1. law, govt and politics
2. law enforcement
3. police

R
EPA
PE
NATIONAL: DOUBTS ON REFORM EFFORTS ✪2
First INDEPENDENT English daily
www.elevenmyanmar.com
FRIDAY, March 13, 2015
Crackdown condemned
INSIDE
NATIONAL
Violent crackdown in Yangon and Letpadan induces heavy criticisms from international community
MYANMAR ELEVEN
THE United States, the
European Union and Amnesty
International have promptly condemned the violent crackdown
on protesters against the
National Education Law in
Letpadan, about 140km north of
Yangon.
The opposition National
League for Democracy of Aung
San SuuKyi, Nobel laureate and
Myanmar’s icon of political
freedom,demanded an inquiry.
In a statement released on the
evening of March 10, hours after
the crackdown, the European
Union Delegation to Myanmar
calls for a formal investigation
into the use of force against protesters in Letpadan.
“Freedom of expression and
the right to legal and peaceful
assembly are fundamental values
of the European Union,” it said.
“Freedom of assembly is an
important component of any democratic society,” State Department
spokesperson Jen Psaki told
reporters on Monday. “We condemn the use of force taken
against peaceful protesters.”
In a statement Amnesty
International quoted eyewitnesses as saying that when protesters
tried to dismantle a police blockade, police started beating protesters, including some who had
fallen to the ground, with batons.
“The violent response by
police in Myanmar against the
student protesters in Letpadan
was completely disproportionate.
Police clearly used excessive
force against protesters, and also
beat helpless people who had
fallen to the ground, which
amounts to cruel, inhuman or
degrading treatment or punishment under international law,”
said Rupert Abbott, Amnesty
International’s Research Director
for Southeast Asia and the
Pacific.
Yet, this condemnation, plus
fears that Myanmar might backslide from reforms, has failed to
soften Myanmar authorities’
action.
Government Spokesman Ye
Htut told state-owned Global
New Light of Myanmar: “The government’s handling of the protest
will have no impact on democratic reform.”
While expressing sorrow
about the situation, he insisted
that the protesters should seek
change through the legislative
process.
“Despite requests for peaceful negotiations, student protestors tried to penetrate the police
blockade and the police were
legally obligated to disperse
them,” the information minister
said.
The information minister said
the government’s handling of the
protest will have no impact on
democratic reform, stating that
when demonstrators on Wall
Street were removed by police,
or when protesters in Ferguson
were dispersed with the use of
tanks, “nobody spoke of US
democracy having backtracked.”
Myanmar president arrives for Malaysia visit
Detained students
charged with five sections
✪2
BUSINESS
Electrification rate to
reach 50 per cent of
population
✪4
ASEAN+
AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE
Kuala Lumpur
Abe pledges united
efforts for future
disasters
✪6
LIFESTYLE
er
AFP
President Thien Sein inspects a ceremonial guard of honour during a welcome ceremony.
AFP
Myanmar President Thein
Sein arrived in Kuala Lumpur
on Thursday for a two-day
stay, his first state visit to
Malaysia.
He will hold talks on Friday
with his counterpart,
Malaysian Prime Minister
Najib Razak.
Malaysia’s government said
the two leaders would discuss
the state of bilateral relations
as well as issues of regional
concern, but otherwise has
offered few specifics.
Malaysia is this year’s chair
of the 10-member Association
of Southeast Asian Nations
(Asean) and host of its annual
summits, having assumed the
mantle from 2014 chair
Myanmar.
Myanmar is only Malaysia’s
38th-largest trading partner
globally, and seventh-largest
within Asean, according to
Malaysian data.
Total bilateral trade in 2014
reached $864 million, based
on current exchange rates.
But Malaysian officials have
said the nascent trade relationship is growing fast and
have expressed a desire for
Malaysian firms to take advantage of Myanmar’s opening-up
by moving into its markets.
Myanmar is gradually
emerging from decades of
authoritarian rule and has
embarked on democratic
reforms that have won praise
abroad, though some observers warn they appear to be
stalling.
Hundreds of thousands of
Ethnic Myanmar Rohingya refugees hold placards during a
protest outside the Myanmar Embassy in Kuala Lumpur
yesterday.
Myanmar migrants are estimated to be working, many
illegally, in more-developed
Malaysia.
Tens of thousands of those
are Muslim ethnic Rohingya
who have fled what they call
decades of oppression in
majority-Buddhist Myanmar.
The Rohingya exodus has
picked up since MuslimBuddhist bloodshed erupted in
2012 in the western Myanmar
state of Rakhine.
A number of killings in
Malaysia last year involving
Myanmar nationals are suspected by police to be linked
to the ethnic strife back home.
From dissenter to director
✪10
NATIONAL
2
MYANMAR ELEVEN, Friday, March 13, 2015
After crackdown on students,
Myanmar’s will to reform
questioned
EMG
REUTERS
Yangon
Students were hauled into a truck during the crackdown in Letpadan.
Detained students
charged with five
sections
MYANMAR ELEVEN
ABOUT 60 students and their
supporters arrested during protests against the National
Education Law appeared in
Letpadan Township court on
Wednesday charged with a variety of offences under Myanmar’s
penal code, including rioting and
unlawful assembly.
Their next court appearance is
scheduled for March 25.
“(Students) have assumed
that student unions are legal,”
Police Colonel Win Sein said. “As
a matter of fact, these unions
have yet to become legal and will
be legitimate only after the bill
amending the National Education
Law has been approved.
“Under section 124 (of the
penal code), the police issued
announcements to disperse.
Action is taken against them as
they failed to follow the law. They
are charged under five sections
-143, 145, 147, 332 and 505 (b).”
Section 143 involves unlawful
assembly, section 145 joining or
continuing in unlawful assembly,
section 147 rioting and section
332 voluntarily causing harm to
deter public servants. Section
505 (b) prohibits “publishing or
circulating information which
may cause public fear or alarm
and which may incite persons to
commit offences against the
State or against the public tranquillity.”
The charges stem from a
police crackdown Tuesday on the
main student protesters’ column
in Letpadan, which authorities
had been surrounding for more
than a week. Apart from arrests,
witnesses reported that numerous protesters were beaten by
baton-wielding police, some suffering serious injuries. Witnesses
say some of those in court were
cut and bandaged. International
human rights groups have
slammed the police crackdown.
The arrests and crackdown,
which included on monks and
journalists, have sparked further
protests.
Those arrested were detained
in Thayawaddy jail. Relatives
were not told whether their family members would appear in
court in Letpadan Township or
Thayawaddy Township.
“The government’s act is
unfair,” said Dr Nay Win, father of
student leader Phyo Phyo Aung.
“Police won’t allow me to meet
with my daughter. We had to go
here and there as the authorities
did not say to us exactly where
she was. The government does
not feel sympathy for us.”
There was heavy police presence as the detainees were taken
into Letpadan Township. Police
and other security members did
not allow media or relatives to
enter the building. However, supporters gathered outside.
It was reported that student
leader Min Thway Thit had been
beaten unconscious.
“We want justice,” his mother,
Khin Khin Yu, said. “I want to ask
President Thein Sein how he
would feel if his offspring was
one of detainees. He should feel
sympathy for us.”
Aung Hmaing San who was
also reportedly beaten and
kicked by police in front of the
media was among those appearing in court.
Male and female students
were transported separately to
court and then again back to
Thayawaddy jail. As they left
court, some of the detained students said they were victims of
human rights violations.
A violent crackdown of students by police, underlines the
troubled nature of Myanmar’s
own march toward democracy.
“I lived under military rule
all my life and I neverexperienced such a crackdown,” said
Maung Moccy, a student leader
and former political prisoner
who said he saw police officers
batter unarmed students with
wooden batons.
“Honestly, I’m afraid they
have decided to backslide
ondemocracy.”
Political temperatures are
rising in Myanmar as it prepares for parliamentary elections later this year. Ethnic
rebels are battling the army
near the borders with China
and Thailand while the United
Nations has accused the government of backtracking on
pledges to protect human
rights, especially in northern
Rakhine state, home to the
minority Rohingya Muslims.
The pace of change started
by the government of reformist
President Thein Sein appears to
have slowed, or even stalled.
His government took power in
2011 after 49 years of military
rule, but Thein Sein and many
of his cabinet colleagues are
former generals and serving
officers have a guaranteed
quarter of the seats in parliament.
Richard Horsey, a Yangonbased independent political
analyst, said Myanmar was
changing from extremely
authoritarian government to a
democracy.
“That’s a huge transformation that will take a very long
time,” he said.
Of the violence, Horsey said:
“It raises very disturbing questions that the government
needs to address. It doesn’t
mean the reform process is
dead. It highlights how complicated and long the reform process will be.”
■ Road from Mandalay
Tensions over the education
policy started in September
after the government
announced a new law aimed at
setting up an independent
body to govern universities.
Student groups said the law
would reduce academic independence and that they should
have been consulted before it
was drafted.
By February, a handful of
student groups had begun
marching in protest towards
Yangon. Most of them returned
home after the government
began negotiations to amend
the law, but a core group that
had set out from Mandalay
stopped in Letpadan, where
authorities blocked them from
advancing.
After a stand-off that lasted
almost two weeks, the students
agreed to go home, but wanted
to carry their protest flags and
sing revolutionary songs.
“We always try to make
them give up their power, give
up military rule,” said Maung
Moccy, the student leader.
“Today, we want a genuine
democratic government.”
Witnesses said that students, monks and journalists
were attacked by police when
negotiations fell apart.
Zaw Htay, a senior official
from the office of the president,
told Reuters that the violence
showed the need for continued
training of the police and said
the government was investigating the incident.
“I can understand that some
policemen were emotional and
aggressive in handling the
angry mob,” he said. “At the
same time, I noticed some of
them tried to maintain control
and give protection.”
In Myanmar, governments
have been wary of student protests because of the pivotal role
they have played in the country’s history. Suu Kyi’s father,
independence hero Aung San,
was a student leader when he
began opposing the British
colonial government.
Student-led protests in
Yangon in 1988 sparked a prodemocracy movement that
spread throughout the country
before being brutally suppressed by the military government.
Complicating matters are
laws aimed at suppressing dissent, which remain on the
books from the military government era and earlier.
In Letpadan, protesters were
accused of violating the
Peaceful Assembly Law. The
law is a legacy of the former
junta and has been amended
under the new government, but
New York-based Human Rights
Watch has called it” seriously
flawed”, because it requires
local government permission
for any gathering.
MYANMAR ELEVEN, Friday, March 13, 2015
National
3
Vietnam, Myanmar hope to
strengthen relationship
NEWS
DIGEST
Thura Shwe Mann,
Suu Kyi hold talks
The speaker of the parliament
and the National League for
Democracy (NLD) leader reportedly met on March 10 in a meeting that lasted about 20 minutes.
NLD leader Aung San Suu Kyi
declined to reveal what was discussed during the meeting.
Thura Shwe Mann and Aung
San Suu Kyi frequently meet at
the parliament during parliamentarian sessions.
Suu Kyi also had a one-on-one
meeting with President Thein
Sein on March 2, to discuss about
the upcoming general election
and amending the national constitution.
Yet, she denied meeting the
commander-in-chief on March 9.
Although the NLD leader has
asked for a four-party meeting to
amend the constitution, her
request has so far been ignored
by the government.
MYANMAR wants to foster cooperation with Vietnam, especially within the Asean framework, according to its leaders.
In Myanmar’s capital city yesterday, Vietnamese Vice
President, Nguyen Thi Doan, was
welcomed by President Thein
Sein who said her visit would
intensify bilateral co-ordination
during celebrations for the 40th
anniversary of diplomatic ties
this year.
Doan, in return, clarified that
Vietnam expected a stable and
long-term friendship and allaround engagement with
Myanmar.
During talks with her counterpart, Nyan Tun, on the same day,
the Vietnamese Vice President
asked for the Myanmar government’s support for Vietnamese
firms active in the 12 priority
fields mentioned in the VietnamMyanmar joint statement signed
in 2010, as well as accelerating
the licensing of Vietnamese projects in Myanmar.
The value of trade doubled in
two years to reach US$475 million in 2014, prompting both
sides to talk about initiatives to
boost it further.
They agreed that this meant
enhancing joint efforts through
high-level visits, using bilateral
co-operation mechanisms and
boosting economic and tradeinvestment activities.
The two vice-presidents said
they expected two-way trade to
reach more than $500 million
VIET NAM NEWS
VIET NAM NEWS
Nay Pyi Taw
Vietnamese Vice President Nguyen Thi Doan paid a courtesy visit to Myanmar President Thein
Sein on Wednesday.
this year. This would involve
expanding collaboration in agroforestry and fisheries, finance
banking, telecommunications,
transport, oil and gas, and tourism.
The host agreed to consider
allowing the Bank for the
Investment and Development of
Vietnam to open a branch in
Myanmar, the Vietnam National
Oil and Gas Group to expand oil
and gas exploration, and the military-run telecom provider Viettel
to set up a joint venture with
Yantanarporn Teleport of
Myanmar.
The officials also committed
to establishing a MyanmarVietnam Friendship Association.
The Myanmar side called for
co-ordination in rubber and food
production and exports, including rice, seafood, vegetables and
fruit.
The host also called for
Vietnamese investment in three
newly-established exclusive economic zones.
The two sides pledged to work
closely at regional and global
forums, especially in sub-region-
al mechanisms such as the
Ayeyawady-Chao Phraya-Mekong
Economic Co-operation, the
Cambodia-Laos-MyanmarVietnam Ministerial Summit, and
the East-West Economic Corridor.
Simultaneously, the two countries vowed to partner other
Asean members to ensure solidarity, uphold the association’s
central role in the evolving
regional structure, maintain
peace and solidarity in the East
Sea, and create the Asean
Economic Community by the end
of the year.
Bird flu ‘under control’ in Monywa
Soe Moe Htun
MYANMAR ELEVEN
Monywa
Authorities began disinfecting
the whole poultry farming zone
in Monywa, Sagaing Region due
to the spread of the avian flu and
Ks 602 million (US$602,000)
worth of fowls were culled as of
March 3, according to Saw Myint
Oo, the regional minister for
Agriculture and Livestock.
“We have the situation under
control. We sprayed disinfectants
and lime powder all over the
farms on March 3 and have to
check them again 30 days later to
make sure the farms remain sterilised,” he said.
Altogether 101,265 chicken and
321,300 quails were culled. The
breeders have received Ks 57 million ($57,000) in donation to re-
establish their businesses.
Some farmers complained
about the recklessness of their fellow breeders.
“The breeders already knew the
safety measures. They just failed
to follow them,” said a farm owner.
There is a rule forbidding any
individual from running poultry
farms within one kilometre outside
the zone but some breeders had
reportedly violated the rule.
Chinese loggers to stand trial
MYANMAR ELEVEN
Chinese citizens involved in
illegal timber extraction will
face prosecution soon under
Section 6(A) of the Public
Property Protection Act and the
Anti-Narcotic Drugs Law, a top
official from the Kachin State
Police Force told The Daily
Eleven.
According to instructions
from the Union government, the
Kachin State government
reportedly handed over the case
to the Ministry of Home Affairs
to prosecute the Chinese smugglers under the Public Property
Protection Act, which could
carry a sentence of up to 10
years in prison.
“As soon as we get approval,
we will bring them to trial. The
government has instructed us to
give them a heavy penalty
because they engaged in a great
deal of log smuggling,” said
Police Colonel San Yu.
An official from the Forestry
Department said the smugglers,
who were arrested in January,
carried out illegal timber extraction for several years.
Regional government officials also said Chinese citizens
continue to illegally enter the
country and carry out timber
extraction across Waimaw
Township in Kachin State.
Over 10,000 seized timber
logs were handed over to the
inspection team of the Forestry
Department in Myitkyina. They
also arrested 138 Chinese citizens and seized an excavator,
three trailers, 436 trucks, four
Pajeros, cranes and bicycles
during the operation.
The regional government
confirmed that the Chinese
smugglers would also be
charged under the AntiNarcotics Law because narcotics, including opium, were con-
“No one was there to take
actions against individual breeders outside the zone,” said Win
Maung, one of the farmers in the
zone.
Currently the price for a chick
is Ks 900-1,200 and that of quail
is Ks 90-120.
Monywa’s poultry husbandry
zone is home to over 300 chicken
farms. The avian flu hit the town
in 2006 and again in 2012.
fiscated from them.
China has reportedly defended its citizens involved in the
smuggling case.
Officials from the Forestry
Department said Chinese citizens have been smuggling natural resources, including timber,
out of Myanmar since 2012.
In the past, Chinese citizens
involved in such case would
face jail terms between one and
five years long, in addition to
fines and deportations.
China profits from illegal timber smuggling more than any
country in the world, earning
about US$7 billion per year.
About 90 per cent of its smuggled timber is from Myanmar,
according to the Myanmar
Forestry Association.
Australia helps prevent
child soldier recruitment
The Australian government,
through its ambassador to
Myanmar, yesterday granted 2.5
million Australian dollars to
UNICEF to finance the organisation’s projects in the country
aimed at stopping the recruitment of child soldiers.
The money will be used in
preventing children who are
being forced to become child soldiers, conducting training courses for judicial staff taking care of
child welfare in conflict areas.
The main aim of the UNICEF
is to totally stop the armed forces
from recruiting child soldiers.
Myanmar and the United
Nations signed a Joint Action
Plan to end and prevent the
recruitment and use of children
by the Armed Forces. Under this
plan, 595 children and young
people have been discharged
until January this year.
Army arrest 3 Kokang
insurgents
Three Kokang insurgents were
arrested along with weapons in
the fighting on Wednesday, state
media reported.
Global New Light of Myanmar
reported that four soldiers died
while five were injured in the incidents.
It said Kokang insurgents
opened fire at military columns at
the site, east of Pasinkyaw, south
of Laukkai, but the insurgent withdrew from the area due to attacks
of Tatmadaw columns.
In the afternoon, the army
troops, acting on tip-off, searched
a house in ward 2 of Laukkai and
seized arms, ammunition and
narcotic drugs.
On Wednesday morning, the
military column discharging security duty near Laukkai and Kokang
insurgents exchanged fire and the
latter withdrew from the area.
In the incidents, aside from
the arrests, one small arm,
ammunition, related equipment,
2,200 stimulant tablets worth
K3.3 million and 11 grams of Ice
worth K220,000 were also seized.
Tens of soldiers have lost their
lives since the fighting with
Kokang rebels erupted in
February.
4
BUSINESS
MYANMAR ELEVEN, Friday, March 13, 2015
Electrification rate to reach 50
per cent of households: MOEP
WITH the anticipated inflow of
foreign investments in the years
to come, Myanmar is trying to
increase its electrification rate to
ensure 50 per cent of all 9
households will have access to
electricity in the 2015-16 fiscal
year, according to the Ministry of
Electric Power.
Aung Than Oo, Deputy
Minister for Electric Power, said
in the third Myanmar Power
Summit held in Yangon on
Tuesday that the Ministry is
undertaking a five-year project to
supply power to unelectrified
areas, aiming to reach out to 1.5
million households by grid
expansion and 0.2 million by
other means.
“Electricity is the first priority
among the core sectors for our
government. Electricity demand
has been increasing yearly. The
MOEP has been taking efforts to
implement many power generation projects throughout the
country by using different kinds
of resources so as to improve the
power demand and stimulate
15-per cent annual growth,” he
said.
According to the deputy minister, installed capacity for power
generation has risen from 3,413
megawatts (MW) in the 2011-12
FY to 4,714 MW today, as new
power stations have been
installed throughout the country.
However, expansion of the
national grid mainly benefited
the middle part of the country.
Very recently, the grid was
extended to Myitkyina, Moe
Kaung, Moe Hnyin in Kachin
State, Hakha in Chin State,
Mineyel, Tantyan, Minenaung,
Konhein in Shan State, and
Thandwe, Sittwe, and Kyauk
Phyu in Rakhine State. In 2010
and 2011, Myanmar supplied
electricity to 2.42 million households, about 27 per cent of the
population. Currently, about 3.5
million households, or 34 per
cent of the population, have
access to electricity, according to
the Ministry.
“We will get 231 MW of additional power through the implementation of better gas turbines
and engines in Myingyan, Kyauk
Phyu, Thilawa and Hlaw Ga within a short period. Major hydropower projects such as Upper
Yeywa, Shwe Li (3), Upper Kyaing
Taung, Tha Htay, Middle Paung
Laung, and Deedok will bring us
a total installed capacity of 1,658
MW,” said Aung Than Oo.
According to the deputy minister, Myanmar’s hydropower
potential is estimated to be more
than 100,000 MW, as Myanmar
has four major rivers -- the
Ayeyarwaddy, Thanlwin,
Chindwin, and Sittaung. But
implementation of these projects
would be slow due to public disagreements.
Aung Than Oo, Deputy
Minister for Electric
Power, speaks to media
on the sidelines of the 3rd
Myanmar Power Summit
EMG
Khine Kyaw
MYANMAR ELEVEN
“If we manage to implement
these hydropower projects successfully, we will be able to meet
the energy demand within the
country. In Shan State and
Sagaing Region, there have been
many core results for commercial production that can be utilised for power generation,” he
said.
The deputy minister warned
that if the government was unable to implement some of these
projects, it would be hard to
meet the energy demand targets
by 2020.
“There are benefits and risks
in every project. Many activists
and social groups in Myanmar
exert great pressure on the government. If only the shortcomings are highlighted, it may lead
to public misunderstanding and
possibly m clashes, which would
deter the nation’s development,”
he said.
In addition to hydropower projects, other energy resources,
such as wind, solar and coal fire
are being vetted by feasibility
studies, and some are slated for
implementation.
“Some hydro projects we
planned have not yet been implemented due to budget constraints and possible impacts on
the environment. Since the
implementation of mega hydro
projects will take time, we have
chosen to implement small hydro
projects instead. At the same
time, it will also take time to get
new gases. At that time, we need
to find possible ways in order to
meet the increasing demands,”
said the deputy minister.
“When we think of solar
power, we can get it in the daytime, not at night. So we have
planned for some coal-fired
power plants. Here, we do not
say that we will use the coal forever. But coal is cheaper than
gas. Selecting cheaper means of
production may lead to cheaper
unit prices [of electricity].”
Although the Thein Sein
administration has signed the
memorandum of understanding
with respective firms for the
implementation of 11 coal-fired
power plants, the projects cannot
proceed due to the public objection.
“One of the challenges we
faced is public criticism for environmental risks posed by the
implementation of coal-fired
power plants. Our government
will only allow the application of
clean coal technology and countermeasures to reduce the
impact as much as possible,”
said Aung Than Oo, adding that
the inistry would investigate and
supervise the construction sites.
The deputy minister insisted
that the implementation of coalfired power plants would go
ahead only when the public
accepts such projects. Yet, he
was optimistic about the possible outcome.
“One day, when the public
comes to understand that we
have undertaken all possible
measures to ensure that the new
power projects have as little an
impact as possible, they will not
oppose the projects. We believe
with such guarantees, the public
will be satisfied, and then the
projects can proceed,” he said.
■ International support
According to the deputy minister, consideration of power sector development needs more
integrated plans, some of which
will leapfrog the current structure to adopt the latest technology and make significant investments to improve existing infrastructure, including generation,
transmission, and distribution
assistance.
The national electricity master
plan has been jointly conducted
with the assistance of the Japan
International Cooperation
Agency. Other international
organisations. such as the World
Bank, International Finance
Corporation and Asian
Development Bank, have provided support for the improvement
of the power sector.
ADB helped rewrite the electricity law, which was approved
by the Parliament on October 27,
2014. The new law provides the
authority to relevant ministries,
regional bodies, and sub-administered divisions to conduct electricity business effectively and
successfully. Region and State
governments will have the right
to implement medium-scale projects of up to 30 MW and also
small-scale projects of up to 10
MW.
The deputy minister said the
enactment of the new electricity
law would help restructure the
power sector with the cooperation of private companies and
regional organisations to encourage more local and foreign
investments.
The law also provides incredible opportunities for the emerging power projects, as foreign
and local investors can participate in the electricity business
by applying for the permission
from relevant authorities. The
draft of the rules of the electricity
law prepared by the DFDL law
firm with the assistance of ADB
is now in progress and in the process of requesting comments
from relevant ministries.
An estimated amount of
US$670 million will be used to
implement the medium and low
voltage distribution lines. The
World Bank has committed to
provide $400 million in IDA
[international development assistance], $310 million of which will
go to the MOEP for the expansion of the national grid roll-out.
The remaining $90 million will
go to the Ministry of Livestock,
Fisheries, and Rural
Development to promote electricity generation and transmission in accordance with the
annual growth of electricity
demand. The loan has yet to be
approved by the Ministry of
Finance and the Parliament.
GATE TO ANDAMAN OPENED
NCL International Logistics Plc , an international and domestic freight transportation company, has signed a contract with
Port Authority of Thailand to use the facilities at Ranong Port.
It will be the first company to provide freight transportation
services and tailor-made logistics solutions for exporters and
importers between Rayong and Yangon ports. The move will
enhance the firm’s competitiveness and boost its revenue.
Joining the signing ceremony are NCL International Logistics
Plc’s chairman Korn Dabbarangsi, third right; NCL’s CEO Kitti
Phuathavornskul, second right; and Port Authority of
Thailand’s chairman ADM Apiwat Srivardhana.
MYANMAR ELEVEN, Friday, March 13, 2015
Business
5
BIZ
BUZZ
Viettel eyes
global status
by 2020
VIET NAM NEWS
Hanoi
US dollar rally continues
Ah Nge Htwe
MYANMAR ELEVEN
HIGH demand for US dollar
has driven up the market rates to
a new level, though the official
rate has been kept firmly below
Ks1,300 per dollar.
“The dollar was traded as
high as Ks1,054 during the day
on Tuesday before rising to
Ks1,060 on Wednesday),” said
one money exchanger.
The kyat was 1,039 per dollar
at the beginning of this month.
So far this month, the Central
Bank of Myanmar has kept the
official exchange rate at $/
Ks1,207.
“In the black marker, it was
Ks1,052 – Ks1,054 on Tuesday,”
a money exchange operator
said. “Some dealers even quoted Ks1,056.”
At the end of 2011 and the
beginning of 2012, the
exchange rate was Ks824 per
dollar. It reached Ks845 in
November 2012. The rate was
Ks976 per dollar in November
2013. Last October, the greenback first rose above Ks1,000
against the kyat. While the official rate hit the record high at
Ks1,048 on November 19, 2014,
the black market rate was
Ks1,070.
The dollar has been appreciating against other currencies
in recent months, thanks to
improved economic indicators.
A rice exporter said that
despite the fact, the weakening
pace of the kyat against the
greenback is volatile, especially
in the black market.
The exchange rate was highly
volatile last year and the
Central Bank of Myanmar
blamed it on speculation. The
volatility eased when the central bank warned private banks
not to influence the exchange
rate.
Foreign exchange centres
normally quote the selling rate
0.8 per cent above the official
reference rate while authorised
dealers charge an extra 0.3 per
cent.
Seamless Myanmar services from Thailand
THE NATION
Thailand’s Total Access
Communication has launched
“Happy Myanmar” SIM and “JaiDee-Hi-Own-Pai-Myanmar from
Happy” service, to increase telecommunications connectivity
between Myanmar and
Thailand.
Through the SIM, a call to
Myanmar will be charged Bt3
per minute while customers will
be given unlimited access to
Facebook and Line applications
for 6 months. Through “Jai-DeeHi-Own-Pai-Myanmar from
Happy” service, Happy customers in Thailand can top up
Telenor Myanmar Sim at the
rates of Bt120 for Ks3,000 and
Bt200 for Ks5,000.
Sigvart Voss Eriksen, chief
marketing officer of Dtac, said
the SIM mainly aims to attract
Myanmar workers and those
having business near border.
The product and service also
marks the alliance of two business units of Telenor Group Dtac and Telenor Myanmar.
“Telenor Asia plans to continue to improve the collabora-
Dtac’s Sigvart Voss Eriksen, 3rd from right, and Telenor Myanmar’s CEO Petter Furberg jointly
launch the product and service.
tion among countries which
Telenor has invested in. We
work across borders to deliver
innovative products and services for customers. The coopera-
tion between dtac and Telenor
Myanmar is another example of
how customers and the economy at large can benefit from our
regional efforts,” said Sigve
Brekke, interim chief executive
officer of Dtac and executive
vice-president and Head of
Asian operations for Telenor
Group.
The military-run telecommunications group Viettel
aims to become one of the
world’’s top 10 telecom companies by 2020, with presence in 30 to 35 countries.
The firm’s executives
informed Prime Minister
Nguyen Tan Dung about this
aim at a working session on
Wednesday.
Viettel currently has the
second largest revenue
among nearly 500,000 businesses in Vietnam, earning
VND197 trillion (US$9.38 billion) in 2014, a 20 per cent
annual increase. The earnings accounted for more
than 10 per cent of the Stateowned enterprises’ total figure.
Last year, it posted pretax profit of VND42 trillion
($2 billion), an annual rise of
15 per cent and representing
23 per cent of the profit
made by State-owned firms.
Its tax payments exceeded VND15 trillion ($714.28
million), climbing 10 per
cent from the previous year,
making Viettel the largest tax
contributor in Vietnam.
The group is employing
roughly 90,000 people,
including 75,000 in Viet
Nam and 15,000 abroad.
It has thus far invested in
nine countries, which are
Laos, Cambodia, TimorLeste and Haiti, as well as
Peru, Mozambique,
Cameroon and Tanzania,
besides Burundi. Viettel’s
overseas revenue grew 25
per cent to touch $1.2 billion
in 2014, with pre-tax profit of
$156 million, up 32 per cent.
The firm owns three telecom equipment and electronic device research institutes, two software companies and two factories.
At the working session,
Viettel executives highlighted
their resolve to achieve 20
per cent increase in revenue
and 15 per cent rise in profit
this year.
In addition to telecommunications and overseas
investments, the firm is
developing hi-tech device
research and production
activities, the firm’s leaders
said.
Speaking highly of the
firm’s accomplishments, PM
Nguyen Tan Dung asked
Viettel to maintain its
impressive progress and
step up scientific and technological research and applications to elevate the company as a leading group in
the region.
He also pledged optimal
conditions for the company
to develop and realise its
assigned targets.
ASEAN+
6
MYANMAR ELEVEN, Friday, March 13, 2015
Abe pledges united efforts
for future disasters
Information
on VN forests
goes digital
Balloons in the shape
of doves are released
into the air during a
memorial service for
victims of the 2011
quake-tsunami
disaster in Miyagi
Prefecture.
VIET NAM NEWS
People will be able to send
authorities information about
forest safety with their mobile
devices in six provinces, under a
project launched earlier this week
in Hanoi. The data-gathering
software allows organisations to
collect field data, including GPS
location tags and images, from the
public’s smartphones and tablets.
This is the first time this type of
software has been used to monitor
forest resources in the country. It
will be installed in Bac Kan, Cao
Bang, Hoa Binh, Dak Lak, Tra Vinh
and Bac Lieu provinces.
The digital tools supported by
Microsoft would allow locals to
report forest management or safety
issues to authorities without
needing to send an email or file
paperwork, said Bien Quang Tu,
co-ordinator of the project. They
could also access the system to get
information on forests.
Hoang Phuong Thao, country
director of ActionAid Viet Nam,
said the project’s objective was to
alleviate poverty by protecting and
utilising forest resources more
effectively.
“Our ambition in our
co-operation in Vietnam is to
promote the important role of
forests, as we have done in Finland,
to help with environmental
protection, improve lives, develop
the national economy and mitigate
climate change,” said Kimmo
Lahdevirta, Finland’s ambassador
to Vietnam.
The three-year project, which
cost 1.1 million euro (US$1.2
million), is scheduled for
completion in 2017.
It was financed by the Ministry
of Foreign Affairs of Finland and
ActionAid Vietnam.
AFP
Hanoi
THE YOMIURI SHIMBUN
PEOPLE remembered loved
ones and friends in memorial
ceremonies across the country
on Wednesday, four years after
the Great East Japan Earthquake.
About 200 people, including
bereaved family members, at
Okawa Primary School in
Ishinomaki, Miyagi Prefecture,
observed a moment of silence for
the dead. A total of 84 pupils,
teachers and other staffers at the
school died or went missing in
the earthquake and tsunami disaster on March 11, 2011.
“In my prayer, I told my
friends who died in the disaster
that I’ll become a high school
student this spring,” said Tetsuya
Tadano, 15, who was in fifth
grade at the school when the tsunami struck. “The classroom
feels so small now.”
The central government held a
memorial ceremony at the
National Theatre in Tokyo on
Wednesday afternoon. About
1,200 participants, including the
Emperor and Empress, observed
a moment of silence.
“I would like to offer my deep-
est condolences for those who
lost their lives in the disaster and
to their bereaved families,” the
Emperor said.
Prime Minister Shinzo Abe
delivered a speech in which he
expressed his determination to
thoroughly implement antidisaster measures.
“In order to make the impact
of future disasters as limited as
possible, I would like to make a
solid pledge here to make unified
efforts to utilise the latest knowledge to provide comprehensive
disaster prevention measures,”
Abe said.
“We who survived must not
allow the lessons of the disaster
to fade away, but pass them on
to future generations,” Yukie
Suzuki, 32, of Namie said in a
speech as a representative of
bereaved families in Fukushima
Prefecture.
The Great East Japan
Earthquake and the tsunami it
generated hit 12 prefectures in
March 2011
According to the National
Police Agency, the number of
deaths directly resulting from the
disaster, including the tsunami it
generated, is 15,891 in 12 prefectures, while the number of people missing was 2,584 as of
Tuesday.
According to the
Reconstruction Agency, about
229,000 people still live as evacuees, and in Iwate, Miyagi and
Fukushima prefectures, as of the
end of February, about 80,000 of
them were living mainly in prefabricated temporary housing
units.
“If I fail again to win the lottery to get into public housing, I
won’t have anyplace to go,” said
Yuriko Shimizu, a 60-year-old
blind woman who lives alone in a
temporary housing unit in
Taihaku Ward, Sendai.
Before she entered temporary
housing, her relatives looked for
an apartment for her, but every
landlord rejected her as a tenant,
saying there was a possibility
that a person with a visual
impairment could accidentally
cause a fire.
In June 2011, after losing her
house in the Great East Japan
Earthquake, Shimizu entered the
temporary housing unit. She
often bumps into walls and furni-
ture as the room is small. It is
not easy for her to operate the
cooling and warming options of
the air conditioner because the
unit has no audio-assist system.
She does not have close ties
with any of the other residents of
the building. Instead, she talks to
a caregiver who visits her place
three times a week.
Shimizu has entered the lottery to get into public housing for
the disaster-affected twice, but
failed to win both times. Thinking
that the disabled and elderly
people are supposed to be given
priority as tenants, she appealed
to the municipal government
through a welfare support group.
The government answered, “We
can’t build a community with
only such people.”
Many disabled people affected
by the disaster have no choice
but to continue living in temporary housing units with all of
their inconvenience and uncertainty even after four years have
passed since the disaster
occurred. Though they want to
move to public housing for disaster victims, they face an uphill
battle.
Rainfall analysis helps farmers adapt to climate change
VIENTIANE TIMES
SNV in Laos has recently
partnered with Australia’s
national science agency CSIRO
(Commonwealth Scientific and
Industrial Research
Organisation) and NAFRI
(National Agriculture and
Forestry Research Institute of
the Lao PDR) to build the community-level adaptive capacity
of rice farmers in Khammuan
province to respond to increas-
ing climate variability and
change.
SNV, CSIRO and NAFRI will
officially collaborate and plan to
implement a rainwater visualising tool and cropping advisory
and dynamic cropping calendar
tool in 10 pilot villages in two
districts of Khammuan province
during the 2015 wet season.
SNV is implementing a climate smart agriculture project
in Khammuan province to test
and pilot innovative tools and
approaches that farmers can
adapt in order to better respond
to the effects and impacts of climate change on their rice cropping systems. As part of the
project strategy, SNV is collaborating with development and
research institutions in further
identifying and determining
approaches and strategies that
work better on the ground.
In each of the pilot villages, a
rain gauge will be installed, and
village heads will be organised
to collect data on daily rainfall.
Once this data is collected, the
rainfall patterns in selected villages will be analysed, and a
visualising tool developed to be
shared with farmers and used
throughout the growing season.
To follow up the project, local
partners in the communities will
be trained in weather observations and the use of the rainfall
visualising tool.
More than half of the Lao
population is involved in agricul-
ture, and rural farmers are particularly vulnerable to changing
weather conditions as a result of
climate change. The goals of
this initiative are to help farmers
understand the value of quantifying rainfall for decision-making throughout the growing season. Using these tools, farmers
will be able to adapt better to
the pressures and changes on
their cropping systems as a
result of increasing climate variability.
MYANMAR ELEVEN, Friday, March 13, 2015
7
ASEAN+
8
GLOBAL
BRIEFS
Almost half of foreign
workers infected with
TB
M’sia considers border fencing
to deter human trafficking
THE STAR
With almost half of foreign
workers in Malaysia failing their
medical tests found to be infected
with the highly contagious
tuberculosis (TB), doctors are
raising the alarm over the presence
of some three million to six million
illegals. Malaysian Medical
Association president Dr H.
Krishna Kumar said illegal
foreign workers, who were not
screened at all, were the biggest
cause for the rise in TB cases.
Although most Malaysians were
vaccinated against the disease,
those with chronic diseases such as
severe diabetes or dengue were in
danger, and likely to be infected, he
said.
“If a group of legal and illegal
foreign workers are staying in close
proximity, the legal workers are
exposed as well.
And they are in contact with the
rest of the country’s workforce,” he
said.
- THE STAR
MYANMAR ELEVEN, Friday, March 13, 2015
ERECTING security fences
totalling 2,666km along the
nation’s borders is being considered as a measure to stop smuggling and people trafficking.
The home ministry is conducting a feasibility study on the
fencing which will also serve as a
replacement for existing border
fences that are in deplorable condition. Each year, the government
loses more than 7 billion ringgit
(US$1.90 billion) to the smuggling of goods such as rice, petrol, diesel, alcoholic beverages,
cigarettes, fertiliser and herbicides.
There is also the matter of
firearms being smuggled into the
country, stolen vehicles snuck
into neighbouring countries and
fake fashion brands making their
way in.
But stopping the trafficking of
people is also a major reason for
putting up the fences.
The fencing is for our borders
with Thailand, Indonesia and
Brunei, and what’s being studied
is the type of fence, its height,
total cost, how it will be guarded
and if it needs to be electrified.
A special committee, known
as the Security Fence Technical
Team, is conducting the study
that is expected to be completed
by early October.
It will then be submitted to
the cabinet.
Home ministry border security and police division secretary
Badrul Hisham Mohd said the
division headed the committee.
He said the team was already
in the second phase of its study
and would be meeting the
respective agencies in Sabah and
Sarawak on March 24 and 25.
The borders at the north of
the peninsula need about 650km
of fencing while those in Sabah
and Sarawak require about
2,000km, said Badrul, who is
also Smuggling Prevention Unit
(UPP) director-general.
“Initially we were asked to
carry out a study on security
fencing at the Malaysia-Thailand
border.
“But after the severity of
(recent) cross-border crimes,
this was extended to (the international borders at) Sabah and
Sarawak,” he said.
He explained that security
fencing was different from border
fencing which needs the approval
of the neighbouring nation.
“Security fencing can be set
up anywhere by the government
and needs no foreign approval.
This will save us time,” said
Badrul. Others involved in the
study were the Ministry of
Finance, National Security
Council, Economic Planning Unit,
public works department and
Department of Survey and
Mapping Malaysia.
Badrul said 12 companies had
approached the home ministry,
showing interest in building the
security fencing.
The EPU had suggested tapping the expertise of research
groups of universities, he added.
Philippine Cinderellas seize world stage
Mecca ‘pilgrims’ slip
off to join IS
Two Malaysians had signed up
for the pilgrimage in Mecca through
a legitimate travel agency, but
instead slipped away from the rest
of the group to join the Islamic State
(IS) in Syria.
“They think they are going to
Syria but the fact that they have to
lie in order to go shows this is
wrong,” said Inspector-General of
Police Khalid Abu Bakar.
“This is a serious matter and if
not taken care of, it could become
an even bigger problem,” Khalid
told reporters.
The proposed Prevention of
Terrorism Act was needed to
combat the IS threat in the country,
he added.
Khalid said that to date, more
than 50 Malaysians had been
confirmed to have joined IS in Syria
but the authorities believed that the
actual number was higher.
- THE STAR
Postponement in
execution
- REUTERS, AFP
Aspiring beauty queens practice stretching at a beauty boot camp in Manila.
AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE
Manila
As a child she waded in
muddy Philippine rice paddies,
now teenager Janicel Lubina
struts down runways for the
country’s top designers and is
hoping to be crowned among the
world’s most beautiful women.
Lubina is a star recruit in one
of Manila’s beauty pageant boot
camps, where shy, lanky teenage
girls from remote farming provinces are transformed into poised
Barbie dolls who can preach
about world peace in six-inch
heels.
Beauty pageants are hugely
popular with women in the
Philippines, with many taking
part in the hope it will lead to
luxury living, success in high
fashion, and movie stardom.
“My mother was a maid. I
can’t be a maid forever and get
stuck in the province,” 19-yearold Lubina told AFP before she
auditioned for this year’s
Binibining Pilipinas (Miss
Philippines) contest.
Lubina mastered what is
dubbed the “duck walk” at the
Kagandahang Flores (Beauty of
the Flower) training camp in
Manila, where students are
taught to perfect their beauty
queen strut by swinging their
hips from side to side like ducks.
Camp director and “duck
walk” inventor Rodin Gilbert
Flores approaches training with
the precision of a scientist. He is
a licensed chemical engineer
who worked for a major glass
company before shifting to entertainment.
“It’s is all about muscle memory. It’s calculated down to the
movement of the hands,” he said.
“The girl should also show her
personality. She can’t be like a
mannequin with no expression
on her face.”
Flores ruthlessly watches as
his students, wearing two-piece
bikinis and high heels “duckwalk” from one end of a dark
covered basketball court to the
other.
Sweat drips down their cheeks
but they are not allowed to sit
down until they perfect it.
“We’ll take in a girl, she will be
in pain because of the duck walk,
but the end result is she’ll be a
head-turner,” he said.
Towering at 1.83-metres-tall
(six feet) in heels, raven-haired
Lubina hopes to represent the
country in the Miss Universe pageant, which has a huge following
in the Philippines.
But Lubina’s camera-ready
smile fades when she talks about
AFP
Indonesia signalled on Thursday
that it would not execute foreigners
on death row for at least the next 16
days after the attorney general’s
office said that all the prisoners
would be executed together.
On Thursday, an appeal by two
Australians against the rejection of
a clemency request by the president
was postponed until March 19.
A decision on a separate court
appeal by a French convict was
postponed on Wednesday until
March 25.
“There has been no change of
plans from the AGO that
allexecutions will be all at once,” the
attorney general’s spokesman Tony
Spontana told reporters, adding
that sentences would not be carried
out until “everything is clear”.
Australia has offered to pay the
cost of life imprisonment for two
drug smugglers on death row in
Indonesia if they are spared the
firing squad.
her struggles back home in
Palawan province, where she
worked as a maid like her mother, while her father was recovering from a mild stroke.
Lubina was discovered by a
local make-up artist while she
was out on an errand, walking on
a dirt road. The beautician was
amazed by her towering frame,
she said.
For 1985 Miss Philippines
Joyce Burton-Titular, pageants
are huge in the country because
of Filipinos love to ogle and criticise glamorous women.
Titular said pageants could
also present an opportunity to
escape from poverty.
“Pageants these days are a
great equaliser because you can
come from the poorest of the
poor and still win. In our country,
pageants are empowering,” she
said.
MYANMAR ELEVEN, Friday, March 13, 2015
9
ASEAN+
Top garment brands slammed over
Cambodian factory conditions
DEUTSCHE PRESSE-AGENTUR
Phnom Penh
TOP apparel makers are not
doing enough to improve the
conditions of the workers in their
suppliers’ Cambodian factories,
a rights group said Thursday.
Garment makers supplying
H&M, Armani and Gap and others are evading norms laid out by
the UN’s International Labour
Organisation (ILO), thanks to
loopholes and poor oversight,
Human Rights Watch said.
Factories allegedly discriminate against pregnant workers,
mandate overtime, pursue antiunion measures, hire minors, and
use short-term contacts to avoid
addressing workers’ needs,
according to the report titled
Work Faster or Get Out: Labour
Rights Abuses in Cambodia’s
Garment Industry, released
Thursday.
Work spaces can be poorly
ventilated and workers often
receive insufficient bathroom
breaks, it added.
“We are like slaves - not workers,” one garment factory worker
was quoted as saying in the
report.
“These global apparel brands
are household names,” said
Aruna Kashyap, senior women’s
rights researcher at the New
York-based organisation. “They
have a lot of leverage, and can
and should do more to ensure
their contracts with garment factories are not contributing to
labour rights abuses.”
Poor conditions persist
despite oversight by the Ministry
of Labour and the ILO programme Better Factories
Cambodia set up in 2001. The
government was also criticised,
for fining a number of factories
that remains “abysmally low
when compared to the number of
factories overall and the persistent patterns of labour rights violations,” the report said.
Cambodia’s garment industry
employs more than 700,000
people, 90 percent women, and
is a leading source of exports,
the report said. Human Rights
Watch surveyed 270 workers in
73 factories across Cambodia.
Other international brands called
out in the report are Adidas, Joe
Fresh and Marks and Spencer.
Adidas said it was working
with the ILO to ensure better
conditions, fair wages and union
representation. It also highlighted improvements to the food
supplied to the workers at its
suppliers’ factories.
“During 2014, 1,299 factory
visits (including 1,172 factory
audits)were undertaken,” Silvia
‘Samsung Man’ not just a job
THE KOREA HERALD
In South Korea, getting
a job at Samsung is often
regarded a ticket to a
‘good life’
Kim, 45, vividly
remembers when
Samsung Group divested
all shares in its discount
store retail chain to
UK-based retailer Tesco in
2011. His company was
subsequently renamed
from Homeplus Samsung
Tesco to Homeplus, which
meant it was time for him
to give up the pride of
being a “Samsung Man”.
Kim says he felt like
being deprived of his
social status and respect
from his family and
friends.
Now, some 7,500
Samsung workers whose
companies were sold to
Hanwha last year are
going through the same
agony as Kim did four
years ago.
In November, Samsung
Group decided to sell four
affiliates to Hanwha
Group in a deal estimated
at 1.9 trillion won (US$1.7
billion). The purchase is
expected to be completed
by the first half of this
year. Under the deal,
Samsung is offloading its
shares in defense unit
Samsung Techwin and
chemical arm Samsung
General Chemicals to
Hanwha, another familyowned group whose main
businesses include
defence and solar power.
Two other affiliates,
Samsung Thales and Samsung
Total Petrochemicals were automatically included in the deal
as they are half-owned by the
companies being sold to
Hanwha.
“Some people think becoming a ‘Hanwha Man’ from
‘Samsung man’ is just a matter
of name change. But trust me,
it is more than just that,” a
worker from Samsung Techwin
said on condition of anonymity.
The employee, who is part of
the newly formed union of the
affiliates, claimed there is no
documentation on job security.
Samsung has maintained a “no
labour union” policy since it
was founded 77 years ago.
“We’re afraid there’s going to
be discrimination on wages as
well as welfare benefits, which
will be followed by a restructuring process,” he said.
Regarding these concerns,
Hanwha Group officials said it
formed a task force to take care
of workers’ employment succession and job security.
“We promise a safe employment succession in the four
affiliates and promise our trust
to the workers. We welcome our
new family with trust,” said
Shim Kyung-seb, representative
director of Hanwha’s defence
division.
In South Korea, getting a job
at Samsung is often regarded a
ticket to a “good life”.
Believing that becoming a
member of Samsung can give
them higher social status
and influence, college students spend months and
years in the battle to pass
Samsung’s entrance
exam, the Samsung
Aptitude Test.
Some pay 500,000
won ($454) to 1 million
won for academies on
SSAT and English tests.
“For our parents’ generation, Samsung was a
leading conglomerate that
helped the country’s postwar economic development,” said Choi In-jung,
a college graduate.
“One of the reasons
why I want to get into
Samsung is so that my
parents can boast about
their daughter becoming
part of the No. 1 conglomerate.” However, it was
hundreds of fresh college
graduates who got the
golden ticket at the four
affiliates last year who
lost their dream status
overnight.
“Am I a Samsung
employee or Hanwha
employee? My family just
celebrated my new job
but the good news just
turned bad,” a newly
employed worker at
Samsung Techwin wrote
on Sungkyunkwan
University’s student website after the acquisition.
Regardless of the workers’ agony, Samsung and
Hanwha’s so-called
“mega deal” is regarded
as one of the most successful deals in history.
Samsung was able to lessen
the burden amid sliding profits
and help streamline business
areas. Hanwha climbed one
notch to be the No. 9 conglomerate in the country by acquiring the defense and chemical
units that focus on its core
competency.
Hanwha, whose flagship unit
is Hanwha Chemical, said the
acquisition would help it
become South Korea’s biggest
petrochemical business in
terms of revenue.
Raccagni, senior manager of sustainability communication, wrote
dpa by email. “We focus our
efforts in higher risk countries.”
Media representatives from
the other brands did not reply to
requests for comment.
Monitoring primary suppliers
may fail to detect labour violations by subcontractors, the
report said.
“Small factories that subcontract to larger export-oriented
factories are more likely to hire
workers on a casual basis, making it harder for workers to assert
their rights because they risk
being easily fired,” the report
said.
More S’pore
shoppers buy
in-store than
online
THE STRAITS TIMES
Brick and mortar retailers still have the
march on their online counterparts, going
by a recent consumer survey.
The poll of 1,002 Singaporeans found
that 56 per cent of respondents indicated
that their most often-used method to buy
non-food items is in-store.
And when asked to rate their favourite
haunts, 85 per cent said they visited a
physical store at least once a month,
much more than the 49 per cent for online
stores.
Shoppers were also likely to snap up
bigger-ticket items in-store than online.
The survey by consultancy CBRE
Group in August last year found that 83
per cent spent S$51 (US$36.77) to more
than S$500 per month at brick and
mortar stores, compared with only 68 per
cent that did so online.
A sizeable proportion of online
shoppers (33 per cent) spent S$50 or less
per month, compared with 18 per cent for
in-store shoppers.
And it looks like the trend will continue
- at least over the next two years.
Two-thirds of the respondents said
they would not change their preference for
shopping at a store over the next two
years, with 21 per cent even intending to
shop more at physical stores.
In fact, 29 per cent of respondents,
aged 18 to 24 years old, said they would
increase spending in stores over the next
two years.
“All the buzz around e-commerce gives
the impression that physical stores are on
their way out, but this is not true. The
physical store remains the vital piece to
the shopping puzzle,” said Letty Lee,
CBRE’s director of retail services.
Civil servant Sham Ishak, 36, said that
physical stores would never lose their
appeal, at least not for him. He shops
online once in three months, but heads to
a physical store once a week.
“When you shop online, you cannot try
on an item, and you can’t touch it. Also,
you don’t know if a website is reputable,”
he said. “I prefer to just go to a shopping
centre.”
LIFESTYLE
From dissenter
to director
Thaé Thiri Kyaw
MYANMAR ELEVEN
“If I were to become an artist
only after becoming an actor, I
would never become who I am
now. I have worked as a co-star
and a supporting actor. I have
used every opportunity given to
me to make a name for myself
and tried hard with my own
capabilities,” said Wyne, one of
Myanmar’s best-known film
directors.
Although debuting in the film
industry as a supporting actor,
he didn’t make it as a film-maker/director until he was 30. Born
in Yangon on December 22, 1973
to Toe Toe Myint and Maung
Maung Thanm, Wyne is the eldest of the three siblings. Despite
his normal childhood, Wyne was
a rebel in his teens and at 15, he
witnessed and took part in the
People Power Uprising in 1988,
also known as the 8888 Uprising.
“I went to school at the age of
four and a half so by the time I
was 15, I was in the 10th standard. When the student uprising
took place, I was still young, but
really I couldn’t stand any kind of
injustice. I started loving the
spirit of truth. These spirits drove
me to take part in the uprising. I
saw many students killed in front
of my own eyes. I couldn’t stand
these injustices. That’s why I participated in it,” said Wyne.
Though he wasn’t a member
of a generation of political activists, his obstinate involvement in
political movements did weigh
heavily on his parents.
In his youth, his ambition to
be a soldier – inspired by special
film tributes to the military on TV
– was thwarted by his bitter
experiences during the uprising.
“My detention as a result of
my political involvement at the
age of 15 was the most difficult
time in my life. Anyone who has
experienced this will know how I
was feeling. I was so young and
scared. They pressed me to sign
a confession to a crime I didn’t
commit. It didn’t make sense to
sign it,” he said.
After the uprising, he pursued
an undergraduate programme in
physics.
“I still have many memories of
life as a university student. I
failed the exam in my 3rd year. I
didn’t retake it the following year
so I didn’t graduate. I did as I
liked,” he said.
10
MYANMAR ELEVEN, Friday, March 13, 2015
However, in the years that follows, he graduated from being a
student activist to being an actor.
In the early 1990s, Wyne made
his first acting debut in “A Naing
Pine Thae Achit”, which would
land him a supporting or cameo
role in many more films.
He learned about filmmaking
from the two film-maker brothers, Naung Tun Lwin and Nyi Nyi
Tun Lwin.
In 2006, he directed his first
direct-to-video film titled “Eain
Mat Say Hnyun Yar” with Sai Sai
Kham Leng and Eindra Kyaw Zin.
His first feature film, “Kyauk Sat
Yay”, came out in 2009.
“When I became a director, I
gave priority to quality rather
than quantity. I followed my own
principles with confidence. Even
when I was working as a music
video director, I never shot more
than five music videos per
month. That’s why I ran into serious financial trouble. When I
needed the money, I worked as a
[supporting] actor. So I didn’t
accept all the offers,” said Wine.
Since the release of “Adam,
Eve, and Dattha” in 2011, his fans
expected it to win the hearts of
the Academy’s judging panel.
Sadly it didn’t take a gong, even
though his top-grossing films
picked up multiple Academy
awards in recognition of members of his production team for
two straight years.
Finally, he scooped his first
Academy for “Satan Yae’ Ka Chay
Tal” (“The Dance of Satan”) last
December. Currently he’s taking
a two-month break from filming
a TV soap and two feature films.
Winning photographers document Myanmar in transition
Aung San Suu Kyi at the awards ceremony.
MYANMAR ELEVEN
The 7th Yangon Photo Festival that wrapped up late last month
attracted 1,200 people to its awards-presentation ceremony
presided by Aung San Suu Kyi. From the pool of 80 photo-essays
submitted to the contest, 16 stories from Shan state, Kachin State,
Myeik, Dawei, Yangon and Mandalay were honoured at the ceremony
for their vivid portrayals of Myanmar’s environmental and social
issues.
“For the fourth consecutive year, I am pleased to chair the jury of
the “Yangon Photo Festival”. Thanks to its training program, a new
generation of Burmese photographers has been blooming. It is a
great opportunity to develop their artistic vision and document our
Aung San Suu Kyi with all the winners and distinguished guests on stage.
society,” said Aung San Suu Kyi
The winners were as follows:
1st prize- Minzayar – “Peace be with you”
2nd prize- Hkun Lat – “Fog of war”
3rd prize - Pyay Kyaw Aung – “Give him a chance”
4th prize - Ko Myo – Brothers
5th prize - Sai Htin Linn Htet – “A New family”
6th prize - Minzayar – “In need of loving care”
The festival that consisted of exhibitions at Myanmar Deitta &
Pansodan Scene and lectures at the French Institute, gathered over
3,000 people. Photographers and lecturers from India, Iran, China,
France and Germany were on hand to showcase their work and build
bridges between Myanmar photographers and the greater
international community of photographers. This year the festival
extended to reach the larger public by showing two exhibitions at
Junction Square.
The Yangon Photo Festival was co-organised by The French
Institute & International Media Support, an NGO working to develop
free and professional media. It was sponsored by Junction Centre,
Canon, Asian Wings Airways, Kiss condoms, the Goethe Institut, the
Embassy of India in Myanmar, Qatar airways, Monument Books,
l’Occitane, Novotel Yangon Max and Gulliver Travels.
Find out more at yangonphoto.com and the Yangon Photo
Festival Facebook page.