KAO WAO NEWS No. 8

 

January 15-24, 2002

 

 

READER'S FRONT

FIGHTING BRINGS IN THE NEW YEAR

LIFE IN THE NEW THAM HIN REFUGEE CAMP

INTERVIEW: AN EVENING WITH ASHLEY SOUTH

VILLAGERS FLEE GASE PIPELINE EXPLOSION IN MON STATE

THAI PREGNANCY BAN WORRY MIGRANT WOMEN

MON YOUTH LIBERTY ORGANIZATION: ESTABLISHED IN THAILAND

ENGLISH FOR ALL SHAN YOUTHS

MON CULTURAL HERITAGE MEETING HELD IN BANGKOK

 

 

READER'S FRONT

 

Dear readers,

We invite comments and suggestions on improvements to Kao-Wao newsletter. With your help, we hope that Kao-Wao News will continue to grow to serve better the needs of those seeking social justice in Burma and Thailand. And we hope that it will become an important forum for discussion and debate and help readers to keep abreast of issues and news. Above all, we hope the newsletter will be used as a vehicle for those want to share their views and experiences. We reserve the right to edit and reject articles without prior notification. You can use a pseudonym but we encourage you to include your full name and address.

Regards,

Editor

kaowao@hotmail.com

 

 

Dear Editor,

I am glad to know that MUL will be lobbying, for a peace-resolution of the conflict, between the NMSP and splinter groups. In fact, I highly appreciate all of you who get involved in this peace process. In my opinion, if we, the Mons, pay a close attention to those what have been happening to us, I would blame neither the NMSP nor splinter groups but the Burmese military regime. These problems are created by the SPDC, an evil military junta.

Thank you.

Chit

(Calgary, Canada)

 

 

Dear Kao-Wao,

Thank you very much for the news that Mon communities urged the MUL to lobby between two armed groups. But I would like you to present the voice from the New Mon State Party. So that we can understand how the NMSP stands on the MUL's action.

Banya

January 19, 2002

 

 

Dear Editor,

Your stories "The Spirit of Mon Culture by Lita Davidson" was wonderful. It is the time to applaud once the nation of rich civilization and it should not be dead by a strong assimilation in Thailand.

Wyman

January 17, 2002

 

 

FIGHTING BRINGS IN THE NEW YEAR

(Three Pagodas Pass, January 18, 2002)

 

Fighting broke out between the Burmese army and the cease-fire New Mon State Party in the morning on January 18, 2002. The clash lasted for over two hours with the heavy use of arms from both sides, which began at 8 AM local time. The frustration of assuming each other as enemy, as well as lack of communication with the area being overlapped and controlled by the KNU and the splinter group, Monland Restoration Party, are thought to be the reasons behind the fighting.

 

The confrontation took place at Tar Dein, near Krein Htow village, west of Three Pagodas Pass border town, opposite of Sangkhalabuir District in Thailand while the Burmese army led by Commander Col. Zaw Tun engaged with the Mon guerilla led by Lt. Col. Nai Tin Phe. Tar Dein, located on the Three Pagodas Pass-Thanbyuzayat motor road, which is the main transportation route to Mon State in southern Burma from Sangkhalaburi of Karnchanaburi Province in Thailand.

 

The Burma army suffered five wounded and two are believed dead by the clash. The Moulmein District Battalion was in position when Military Operations Command (SaKaKha) 19 based in Ye was tracking the location of the newly formed Monland Restoration Army and had advanced to close to NMSP's position.

 

In other areas, IMNA reported that two Karen porters were seriously wounded after the KNU and the SPDC battalion No.210 engaged in a battle near Taung Soun village about 25 mile west from Three Pagodas Pass on January 12 and early this month, on January 7, fighting broke out between the Karen and Monland Restoration Army against the Burmese army at Kwan Tamoi and Mae Kasah, near the border town. Fighting also took place on the same day between the NMSP and the splinter group led Major Ong Hmong.  The Mon skirmish at Bleh Doonpite, near Halockhanee camp, lasted for about an hour with 60 and 80-mm motor shelling.

 

Due to sporadic fighting on the route to the border town, business has slowed considerably at the start of the New Year, complained a local merchant. Another border trading route Halarn- Halockhanee, which connects to Ye, Mon State and Sangkhalaburi is also reported to be unsafe to travel. The trading has slowed down even Burma and Thai business firms have agreed to open up cross border trade further to spur business developments between two neighbours.

 

 

THE FIGHT FOR FREEDOM CONTINUES: LIFE IN THE NEW THAM HIN CAMP

Bangkok / Tham Hin By Sanin Bop, January 18, 2002

 

Conflict occurred between an unnamed group and refugees in the new Tham Hin camp, as reported by an internal source to Kao-Wao last week. Some individuals were injured after fighting broke out and were sent to a local clinic for treatment. Many feel that The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) and the Ministry of Interior of the Royal Thai Government is not providing sufficient security in the camp. Despite there being ten members of the Camp Guard (Aw-Saw), little effort is made to prevent such incidents from occuring. The source added there is increased tension in the camp and the  potential for another clash to occur is great between the new entries, the local people in the camp, and from people living in the surrounding area. Currently, many locals do not tolerant new arrivals and give no reason.

 

A letter sent to UNHCR stated that several new arrivals have suffered from high fevers, coughing, and the flu, there is no access to clean water or proper sanitation.  Moreover, they go through shock from the change in the physical environment and the weather is much colder. There is growing concern over the possibility that many will suffer from malaria again, in previous periods many have faced these kinds of conditions and expect more of the same.

 

There are (160) students under the program of  Person of Concern” (POC) who live as a separate category from the other (130) refugees, who are classified under “Person of Concern- Border Case” , both live separate from one another. The special 16 members, who gained permission to remain in the camp, are assigned to live with the POC group. The source said, “the UNHCR and MOI will send the refugees under POC category within four months to a third country. If a third country accepts the other special 16 members, they are too are entitled to leave Thailand, but UNHCR will not look after the process.”

 

The MOI photographed the new arrivals with a pink color paper that similar to the local people who live in the areas for decades. It is not clear whether the MOI will take legal proceeding for refugees under POC-Border Case because the authorities does not signal a notice to the refugees. The letter mentioned that 45 members of POC will be sent to a third country this month and the other 80 members will be proceed to a third country shortly after. The rest however, 35 members, do not have access to a visa for settlement to a third country.

 

Many of the refugees who remain in the new camp, protested for freedom and democracy in Burma, but are still denied international protection under the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. The Burmese and the Thai authorities do not acknowledge the laws protecting civil liberties in the region.

 

Kao-Wao learned that the Thai authority could solve this issue of resettlement under its moral and legal perspectives toward Burmese political refugees. Many third countries will accept Burmese refugees for settlement if only the Thai authority will give them the necessary legal permission to leave Thai soil.

 

 

INTERVIEW: AN EVENING WITH ASHLEY SOUTH

 

Kao-Wao has conducted an interview with Ashley South, the author of the upcoming book, Mon Nationalism and Civil War in Burma: The Golden Sheldrake. Born in London, Ashley South lived and worked with the Mon in Thailand for seven years and is currently studying at the University of London's School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS).

 

Kao-Wao: What books have you published?

 

'Mon Nationalism and Civil War in Burma: the Golden Sheldrake' (Curzon May 2002) will be my first book. I have written a few articles on Burmese politics, and when I was an undergraduate I published some poems.

 

Introduction to this new book?

 

The book is a political history of the Mon people of lower Burma and Thailand - the people of the Golden Sheldrake. The Mon are renowned for their important civilising role in pre-colonial Southeast Asia and achievements in the fields of art and religion. However, contemporary Mon society has received less attention.

 

Charting Mon history from the earliest times to the present, the book describes the origins of Burma’s ethnic politics in the pre-colonial era and developments during the British (and Japanese) colonial periods. Following independence in 1948, Burma was plunged into a civil war which still drags on today. 'The Golden Sheldrake' explores the background to and major episodes in the war, and compares the experiences of various parties to the conflict, including the Mon, Karen and Kachin ethnic communities and insurgent organisations. It describes the dynamics of armed conflict in Burma, and examines the controversial series of cease-fire agreements negotiated since 1989, between various insurgent armies and the military government. Exploring the relationship between the Burmese democracy movement led by Aung San Suu Kyi, the ethnic insurgents, international and local non-government organisations, and Burma’s one million-plus refugees, the book concludes by looking at the future of the “ethnic question” in Burma.

 

Situating events in a regional perspective, 'The Golden Sheldrake' will be of interest to students of Southeast Asian history and politics. Anthropologists will appreciate the sustained focus on issues of identity and assimilation, whilst the author’s first-hand accounts of the humanitarian crisis along the Thailand-Burma border are of particular relevance to the study of displacement and under-development.

 

ISBN 0 7007 1609 2 (45.00 UK POUNDS) TO ORDER: Curzon Press Ltd., 51a George Street, Richmond, Surrey TW9 1HJ, UK publish@curzonpress.co.uk

 

Why did you decide to write this book? What motivated you?

 

I lived and worked along the Thailand-Burma border for seven years (1991-97). After spending three years as a teacher and teacher trainer working mostly with the Karen, between 1994-97 I was as a field co-ordinator with the Burmese Border Consortium (BBC) in Sangkhlaburi, where I worked with the Mon and Karen refugees. During this time I came to know many of the key players in the NMSP and the wider Mon nationalist movement.

 

On my return to the UK, I set out to discover more about the Mon. I found that, while a good deal is known regarding their significant role in precolonial Southeast Asia, little has been published regarding the Mon in the modern period. Some of the literature even suggested that Mon was a dying language, and the people and their culture in irreversible decline. My experience and research showed that this is far from the case, and the book traces the Mon heritage, and relates it to contemporary developments. At a time when Mon studies appear to be undergoing something of a revival, it is useful to consider Mon political history in the context of events in Burma, Thailand and the region as a whole. In recent years, Mon authors have begun to record and analyse the history of the nationalist movement, and accounts have appeared in English, Mon, Thai and Burmese. However, no comprehensive treatment of this subject has previously been attempted.

 

With one or two exceptions, Westerners writing about contemporary Burmese politics have tended to neglect the Mon and other ethnic minority groups, and down-play the significance of the cease-fire process in Burma. At the risk of over-emphasising the role of the former, and without necessarily endorsing the latter, the book is an attempt to redress the balance.

 

What is your idea about the future of Burma?

 

That's a difficult question! I think it's very important that any agreement worked out in Rangoon should include representatives of ethnic minority groups, as well as the SPDC and NLD. Burmese history shows the disastrous consequences of the urban (predominantly Burman) political elite's previous attempts to co-opt ethnic minority leaders into accepting political settlements which they have not been involved in negotiating. Tripartite dialogue is essential, and there seems to be some evidence that a process of political transition is emerging in Burma. Of course, the NLD-SPDC talks are very important, but there are also other positive, but more low-profile, developments in relations between the urban-Burman political class and the ethnic nationalists (especially the Kachin).

 

What do you think about a future federal union in Burma?

 

Some kind of federal (or 'consociational') constitutional settlement is probably necessary. However, there are few international examples of stable federal unions emerging in countries as ethnically and politically divided as Burma. Therefore, Burma will have to forge its own unique constitutional path, learning for others' experience, but willing to try new ideas. Any successful federal settlement will have to take account of the fears and aspirations of the Bama majority, as well as the ethnic minorities. Perhaps the most important strategic decision will be whether or not to accommodate the Tatmadaw's centrist, authoritarian model of state-society relations.

 

What do you think of the future of the Mon?

 

I am very encouraged by the revival in Mon studies and national feeling over the past ten years. Although human and political rights continue to be severely abused in Burma, Mon culture and civil society have a bright future.

 

Since 1988, a new generation has emerged, to join the long struggle for rights and justice in Monland, with a new understanding of the central importance of democracy - not just as a distant goal, but as an on-going process. The emergence of such dynamic new groups as the Kao-Wao News Group illustrates this political and cultural revival.

 

 

ENVIRONMENTAL DISASTER

 

VILLAGERS FLEE GAS EXPLOSION IN MON STATE

(Based on IMNA and Kao-Wao reporter, January 19, 2001)

 

After two days of leaking gas, a section of Kanbauk-Myaingkalay gas pipeline exploded in Mon State on January 5. The two-pipe connection exploded near a bridge between Chaktwe and Daymai Mon village in Mudon Township, southern part of Burma. Villagers fled to the temporary shelters from the dangerous explosion which occurred at 4 AM local time at one of its junction, near a bridge adjacent to two Mon villages. Two days prior to the accident, villagers informed the authorities that a leak was spreading and mixing in with the stream water, which was running across the motor road. But the local authorities ignored the report and failed to fix the pipe. Three houses caught fire after the explosion because the threatened villagers fled in disorder and left their houses.  The military Commander of Southeast Command, based in Moulmein arrived and inspected the accident site at 7:00 a.m. and later informed the Kanbauk gas station to stop sending gas. The gas station is located in Yebyu Township of Tenasserim Division and run across Mon State to Myaingkalay, Karen State.  It also provides gas to Thailand though Yatana gas pipeline, built by the UNOCAL and Total Company which was well known for its human rights abuse records.

 

Since October of last year, villagers of Wae Raek and Wae Thong Chaung from Thanbyu Zayat Township are forced to pay 100 Kyat monthly per household to hire militia and the army for the security of the pipeline.

 

 

Migrant Watch

 

THAI PREGNANCY BAN WORRY MIGRANT WOMEN

(Based on the Nation and Kao-Wao, January 18)

 

Migrant women of Mon community at Maharchai, Samutsakhon Province are worried over a pregnancy ban on foreign workers, reported to Kao-Wao from the seafood processing working sites, 50 km west of Bangkok. Recently, some non-governmental organizations (NGOs) in Bangkok warned the late introduction of a regulation banning foreign workers from pregnancy will spark a rise in illegal abortions. The Labour Ministry's regulation states that female foreign workers will be given a medical checkup and those who are found to be pregnant will not have their licenses reissued. Foreign labourers, mostly from Burma, have to renew their permits on March 25, six months after the government register them to work  legally in the country. According to the NGO source, the regulation might also force workers who were pregnant to work illegally without renewing their permits, some foundations have been assisting female workers who had suffered complications after having illegal abortions.

 

Ms. Ai Non, leader of the Mon migrant women, said the ban would make it difficult for the majority working here, at Maharchai, there are far more women workers, who outnumber men at various food processing factories. As there is no choice, they will end up as illegal immigrants because the economy in Burma is getting worse day by day, she added.

 

 

MON YOUTH LIBERTY ORGANIZATION: ESTABLISHED IN THAILAND

(Kao-Wao, January 13, 2002)

 

The Mon youth community has recently established the “Mon Youth Liberty Organization” in Thailand.  It was formed by collective members of various Mon Youth Organizations around Bangkok.

 

Chairperson of the meeting, Nai Sunthorn said, “We sincerely welcome all Mon youth to participate in the social and political movement independently and without interference. The Mon Unity League believes decentralization is the best method for us under the present political and organizational circumstances”.  Nai Sunthorn is the appointed General Secretary of the Mon Unity League.  More than twenty participants attended the meeting, organized by Youth representatives of the Mon Unity League led by Nai Yeup. It was a very productive meeting that has attracted many among the Mon Youth community in Thailand.

 

According to Banya Hongsar, a co-organizer of the event, the Mon community has been set back by a lack of trust, many want to build close relationship and initiate a strong collective leadership. Mr. Hongsar briefed the meeting in regard today event.  The participants exchanged their views about the current Mon social and political situation. They mostly focused on education, media, employment and leadership issues, and the pursuit of freedom and self-autonomy in Mon State.

 

Nai Yeup, the organizer of the meeting said, “we ought to develop our thinking skills and build our own-capacity to enhance our goal for freedom and democracy on Burma. It is crucial that all of our Youth participate in building a close network in the future”. According to Yeup, the Mon Youth have played a very limited role in the United Nationalities Youth League (UNYL) based in Thailand, adding that, “Mon youth now feel drawn to the needs to join with other ethnic nationalities and to give strong pressure for political change on Burma.”

 

Nai Kun Yekha, co-organizer of the meeting, briefed his statement on the role of Mon in the media in line with current Mon social and political movements, saying that, "The movement failed to achieve its public campaigns as it had lacked media publicity over the last five decades. When we have access to the media, many other organizations will come to play a vital role on Internet and world media presentation.”  Most participants have great motivation to work for freedom and democracy in Burma, but all assume they need to first have a professional career in a developing country as well as democratic institution in Burma.

 

Nine members wear elected as “Board Management” of the organization. Nai Kun Yekha and Nai Banya Hongsar took temporary posts as Central Coordinators to run the organization with seven other members. Nai Phon, chairperson of the meeting concluded, “we want to be home with freedom. This is the only reason we are here today”.

 

 

ENGLISH FOR ALL SHAN YOUTHS

(Kao-Wao, January 18, 2002)

 

The English and Computer Training class opened today at the border in northern Thailand.  Various guests, teachers and trainees attended the opening ceremony of the second English and Computer Training for Youth from Shan State on January 18.  The students comprised of ethnic Kachin, Palaung, Pa-O, Lahu, Wa and Shan from Shan State will be living in the same place as the boarding school to built solidarity among the diverse nationalities in Shan State.

 

The class was organized by the Youth from Shan State Working Team and sponsored by various Shan communities and NGOs in Thailand aiming to build capacity for ethnic youths from all parts in Shan State. The class will take six months where twenty-five students are able to learn English and computer skills before going home to help their communities.

 

 

MON CULTURAL HERITAGE MEETING HELD IN BANGKOK

(Bangkok, January 20, 2002)

 

The Second meeting of the Committee for Revitalization of Mon Cultural Heritage was held at a Buddhist temple in Bangkok. Nai Phisarn Boonphoke, the Chairman of the Committee explained to members how to plan cultural works and Ms. Bussba Prapasapong, the General Secretary, chaired the meeting on Sunday afternoon. The participants discussed future projects to preserve the old Mon palm leaves and other related matters.

 

Last year in December, the Committee was formed in consensus to preserve the old palm leaves, which is stored at several Thai Mon monasteries and other related cultural heritage of the Mon people. The last founding meeting in 2001 has appointed Dr. Sued Gajaseni, the President of Thai Ramarn Association, Ms. Amphai Markmarn, the Chairperson of Mon Youth Community and a Mon history scholar Dr. Emmanuel Guillon as members of the Advisory Board.

 

 

Kao Wao News Group

kaowao@hotmail.com