************ ********* ********* ********* ********* ********* ***
HEADLINES
************ ********* ********* ********* ********* ********* ***
ReliefWeb - Myanmar: Cyclone orphans forced to work
Reuters - Myanmar six months-on: Nway's Story
Reuters - Myanmar: Provision of safe drinking water still big challenge
Reuters - Welcome to Prague: first Myanmar refugees resettle in Czech Republic
Reuters - Isolation or engagement; What's next for the people of Myanmar?
Asia Times - China's footprint in Myanmar expands
The Financial Times - Indian help sought on Burma
Mizzima News - Karen rebel outpost seized
Mizzima News - Rumors of Suu Kyi's release prove unfounded
Mizzima News - Detained 88 student leaders transferred

************ ********* ********* ********* ********* ********* ***
Myanmar: Cyclone orphans forced to work
Source: United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs - Integrated Regional Information Networks (IRIN)
ReliefWeb - Date: 31 Oct 2008

KINETAWASHAE, 31 October 2008 (IRIN) - After losing his parents to the cyclone, Aung Myint Kyaw had no choice but to give up school to help support the cousin who looks after him.

"I don't know what will happen to me," the eight-year-old said in Kinetawashae village, home to 450 inhabitants in Bogale Township in Ayeyarwady Delta, as he scavenged for empty bottles at the roadside.

"Whenever I see my friends in their school uniforms I feel like crying," he said.

Aung Myint Kyaw is one of many orphans who have no choice but to work to buy food or help out a relative who has become the primary caregiver.

Many of the relatives themselves were left destitute by the category four storm.

"My income's not so bad. Some days I can make more than 2,000 kyat [US$2]," claimed Aung Myint Kyaw, who under normal circumstances would be in fourth grade.

But six months on, his chances of returning to school look slim.

Kyaw Kyi, from the same village, wonders how he and his younger brother will survive without parents.

"We will have no choice but to keep doing these menial types of jobs," the nine-year-old said.

They were brought to the village by a monk to do household chores for local residents in return for food and shelter.

Most children, however, are forced into difficult jobs in the fishing and agricultural sector, where they earn less than the minimum wage.

Preventing abuse

In an effort to protect the children from abuse, violation and exploitation, the UN Children's Fund (UNICEF), Save the Children, and Myanmar's Department of Social Welfare are working on child-friendly spaces in schools, as well as trying to reunite separated children. They also identify and register the vulnerable children, including the orphans, while providing food, shelter and education.

According to UNICEF, more than 220 orphans, 914 separated children, 302 unaccompanied children, and 454 extremely vulnerable children have been identified.
They have also received 743 missing children reports.

But for those orphans who are being forced by their relatives or carers to work, reaching out can be difficult.

"We believe there are some vulnerable orphans who need to be registered," a Save the Children official said.

"Some orphans are extremely vulnerable in the hands of those who give them food and shelter but make them work hard jobs, which calls for our urgent intervention, " she added.

According to the Post-Nargis Joint Assessment, children could become vulnerable to exploitative or dangerous forms of labour, including as live-in domestic servants, working in the fishing industry, or in some cases being trafficked for labour and sexual exploitation.

************ ********* ********* ********* ********* ********* ***
Myanmar six months-on: Nway's Story
Reuters AlertNet  - 31 Oct 2008 07:21:00 GMT
Source: World Vision - Asia Pacific
World Vision Asia Pacific Communications
Website: http://wvasiapacifi c.org

Nway's family were not out of the ordinary for their Delta village; a family of six living in a little wood and bamboo house built in a rice paddy, earning their living growing rice. Nway was the third child of four.

As her house was a bit small for the whole family, Nway often slept at her aunt's house; a wooden house on stilts located beside the only main road of the village.

On the evening of May 2nd, Nway was fortunate enough to have chosen to stay with her aunt. The wind started blowing in the late afternoon, but no one suspected it was anything more than a normal thunderstorm brewing.

Within a few hours, sea water started rising, and the winds became more ferocious.

''When the water entered the house, I placed Nway in a wooden box, thinking it might save her," recalled Nway's aunt.'' But later I changed my mind and took her back into my arms."

In the dark, after a few hours of tearing wind and rain, the storm slowed. Most houses in the villages had already lost their roofing and the flood water was up to over a metre and a half (five feet) deep in places.

The residents of the village thought the worst was over. But after about half an hour the winds returned, but from a different direction, and even fiercer that before.

"As our house started breaking down, my uncle took me to the house of the village head," recalled Nyaw. ''It was totally dark but very noisy. We fell into the water several times. Water came into my mouth."

More than 100 villagers squeezed into the house of the village head that night. They stood up, tightly packed together, praying and hoping for the storm to end.
By this time the water was up to three metres deep outside (10 feet).

Shortly after midnight the wind stopped. But this time nobody dared go outside. Injured and frightened, they waited for the dawn.

Days after the storm: Silent chaos

When the sun came up, the village head's house was the only house still standing. Many family members were missing. The survivors searched and only recovered dead bodies under the debris. A quarter of the population of 400 perished, most of them women and children. Among them were Nway's parents and her three siblings.

The period following the storm was as hard as the storm for the survivors. Nothing was left for them in the village. What the wind blew down, the tidal surge swept away - rice, household utensils, farming tools, cows, buffalos and even clothing.

Nway remembers eating a meal on the 3rd of May. ''I don't know what it was, but it was plain white and very salty," she recalls. In the next few days, the survivors ate and drank just coconuts. Realising that help could still be some way off, the women and children were sent to nearby villages where water could be found.

Taking shelter at one of those villages, Nway received food and clothing. Among the gifts, the yellow silk blouse she wears is her favorite. When World Vision arrived at Nway's devastated village, people were given much-needed rice and household items. As supplies began arriving in the village, so too did former residents, once again able to survive and begin rebuilding their lives.

Throughout the fallout from Cyclone Nargis the farmers of the village have been trying to start over, despite very little outside assistance. The months following the storm should have been the time for planting rice crops for the year. In years gone past, men and animals could have been seen working in the fields at the start of June, while children return to school.

But this year, because of Nargis, the paddy walls had split; fields were contaminated with salt water; animals, seeds, and tools had been lost. And so the fields remained empty, as did the shell of the village school.

''It's like the Stone Age," said the village head, tears forming in his eyes. "Burying the dead bodies has become our daily business. We can't feel it any more." As late as one month on, bodies were still being found around the village.

Blackout: Before receiving aid

When Nway was asked in early June about her future dreams, the girl hesitantly answered: '' I want to be a doctor."

But that dream seems a long way off. Her village middle school normally provides education for nearly 1,000 children from 11 nearby villages.

Surrounded by rice paddies and a little river, a Nway's one-storey brick school in her small Delta village used to be all but paradise for seven-year-old Nway.

Now only a pile of green colored wood and bricks remains.

Chairs, desks, benches, blackboards, and materials were all washed away. At least three of the twenty teachers who worked at the school died in the cyclone, some are still missing. Nobody has counted yet how many children from the school died.

People in Myanmar often use the Burmese phrase, Ko Htu Ko Hta, roughly translated as "with our own effort." They often manage to build basic infrastructure like roads and schools with their own community budget.

But when a village elder and members of the school managing committee were asked about reconstruction, the answers were not encouraging. ''In the past, we built this school with our own money for the sake of our children," explained the elder. '' But now, without outside help, there's no way to rebuild it," he continued.

''This time, no Ko Htu Ko Hta," he said, disappointed and sad.

Six months on...

Nway is now happily going back to school. The temporary structure, loosely walled by tin and bamboo sheets and roofed with a big blue tarpaulin, is once again providing a place for the children of the village to learn. But there are no benches for students nor chairs or desks for teachers yet. The school used to accommodate nearly 1000 students but barely half of them have been able to return.

It is far from the standard that one might hope for, or indeed that Nway and her friends had enjoyed before the storm. But the children at least have a chance to get back to their normal routine and learn once again.

Six months after the cyclone, it is obvious that many affected villagers, including children, are still struggling to survive. But like Nway many of them have a better hope with help from the international community and fellow citizens.

'Nway's' name has been changed to protect her identity.

************ ********* ********* ********* ********* ********* ***
Myanmar: Six months after cyclone Nargis: Malteser International: Provision of safe drinking water still big challenge
Reuters AlertNet - 31 Oct 2008 13:52:00 GMT
Source: Malteser International - Germany
Petra Ipp Zavazal
Website: http://www.malteser -international. org

Cologne: Six months after cyclone Nargis devastated large parts of Myanmar, Malteser Inter-national considers and evaluates the success of its work so far. "Especially in the severely affected Irrawaddy Delta, we have been successful in the prevention of communicable dis-eases. And in general people are finding their way back towards a normal life again", reports Roland Hansen, Head of the Asia Department at Malteser International. "Nevertheless, the provision of safe drinking water is still posing problems", Hansen continues. "This is the rea-son why water supply especially for very remote areas remains one of our main focuses."

Another focus is the rehabilitation of social infrastructure. In and around the badly destroyed coastal city of Labutta as well as on Middle Island, Malteser International is rebuilding health centres and schools as well as latrines in order to avoid the spread of diseases. The organisa-tion also rehabilitates ponds and wells and constructs rain water collection tanks. In addition, specially trained voluntary counsellors are offering psycho-social care to the survivors thus helping them to cope with their grief for lost relatives and friends. In the coming weeks and months, Malteser International will help the people living in the disaster region to better pre-pare for future catastrophes by developing emergency plans and building cyclone proof evacuation centres with water supply and latrines.

All told, Malteser International has been providing medical supplies and safe drinking water as well as relief items such as soap, blankets, cooking equipment and mosquito nets to more than 100,000 people. The relief programmes of the organisation are financially supported by ECHO, Caritas, AusAID, UNHCR, DFID, the Canadian organisation CECI and particularly by the German government.

Attention editorial offices: Roland Hansen, Head of Asia Department at Malteser Interna-tional, as well as English speaking staff members on the ground are available for interviews. Please contact ++49 221 98 22 - 155.

In order to continue our work, Malteser International is still in need of donations! To support our work in Myanmar, please consider transferring your donations to:
Donation Account 2020122 Pax-Bank Köln, von-Werth-Str. 25-27, D-50670 Köln, Germany Sort Code : 370 60 193 IBAN : DE93 3706 0193 0002 0201 22 BIC: GENODED1PAX Reference : "Myanmar"

Malteser International is the worldwide relief agency of the Sovereign Order of Malta for hu-manitarian aid. The organisation provides aid in about 200 projects in more than 20 countries without distinction of religion, race or political persuasion. Christian values and the humani-tarian principles of impartiality and independence are the foundation of its work. For further information: www.malteser- international. org and www.orderofmalta. Org

************ ********* ********* ********* ********* ********* ***
Welcome to Prague: first Myanmar refugees resettle in Czech Republic
Reuters AlertNet - 31 Oct 2008 13:28:21 GMT
Source: UNHCR

PRAGUE, Czech Republic, October 31 (UNHCR) – With curious, enthusiastic laughter and smiles, 23 Myanmar refugees touched down at Prague-Ruzyne International Airport late Thursday afternoon, bringing the Czech Republic into the ranks of eight European Union countries that annually open their doors to refugees through formal resettlement programs.

Shrugging off a 24-hour journey across seven times zones and a drop of 30 degrees Celsius between Kuala Lumpur and Prague the refugees, already clad in warm winter clothing, told waiting Czech journalists of their excitement.

"I am very much looking forward to my new home in the Czech Republic," said Sui Zi. "I also very much hope to learn new skills, which will help me one day to help my native country, Myanmar."

The pilot resettlement program, approved by the cabinet in June this year, "is part of the Czech Republic's foreign policy, providing humanitarian assistance where it can make
a positive impact," said Katerina Stehlikova, of the Czech Interior Ministry.

Becoming a resettlement country is yet another milestone for the Czech Republic, which emerged from decades of isolation under Soviet domination as part of Czechoslovakia less than 20 years ago. Born as a new nation in 1993, the Czech Republic joined the European Union in 2004.

The Czech pilot program is aimed at assistance to vulnerable refugees; top consideration was given to survivors of trauma and refugees with serious medical problems or protection needs. One six-year-old boy is expected to undergo a serious heart operation in the Czech Republic.

After their arrival in Prague, the five families with their young children were taken to a refugee protection centre in Straz, some two hours north of the Czech capital, for 10 days of initial registration and medical check-ups, helped by a social worker and an interpreter. After that they will begin intensive language training and specialized orientation courses at the centre to learn about their new homeland. Within six months, the authorities hope to find private accommodations for each family.

The State Integration Program offers help with housing and employment as well as free intensive language course, and local NGOs will also play in important role in helping the new arrivals settle in.

Some of the refugees had spent nearly 10 years in exile in Malaysia, and resettlement was seen as the only solution for them. Despite the daunting changes they were facing in moving so far away, they looked forward to their new lives with optimism.

"We've learned that they have freedom in the Czech Republic, which is different from Myanmar," Faw Lai Tha, a 34-year-old ethnic Chin man, said just before leaving Malaysia with his pregnant wife. "They can work wherever they want in peace and can learn whatever they want. In Burma we're not allowed to learn or to live in a peaceful environment. "

Another refugee, Biak Hnin, also a Chin, agreed that "we're extremely excited to start a new life where we'll be safe from torture and persecution. " Although he was a farmer in Myanmar, he said he and his wife "will take any job we can: cooking, serving in a restaurant or working on farms."

Speaking before the family left Kuala Lumpur, he and his wife were also thrilled that their six children would get a good education in the Czech Republic. "I'm not sure what they'd like to learn the most," he said. "They're just excited for the opportunity to learn anything."

By Marta Miklusakova in Prague and Yante Ismail in Kuala Lumpur

************ ********* ********* ********* ********* ********* ***
Isolation or engagement; What's next for the people of Myanmar?
Reuters AlertNet - 31 Oct 2008 14:22:00 GMT
Written by: Ashley Clements

Visiting the cyclone-devastated Irrawaddy Delta of Myanmar is like stepping back in time. Millions of people live in simple bamboo huts above an endless maze of canals which carve up fertile plains. The Delta's residents continue to earn a living from the staples of fishing and rice production, as they have done for hundreds if not thousands of years.
This flat and water-sodden region is inaccessible at the best of times - a two day trip featuring boats, cars, and motorbikes is required to reach some parts. These days, some of us are lucky enough to cut out some of the journey by hopping on a UN helicopter, but it still remains a remote home for much of the Delta's 6 million residents.

The feeling of isolation I get when I visit the Delta is due not to its physical seclusion, but rather to political factors which have kept it cut off from the outside world for decades. Accusations of political and human rights abuses have led to a long list of sanctions and the adoption of isolationist policies towards Myanmar. This has left much of the country disconnected from the outside world, in particular the already remote Irrawaddy Delta, where some villages still have never seen foreigners.

But all that changed when Cyclone Nargis struck the country on May 2 this year. Over 800,000 homes were destroyed, and 140,000 people left dead or missing. Nearly two and half million people were severely affected by the disaster, prompting a vast humanitarian relief effort by the international community.

Now, six months later, the immense media attention and the funding that was so forth coming in the early days of the crisis, has all but dried up. The United Nations Flash Appeal of $486 million is barely more than half-funded. Once again, the world seems to have returned to its default position of isolating the country, regardless of its acute humanitarian needs.

If the past six months has shown us anything, it is that aid does work here and does reach the people who need it most. For half a year, aid agencies like World Vision have
been delivering effective and accountable aid to those affected by Nargis, making a real difference to the lives of millions. Indeed, World Vision has been present in the country for 40 years, working to transform the lives of people in Myanmar.

Whilst lobby groups and activists continue to petition for a reversion to the isolationist policies that they hope will bring about regime change in this country, it is hard for those of us who have seen the impact that aid can have here to sit back and accept a return to the former status quo.

Myanmar used to be known as the 'rice bowl of Asia'. Empty fields need to shed their salt water skin before new crops can be harvested; homes need to be rebuilt before parents can offer their children a sense of security; and children need the opportunity to go back to school before communities can feel whole again.

If there is a silver lining to the devastation of Cyclone Nargis, it is that the international community has been shown what it can accomplish if it works together, partnering with willing government entities, to bring about meaningful and lasting change for the people of Myanmar.

And although the emergency phase of the operation is over, the needs across the Irrawaddy Delta and much of the rest of the country are still immense - many still struggle to access safe drinking water, secure the next harvest, and even pay for their children to attend school.

Ongoing aid can and should be used to continue to make a difference to the lives of the people of this country. But the question facing us now is whether aid will be constrained now that the world is no longer watching quite so closely, or will governments learn from the successes of the past six months and push for even greater change over the years ahead?

************ ********* ********* ********* ********* ********* ***
China's footprint in Myanmar expands
Asia Times - Nov 1, 2008
By Brian McCartan

CHIANG MAI - Once under the radar in mostly remote areas, China's growing investments in resource-rich Myanmar have become more openly apparent as Beijing parlays its close diplomatic ties to the country's ruling military junta into lucrative contracts and concessions. China's commercial advance comes while the United States and Europe impose strict trade and investment sanctions against the military regime.

Recent investigative reports, including from environmental groups EarthRights International and Arakan Oil Watch, detail the involvement of some 69 Chinese multinational corporations in at least 90 hydropower, mining and oil and gas projects across the country. The growing commitments are a testament to China's pragmatic approach to commercial diplomacy and underscore its interest in maintaining Myanmar's political status quo.

China's Myanmar investments focus mainly on energy and natural resources, which are required in ever-larger quantities to fuel its fast-expanding industrialization and urbanization. Chinese projects range from hydropower dams to the highly ambitious and controversial Shwe Gas pipeline that is projected to cross the length of Myanmar to transport fuel to China's landlocked southern Yunnan province.

That particular project is designed to open access for China to the Indian Ocean for some fuel shipments and circumvent the congested Strait of Malacca, through which over 70% of its current oil and gas imports travel. Beijing has expressed strategic concerns that in a conflict the United States could block the strait and starve the Chinese economy of fuel imports.

India and Thailand also aggressively jockey for access to the resources of neighbor Myanmar, in contrast to US and Europe, which subject the country to strict trade and investment sanctions in protest against its rulers' abysmal rights record. Those curbs were recently augmented by so-called "smart sanctions" aimed at hitting the private resources of senior junta members and their top business associates.

The growing scale of China's commitments have the potential to provide huge profits for the regime, funds which historically have been employed to buy weaponry that is used to suppress the democratic and ethnic opposition. Some economic analysts estimate the regime has in recent years earned US$3.5 billion in natural gas sales alone.

China's investment in Myanmar's oil and gas reserves is on the rise. EarthRights International identified 21 Chinese-funded onshore and offshore oil and natural gas projects, including the Shwe Gas project in Arakan state and newer blocks in Sagaing division. China is also reportedly interested in using Kyaukpyu Island off Arakan state as a transshipment point for Middle Eastern oil and gas imports, which will then be piped up through Myanmar to China's Yunnan province.

A $1 billion contract has been signed between the Myanmar government and China Petroleum and Chemical Corporation, or Sinopec, to build a first oil pipeline. A parallel gas pipeline is expected to follow. A memorandum of understanding has also been signed between China National Petroleum Corporation (CNPC) and Myanmar Oil and Gas Enterprise (MOGE) for an assessment on the construction of a crude oil terminal.

Chinese partners are also involved in the gigantic 7,100-megawatt Tasang Dam on the Salween river in Shan state, while other dams on the N'Mai Hka, Mali Hka and Irrawaddy rivers in Kachin state are being built to provide electricity to Yunnan. According to EarthRights Internation, the Kachin state dams are expected to have a combined capacity of 13,360 megawatts.

Sidestepping sanctions
Chinese companies have also long taken part in small-scale mining operations in Myanmar, often in quest of gold and jade. According to EarthRights International, China is now involved in at least six major mining operations in the country, including China Nonferrous Metal Mining Company's recent $600 million investment in the Taguang Taung nickel deposit.

While the US recently imposed sanctions on the import of precious stones from Myanmar, Chinese merchants have helped to fill the trade gap. A government-sponsore d gem fair in Yangon in October netted the regime an estimated $175 million. Chinese traders, who were mostly interested in Myanmar jade, represented the largest contingent at the event, with 2,200 out of the 2,648 attendees.

China's commercial embrace of Myanmar is underwritten by a long-standing policy of non-interference between the two neighboring countries. First signed in 1954 and known formally as the Five Principles of Peaceful Coexistence, the policy nominally separates business from politics. It has allowed China to invest heavily in Myanmar's underdeveloped resources while resisting US, European and United Nations calls to leverage its influence to push for political change.

Political change in Myanmar could erode Beijing's present privileged position there. Certainly China has used its veto power in the UN Security Council to block criticism and sanctions against Myanmar.

In the past year, Chinese statements on Myanmar have taken a slightly critical edge, indicating to some either that Chinese patience with Myanmar's generals is waning, or a concern that stability be maintained to protect Beijing's economic and strategic interests. After the junta's violent crackdown on demonstrators last year resulted in widespread international condemnation, Chinese diplomat Tang Jiaxuan was reported to have told Myanmar Foreign Minister Nyan Win in September 2007, "China wholeheartedly hopes that Myanmar will push forward a democracy process that is appropriate for the country." That veiled criticism went further the following month, when China joined with Russia and India in a call for the Myanmar's ruling generals to meet with the opposition.

A UN Security Council resolution in October last year condemning the Myanmar government for its use of violence against protestors and demanding the release of political prisoners was supported by the Chinese government. Yet China is clearly most concerned about a possible international intervention or sudden regime change in Myanmar that nullifies its commercial concessions and privileges.

Earlier this year, Beijing expressed strong opposition to the idea that US, France and Great Britain should use military means to force Myanmar's generals to accept foreign aid after the Cyclone Nargis disaster displaced as many as two million people in the country. At the height of the standoff, the US and France had warships near the coastal region worst hit by the storm, while Western diplomats pushed to invoke a UN "right to protect" provision to help the stranded victims.

China has instead advocated Myanmar change from within, in line with the ruling junta's stated plans to move towards a managed form of electoral democracy by 2010. At the same time, the democratic opposition has made few attempts to convince China that should they take power, Chinese strategic interests and investments would be preserved and guaranteed.

At least outwardly, there appears at present to be no contact between the opposition and the Chinese government. China's ability to provide low-cost machinery, technical know-how and long-term, low-interest loans would presumably make it an attractive strategic partner regardless of who holds power in Myanmar.

But from Beijing's point of view, its growing and more visible commercial interests are for now better served by the devil it knows.

Brian McCartan is a Chiang Mai-based freelance journalist.

************ ********* ********* ********* ********* ********* ***
Indian help sought on Burma
The Financial Times - By Amy Kazmin and James Lamont in New Delhi
Published: October 30 2008 19:01

Ban Ki-moon, the UN secretary-general, urged India on Thursday to do more to promote democracy in its military-ruled neighbour Burma, as New Delhi steps up its engagement with the junta in the hope of securing much-needed energy supplies.

In a landmark speech in New Delhi, Mr Ban called on New Delhi to more actively support UN efforts to broker a dialogue between the military junta and Aung San Suu Kyi, the Nobel Prize-winning democracy advocate who has spent 13 of the last 18 years under house arrest.

“India is a major regional and global player,” Mr Ban said. “I urge you to continue to champion the causes of democracy, the rule of law and good government . . . We already lean on you for peace-keeping. I would also like to see even stronger efforts to peacefully resolve conflict. Myanmar might benefit from greater Indian involvement.”

Following global condemnation of its violent crackdown last year on massive anti-government marches led by Buddhist monks, Burma’s ruling junta grudgingly accepted efforts by a UN envoy to broker a fresh round of talks between the junta and Ms Suu Kyi.

But the talks have gone nowhere, given the generals’ disinterest in anything short of Ms Suu Kyi’s endorsement of the regime’s controversial plans to hold elections in 2010 for a parliament that will have little real power. Meanwhile, the junta has kept up its persecution of its opponents, with human rights groups estimating about 2,000 dissidents are currently imprisoned.

In his speech, held in memory of Rajiv Gandhi, the slain former Indian prime minister, Mr Ban expressed frustration at the continuing detention of Ms Suu Kyi and other dissidents, and the failure to foster any credible, substantive dialogue between the military and pro-democracy opposition forces.

However, India is far more pre-occupied with stepping up its commercial and security engagement with Burma, as it seeks access to some of the country’s vast supplies of natural gas, and help from the generals to crack down on rebel groups from its troubled north-east, including Assam. India’s dealings with generals are also underpinned by a fundamental desire to counterbalance China’s evident influence there.

India, which once provided Burmese pro-democracy forces with financial and moral support, is now working with the generals to develop big infrastructure projects in Burma, including a port and transport facility at Sittwe. New Delhi is also extending substantial credit to the military for projects such as power transmission lines and a hydro-electric power project.

Jairam Ramesh, India’s minister of state for commerce and power, this month also inaugurated a new Indian-backed IT training centre in Rangoon, which is scheduled to train about 1,000 Burmese people a year in IT skills.

************ ********* ********* ********* ********* ********* ***
Karen rebel outpost seized
Mizzima News - by Than Htike Oo
Friday, 31 October 2008 18:01

Chiang Mai – An outpost of a Karen rebel group fighting for autonomy was seized today by a joint operation conducted by a rival Karen faction and government troops.

Following a two-day Democratic Karen Buddhist Army (DKBA) assault, backed up by government troops, the outpost of the Karen National Union's (KNU) 6th Brigade, 201st Battalion, at Khalelawse, was seized this morning at about 11 a.m.

"They (DKBA) tried to seize this outpost yesterday with fire support provided by the junta's forces. After about 150 KNLA (rebel) forces entered Khalelawse at about 11 a.m. today, we withdrew from this outpost," KNU Joint General Secretary (1) Pado Saw Hla Ngwe said.

Some sources said the KNU lost two soldiers in the battle, but Pado Saw Hla Ngwe denied the loss of any troops. He said they were forced to withdraw from the outpost due to the superior firepower of enemy.

Khalelawse outpost is situated opposite the village of Ohn Phyan, within one kilometer of the Ohn Phyan refugee camp and about 80 kilometers south of Mae Sot on the Thai-Burma border.

Joint forces of the Burmese Army and DKBA also attacked and overran a KNU outpost at Wawlaykhe, in Kawkareik Township, Karen state, in early June of this year. However, the KNU retook the outpost within a few days.

The KNU has been fighting Burma's central government for nearly 60 years for the right to self-determination. Last year, there were more than 1,000 encounters and minor skirmishes along the Thai-Burmese border between the KNU and opposition forces.

************ ********* ********* ********* ********* ********* ***
Rumors of Suu Kyi's release prove unfounded
Mizzima News - by Myint Maung
Friday, 31 October 2008 19:27

New Delhi - At least 30 youth members from Burma's primary opposition party – National League for Democracy – on Friday arrived at the party's head office in hope of hearing the news that detained party leader Daw Aung San Suu Kyi would be released.

The youth came to the party's head office in West Shwegondine of Bahan Township in Rangoon, after hearing a rumor suggesting that the detained Burmese democracy icon would be released.

A party youth member, and in-charge of the South Dagon Township NLD, who was among the thirty youth that went to the office on Friday, said, "We all went to the party office to inquire about the release of Suu Kyi, but a party official said it was only a rumor."

Nyan Win, the NLD's spokesperson, said, "We have not heard anything about it. A number of our members have inquired about it," declining to further comment on the issue.

The rumors came only days after authorities removed barbwire barricades on University Avenue from blocking access to Aung San Suu Kyi's lakeside villa.

The rumor, whose origins are untraceable, began spreading like wildfire on Monday, the day after the barricades were removed.

"We heard about the rumor since Monday, though we don't know the source. And we heard that she [Aung San Suu Kyi] will be released on Friday, so youth members went to the office to check it out," the youth in-charge of South Dagon Township said.

The Burmese Nobel Peace Laureate has spent 13 of the past 19 years in solitary confinement. She was last arrested in May 2003, after her motorcade was attacked by a junta-backed mob in the town of Depayin while she was on a political tour of upper Burma.

In recent months, party members and her personal lawyer have complained that her period of detention exceeds more than what Burmese law permits without trial – a maximum of five years. But the junta said the law allows up to six years, and extended her detention period when the original five year term expired in May.

Her lawyer, Kyi Win, on her behalf, has submitted a petition to the government requesting for a review of her detention period.

But Nyan Win said there has so far been no reply from the government regarding the petition.

************ ********* ********* ********* ********* ********* ***
Detained 88 student leaders transferred
Mizzima News - by Phanida
Friday, 31 October 2008 17:01

Chiang Mai - Nine Burmese student activists, recently sentenced to six months imprisonment, were on Friday transferred from Insein prison in Rangoon to Ma U Pin prison in Irrawaddy Division.

88 generation students – Min Ko Naing, Ko Ko Gyi, Hla Myo Naung, Htay Kywe, Mya Aye, Nyan Linn, Phyone Cho, Aung Thu, and Aung Naing – were transferred on Friday morning to Ma U Pin prison after being sentenced to six month prison terms by the Insein prison court on Wednesday.

"They were taken away this morning to Ma U Pin prison. It is confirmed that they have been transferred to Ma U Pin," a family member of Aung Naing told Mizzima.

"They were seen wearing blue prison uniforms and were handcuffed and taken away in a prison van. It is strange that they were transferred, and when I inquired, eyewitnesses said the whole group was taken away," the family member said.

When contacted by Mizzima, an official at Insein prison also confirmed that the students were relocated to Ma U Pin prison, but declined to give details of why they were transferred.

Aung Aung Tun, the brother of Ko Ko Gyi, said, "This morning I spoke to lawyer Aung Thein and he said it is confirmed that the students have been transferred. He said 'we cannot worry about other court trials, we can only listen to what will happen to them'."

On October 29, the student leaders complained that there was no fairness in their trial during a court session at the Northern District Court in Insein prison. The court then charged the students with contempt of court and sentenced them to six months prison.

Family members of the students said they had been ready to go to Insein prison to attend the next court date of the students, scheduled for Saturday.

A family member of Min Ko Naing, who wished not to be identified, added they are worried over the transfer.

Meanwhile, Thaw Zin Min and Wai Lwin Myo, youth members of the National League for Democracy, and a Buddhist monk, Sandimar (a.k.a. Apulay), all arrested during the September 2007 protests, have reportedly staged a hunger strike in Insein prison.

A family member of Wai Lwin Myo said he refused to accept food supplies and was also denied a meeting with his mother, who, on October 27, visited the prison.

"Wai Lwin Myo's mother on Monday went to the prison but she was not allowed to meet him and also unable to hand over the food that she brought for him," the family member said.

The three have reportedly staged a hunger strike in demand of security for political prisoners and protection from criminal inmates, who frequently beat them.

************ ********* ********* ********* ********* ********* ***