Myanmar news and discussions

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caltrek
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ASEAN Arranges to Exclude Myanmar Military Leader From Summit
October 15, 2021

https://english.kyodonews.net/news/2021 ... ummit.html

Introduction:
(Kyodo News) ASEAN foreign ministers arranged on Friday to exclude the military leadership of Myanmar from the regional group's summit meeting later this month in favor of a non-political representative, an ASEAN source said.

The decision to exclude Myanmar's military leader marks a historic shift for ASEAN from its principle of non-interference in the domestic affairs of member countries.

At an emergency online meeting, the ministers arranged not to invite Senior Gen. Min Aung Hlaing, who led a coup in February that ousted Myanmar's elected government under civilian leader Aung San Suu Kyi, the source added.

Brunei, this year's chair of the 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations, is expected to issue a statement Saturday on the emergency meeting, according to ASEAN sources.

ASEAN has been facing pressure from the United States to take a tougher stance on the issue.
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Baptist-led Petition Drive Urges U.S. Congress to Stop Stalling on Crisis in Myanmar
by Jeff Brumley
November 18, 2021

https://baptistnews.com/article/baptist ... n-myanmar/

Introduction:
(Baptist Global News) Former Burmese refugee Van Lian Kio said he has been tormented by the flood of social media reports, news accounts and images of brutal military repression of fellow Baptists and other religious minorities in his native country, now known as Myanmar.

The difficulty, the Indianapolis resident and U.S. citizen said, is not being able to help those opposing the junta that overthrew the government of Aung San Suu Kyi in February and is now aggressively expanding its attacks on the nation’s Rohingya Muslim population, 1.7 million Baptists and other groups it considers threats to authoritarian rule.

But that frustration has been eased somewhat by a Baptist-led petition drive and lobbying campaign designed to pressure the U.S. Senate to take action on the stalled Burma Act of 2021. Joining in that effort has been immensely rewarding, said Kio, a community activist with the Grassroots Movement for Burma.

“I’ve got to do something. I grew up back there. I have friends and family back there. And especially at this moment when so many Burmese are hiding and living in the jungle with no sleeping bags and I’m in a cozy house, I have to do something. I can’t just sit by.”

The Baptist campaign to promote passage of the Burma Act has been led by Scott Stearman, representative to the United Nations for the Baptist World Alliance and Cooperative Baptist Fellowship
caltrek's comment: The sad thing is that these efforts will likely be dismissed in certain quarters as "just another example of American imperialism." Meanwhile, Putin and China's cozying up to the new military dictators, to the extent that does occur, will be applauded.
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Myanmar's Deposed Leader Aung San Suu Kyi Sentenced to Four Years in Prison
by Rebecca Falconer
December 6, 2021

https://www.axios.com/myanmar-aung-san- ... 36182.html

Introduction:
(Axios) A Myanmar court sentenced the country's ousted leader, Aung San Suu Kyi, on Monday to four years in prison on charges of "inciting public unrest" and breaking COVID-19 protocols, per the New York Times.

Why it matters: It's the first of several verdicts that could result in the 76-year-old Nobel laureate being imprisoned for the rest of her life. The 11 charges she faces have been widely criticized as politically motivated.

The big picture: Suu Kyi has been detained since the military overthrew the elected government and seized power on Feb. 1.
  • Suu Kyi could be sentenced to a total of 102 years in prison if convicted of all charges, which she denies. Other charges she faces include corruption and illegal possession of walkie-talkie radios.
Of note: Myanmar security forces have killed hundreds of activists and arrested thousands of others following massive protests since the coup.
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A Source Indicates That Myanmar Court Has Deferred Verdicts in Suu Kyi Trial to December 27
December 20, 2021

https://www.asahi.com/ajw/articles/14506271

Introduction:
(The Asahi Shimbun) A court in military-ruled Myanmar deferred on Monday the latest verdicts in the trial of ousted leader Aung San Suu Kyi to Dec. 27, a source familiar with the proceedings said.

The court had been due to rule on charges of possession of unlicensed walkie-talkies and a set of signal jammers, which carry maximum penalties of three years and a year in jail, respectively. The source, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said the judge did not give a reason for the deferral.

The delay comes after Suu Kyi, 76, was sentenced on Dec. 6 to four years in jail for incitement and breaching coronavirus rules by the court. Her sentence was later reduced to a two-year term of detention in her current, undisclosed location.

Myanmar has been in turmoil since the Feb.1 coup against Suu Kyi’s democratically elected government led to widespread protests and raised international concern about the end of tentative political reforms following decades of military rule.

Soon after Suu Kyi’s detention, a police document said six walkie-talkies had been found in her home and they had been imported illegally and used without permission.
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Myanmar’s Suu Kyi Sentenced to Four More Years in Prison
January 10, 2022

https://www.courthousenews.com/myanmars ... in-prison/

Introduction:
BANGKOK (AP via Courthouse News) — A court in Myanmar sentenced ousted leader Aung San Suu Kyi to four more years in prison on Monday after finding her guilty of illegally importing and possessing walkie-talkies and violating coronavirus restrictions, a legal official said.

Suu Kyi was convicted last month on two other charges and given a four-year prison sentence, which was then halved by the head of the military-installed government.

The cases are among about a dozen brought against the 76-year-old Nobel Peace Prize laureate since the army seized power last February, ousting her elected government and arresting top members of her National League for Democracy party.

If found guilty of all the charges, she could be sentenced to more than 100 years in prison.

Suu Kyi's supporters and independent analysts say the charges against her are contrived to legitimize the military's seizure of power and prevent her from returning to politics.
Image
Anti-coup protesters walk through a market with images of ousted Myanmar leader Aung San Suu Kyi at Kamayut township in Yangon, Myanmar, on April 8, 2021.
(AP Photo)
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Myanmar Sentences Lawmaker from Aung San Suu Kyi’s Party to Death
January 22, 2022

https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2022/1/2 ... y-to-death

Introduction:
(Al Jazeera) A closed military court in Myanmar has sentenced a lawmaker from Aung San Suu Kyi’s National League for Democracy (NLD) party and a prominent democracy activist to death.

The NLD’s Phyo Zeyar Thaw, who was arrested in November, was sentenced to death for offences under the country’s Counterterrorism Law, a statement from the generals said.

Prominent democracy activist Kyaw Min Yu, better known as Ko Jimmy, was given the same sentence, the statement added, providing pictures of both men.

They were found guilty of offences involving explosives, bombings and financing terrorism, but details were sketchy because of the blackout on proceedings. Min Yu’s wife, Nilar Thein, in October denied the allegations lodged against her husband.
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World Accused of ‘Sitting and Watching’ as Myanmar Slides to War
by Ali MC
February 1, 2022

https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2022/2/1 ... des-to-war

Introduction:
(Al Jazeera) One year since the military coup in Myanmar, calls for international action are growing louder, notably from the National Unity Government (NUG), made up of elected politicians who were thrown out of office by the generals.

“The world is doing nothing but just sitting and watching,” NUG Foreign Minister Zin Mar Aung told Al Jazeera.

“In the past year, we have seen extreme brutality and atrocity against the population. We have also seen clear determination from the younger generation, a new generation who are saying they will not accept the regime.”

Attacks against civilians, protesters and political activists have escalated in recent months.

What began as tear gassing and beatings have now turned into air assaults, the burning of villages, and targeted shootings across the country.
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Philippines, Like New Zealand, Rejects Myanmar in Trade Pact
February 18, 2022

https://www.asahi.com/ajw/articles/14552485

Introduction:
(AP via the Asahi Shimbun) MANILA--The Philippines has followed New Zealand’s decision to reject the inclusion of Myanmar in the world’s largest free trade pact as international opposition to the military takeover that sparked violence and democratic setbacks in the Southeast Asian nation broadened into trade and diplomatic sanctions.

Foreign Secretary Teodoro Locsin Jr. told his Association of Southeast Asian Nations counterparts in a Thursday meeting in Cambodia that the Philippines will not accept Myanmar’s “instrument of ratification” of the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership, referring to the key document binding a country to the 15-nation free trade agreement, which went into effect Jan. 1.

In Locsin’s speech released to journalists in Manila on Friday, he did not cite any reason for the Philippine decision and added he was ready to yield if that stance would get in the way of a collective position by the 10-nation regional bloc, which includes Myanmar.

It’s not immediately clear if other countries under the RCEP, which includes all 10 ASEAN members, along with China, Japan, Australia, New Zealand and South Korea, would also snub Myanmar’s inclusion and eventually bar it from the massive trading bloc.

Myanmar’s army wrested power from Aung San Suu Kyi’s elected government on Feb. 1, 2021, in a takeover that sparked widespread street protests and civil disobedience. About 1,500 civilians have been killed by security forces, according to the Assistance Association for Political Prisoners. Suu Kyi, 76, remains in detention with other ousted officials and faces a raft of charges that human rights groups say are baseless.
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Myanmar Pardons Celebrities Jailed for Anti-military Views
March 2, 2022

https://www.courthousenews.com/myanmar- ... ary-views/

Introduction:
BANGKOK (AP via Courthouse News) — Several top Myanmar celebrities who were detained for criticizing the army's seizure of power were released from prison Wednesday under pardons issued by the military government, state-run television reported.

The celebrities released from Insein Prison in Yangon include prominent film industry figures Lu Min, Wyne, Pyay Ti Oo, his wife Eaindra Kyaw Zin, and popular male model and actor Paing Takhon, MRTV reported.

All had been arrested for supporting the protest movement against last year’s seizure of power by the military, which ousted the elected government of Aung San Suu Kyi. They had been charged with incitement, which carries a possible three-year prison sentence, for encouraging government employees to join the protests.

The TV report said the reason for their release was so they could participate in nation-building through their work in the arts.

The report also said that Win Min Than, a popular blogger on beauty and fashion, received a pardon for her conviction for incitement but remained detained because she was also convicted of unlawful association.
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Gunmen Shoot Deputy Governor of Myanmar Central Bank
by Grant Peck
April 7, 2022

https://abcnews.go.com/International/wi ... k-83931264

Introduction:
(AP via ABC News) BANGKOK -- A deputy governor of Myanmar’s Central Bank was shot at her home on Thursday, less than a week after tough new regulations were issued ordering that foreign money held in bank accounts in the military-ruled nation must be exchanged for the local currency.

There were conflicting accounts of whether Than Than Swe, appointed to her post after the military seized power, survived the attack.

She is believed to be the most senior official associated with the military-run administration to be shot since February last year, when the army ousted the elected government of Aung San Suu Kyi. The takeover triggered widespread peaceful protests that were quashed with lethal force, triggering armed resistance that some U.N. experts now characterize as civil war.

Than Than Swe was shot by two men when she opened the door to her apartment in Bahan township in Yangon, the country’s biggest city, said Thet Oo, a local official. He said she was taken to a military hospital where she was confirmed dead, but a report by the U.S. government-backed Radio Free Asia cited a military spokesman as saying she was being treated for her wounds.
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