339, Bogyoke Aung San Rd, 2nd Flr, Sakura Tower, Kyauktada Tsp, Yangon, Myanmar. Tel: 255 287~9, Fax: 255 290

Thai Airways (TG)Room No. 1101, Sakura Tower, 339, Bogyoke Aung San Rd, Kyauk-tada Tsp, Ygn. Tel : 255491~6, Fax : 255223

Vietnam Airlines (VN)#1702, Sakura Tower 339, Bogyoke Aung San Rd, Kyauktada Tsp, Yangon. Fax 255086. Tel 255066/ 255088/ 255068.

Qatar Airways(Temporary Office)33, Alan Pya Pagoda Rd. 2nd Flr, Parkroyal Hotel, Dagon Tsp, Yangon. Tel: 01-250388, (ext: 8142, 8210)

International Airlines



Events FlashOut and About

The “Out and About” group painting show is being held at Gallery 65 (65 Yawmingyi Road, Dagon township) from February 22 to 28.

New age music

A performance of Japanese new age music titled “Tradition & Challenge” will be held at Park Royal Hotel in Yangon on February 25, from 6pm to 8pm. Free entrance (no tickets required).

Plus Three

The “Plus Three Stars” exhibition — featuring work by artists Kyaw Min, Shwe Myint and Thar San — will be held at Lokanat Gallery (62 Pansodan S t ree t , F i r s t F loo r, Kyauktada township) from February 25 to March 2.

Trivia night

DeBar (northern end of Bo Yar Nyunt Street, Dagon township) will host an international pub quiz/trivia night on February 27 at 7:30pm. Participation is free, and teams of up to six people can register on the night of the quiz.

Calle de la Salsa

Tuesday is salsa night at 50th Street Bar, featuring f r ee dance c l a s s e s (salsa, bachata, mambo, meringue and more), plus dance shows and drink specials. With music by DJ Mani and special guests.

Wednesday wine

The Wednesday Wine Club meets every (you guessed it) Wednesday at the QP Inya Shop (30 Inya Road). Taste four or five wines for K10,000 a person. Contact [email protected] or 09-7321-8711.

Live music

Friendship Band belts out classic rock tunes at 50th Street Restaurant every Wednesday and Friday night.

Thursday night jam

Enjoy an eclectic mix of free-form music upstairs at 50th Street Restaurant, starting at 8pm.

If you would like your event listed in Event Flash, please email [email protected].

YOUR STARSBy Astrologer

Aung Myin Kyaw

Aquarius (Jan 20 - Feb 18)Agood character is the most important value that a human being can nurture. Use education, experience, maturity, religious knowledge and good companions to support your life-building efforts. Allow nothing to disturb your brain, and let your mind gain experience in wisdom and through reading good books. Your strong beliefs will help you overcome social interference.

Pisces (Feb 19 - Mar 20)A slight realignment of your personal dreams to include a bigger vision will help you embark on an action plan with a new sense of clarity. While physical well-being is important, now is the time to shift your focus toward putting your mental health into balance. In fact, success is related to mental health, and this will help you approach your goals, and affairs of the heart, with the right concept.

Aries (March 21 - April 19)Physical illnesscan be caused by mental tension, stress, worry, anxiety, fear and guilt. Let others speakthe truth, andlisten carefully to the reactions of those in whom you wish to place your trust. In this way you can learn what truly lies in their hearts. Stop indulging in non-constructive sorrow mixed with self-pity. For your current romantic relationship to work, you must give up some of your individual character.

Taurus (April 20 - May 20)Always speak straight to the point, and refuse to be swayed by gossip. Neverimagine truth in untruth, and learn to see untruth in truth; otherwiseyou will neverarrive atthe truth. There are many different things to do during your life, so take your time and don’t allow emotional interference to disturb your mind. Self-improvement is an ally ofcompetence, requiring both educational and professional skills.

Gemini (May 21 - June 20)Life is not an exact science. Fill your life with love. The art of personal communicationsis vital to success. Remember that management is essentially a system of putting competencies in various walks oflife together. Your good deeds will reflect your wonderful inner nature. If in doubt about the way forward, regroup your faculties and re-plan your strategies and outlook.

Cancer (June 22 - July 22)Goodbooks are not merely to be skimmed quickly looking for ideas. Difficult and frustrating tasks should be planned when morale and energy levels are high. A good night’s sleep can

have a lot of influence on energy levels. Try to develop a regular schedule so your body gets used to a natural rhythm. You will be surprised by wonderful new experiences in a silent atmosphere. Love shouldnotbe blind.

Leo (July 23 - Aug 22)Think about how much more positive your interaction with others would be if you believedthe best in them and gave themthe benefit of the doubt, just as you do for yourself. Peoplewithhigh self-esteem are more willingto take emotionalrisks. Be sure to give others the same consideration that you give yourself.

Virgo (Aug 23 - Sept 22)Take steps to manage your energy, thinking and wordsbefore your make important socialchallenges. A new consideration will change your social life for the better. If your decisions are well-considered, there is no reason to fear the consequences. Take advantage of old partnerships, and don’t let close friends interfere with new social commitments. Love is unseen and silent.

Libra (Sept 23 - Oct 22)Self-management is the key to leading yourself well. Don’t place too much emphasis on decision making, to the detriment of decision managing. The application of thought to an object requires purpose, intention and discipline to run in good order. Accentuate the positive, look for the silver lining, and visualize peace and pleasure for all in matters oflove.

Scorpio (Oct 23 - Nov 21)The better you are at making sure you are doingwhat you should be doing, the better chanceyou have for making an impact onothers. The key to personal development is being more growth-oriented than goal-oriented. There is no downside to making growth your goal. If you keep learning youwill be better tomorrow than you are today, which can benefit you in so many ways.

Sagittarius (Nov 22 - Dec 21)You need to learn to be the best you can be right now. As Napoleon Hill said, “You can’t change where you started, but you can change the direction you are going.” It’s not what you are going to do, but what you are doing now that counts. Let love gradually turn your heart intoan echo chamber. Use the feelings in your heart to cultivate sympathetic enjoyment.

Capricorn (Dec 22 - Jan 19)Everykindoffear grows worse by not being scrutinized. Your daily duty is to learn from life’s experience, as unlearned lessons are sure toleave you feeling foolishand impotent in a desert ofignorance. Use your ownknowledge and experience to avoiduncertainty of opinion. Never look down on elders who hold the same position as you.

For a personal reading contact Aung Myin Kyaw, 4th Floor,113, Thamain Bayan Road, Tamwe Township, Yangon.

Tel: 0973135632, Email: [email protected]

By Nuam Bawi

TELEVISION broadcasters from South Korea exhibited t h e i r m o s t p o p u l a r programs at the 2013 Korea TV Content Showcase in Myanmar, held at Chatrium Hotel on February 18.

The aim was to help facilitate the purchase of the programs by local TV stations for broadcast in Myanmar.

M r C h a n g Y o n g , deputy director of the Korea Communicat ions Commission’s International Cooperation Bureau, said that whether local stations buy programs through dealers or directly from the TV stations, one goal of the event was to “build a good relationship between TV stations [in Myanmar] and from [South] Korea”.

“Before, even though the TV stations in Myanmar knew the TV stations in [South] Korea, they did not know who to contact to buy the programs they wanted,” he said.

Among the South Korean broadcaster who showcased their programs in Yangon were KBS Media, MBC, EBS, JTBC, MBN, Arirang, CJ E&M, MBC+ Media, OUN and Every Show, with content ranging from drama series, documentaries and animated series, to K-Pop programs and entertainment, culture and travel shows.

The showcase visited Cambodia before coming

to Myanmar, and travelled to Malaysia afterward.

U Aung Kyu Hein, managing director of Laser World Trading and Services Company, said that up to now, local TV stations had to purchase the rights to broadcast South Korean programs indirectly through distributors based in Yangon.

“We could only get the programs that the dealer

showed us, and they were out of date. Now, with the TV broadcasters coming directly to Myanmar, I hope

we can get up-to-date programs,” he said.

However, U Aung Kyu Hein said he did not think

buying directly would result in lower costs for obtaining the broadcast rights for South Korean programs.

‘ T h e S o u t h Ko r e a n broadcasters have already done market research in Myanmar, and they wouldn’t come to sell their TV programs here at a loss. They’re good business people. So I don’t think the costs will go down, but it will make it easier for us to buy programs,” he said.

Laser World currently broadcasts wel l -known TV p r o g r ams s u ch a s Thi-chin Chit Thu (Songs Beloved), Myanmar movies and interview programs, with plans to expand their content.

“I’m prefer to broadcast our own local productions and creations on the air, and later this year we’re planning to launch a new TV channel that will includes information, edutainment a n d e n t e r t a i n m e n t programming,” U Aung Kyu Hein said.

“I’m col lecting some content [at the South Korean showcase] because even though we plan to broadcast 80 or 90 percent local content, we will fill the rest of the airtime with programs we buy from other countries. We can’t hold our audience solely with local creations.”

S Korean channels showcase TV programs

A giant chicken looks on as representatives from South Korean TV broadcaster EBS discuss their program offerings at 2013 Korea TV Content Showcase at Chatrium Hotel in Yangon on February 18. Pic: Aung Htay Hlaing

ComputerANOTHER WORLD (Computer System & IT solution Group). Networking Services: Consultation, design ing, Planning, Imple menting Managing & Maintaining Computer Network, Wireless Solution & hotspot (Indoor & Outdoor), Cisco Devices Solution, VPN, Firewall, NAS& SAN Design Soutions, Internet load balancing & sharing, Hotel Internet system, Brand ed Server Solution, Microsoft Window Server & Linux Server, Mail, Proxy, Antivirus Server, Data base Server, Internet Cafe & Game Center Solution, Office, Company, customized Server and Network system. Ph : 09-732-48398.

EducationIELTS (Basic, 7.5 & above); TOEFL; Special SAT 1 & 2 for US CollegesIGCSE, Math, Physics, Chem, English, Bio; A Level For Medical; (Our old students are academi cally & socially successful in other countries. We are HERO-MAKERS. Teacher Solomon + 3 Subject Experts, Tel: 09-541-7781; 365, 3rd flr, Song Language School, corner of Mahabandoola St & Seikkan Thar St

MATHS Foundation, Level: Grade IX, X and XI, Int’l Students, Pre University Level. Courses : IGCSE A, O Level, Algebra, Geome try, Calculus, Integral, Teacher: Kaung Myat BE (PE): 09-731-42020, email: Kaung myatoo-251 @ gmail. com No.10, 1st Flr, kwin chaung 2 St, Ahlone, .

SWEET SUMMER For Learners:Starter, Mover, Flyer & Grammar, Daw Khin Hnin Yu (B.A English Y.U), 09-4500-40328.

TEACHERS who have got Teaching experien ce in Singapore,Grade 10, 11 and Int’l School, GCSE, SAT, IELTS, TOEFL, Sayar Bryan, ME (IT) 09-420-07 0692, Sayar Htet Ph; 09-215-0075, Sayar Min Aung (B.E, IT) 09-492-80490)

FOR PRIMARY Students Int'l School Subjects If you need to guide your child with school subjects English,Maths, Science, History English & Chinese language Chinese writing social, English writing skill Myanmar language Myanmar writing skill you are welcome to contact :49, U Lun St, GFlr, Ayokone, Tamwe. Near Thida Bus -stop. ph : 420-115461 C/O Teacher Caroline

“SCHOLAR Teaching Organization” founded with ME,BE and Master Degree holder with 12

years experience in teaching field.Role and Responsibility: Making the students develop problem solving skills, critical thinking skills & I.Q and E.Q enriching skills, Int’l School( ILBC, Total, MISY, ISY, PISM, Horizon, ISM,ne twork ,CISM, MIS,M LA,ES4E,DSY RV). All grades, All Subjects .....Singapore MOE Exams (AEIS , S-AEIS exam), SAT, IGCSE, IELTS, TOFEL. Tr.Htet: 09-215-0075, 09-401-600705. Tr. Bryan :09-420-070692

EXAM preparation classes for 2013 May/June IGCSE Exam (Cambridge & Edexcel) Limited seats availa ble.Tr, Pyae Phyo Kyaw 09-508-8683

Expert ServiceMYANMARVISA.COM Check eligibility for VISA on Arrival Online or Contact travel.evisa @gmail.com

“TRANSLATORavailable for fluent English/Chinese/Myanmar. If

interested, pls contact Yu @ 09-73156111.”

QICk and professional Translation English to Myanmar Myanmar to English for NGO project & any subjects by Tr. Daw Aye Mya Oo (B.A (Eng) YUFL) (Dip. ELTM) (Dip. DMA) Ph: 0943064296, email: ayemyaoo @ gmail. com.

WE TRUST you never forget to call UvsV at 098614775.advertising and Creative ideas selling Services. UNs & INGOs(visibilitiesItems) Private Funds (promotion items)

LanguageTEACHING English (4 Skills) Near Myay Ni Gone City Mart 09-4200- 30 782

TEACHING Myanmar language (4 Skills) for foreigners Near Myay Ni Gone City Mart. Ph: 09-4200- 30782

For SaleSUZUkI R+ 5B/XXXX [White Colour] Very

Good Condition Kyats -89 Lakhs [No broker please] Contact: 09-5109652

Buy & SaleMAZDA RX 8,49,000 km, TV, 1.3cc 6- Speed Manual Transm: Bose Audio System, 2 Tones Leather Seat, 8 Air Bags, Seat Motor Back Sonar - Sensor System, UK contact HP : 09-4211- 58667

NOT BRAND New But Excellent Quality : Used iPhones, Samsungs, Sony, HTC, Huawei, Nokia Used Lptops, Notebooks, Netbooks, UltraBooks, Used Mac bookpro, Macbook Air, Used iPods, Samsung Tablets & etc. Ph : 09-450-039844

NOT BRAND But Excellent Quality:

Apple Iphone Samung HTC LG Sony Huawei Nokia Ipad Ipod Iphone Notebook Macbook Pro Macbook Air Laptop Netbook All kind of Tablet & PSP. Ph: 09-517-8391

Training centerMA THESIS / PhD Dissertation Professio nal Editing (APA 6th ed.) Professional editing services by a Yangon-based expatriate with 5 years int'l experience in teaching Academic Writing and Research. Standard American English only. Extensive background in Educat ion, Sciences, Develop ment & Religion. Accuracy. Reliability. value for money.Email: [email protected] Ph: 09-420-123199

Public NoticesA SMALL sculpture of General Aung San, carved thoroughly in brass, represents an image of Myanmar Nationalist who brought Burma’s independence back from British colonial rule. It is an art sculpted for those who love to keep a replica of Boyoke Aung San as a treasure in their surroundings and for those willing to take it abroad as present, or as a collection. The pieces are available at National League for Democracy (Head quarter), Bahan, Pls call: 09-430-88645, 09-430-88645.

FREE to good home, 2 Yorkie Puppies Re-Homing, Akc Reg, Contact me via email for more details on: [email protected]

GeneralHousing for Rent

STRAND RD, Condo, Near Embassy, Fully Furnished, Relevant for office and Large bedroom and Large sitting room, 1800 Sqft, MBR, 2BR, 2AC, Ext Ph, PK, Lift, No broker ples. Ph: 09-731-96760.

(1) NEAR EAST POINT Shopping Mall (10580 USD) (273 Sqm) 3 Storey, 24 MBR (2) Near Yankin Centre (Good for office), U Chit Mg St, (364 Sqm) 4 storey, hall type, 5300 USD (3) Apartment, NearKandaw gyi Hotel 1500 USD, (walking 20 minutes) (273 Sqm) all furnish, (4) United Condo, (River View Side) 2000 USD (227 Sqm) 3MBR, fully furnish 09-4201-14749, 09-4921-4276..

T A R M W E , G r a n d Diamond Residence, First Flr, (2400sqft), 2 MBR, 2BR, 1 Ph, 5 AC, Fully Furniture, Car Parking ,10 Lakhs per month. Ph : 09-432-00669, 09- 421-083321

Housing for SaleHLAING THARYAR, Shwe Kan Thar Land (25' x 75'). Price K 22 million. Call 09-5020-727.

THANLYIN, Sanchin Mi2 No.1128, 837, 2055. Thanlyin Aung Chan Thar J267, J240, J189. ph 09 43184138

SANCHANUG, Min St G flr, HK, With line phone 1 month (6 lakhs). Ph: 09-731-11190

BAHAN, Arzarni Rd, 90 year grant, 9049 sq ft, Kyat 2000Million. ph : 09-431-84138

Property

EmbassyWE ARE looking for a qualified Admin/ Consul Assistant for Foreign Mission. All interested applicants must be computer literate, self motivate, fluently speak in English. For more infor mation, pls call 527142~144.

Ingo PositionsMYANMAR Red Cross Society is seeking(1) Project Officer for Maternal, New-born & Child Health Project, 1 Post : University Graduate. 1 year experience. Proven computer skills (Myanmar & English). Effective English language skill. (2) Water & Sanitation, Hygiene Promotion Officer 1 Post: Relevant education background. 2 years experience in water, hygiene & sanitat ion field. Computer literate (Myanmar and English). Effective English language skills. (3) Logistics Officer for MNCH & CBHD Project 1 post : University Graduate or relevance technical education. 2 years experience in logistics within National society & other NGOs is prefer able. Proven computer skills in both Myanmar & English language. Pls submit a letter of application relevant documents & CV, Photo (Cover letter CV documents only need to be sent via e-mail) to mrcshrrecruitment@ gmail.com before 1st March 2013 pls visit : www.myanmarredcross. org,

CHILDFUND is seeking Finance & Administra

tive Officer : University qualification or other relevant qualification in accounting or other relevant discipline. Experience in finance and/or administrative, preferably INGOs (minimum 3 years). A Police check may be required. Regular travel to ChildFunc’s program areas in Myanmar will be required. Pls send application letter, CV with at least 2 referees, along with 1 passport photo, closing date : 1 March 2013. Pls send no certificate scans & limit email size to 1MB. Pls sent by email to: childfundmmhr@ gmail. com.

PSI/MYANMAR is seeking Monitoring & Information officer 1 Post : Must have university degree in Social Science or IT science, 2 years experience in HIV/AIDS project and monitoring field, Should be able to write short reports, memos, in Myanmar & in English, Must have understanding in moni toring principles, Must have good computer skills. Closing date: 1 March 2013 Pls submit appli cations to HR Unit of Headquarters : 16, West Shwe Gone Dine 4th St, Bahan, Yangon. Email: hr@psimyanmar. org

MEDECINS sans Frontieres - Switzerland (MSF-CH) is seeking Lab Technician (Myitta Yeik clinic) in Taninthar yi Division. A Laboratory Technician diploma/ degree recognized by the state. Should you wish to apply, pls submit application (motivation letter, updated CV and copy of professional diplomas) to HR Officer: Medecins sans Fron tieres - Switzerland (MSF-CH), 101, Dhama zedi Rd, Kamaryut, Yangon. Email:msfch-rangoon-web@ geneva.msf.org Ph: 502509, 503548. Clos ing date : 27th February 2013.

Local PositionSALES EXECUTIVE 4 Post for F&B Supplies to Hotels & Restaurants. Prefer with Supermarket & F&B knowledge background 01-450858, 01 -450859, 01 -450860, 09- 5008359 and email is [email protected]

ORCAELLA Managed by Orlent-Expres is seeking to (1) Front Office Manager 1 Post: Degree Holder and 3 years experience in Front Office Field (Cruise). Compuer Proficiency in MS Office Application. (2) House keeping Manager - 1 Post : Degree Holder & 3 years experience in House kepping Field (Curise). Computer Proficiency in MS Office Applicat ion. (3) Execut ive Chef - 1 Post : Degree Holder, 3 years experience in Kitchen Field (Cruise). Compu ter Porficiency in MS Office Applicat ion. (4) Food & Beverages Manager - 1 Post : Degree Holder & 3 years experience. Computer Proficiency in MS Office Applicat ion. No. 35, Taw Win Rd, Dagon Tsp. Ph: 229860. Email: mhtoo@ governorsre sidence. com

WE would like to hire v i e t n a m - m y a n m a r

language teacher for our vietnam company. Pls contact to Swe Zin 01-525598, 09-500 4641 email: swezin. hagl @gmail.com

ACTED is currently looking for qualified person to fill the position of Senior Finance Officer for Yangon: Bachelor degree in B.Com, B.Act or CAT, CPA, ACCA, LCCI Level III. 5 years relevant experience in Financial management.Excellent computer skills. Pls submit a resume, a cover letter & 3 references to ACTED Office: 661 (A), Myakanthar Lane (1), Kamayut, Yangon. Ph: 09-863-1672, 525617, Email: [email protected] or Yangon.finance@acted. org, Closing date : 28th February 2013.

WE ARE looking for a Business Develop ment Manager! You will be fully responsible for one of our websites, doing acquisition, marketing and quality control, plus managing the team. You will work for an exciting, int'l company that is growing fast in the Myanmar internet market. You will learn a lot in our team environ ment and even have fun too! Any graduate, but any diploma in Market ing and/or Manage ment is preferred, Fluent in Myanmar & English, Experience in Marketing & Sales, Real Estate, Good communi cation & great acquisit ion skills, Very good personality, self-motivated & mature in meetings, Computer and internet skills are preferred, Female or Male (full time), Age 25 ~ 40. Pls send CV to Rocket Internet Myanmar (we recom mend to upload CV and apply via Work.com. mm)! You can also send CV to theingi.oo@work. com.mm or call 01-255078. Closing date: 28.2.2013.

CSSEP/ CFSI is looking for Finance Assistant in Maungdaw, Rakhine State: University degree preferably in Business Administration, Accout ing, Finance, or related fields; LCCI/ ACA successful completion certificatioins are a definite advantage. 3 years experience of progressive responsibi lity in accounting, finance, or auditing; experience with an int'l organization/ NGO can be an advantage. Basic communication skills in English. Pls submit their signed letters of application together with a complete resume citing relevant acade mic qualificat ions & work experience (with scanned copies sent in advance by email)to: The Project Director, CSSEP/ CFSI, Rm.207, Bldg-A, Highway Com plex, Yuzana St. (bet: Hantha waddy/ Nana taw/ Hledan Rds.) Kamayut, C/O luisma. [email protected]; cssepygn @ gmail.com; Closing date: 28 February 2013.

THINGAHA Gender organization is seeking (External/ Internal candidates) Cashier 1 Post in Yangon: Degree Holder (B.Com, B.Act) & at least LCCI Level II. Experienced with Accounting Software & Microsoft Excel. Must be able to use Microsoft office

package, especia lly Excel & other relevant software ware. 2 years previsous experience in cashier (NGO experiences is preferable). Strong organizational skills & fair in written & spoken English; Computer literate. Pls send an application letter outlining their claims against the matching indicators, along with a current C.V, passport photo and copies of any references or testimo nials to Bldg-A (6/2), Anawrahta Housing, Bet: Pyay Rd & Insein Rd, Kamaryut, Tel: 527175. Email: new. thingaha@ gmail. com Closing date : 2nd March, 2013.

WE are one of the leading Adventure tour Operator in Myanmar seeking Finance & Accounting Manager - M/F 1 Post (US$ 700 - 800). Candidate must process strong written verbal communication skills, Must be 35 years & above with minimum 3 years post qualificat ion experience of CA, CPA equivalent. Must posse ss high level of know ledge in Microsoft excel spreadsheets, Candidate is responsi ble for managing financial integrity, compliance, planning & business persorman ce, financial ledger and along with general accounting work. Experience & know ledge of complex accounting packages, practical general finance and accounting experience in a similar industry. Pls submit application (Send by personal, by post or by email) with one photo to Journeys Adventure Travel: 53, Mayangon Pagoda Lane, Mayan gon (Near Mayangon Labor Office), Email: Admin@ journeys myanmar.com Closing date : February 28th 2013

(1) ACCOUNTANT - F : Any graduate. LCCI Level 3 prefered. Excel lent Computer Skills (Microsoft Office Excel). (2) Marketing - M/F : Any Graduate. Good inter personal & communi cation skills. Able to use internet/ e-mail & fax. Must have knowledge of street in Yangon. Pls apply C.V with 1 passport photo, the copy of NRC card, the copy of others certificates copy to Channel Digital Inkjet Printing & Advertising :22, U Weikzar St, Pazundaung, Ph: 396116, 396235. Clos ing date : 25-2-2013.

MASCOTS HEALTH CARE is seeking (1) Senior Medical Representa tive - M/F 1 Post : Any graduate (or) B.Pharm. Age under 35. 4 ~ 5 years experien ce. Good Marketing skills & knowledge. Excellent Interperso nal, Communication, Presentation & Strong Organizational skills. Able to travel out-station. Able to work under stress. Attractive Salary & Incentive. (2) Medical Represen tative - M/F 2 Posts: Any Graduate (or) B.Pharm. Age 20 ~ 27. 2 ~ 3 years experience. Excellent interpersonal & commu nication skills. Able to travel out-station. Pls submit current CV, educational creden tials & all related docu ments to 15 (B), Taw Win St, Dagon Tsp, Ph :09-730-64477, 09-540-4064, 01 227106 Closing date :28-2-2013.

SAVOY HOTEL is urgently looking for (1) Front Office Supervi sor - 1 post: Must have at least 2 years experience in related field and good English skill. (2) F&B Service (Waiter/Waitress) - 1 post : Must have 1 year experience in related field & good English skill. (3)Demi Chef (European Food) - 2 post : Must have 1~2 years experience & good English skill. Applicat ion letter by email to savoy.hra @ gmail.com or 129, Dha mmazedi Rd, Yangon. Tel:(95-1) 526298, 526289.

We are recruiting staff to join our office located in Yangon for the position of :

Financial Sector Research Analyst(Vacancy # 130115)

The East Asia and Pacific Financial and Private Sector Development Department (EASFP) is responsible for the World Bank’s work in financial and private sector development within the region. The Department works to help the countries of the region achieve sustained growth and poverty reduction through developing sound and well-functioning financial systems, improving the investment climate, and promoting more dynamic private sectors. EASFP currently has an active program, including lending and technical assistance with sector issues ranging from bank restructuring, financial sector supervisory capacity building, regulatory reform, and capital markets development, to corporate governance, the promotion of innovation, and trade facilitation.

In Myanmar, EASFP is building a dynamic program that consists of three main programs at the current time, including: (1) assistance program on financial sector development with the central bank on creating the financial sector development Master Plan, reforming the legal and regulatory framework, enhancing supervision, including on- and off-site systems and crisis preparedness and exploring the policy framework for financial sector infrastructure and payments systems; (2) support to the newly formed regulatory and supervisory body for the microfinance industry; and (3) an investment climate assessment. Other projects and work is expected in the future as well.

Duties and Accountabilities• Actively engage as part of the financial and private sector development (FPD) team responsible for the

preparation, appraisal, and supervision of lending operations and economic and sector work.• Assist in project management, as well as project development, and provide support for technical

assistance projects.• Provide strong mission (visits by Washington staff, as well as technical assistance providers and

consultants) support by arranging meetings, and following up on data and information needs.• Monitor market developments, update standard financial sector data, and undertake research on

economic, financial, and private sectors in Myanmar.• Help to develop statistical and analytical assessments of the financial and private sector in Myanmar.• Provide support for financial sector Donor Coordination, including organizing donor meetings.

Details are available in the World Bank Careers website: www.worldbank.org/careers. All applications must be submitted through this website. We welcome applications from individuals who are fluent speakers in Myanmar and English languages. The World Bank is committed to achieving diversity in terms of gender, nationality, culture and educational background. Individuals with disability are equally encouraged to apply. Please contact [email protected] for questions regarding the application process. Closing date is March 14, 2013

We are recruiting staff to join our office located in Yangon for the position of :

Economist (Vacancy # 130447)Within the EAP Region, the Poverty Reduction and Economic Management Department (EAP PREM) is responsible for the Bank’s work in the areas of economic policy, public sector management and governance, trade, poverty and inequality, and gender. This involves the provision of policy and implementation advice as well as financial support to our clients through analytical work, technical assistance, lending and supervision in close consultation with the field-based Country Directors. Staff in the department also conducts cross-country analyses of issues that are of interest across the region, monitor regional economic developments including through contributions to semi-annual economic updates, and work with other sectoral staff to address cross-cutting challenges.

The department is highly decentralized with about three-quarters of its staff located in country offices. The management structure of the department includes a DC-based Sector Director, a DC-based sector manager/lead economist (who is also the thematic lead economist for economic policy and trade); two country office-based sector managers (in Bangkok, to whom this position will report, and Jakarta); four country-office based lead economists; and two thematic lead economists (for public sector governance and poverty/gender). This group collectively comprises the EAP PREM departmental management team and provides the overall strategic and operational leadership. Each of the thematic lead economists for public sector and governance, poverty/gender, and economic policy/trade facilitates communities of practice and provide strategic leadership in her/his respective areas of expertise. The selected candidate will work closely with the Senior Economist and Country Manager for Myanmar and report to the PREM Sector Manager in Bangkok in the matrix management environment.

Duties and AccountabilitiesUnder The Economist is expected to perform the following duties and accountabilities: • Monitor developments in the economy, and research and analyze economic, financial, country and sector issues;• Maintain a macroeconomic database and prepare and regularly update medium-term macroeconomic projections. Use/run

economic/financial models and toolkits using existing software packages, or Bank's own models; • Participate in the design, preparation and dissemination of analytical economic work and reporting on Myanmar including

Myanmar and East Asia Updates, Country Policy and Institutional Assessment (CPIA) and Live Data Base (LDB);• Participate as needed in the preparation and implementation of lending operations; and• Develop and maintain active engagement with key Government counterparts including Ministry of Finance, Central

Statistical Organization (CSO), Ministry of Planning, Central Bank and other development partners and local think tanks and researchers.

• Participate in responding to requests submitted to the PREM department from within and outside the Bank for information, data, inputs, and briefing notes.

Selection Criteria:• Academic Training: Master Degree in macroeconomics from an internationally recognized university, and at least 5 years of

relevant work experience. • Technical Proficiency: Skills and experience in working on economic policy issues and data analysis. Proven strong

conceptual, analytical and evaluative skills in these areas. • Communication and Team Skills: High level of personal and professional integrity. Self-starter. Strong ability to function well in

a multi-cultural environment, and working in teams. Results-oriented personality with proven problem-solving skills, and strong communication skills.

• Language Skills: Fluency in English and Myanmar required.• Computer Skills: Sound knowledge of STATA or other statistical packages and MS Office programs, including Excel, is

essential.

Details are available in the World Bank Careers website: www.worldbank.org/careers. All applications must be submitted through this website. The World Bank is committed to achieving diversity in terms of gender, nationality, culture and educational background. Individuals with disability are equally encouraged to apply.

Closing date is March 15, 2013

No.(1), Inya Road, Kamayut Tsp.Tel: 01-527506email: [email protected] www.inya1.com

The Essentials

Emergency Numbers Ambulance tel: 295133. Fire tel: 191, 252011, 252022. Police emergency tel: 199. Police headquarters tel: 282541, 284764. Red Cross tel:682600, 682368Traffic Control Branch tel:298651Department of Post & Telecommunication tel: 591384, 591387.Immigration tel: 286434.Ministry of Education tel:545500m 562390Ministry of Sports tel: 370604, 370605Ministry of Communications tel: 067-407037.Myanma Post & Telecommunication (MPT) tel: 067-407007.Myanma Post & Tele-communication (Accountant Dept) tel: 254563, 370768.Ministry of Foreign Affairs tel: 067-412009, 067-412344.Ministry of Health tel: 067-411358-9.Yangon City Development Committee tel: 248112.

HOSPITALSCentral Women’s Hospital tel: 221013, 222811.Children Hospital tel: 221421, 222807Ear, Nose & Throat Hospital tel: 543888.Naypyitaw Hospital (emergency) tel: 420096.Worker’s Hospital tel: 554444, 554455, 554811.

Yangon Children Hospital tel: 222807, 222808, 222809.Yangon General Hospital (East) tel: 292835, 292836, 292837.Yangon General Hospital (New) tel: 384493, 384494, 384495, 379109.Yangon General Hospital (West) tel: 222860, 222861, 220416.Yangon General Hospital (YGH) tel: 256112, 256123, 281443, 256131.

ELECTRICITYPower Station tel:414235

POST OFFICEGeneral Post Office 39, Bo Aung Kyaw St. (near British Council Library). tel: 285499.

INTERNATIONAL AIRPORTYangon International Airport tel: 662811.

YANGON PORTShipping (Coastal vessels) tel: 382722

RAILWAYSRailways information tel: 274027, 202175-8.

UNITED NATIONSILO Liaison Officer Rm (M1212~1220), 12 Fl-A, Traders Hotel. 223, tel: 242 393, 242811. fax: 242594.IOM 12th Flr, Traders Hotel, 223, tel: 252560 ext. 5002UNAIDS Rm: (1223~1231), 12 Fl, Traders Hotel. tel: 252361, 252362, 252498. fax: 252364.UNDCP 11-A, Malikha St, Mayangone tsp. tel: 666903, 664539. fax: 651334.UNDP 6, Natmauk Rd, Bahan tel: 542910-19. fax: 292739.UNFPA 6, Natmauk Rd, Bahan tsp. tel: 546029.UNHCR 287, Pyay Rd, Sanchaung tsp. tel: 524022, 524024. fax 524031.UNIAP Rm: 1202, 12 Fl, Traders Hotel.tel: 254852, 254853.UNIC 6, Natmauk St., BHN tel: 52910~19UNICEF 14~15 Flr, Traders Hotel. P.O. Box 1435, KTDA. tel: 375527~32, fax: 375552 email: unicef.yangon@unicef. org, www.unicef.org/myanmar.UNODC 11-A, Malikha Rd., Ward 7, MYGN. tel: 666903, 660556, 660538, 660398, 664539, fax: 651334. email: [email protected] www.unodc.org./myanmar/UNOPS Inya Lake Hotel, 3rd

floor, 37, Kaba Aye Pagoda Rd, Mayangone Tsp. tel: 951-657281~7. Fax: 657279.UNRC 6, Natmauk Rd, P.O. Box 650, TMWE tel: 542911~19, 292637 (Resident Coordinator), fax: 292739, 544531.WFP 3rd-flr, Inya Lake Hotel, 37, Kabar Aye Pagoda Rd. tel: 657011~6 (6-lines) Ext: 2000.WHO 12A Fl, Traders Hotel. tel:250583.ASEAN Coordinating Of. for the ASEAN Humanitarian Task Force, 79, Taw Win st, Dagon Township. Ph: 225258.FAO Myanma Agriculture Service Insein Rd, Insein. tel: 641672, 641673. fax: 641561.

EMBASSIESAustralia 88, Strand Road, Yangon. tel : 251810, 251797, 251798, 251809, 246462, 246463, fax: 246159Bangladesh 11-B, Than Lwin Road, Yangon. tel: 515275, 526144, fax: 515273, email: [email protected] 56, Pyay Road, 6th mile, Hlaing Tsp, Yangon. tel: 507225, 507251, 507482. fax: 507483. email: [email protected] 17, Kanbawza Avenue, Golden Velly (1), Bahan Tsp, Yangon. tel: 566985, 503978, fax: 512854 email: bruneiemb@ bruneiemb.com.mmCambodia 25 (3B/4B), New University Avenue Road, Bahan Tsp, Yangon. tel: 549609, 540964, fax: 541462, email: RECYANGON @mptmail.net.mmChina 1, Pyidaungsu Yeiktha Road, Yangon. tel: 221280, 221281, 224025, 224097, 221926, fax: 227019, 228319Egypt 81, Pyidaungsu Yeiktha Road, Yangon. tel: 222886, 222887, fax: 222865, email: egye mbyangon@mptmail. net.mmFrance 102, Pyidaungsu Yeiktha Road, Yangon. tel: 212178, 212520, 212523, 212528, 212532, fax: 212527, email: ambaf rance. rangoun@ diplomatie.frGermany 9, Bogyoke Aung San Museum Road, Bahan Tsp, Yangon. tel: 548951, 548952, fax: 548899 email: info@rangun. diplo.deIndia 545-547, Merchant Street, Yangon. tel: 391219, 388412, 243972, fax: 254086, 250164, 388414, email: indiaembassy @mptmail.net.mm

Indonesia 100, Pyidaungsu Yeiktha Road, Yangon. tel: 254465, 254469, 229750, fax: 254468, email: kukygn @indonesia.com.mmIsrael 15, Khabaung Street, Hlaing Tsp, Yangon. tel: 515115, fax: 515116, email: [email protected] 3, Inya Myaing Road, Golden Valley, Yangon. tel: 527100, 527101, fax: 514565, email: ambyang.mail@ esteri.itJapan 100, Natmauk Road, Yangon. tel: 549644-8, 540399, 540400, 540411, 545988, fax: 549643Embassy of the State of Kuwait Chatrium Hotel, Rm: No.416, 418, 420, 422, 40 Natmauk Rd, Tarmwe Tsp, Tel: 544500.North Korea 77C, Shin Saw Pu Road, Sanchaung Tsp, Yangon. tel: 512642, 510205, fax: 510206South Korea 97 University Avenue, Bahan Tsp, Yangon. tel: 527142-4, 515190, fax: 513286, email: [email protected] A-1, Diplomatic Quarters, Tawwin Road, Dagon Tsp, Yangon. tel: 222482, fax: 227446, email: Laoembcab@mptmail. net.mmMalaysia 82, Pyidaungsu Yeiktha Road, Yangon. tel: 220248, 220249, 220251, 220230, fax: 221840, email: [email protected] 16, Natmauk Yeiktha, Yangon. tel: 545880, 557168, fax: 549803, email: nepemb @mptmail.net.mmPakistan A-4, diplomatic Quarters, Pyay Road, Yangon. tel: 222881 (Chancery Exchange) fax: 221147, email: pakistan@ myanmar.com.mm

Philippines 50, Sayasan Road, Bahan Tsp, Yangon. tel: 558149-151, fax: 558154, email: p.e. [email protected] 38, Sagawa Road, Yangon. tel: 241955, 254161, fax: 241953, email: rusinmyan@mptmail .net.mmSerbia No. 114-A, Inya Road, P.O.Box No. 943-Yangon. tel: 515282, 515283, fax: 504274, email: serbemb@ yangon.net.mmSingapore 238, Dhamazedi Road, Bahan Tsp, Yangon. tel: 559001, fax: 559002, 559922, email: singemb_ ygn@_sgmfa. gov.sgSri Lanka 34 Taw Win Road, Yangon. tel: 222812, fax: 221509, email: [email protected], [email protected], www.slembyangon.orgThailand 94 Pyay Road, Dagon Township, Yangon. tel: 226721, 226728, 226824, fax: 221713United Kingdom 80 Kan-na Road, Yangon. tel: 370867, 380322, 371852, 371853, 256438, 370863, 370864, 370865, fax: 370866United States of America 110, University Avenue, Kamayut Township, Yangon. tel: 536509, 535756, 538038, fax: 650306Vietnam Building No. 72, Thanlwin Road, Bahan Township, Yangon. tel: 511305, fax: 514897, email: vnemb [email protected] Embassy of Saudi Arabia No.287/289, U Wisara Rd, Sanchaung Tsp. tel : 01-536153, 516952, fax : 01-516951

General Listing

Avenue 64 HotelNo. 64 (G), Kyitewine Pagoda Road, Mayangone Township. Yangon. 09 8631392, 01 656913-9Chatrium Hotel Royal Lake Yangon 40 Natmauk Rd, Tarmwe. tel: 544500. fax: 544400.

Saya Min Thoun Dara Astrologer No(2), Maha Wizaya Pagoda North Stairway, Dagon Tsp. tel: 296184

Chigo No. 216, 38 Street (Upper), Kyauktada Tsp, tel : 373472

Strand Bar 92, Strand Rd, Yangon, Myanmar. tel: 243377.fax: 243393, [email protected] www.ghmhotels.com

Lobby BarPARKROYAL Yangon, Myanmar. 33, Alan Pya Phaya Road, Dagon Tsp. tel: 250388.

The First Air conditioning systems designed to keep you fresh all day GUNKUL Engineer supply Co., Ltd. No.437 (A), Pyay Road, Kamayut. P., O 11041 Yangon, Tel: +(95-1) 502016-18, Mandalay- Tel: 02-60933. Nay Pyi Taw- Tel: 067-420778, E-mail : [email protected]. URL: http://www.freshaircon.com

General 83-91, G-F, Bo Aung Kyaw St, Kyauktada Tsp, tel : 706223, 371906

Green GardenBeer Gallery Mini Zoo, Karaweik Oo-Yin Kabar.

ASTROLOGER

BARS

ACCOMMODATION-HOTELS

AIR CONDITION

50th Street 9/13, 50th street-lower, Botataung Tsp. Tel-397160.

No. 205, Corner of Wadan Street & Min Ye Kyaw Swa Road, Lanmadaw Tsp, Yangon. Myanmar. Tel: (95-1) 212850 ~ 3, 229358 ~ 61, Fax: (95-1) 212854.info@myanmarpandahotel .com http://www.myanmarpandahotel.com

No.7A, Wingabar Road,Bahan Tsp, Yangon.Tel : (951) 546313, 430245. 09-731-77781~4. Fax : (01) 546313. www.cloverhotel.asia. [email protected]

Confort Inn 4, Shweli Rd, Bet: Inya Rd & U Wisara Rd, Kamaryut, tel: 525781, 526872

PARKROYAL Yangon, Myanmar 33, Alan Pya Pagoda Rd, Dagon tsp. tel: 250388. fax: 252478. email: [email protected] Website: parkroyalhotels. com.Savoy Hotel 129, Damazedi Rd, Kamayut tsp. tel: 526289, 526298, Seasons of Yangon Yangon Int’l Airport Compound. tel: 666699.Sweet Hotel 73, Damazedi Road, San Chaung Tsp, Ph: 539152Sedona Hotel Kabar Aye Pagoda Rd, Yankin. tel: 666900.Strand Hotel 92 Strand Rd. tel: 243377. fax: 289880.Summit Parkview Hotel 350, Ahlone Rd, Dagon Tsp. tel: 211888, 211966. fax: 227995.

Espace Avenir No 523, Pyay Rd, Kamaryut. tel: 505213-222.

Charted Certified, Certified Public Accountants. tel: 09-501-0563. [email protected]

ACCOMMODATIONLONG TERM

ACCOMMODATION-HOTELS (NAy PyI TAw)

ACCOUNTANTS AND CONSULTANTS

Thamada Hotel 5, Alan Pya Phaya Rd, Dagon. tel: 243639, 243640, 243641. Traders Hotel 223 Sule Pagoda Rd. tel: 242828. fax: 242838.Winner Inn 42, Than Lwin Rd, Bahan Tsp. Tel: 503734, 524387. email: reservation@winner innmyanmar.comYangon YMCA 263, Mahabandoola Rd, Botataung Tsp. tel: 294128,Yuzana Hotel 130, Shwegondaing Rd, Bahan Tsp, tel : 01-549600, 543367Yuzana Garden Hotel 44, Alanpya Pagoda Rd, Mingalar Taung Nyunt Tsp, tel : 01-248944

Tel: 09-7349-4483, 09-4200-56994.E-mail: [email protected], http://www. happyhomesyangon.com

Happy HomesReal estate & PRoPeRty

ManageMent

Golden Hill Towers 24-26, Kabar Aye Pagoda Rd, Bahan Tsp. tel: 558556. [email protected].

Marina Residence 8, Kabar Aye Pagoda Rd, Mayangone Tsp. tel: 6506 51~4. fax: 650630.MiCasa Hotel Apartments 17, Kabar Aye Pagoda Rd, Yankin Tsp. tel: 650933. fax: 650960.

Reservation Office (Yangon) 123, Alanpya Pagoda Rd, Dagon TownshipTel : 951- 255 819~838Hotel Max(Chaung Tha Beach)Tel : 042-423 46~9, 042-421 33,E-mail: maxhotelsreservation@ gmail.com

Hotel Yangon 91/93, 8th Mile Junction, Mayangone. tel : 01-667708, 667688.Inya Lake Resort Hotel 37 Kabar Aye Pagoda Rd. tel: 662866. fax: 665537.

Sakura Residence 9, Inya Rd, Kamaryut Tsp. tel: 525001. fax: 525002.The Grand Mee Ya Hta Executive Residence 372, Bogyoke Aung San Rd, Pabedan Tsp. tel 951-256355 (25 lines).

Reservation Office (Yangon) 123, Alanpya Pagoda Rd, Dagon TownshipTel : 951- 255 819~838Royal Kumudra Hotel, (Nay Pyi Taw)Tel : 067- 414 177, 067- 4141 88E-Mail: [email protected]

(Nay Pyi Taw)

No. (356/366), Kyaikkasan Rd, Tamwe Township, Yangon, Myanmar.Ph: 542826, Fax: 545650Email: [email protected]

mt QuiCk guidethe MyanMar tiMes


Est. 1992 in MyanmarCold Storage Specialist, Solar Hot Water Storage Solutions.Tel: 09-504-2196, 09-731-94828. E-mail: [email protected], glover2812@ gmail.com

La Source Beauty Spa~80(A), Inya Rd, Kamayut Tsp,tel: 512 380, 511 252.www.lasourcebeautyspa.com

Acacia Tea Salon 52, Sayar San Rd, Bahan Tsp, Tel : 01-554739.Cafe47 47-A, Pyay Rd, 7½ miles, Mayangone Tsp, Tel : 01-651774.Traders Café Traders Hotel, Yangon. #223, Sule Pagoda Rd. Tel: 242828 ext: 6519

BEAUTY & MASSAGE

ART & CRAFT

Innwa Book StoreNo. 246, Rm.201/301, GF, Pansodan Street (Upper Block), Kyauktada Tsp. Tel. 389838, 243216, 374324, 514387

La Brasserie (International)PARKROYAL Yangon. 33, Alan Pya Phaya Road, Dagon Tsp. tel : 250388.

MYANMAR BOOK CENTRENandawun Compound, No. 55, Baho Road, Corner of Baho Road and Ahlone Road, (near Eugenia Restaurant), Ahlone Township. tel: 212 409, 221 271. 214708 fax: 524580. email: [email protected]

BOOK STORES

CAFÈS

ADvERTISING

CONSULTING

MHR 905, 9th floor, Modern Iron Market(Thanzay Condo) Lanmadaw St. Tel: 707822.NLEC 82 Anawrahta Rd, Corner of 39 St, Kyauktada Tsp. Tel: 250225.

DUTY FREE

CONSTRUCTION

COLD STORAGE

EDUCATION CENTRE

U Min Sein, BSc, RA, CPA.,RL Advocate of the Supreme Court 83/14 Pansodan St, Yangon. tel: 253 273. [email protected]

LEGAL SERvICE

PHIH-Specialist Clinic FMI Centre (4th Floor) #380, Bogyoke Aung San Road, Pabedan Tsp. tel: 243 010, 243 012, 243 013

Vibhavadi Hospital 214. 1st Floor, Waizayanter Rd, Thingangyun Tsp.Email: vibhavadimyanmar @gmail.com, Hot line: 09-2011-772, 09-731-650-45, 09-86-250-86

HOME FURNISHING

HEAvY MACHINERY

GAS COOKER & COOKER HOODS

HEALTH SERvICES

GENERATORS

GEMS & JEWELLERIES

Yangon : A-3, Aung San Stadium (North East Wing), Mingalartaungnyunt Tsp. Tel : 245543, 09-730-37772.Mandalay : Room No.(B,C) (National Gas), 35th St, Btw 80th & 81st, Chanaye-tharzan Tsp. Tel : 09-680-3505, 02 34455, 36748, 71878.

98(A), Kaba Aye Pagoda Road, Bahan Township, Yangon. Tel: 553783, 549152, 09-732-16940, 09-730-56079. Fax: 542979 Email: [email protected].

22, Pyay Rd, 9 mile, Mayangone Tsp. tel: 660769, 664363.

Lemon Day SpaNo. 96 F, Inya Road, Kamaryut Tsp, Yangon. Tel: 514848, 09-732-08476.E.mail: lemondayspa.2011 @gmail.com

24 hours Cancer centreNo. 330, Yangon International Hotel, Ahlone Road, Dagon Tsp,Yangon, Myanmar. Tel: (951) 218388, 218292 Fax: (951) 218389

24 hours Laboratory & X-rayNo. 330, Ground Flr, Yangon Int’l Hotel, Ahlone Road, Dagon Tsp,Yangon, Myanmar. Tel: (951) 218388, (951) 218292 Fax: (951) 218389

Natural Gems of MyanmarNo. 30 (A), Pyay Road (7 mile), Mayangone Tsp, Yangon, Myanmar.Tel: 01-660397, 654398~9. E-mail: spgems.myanmar @gmail.com

Winning WayNo. 589-592, Bo Aung Kyaw St, Yangon-Pathein highway Road. Hlaing Tharyar tsp. Tel: 951-645178-182, 685199, Fax: 951-645211, 545278. e-mail: mkt-mti@ winstrategic.com.mm

Floral Service & GiftCentre 102(A), Dhamazaydi Rd, Yangon.tel: 500142 Summit Parkview Hotel, tel: 211888, 211966 ext. 173 fax: 535376.email: [email protected].

Mr. BetchangNo.(272), Pyay Rd, DNH Tower, Rm No.(503), 5th flr, Sanchaung Tsp, Tel: 095041216

FLORAL SERvICES

Floral Service & Gift ShopNo. 449, New University Avenue, Bahan Tsp. YGN. Tel: 541217, 559011, 09-860-2292.Market Place By City MartTel: 523840~43, 523845~46, Ext: 205.Junction Nay Pyi TawTel: 067-421617~18 422012~15, Ext: 235.Res: 067-414813, 09-492-09039. Email : [email protected]

The Uranium Dance Studio Pearl condo Bldg (C), 2nd flr, Bahan Tsp. Tel: 09-731-42624, 09-514-0404.

ENTERTAINMENT

FASHION & TAILOR

FOAM SPRAY INSULATION

Foam Spray InsulationNo-410, Ground Floor, Lower Pazuntaung Road, Pazuntaung Tsp, Yangon.Telefax : 01-203743, 09-730-26245, 09-500-7681. Hot Line-09-730-30825.

The Yangon GYM Summit Parkview Hotel 350, Ahlone Rd, Dagon Tsp. tel: 211888, 211966.

Flower Express For enquiries pls call tel: 685150.

ELECTRICAL

Est. 1992 in MyanmarElectrical & Mechanical Contractors, Designers, Consultants.Tel: 09-504-2196, 09-731-94828. E-mail: [email protected], glover2812@ gmail.com

Flora Service & Gift ShopNo.173(B), West Shwegonedaing Rd, Bahan Tsp, YGN. Tel: 09.731 800 30No.75/77, Yaw Min Gyi St. Dagon Tsp, YGN. Tel: 09.431 432 34.Home: 01-577 387, Email: [email protected]

SAIL Marketing & CommunicationsSuite 403, Danathiha Center 790, Corner of Bogyoke Rd & Wadan Rd, Lanmadaw Township, Yangon, Myanmar. Tel: (951) 211870, 224820, 2301195. Email: [email protected]. com

WE STARTED THE ADVERTISINGINDUSTRY IN MYANMAR SINCE 1991

M a r k e t i n g & c o M M u n i c at i o n s

A d v e r t i s i n g

25-B, Thirimingalar Street, (8) block, Kamayut Tsp, Yangon, Myanmar. Tel/Fax: 95-1-504290Tel: 09-541-9459, 505409.Email: [email protected].

Shwe Hinthar B 307, 6 1/2 Miles, Pyay Rd., Yangon.Tel: +95 (0)1 654 [email protected]

Myanmar Research | Consulting | Technology

Acupuncture, Medicine Massage, Foot SpaAdd:No,27(A),Ywa Ma Kyaung Street, Hlaing Township, Yangon. Tel: 01-511122, 526765.

FITNESS CENTRE

Sports & FitnessGrand Meeyahta Executive Residence.Shop 4-5,Ph: 256355, Ext: 3015, 3204 09 731 94684email: [email protected]

No.94, Ground Floor, Bogalay Zay Street, Botataung Tsp,Yangon.Tel: 392625, 09-500-3591Email : [email protected](Except Sunday)

Dance Club & Bar

Zamil SteelNo-5, Pyay Road, 7½ miles, Mayangone Tsp, Yangon. Tel: (95-1) 652502~04. Fax: (95-1) 650306.Email: [email protected]

Sein Shwe Tailor, No.797 (003-A), Bogyoke Aung San Road, Corner of Wardan Street, MAC Tower 2, Lanmadaw Township, Yangon, Ph: 01-225310, 212943~4 Ext: 146, 147, E-mail: [email protected]

24 Hour International Medical Centre @ Victoria HospitalNo. 68, Tawwin Rd, 9 Mile, Mayangon Township, Yangon, MyanmarTel: + 951 651 238, + 959 495 85 955Fax: + 959 651 39824/7 on duty doctor: + 959 492 18 410Website: www.leo.com.mm

“ One Stop Solution for Quality Health Care “

Aesthetic Medical Spa5 (C), Race Course Condo, South Race Course Street, Tarmwe, Yangon.Mobile: [email protected]

Balance FitnesssNo 64 (G), Kyitewine Pagoda Road, Mayangone Township. Yangon01-656916, 09 8631392Email - [email protected]

European Quality & Designs FurnitureSuitable for Outdoor or Indoor UseNo. 422 - 426, FJVC Centre, Ground Floor,Room No. 4, Strand Road (Corner of Botahtaung Pagoda Road), Botahtaung Township, Yangon 11161, Myanmar.Tel: 01 202063, 01 202064H.P: 09 509 1673Fax: 01 202063E-mail: [email protected]: www.wovenfurnituredesigns.com

A Little DayspaNo. 475 C, Pyi Road, Kamayut, Yangon. Tel: 09-431-28831.

Traders Health Club. Level 5, Traders Hotel Yangon#223 Sule Pagoda Rd, Tel: 951 242828 Ext: 6561 Diamond Queen

75, Oo Yin Lane, New University Avenue Rd, Bahan Tsp. Tel : 01- 548001, 704398

Diamond & Me Junction Square, Ground Floor, Kamayut Tsp. Tel : 01- 527242, (Ext : 1082)

Franzo Living Mall 15 (A/5), Pyay Rd, A-1, 9 Miles, Mayangone Tsp, Yangon. Ph: 664026

150 Dhamazedi Rd., •Bahan T/S, Yangon. Tel: 536306, 537805.Room 308, 3rd Flr., •Junction Center (Maw Tin), Lanmadaw T/S, Yangon. Tel: 218155, Ext. 1308.15(B), Departure Lounge, •Yangon Int’l Airport.45B, Corner of 26th & •68th Sts., Mandalay. Tel: (02) 66197. Email: [email protected]

Duty Free ShopsYangon International Airport, Arrival/Departure Tel: 533030 (Ext: 206/155)

Office: 17, 2nd street, Hlaing Yadanarmon Housing, Hlaing Township, Yangon. Tel: 500143, 500144, 500145.

Piyavate Hospital (Bangkok) Myanmar Represent ative (Head office)Grand Mee Yahta Executive Residences. No.372, Bogyoke Aung San Rd, PBDN. Ph: 256355, Ext: 3206. Hotline: 09-7377-7799. Email: [email protected], [email protected], Website: www.piyavate.com

LS SalonJunction Square, 3rd floor. Pyay Rd, Kamayut Tsp.Tel 527242, ext 4001

Spa & Boutique FashionNo. 24, Inya Road, Kamaryut Township,Yangon, Myanmar.Tel: 951 534 654, [email protected]

Ruby & Rare Gems of Myanamar

No. 527, New University Ave., Bahan Tsp. [email protected] Tel: 549612, Fax : 545770.

ATC Co., Ltd.27 (A), Kaba Aye Pagoda Road, Yankin TSP:, Yangon, Myanmar. T & F : 665610, [email protected]

ATC Co., Ltd.27 (A), Kaba Aye Pagoda Road, Yankin TSP:, Yangon, Myanmar. T & F : 665610, [email protected]

mt QuiCk guide53the MyanMar tiMes February 25 - March 3, 2013

Indian Fine Dining & BarBldg No. 12, Yangon Int’l Compound, Ahlone Road. Tel: 01-2302069, 09-431-85008, 09-731-60662. [email protected]

WEB SERvICES

WATER HEATERS

WATER TREATMENT

The Global leader in Water HeatersA/1, Aung San Stadium East Wing, Upper Pansodan Road. Tel: 251033, 09-730-25281.

Road to MandalayMyanmar Hotels & Cruises Ltd. Governor’s Residence 39C, Taw Win Rd, Dagon Tsp, Yangon. Tel: (951) 229860fax: (951) 217361. email: [email protected] www.orient-express.com

PLEASURE CRUISES

Water HeaterSame as Rinnai Gas cooker and cooker Hood Showroom Address

Myanmar. Tel: 95-1-535-783, 527705, 501429. Fax: 95-1-527705. Email: [email protected] Mawtin Bogyoke Aung San Rd, Cor of Wadan St. Lanmadaw.Ocean Supercentre (North Point ), 9th Mile, Mayangone Tsp. Tel: 651 200, 652963.Pick ‘n’ Pay Hyper Market Bldg (A,B,C), (14~16), Shwe Mya Yar Housing, Mya Yar Gone St, Mingalartaungnyunt Tsp. Tel: 206001~3, Fax: 9000199Sein Gay Har 44, Pyay Rd, Dagon Tsp. Tel: 383812, 379823.Super 1 (Kyaikkasan) 65, Lay Daunt Kan St, Tel: 545871~73Victoria Shwe Pone Nyet Yeik Mon, Bayint Naung Rd, Kamaryut Tsp. Tel : 515136.

TRAvEL AGENTS

Asian Trails Tour Ltd73 Pyay Rd, Dagon tsp. tel: 211212, 223262. fax: 211670. email: [email protected] Light

106, Set Yone Rd.tel: 294074, 294083.Capital Hyper Mart 14(E), Min Nandar Road, Dawbon Tsp. Ph: 553136.City Mart (Aung San Branch) tel: 253022, 294765. (9:00 am to 9:00 pm)City Mart (47th St Branch) tel: 200026, 298746. (9:00 am to 9:00 pm)City Mart (Junction 8 Branch) tel: 650778. (9:00 am to 9:00 pm)City Mart (FMI City Branch) tel: 682323.City Mart (Yankin Center Branch) tel: 400284. (9:00 am to 9:00 pm)City Mart (Myaynigone Branch) tel: 510697. (9:00 am to 10:00 pm)City Mart (Zawana Branch) tel:564532. (9:00 am to 9:00 pm)City Mart (Shwe Mya Yar Branch) tel: 294063. (9:00 am to 9:00 pm)City Mart (Chinatown Point Branch) tel: 215560~63. (9:00 am to 10:00 pm)City Mart (Junction Maw Tin Branch) tel: 218159. (9:00 am to 9:00 pm)City Mart (Marketplace) tel: 523840~43. (9:00 am to 10:00 pm)City Mart (78th Brahch-Mandalay) tel: 02-71467~9. (9:00 am to 10:00 pm)IKON Mart IKON Trading Co., Ltd. No.332, Pyay Rd, San Chaung P.O (11111), Yangon,

SUPERMARKETS

STEEL CONSTRUCTION

SOLAR SYSTEM

No.35(b), Tatkatho Yeik Mon Housing,New University Avenue, Bahan Township, Yangon. Tel: 951-549451, 557219, 540730. www.yangon-academy.org

World-class Web ServicesTailor-made design, Professional research & writing for Brochure/ Catalogue/e-Commerce website, Customised business web apps, online advertisement and anything online. Talk to us: (951) 430-897, 553-918 www.medialane.com.au 58B Myanma Gon Yaung Housing. Than Thu Mar Road, Tamwe, Yangon.

Yangon International SchoolFully Accredited K-12 International Curriculum with ESL support No.117,Thumingalar Housing, Thingangyun Township, Yangon. Tel: 578171, 573149 www.yismyanmar.netYangon International School New Early Childhood Center Pan Hlaing Golf Estate Housing & U Tun Nyo Street, Hlaing Thar Yar Township, Yangon. Tel: 687701, 687702

International School Yangon 20, Shwe Taung Kyar St, Bahan Tsp. Tel: 512793.

ILBC IGCSE SCHOOLNo.(34), LaydauntkanRoad, Tamwe Tsp, Yangon.Tel: 542982, 545720,549106,545736,400156Fax: 541040Email: [email protected]

ILBC 180, Thunandar 9th Lane, Thumingalar Housing, Thingungyung.tel: 562401.

Horizon Int’l School25, Po Sein Road, Bahan Tsp, tel : 541085, 551795, 551796, 450396~7. fax : 543926, email : [email protected], www.horizon.com

SCHOOLS

Media & Advertising

Intuitive Design, Advertising, Interior DecorationCorporate logo/Identity/ Branding, Brochure/ Profile Booklet/ Catalogue/ Billboard, Corporate diary/ email newsletter/ annual reports, Magazine, journal advertisement and 3D presentation and detailed planning for any interior decoration works. Talk to us: (951) 430-897, 553-918 www.medialane.com.au 58B Myanma Gon Yaung Housing, Than Thu Mar Road, Tamwe, Yangon.

MARINE COMMUNICATION &

NAvIGATION

Top Marine Show RoomNo-385, Ground Floor, Lower Pazundaung Road, Pazundaung Tsp, Yangon.Ph: 01-202782, 09-851-5597

Moby Dick Tours Co., Ltd.Islands Safari in the Mergui Archipelago4 Days, 6 Days, 8 Days TripsTel: 95 1 202063, 202064E-mail: info@islandsafari mergui.com. Website: www.islandsafarimergui.com

Traders Gourmet CornerLevel 1, Traders Hotel, #223 Sule Pagoda Road, Kyauktada Tsp. Tel : 242828 ext : 6503

The Ritz Exclusive LoungeChatrium Hotel Royal Lake Yangon40, Natmauk Road, Tamwe Tsp, Ground Floor, Tel: 544500 Ext 6243, 6244

OFFICE FURNITURE

Royal GardenNat Mauk Road, Kandaw Gyi Natural Park, Bahan Tsp. tel: 546202Signature Near U Htaung Bo Round, about Bahan Tsp. tel: 546488, 543387.Spicy Forest Thai, Korean and European Food Rm-051/Basement-1 (B1), Taw Win Center, Pyay Rd. Tel : 09-7320-9566, 01-8600111 (1151)

PEB Steel Buildings21/5, Thirimingalar Avenue, Kabaaye Pagoda Rd, Yankin Tsp, Yangon. Tel: 653410, 09-7325-7042, 09-515-0332, 09-4016-01948. [email protected] www.pebsteel.com.mm

The Brightest AC CFL Bulb 21, 9th St, Lanmadaw Tsp. Ph: 212243, 216861, 216864. [email protected]. www.spsolarstation.com

Streamline Education 24, Myasabai Rd, Parami, Myangone Tsp. tel: 662304, 09-500-6916.

Lunch/Dinner/Catering 555539, 536174

RESTAURANTS

Pansweltaw Express Cafe: 228, Ahlone Rd, Ahlone Tsp. Tel: 215363 (1)-Rm-309, 3rd flr, Ocean, East Point Shopping Center, Pazundaung Tsp. Tel: 397900 Ext: 309. (2)–G-Flr, Ocean North Point Shopping Center. Tel:652959, 652960, Ext: 133.

The Emporia RestaurantChatrium Hotel Royal Lake Yangon40, Natmauk Road, Tamwe Tsp. Lobby Level,Tel: 544500 Ext 6294

1. WASABI : No.20-B,Kaba Aye Pagoda Rd,Yankin Tsp,(Near MiCasa),Tel; 666781,09-503-91392. WASABI SUSHI : MarketPlace by City Mart (1st Floor). Tel; 09-430-67440Myaynigone (City Mart)Yankin Center (City Mart)Junction Mawtin (City Mart)

Commercial scalewater treatment

(Since 1997)Tel: 01-2300086. H/P: 09-5161431,

09-43126571.39-B, Thazin Lane, Ahlone.

Relocation SpecialistRm 504, M.M.G Tower, #44/56, Kannar Rd, Botahtaung Tsp. Tel: 250290, 252313. Mail : [email protected]

Crown WorldwideMovers Ltd 790, Rm 702, 7th Flr Danathiha Centre, Bogyoke Aung San Rd, Lanmadaw. Tel: 223288, 210 670, 227650. ext: 702. Fax: 229212. email: crown [email protected]

REMOvALISTS

Bo Sun Pat Tower, Bldg 608, Rm 6(B), Cor of Merchant Rd & Bo Sun Pat St, PBDN Tsp. Tel: 377263, 250582, 250032, 09-511-7876, 09-862-4563.

Legendary Myanmar Int’l Shipping & Logistics Co., Ltd.No-9, Rm (A-4), 3rd Flr, Kyaung St, Myaynigone, Sanchaung Tsp, Yangon.Tel: 516827, 523653, 516795. Mobile. 09-512-3049. Email: [email protected] .mmwww.LMSL-shipping.com

Schenker (Thai) Ltd. Yangon 59 A, U Lun Maung Street. 7 Mile Pyay Road, MYGN. tel: 667686, 666646.fax: 651250. email: sche [email protected].

Summer Palace (Chinese) Restaurant Level 2, Traders Hotel, #223, Sule Pagoda Road. tel: 242828. ext:6483

Admissions Office:Than Lwin Campus: 44, Than Lwin Road, Bahan Tsp, Yangon. Tel: 951-535433, 959-8503073. Email: [email protected]: www.rvcentre.com.sg

PAINT

TOP MARINE PAINT No-410, Ground Floor, Lower Pazundaung Road, Pazundaung Tsp, Yangon.Ph: 09-851-5202

Monday to Saturday (9am to 6pm)No. 797, MAC Tower II, Rm -4, Ground Flr, Bogyoke Aung San Rd,Lamadaw Tsp, Yangon.Tel: (951) 212944 Ext: [email protected]

MAHARBANDULA

No. 177, U Chit Maung Road, Zay Kwayt Bus Stop, Bahan Tsp. Tel: (959) 4200 56166 Fax: (951) 860 [email protected]

P r i n t i n g H o u s e

Traders Gallery BarLevel 2, Traders Hotel, #223 Sule Pagoda Road. tel: 242 828. ext: 6433Traders Lobby LoungeLevel 1, Traders Hotel, #223 Sule Pagoda Road. tel: 242 828. ext: 6456Western ParkThakhin Mya Park, Ahlone. Tel: 225143

PRINTING

REAL ESTATE

Real Estate AgencyOur Services - Office, House & Land (For Rent)(Agent Fees Free)Tel: 09-501-8250, 09-732-02480.

Win

Heaven Pizza 38/40, Bo Yar Nyunt St. Yaw Min Gyi Quarter, Dagon Township. Tel: 09-855-1383

Sole DistributorFor the Union of Myanmar Since 1995Myanmar Golden Rock International Co.,Ltd.Level 6, FJV Commercial Center, Botahtaung TspYangon. Ph-202092-96,Fax: 202079

World’s No.1 Paints & Coatings Company

Tour & Car Rental ServiceEnglish Speaking DriverPh:09-510-7461,09-730-46093.

Black Canyon Coffee & International Thai Cuisine 330, Ahlone Rd, Dagon Tsp. Tel: 0980 21691, 395052.

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sPortthe MyanMar tiMes


LOS ANGELES – Former players and rivals recalled Jerry Buss, the Los Angeles Lakers owner who died February 18 after a fight with cancer at age 80, as a visionary who helped mold the NBA and make the Lakers champions.

Buss won 10 NBA titles as owner of the Lakers, more than any other team owner in league history, after buying the Lakers, ice hockey’s Los Angeles Kings, their arena and a ranch from Jack Kent Cooke for $67.5 million in 1979.

“The NBA has lost a visionary owner whose influence on our league is incalculable and will be felt for decades to come,” NBA commissioner David Stern said. “More importantly, we have lost a dear and valued friend.”

Buss, who was elected into the Basketball Hall of Fame in 2010, was recalled fondly by fellow Hall of Famer Magic Johnson, who said Buss was like a “second father” after making the Lakers’ selection of Johnson in the 1979 NBA draft a condition of the purchase deal.

“He was a fun loving guy but he was very compet i t ive as we l l , ” Johnson said. “He wanted to win championships and he brought us in all together to do just that.

“ H e w a s t h e f i r s t owner who cared about entertainment –let’s focus on the timeouts, the Laker Girls (cheerleaders), all of these things that hadn’t been done before.

“He changed the scope of entertainment in sports. He was at the forefront of all of that. He was a great man and an incredible friend.”

B u s s l a u n c h e d t h e “Showtime” era of the Lakers that saw Johnson win five titles and later become a part-owner of the team, which is now guided by son Jim Buss

on basketball matters and daughter Jeanie Buss on the business side.

“We not only have lost our cherished father but a beloved man of our community and a person respected by the world basketball community,” said a statement from the Buss family released by the club.

In 34 seasons owning the Lakers, they made 16 trips to the final, winning 10 times and dominating with such stars as Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Shaquille O’Neal, Kobe Bryant and Pau Gasol.

“He has meant everything to me in my career. What he has done, it’s hard to match in the world of sports,”

Bryant said of Buss, whom he once dubbed “the greatest owner in the history of team sports.”

“I’m deeply saddened over da loss of the great Dr. Jerry Buss,” O’Neal said in a Twitter posting. “He was a dear friend, mentor, and brilliant business mind thank u 4 8 gr8 yrs.”

“Today is a very sad

day for all the Lakers and basketball,” Gasol said on Twitter. “All my support and condolences to the Buss family. Rest in peace Dr. Buss.”

J o h n s o n c r e d i t e d his post-NBA career as a businessman to Buss’s teachings and said he and Buss cried together when Johnson revealed he was HIV positive.

“We cried for about two hours together,” Johnson told ESPN. “He wanted to get me the best doctors possible. He wanted to get me anything he could to make it better... He was there with me every step of the way.

Former Lakers s tar James Worthy tweeted “Condolences to the Buss family. Dr Buss was not only the greatest sports owner, but a true friend & just a really cool guy. Loved him dearly.”

Former Laker Dennis Rodman tweeted “My thoughts and prayers are with the Buss family. Dr Jerry Buss was like a Dad to me and is a tremendous loss to Lakers family.”

R i v a l o w n e r s acknowledged the impact Buss had upon them.

“RIP Jerry Buss. Your encouragement and support along with your stories of staying true to yourself had an enormous impact on me,” Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban tweeted.

Boston Celt ics chief executive Wyc Grousbeck enjoyed the epic rivalry his team had with Buss and the Lakers. – AFP

League mourns death of Lakers’ owner Buss

JAKARTA – Rival football federations in Indonesia have promised to resolve their differences to avoid looming FIFA sanctions which include a ban on playing international matches, an official said on February 20.

Football in Southeast Asia’s biggest nation has been mired in scandal for the past two years, with the competing administrations angering the game’s world body by running separate leagues and failing to meet several deadlines to unite.

“FIFA sent a letter to the sports minister, urging progress before the deadline of March 20,” Indonesian Football Association (PSSI) official Rudolf Yesayas told AFP.

“We had a meeting with the (rival) KPSI and sports minister on Monday night, and we agreed to work out all our differences at an upcoming congress on March 17.”

The rift began in 2011 when PSSI expelled four of its members, who then went on to start a rebel league called the Indonesian Soccer Rescue Committee (KPSI), splitting the nation’s best teams.

KPSI told its players

not to make themselves available for the national team, hitting Indonesia’s chances on the international stage.

The rival federations signed a memorandum of understanding to resolve the conflict in Kuala Lumpur last June but failed to come to an agreement before a deadline of December 15.

FIFA’s executive body extended that deadline, which President Sepp Blatter described as a “Christmas gift”.

He added that if the new date was missed Indonesia would be barred from international matches and would lose financial assistance from FIFA.

The PSSI has been in hot water with FIFA and the Asian Football Confederation in recent years over poor management, corruption allegations, leadership tussles and poor security at major matches.

Outrage at the poorly regulated sport in the country was sparked in December when Paraguayan Diego Mendieta, who had not been paid for months by his KPSI club and could not afford medical treatment, died from a viral infection.

– AFP

Williams eyes Olympic Sevens goldSYDNEY – Former All Black Sonny Bill Williams admits the chance to win Olympic gold could tempt him to switch to rugby Sevens for the 2016 Rio Games as he weighs up his future in the boxing ring.

The code-hopping New Zealander is about to resume his rugby league career

with the Sydney Roosters after winning a 10-round heavyweight boxing bout against veteran South African Frans Botha earlier this month.

But Williams, 27, a member of the World Cup-winning All Blacks team of 2011, told the Sydney Morning Herald that playing Sevens for New Zealand

at the Rio Games was an appealing prospect.

“To win a gold medal sounds pretty good,” he said.

“As a sportsman, if you don’t have those sorts of dreams or aspirations then you may as well just stay in bed.”

Williams refused to commit to continuing his boxing career after the draining fight won on points against the vastly more experienced Botha earlier this month in Australia.

“I think I am best at putting on the boots and running out on the field to play rugby union or rugby league,” said Williams.

“If I had lost that fight I would have given it away because it is just not worth it, but I overcame some hurdles and the reaction of all the people close to me was good so we will assess it when the time is right.”

Williams, on the receiving end of some heavy blows from Botha in the final round of the bout, admitted that boxing was a challenge.

“I am not perfect but I am just trying to keep improving and if everyone is saying I have improved then I will just keep plugging away and maybe have another fight,” he said.

“But at this stage I am concentrating on playing rugby league and we will assess that after the season. At this stage, I have had enough of boxing for now.”

Earlier this month All Black Liam Messam said he was considering switching to Sevens in order to compete for an Olympic gold medal.

The shortened form of the game becomes a full medal sport in the Brazilian city of Rio de Janeiro in 2016, a year after the next Rugby World Cup in England. – AFP

A statue of legendary Lakers broadcaster Chick Hearn holds flowers and cards left in honour of the late Dr Jerry Buss, owner of the Los Angeles Lakers, before the game against the Boston Celtics on February 20 in Los Angeles. Pic: AFP

Caption: Francois Botha of South Africa (R) and New Zealand rugby union player Sonny Bill Williams exchanging blows during their WBA International Heavyweight Title fight at the Brisbane Entertainment Centre on February 8. Pic: AFP

Rival Indonesian leagues pledge to resolve row

sPort55the MyanMar tiMes February 25 - March 3, 2013

Asia holding out for hero as season startsSINGAPORE – Asian golf returned last week with the search intensifying for a first global superstar to lead the region into a bright and innovative future – and put its current squabbles in the shade.

With four billion people, a growing middle class and thousands of courses, it is seen as just a matter of time before a player of genuine world stature emerges, but the process so far has been frustratingly slow.

As the Asian Tour started its 10th season with the Zaykabar Myanmar Open on February 21, Japan’s Hiroyuki Fujita, 43, is the sole Asian representative in the world’s top 50, with only nine others in the top 100.

South Korea’s 41-year-old Y.E. Yang won the 2009 PGA Championship but further successes have been scarce, with Asian players largely unimpressive against their European and American rivals in the region’s biggest events last year.

It is a situation tacitly acknowledged by officials with the Asian Tour’s eight-point wishlist for the next 10 years, unveiled last week, including three Asians in the top 10, three more major-winners and Asia’s first superstar.

“Golf is in its infancy in the Asia-Pacific region. It takes time, and it takes time to develop personalities in particular,” tour CEO Mike Kerr told AFP.

“All sport is personality-driven but I think the foundations are there, the fundamentals are there, the growth is going to be there. It (developing stars) won’t

necessarily happen by itself, it’s not that easy.

“But I certainly believe that we are poised now for a period of real and sustainable growth through full-field Asian Tour events and through partnerships with Europe, the PGA Tour, with Japan and with others.”

Asian Tour officials argue that regional golf would be in a better place if not for the

stand-off with rival circuit OneAsia, which emerged in 2009 and left the two fighting for their share of an increasingly crowded market.

But there is little sign of a ceasefire this year. The Asian Tour is still c o n s i d e r i n g w h e t h e r to appeal November ’s important court judgement in Singapore which found it acted illegally by barring

players from OneAsia events.

Women’s golf is already dominated by Asians, with world number one Tseng Yani among eight in the top 10 and Korean-born New Zealander Lydia Ko, 15 – the US LPGA’s youngest ever winner – the latest prospect for stardom.

Ko finished third as the LPGA season got off to an eye-catching start in

Australia before moving to Thailand this week.

Among the men, Japan’s Ryo Ishikawa, India ’s Gaganjeet Bhullar and Bae Sang-Moon and Noh Seung-Yul of South Korea, all in their twenties, are among Asia’s leading hopes.

But at Augusta in April, all eyes will be on Guan Tianlang of China when the slim schoolboy from Guangzhou becomes the

youngest player to tee off at the US Masters, aged 14 years, five months and 17 days.

Guan’s debut follows compatriot Andy Zhang’s appearance at last year’s US Open, also aged 14, and will raise expectations that China can increase its curiously poor tally of just two players in the top 800.

A record 761 players entered this year’s Asian Tour qualifying school, showing the g rowing popularity of the game and lifting hopes that the region’s first golf superstar is on his way.

But the future golfing landscape cou ld l ook radically different with Asia more prominent and a proliferation of innovative new tournaments, such as India’s Golf Premier League.

In s trong echoes o f cricket’s Indian Premier League, star players were bought at auction by eight teams for the televised, floodlit and Asian Tour-approved event played over three rounds of 14 holes earlier this month.

This year may also see a reprise of unsanctioned events in China such as November’s chaotic “Duel at Jinsha Lake” between Tiger Woods and Rory McIlroy, when fans mobbed the fairways and stole balls from the driving range.

Tournament highlights will include the WGC-HSBC Champions, which returns to Shanghai with a giant purse of $8.5 million, and Kuala Lumpur’s CIMB Classic, which will become the first full-status US PGA Tour event in Asia. – AFP

Mardan Mamat of Singapore, Thaworn Wiratchant of Thailand, Boonchu Ruangkit of Thailand, Tetsuji Hiratsuka of Japan, Kieran Pratt of Australia, Yan Myo Aye and Thein Naing Soe of Myanmar and Asian Tour Executive Chairman Kyi Hla Han pose during a press conference for the Zaykabar Myanmar Open at the Royal Mingalardon Golf and Country Club in Yangon on February 19. Pic: AFP

Thai FA ‘shocked’ by claimKUALA LUMPUR – Thai F o o t b a l l A s s o c i a t i o n president Worawi Makudi s a i d F e b r u a r y 2 1 h e was “shocked” over a reported attempt to rig last year’s Thai FA Cup final, and vowed to root out any corruption in Thai football.

A Japanese r e f e ree who officiated in the final in November between Buriram United and Army United has told FIFA that he was approached to rig the match, which Buriram won 2-1, Thai news reports have said.

“I can say I was shocked because in Thailand we have never seen such practices before,” he told AFP at a meeting between Interpol and world football officials in Kuala Lumpur to discuss match-fixing.

“I will try to get rid of this kind of malpractice. I will try to eliminate this kind of practice,” Worawi said.

However, he declined to reveal any further information on the match-rigging allegation, saying he would first discuss the allegations with officials of world football’s governing body FIFA.

But he said new laws targeting match-fixing would be introduced in

Thailand “very soon” and would include “harsh” jail sentence and fines.

Ralf Mutschke, FIFA’s director of security, told AFP on the sidelines of the meeting that FIFA was confident of Thailand’s abi l ity to address the issue.

He called for disciplinary measures or poss ib ly criminal proceedings if the allegations were found to be true.

“They are capable and know what to do,” he said of the Thai FA, adding that “match-fixing is harming the game” globally.

Match-fixing in football has emerged as a serious threat to the integrity of the game in Asia, where both football and gambling are highly popular, while the rise of online gambling has added to the mix.

Major game-r igg ing scandals have emerged in Malaysia, South Korea and China in recent years.

But the issue is in the global spotlight as well, after European pol ice a g e n c y E u r o p o l s a i d recently 380 suspicious games have been identified in Europe among nearly 700 worldwide, including Champions League ties and World Cup qualifiers.

– AFP

TEHRAN – The United States and Iran may be arch foes on the diplomatic front, but bosses from two of wrestling’s power-houses have allied to fight a decision to drop the sport from the 2020 Olympic Games.

Rich Bender, executive director of USA Wrestling, is in Tehran, hosted the World Cup men’s freestyle tournament on February 21 and 22.

“We need the backing of Iran and Russia... to preserve the wrestling, and this goes beyond politics... Iran is one of the powers in wrestling and can defend the game’s credibility,” he was quoted by the ISNA news agency as saying.

Speaking at a ceremony hosted by the Iranian Wrestling Federation, he said he hoped that, with the “comprehensive unity” among the wrestling power-houses, the IOC will change its decision.

The head of the Iranian Wrestling Federation, Hojatollah Khatib, said he hopes that “this unprecedented unity” can change the International Olympic Committee’s decision.

Hegedus Csaba, a member of the International Federation of Associated Wrestling Styles (FILA), said “we are showing the IOC that we are united and will force them to bring back the wrestling to the Olympics.

“I am very happy that Khatib and Bender had very friendly meeting. This shows that we have a common language and that is wrestling.”

Last week, the IOC’s executive board voted to drop wrestling as one of the core sports of the games. That means

it now joins seven others – baseball/softball, karate, squash, roller sports, sport climbing, wakeboarding and wushu – vying to be selected as an “additional sport.”

The board will meet in May to consider presentations by their supporters and choose one to recommend to the full committee for a decision in September.

But the full committee is seen as unlikely to vote against the executive board, raising the prospect that one of the few sports that survived from the original Olympics in ancient Greece

into the modern era will disappear.The sport first appeared in 708 BC

and has only ever been left out of the Olympic programme once before in 1900.

FILA has vowed to fight the decision, and International Olympic Academy president Isidoros Kouvelos also called on the IOC to respect the historical roots of the Olympics and not remove wrestling.

Wrestling-mad Iran was one of the first nations to criticise the move to scrap the sport, dubbing it a “big blow” to the country’s sport which has been medal winner for the country.

Wrestling has an ancient history in Iran, dating a time when Persian kings would battle their opponents in epic matches. The sport attracts millions of followers across the country, and unofficial figures say tens of thousands actually go to the mats.

However, wrestling is forbidden for women in Islamic Iran.

Washington broke off relations with Iran in 1980 in the aftermath of the storming of the US embassy in Tehran that led to 52 American diplomats being taken hostage by Islamist students.

Since then, the US has been vilified by the Islamic republic as the “Great Satan.”

It is particularly significant that public figures from the United States and Iran have come together with a common goal, given that the two countries’ governments are locked in a tense showdown over an array of issues.

The United States, along with much of the West and Israel, suspects that Iran’s civil nuclear programme is a cover for developing a bomb.

Tehran strongly denies that, but has been slapped with a host of sanctions aimed at pushing it to stop enriching uranium which, in highly pure form, can be used as the core of a bomb.

Washington is also at loggerheads over its support for the embattled regime of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and for Hezbollah, the powerful Lebanese Shiite movement that is an arch foe of close US ally Syria. – AFP

Iran, US wrestling chiefs to fight Olympic removal

‘This shows that we have a common

language and that is wrestling.’


tImESsPORtBy Aung Si Hein

THE Ministry of Sports announced last week it had suspended the Union Cup, a Southeast Asian Games rehearsal event, scheduled to open on February 19. Officials gave no new opening date in a move that has raised doubts over the ministry’s SEA Games preparation.

The ministry said that the suspension was due to a scheduling conflict with high school matriculation exams that some participants need to take.

“Some team leaders proposed that we postpone the Union Cup because there are students who are contestants who are planning to sit for matriculation exams. The minister agreed with their proposal to change the date. But we have not reached a decision for the rescheduled time table,” U Htay Hlaing director of the Ministry of Sports told The Myanmar Times.

In January Minister for Sports U Tint Hsan said the date for opening was February 19. But on February 20 state-run newspapers ran a list of Union Cup events with an opening date of February 28, leading to confusion.

The Union Cup was to serve as a dry run for the 27th SEA Games, which will be held in Nay Pyi Taw in December. Opening and closing ceremonies were to be rehearsed and sport events contested with a selection of national, regional and state level athletes.

The suspension has left athletes frustrated and questioning how prepared the nation is to host the SEA Games, the first time it has done so since 1969.

“Timing is very important in sports. We set goals and we train hard to develop various skills over time. But when the goal is moved, our timing is off and imbalanced. The ministry should have considered that there are many students among the Union Cup participants,” said Win Tint, a track and field athlete who was scheduled to compete.

Win Tint added that training conditions are difficult for athletes.

“We all at Gold Camp are paid K30, 000 per month. When we miss a day of training, a day’s allowance is subtracted as if we are working for salaries. And we are not fed according to the menu,” he said.

Ministry move raises SEA Games doubts

SINGAPORE, Feb 21, 2013 (AFP) - Singaporean police said the suspected boss of a major football match-fixing ring was “assisting” investigations on February 21 after the head of Interpol urged his arrest and an alleged associate was held in Italy.

Tan Seet Eng, also known as Dan Tan, who has been named in several probes and is wanted in Italy, but denies wrongdoing, is “currently assisting Singapore authorities in their investigations”, a police statement said.

It is the first time police have indicated Tan has undergone questioning. Singapore has come under growing pressure to act after Europol linked hundreds of suspicious games worldwide to a criminal syndicate in the city-state.

Police also confirmed they gave the tip-off that led to the arrest of Admir Sulic, an alleged associate of Tan, as he arrived at Milan’s Malpensa airport from Singapore earlier on February 21.

“The Singapore authorities have been offering assistance and sharing available information with affected countries and will continue to do so,” the statement said.

“Dan Tan Seet Eng, a Singaporean who has been named in reports so far, is currently assisting Singapore authorities in their investigations.”

It added: “In response to media queries, the Singapore Police Force confirms that it had informed the National Crime Bureau (NCB) Rome of the travel plans of a person wanted by the Italian authorities for investigations into match-fixing.”

“... The person has since been arrested by the Italian authorities and NCB Rome has thanked the police for its support in this matter.”

The apparent crackdown comes just hours after Interpol secretary-general Ronald Noble, speaking at a match-fixing conference in neighbouring Malaysia, bluntly told Singapore to arrest Tan.

Tan is wanted in Italy over the wide-ranging calcioscommesse (football betting) scandal and emerged as a key suspect two weeks ago when Europol said fixers had targeted 380 games in Europe and 300 more around the world.

“The fact that there can be an alleged organised crime head operating in a country known to be safe, secure like Singapore, distresses Singaporeans and

distresses the world,” Noble said on February 20.

He also revealed that Singapore police had given a tip-off that a match-fixing suspect was en route from Singapore to Milan.

Interpol later said Slovenian Admir Sulic, 31, a suspected member of the so-called zingari (gypsies) syndicate allegedly headed by Tan, was arrested after touching down in the northern Italian city.

An international arrest warrant was issued for Sulic in December 2011 in connection with the calcioscommesse scandal in Italy which implicated dozens of players, coaches and officials.

Interpol said Sulic was suspected of “fraud and qualified sporting fraud committed within criminal association”, and was wanted for questioning in relation to alleged

match-rigging by Tan’s organisation linked to suspect results in some 60 countries.

Tan’s name has cropped up in multiple investigations but he has so far remained at large in Singapore, where police last week said they needed hard evidence before arresting anyone.

Europol’s report has put a renewed focus on match-fixing, which has long been documented in Asia and appears to be increasing throughout the world, fuelled by the advent of lucrative online gambling.

Last week, China handed out bans, fines and points deductions at the end of a major investigation into match-fixing and corruption, and claims emerged in Thailand that criminals tried to rig the country’s FA Cup final last year. • Related report P. 55 – AFP

Top match-fixing suspect ‘assisting’ police investigation

FIFA director of security Ralk Mutschke speaks to the media during a conference by INTERPOL and FIFA in Kuala Lumpur last week to discuss match fixing in football. Pic: AFP

2

UNTIL the very recent past, most young people in Myanmar

shunned political activity because of the dangers that accompanied it. However while many still appear disenchanted by the prospect of a career in politics, the situation appears to be slowly changing for the better, which is no doubt due to the democratic reforms that began taking place in 2011.

At a training centre run by the organisation Action Aid called Global Platform, young people learn about a variety of issues, such as governance, citizenship and creative advocacy.

One of the participants, 22-year-old Toe Toe from Meikhtila in the Mandalay Region, has helped build a library and founded a youth group in his community.

“I am not interested in becoming a politician. I want to change the mindsets of people in order to help them build up our community from the bottom. The most effective way to change the status quo is through the young generation, because we are still learning. The young generation is the future and possibly potential leaders later on,” he said.

After an exercise of teambuilding at Global Platform, the circle of young people – some wearing longyi and other jeans - split up into smaller groups to discuss cultural diversity.

Another participant, 25-year-old Phwe Yu Mon was one of the organisers behind the first Myanmar Youth Forum, which was held in December and included 157 representatives from 14 states and regions.

She said, “Young people have a lot of problems and

the biggest challenge for them is education, because it often doesn’t lead to job opportunities. Our goal with the Myanmar Youth Forum was to build a network across the country to overcome the challenges we face. We need to be strong and know our rights to keep up the developments.”

Participants in the forum identified various challenges and came up with potential solutions, which were subsequently submitted to the government.

“Myanmar youth do not participate actively in political affairs because they are weak in… relying on oneself, leadership and knowledge,” a statement from the

Myanmar Youth Forum said.Capacity building has

become a catch-phrase among politically conscious youth, who recognise that without the necessary skills, their ability to play an effective role in politics is greatly hampered.

For more than 50 years, the amount of money

invested in education has been inadequate and universities dropped political subjects, leaving an enormous knowledge vacuum. A teacher at Bayda Institute, 32-year-old Zay Yah Oo, understands firsthand how dangerous political activism was in the past. He was released from prison in the beginning of 2012 after serving eight years for breaking the State Law and Order Restoration Council Law Number 6/88 by “illegally organising under the Unlawful Association Act”.

He has just finished

teaching a one-month course in politics and public opinion.

“Our aim is to create a democratic atmosphere for the youth of Myanmar. The young generation should have political knowledge in order to understand their country, otherwise they can’t participate in politics as we move towards democracy,”

Zay Yah Oo said. Generation Wave is

a pro-democracy group that was founded in 2007 following the Saffron revolution. Membership is restricted to people aged between 18 and 35 and campaigns included an anti-government film called Rambo that was distributed in unmarked packages in tea shops and bumper stickers that said “Change New Government” (as opposed to the more commonly seen “Compressed Natural Gas” stickers). Although the group previously had its

safe-house in Mae Sot, it moved to Yangon after the military government was dissolved in March 2011. In January last year, many of the 27 members who were imprisoned for “illegal organising” were released as part of a mass presidential pardon. Each had been given a five year sentence.

Ko Khant Htun said he joined Generation Wave a year and a half ago after undergoing training in Mae Sot.

“My political work over the past year has been a big change of lifestyle. I don’t have a lot of friends because they are afraid my work could land them in jail. But I won’t stop because I am concerned for the next generation. I don’t want my future daughter or son to grow up like this,” Ko Khant Htun said.

“I do a lot of work in the community but I don’t want

to become a member of a party, because then I won’t be free – I’ll be influenced. And if I am a member of the parliament, I won’t have the chance to communicate with the public. In my opinion, the parliament is not in touch with the people. They are just sitting on their chairs in parliament,” he said.

Ko Khant Htun was not the only one to express cynicism about a career in politics – many other young people said they feel disconnected from the political process.

Although the National League for Democracy has a specific strategy to promote young people’s participation, it has no estimate on how many of their 600,000 members are below the age of 30.

By contrast, U Htay Oo, vice chairman for the ruling Union Solidarity and Development Party, said that USDP has more than four million members between the ages of 18 and 35, “who are all involved in the party.”

This high figure may be attributed to the fact that university students must register as a USDP member when they commence university studies.

“We have a basic strategy

Editors:Jessica Mudditt, Myo Lwin

Writers:Shwe Ye Saw Myint, Yu Yu Maw, Maria Danmark, Aung Shin, Myo

Lwin, Jessica Mudditt, Khin Su Wai, Yamon Phyu Thit

Cover Photo:Htet Aung Kyaw (HAK)

Cover model:Yoon Wadi Lwin Moe

Photographers: Ko Taik, Douglas Long, Philip

McKinney, Jessica Mudditt, Thiri Lu, Htet Aung Kyaw

Cover & Layout Design:Tin Zaw Htway, Ko Pxyo

“I don’t want to become a member of a party, because then I won’t be

free – I’ll be influenced.”

Youth engagement in politicsMembers of Generation Wave take part in a demonstration in Yangon in December against Letpadaung copper mine in northwestern Myanmar, following a crackdown against monks who opposed the Chinese-backed project. PHOTO: Supplied by Generation Wave

By Maria Danmark

Youth 2013 A Myanmar Times Special Report

For enquiries and feedback: [email protected], [email protected]

3

where we require young people to accept and believe in the concept of the party. In my opinion, there are no obstacles to young people getting involved in a party. They have every chance,” he added.

Ohn Kyaing, a spokesperson from NLD, told The Myanmar Times: “We have developed a strategy to try to mobilise young NLD members in our party. After holding our first party convention next month, we will hold a youth convention in April to discuss the youth strategy and make further plans.”

“Myanmar is going through a transition period and the youth politicians can therefore have trouble finding their way. Many youth rely on the leadership of older party members and many are confused about whether or not they want to join a political party or work in civil society,” he added.

If this is a trend, Salai Thian Uk Thang is the exception. Together with a

group of friends he formed the National Chin Party in 2010, when he was just 26-years-old.

“The first time I thought about forming a political party was back in 2008, the year of Cyclone Nargis and the current constitution was approved. The government seemed more concerned about approving the constitution rather than helping the victims, which left me with a lot of questions,” he said.

Salai hadn’t studied politics before forming the party, so he and his friends spent many hours in teashops discussing politics and teaching themselves various theories. Their goal is to build a federal union and find solutions to the problems in the Chin state, which is one of the poorest regions in Myanmar.

“Our biggest problems are poverty and migration, but now that we have identified this, we must find a solution: parliament is one way to solve these problems,” he

said.At the headquarters of

the National Chin Party there are 15 people working, 10 of whom are under 30. Salai doesn’t believe young people face any insurmountable challenges to joining a party.

“The biggest disincentive is that a career in politics

isn’t lucrative. This is why many young people choose to work within civil society, which allows a person to make a contribution to society while still making a living out of it,” he said.

Salai ran for parliament in the 2010 elections, but said he was unsuccessful due to

a lack of experience.“I think that young people

know more about politics than older people do, but because of the Myanmar tradition to respect our elders, all our members of parliament are the elders. Young people are on standby until they have

enough experience. But the future of Myanmar is bright now that we have entered a transitional period, so I think there will be more job opportunities within political parties that young people can fill. Then more young people will get involved – or so I hope,” he said.

Youth engagement in politics

Participants at the Global Platform learn how to conduct workshops for raising awareness about various issues, such as children’s rights. PHOTO: Supplied by Generation Wave

4

Should Yangon Zoo move?IN Lonely Planet’s section ‘Yangon for

Children’, it states: “There aren’t a whole lot of attractions in Yangon meant to

appeal directly to the little ones….” And it then lists Happy World and Yangon Zoological Gardens as the only two options. However a proposal to move Yangon Zoo

to Hlawga Wildlife Park, which is 35 kilometres north of Yangon, was made by the Minister for the President’s Office, U Soe Thein, on 3 February. The justification for moving the zoo, which opened in 1901 and spans 69 acres, is that it poses unspecified health risks and the smell of

the animals is a nuisance. The idea being floated is to turn the zoo into a green space for recreation, however the minister said the plan’s approval would depend “on the will of the people.” On 11 February, U Soe Thein was quoted in The Myanmar Times as saying: “… if people don’t want

to move it and they prefer to live with those smells, we won’t do it. We always listen to what the people say.” So naturally, The Myanmar Times reporter Shwe Ye Saw Myint hit the streets to ask people whether they agree with the proposal. Here’s what they said:

“I‘ll feel so sad if they move my elephants to another place. I am from Ayeyarwady region, so it’s already difficult to make the trip to Yangon. If the zoo moves to somewhere far from the downtown area, I don’t think I’ll get a chance to go to the zoo again.”

Aung Myint Myat,13-years-old, a resident of Laputta township in Ayeyarwady region

“I am sad for the next generation – they won’t have a chance to visit the zoo because it will be so far away from the city.”

Aung Aung,17-years-old, a resident of Ahlone township, Yangon

“I would be really sad if the zoo moved – I’ve loved it since I was a child and have so many fond memories. I still visit the zoo regularly with my family for recreation.” “I don’t care if it moves – I don’t consider a new location to be a problem.”

Ma Nu Nu Yin,33-years-old, a resident of North Dagon, Yangon

“It would be fine with me if the zoo moved to Hlawga – actually I’d like it because it would be convenient because it would be closer to my home.”

Ma Nwe Ni Tun,27-years-old, a resident of Insein township, Yangon

“I would be really sad if the zoo moved – I’ve loved it since I was a child and have so many fond memories. I still visit the zoo regularly with my family for recreation.” “I don’t care if it moves – I don’t consider a new location to be a problem.”

Ko Soe Min Tun,32-years-old, a resident of Mingaladon township, Yangon

“I don’t like the idea because it is destroying our heritage. I think the zoo should be kept here for our young generation. I have been to the zoo twice - the first time as a child with my family and now as an adult with my own family. I want to see this zoo here my whole life.”

U Kyaw Myint,52 years old, a resident of Laputta township in Ayeyarwday region

Photos: Thiri Lu

5

DURING the decades Myanmar spent under military rule, the mere

mention of poverty and children’s rights was completely off limits. For an organisation such as the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), whose purpose is defined as promoting the rights of children by overcoming “the obstacles that poverty, violence, disease and discrimination place in a child’s path,” it’s difficult to comprehend the scale of challenge it faced.

“Now we can speak about [these issues] openly and constructively,” UNICEF’s representative in Myanmar, Bertrand Bainvel told The Myanmar Times.

Mr Bainvel took up his position in Myanmar in November last year and described the speed of change over the past year as “surprising.”

One of the biggest breakthroughs, he said, was the Tatmadaw [army] signing a national plan of action in June 2012 to prevent children being recruited to the armed forces and to discharge everyone under 18 years of age.

A hotline has been set up, as well as a series of public awareness campaigns, and on 15 February, the Tatmadaw officially discharged 24 children.

“In the past, this was also a sensitive issue and difficult to speak about.”

Mr Bainvel said that the impact of war on children

is manifold, both for active participants and unfortunate bystanders.

“Firstly there are the immediate violations… of being killed or maimed. Education is disrupted [by war] and it’s very difficult for children to catch up later on in life. It’s also a very traumatic experience because the child doesn’t feel in control of his or her own life and the adults who are supposed to protect them are unable to do so.”

Mr Bainvel welcomed the signing of a ceasefire last year in Kachin state because along with obvious benefits, the ceasefire allowed UNICEF to immunize children in the area for the first time.

Another “demonstration of commitment,” said Mr Bainvel, is the fact that the government is paying for students’ textbooks; a gap UNICEF filled until a year ago.

These positive changes have allowed UNICEF to “evolve from managing projects to looking at the bigger picture of policy and supporting reforms.”

And with almost every sanction lifted, Mr Bainvel said that “more donors are interested in contributing to UNICEF’s work [in Myanmar], because it’s seen as a way for them to be part of the changes underway.”

Since setting up operations in Myanmar in 1950, UNICEF has worked directly with the government. Unsurprisingly, in the past, “some [donors] were a bit reluctant to engage directly with the government, so partnering with UNICEF was a way to avoid that,” he added.

The international non-

government organisation currently has 170 staff in Myanmar and works in 61 of the country’s most vulnerable townships, providing services related to education and maternal and children’s health.

Mr Bainvel said Myanmar will continue to benefit from strong interest among the international community and increased private investment.

He said, “Other parts of the world aren’t exactly as economically dynamic as this [region]. Change could happen more quickly here.”

However he cautioned, “We have learnt from quite a few countries with very strong growth that if the growth is not redistributed equitably you see increasing disparities and very few people benefiting – sometimes the majority don’t benefit.”

Mr Bainvel believes there could be an adverse offshoot if young people aren’t provided with the opportunity to receive a

quality education and in turn, a livelihood.

“It could produce a new range of issues that will impact on the rest of the society and are very costly deal with – whether it be an increase in drug use, gang activities or early pregnancy,” he said.

Likewise, if parents fail to benefit from the country’s economic expansion, “there may be a perception of quick income opportunities – that it would be better to have children [begging]

on the street than to send them to school. We need to look at that,” he said.

Mr Bainvel emphasised the importance of taxation as a means to share resources equitably, particularly in Myanmar’s poorest regions.

UNICEF is supporting Myanmar’s upcoming census – the first undertaken in 30 years – which is vital to “make

investment [in social services] more intelligent,” he said.

“Demographics drive a lot of decisions, such as the allocation of resources across the country. The more tools we have to count people and see how the population is distributed, the better.”

When asked whether February’s MTV EXIT (End Exploitation and Trafficking) concert, was deemed a success, Mr Bainvel replied in a measured tone: “We have

to be very realistic about who we speak to. Those in the concert possibly were not the most vulnerable to trafficking and I think all of us were aware of that. But it’s a matter of spreading the word from ‘Yes I heard about it,’ to ‘No, it’s unacceptable. This increases the demand for better services and protection. It was a way of changing norms.”

When it comes to gender norms, Mr Bainvel believes that “in other countries, gender disparities are more visible. However this

requires us to be more refined in our analysis to understand what the expected roles for boys and girls are, and how femininity is constructed and from what age, at school and at home.”

Although Mr Bainvel praised Myanmar’s inheritance laws, which give children of both sexes an equal right to inherit family property, he said that their application may not be uniform if the law conflicts with traditional beliefs among ethnic minority groups.

He also said that the disproportionate representation of men in Myanmar’s parliament is a “reflection of some inequality.”

While the potential to improve living standards in Myanmar is promising, Mr Bainvel told The Myanmar Times that “On many issues, [Myanmar] must catch up” with neighbouring countries.

He cited the fact that Myanmar has the highest rate of under-five mortality in the region: UNICEF hopes to see a decrease “as fast as possible.”

“Quick wins” can be made tby improving health services and nutrition, providing better access to safe drinking water and promoting hygiene practices.

Mr Bainvel said that the draft children’s policy currently being discussed in parliament is “very innovative, and something [UNICEF] hasn’t seen implemented in other countries. It will definitely help to accelerate progress.”

There’s no doubt that ensuring the gains made in the coming months and years benefit all Myanmar’s children is a task UNICEF will continue to pursue with zeal.

The dawn of a new era for UNICEF in Myanmar

By Jessica Mudditt

Mr Bertrand Bainvel, UNICEF representative to Myanmar PHOTO: UNICEF

PHOTO: UNICEF

Myanmar has the highest rate of under-five mortality in the region

6

WEARING a short black dress and gothic eye shadow, Myanmar’s

singing starlet Phyu Phyu Kyaw Thein leans forward and says, “The future of our country really depends on improving the quality and access to education. So many people choose to study abroad because they believe they won’t get anywhere if they get a university degree here. This is true. What can we do about this?”

The 31-year-old is also a qualified doctor and knows the shortcomings of university standards firsthand. Nevertheless, becoming a doctor was dream she had from an early age: a sense of purpose and direction is something Phyu Phyu Kyaw Thein clearly isn’t lacking.

However, as a young girl singing in church choirs, her friends repeatedly told her to change path: her voice was too good to go to waste, they’d say.

“Dreams can change according to age!” she said with a laugh.

She hopes that young people will “grab every opportunity to pursue their dreams.”

Hard work, she said, is an essential component of success.

For the past decade, Phyu Phyu has been heavily involved in the music industry: producing single after hit single and in December performed with Jason Mraz at the MTV EXIT (End Exploitation and Trafficking) concert at Peoples’ Square, which attracted 70,000 people.

Phyu’s Phyu’s most recent album, A girl is broken hearted (Main Khalay Tayout Ah Thal Kyal Nay Tal) has remained in the top 10 more than three months since its release.

Although she is a diva on stage, wearing her trademark quirky costumes designed by her sister, the performer also has a serious side – and the two traits blend surprisingly well.

Phyu Phyu has been a UNICEF celebrity ambassador since 2008, however as she explained, “At that time, Myanmar was a closed

country and it was really hard to educate the public about human trafficking. We tried to organise an MTV Exit concert for years, and finally it’s happened. I was proud to be part of it.”

Phyu Phyu is also an ambassador for a UK charity that fights human trafficking and secretary of the newly created Myanmar Music Association, which

was created following the abolishment of the censorship board last year. She has also featured in a documentary about trafficking and performed in an MTV EXIT concert in Bangkok.

With all this going on, it’s no surprise that Phyu Phyu admits doesn’t have time to cook – any free time she does

get in between her hectic schedule is spent hanging out with friends.

“Vacations? My vacation is when I’m performing on stage!” she said.

When asked about an article in the Myanmar language journal Nanatkhin published last week, which had a headline that screamed, “Dangerous kitty or spinster Phyu Phyu Kyaw Thein?” her

response was philosophical.“No, I’m not in a

relationship. If you ask me whether I want to be spinster or get married, I will tell you that it depends on the gods.”

As a teenage girl she had a crush on Jon Bon Jovi and hoped to marry a man just like him – another dream that changed as she matured. Her early musical influences, she said, were Celine Dion and Aerosmith.

Life as Myanmar’s darling of pop hasn’t always been peaches and cream: Phyu Phyu was widely criticised when released her video clip for the 2003 single,

“So near or so far,” (Ah nee sone lar, Ah way sone lar), which featured close-ups of her lips shaking eccentrically. The video was banned by the censorship board.

“My performances were pretty experimental at that time. I wore a neck-to-toe red bodysuit and was criticised for that also. But I was happy that I’d developed my own style and eventually, I found

that there was an audience who wanted that kind of surprise element. I never want to step on stage wearing jeans and a t-shirt,” she said.

Phyu Phyu described every live performance as a “risk” because “I push myself to increase the tempo so that the audience sees something fresh in each show. But I enjoy the challenge.”

While performing Fancy Die, Phyu Phyu hit her lips on the microphone so hard that they started bleeding.

“I could see the blood on the microphone but the audience hadn’t noticed. I didn’t care – I just kept on singing,” she said.

“When I hear people screaming my name before I step on stage, it makes me feel as though I could on living forever.”

It’s good that serious reforms are beginning to be made to the education system, including improving the qualifications of teachers. I hope that the future of education in Myanmar will burn bright.”

Myanmar’s darling of pop,Phyu Phyu Kyaw Thein

The singing sensation takes time out of her busy schedule to talk to The Myanmar Times about a teenage crush on Jon Bon Jovi, injuring herself on stage and gives some advice on securing success.

“I could see the blood on the microphone...”

By Yu Yu Maw

Phyu Phyu Kyaw Thein performing at MTV Exit in Yangon's Peoples' Square last December. PHOTO: Ko Taik

7

KO KYAW THU’S mother died in a car accident after he replaced one

of her tyres with a worn-out one - Ko Kyaw Thu had sold the good tyre to buy money for drugs. He was later arrested and sent to jail for drug possession – while he was inside, his brother became a drug addict and died.

By the time he was released, his family was bankrupt.

Although Ko Kyaw Thu has many regrets, he is trying his best to help others by acting as chairperson to the National Drug User Network of Myanmar.

“I am trying to save the lives of young drug users by sharing my own experiences with them and listening to their problems,” Ko Kyaw Thu Said.

According to government figures, there are approximately 70,000 registered drug users in Myanmar. The vast majority of newly registered addicts use heroin.

However most addicts are reluctant to register with the authorities and go through rehabilitation out of fear of being arrested at the hospital. Many feel caught in a catch-22 because registration is a requirement when seeking treatment. The UN Office on Drugs and Crime estimates that up to 300,000 people may be drug addicts.

Thirty-two-year-old “Scum” was once a well-known musician – he has tried to abandon his drug habit several times, but so far without success. He began taking drugs at the age of 14.

“Heroin is like a curse,’’ he said.

He adopted the name “Scum”, he said, because “that is how society treats drug users.”

Scum was arrested for possessing heroin just as he was completing his final year exam in English at Yangon University of Foreign Languages, so he never

went to university. He enjoys reading books and is obviously intelligent – he once dreamed

of becoming a film director, getting married and building on his music career.

“Before I was arrested, I thought ‘This is the best time in my life and I’d decided to stop using heroin. I relied on self-help, drinking methadone that I bought on the black market to help me get off it. I didn’t go to rehab because my family was worried that I would form contacts with other drug users,” he said.

Dr Gyaw Htet Doe, technical advisor at the Substance Abuse Research Association and a retired senior consultant psychiatrist at the Mental Health Hospital told The Myanmar Times, “To stop using a drug without any support is very difficult. Most people need to go through rehab and have the support of their family, so undergoing treatment at hospital is the best course of action. To successfully wean themselves off a drug addition, it’s necessary to spend at least

three or four months in hospital.”

The Department of Social Welfare is responsible for providing drug rehabilitation services – at present just nine exist and treatment is not free.

“So if a patient can’t afford treatment, they don’t come to hospital,” Dr Gyaw Htet Doe said.

No international assistance

is provided to Myanmar and although there are seven NGOs providing support to drug users, services are limited to preventing HIV being transmitted intravenously, he added.

Scum believes that: “Medicines such as methadone can cure the physical addiction, but not the mental one. That’s why people relapse time and

time again.”However he said that

he appreciates the relief methadone brings whilst trying wean off heroin, plus the fact that it is legal.

When Scum was released after serving a four year sentence, he became a registered drug user and regularly underwent methadone treatment at a hospital.

Methadone treatment became available in Myanmar in 2008 and Dr Gyaw Htet Doe said that to date, some 80,000 patients have used it.

Drug laws in Myanmar are severe: for example, possessing marijuana can result in a seven year prison sentence.

Dr Gyaw Htet Doe said, “Imprisoning drug users is not the solution. In fact, it can make the situation worse in terms of HIV/AIDS transmission.”

He also said that police crackdowns on drug users at hospitals lessens the outreach of prevention activities as well as interrupting symptomatic drug treatment and other treatment interventions such as anti-TB, antiretroviral and methadone treatment.

Scum feels that it was prison, rather than heroin, that destroyed his life.

“I blame prison and harsh drug laws more than heroin itself for the death of my friend – he died of AIDS in jail. If he’d undergone treatment at a hospital he might have lived,” he said.

Nevertheless Scum is aware of the damage his drug habit is causing him physically.

“I have liver problems and I am on medication,” he said.

Ko Kyaw Thu believes that the only escape from the nightmare of heroin drug addiction is through proper treatment, rather than criminalisation attempting to serve as a deterrent.

“People need help, not discrimination,” he said.

Escaping the opium nightmare: drug rehabilitation

An on-again-off-again junkie talks openly about his highs and lows and explains why jail terms aren’t the cure.

“Heroin is like a curse”

By Shwe Yee Saw Myint

Scum spent six years in jail for drug possession. PHOTO: Kaung Htet

8

PHOTO Jessica Mudditt

PHOTO Philip McKinney\WFP

PHOTO Douglas Long

PHOTO Kaung Htet

PHOTO Philip McKinney\WFP

PHOTO Douglas Long PHOTO Jessica Muditt

C H I L D R E N O F M Y A N M A R

9

AN example of the educational reforms taking place in Myanmar

came last month, when it was announced that Mandalay University is going to forge links with foreign universities and employ foreign professors.

The education sector tops

the list of reforms in a number of sectors initiated following the 2011 by-elections. Having been cut off from the international community for many years, Myanmar’s education has lagged far behind neighboring countries.

Several private and international schools have been popping up in Mandalay over the past year, and it’s certain that more will follow.

“The government’s educational policies have changed significantly. Private schools are now allowed to operate. However, the government universities allow admissions only if the student passes the Myanmar tenth

standard matriculation, meaning that the universities remain attached to the Myanmar community. There will be changes later, when private universities get the green light to operate,” said Ko Kyaw Moe Aung, the deputy principal of Horizon International School.

“Many children lack self-confidence and independence. They rely on their parents for so many aspects of life - even their eating habits. They need to widen their horizons. Only a few students who have graduated are doing well professionally,

while the rest are in bad shape. We have so many changes we’d like to implement – chiefly, the abolishment of rote-learning. Children are expected to memorise five chapters of a textbook in order to pass an exam on any given subject. We want to test the students’ conceptual understanding. Things will improve a lot if we make such changes. I do not like to think that students forget what they memorised as soon as the term has finished,” said Dr Kyaw Saw from Sar-Pan-Eain Private High School in Mandalay.

International education providers are a big market in Myanmar because parents want their children to get a

quality education and many are prepared to invest a lot of money to achieve this.

A parent who wished to remain anonymous said: “My child was enrolled in an International Language and Business Centre. The fee was K90,000 a month just for kindergarten classes, and the fees increase to K150,000 kyats for older age groups. My daughter is now attending a university foundation course, which costs around K40,000 a month. I will definitely send my child abroad for higher study.”

“I calculate the maximum amount I can spend on my children’s education – I want them to attend an international school. I’m not wealthy, but I also want to my kids to attend summer school programs because it’s so important for them to have good command of English,” said Ko Zaw Naing, who is in his thirties.

Among summer programs are computer training programs and English training programs.

Private schools are expected to soon be allowed to offer summer programs – until then, many parents opt for private tuition, which is notoriously expensive. - Translated by Raju Gautam

“We have so many changes we’d like to implement – chiefly, the abolishment of rote-learning.”

Parents vouch for international schools

What made you decide to work in the music industry?Because I realised that music is the only thing I’m good at and it’s the only “work” that never feels like “work.”

What is the one gadget you cannot live without and why?I t’s a pity to say that it would be my phone. Not because I l ike it. In fact, I hate it cos it r ings every 5-10 minutes. But I need it because it contains almost al l my phone number contacts, passport info, my song lyr ics, raw voice f i les of new songs and so on. So basical ly, I don’t need the “phone” but I depend on the phone’s apps.

What’s your favourite holiday destination?Beaches and mountains.

Does your work involve a lot of travel?Yes - but I prefer going on vacation, you know...without working.

What’s your favourite restaurant in Yangon?It’s hard to name only one… The places I go most often, are “PEPPERS”on New University Road and “COCASUKI” (for a family dinner or something like that) “Inya Lake View Bar” “Escape Bar” and “50th Street” (for hanging out).

What was your very first job?The first job that actually paid me was as a drummer. I’m not sure if that’s a “job” or not, but i sure got paid. :)

Describe yourself in three words.“Loading, please wait.”

What was the last book you read? What was it about?“Seinlanguage” by comedian Jerry Seinfield. It’s more like bits and pieces about a little this and that. I’d rather read

these kind of “stand-up comedy” books than the classic type stories. I need new ideas. Not the stories. Stories are boring.

What is your advice for young people who seek a successful career in the music industry?Don’t be an a**hole and you’ll stay.

Three minutes with… Kyar Pauk, vocalist and guitarist for BigBag and Bloodsugar Politik

By Khin Su Wai

PHOTO: Htet Aung Kyaw

PHOTO: Ko Taik

10

PRIVATE SCHOOLS AND TRAINING CENTRES IN YANGONCompany Name Address Township Phone

IECM (Yangon Academy) 35/B, Tatkatho Yeik Mon Housing, Sein Lei Yeikthar St BHN 549451, 557 219, 540730

Chindwin College 75, 1st floor, Thein Phyu St. BTHG 95130979

Robinson Services 37,Rm.801,8th floor, La Pyayat Wun Plaza Dagon 943196211

Sar Pan Eain Pyin Oo Lwin MDY 085-23291

NIEC = NELC 93( G ), Thin Lwin St. KMYT 5185005, 525962, 525966

Care Forever Service 177/ 179, (7 B) ,7th Floor,34 st( Upper ), KTDA 73113092, 5166240

Myanmar Nobel College 108, Hnin si St ( Upper ) AHLN 220476

MHR 905, 9th floor, Than Zay Condo LMDW 216168, 395802

MCC Theingyi zay ( C ) Block PBDN 95058112, 095062308, 395510

Centre For Advance Education (CAE) No.15,Kyaung St, Myaynigone SCG 524625

The Masters Sule Pagoda Rd PBDN 371359

YIUS Pre-University Level Studies rm4&8,Building 7, MICT Park HLG 652311

Knowledge World 131,101 St MGTN 09 5193935

ORYX Education 1409-A, Yuzana Tower BHN 543403

KUMON Method Of Learning 202~204, Pearl Condo BHN -

Prime Link Int'l Education Centre J-51, Shwe Hnin Si 2nd St, FMI City HTYA 682445 (1073)

Essential Education Centre 81, 1st Floor, Pansodan St. KTDA 388736, 09-5103877

Int'l Computing & Business Academy (ICBA) 303/ 309, 4th floor, Maha Bandoola Rd (Coner of 42nd St) BTHG 245821, 250478

Wise Int'l College 1009, 10th Fl, Yuzana Tower, Shwe Gone Dine. BHN 09-421154862

Do-Re-Mi Family Marina Residence, Rm-105~ 107, Kaba Aye Pagoda Rd. MYGN 650634

Victoria college MMB Tower, Level 2~4, Upper Pansodan Street. MTNT

Regent Nanataw St 726826

Myanmar Search Int'l(MSI) 234, 2nd Flr, Shwebontha St(mid), PBDN 389915, 250929

Skyward Study Tour (Access Cherry) 29, 1st Flr, New University Avenue Rd BHN 551142, 400547

Regent Business Academy B-42, Shwe Keinayee Estate, Narnataw St KMYT 500054

Asia Language & Business Academy 66, Shwe Dagon Pagoda Rd DGN 384055, 376236

SANTINI No.170/176 1st Floor Bo Aung Kyaw St. BTHG 383740

Azure Net Co.,Ltd. Myanmar Info -Tech Building 5,Room 6University HLG 652318

Excel Education Centre Room 309,MGW Tower Bo Aung Kyaw St. BTHG 376763, 0943111514

Standford FIM center 246977, 246988

Future Way No.9/Rm 6(A)/YawminGyi st DGN 241099, 095100158

AVSS 117/1st fl,Dimond condo /Pyay rd KMYT 95147227

Spectrum Education BHN 381135

AT & S Info Tech Hlaing 652288

Royal Golden Gate 94,1st Fl,37th St(Lr) KTDA 385610

Myanmar Intellect Pyay Rd MYG 943105272

SSS Education Service No170, Bargayar Rd., SCG 510635

MHR(BIY) No.236©,Dhamazedi Rd., BHN 98628878

Sky Home Language Centre No 39/41,A 1,10th Flr., Sandar Myaing Center, KMYT 535,144

MPDC Education Service Myanmar Info-Tech,Bldg 4, HLG 534746

Imperial Merit Education No.695,Maharbandoola Rd., LMDW 395,816

Khant Kaw Shwe Pyi NO.3A,Pyaytawayeyeikthar Rd.,Kabaraye Pagoda Rd., YKN 973156099

21st Century No.7/A Kan Baw Za St: Golden Valley 2 BHN 09-5186539

Sayar U Zaw Nyein Aung No,175 39 St PBDN 973227916

MBC No.(3-A/B)Mayaynigone Plaza SCHG 525994

Global Enchanting Bayintnaung Tower2-B,7 Floor Room709 KMYT 95027526

Greatest Power Yuzana Garden City

Knowledge Bank Ahnawraha Rd near 30th PBDN 248832

Zinda Internital No,23© Nat mout st BHN 95095124

Commercial Aviations Sule Pagoda KTDA 9448003576

NEWPORT International School No:19/A, Kanbawza St, Golden Velly, Bahan BHN 548453

Victory Preschool 47(B), Pyi Htaung Su St Bahan BHN 542178

Emergent Services Co.,Ltd No.505,Level (5),La Pyayt Wun, Plaza,Alanpya Pagoda Rd DGN Ph-387635,370836 Ext-505

MAMT Myanmar Academy of Management & Technology No.189-195 Level 7,Pansodan , Office Tower,Pansodan St KTDA Ph-391069

Green World Academy No.388/398,4th Flr,Strand Rd AHLN 227032-73114508

Ever Up Human Resources Institute Rm-402,MGW Tower,Bo Aung Kyaw St (Lower) BTHG 73175137,722585, 256523

AKP International Hotel & Tourism Training Centre No.218,4 Flr,31th St PBDN Ph-254541,250489

Rising Phoenix Co.,Ltd No (32),First Flr,Shwe Dagon, Pagoda Rd (Lower Block) PBDN Ph-373154,5173983, 09 500 6329

Gusto Education Centre No.26th,14th St LMDW Ph-224496

Imperial Merit No.695,1th Flr,Mahabandoola Rd (Between 19th St & Sint Oh Dan St) LAH Ph382213, 395816

Shwe Lan Thit Co.,Ltd No.5/G,Parami Rd,12 Ward HLG Ph-663482

U Nay Linn Aung U Tun Linn Chan St,Hledan KMYT Ph-504737,512900

STI Education No.377,Upper Shwe Bon Thar St PBDN Ph-377988

Actual Tokyo Max Rm-707,Yuzana Tower,Shwe Gone Dine BHN Ph-558171

11

A young father who recently returned from working in Singapore for four years is struggling to adjust to Myanmar’s sluggish job market.

While in Singapore, U Wai Zin’s monthly salary as an unskilled worker at shipyards increased from US$380 when he first arrived to $500 by the time he left.

“I haven’t found a job here yet. As a bachelor degree holder, I think I should be

earning about K250,000 ($290) a month. But when I look at the job advertisements in journals, the average salary is about K80,000 ($93) which will not be enough to keep my family going,” he told The Myanmar Times.

“Because I’m unemployed I’ve had to lend money to people in my ward so that I can earn interest off it. I also drive motorcycle taxi. I’m making about K100,000 a month,” he said.

He said his friend is facing the same situation – the two returned from Singapore at the same time.

However after months of

fruitless job hunting, Aung Zaw Linn has now given up and is trying to move to South Korea so that he is able to save money.

According to a research

paper filed at the Institute of Economics in 2013, Myanmar has about 50,000 private companies, which, together with government ministries, constitute a work force of 32 million. The study states that

the unemployment rate is approximately 28 percent of people – which is the equivalent of 10 million people out of work.

Every year, more than 230,000 students graduate

from university, states the report. However as the country

continues to open up and private investment comes flooding in with the passing of the Foreign Direct Investment Law, many predict that these

figures will plummet as new opportunities are created.

However according to the director of a local recruitment agency, Device Service Company Limited, the impact is

yet to be felt.“The number

of unemployed people should have been reduced dramatically. But this is not yet the case because the qualifications of jobless people are

not considered high enough to meet the needs of head hunters,” Dr Htet Zan Linn said.

In 2012, 50,000 applicants, both skilled and unskilled, registered with Device as job seekers.

He told The Myanmar Times that local executive salaries are now in the range of $1500-2000 - an all-time high.

“Many professionals are returning from abroad – particularly those that were living in Singapore and Dubai,” he added.

The principal of a human resource development agency, U Aye Kyaw, believes the government should develop a ministry dealing with human resource development.

As an alternative to private recruitment companies, 78 government-run job registration offices in 14 states and regions, provide for support to people seeking work with private companies and government organisations.

“As a bachelor degree holder, I think I should be earning about

K250,000 ($290) a month.”

MYANMAR’S Buddhist monastic school system dates back to

the 11th century: for hundreds of years it was the only source of education for everyone from princes to labourers. By the early 1900s, Myanmar’s literacy rate was well above other countries in the region; a fact credited to the monastic school system. However due to a lack of funding, the outreach of monastic schools has declined. Nevertheless, the schools – which number 1500 according to the Ministry of Religious Affairs, provide a vital service for those unable to pay for education. The number of people attending monastic schools accounts for

16 percent of the total number of primary and high school students in Myanmar and there has been an increase in the number of monastic schools since 2010, when there were 1402, according to ministry figures.

Monastic schools incorporate religious education taught by monks but otherwise teach the same curriculum as government schools and the educational style is moving from teaching to learning because the child-centred approach in Myanmar is gaining popularity. However the government provides no funding to monastic schools, as there has been a strained relationship with the monastic school system due to an element of competition. Monastic schools are therefore totally dependent on support from non-government organisations and teachers are paid as little as K20,000 (US$23) a month, whereas government school salaries

range from K50,000 to K100,000.

Ko Aung Ko Oo, a monastic school teacher with 10 years of experience at Thone Htet Monastery in Bahan township in Yangon said, “We look for our own funding because we don’t receive any support from government. Most of us

are running with the support of NGOs and donors such as UNICEF.”

Monastic schools are required by law to register with the Ministry of Religious Affairs in order to coordinate textbook supplies and examination arrangements.

The national budget

allocates just 4.3 percent to education, which President U Thein Sein said on 21 February has resulted in low educational standards across the board. Fortunately for mainstream education however a report in Weekly Eleven announced the following day that the government will boost education spending to at least K900 billion ($1 billion) in the coming fiscal year.

Principal U Kawwida, a member of Monastic School Management Committee in Dapaeyin township in Sagaing Region told The Myanmar Times, “Monastic schools need more support to improve the quality of learning – teachers need proper training because our teaching methods aren’t up to date – many students are still taught using the rote system because many teachers lack knowledge outside the content of textbooks. This means that children are passing exams, but not necessarily being

educated. For these reasons, I would like to invite NGOs to help us conduct technical trainings.”

The principal of a monastic school in Mandalay who wished to remain anonymous said: “Relations with government officials are strained and it’s often difficult to approach them for help because we are perceived as being in competition with government schools – which is not at all the case. I would say though, that the situation is starting to change for the better.”

He added that student enrollments at his school have been increasing annually and the school has renovated to accommodate the extra students.

“I’m very glad for the support we’re receiving from an international non-government organisation. I feel sad when I see a child on the streets without access to education – I feel responsible.”

Monastic education: in decline or on the rise?

Myanmar’s expanding job market

By Aung Shin

By Myo Lwin

A student at a monastic school in Yangon. PHOTO: Kaung Htet

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