Myanmar morning news for October 19

Myanmar morning news for October 19
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Myanmar morning news

Myanmar President Intervenes in Case of Three Journalists Jailed Over Article
Myanmar President Win Myint on Wednesday issued a directive to the Yangon regional government to cooperate with the country’s press council to resolve a lawsuit an official filed against three Eleven Media Group journalists accusing them of committing offenses against the state, amid growing disapproval over attacks on freedom of expression.
— Radio Free Asia

Myanmar has changed, but remains firmly in China’s grip
April 2018 marked the second anniversary of Aung San Suu Kyi assuming the position of state councillor of Myanmar. Despite predictions that Myanmar’s tentative steps towards democracy would weaken the country’s long-standing relationship with Beijing, the security situation in Myanmar’s border regions and tepid relations with the West ensure that China remains the Suu Kyi government’s dominant regional partner.
— AEC News Today

Will Myanmar’s ‘Genocide Gems’ Become the New Blood Diamonds?
A little more than a year ago, Myanmar’s military carried out what the United Nations has called a campaign of genocide and war crimes against the Rohingya minority, driving almost 1 million people from their homes.
— Bloomberg

Eleven Media journalists apply for bail at first court appearance
Three journalists appeared in Tarmwe township court yesterday to face charges filed against them by Yangon Region.
— Myanmar Times

Estranged brother of Myanmar’s Suu Kyi bids to sell lakeside home
The estranged brother of Myanmar leader Aung San Suu Kyi said on Thursday he is making a new bid to sell the lakeside house where the democracy activist turned politician spent 15 years under house arrest.
— Reuters

Some progress made, but secession issue clouds peace talks
High-level peace talks attended by the government, Tatmadaw and armed ethnic groups that have signed the Nationwide Ceasefire Agreement have made some progress but failed to resolve differences over the issues of non-secession and forming a national army.
— Frontier Myanmar

Myanmar Officials Decry UN Security Council Vote to Hear Out Fact-finding Mission
Political analysts and government officials in Myanmar on Thursday denounced a move by a majority of member countries of the United Nations Security Council requesting a meeting to hear from a U.N. fact-finding mission that investigated atrocities committed against Rohingya Muslims in Rakhine state.
— Radio Free Asia

A murky start for gold and jewellery import-export centre
PROMINENT GOLD and jewellery traders have criticized the Union government for appointing a company without a tender to run a One Stop Service Centre for the industry that opened in Yangon’s People’s Park in September.
— Frontier Myanmar

Clashes at Yangon garment factory leave dozens injured
Riot police rushed to the scene of clashes at a strike-hit Myanmar garment factory on Monday after protesting workers say dozens were injured when they were attacked by a mob of “hired thugs”.
— Frontier Myanmar

No important decisions made at 10+10 Summit, Tatmadaw Commander-in-Chief’s absent in second day
No decision has been made on the issues concerning non-secession, self-determination, and having a unified army, which are important for Myanmar peace process, during the two-day 10+10 summit in Naypyidaw and they agreed to meet again in November.
— BNI

Thai Military Officers Convicted, Sentenced for Smuggling Rohingya
A Thai court on Thursday convicted two military officers and sentenced each to 27 years in prison for being involved in a transnational crime syndicate that smuggled Rohingya Muslims from Myanmar, officials said.
— Radio Free Asia

Security sector becomes priority for stability and development – Rakhine State gov’t says
The Rakhine State Chief Minister said today that priority has been given to the security sector for stability and development of the Rakhine State.
— BNI

Special appeal over 54 University Avenue filed by State Counsellor’s brother
Aung San Oo, elder brother of Aung San Suu Kyi, filed a special appeal at the Supreme Court in Naypyitaw, in regards to the inheritance of the residence at No. 54 University Avenue currently occupied by Aung San Suu Kyi.
— Mizzima

Government “intentionally and recklessly” restricting freedom of expression: Athan
Freedom of expression under the National League for Democracy-led government is worsening despite initial hopes of improvement, youth activist group Athan said Thursday, in a mid-term report that documents a litany of charges filed in the past two-and-a-half years under laws that violate freedom of speech.
— Frontier Myanmar

Myanmar’s trilateral peace talks to work on basic principles in future Panglong peace conference
Participants in Myanmar’s special trilateral peace talks agreed to set a timetable and priority work process for basic principles related to democracy and federal in future 21st Century Panglong Peace Conferences.
— Mizzima

Four percent of patients die due to staff shortage in Sittwe Hospital
An average of four in every 100 patients is dying due to lack of doctors and nurses in the Sittwe General Hospital in the Rakhine State’s capital Sittwe, the Rakhine State Minister of Social Affairs Dr Chan Thar said.
— BNI

Poachers sentenced to three years for killing elephant
Nine elephant poachers were sentenced to three years in jail on 16 October 2018 after being found guilty of killing a wild elephant at the Okkan Creek, Chaung Sauk village, Taikkyi Township, on 7 November 2016, according to state media.
— Mizzima

Court examines prosecutor in Eleven Media journalists’ case
The Eleven Media journalists who are charged with section 505(b) of Penal Code (public mischief) were produced before the court for the first time on October 17 and the court reportedly examined the prosecution first.
— BNI

EU sanctions threaten to de-industrialize Myanmar
A European Union (EU) mission will arrive in Myanmar this month to assess the possibility of revoking the nation’s Generalized System of Preferences (GSP) trade status, a punitive move that would devastate key sectors of the local economy.
— Asia Times

Minister on a mission
Soe Win has been in his post for less than two months, but already there are significant signs that Myanmar’s new finance minister is ready to deliver on the government’s commitment to boost economic growth.
— Bangkok Post

Switzerland Joins EU in Sanctioning Myanmar’s Military Generals
Switzerland has imposed an asset freeze and travel ban (entry and transit) on seven high-ranking members of Myanmar’s military and security forces for human rights violations committed in the country.
— The Irrawaddy

New bridge in Ayeyarwady Region on track for March 31 completion date
Construction of the new Myaungmya Bridge in Ayeyarwady Region is 63 percent complete, and the project is on track to be completed in March 2019, according to the Bridge Management Department.
— Myanmar Times

EU cautioned against axing Myanmar trade preferences
Rights groups say action would hurt workers but leave military leaders unscathed.
— Financial Times

US, EU trade sanctions likely as international pressure mounts: Fitch
Although the US and European Union (EU) are unlikely to impose sweeping sanctions on Myanmar as a result of the humanitarian crisis in Rakhine, international pressure is mounting in the west to force the country to improve its human rights record.
— Myanmar Times

Dutch Gov’t Lifts Travel Restrictions to Southern Rakhine, Tourism Industry Wants More
Despite a number of European countries continuing to discourage travel to Myanmar based on allegations against the army of committing crimes against the Rohingya community in August 2017, the government of the Netherlands has eased its stance on one Rakhine State tourist destination last week.
— The Irrawaddy

Rohingya fear death as India begins deportation
In a dusty hut sits Abdul Rahman, a Rohingya who fled Myanmar in 2012 when the ethnic Muslims were violently targeted by the military of the Buddhist nation.
— UCA News

Govt deploys strategy to raise tax revenues
Myanmar will implement plans to raise tax revenues in the coming years.
— Myanmar Times

Myanmar Buddhist temple now a nirvana for snakes
Crossing a bridge to the middle of a lake in Myanmar’s Yangon region, pilgrims arrive at a temple to pin their hopes on the pythons slinking across the temple’s floors and draped across windows.
— Malay Mail

Tourism body says there are enough tour guides for Chinese
The Myanmar Tourists Guides Association (MTGA) said it opposes a move to relax the qualifications for “liaison tour guides” to serve the growing number of Chinese visiting Myanmar.
— Myanmar Times

Government “intentionally and recklessly” restricting freedom of expression: Athan
Initial signs when the government took office in April 2016 were promising, the report says: students who were arrested and prosecuted the previous year for marching from Mandalay to Yangon in protest against the National Education Law were freed and pardons were granted to imprisoned activists, workers and farmers.
— Frontier Myanmar

Plan for Mandalay terminal worries bus owners
Bus operators have expressed reservations about the final design of the Chan Mya Shwe Pyi (Kywel Sel Kan) bus terminal in Mandalay, which is touted as one of the most modern in the country.
— Myanmar Times

More Than 170 Rohingya Refugees Resettled in Northern Rakhine, Govt Says
More than 170 Rohingya refugees who have returned from Bangladesh to Rakhine State through unofficial channels have moved back home or been resettled in villages where they have relatives, according to Maungdaw District authorities.
— The Irrawaddy

Belmond Hotels For Sale and Attracting Some Big Name Interest
The collection includes luxury properties in coveted destinations such as Rio and St. Petersburg, and offers guests once in a lifetime experiences in Myanmar and Machu Picchu.
— Top Hotel News

No Development Without Rule of Law, Mon State MP Says
As chair of Mon State Parliament’s Women’s and Children’s Rights Committee, Daw Khaing Khaing Leh is dedicated to protecting the region’s youth and female constituents.
— The Irrawaddy

Putting a lid on religious intolerance
When speaking of religious intolerance in ASEAN member states, it’s likely that images of marginalised Rohingya in Myanmar, the increasingly conservative stance of Indonesian President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo seems to have recently taken, and clampdowns on the Lesbian Gay Bisexual Transsexual (LGBT) community in Muslim majority countries like Malaysia and Brunei are among the first pictures that come to mind.
— The Asean Post

 

Feature photo Paul Arps

 

This week’s Myanmar morning news feature photo acknowledges International Day of Rural Woman, October 15.

 

Find our previous morning news feature photos in the AEC News Today Morning News Feature Photos gallery where you will find a pictorial display of daily life throughout the Asean Economic Community (AEC).

 

Myanmar morning news by AEC News Today is your one stop source for Myanmar news on matters of governance and policies affecting Asean business communities. It is published M-F by AEC News Today: Governance, not government; policies not politics.

 

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Maria Mirasol Rasonable graduated with a Bachelors Degree in journalism from Polytechnic University of the Philippines, Santa Mesa, Manila, Philippines.

She previously covered police rounds for Philippine Daily Inquirer as a trainee before becoming editorial staff at Gospel Komiks under the Communication Foundation for Asia (CFA-MG), Santa Mesa, Manila where she wrote lifestyle and trending fashion and styles articles.

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