May 28 - June 3, 2012

myanmartimes
Myanmars first international weekly Volume 32, No. 628 1200 Kyats

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Electricity shortages spark wave of protests

HUNDREDS of people took to the streets of downtown By Htoo Aung Yangon last week with AFP f o r c a n d e l i g h t demonstrations over electricity shortages, as protests that began in Mandalay on May 20 spread to other regional centres. On May 22, about 150 people gathered at Sule Pagoda at 7pm for a 30-minute demonstration that was watched by about 1000 more. The demonstrators lit candles and entered the pagodas southern entrance before walking around the 2500-year-old landmark before dispersing peacefully at the request of police. The people have showed their needs and demands. How is [the government] going to solve this? We want an explanation, said Ko Wailu, who took part in the first day of the protest. The government that accedes to the demands of the public will be loved. If they dont accede, they will be judged by the public, he added. The demonstration was repeated on May 23, 24 and 25 with larger numbers of participants, prompting the government to warn protesters to stay within the law. It is usual in a democratic country that people express their desire by protesting. But they need to be lawful, presidential adviser U Ko Ko Hlaing told a press briefing on May 24. They can protest to the extent that the law permits. According to the law, if they want to protest they need to inform the police station and get permission. Demonstrations also occurred in Bago and Monywa, residents said. On May 21, about 100 people protested in Monywa, with almost 500 demonstrators gathering the following evening, watched on by several thousand people. The demonstrations were sparked by power shortages that began on May 19 after transmission cables from the Shweli hydropower project were damaged. The government said last week that Kachin Independent Army insurgents were responsible for the May 18 attack. Ko Kyaw Kyaw, a 35-year-old Mingalar Taung Nyunt resident who joined the demonstration on May 23, said the poor electricity supply made life extremely unpleasant. If the electricity doesnt come, it is hard to get the water we need to wash, cook and drink. I will only stop the campaign when electricity comes, he said.

Experts to discuss future of Yangon cityscape

By Thomas Kean EXPERTS from across Asia and the world will arrive in Yangon this week for a conference on preserving Yangons unique cityscape. Organised by the Yangon Heritage Trust, participants at the June 1 conference, Towards a Conservation Strategy for Yangon in the 21st Century, will seek to find creative ways forward for a city preservation strategy, founder Dr Thant Myint-U told The Myanmar Times last week. We will have more than 100 participants, including Myanmar and international urban planners, architects, historians, businessmen, NGOs, as well as Myanmar government officials and the United Nations, he said. Yangon Region Chief Minister U Myint Swe and Yangon Mayor U Hla Myint are scheduled to address the gathering, while Union Minister for Industry U Soe Thein a big supporter of the trust is also expected to attend. The main conference will be preceded by a smaller experts-only session the day before, he said. The entire week, not just the conference, will be an opportunity for Myanmar and international experts to meet and discuss the challenges we face in protecting Yangons unique heritage, to learn lessons from experiences overseas and seek practical solutions, he said. Weve done a lot of thinking, not only on the sorts of regulatory reforms that might be necessary, but also on ways of attracting the needed financial resources, which will be very substantial, and at the same time not only protecting local communities, but also generating new jobs in downtown Yangon. We hope the conference will help to highlight the urgency of the issue and move us towards very concrete recommendations for the Myanmar government. Yangon boasts the largest stock of colonial-era buildings in Southeast Asia but many have suffered as a result of years of neglect. Population pressures have resulted in many buildings being demolished to make way for condominiums and other developments. More page 4

Give the whole nation electricity

Demonstrators arrange candles into the shape of Myanmar near Sule Pagoda in downtown Yangon on May 23, around a handwritten message that reads, Give the whole nation of Myanmar electricity. Demonstrators began gathering in Yangon to call for 24-hour electricity on May 22 and continued the rest of the week. Related stories pages 2, 3 and 11. Pic: Ko Taik

US human rights report hails reform in Myanmar

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Govt outlines power plans

By Aung Shin THE government last week responded to growing unrest over electricity shortages by outlining its strategy to improve generation capacity in the medium to long term, We know that electricity is a major challenge for our country. We have to consider five essential needs land, electricity, roads, telecommunications and water when foreign investors are coming. We are trying to find ways to have 24-hour electricity supply to develop our country, Deputy Minister for Electric Power 2 U Aung Than Oo said at a press conference on May 21, a day after protests began in Mandalay. U Aung Than Oo said the government was inviting foreign investment in the power sector and two foreign-backed power plant construction projects that would significantly boost electricity generation were already underway. We are going to build a 600 megawatt (MW) coalfired plant with Japanese J Power Company and another 500MW gas-fired power plant with DKB Company of [South Korea]. These plants will be built near Yangon, said U Aung Than Oo. The coal plant would take three or four years to complete, while the gas-fired plant would be finished in a little over a year, he said. Meanwhile, US companies will invest in power plant projects that will be able to provide electricity during the hot season when the nations hydropower dams run low, he said, without giving further details. But U Myint Aung, managing director of the Ministry of Electric Power 2, which is responsible for generation and distribution of electricity, said that few foreign companies were interested in investing in power generation in Myanmar while residential retail prices were only K35 a unit. Many local and foreign companies approached the government about investing in power supply installation and privatisation of electricity generation but so far they have only offered to loan the government money, he said. The Ministry of Electric Power 2 buys electricity from Ministry of Electric Power 1 for K20 a unit and sells it to residential customers for K35. The K15 a unit markup, however, is not enough to cover the ministrys operating costs. The Ministry of Electric Power 1 is responsible for electricity production and managing hydropower projects, Ministry of Electric Power 2 is responsible for electricity generation, distribution and sales, while Ministry of Energy sells natural gas to foreign countries. Myanmar currently has 18 hydropower plants, one coalfired power plant and 10 gasfired plants. The hydropower plants have a maximum generation capacity of 1270MW but only 1000MW in summer because of the low water level of their dams. The gas-fired plants can generate an additional 340MW. However, this is as much as 500MW below demand, which has increased 15 percent this year, U Aung Than Oo said. Peak usage during rainy season averages 1450MW, rising to 1850MW during hot season, according to ministry figures, although large swathes of the country remain off the national grid. Last weeks protests were sparked by cuts to electricity supply after insurgents allegedly bombed transmission lines linking the Shweli hydropower station to the national grid, reducing generation capacity by about 200MW.

Transmission line repairs underway: govt

By Soe Sandar Oo THE government last week refused to say when it expects repairs to damaged electricity supply cables in Shan State to be completed, as protests against electricity cuts spread from Mandalay to Yangon and other cities. Insurgents have been blamed for a May 18 attack on 230-kilovolt cables transmitting electricity from the Shweli hydropower project in northern Shan State into the national grid. The damage to the transmission cables has cut generation capacity by 200 megawatts and forced the Ministry of Electric Power 2 to introduce rationing in most areas, sparking large protests. The head of the Yangon City Electricity Supply Board (YESB), U Aung Khaing, said in a press release on May 23 that about 10 percent of the repair work had been completed. At a press conference two days earlier, he said the weather and unstable political situation made repairing the lines difficult. It is difficult to estimate when the tower will be rebuilt because its in a conflict zone and the surrounding area needs to be cleared first. Rebuilding the tower depends on establishing peace, he said. To relieve the shortages, American firm Caterpillar is working with YESB to bring six 2MW generators from Singapore by the end of this week, while General Electric is to provide two gas turbines, each capable of generating 25MW, U Aung Khaing said on May 23. We will supply more electricity after all the generators have arrived, he said. He said YESB had also placed eight generators in certain areas to improve safety for the public. The generators have been placed in some areas to power roadside lights and traffic lights. We have another 10 to use in other locations if they are needed, he added. A May 20 report in the state-run New Light of Myanmar newspaper said the attack destroyed four transmission towers on the Shweli-Mansan line, in Nankham township, was the work of the Kachin Independence Army. U Aung Khaing said nobody was hurt or injured in the attack but he added that Yangons electricity supply would return to rationing that would see industrial zones receive no electricity. More page 4

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Facebook brings power to people in Mandalay

By Aung Shin ITS stock price may be plummeting but Facebook has again showed its value as an organisational tool, with protests in Mandalay last week over electricity shortages instigated through the social network. The nighttime protests, which began on May 20 and ran for three days, saw hundreds of Mandalay residents gather peacefully for several hours to hold candles and placards calling for improved electricity supply, as thousands more people watched on. The placards carried messages such as Myanmar energy is only for Myanmar citizens and Give us electricity. The series of demonstrations was sparked by electricity shortages that the government said were the result of insurgents damaging transmission cables from the Shweli hydropower project in Kachin State on May 19. However, the city normally receives just six hours of electricity a day. Shortly after the bombing, an anonymous group named 24 Hours Electricity Supply used its wall to announce the launch of the candle campaign and encouraged other people to join in. Hundred of people liked the group and shared the link on their own walls. Participants said it was the first time in Myanmar that Facebook had successfully been used to organise a demonstration. It was instigated on Facebook, someone started a campaign and people sent it to each other, it just started like that. It would have to be the first time people have protested in Myanmar with the help of Facebook, said cartoonist Hajule (Katha), who took part in the protests. The protests were not led by anyone. All kinds of people participated. People are suffering due to the inadequate electricity supply since long before the Shweli transmission line was destroyed. Everybody really wanted to show their feelings about this issue, he said. Ko Aung Gyi, a resident of Aungmyaythasan township who joined the demonstration on May 20, said he didnt know who was leading the protest but participated by holding a lit candle. In our quarter, the electricity is out more than ever before. We get less than six hours. The electricity goes out very often as well. I dont understand why the government is selling our natural gas to other countries instead of supporting its own people. It is unacceptable, Ko Aung Gyi said. The protests took place outside the Mandalay City Electricity Supply Board office in Chanayetharzan township, beginning at about 6pm and ending in the dark at 9:30pm. The regional government responded to the first demonstration by calling an urgent press briefing at 9:30pm on May 20 to explain the reasons for the shortages. Daw Aye Aye Min, chief engineer of Mandalay Region Electricity Office, said the city, which has a population of more than one million, was receiving just 65 megawatts (MW), well below demand of 150MW. We want to give enough [electricity] but we just dont have it. I was almost crying when I heard about the protest. I just want you to pray for rain to get a lot of water so that we can get electricity from the hydropower plants, she said. The Mandalay Region government also requested Nay Pyi Taw to provide generators to alleviate the crisis. The 24 units provided are being used to power water pumping stations to help solve the electricityrelated water shortages that have afflicted the city. The government also pledged that no action would be taken against the demonstrators, despite taking several people into custody on May 22. They were not arrested. It was just for a discussion with them to find out what they want and to find out how [the protest] happened. The protest is technically against the law because detailed codes are not formed yet [for the peaceful protest law]. But I ... was guaranteed earlier that no action would be taken against any of the protesters, Dr Myint Kyu, regional minister for electricity and industry, told The Myanmar Times by phone on May 22.

Protesters take to Yangon streets

Yangon residents gather at Sule Pagoda (top left) to peacefully demonstrate against power shortages on May 22, the first of four consecutive nights of protests at the central Yangon landmark. Watched on by thousands of people, the demonstrators carried candles and walked around the pagoda for about 30 minutes before dispersing at the request of police. Top right: Demonstrators at Sule Pagoda on May 23. Above: Demonstrators join together in solidarity against power shortages. Pics (clockwise from top left): Kaung Htet, Ko Taik, Boothee

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Stability of the State, community peace and tranquillity, prevalence of law and order Strengthening of national solidarity Building and strengthening of disciplineflourishing democracy system Building of a new modern developed nation in accord with the Constitution

Four political objectives

Building of modern industrialized nation through the agricultural development, and all-round development of other sectors of the economy Proper evolution of the market-oriented economic system Development of the economy inviting participation in terms of technical know-how and investment from sources inside the country and abroad initiative to shape the national economy must be kept in the hands The of the State and the national peoples

Four economic objectives

Uplift of the morale and morality of the entire nation of national prestige and integrity and preservation Uplift and safeguarding of cultural heritage and national character Flourishing of Union Spirit, the true patriotism Uplift of health, fitness and education standards of the entire nation

Four social objectives

Govt peace team, SSA-South reach new 12-point agreement

Leaders pledge to end fighting that has continued despite signing of ceasefire in January
By Win Ko Ko Latt in Kengtung SENIOR government and Shan State Army-South officials expressed hope last week that a new 12-point agreement would end simmering conflict between the two sides. The union-level peacemaking team and a delegation from the Rehabilitation Council of Shan State (RCSS), the political wing of the SSA-South, signed the deal at the Triangle Regional Command Centre in Kengtung, eastern Shan State, on May 19, after about 12 hours of talks. As well as a reaffirmation of an earlier ceasefire, it included provisions on drug eradication, removing the Shan group from a list of illegal organisations and issuing National Registration Cards to its members. The agreement was the first reached between the government and an armed ethnic group since the reorganisation of union-level peacemaking team earlier this month. Last weeks talks were also the first to feature a senior Tatmadaw official, namely Deputy Commander-in-Chief General Soe Win. Gen Soe Win said he knew the horrors of war, having served in Shan State for half From page 1 of his military career, and had a strong desire to ensure the peace agreement held firm. We have to end the longstanding doubt and mistrust between us. For that, confidence is very important. Id like to say that there are no ulterior motives for [signing the agreement], said Gen Soe Win, who is also deputy leader of the government peace-making team. Ill cooperate with all of you [who signed the peace agreement] until we get a situation where soldiers did not exchange fire in the future. There will be no more fighting between both groups after this dialogue, U Aung Min said. Gen Soe Win himself participated in the dialogue because we have to talk about the army. Because of that, the negotiating time was very long. The RCSS was represented by a 13-member team led by its president, Lieutenant General Yawd Serk. We must try to get more During the talks, the RCSS presented its six-year plan for the elimination of narcotics, which Lt Gen Yawd Serk said would only be successful if all sides worked together. U Aung Min said that the government had set an earlier target for drug eradication but he agreed on the need for close cooperation. We have a big plan to eradicate drugs by 2015. I believe that it will be successful if the government, people, and armed ethnic groups consult and cooperate with each other on this plan, he said. The 12-point peace agreement included provisions on eliminating the production and trade of illicit drugs, supporting the RCSS/SSA in nurturing and maintaining ethnic customs, granting permission to the RCSS/SSA to establish a news agency, discussing the cases of RCSS/SSA members who are in prison, getting permission to form a peace supervisory team, removing the RCSS/ SSA from the governments list of illegal groups, issuing National Registration Cards to its members, and holding discussion between the RCSS/ SSA and other armed ethnic groups. Translated by Thiri Min Htun

We have to the long-standing doubt and mistrustendId like to say that there ... are no ulterior motives for this.
[ethnic minority groups] can stand on their own two feet with dignity, he added. The Tatmadaw and RCSS signed an 11-point deal in Taunggyi in January. However, since then there have been 17 skirmishes between lowranking troops from both sides, the officials said. Minister for Rail Transportation U Aung Min said the two delegations had discussed the situation in detail so as to ensure that their progress in political dialogue. I have come to meet [the government] today because of my belief that we can solve the problem of confrontation between our forces, Lt Gen Yawd Serk said. We can solve all our problems through dialogue. There is no advantage for both sides from the fighting that has taken place for more than 50 years. All that has come from it is that our country has degenerated, he said. From page 2 Secretariat for example may take US$100 million or more. Just the operating costs could be over $1 million a year. Again, we have to find creative ways forward that bring together government, business, and local communities. It could be a model for many of the other challenges the country faces, he said. Dr Thant Myint-U said the trusts next move would depend on the outcome of the conference and on the other discussions we will be having around that time, and on the reaction of the government to our recommendations. I think people have a sense that Yangon is at inflection point. It could easily go the way of other Asian cities heavily polluted, with terrible traffic congestion, big concrete towers and little or nothing to distinguish it from any other Asian city. Or we could plan properly and protect what we have not just the Shwedagon [Pagoda] but the sublime views of Shwedagon from all around the city, the lakes and the many green spaces, the old homes and buildings, the historic tree-lined avenues and downtown areas, the university campus and so on and build a modern 21st century city around that. It would make Yangon the most liveable and beautiful city in the region.

Conference
As The Myanmar Times reported in March, the Yangon Heritage Trust has been given a window of opportunity to come up with a viable private-sector led preservation plan for the city. The government has reportedly put in place a moratorium on demolition of buildings over 50 years of age. Volunteers are helping the trust, which was established earlier this year, to undertake a survey of the downtown area. It is hoped that surveys of most of the major buildings will be completed soon. But Dr Thant Myint-U said there was a misperception that the trust was focused on just the public colonial-era buildings. Its important that this effort not be seen as just about saving the old buildings, but also about protecting Yangons historic cityscape. There is nothing like it left in Asia. Its an incredible asset and we need to have a robust conservation strategy as part of a more general urban plan to modernise Yangon, he said. He said there had been an amazing level of public interest in the preservation campaign but people sometimes dont realise the enormity of the task. Properly renovating the

Transmission line repairs underway: govt

Shweli-Mansan electricity tower carries about 200 megawatts of power [to the national grid] and there will be shortages in Yangons industrial zones, he said during a press conference at Ahlone township. Yangon Region would not longer get 24-hour power from May 19 onward. Instead, people will receive six-hour cuts from May 21, he said. In residential areas, three groups have been established for electricity provision, with households receiving 12 hours of electricity followed by six hours of blackout, he said. However, he said small businesses within Yangon city have been informed not to use electricity from 5pm to 11pm. We will check to ensure that people follow the rules and take action against businesses that are using electricity when we have forbidden it, he said. U Aung Khaing said YESB would fine businesses K2000 for each horsepower of machinery in use on the first instance, K3000 on the second occasion, K5000 on the third, with further infractions punished by removal from the grid. Hospitals, schools, police stations, jails, communications offices and others important offices would receive 24hour electricity. U Hnin Oo, vice chairman of the Myanmar Fisheries Federation, said the shortages were pushing some industries to the brink. The industrial sector is facing great difficulties and if it continues like this for long I think nearly all companies that need to run freezers will have to stop, he said. He added that production costs had increased by up to 500 percent as a result of the electricity shortages because factories had to run costly generators. All the factory owners at industrial zones are arranging to meet [the government] to see if they can negotiate to get at least a few hours of electricity a day, he said.

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Myanmar to adopt pesticide residue standard in drinking water

By Yamon Phu Thit STANDARDS for pesticide residue in drinking water have been developed as part of a larger safe drinking water policy that will be adopted soon, a Ministry of Health official said at a workshop last week. Government officials from various ministries and departments agreed on the standards for 14 commonly used pesticides were agreed on at the May 17-18 workshop held at Inya Lake Hotel in Yangon. We have set the guideline values for 14 pesticides that are commonly used in Myanmar and can harm humans health. If the amount of pesticide is higher than the standard, it will be regarded as unsafe, Dr Kyi Lwin Oo, deputy director of Department of Healths Occupational Health Division told The Myanmar Times on May 18. We based [our standards] on the WHOs guideline values. But we have to set the values based on what is suitable for our country, he said. Organised by the Ministry of Health with funding from the United Nations We will provide education programs and [take action] if we find usage of pesticides is too high or incorrect. In doing so, we can reduce the amount of pesticide in drinking water and then reduce the negative impact of pesticides, he said. He said it was important that drinking water was screened for pesticides given their prevalence in Myanmar and the possible health effects. Long-term consumption of pesticide-contaminated drinking water can result in brain, breast, prostate, pancreatic and liver cancer, leukemia, neurological disorders, and problems in reproductive organs. According to the Department of Agricultures Plant Protection Division, 1460 pesticides have been approved for use in Myanmar and staff officer Daw Khin Lay Zan said use was increasing rapidly. Pesticide use was 2874.69 metric tonnes in 2002-03 but it reached 11101.41 metric tonnes in 2011-12, she said. UN Food and Agriculture Organisation data shows that use of pesticides is highest in Bago, Magwe and Yangon regions.

The Voice wins the first round in ministry suit

By Sandar Lwin A YANGON court ruled last week that it did not have the authority to order The Voice to reveal the name of a reporter who wrote an article on a corruption investigation into government ministries. The Union Ministry of Mines had requested Dagon Township Court to force U Kyaw Min Swe, the editorin-chief of The Voice, to reveal the author of the article, which was published in the journals March 12-18 issue. In making her ruling, judge Daw Khin Thant Zin cited media ethics and previous rulings. The decision has scuppered the Ministry of Mines efforts to file a defamation suit against the reporter and is considered a significant victory for the private media sector. However, The Voices publisher and editor-inchief will both still face defamation allegations over the article, which was based on a report from the Union Auditor Generals Office delivered to the Pyithu Hluttaw Public Accounts Committee. The article said the Auditor Generals Office had found cases of misappropriation of funds and graft in the ministries of information, mines, agriculture and irrigation, and industry 1 and 2. The remaining two suits will continue on June 6. Under Myanmar law, if the ministry can confirm the identity of the reporter of its own accord it is able to proceed with defamation action.

Pic: Kaung Htet Workers load bottles of purified water for villages in rural Yangon Region affected by water shortages in April. Childrens Funds (UNICEF), the workshop brought together officials from the Department of Agriculture, Department of Water Resources and Utilization, Department of Science and Technology Development, Yangon City Development Committee and state-run Myanmar Fishery Enterprise as well as representatives from domestic agrochemical companies. The guideline values on pesticides will be applied in the Myanmar National Drinking Water Quality Standard, which is to be adopted soon. The policy sets standards for acceptable levels of bacteria, organic and inorganic matter and arsenic in drinking water. With our own standards, we can screen which drinking water is safe or unsafe. This will help to improve public health and awareness for safe drinking water, Dr Kyi Lwin Oo said. Last weeks workshop also recommended that the Pesticide Analytical Lab, operated by the Department of Agricultures Plant Protection Division, be used as reference laboratory. The Occupational Health Division will also conduct tests of drinking water sources throughout the country to check for pesticide contamination, Dr Kyi Lwin Oo said.

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Shwe Amyutay mag owner preparing political journal

By Zon Pann Pwint A NEW political and news journal titled The Myanmar Independence will hit newsstands on June 7, headed by U Myo Myint Nyein, editor-in-charge of Ray of Light journal, Teen and Shwe Amyutay literary magazine. The Myanmar-language journal, which will officially launch on May 30, will be published every Thursday and will contain stories on politics, social issues, economics, education and ethnic affairs. Many reforms in politics have occurred in 2012, and related economic and social reforms have also been made. Politics is linked to economics and social changes, U Myo Myint Nyein said. It is said that a housewife cooking at home is politics. No one is free from it. Before, there was no political news in journals because of limitations, but I dont agree that the media should avoid politics, he said. There are now journals with extensive coverage of politics, not just because they want to highlight politics but because they want to take responsibility as the fourth pillar of democracy. He said he started making preparations three months ago to publish The Myanmar Independence, although he has wanted to launch a news journal for 20 years. Twenty years ago, I worked with writer and journalist A Htaut Taw Hla Aung to run Tha Tin Hlwar and Tha Tin news magazine. I learned the way he operated the journals, especially the way he gave journalism training to inexperienced staff members, he said. U Myo Myint Nyein said that in preparation for the launch of The Myanmar Independence, he chose 37

MPs get advice on budgeting issues

By Geoffrey Goddard DR Marilyn Waring is Professor of Public Policy at AUT University in Auckland, a board member of the Reserve Bank of New Zealand and a firm believer that economic growth must not be at the expense of social equity and the environment. But it wasnt her academic role or her position with New Zealands central bank that enabled her to share a special bond with about 30 hluttaw members from throughout the country whom she met in Yangon on May 17. In 1975, at the age of 23, the then Ms Waring became the youngest member of New Zealands parliament and in 1978 she became chairperson of its public expenditures committee, a position she held until she resigned as an MP in 1984. Dr Waring clearly enjoyed meeting the hluttaw members and being able to respond to their questions about best practice in public finance management from the perspective of a member of parliament. It was an issue about which the hluttaw members were extremely curious. The questioning went on for more than an hour after we were all supposed to finish and go for lunch, said Dr Waring, who visited Myanmar from May 13 to 20 as a guest of the Britishbased non-government organisation, ActionAid. They wanted to know how we had done it [public finance management] in New Zealand, how we did it now, what were the range of opportunities and activities in terms of procedure in the house that backbench MPs could be involved in, how our select committee process worked for management of the budget after the minister of finance had delivered the budget speech in the house, Dr Waring told The Myanmar Times in an interview on May 19. There was also interest in the role and function of the Reserve Bank of New Zealand, including how there was a feedback loop to members of parliament, she said. But probably the most raucous part of the discussion was the treatment of stateowned enterprises: it got quite loud and the loudest voices seemed to be saying privatise them all, said Dr Waring. Despite concerns expressed by hluttaw members about the countrys state-owned enterprises, Dr Waring said she told them that it wasnt necessarily the SOEs that are the problem. There are good models and good reasons for mixed market approaches involving SOEs, she said. Based on the questions she was asked, Dr Waring said the hluttaw members showed a keen interest in the issue of transparency in public funds management, for which she is a passionate advocate, along with environmental issues and womens rights. She said it was essential, in terms of parliamentary procedures, that supplementary questions were allowed of ministers in question time, that there was real scrutiny of the past years expenditures and of the estimates for appropriations for following years and that any expenditure instructions from the ministries outside the budget be tabled in parliament. Procedures must be transparent and there must be a good public finance act, she said. Theres loads of best practice; you can look at other ASEAN legislation Singapore is usually pretty good or you can look to Australia, Canada or New Zealand. Based on the feedback she had received, Dr Waring said there was a clear need to eliminate a great deal of obfuscating red tape in the situation here. On economic management, she said Myanmar is going to have to go through what weve all had to go through; around protection, around tariffs, around quotas. Dr Waring said she had not been preaching free markets; thats not my standpoint and she had made clear whenever Ive been asked questions, the ways in which New Zealand, Australia, the EU, Japan, Britain dont have a free market economy either. Another subject raised in the meeting focused on the regulatory systems that should apply to investors in natural resources, including good environmental practice for such investments. On foreign direct investment, Dr Waring said she had mentioned that most major Western countries have some form of foreign investment commission that sets standards in their countries for environmental protection and health and safety in employment for workers. I have also been saying that one of the reasons the investors are coming here is because this will be one of the lowest wage rates in the world, so lets not be blind to that and lets not give them a free lunch; they are interested in generating profits for their shareholders, most of whom wont live here, she said. Dr Waring said her meeting with hluttaw members was a great experience. They appreciated hearing from someone who had been an MP, she said, adding that the hluttaw members had indicated they would welcome more such meetings. Many of them remarked that that kind of briefing hadnt been available to them.

U Myo Myint Nyein (centre) speaks to reporters at the office of The Myanmar Independence last week. The first edition of the Myanmar-language politics and news journal is scheduled to hit newsstands on June 7. Pic: Boothee raw recruits and provided two months of journalism training starting in February. He then sent them out to report on the April 1 byelection, and has since then produced a weekly in-house edition of the journal for additional training. I prefer to train new staff who are inexperienced in journalism. People think that if they have money, they can publish a journal. They employ experienced editors and journalists from other famous publications by paying higher salaries. So the houses where they worked previously suffer from a lack of staff, he said. It is also common to see local publications where those who dont know how to write news work as editors, so they cant control the reporters. They cant decide whether the news is fair or comprehensive. They have to accept what the reporters tell them. Therefore, I train reporters to be able to write news and to judge whether their articles have the necessary features. He said that although more than 200 journals are published locally each week, only a few are in high demand. I will attract readers with quality news. I dont use other ways. I will try my best with our talent and by using honest means because I have no doubts about my ability and knowledge, U Myo Myint Nyein said. Maung Wuntha, consultant editor of Pyithu Khit (The Peoples Age) journal, said The Myanmar Independence was setting a good example by providing intensive training to teach its journalists the basics of Myanmar political affairs before publication. The journalists are welltrained; we should try to copy their preparation, he said. He said there were fewer than a dozen political journals on the local market, even though public interest in political affairs was growing. I know the new journal will survive with the support of the growing number of devotees of politics. Compared with when we launched The Peoples Age in July 2010, the situation has changed and control of the press has become less severe, he said. Maung Wuntha said that although journalists are now able to express themselves more freely than before the 2010 election, there were still questions about the extent of press freedom, including the effects of the recently announced plan to end pre-press censorship of news stories at the end of June. Whatever the approach, Maung Wuntha said, the public simply want to read opinions, criticism and predictions about the possibilities resulting from the economic and political changes.

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A Declaration of Ownership of the said Mark has been registered in the Office of the Sub-Registrar of Deeds and Assurances, Yangon being No. 2298/2002. WarninG is hereby given that any fraudulent imitation or unauthorised use of the said Trade Mark in any manner whatsoever will be dealt with according to law. Win Mu Tin, M.A., H.G.P., D.B.L for Merck & Co., inc. P. O. Box 60, Yangon E-mail: makhinkyi.law@mptmail.net.mm Dated: 28th May, 2012

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MyanMar tiMes May 28 - June 3, 2012

UEC boss concedes byelection shortcomings

By Soe Than Lynn THE head of the Union Election Commission conceded last week there were shortcomings in the April 1 by-elections but said polling was relatively fair compared to previous elections. Commission chairman U Tin Aye said a successful general election in 2015 would require cooperation between the commission, political parties and the public, particularly to ensure electoral rolls were accurate. The last election was relatively successful and fair compared to previous ones, although there were a few difficulties in certain places, U Tin Aye said. After reviewing shortcomings we experienced in the last election, we have come to meet the political parties that contested to ensure the success of future elections. Future elections will be held freely and fairly after reviewing the advantages and disadvantages of the last election. The commission would like the political parties to tell us the positives and weaknesses they experienced during the whole byelection period, from campaigning to announcing the results. He was speaking at a meeting in Nay Pyi Taw on May 22 attended by two representatives from 15 parties that contested the poll, along with one independent candidate, U Khin Hlaing. Representatives were given the chance to air grievances about the holding of the April 1 by-elections most of which concerned inaccurate electoral rolls. All 15 political parties discussed various difficulties during todays meeting, Lahu National Development Party chairman U Yaw Thart told The Myanmar Times. My discussion focused on the incomplete electoral rolls the other 14 parties talked extensively about the electoral rolls too. In my constituency, some voters did not find their names in the roll and many of those on the roll didnt turn up to vote. In one case, five members of a family came to vote and only the children could vote the parents were not on the roll. Another issue was that nine villages with more than 500 eligible voters located between Tantyang and Mineshu in northern Shan State were unable to vote. They were told to go and vote in other villages on the day of the by-election for security reasons but because it was short notice and they were far from where they were told to go, they couldnt vote. The voting system was changed abruptly on the day of the election. U Tin Aye pledged to try to avoid electoral roll problems in future elections but did not guarantee it, U Yaw Thart said. Meanwhile, U Tin Aye said rival candidates had submitted objections against four victorious National League for Democracy candidates and the cases were being examined. Translated by Thit Lwin

m-zine+ hits the streets

By May Sandy EXILE news agency Mizzima is set to launch an English language weekly magazine focusing on business developments in Myanmar. m-zine+ began as in-house publication in October and from 2012 was available to subscribers online at www.mzineplus.com. On May 17, the first hard copy editions were made available in Myanmar through Innwa Bookstore and an official launch ceremony will be held at Sedona Hotel on June 2. Subsequent editions will be available each Thursday. U Soe Myint, editor-in-chief of m-zine+, said the magazine was targeted at foreign investors looking for reliable information on developments in the countrys economy, business sector and political situation. There is international interest in Myanmar whenever changes occur here, especially in [the] business sector. Therefore we would like to provide information to cater to that demand, such as which sector is strong and which is weak and which businesses are successful, he said in an interview on May 22. We are focusing on investment perspectives. When foreign companies are interested in Myanmar, we want to give them data or analysis and in the editorial section, we are writing because of the high production costs and limited market. The magazine costs US$6 to produce but we are selling it for K3000 in Myanmar. But I believe we will get more advertisers and readers in the future. We will also try to send copies on the airlines. He said there was also a political risk for Mizzima, which is attempting to shift its operations inside the country. Some people say that these changes happening in Myanmar will make [the countrys situation worse] but I dont believe that, I am very optimistic and I will try to manage these risks while operating my media business in Myanmar. While m-zine+ is not yet officially licensed, U Soe Myint said Mizzima was waiting for the ministry and in the meantime would publish the magazine from India, with printing to take place in Chiang Mai, Thailand. He said Mizzima harboured ambitions to expand into other media sectors. When there is an opportunity, we want to do anything we can, whether it is a television program or a radio program. We have already proposed to publish a Myanmar-language journal. At the same time, we want to contribute to media development. This is not-for-profit. We regard the Ministry of Information and other media companies as our stakeholders.

Mizzima editor-in-chief U Soe Myint. Pic: Ko Taik political features according to the current political situation. At the same time, we want to highlight the importance of corporate [social] responsibility. When more corporations are coming into the country, problems can occur in terms of the environment and livelihoods so we want to point out these issues. U Soe Myint said the decision to publish a hard copy inside Myanmar had been made because of Myanmars poor internet connection speeds, which made it difficult to read the online version. Only 310 copies have been printed initially and U Soe Myint said pricing was a challenge

News
May 28 - June 3, 2012
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Peace process needs women: activists

By Cherry Thein INCLUDING women in the peacemaking process could bring about a speedier and more durable resolution to Myanmars ethnic conflicts, activists say. Daw Ja Nan, vice president of non-government organisation Nyein (Shalom) Foundation, said sustainable peace required the involvement of all citizens but women were normally excluded from the process, both formally and informally. We cant say there is progress towards peace unless we see participation of women in the process. Conflict not only impacts and concerns the two groups but also the public, especially women, children and the elderly, she said at a recent workshop. Despite the fact women are affected by war or conflict, they have very few chances to express their experiences and feelings, which can be a very effective and important mechanism to encourage decision-makers to construct a sustainable peace agreement, she said. She was speaking at an April 24-25 civil society workshop on women, peace and security that was jointly organised by the Women Organisation Network of Myanmar (WON) and Nyein Foundation. The workshop brought together a range of gender experts, who discussed strategies for advocating women to participate in the current peace process. It also noted some successes, such as the inclusion of women in regionlevel peace negotiations and parliamentary peacemaking teams. Daw Susana Hla Hla Soe from Karen Womens Action Group, a member of WON, said these set important examples for other women but there was still much opposition when they sought leadership or decision-making roles. We first encouraged Karen women to join the peace process telling how they could be very effective for bringing about peace. But sometimes they were ignored because it was breaking with a longstanding cultural practice, she said. No one gave them a chance willingly, including the male Karen leaders. We were even told, You women dont know about war, we have been fighting for 60 years, she said. But we need to push for our rights and not wait for anyone to do it for us. Daw Ja Seng Khon said resistance to efforts to empower women was encountered not only among the upper echelons of power. When I worked for [a womens] education and capacity building program in Kachin State, I was told that I was arousing domestic violence in households. I am not provoking women to go against or fight with their husbands but to get an education and build their capacity, and to escape their ignorance so that they can move forwards, she said. U Than Htike Aung, a member of the Karuna Charity Group based in Maubin, Ayeyarwady Region, said it was essential that invariably male leaders were made aware of womens views. As a man, I can feel empathy but cant imagine how miserable a pregnant woman must feel when she is running for her life in a conflict area, sometimes holding her young child, he said. No one can really comprehend her feelings, how much she must long for peace. We need to encourage more women, especially at the grassroots level, to share their experiences, feelings, ideas and needs. They are effective tools in ensuring equality and justice in the peacemaking process. U Than Htike Aung said women should also be given a greater role in public life, including formal positions of power. In my opinion, [women] are effective at negotiating they are more patient, he said. Speakers also discussed the need to lobby lawmakers to reconsider a provision in the Ward and Villagetract Administration Bill that grants power only to the heads of groups of 10 households so as to give women a greater to participate in local decisionmaking. Research on the issue conducted by NGOs in 2010-11 in seven states and regions found that leadership roles are overwhelmingly associated with and held by men, from the household level to community development and local authorities. In survey areas, less than 3 percent of members of village general administration departments were women and the highest position accorded to a woman was that of a clerk. Local administration groups comprise the heads of 10-household groups and in larger villages, the heads of every 100 households. In its most recent observations to the government, the Committee for the Convention of the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW) noted that Myanmar had low levels of

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A Kachin woman with a child waits for a ferry at Myitsone near Myitkyina in Kachin State. Pic: AFP womens participation on decision-making and public life and it said this was a matter of great concern. To rectify the imbalance, the Myanmar National Strategic Plan for the Advancement of Women is being drafted and will place a high priority on accelerating womens meaningful participation in decision-making and public life, according to the Ministry of Social Welfare, Relief and Resettlement. In terms of peacebuilding efforts, Ms Rachel Gasser from Swiss Peace said UN Security Council resolution 1325 underlined the need for addressing the impact of war on women and representing womens experience of conflict for the maintenance of international peace and security. Another speaker, a female member of the 88 Generation, said she planned to lobby for amendments to the constitution that would make it more inclusive for women. But she said the capacity for change rested in the hands of women themselves. If we want to amend the constitution to represent all people, women first need to learn about it, she said. In my experience, women only have equal rights in one respect. Our brothers were sentenced to 65 years in prison and so were we the only equal opportunities for women under the previous government was in terms of punishment.

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Sanctions are insurance policy for US: Clinton

WASHINGTON The United States has vowed to keep broad sanctions against Myanmar as an insurance policy against backsliding on democratic reforms even as it seeks to open up certain types of investment. US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton called Daw Aung San Suu Kyi on May 20 to discuss steps to promote investment and the need for progress in resolving ethnic conflicts. They agreed that the important progress of the past several months remains fragile and that the international community needs to help protect against backsliding, the State Department said in a statement. In this regard, the secretary assured Aung San Suu Kyi that the United States is keeping its sanctions authorities in place as an insurance policy. President Barack Obamas announced on May 17 that the United States was easing investment restrictions on Myanmar while maintaining wider US sanctions on the government and figures linked to the former junta. Ms Clinton and Daw Aung San Suu Kyi talked about the need for specific steps to promote responsible, transparent investment, empower reformers, and target abusers, the State Department said. Finally, they also discussed the urgent need for progress in resolving the ethnic conflicts and ending human rights abuses in the ethnic areas. They agreed to remain in close touch. On May 17, Ms Clinton said Washington was determined to help end the ethnic conflicts in the country as she expressed concern about recent violence in Kachin State. AFP

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(reg: no. iV/2370/2010) in respect of:- Tobacco especially smoking tobacco, cigarettes, smokers articles including cigarette paper in booklets or in tubes, automatic rolling boxes, rollers, tubes filling machines filter tips, metal boxes. Any fraudulent imitation or unauthorized use of the said trademark or other infringements whatsoever will be dealt with according to law. U Kyi Win Associates for rePuBLiC TeCHnoLoGieS (na) LLC P.O. Box No. 26, Yangon. Phone: 372416 Dated: 28th May, 2012

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MyanMar tiMes May 28 - June 3, 2012

Overage car substitution program set for expansion

But dwindling demand sees car import permits slump to just K7 million
By Aung Kyi A PROGRAM that allows owners of old cars to substitute them for import permits will be expanded, a Directorate of Road Transport official said last week, despite diminishing demand for the permits because of recent changes to car import rules. We will continue with the overage car substitution program until all cars over 20 years of age have been included. And old model cars that have new number plates because they were auctioned by the government will also be included in the program, U Tun Aung Kyaw, chief director for the Directorate of Road Transport, said at a workshop on vehicle production and importing held at Union of Myanmar Federation of Chambers of Commerce and Industry in Yangon on May 21. Under the program, which began in September 2011, 51,322 vehicles, including 46,871 saloons, 3156 trucks and 1295 buses, had been submitted to the Ministry of Road Transport to May 18, U Tun Aung Kyaw said. The Ministry of Commerce has issued 42,448 substitution import permits as well as 2496 permits to purchase vehicles at domestic car sales centres, said U Kyaw Soe, general manager of the Ministry of Commerce. The program has been implemented in two phases: permits acquired from September and December 2011 allow the importation of a car manufactured between 1995 and 2002, while those issued from December can be used to import a car made from 1996 to 2006. But changes to car import rules announced by Minister for Commerce U Win Myint on May 7 sent prices of both newly imported vehicles and import permits plummeting, with the latter falling from K15 million to K8 million almost overnight. The changes allow any Myanmar citizen with a foreign currency bank account at selected state-run banks to import a vehicle made since 2007, with some limitations. The announcement sparked a rush to open accounts at the eligible banks and 54 import permits had already been issued under the program to May 17, U Kyaw Soe said. A senior official from the Directorate of Road Transport said the number of overage vehicles being submitted had dropped by half since the May 7 announcement. There have been less overage cars coming to the departments of the Directorate of Road Transport throughout the country. In the third week of May, there were about 100 to 200 units submitted each day, down from 300 to 400 a day before May 7, he said. Car prices have also

KNU holds public talk on peace plans

By Soe Than Lynn SENIOR officials from the Karen National Union last week began a series of public discussions to explain the outcome of their peace talks with the government to Kayin nationals. Held at Shwe Nyaung Bin village in Thandaunggyi township, the May 22 discussion attracted about 800 people from 160 villages, while more than 500 people from about 200 villages participated the following day. KNU representatives, including Taungoo District chairman Phado Saw Awe Wa and Brigade 2 commander Phado Saw De Pho, and government representatives, such as Kayin State Minister for Agriculture and Irrigation U Christopher and Thandaunggyi township administrator U Thein Win, attended the meetings and replied to the questions from the public. At the discussion, Phado Saw Hla Tun, secretary of the KNUs organising centre, explained the 13 resolutions agreed on by both sides during discussions at Yangons Sedona Hotel on April 6. Most queries raised at the discussions were about land issues related to resolutions nine, 10 and 11 of the agreement, Phado Saw Hla Tun said. We explained this agreement to the public so they can participate in a strong peace-making process knowing in detail the points that both sides recently agreed on, including the troops of both sides, he said. Only if the public are aware of the discussions and are able to participate in the peace-making process will it be a sensible process that brings peace. The main thing I would like to tell the people is that we would like to make the outcome of the peace talks public. We would like to make the peacemaking process public. We wont lie to the people. The government also should not [lie]. We plan to hold similar public rallies in other districts. We intend to clarify to the public in other places under KNU jurisdiction. We expect a round of unionlevel peace talks to be held at the end of May and if that happens we will also report the outcome to the public, Phado Saw Hla Tun said. Translated by Thit Lwin

An overage car is taken to a Directorate of Road Transport office in Yangon. More than 50,000 older vehicles have been scrapped under the scheme. Pic: Yadanar declined dramatically as a result of the announcement, with most vehicles losing K5-10 million, including those eligible for the overage substitution program. U Chit Swe, a car broker in Ahlone township, said 86- and 87-model 1.5-litre Nissan Super Saloons, which were previously K1314 million, have dropped to K7.5-8 million, while a 1.3-litre 1993-model Daewoo Racer 1993 that was K10 million is valued now at just K5.5 million. A 1.5-litre 84model Toyota Corolla can be bought for K7 million, down from about K12 million a month ago, U Chit Swe said. Owners of cars eligible for substitution said last week the changes to the import rules meant they were unsure whether they would be better off holding on to their vehicles, selling them or exchanging them for an import permit. Overage cars that meet road safety standards can still be driven but must undergo a safety check each year when owners renew the car registration. However, with a flood of newer vehicles expected to enter the country in the coming months, it seems likely that the value of overage cars will decline further. Daw Aye Aye Win, an overage car owner from Mayangone township, said incentives should be given to overage car owners to encourage them to give up their cars. Even while the overage car substitution program is continuing, the Ministry of Commerce is allowing anyone with a foreign currency exchange account to import a car. So the [import] taxes imposed on the owners of overage cars owners [who import a newer vehicle] should be reduced to persuade them to submit their cars, she said. However, there is still some demand for overage car import permits, car brokers said last week. Newly opened car sales centres that have ordered and imported cars from Japan on consignment with permission of the Ministry of Commerce need permits to sell their cars to the public and any unsold cars must be sent back to Japan. For some overage car owners, the taxes levied under the substitution program still make it attractive. If my car is included in the next substitution program to get a permit to import a car made in 1996 or later, I plan to submit it and import a newer one made around 2000 with an engine over 2000 [cubic centimetres]. The Ministry of Commerces taxes and CIF values on imported cars with bigger engines made in 1996 to 2006 are much less than the taxes levied on cars with bigger engines imported under the new program for foreign currency account holders, said Mayangone township resident Daw Aye Thida, who owns a 1984-model Toyota Corolla. I need a car with a bigger engine to use while travelling on the highway to Nay Pyi Taw or other cities, she said. U Thein Win, the owner of a Mazda B600 that is likely to soon be eligible for substitution, said he hoped to sell his car colloquially known as a leiq bein for K5-6 million as soon as possible. I cant know for sure how much Ill be able to get for my old car when the government officially announces the new program. I might get less than K5 million, he said. I dont have enough money to import a car by myself so Ill just have to sell it, whatever the price is. U Thein Win said he was hoping for measures that would raise the value of import permits and consequently the value of his car. The only thing I can do now is just to pray to God, as I have no idea what announcements the government will make next.

CommeNt
May 28 - June 3, 2012
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Budgeting for the nations future

persistent budget deficit, which in 2012-13 is almost K2 trillion (about $2.5 billion), or more than 4 percent of gross domestic product (GDP). Although not overly high by international standards, deficits of this level constitute a high and unsustainable debt for Myanmar. This level of deficit has been a regular feature of Myanmar budgets for many years and, without an adequate budget financing mechanism benefits the public at large rather than only narrow special interests. However, developing appropriate policies and strategies remains a daunting challenge and there is no viable solution in sight. Of the many public finance issues on the governments todo list, tax reform should be the top priority. Revenue remains low, amounting to only 3pc of GDP this year the lowest in the region. To increase revenue, tax reform is required but this should be done in a way that acts as a redistribution mechanism from rich to poor without compromising economic growth. The reduction of export taxes in 2011 was one welcome step and a subsequent measure could be a value-added tax, with revenues to go towards social spending. But with a huge informal economic sector and a lack of governmental capacity and public finance accountability, it might take several years for reform measures to begin working effectively. What is clear from the challenges outlined above is that there are constraints is essential for inclusive economic growth and social stability. We have already seen some encouraging signs in this years budget in regards to social spending, with significant increases relative to previous years. Education spending in 2012-13 doubled on the previous year, while education-related capital expenditures jumped more than five times. As a result, total government spending on education increased from 0.7pc to 1.5pc of GDP. Allocations to the health sector increased 250pc on the previous year, while capital expenditures increased more than four-fold, raising government health spending to 0.8pc of GDP from just 0.2pc. While this marks an improvement, health and education spending is still insufficient in both relative and absolute terms. Myanmar needs to strengthen the quality of and access to education and health services in order to catch up with neighbouring countries, which recognised the importance of investment in the social sector a few decades ago. It should also be noted that a contributing factor in the spending increases in health and education

By U Soe Thein and Yoshimi Nishino IT might have been less dramatic than other changes in Myanmar over the past year but the transformation of the budget is a topic worthy of closer attention. Starting from the 2011-12 financial year, a national budget system with parliamentary oversight has been introduced as stipulated in the 2008 constitution. While there are high expectations for this new approach, the transition period is unlikely to be smooth. The current budgetary method is rooted in the centralised political and economic system that endured for almost four decades. To date, we are yet to see effective adjustments that improve the delivery of government services in accord with the publics needs and the rights stated in the constitution. But incremental adjustments will not be enough to cope with modern and decentralised political and e c o n o m i c structures. A new model for budgeting needs to be introduced to adjust to the changed political and economic environment. One development has been the increase in government revenue as a result of exchange rate unification and the abolition of the fixed exchange rate, which was about K6 to US$1. The 201213 budget has been formulated using an exchange rate of K800 to $1. By using the market rate, export earnings from natural gas can become a key contributor to the improvement of the governments fiscal position in the long term and give some relief immediately. However, expenditures need to be watched closely because of the

and further reform (including but not limited to new revenue measures), may continue to be so for years to come. A major constraint on the governments financial position is the needs of state-owned enterprises (SOEs), which absorb nearly 70pc of expenditures. There is a critical question over the future of these SOEs, which many see as financial liabilities because of their low efficiency and economic viability. There is a near universal consensus on the need to wean these enterprises off government support in a way that

to overcome in improving governmental fiscal space in the foreseeable future. Many stakeholders, including the business community and especially those businesspeople in the parliament are likely to advocate a conservative fiscal policy with balanced budgets in the future. Such fiscal conservatism will not mean that every sector of the economy will face spending cuts. Some areas, particularly social sectors like health and education, should instead receive budget increases in order to reflect the governments policy that investment in human resources

is substantial salary increases for civil servants in 2012. A second factor in the increases for both current and capital expenses relates to the valuation of foreign currency expenditures at K800 to the dollar. As many projects under the education and especially health ministries have been financed by foreign grants, exchange rate unification has increased the valuation of these items without any actual change to outputs. However, it is clear that the increases cannot be attributed to these two factors alone. The increased spending should be seen as a reflection of

a government policy to invest in the social sector. The next important question related to this encouraging trend is how efficiently and effectively the increased budget allocations can be used to improve outputs and outcomes. Efficient use of these allocations may convince decision-makers to award further budget increases, while wasteful or inefficient spending could lead to lawmakers questioning the wisdom of increasing ministry budgets next fiscal year. It is also important that social budget allocations target vulnerable groups through, for example, increasing the number of midwives in rural areas and improving basic education in rural areas. However, we do not have enough details about the budget and expenditures to make concrete recommendations for improvements in allocation and expenditure. This raises the question of transparency, particularly given the tradition of secrecy surrounding the budget. In the past, only limited financial information was made available to both the public and decisionmakers. Government agencies are still reluctant to provide information to anyone considered outsiders to the institution. As a result, the present processes and structures of the budget and expend-iture systems remain difficult to understand and analyse. Even where there exists a willingness to increase transparency, agency accounting data may not be comprehensive or detailed enough to allow for an understanding of activities implemented. We expect that the government will soon respond to this need to improve transparency, which will be a welcome step forward but one of just many that the government and hluttaw need to take. (U Soe Thein is a retired deputy director general of the Ministry of Finance and Revenues Budget Department and Ms Yoshimi Nishino is head of UNICEF Myanmars social policy, monitoring and evaluation section.)

Lady Gaga gets pulses racing in Indonesia, the Philippines

IT may seem that chaos in Europe is about to bring down the global financial order and that rising tensions in the South China Sea presage warfare in our backyard. But set aside the offshore aggro and Eurozone turmoil for a moment and focus instead on the more intriguing Eroszone, which has suddenly become a focus of attention, particularly in the Philippines and Indonesia. Although these are green and pleasant lands of largely tolerant, friendly people, they both harbour a minority of religious extremists who routinely take umbrage at any display of sexuality, visual or vocal. Shes no dumb broad. Shes loud. Shes in your face. Shes like a triple espresso laced with flaming cognac. As a chart-topping singer who writes most of her own material, Gaga has garnered global fame by the well-worn path of being as crudely provocative as is legally possible. In the Philippines, which is 80 percent Catholic, and Indonesia, 86pc Muslim, Gagas sexually brazen and religiously insensitive lyrics and outfits have ruffled feathers, just as they are intended to do. Authorities allowed her show in Manila to go ahead last week provided it did not exhibit any nudity or lewd conduct, which may be offensive to morals and good customs in the Philippines. If you wish to check on these morals and good customs, pop into any of the bars along Burgos Street in Makati near the concert location in the Mall of Asia, or perhaps take a short journey to Fields Avenue in Angeles. There you will discover conduct of such an extreme lewdness that it might even make Lady Gaga revise her routine. And your visit will also reveal that most patrons are Filipino males, all of good Catholic stock, of course. Meantime, over in Jakarta, the city police have refused to issue a permit for Gagas concert due, they claim, to objections from community leaders, including the august National Ulema Council. As well, but more regrettably, activists belonging to the Front for the Defence of Islam, have said they are ready to be thrown in jail and be killed if thats what it takes to stop Gaga. They assert that she is the devils messenger and that she appears on stage wearing only a bra and panties a vision far worse to them than a video of Daniel Pearl having his head cut off. Well, it seems the force is with them or at least, the fear. Truth to tell, most Indonesians almost certainly couldnt care less one way or the other, although, like their Filipino counterparts, they would like more action taken against religious and political leaders who transgress. As revelations in recent times have shown, far too many Catholic bishops and Muslim mullahs have been getting away with the most appalling kind of lewd behaviour, often involving the sexual abuse of minors. What is galling is the hypocrisy of these people and their followers, who express bogus horror at any hint of sexual permissiveness, including Lady Gagas concert, yet engage it in themselves.

Over the past few weeks, these divinely blessed folks have been raising a stink at the prospect of the bisexual singer and provocateur, Lady Gaga, staging her Born this Way concert in their capital cities. Why the objections and raucous protests? Because Gaga, an Italian-American whose actual name is Stefani Germanotta, and her promoters have choreographed her stage show to stimulate precisely this kind of outrage.

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May 28 - June 3, 2012

MyanMar tiMes

One-third of malaria drugs in SE Asia are fake

PARIS More than a third of malaria drugs examined by scientists in Southeast Asia were fake, and a similar proportion analysed in Africa were below standard, doctors warned last week. These findings are a wake-up call demanding a series of interventions to better define and eliminate both criminal production and poor manufacturing of antimalarial drugs, Joel Breman of the Fogarty International Center at the US National Institutes of Health (NIH) said on May 22. Trawling through surveys and published literature, the researchers found that in seven Southeast Asian countries, 36 percent of 1437 samples from five categories of drugs were counterfeit. Additionally, 30pc of the samples failed a test of their pharmaceutical ingredients. In 21 sub-Saharan countries, 20pc of more than 2500 samples tested in six drug classes turned out to be falsified, and 35pc were below pharmaceutical norms. Sub-standard medications are a major problem in the fight against malaria, a disease which killed 655,000 people in 2010, according to the UNs World Health Organisation (WHO). Many of the drugs that are being faked or poorly manufactured are artemisin derivatives, the study said. This is especially worrying as artemisinins are the frontline treatment for malaria, replacing drugs to which the malaria parasite has become resistant. The study says there are many causes for the problem, ranging from widespread self-prescription of drugs to shoddy controls to monitor drug quality and prosecute counterfeiters. Poor-quality antimalarial drugs are very likely to jeopardise the unprecedented progress and investments in control and elimination of malaria made in the past decade, said Mr Breman. Last month, studies published in The Lancet and Science journals reported that artemisin-resistant malaria, which was first spotted in Cambodia in 2006, has since been detected 800 kilometres (500 miles) westward on the ThailandMyanmar border. AFP

Farmers from Shwenanthar village in Mingalardon township hold a meeting on May 10 over a land ownership dispute with Zaykabar company. Pic: Ko Taik

Government to reopen Death Railway: minister

YANGON The government aims to restore a stretch of the infamous Death Railway to Thailand, a line that was initially built by Japanese-held prisoners of war, Minister for Rail Transportation U Aung Min said last week. The railway was immortalised in the Oscar-winning film The Bridge on the River Kwai, which showed the dreadful working conditions endured by tens of the thousands of POWs who built the track during World War II. A feasibility study on the 105-kilometre (65mile) stretch running from Myanmars Three Pagodas Pass area to Thailand is scheduled to begin in October, U Aung Min said on May 19. We will reopen this [rail] road. The other countries said they would also help us and we will continue working for it, U Aung Min said after peace talks with ethnic Shan rebels. We will do a survey and try to start working after the rainy season with the help of the international community. Long isolated under decades of army-rule, Myanmar has embarked on a rapid series of political and economic reforms under President U Thein Sein, including moves to better relations with its neighbours. The railway would provide a much-needed economic shot in the arm for the impoverished area, which is home to the Kayin ethnic group, by boosting trade with Thailand and attracting tourists. Kayin rebels signed a ceasefire with the government in January, a major breakthrough towards ending the longrunning insurgency. Built by the Japanese between 1942 and 1943 to shuttle supplies from Thailand into Myanmar, then called Burma, along a route that engineers had long considered impossible, the rail link was destroyed by Allied bombers in 1945. Some 13,000 POWs succumbed to abuse, malnutrition and disease during the 14 months it took to carve the 424kilometre (263-mile) railway through dense jungles and mountains, under orders from their Japanese captors. It is also estimated that 80,000 to 100,000 Asian civilians, who were also used as forced labour, perished in the railways construction but most of their remains have no known markers or graves. AFP

Farmers apply to establish company to challenge Zaykabar

By Noe Noe Aung A GROUP of farmers from Mingalardon township embroiled in a land dispute with construction company Zaykabar have applied to form an agribusiness company, a politician helping the farmers said. The farmers from Shwe Nanthar village in rural Mingaladon applied to the Directorate of Investment and Company Administration under the Ministry of National Planning and Economic Development in Nay Pyi Taw for permission to establish Shwe Wah Su Paung Nyi Nyar Co Ltd on May 17. We are very willing to establish a company ourselves. I believe we can do it well and also form a union, a farmer from Shwenanthar village told The Myanmar Times in the second week of May. They filed the application because they felt it would give them a better chance of being granted permission to farm the land for the coming monsoon season, said U Nay Myo Wai, head of the Peace and Diversity Party. There are 85 farmers who want to establish a company on their own and they have already collected K83 million to do so, Nay Myo Wai said. Instead of other firms taking the farmland and doing a business, we believe that itll be better if the farmers run a business on their farmland as a kind of industrial farming, he said. The farm land is still very productive. If we miss this rainy season, we will lose about K200 million. The land approximately 800 acres was allegedly acquired by Zaykabar in early 2010 with the assistance of local government officials. Farmers say that the officials tricked them into believing it was being acquired for a government project. Zaykabar initially said it would build an industrial zone on the site and began destroying embankments in the area in early May, against the orders of the government. But the company also applied to the government on April 25 for permission to contract farm the fields for 2012-13 and its plans for the land are unclear. The farmers have also applied for permission to farm the land and the government is yet to give either side the green light.

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May 28 - June 3, 2012

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Indian PM to visit this week

By Zaw Win Than INDIAN Prime Minister Manmohan Singh will this week make a threeday visit to Myanmar, the first by an Indian leader in 25 years. The visit will include a meeting with U Thein Sein in Nay Pyi Taw and Daw Aung San Suu Kyi in Yangon during the May 27-29 visit. A spokesperson for the National League for Democracy said Mr Singh would meet the Nobel laureate on May 29 at Sedona Hotel in Yangon. He is expected to extend an invitation to Daw Aung San Suu Kyi to visit India, where her mother was once Myanmars ambassador. India has faced international criticism in the past for its engagement with Myanmars former military government, and Mr Singhs meeting with Daw Aung San Suu Kyi is seen as a sign that Delhi wants to reaffirm ties with the democracy activist. Media reports in India said Mr Singh would offer assistance to the Myanmar government in a number of areas, including capacity building, infrastructure development, agriculture and strengthening the countries defence partnership. India Today Group reported that a defence memorandum of understanding was also in the pipeline, while the prime minister would seek to further Indias interests by tapping Myanmars rich hydrocarbon reserves. Mr Singh and his wife will be joined by External Affairs Minister SM Krishna and senior officials. On May 28 He will hold talks with President U Thein Sein on measures to boost bilateral trade and expand connectivity, including increasing the number of direct flights between the two countries, are likely to figure in the discussions, according to reports. Indias proposal to open a bus route from Imphal to Mandalay is also likely to be raised, Press Trust of India reported. During his visit, Mr Singh will also deliver a public address on the theme India and Myanmar: A Partnership for Progress and Regional Development at a function in Yangon organised by the Union of Myanmar Federation of Chambers of Commerce and Industry and the Myanmar Development Resource Institute. Business delegations from the two sides will also hold sideline meetings. While in Yangon, Mr Singh will visit Shwedagon Pagoda and the tomb of the last Mughal Emperor of India, Bahadur Shah Zafar.

MyanMar tiMes

Small business can make big impact

By Victoria Bruce SOCIAL entrepreneurs from Asia and Europe descended on Yangon last week to meet leaders of businesses and non-government organisations operating in the education, public health and environment sectors. About 30 representatives from the Asia-Europe Foundation (ASEF), the Myanmar Business Executives group and the British Council attended the May 21-23 workshop, which was held for the first time in Myanmar. ASEFs director of intellectual exchange Sol Iglesias said social entrepreneurs aim to improve the social and living conditions of people and communities. Just as business entrepreneurs create and transform whole industries, social entrepreneurs and enterprises act as the change agents for society, Ms Iglesias said. When states are weak in terms of being able to provide basic services to their populace, thats where community service-oriented NGOs have filled the gap. Ms Iglesias said ASEF, which was developed to promote understanding and relationships between Asia and Europe, was very excited to be able to hold its first social entrepreneur workshop with the British Council in Myanmar. Theres a growing business community here that has really prioritised societal needs over profit. at home, but now it is very rare as the communitys attitude has changed. The British Councils director for Burma Alan Smart said social enterprises were important for the countrys future development. As chance gather pace in Myanmar the British Council believes social enterprise has a crucial role to play in empowering organisations that are working to meet social and environmental needs (amongst others) to make a positive impact in their communities, Mr Smart said. One of the workshop participants, Danish social entrepreneur Kathrine Rasmussen, said she hoped to work in Myanmar helping farmers develop an organic agricultural industry. Ms Rasmussen said encouraging people to start small businesses was a great way for them to financially support themselves, their families and their communities. In Europe right now theres a really big conversation around social entrepreneurship, whether it should come from businesses or from non-governmental organisations, she said. Theres this tendency you need to get rid of the NGOs and bring in businesses so people can sustain themselves financially. I think thats a really good initiative which will make financially sustainable businesses. The three-day workshop was funded by the British embassy in Myanmar and the Japanese government.

A girl learns how to weave in a textile factory. Pic: Supplied/ Asia-Europe Foundation One businessman helping his community is U Myat Thu Win, the director of Shwe Minn Tha Enterprises, a group of media, real estate and printing companies. U Myat Thu Win, who was born with cerebral palsy, started a foundation in 2008 and uses money from his businesses to support people with disabilities by creating education, training and employment opportunities. He said physically disabled people often faced social exclusion. Peoples attitudes towards physically disabled people have changed a lot but it is still the most difficult barrier for us to cross, he said. In the past, parents used to hide physically disabled children

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Aung had gone on strike, he said. Strikes have also occurred at Grand Royal distillery in Shwe Pyi Thar Industrial Zone, and Tycoon, Nay Min Aung and Yes One garment factories, he said. Workers from Nay Min Aung, Sabei Pwint and Myanmar Pearl had been on strike for 13 days as of May 26, but the longest strike has been at wig manufacturer Hi-Mo. YJ has a long strike too. It has been seven days, as they started their strike on May 18. Hi-Mo, the wig factory, went on strike for some days initially. When the owner complied with their requests, they went back to work. But after they found out the owner had lied, they went on strike again on May 17, said U Tun Tun Naing. On May 24 and 25, workers from Hi-Mo demonstrated all day and night, he added. The strike was very serious last night. Workers were upset but no one considered going back to work until our demands have been met. We held the strike all through the day and night and finally went home at 7:30am on May 25, said Ma Phyo Wai Wai Win, a spokesperson for the HiMo workers, adding that the strike was continuing. Workers from the Brilliant Sky factory, which produces shoes, went on strike on May 23, while employees from two shoe factories Brilliant Star and Lucky Shoe and more than 1200 workers from two garment factories Ngwe Kant Kaw and Asia Hnin Si stopped work on May 24. By the evening of May 25, the owners of Asia Hnin Si, Brilliant Star and Brilliant Sky had acceded to the striking workers demands and production quickly resumed. But at Lucky Shoe, even the supervisors joined the picket lines after the owner failed to respond. Workers went on strike yesterday, a supervisor from the Lucky Shoe factory told The Myanmar Times on May 25. They requested some changes, such as increased daily pay and an extra K200 for transportation. But our owner has not yet responded. We cant stand and watch while the other workers are striking for the rights of all of us so all 30 supervisors, including myself, went out to participate in the strike today. The Lucky Shoe workers also requested that the workers be given Sunday off without any financial penalty. U Tun Tun Naing said that while low pay was the major reason behind all of the 18 strikes, the complicated payment system was also an issue. Factory owners deliberately pay a very low basic salary to workers and then they add many kinds of bonus, like a gate pass bonus, overtime bonus and bonus for regularity. Owners use these bonuses to control the workers. For example, they have to work overtime whether they want to or not because their basic salary is not enough to survive, he said. In many factories, security staff close the gate as soon as all the workers arrived. Workers are trapped like they are in a prison. When they want to go out, they have to sign into a gate pass book and then their salary is cut. The average salary for a factory worker is only K52 an hour. Thats why they are striking, U Tun Tun Naing said, adding that the figure was based on surveys of striking workers that his group had conducted. Most of the factories are owned by Chinese, Taiwanese and South Koreans, he added. The government issued a law concerning basic pay but it is only for government staff. I think they really need to make a basic pay law for working class people to solve these problems and ensure that owners cannot just cut workers salaries for any reason.

MyanMar tiMes

Eighteen strikes Yangon in May: activist

By Noe Noe Aung and Myat May Zin EIGHTEEN strikes have occurred in Yangon industrial zones in the first four weeks of May, with several still active, a labour rights activist said last week. According to our survey, since May 1 there have been at least 18 strikes by factory workers to May 26, U Tun Tun Naing, a spokesperson for the Committee for the Establishment of Independent Workers Unions, told The Myanmar Times. Workers from five factories Nay Min Aung, Sabei Pwint, Myanmar Pearl, YJ and Hi-Mo are holding long term strikes. [On May 22], we got news that workers from a knitwear factory Toe Mya

Workers embrace power to strike

By Shwe Yin Mar Oo YANGON Silenced for decades under military rule, the countrys workers are daring to speak out to demand better pay and conditions after a new law gave them the right to strike. Worker s i n M y a n m a r a r e already testing their new-found power with a string of walkouts, emboldened by legislation that is considered among the most progressive in the region. Hundreds of employees from three garment factories at Yangons Hlaing Tharyar Industrial Zone went on strike last week demanding improved working conditions, picketing outside the plants. Clapping and chanting, they showed none of the fear that would have accompanied such open defiance in the past, when businesses held all the cards in a system defined by cronyism and intolerance of opposition. If they want to sack us, they will have to fire all 800 workers, said one 26-year-old employee who said she was not afraid of losing her job but was reluctant to give her name. If they dont increase the money, we will continue protesting, she added, saying she was paid about US$60 a month. The new legislation, approved by parliament and promulgated by President U Thein Sein to replace the repressive 1962 Trade Unions Act, was prepared with the help of the International Labour Organisation (ILO). It gives workers the right to strike when employers have been given advance notice, and to form unions with a minimum of 30 members. The new rules represent a challenge to both workers and employers in the country. Its the very early days of a new industrial environment.

Workers from the Asia Hnin Si garment factory in Hlaing Tharyar township hold a discussion during a strike on May 25. Pic: Boothee People are coming to grips with revival as it opens up to foreign by their own will a deadline it, understanding new rights investment, job opportunities ignored by the strikers. It is just one in a number of and responsibilities, said Steve can be scarce in Myanmar and recent cases of labour unrest at Marshall, the ILOs liaison officer consumer prices are rising. The protester at Hlaing Tharyar factories in Myanmar, whose lowin Myanmar. He said people may become said workers wanted a cost of cost workforce is a major attraction aware that they now have the living allowance of K30,000 a for foreign manufacturers hoping right to strike but have little month, which would bring her to set up operations there. Earlier this month around 300 understanding of how to negotiate total monthly salary to about workers at a wig with employers, who factory in the same are also adjusting to industrial zone went the new rules. Its the very early days of a new on strike, demanding We will likely that their basic see some industrial industrial environment. People are salaries be raised disruption and that is part of the coming to grips with it, understanding from about $12 a month to roughly learning process, new rights and responsibilities. $38. Mr Marshall said. We have faced A foreign diplomat this problem for a said the new long time but we couldnt stand legislation was considered as $100, including overtime. Her employer had agreed to a it any longer, said 23-year-old possibly the best such law in $12 allowance, but we are not Thingyan Moe. The South Korean Asia. employer granted all of the staff But he added: The question is satisfied with that, she said. The firm said in a statement requests. how to implement it in the current Many protests are occurring state of Myanmar society, which is that workers who had not agreed to its offer by May 18 would be in factories at industrial zones not quite ready yet. Despite hopes of an economic considered to have resigned these days, said lawyer U Htay, who has been helping the striking workers. The reforms have not yet filtered through to employers or rank-andfile labour ministry bureaucrats, he added, so that workers have no other option than to protest to get what they want. If these issues are not solved, it might cause instability. It might become the beginning of a labour uprising. We cant guess how far it will go. But most recent disputes have been small in scale, with workers opting to walk out in the early stage of negotiations and agreeing a resolution within days. U Ye Naing Win, of the Committee for Establishing Independent Labour Unions, a local activist group, said there had been more than 20 strikes this year and more were expected. The protests are occurring because the basic salary they get is so poor and their lives get harder, he said. AFP

TiMESbusiness
TOKYO Japan said May 21 it is in talks with Myanmar on an investment treaty, with Tokyo eyeing terms to help its companies establish themselves in the isolated nation as it embraces democratic reforms. A second round of the negotiations, which began in February, started in Nay Pyi Taw on May 23 between officials from the countries foreign and trade ministries, a Japanese trade ministry official said. We hope to support Japanese firms investment in Myanmar by preparing investment terms that are non-discriminatory to foreign firms, he told AFP. We hope to seal a deal by later this year, hopefully by the ASEAN summit in November, he added. The move comes as Myanmar prepares for an economic resurgence following the end of decades of military rule, which in turn is attracting attention from firms all over Asia seeking a piece of the potentially lucrative market. Investment rules for foreign firms are hazy in Myanmar, said Yoshihiro Araki, a researcher at the Japan External Trade Organisation. I dont know of any laws that clearly stipulate rules such as domestic procurement and technological transfer, so it is difficult for companies to pour in a huge amount of money without an investment treaty, he added. However, Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corp said on May 22 it will lend technical support to Myanmars biggest commercial bank as it looks to tap the country as it embarks on reforms that ended decades of isolation. SMBC, the retail banking unit of Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group, said it signed an agreement on May 21 with Kanbawza Bank, Myanmars largest commercial bank, with an eye to expanding its presence in the country. The Japanese firm said it will advise the Myanmar lender on banking operations and help train its employees, a Sumitomo spokesman said. The [agreement] is the first of its kind signed between a Japanese bank and a private bank in Myanmar since the recent progress in democratisation in Myanmar, the Japanese lender said in a statement on May 22. While considering possibilities, including a future business tie-up between the two banks, we aim to build our supporting system for our clients entering into the country, it said. Ministop, one of Japans convenience store chains, has also struck a deal with Myanmars largest retailer, City Mart, on a possible business tie-up to open convenience stores in Myanmar, a company spokesman said on May 21. Tokyo has said it would forgive about US$3.7 billion of Myanmars debt and resume suspended aid as Japanese firms continue a push into the country. Myanmar has largely untapped natural resources, including minerals, metals and fossil fuels, and a potentially huge tourism sector, although challenges abound with the rule of law weakly enforced and a major infrastructure deficit. The United States on May 17 eased investment sanctions on Myanmar and named the first US ambassador to the country in more than two decades. Group of Eight leaders gathered for talks in the United States at the weekend praised the remarkable efforts of President U Thein Sein and pro-democracy leader Daw Aung San Suu Kyi in delivering democratic reforms. AFP

May 28 - June 3, 2012

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Japan, Myanmar start investment talks

Minister for Industry U Soe Thein delivers a speech during the 18th International Conference on the Future of Asia in Tokyo on May 25. Pic: AFP

Amended domestic investment law aims for level playing field

By Aung Kyi MYANMARS domestic investment law will be amended to level the playing field between incoming international companies and local firms, a government official said last week. U Kyaw Tun, director of the Directorate of Myanmar Investment Companies, said the law would give domestic companies tax exemptions for income tax and customs duty for at least three years. He made the comments during a workshop on vehicle imports at the Union of Myanmar Federation of Chambers of Commerce and Industry in Yangon on May 21. The investment law for Myanmar citizens is being amended by the Myanmar Investment Commission (MIC) [but] citizens will get better opportunities than the new investment law to be approved for foreign companies, said U Kyaw Tun. The tax exemption period will be at least three years and during that time the company will be able to import raw materials and machinery to be used in their enterprises with no tax or customs duties, he said. However, existing companies that wish to benefit from the amended law would need to start new enterprises, he said. The new investment law is to be included in the legislation covering joint venture companies. Under that law, Myanmar citizens will be required to invest at least 10 percent in the joint venture within the first year, 20pc in the second year and 30pc in the third year, U Kyaw Htun said. MIC has received 43 joint venture proposals, one of which was submitted by Suzuki Motors to implement a project with a Myanmar private company, he said. The new investment laws for Myanmar and foreign companies will also allow cutting, manufacturing and packing (CMP) operations to import raw materials, process them and then export the finished goods, he said. The amended Foreign Investment Law would also no longer require foreign companies to establish partnerships with Myanmar firms and would grant them a five-year tax exemption. As The Myanmar Times reported last week, the bill was expected to be passed into law during the most recent session of parliament, which ended on May 2, but lawmakers did not have enough time, it will be re-examined when the fourth session begins in July. According to a widely circulated draft of that law, foreign companies would be allowed to set up in Myanmar on their own or establish joint ventures with local firms or government departments.

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Job watch
VACANCY ANNOUNCEMENT
Embassy of the Republic of Korea in Yangon is seeking applicants for the posts Admin Assistant/ Secretary. The applicants must be - Fluent in both written and spoken English, selfmotivator - University degree holder, Minimum 2 years of experience in Admin field and/or experience in support service is required - Excellent in using Microsoft office packages especially in Microsoft Excel. Qualified female candidates are strongly encouraged to apply. Interested candidates should send updated CV, recently taken photographs, educational documents with cover letter to No. 97, University Avenue, Bahan Tsp no later than 6 June 2012. For more information, please feel free to contact 01-527142~144 during office hours.

Save the Children is serving as Principal Recipient (PR) of Global Fund Program for AIDS, TB, Malaria (GFATM) for three separate large grants in Myanmar (with a total budget of approximately USD 120 million over 5 years), which are performancebased, and will oversee 16 Sub-Recipients (SRs) all International NGOs. Currently we are recruiting the following two positions. 1. The Compliance Manager-GFATM, a Myanmar national position, will bear the responsibility for, but not limited to, assessment and verification of PRs and SRs financial reports, general ledgers, transactions, documentations, invoices, other reports. Required Qualifications: Minimum three year experience in external audit or internal audit for international organizations (required). Good written and spoken English skills (required). Professional Certification (CPA, chartered accountancy) or post-graduate degree (preferred). Substantial experience working with INGOs (preferred). Ability to analyze and make decisions. Self-starter, pro-active, problem solving, analytical skills, ability to work independently and as part of a team. Ability to link budget and actual expenditures, to work plan. Representational and sensitivity awareness skills. Excellent communication and interpersonalskills.GoodITskills,includingMicrosoftExcel and Word, and good understanding of automated accounting software. Commitment to understanding of Save the Childrens aims, values and principles. 2. The Sub-Grant Manager-GFATM, a Myanmar national position, will be responsible for SR contractual oversight financial report review and analysis. Required Qualifications: Minimum five year experience in grants/sub-grants management for international organizations. University degree in finance, accounting, management, economics, or related fields (required). Good written and spoken English skills (required). Substantial experience working with INGOs (prefer-red). Ability to analyze and make decisions. Self-starter, pro-active, problem solving, analytical skills, ability to work independently and as part of a team. Ability to link budget and actual expenditures, to work plan. Representational and sensitivity awareness skills. Excellent communication and interpersonal skills. Good IT skills, including Microsoft Excel and Word, and good understanding of automated accounting software. Commitment to understanding of Save the Childrens aims, values and principles. Detailed job descriptions for this position will be available at the Save the Children office or www.themimu.info/jobs/index.php. Interested and qualified candidates are requested to send an Application Letter and Curriculum Vitae to Human Resources Department, Save the Children, Wizaya Plaza-First Floor, 226 U Wisara Road, Bahan Township, Yangon, Myanmar (or) kkhtay@ savechildren.org.mm | recruitment.ygnhr@ gmail.com | not later than 5 P.M., 11 June 2012 (Monday) Note: Only short-listed candidates will be contacted.

The Central Bank of Myanmar says it wants to weaken the national currency to combat an expected inflow of foreign currency. Pic: Kaung Htet

Central Bank aims for weak kyat

a reformist former general, has urged parliament and his cabinet to pursue the most breathtaking reforms in the former British colony since a 1962 military coup when it was known as Burma. These include the freeing of hundreds of political prisoners, an easing in media controls and peace deals with groups of armed ethnic minorities. U Nay Aye said a new foreign currency management law that would further lift trading restrictions on the currency had been approved by parliament and would be enacted soon, making it more freely traded and further curbing the black market. Minister for Industry U Soe Thein said he personally would like to see the kyat at about K1000 to the dollar. For our farmers, fishermen and manufacturers, this would be a help to them, he said. Speaking at the Central Banks headquarters in Nay Pyi Taw, U Nay Aye added that foreign banks would be allowed to form joint ventures in Myanmar from 2014, a year before Southeast Asian countries are expected to formally integrate their economies. Despite a year of wide-ranging political reforms, Myanmars government has been slow to revise laws on the growing

By Jason Szep and Aung Hla Tun NAY PYI TAW Myanmars Central Bank wants to weaken its newly floated currency and prevent further rises that could derail reforms to its economy, a deputy Central Bank governor said. U Nay Aye, one of two deputy governors, added that foreign banks will be able to form joint ventures in Myanmar by 2014, a year earlier than expected, as foreign investors begin to size up one of Asias most promising frontier markets following the suspension of US and European sanctions. Aprils float of the kyat was the biggest economic policy step in a year of dramatic change. Managing the kyat poses an extraordinary challenge for reformers struggling to rebuild an economy blighted by decades of mismanagement and hurt by trade-crippling sanctions. The International Monetary Fund cautioned in a report this month that the kyat had been overvalued by as much as 40 percent this year, and that any further rise could hurt the economy. Asked if he would like to bring down the currencys value, U Nay Aye said yes, noting the Central Bank was developing a fund for carrying out open-market operations and stabilising the currency. In the near future there will be a massive inflow of foreign direct investment, and as a result Myanmars kyat is expected to appreciate. We will do our best to prevent this, he told Reuters. President U Thein Sein,

near future there will be a massive In theof foreign direct investment, and inflow [the] kyat is expected to appreciate. We will do our best to prevent this.

The managed float of the kyat was intended to unify a chaotic array of informal exchange rates that had surged in value from more than K1000 a dollar in 2009 as money flowed into the timber, energy and gem industries, mostly from China. The Central Bank now sets a reference rate after a daily currency auction involving 17 dealer banks, a first step towards developing a formal inter-bank market. The reference rate was K840 a dollar on May 25, compared with K818 on April 2, the first day of the managed float. Exporters say the current levels make their goods uncompetitive.

number of foreign banks clamouring to tap the country of 60 million people, whose natural gas, minerals and other resources make it one of Asias most tantalising new markets. As the United States and European Union suspend economic sanctions, foreign banks remain limited to representative offices that can do little more than conduct research. U Nay Aye said in 2014, banks from countries in the 10-member ASEAN bloc would be allowed in, with banks from other countries following afterwards. But the central bank is seeking to change regulations to allow foreign banks from elsewhere to form joint ventures in 2014.

The ASEAN integration process requires allowing qualified banks from ASEAN to open branches in the country with effect from 2014. We are doing our best to be able to fulfil this requirement, U Nay Aye said. Especially we are thinking of allowing joint-ventures with foreign banks and branches of foreign banks. This is something we have to carry out after laying down firm rules, regulations and procedures, he added. At the first stage, ASEAN banks will be allowed under ASEAN financial integration process and at the second stage banks from other regions beyond ASEAN. In its report this month, the IMF said accelerating the modernisation of the financial sector was essential to prepare for economic integration in 2015. But it also noted the authorities worries about capacity constraints, in particular a lack of experienced local bankers: They preferred a gradual liberalisation, indicating that many domestic banks are not ready for price competition, notwithstanding the need to prepare for ASEAN integration. Dozens of local and foreign banks thrived in the 1950s. But the industry withered after a 1962 coup introduced a disastrous Burmese Way to Socialism and sweeping nationalisation. In 1988, the countrys former military rulers reintroduced a market economy. Soon after, in 1992, private banks were allowed and foreign banks began opening representative offices. There were over 40 at one point but only 18 are open now. Reuters

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United States Secretary of State Hillary Clinton announced that US was encouraging business to invest in Myanmar. The United States will issue a general license that will enable American businesses to invest across the economy, allow citizens access to international credit markets and dollar-based transactions, she said. U Soe Myint, a retired director general from the Ministry of Energy was quoted in the Bangkok Post in April as saying that Western oil companies would lose out to Asian competitors if they did not act quickly. If you keep staying in wait-and-see mode, I can tell you that you will be too late [to invest], U Soe Myint told the Bangkok Post. US oil firms had a presence in Myanmars energy sector before the imposition of economic and investment sanction on Myanmar in 1997. However, US oil giant Chevron was able to buy Unocal and its Myanmar stakes in 2005 through an exemption granted on existing assets. In July 2011, Myanmar called for tenders for exploration of 18 onshore blocks, which resulted in seven companies being awarded nine onshore blocks. The companies that won tenders included Thailands PTTEPI, Malaysias Petronas, Swiss firm GeoPetrol, CIS Nobel Oil from Russia, EPI Holding Ltd from Hong Kong and Jubilant Oil from India. Meanwhile, U Aung Kyaw Htoo said the country could not meet its demand for crude oil because domestic consumption outweighed production. Myanmar consumes about 60,000 barrels a day (bpd) but produces 20,000bpd, about 33 percent of the total crude oil consumption, an Energy

MyanMar tiMes

Govt calls for offshore block investment

By Moe Thu MYANMAR recently announced that 23 offshore oil and gas blocks were available to international oil companies interested in working in the potentially lucrative sector. The announcement was made by U Aung Kyaw Htoo, assistant director of the Ministry of Energys Energy Planning Department, during the 5 th Myanmar Business Conference 2012, held in the second week of May. U Aung Kyaw Htoo said the blocks were located in Rakhine, Mottama and Tanintharyi offshore areas and had not been exploited by multinational oil companies yet. The conference, which was jointly organised by Singapores Foreign Recruitment Centre and FBC Services Co in Myanmar, was aimed at attracting foreign investment in the energy sector. Myanmars oil and gas sector is mostly dominated by oil companies from China, Thailand, India and Malaysia. However, the easing of economic sanction by Western nations could encourage energy companies to attempt to tap into the countrys oil and gas reserves. U Htin Aung, director general of the Energy Planning Department, told The Myanmar Times at an oil and gas conference in March that all new ventures would require foreign companies to work with at least one local partner when developing blocks. The governments call for foreign investment comes as relations with the United States have dramatically improved. During a meeting with Foreign Minister U Wanna Maung Lwin on May 17,

A young girl holds a candle at a peaceful protest against electricity shortages in Yangon last week. Pic: Kaung Htet Planning Department presentation at the summit showed. U Aung Kyaw Htoo also called for help in building a new refinery capable of processing 56,000bpd, a new liquefied petroleum gas factory and liquefied natural gas facilities on Made Island in Rakhine State. Despite Myanmars wealth of hydroelectric and hydrocarbon sources, many parts of the country are not connected to the national electricity grid, while even Yangon suffers frequent blackouts towards the end of the hot months when water levels of hydropower dams run low. Recent blackouts in Yangon and Mandalay have sparked non-violent protests in those cities, with residents upset over the large-scale export of natural gas to Thailand that could instead be used to generate electricity for Myanmar. Dr Thant Myint-U, a renowned writer and grandson of late UN Secretary General U Thant, said Myanmar needed investment in its power generating network. In a post on Dr Thant Myint-Us Facebook account on May 23, he said Myanmar needs massive investment in power generation to solve chronic power shortages. Its not just a matter of selling or not selling natural gas to Thailand and China. All the natural gas in the world wont make a difference if there is no investment in the infrastructure needed to get electricity to homes and businesses. And this sort of big investment is much less likely to come whilst sanctions are only suspended, he wrote. The Energy Planning Department showed that 61 percent of Myanmars natural gas supply is sent to gas turbines in Yangon for electricity generation.

Export credits losing value: traders

EXPORT credits have been falling in value as rumours have spread that they will gradually be withdrawn from the market, traders and officials said last week. The fall was precipitated by the governments announcement on May 7 that all citizens would be allowed to open foreign currency accounts with state-run banks to import cars. The credits, widely called export earnings, are earned through the export of goods and services. Instituted as part of the nations export first, import later trade policy, export credits are required to import goods into the country. They have typically traded at a 10 percent premium to US dollars or Foreign Exchange Certificates because tax has already been paid on them, but last week they were trading at about the same price. On May 23 FECs were trading in the K835842 bracket, while dollars and export credits were changing hands for K830-835 and an export credit is K830-835. Official foreign currency exchange counters in Yangon were trading dollars for K834-845 on the same day, while the Central Bank of Myanmars daily rate was K840 to the dollar. A fortnight ago, the dollar traded for about K826, while FEC and export credits were valued at about K835 on the black market. U Min Ko Oo, a secretary of the Myanmar Pulses, Beans and Sesame Seeds Merchants Association, said export credits should be valued higher than dollars or FEC to avoid negative effects on exports. I think the export credit value needs to be boosted in the long-term because its safer for importers than buying dollars or FEC, he said, adding that the Central Bank needed to find a balance that was fair to both exporters and importers. But U Win Aung, a beans and pulses exporter, said: We should not think export credits will be worth much more than dollars because export tax is no longer 10pc and its in the governments interest to see stable values. He added that the demand for export credits had been reduced because the government announced on May 7 that traders could also use FEC in their bank accounts as export credits. However, this measure was only available to car importers. Minister for Industry and Myanmar Investment Commission chairman U Soe Thein told The Myanmar Times earlier this month that the government would act to raise or lower exchange rates if it saw the need. Myanmar Shrimp Association chairman U Hnin Oo said he believed the International Monetary Fund had advised the government to drop export credits before 2015 and expected that they would slowly disappear. The foreign currency exchange market works by supply and demand and is not easy control there are many factors that affect it. We just surf the waves as best we can, he said. Aye Thidar Kyaw

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Car service firms call for help

By Aye Thidar Kyaw CAR companies last week vented their complaints at a workshop in Yangon to discuss the governments May 7 decision to alter vehicle import procedures, with many reporting significant losses as a result of the unexpected action. The workshop was held at the Union of Myanmar Federation of Chambers of Commerce and Industry headquarters in Lanmadaw township on May 21. U Aung Win, a spokesperson for Yaung Ni Oo Auto Services Company, called for car service companies to be allowed to import and sell 2007 and newer car models exclusively to compensate for losses incurred by the May 7 changes, which greatly devalued vehicles brought in under the previous overage car import substitution program. He said that when the government first announced the overage car import policy in September 2011, the price of cars eligible for import at auction lots in Japan, where most vehicles have been sourced, skyrocketed by more than 300 percent, especially for popular models such as Toyota Mark II sedans, Hilux Surfs, Harriers, Crowns and unable to buy consignments through other companies, he said. He added that some car dealers had been forced to pay money in advance to Japanese companies to send them vehicles to sell in Myanmar and had been unable to secure consignments on trust because they had no prior business relationships. Car company representatives also complained that when the 2007-and-above cars began arriving in the market, nobody would want to buy the older vehicles. Cars sales centres are not attracting customers because sales centres dont repair the import car condition, but dealers repaired their cars properly, so people are happy to buy from dealers, even though it costs K1 to K2 million more, said one businessman who attended the workshop. Participants at the workshop were also informed that the government would allow buses and taxis to be imported in either leftor right-hand drive and commerce officials said public companies needed to be formed to organise these imports. This move would help to modernise Yangons fleet of old and decrepit buses and taxis.

Japan eyes car market: sources

JAPANESE car companies have expressed interest in setting up factories in Myanmar, several car showroom owners said last week at car importing and production workshop in Yangon. Importing used cars is not the right way for Japanese companies, like Toyota, Nissan and Mitsubishi, in the long term, said U Htay Aung, chairman of Sakura Auto Auction Centre and owner of Sakura car showroom. But if they set up here properly then buyers can get vehicles and services from the companies direct, he added. We [car showroom owners] have invested thousand of lakhs to set up our showrooms But we have no guarantees for the future. People are buying cars from us, instead of on the open market, because we supply cars with licences. But if they buy from a car showroom, they have to wait for up to three weeks to get licences and registrations, he said. We will cooperate with foreign car companies to help them set up factories here, he added. Mitsubishi Heavy Industries (MHI) and Japan Heavy Industries Ltd are two of the companies interested in setting up in Myanmar, said U Mg Mg Tin, deputy general manager of Mitsubishis Yangon branch office. He said the company was looking at the opportunities available in Myanmar, as well as the challenges posed by its regulations and the delaying of amendments to the foreign investment law. MHI is interested in investing in Myanmar and

Port authorities oversee the unloading of newly imported cars in Yangon. Pic: Myanmar Times Archive Caldinas and Mitsubishi Pajeros. The May 7 changes announced by the government mean anybody with US$10,000 in a bank account at a state-run bank can import a 2007 or newer vehicle. This time people will also rush to buy cars through websites and prices for eligible cars will likely increase by 200pc or 300pc, he said. Deputy Commerce Minister Dr Pwint San admitted that the government had not spent long considering the changes but had succeeded in its aim of lowering prices. Were trying to ensure that the market can no longer be manipulated by a small group of people, he said. An official from the Directorate of Trade said the Ministry of Commerce had not made any decision to favour service companies but was trying to reduce restrictions step-by-step. We have not heard any announcement yet but we know that some car sales centres that held many import permits have faced losses because they were

Importing used cars is not

the right way for Japanese companies.

has already started doing surveys and market research, a process that will take about one year, he said. U Aye Min, a car dealer, said Myanmar car buyers trusted Japanese vehicles long before September, when the government announced the overage car import substitution program. We are used to Japanese cars and buyers prefer them, he said. Myat May Zin

More taxis, buses on the way

By Aung Kyi MORE proposals to import taxis and buses from companies that have agreements or approvals from their respective administrative government will be allowed, a senior official from the Ministry of Commerce said during a workshop in Yangon on May 21. The workshop was held at the Union of Myanmar Federation of Chambers of Commerce and Industry headquarters and focused on vehicle imports. By May 18, the Ministry of Commerce had allowed Fisheries and Marine Ptd Ltd to import 50 new Hyundai Sonata sedans, while Union of Myanmar Economic Holdings Ltd had been granted approval to import 100 Toyota Corolla sedans, said U Kyaw Soe, the general manager of the Ministry of Commerce. The Yangon Region government has also allowed nine companies to import taxi cabs that are 2007 or newer sedans in either left- or right-hand drive, he added. The nine companies are: Ocean & Orion, Apex Greatest Industrial Services, High Tech Princess Services, Capital Auto Motive, U Thamardi International, Doh Shwe Myanmar, Triple Two Trading, First Royal Family and Asia Master. Although the Yangon Region government has approved nine companies, the Ministry of Commerce has only received one

An old bus drives along a street in Yangon. Pic: Myanmar Times Archive proposal from the nine companies concerned, said U Min Min, a Ministry of Commerce director. According to the rules set for taxis, entities will be set up as public companies to provide the services, he said. These should include on-call systems and the vehicles should be the same colour and be operated by meter charges, he added. U Kyaw Soe said passenger buses should be allowed to be imported by companies that have export earnings and should be lefthand drive and made no earlier than 2007. By May 18, the Ministry of Commerce had allowed Thinkhaypya Co Ltd to import 30 CNG-powered buses and Aung Thein Than Service and Agency Ltd had permits to import 40 as well, he said. Taxi owner and Yankin resident U Aung Min said the system unfairly benefited companies. Companies are allowed to import taxi cabs and buses without submitting overage cars but individual car owners only receive permits when they hand over their old car. Thats not fair, he said. It would be more reasonable if the Ministry of Commerce or the Directorate of Road Transport could reduce the taxes for car owners. Under the overage car import substitution program, which was unveiled in September 2011, the Directorate of Road Transport is able to grant tax exemptions of between 10 percent and 30pc to importers depending on the condition of the vehicle.

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sanctions a month earlier. After years of detention and house arrest, opposition leader and Nobel laureate Daw Aung San Suu Kyi took her seat in parliament on May 2, ushering in a new political era. Ogilvy & Mather was also the first international ad agency to set up in Vietnam when US sanctions were lifted there in 1994. Vietnam is now one of WPPs fastestgrowing markets. Its not often that a market of this size opens up, with this history and infrastructure and capability, so its very, very exciting, WPP chief executive Martin Sorrell told Reuters. Myanmar has a population of about 60 million, who live on an average income of about US$4 a day far less than that in rural communities. It has an average age of 27 and is rich in resources but has little provision for business or banking. Myanmars advertising market was worth just $33 million in 2011, according to leading media buyer ZenithOptimedia, compared with $600 million for Vietnam. John Goodman, who led the Myanmar negotiations for Ogilvy & Mather, said current advertisers were mostly Japanese or South Korean companies selling electronics, and Chinese, Indian and Vietnamese firms selling consumer goods or fast food. Whos taking an interest now? Everyone. Weve just been barraged, he told Reuters. Initially it will be low entry goods, small pack sizes ... but we think there will be a fairly rapidly developing middle class. People are well educated. With 60 employees, Today Advertising is Myanmars top ad agency, according to Ogilvy & Mather, which has a long-standing partnership with the company. Advertising in Myanmar today is almost exclusively via television and outdoor billboards, Goodman said. Internet advertising is almost non-existent with only about 100,000 people or 0.2 percent of the population, online, while Goodman said print quality was so poor it did not lend itself to newspaper advertising. The ink comes off on your fingers, he said. Reuters

MyanMar tiMes

Ad firm WPP enters Myanmar

By Georgina Prodhan LONDON WPP has become the first foreign advertising group to invest in Myanmar since Western sanctions were suspended, betting on a flood of demand from multinational companies wanting to market their goods and services. New York-based Ogilvy & Mather, part of the global WPP group, said on May 21 it had agreed to buy a stake in Myanmars leading ad agency Today Advertising, staking out an early position in one of Asias last frontier markets. The United States suspended sanctions on May 18 in response to political reforms in Myanmar. Europe had suspended

Three industrial zones set for Ayeyarwady Region: chief minister

By Htoo Aung THREE industrial zones will be established in Ayeyarwady Region, its chief minister said last week. U Thein Aung said the zones will be established at Pathein, Maubin and Wakema and the Ayeyarwady Region government was working out how to supply the zones with electricity. For the time being, the [national] government is building a 230-kilovolt line, he said. For the Pathein zone the government is going to build a transformer at Maubin, he added. He said Thai energy firm PTTEPI had discovered commercial gas reserves at its offshore M-3 oil and gas block that could be piped to Pathein. After building a pipeline, we will also need to build a gas turbine ... After that we can distribute electricity to all three industrial zones and surplus power can be distributed to nearby towns and villages, he said. Pathein already has a 78-acre industrial zone that opened in 1992.

CAEXPO focuses on science and tech

T H E 9 th C h i n a - A S E A N Expo (CAEXPO) will be held in Nanning, China on September 21-25, with this years focus on cooperation in science and technology. CAEXPOs Secretariat said the preparations for the upcoming event are in full swing. The 2012 edition of the CAEXPO marks the 10th year after the Framework Agreement on Comprehensive Economic Cooperation between ASEAN and China was concluded, and also marks the Year of China-ASEAN Science and Technology Cooperation. T h e 9 th C A E X P O w i l l be another diverse and colourful event that will feature five pavilions showcasing commodity trading, investment cooperation, advanced technology, trade in services and the cities of charm. H o w e v e r, C A E X P O will also feature the China-ASEAN Science & Technology Ministers Conference to celebrate the theme of this years event, while there will also be a series of high-end conferences, forums and activities. Many ASEAN and Chinese leaders will personally visit the grand event. CAEXPO, co-sponsored by the governments o f M y a n m a r, C h i n a and the other ASEAN member states, has been successfully held every year since 2004. It has shaped as an important platform for friendly exchanges, business promotion and bilateral cooperation in various fields between ASEAN and China. The previous eight CAEXPOs attracted 42 ASEAN and Chinese leaders, more than 1500 ministerial level VIPs and 316,000 participants. The event has also hosted more than 200 high-level conferences, forums and activities. ADVERTORIAL

Trade Mark CauTion

idemitsu kosan Co., Ltd., a Company incorporated in Japan, of 1-1, Marunouchi 3-chome, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo, Japan, is the Owner of the following Trade Mark:-

reg. no. 4329/2009 in respect of Industrial Oils; lubricating oils; lubricants. Fraudulent imitation or unauthorised use of the said Trade Mark will be dealt with according to law. Win Mu Tin, M.A., H.G.P., D.B.L for idemitsu kosan Co., Ltd. P. O. Box 60, Yangon E-mail: makhinkyi.law@mptmail.net.mm Dated: 28th May, 2012

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Structural flaw blamed for building collapse

In Depth
with Htar Htar Khin STRUCTURAL weakness and poor awareness have been blamed for the partial collapse of a two-storey residential house in Pazundaung township on May 9. Nobody was hurt in the partial collapse on Myaung Gyi Street that affected the back right-hand side of the building, including the toilet and bathroom. Developers say the collapse of the 30-year-old building highlights a widespread lack of understanding about structural safety as well as the inherent weaknesses of buildings constructed in that era. Residents said the problems started about two years ago when construction of a building alongside started. One factor behind the collapse is the age of the building but there were no problems until a company started building a six-storey building next door, said Ma Ei Pyae Phyo, a resident of the building. Soon after we noticed the floor started to sink a little and huge cracks appeared in the walls. But Im sure there were other structural problems that we could not see, she said. The problems were at their worst closest to the construction site, she added. U Lazarus, the managing director of Yadanar Shwe Htun Construction, said 30-year-old brick knocking buildings had a well-deserved reputation for poor quality. People need to warn the Yangon City Development Committee in a timely manner about these kinds of problems because that type of building is prone to collapse, he said. Its quite rare to see or hear of 100-year-old buildings collapsing but 30-year-old brick knocking buildings do so quite frequently, U Lazarus said. He added that construction sites in the vicinity of brick knocking buildings doubled the risk of collapse. Many brick knocking buildings were constructed with swallow foundations that can be upset if a high-rise project starts next door. Developers need to double their precautions when working alongside brick knocking buildings, U Lazarus said. He said developers contemplating a project next to a brick knocking building needed to carefully assess its structural condition before starting work, and keep a 4-foot gap from the foundation during work. U Ko Ko Lay, a director of Three Friends Construction in Mingalar Taung Nyunt township, said past collapses highlighted the importance of good planning. Our firm is now building a project alongside a two-storey brick knocking building in Tarmwe township, he said. We have been very careful about this issue from the planning stage and ensure that the footprint of our building does not touch the site alongside. Weve also left a gap to prevent contact later. The construction techniques in brick knocking-type buildings were poor and their foundations are typically shallow, which is a major structural flaw, he added. He added: I think there should be a housing board committee lead by the YCDC to assess the structural safety of all kinds of high-rises in Yangon. This is essential to prevent further collapses and issues in future, he said.

A Yangon City Development Committee notice on show at the partially collapsed house in Pazundaung township last week. Pic: Ko Taik

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Cyber crooks step up weapons production: report

SAN FRANCISCO Cyber criminals are cranking out new weapons at a brisk pace, tailoring malicious software for a spectrum of gadgets including smartphones, tablets, and Macintosh computers, a security firm said. A threats report released late on May 21 by McAfee showed that the number of new pieces of malicious code, or malware, targeting Windows machines in the first three months of this year was the highest in four years. There was also a rise in malware aimed at mobile gadgets running on Googlebacked Android software and at Macintosh computers based on Apple operating systems, according to the report. In the first quarter of 2012, we have already detected eight million new malware samples, showing that malware authors are continuing their unrelenting development, said McAfee Labs senior vice president Vincent Weafer. The same skills and techniques that were sharpened on the PC platform are increasingly being extended to other platforms, such as mobile and Mac. For a long time cyber criminals concentrated their attention on getting into Windows-powered personal computers (PCs) because the popularity of the operating system meant a wealth of potential victims. But as Apple and Android devices have caught on around the world, they have emerged as a new target. As more homes and businesses use these platforms, the attacks will spread, Weafer said. While Mac malware has been steadily proliferating, it is still a small fraction of what has been developed for PCs, according to McAfee. The amount of spam in the quarter dropped to slightly more than a trillion trash messages monthly, with significant decreases in Brazil, Russia, and Indonesia and increases in China, Britain, Germany, Poland, and Spain. The number of networks of virus-infected computers, referred to as botnets, rose to nearly five million, with Colombia, Japan, Poland, Spain and the United States seeing the biggest increases. Hackers use ploys such as booby-trapped emails or links to secretly infect machines with malware that can let them not only steal data or track keystrokes but use the infected machines to launch further attacks. The United States was the primary address for botnets and cyber attacks in the quarter, McAfee reported. Cyber crooks sell malware software kits and rent out use of botnets, according to internet security specialists and law enforcement. AFP

Historic SpaceX blasts off

By Jean-Louis Santini CAPE CANAVERAL, Florida Opening a new era in private space flight, the US company SpaceX on May 22 became the first commercial outfit to launch its own craft toward the International Space Station. The test flight of the Dragon space capsule, which launched atop SpaceXs Falcon 9 rocket at 3:44am, aims to show that industry can restore US access to the ISS after NASA retired its space shuttle fleet last year. The mission is set to include a fly-by and berthing with the station in the next three days, before the capsule returns to Earth at the end of this month. Shortly after lift-off, the cargocarrying spacecraft entered orbit and live video images showed mission control staff at SpaceX headquarters in Hawthorne, California jumping fr om t hei r s eat s , huggi ng and clapping. SpaceX chief executive officer and internet entrepreneur Elon Musk said watching the rocket rise from the launch pad was an extremely intense moment. Every bit of adrenaline in my body released at that point, he told reporters after the flawless launch, which followed an attempt on May 19 that was scrubbed at the last second when computers detected high pressure in the central engine of the Falcon 9. SpaceX engineers discovered the root cause was a faulty check valve and repaired it the same day. No humans are travelling aboard the Dragon, but six astronauts are already at the US$100-billion space lab to help the capsule latch on, to unload supplies and then restock the capsule with cargo to take back to Earth. Also aboard were the ashes of hundreds of space enthusiasts including James Doohan who played Scotty on Star Trek, according to TrekNews. net, a go-to source for fans of the cult series. Dad, may the stars rise to meet you, tweeted Doohans son Chris. May the solar wind always be at your back. On May 24, the spacecrafts sensors and flight systems are to undergo a series of tests to see if it is ready to berth, including a complicated fly-under at a distance of about 2.5 kilometres (1.5 miles). If NASA gives the green light, the Dragon will then approach the ISS on May 25 in an attempt to berth with the station.

Trade Mark CauTion

The Siam Cement Public Company Limited, a company incorporated in Thailand, of 1 Siam Cement Road, Bangsue, Bangkok 10800, Thailand, is the Owner of the following Trade Marks:-

The astronauts on board the ISS will manoeuvre the stations robotic arm to help capture the capsule and attach it to the orbiting research outpost. The hatch of the Dragon is set to open on May 26 for unloading 521 kilograms (1148 pounds) of cargo for the space lab and restocking it with a 660-kilogram (1455-pound) load to return to Earth. On May 31, the Dragon is to detach from the station and make a safe landing in the Pacific Ocean off the coast of southern California. SpaceX, owned by 40-year-old Musk, a billionaire who also co-founded PayPal, is the first of several US competitors to try sending spacecraft to the ISS with the goal of restoring US access to space for human travellers by 2015. We are really at the dawn of a new era of space exploration, one where there is a much bigger role for commercial space companies, Musk said, likening the space effort to the expansion of the internet in the mid 1990s. The company successfully testlaunched its Falcon 9 rocket in June 2010, then made history with its Dragon launch in December of that year, becoming the first commercial outfit to send a spacecraft into orbit and back. Its reusable Dragon capsule has been built to carry both cargo and up to seven

crew members. Every launch into space is a thrilling event, but this one is especially exciting, said John Holdren, President Barack Obamas assistant for science and technology. NASA administrator Charles Bolden congratulated SpaceX for opening a new era in exploration. Were handing off to the private sector our transportation to the International Space Station so that NASA can focus on what we do best exploring even deeper into our solar system, with missions to an asteroid and Mars on the horizon. Until now, only the space agencies of Russia, Japan and Europe have been able to send supply ships to the ISS. The three-decade US shuttle program, which ferried astronauts and cargo to the research outpost, ended in 2011, leaving Russia as the sole taxi to the ISS until private industry comes up with a replacement. SpaceX and a handful of other companies are being helped in their endeavours with seed money from NASA to build cargo and crew capability. SpaceX has a $1.6 billion contract with NASA to supply the ISS with cargo in the coming years. Orbital Sciences has a $1.9 billion contract and is scheduled for its first launch attempt later this year. AFP

Drift to mobile a new challenge for Facebook

(elephant Brand) reg. no. 3988/1994
By Charlotte Raab NEW YORK With internet users increasingly going mobile, a major challenge for Facebook will be trying to make money from its massive global presence in a more complex mobile space. Facebook, which makes most of its money from advertising, says more than half 488 million of its 901 million members access the service from a mobile phone or tablet. Of these, 83 million use only mobile devices instead of computers. But while 82 percent of Facebook revenue comes from ads, the company acknowledges that it gets little income from the mobile space. We have historically not shown ads to users accessing Facebook through mobile apps or our mobile website, the California firm said in a filing for its initial public offering. In March 2012, we began to include sponsored stories in users mobile news feeds. However, we do not currently directly generate any meaningful revenue from the use of Facebook mobile products, and our ability to do so successfully is unproven. Facebook says a big issue looking ahead is being able to get mobile revenue and that its revenue may be negatively affected unless and until we are successful with monetisation strategies for mobile usage of Facebook. Most analysts note that advertising has not yet become adapted to mobile devices in the same way it has on computers. Last time I checked, mobile phones had really small screens, said Michael Pachter of Wedbush Securities. Van Baker, an analyst with the Gartner consultancy, said so-called monetisation will be critical for Facebook, which has some catching up to do with firms like Google and Apple. Baker said Facebook needs to find mobile ads that are not intrusive and pointed to Google and Apple as using a type of mobile banner ad that takes up a very small amount of screen real estate. Google is seen as having a strong mobile platform, and recently decided to integrate its mobile, search and other services in an effort to offer more targeted ads, a move that drew criticism from privacy advocates. London-based Hargreaves Lansdown Stockbrokers said in a client note that converting Facebooks mobile traffic into income is perhaps one of the companys largest and currently perplexing challenges. Facebook was not conceived in the smartphone era and therefore did not have it in mind as a platform. It has catching up to do and, if possible, without cannibalising its own current income from the PC space, the brokerage said. The company could address the issue by purchasing apps that may offer other revenue sources such as the photo app Instagram, Tagtile for tracking customer loyalty and Glancee, an app for locating nearby friends. Forrester Research analyst Melissa Parrish said, however, that the solution for Facebook in the mobile space is probably something that we all havent been thinking of yet. Whats really compelling is the possibility that they will either figure out a way to monetise mobile that is not sponsored or advertisingbased. AFP

(Tiger Cement Brand) reg. no. 3989/1994 in respect of cement. Fraudulent imitation or unauthorised use of the said Trade Marks will be dealt with according to law. Win Mu Tin, M.A., H.G.P., D.B.L for The Siam Cement Public Company Limited P. O. Box 60, Yangon E-mail: makhinkyi.law@mptmail.net.mm Dated: 28th May, 2012

TiMESWORLD
Briefly
CAIRO Egypt wrapped up two days of polling on May 24 in a landmark presidential election that pitted stability against the ideals of the uprising that ended Hosni Mubaraks rule with predictions that the hardfought contest would go to a runoff. BAGHDAD Iran and six world powers ended two days of very intense nuclear talks on May 24 with little to show except a decision to meet again next month in Moscow after sharp disagreements over the way forward. GENEVA The Syrian army and security forces have been responsible for most of the serious rights abuses committed since March this year as they hunt down defectors and opponents, UN-appointed investigators said on May 24. KABUL French President Francois Hollande arrived in Kabul on May 25 on a previously unannounced visit to meet French soldiers he has vowed to pull out of the war-torn country by the end of the year. AFP Earlier report, P. 17.

May 28 - June 3, 2012

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US hails yearning for change in Arab states, reforms in Myanmar

WASHINGTON A US report change often creates instability prosperity, and inclusion, it said. critical of Syria, and Clinton herself Much remains to be done to singled out President Bashar released on May 24 hailed the before it leads to greater respect for implement reforms and especially al-Assads regime for staging an yearning for change in Arab democracy and human rights. It recalled the high cost to to address the legacy of decades of assault not just on basic freedoms nations and moves toward openness in Myanmar, saying they may demonstrators in Tunisia, Egypt, violence against ethnic minorities, like that of expression but on the very lives of citizens. inspire a push for freedom in other Libya, Bahrain, Yemen and Syria, the report said. Also coming under fire was But the size of the task ahead where thousands have been killed dark reaches of the world. But the State Department said and many others abused by security does not diminish the excitement Eritrea, where it said widespread of these first steps, or the sense human rights abuses continued. in its 2011 human rights report forces. In Sudan, government forces But the images of demonstrators of possibility they may inspire in that the situation in China was deteriorating and highlighted who had seemingly lost all fear, other closed societies, such as Iran, staged air raids on civilian areas on alleged abuses in other countries, risking their lives to oppose North Korea, Uzbekistan, Eritrea, the border with South Sudan, while human rights abuses including Sudan, Iran, went unpunished, the Eritrea, Russia, Syria report said. and Pakistan. The Iranian I n p r e s e n t i n g t h e Myanmar offers an example of a government moving towards a government continued annual report, Secretary model of greater openness, democracy, and liberty to deny its citizens of State Hillary Clinton human rights, including said this has been an the freedoms of especially tumultuous expression, assembly, association, and momentous year for everyone g o v e r n m e n t s t h e y d e e m e d or Sudan, it added. The report said that Chinas movement, and religion, it said. involved in the cause of human illegitimate, inspired people around In Pakistan, security forces, human rights record was the world, it said. rights. The report then turned to the deteriorating, with authorities extremists and separatists were Many of the events that have dominated recent headlines from changes in Myanmar, where stepping up efforts to silence implicated in extrajudicial killings, torture, and forced disappearances, the revolutions in the Middle East the military-backed regime of activists and stifle public debate. The report said that Chinese it said. These affected thousands to reforms in Burma (Myanmar) President Thein Sein has surprised began with human rights, with many observers with a spate of forces reportedly committed of citizens in nearly all areas of the the clear call of men and women reforms designed to break decades arbitrary or unlawful killings country. In Russia, attacks on and and has held activists in unknown d e m a n d i n g t h e i r u n i v e r s a l of isolation. Burma offers an example of circumstances including human killings of journalists and activists rights. The report said the yearning a government moving towards rights lawyer Gao Zhisheng and continued, while there were for change we have witnessed in a model of greater openness, ethnic Mongolian campaigner, reports of significant irregularities and fraud during parliamentary Tunisia, Egypt, Libya, Yemen, democracy, and liberty, attributes Hada. The report was also particularly elections in December. AFP and Syria is inspirational, and yet that can lead to greater innovation,

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US study links farm chemical to mental disorders

WASHINGTON When pregnant rats are exposed to a common crop chemical, their descendants three generations later show more anxiety and stress than the offspring of unexposed peers, US researchers said last week. The study in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences suggests that the animal model may provide an explanation for the mounting number of cases of anxiety disorders, autism and obesity among humans in recent years. We are now in the third human generation since the start of the chemical revolution, since humans have been exposed to these kinds of toxins, lead author David Crews of the University of Texas said on May 21. There is no doubt that we have been seeing real increases in mental disorders like autism and bipolar disorder, he added. Its more than just a change in diagnostics. The question is why? Is it because we are living in a more frantic world, or because we are living in a more frantic world and are responding to that in a different way because we have been exposed? I favour the latter. For the study, researchers exposed pregnant rats to vinclozolin, a common fungicide used in fruits and vegetables and which is known to disrupt hormones and have effects across generations of animals. Co-author Michael Skinner at Washington State University said the purpose of the study was not to assess risk for humans to but to examine potential phenomena caused by exposure. He and colleagues tested the third generation of male rats and their reactions to a stressful situation of physical restraint during adolescence, comparing those that had elders with chemical exposure and those that did not. The rats with the family history of fungicide exposure were more anxious, more sensitive to stress, and showed greater activity in stress-related regions of the brain than descendants of unexposed rats, said the study. AFP

Briefs
New minister backed deal, inquiry told
LONDON British Prime Minister David Cameron appointed a minister to decide on Rupert Murdochs bid for control of pay-TV giant BSkyB, despite knowing that the official backed the deal, an inquiry heard on May 24. An inquiry into press ethics set up in the wake of the hacking scandal heard that Culture Secretary Jeremy Hunt privately wrote to Cameron in November 2010 to warn that blocking the bid would harm Britains media sector. A month later, Cameron gave Hunt the job of deciding on the bid, after the previous minister in charge of it, Business Secretary Vince Cable, was removed from the brief for showing bias against Murdoch in a newspaper sting.

EU leaders vow to back Greece

BRUSSELS European the best guarantee for a officials from the other 16 s a i d t h a t G e r m a n stay in the eurozone, the Union leaders pledged more prosperous future in eurozone member states Chancellor Angela Merkel president said. Greeces election on June were instructed to reflect was surprised and upset support for Greece on May the euro area. European Commission on what an exit would mean about the issue of Greeces 17 is shaping up to be a 24, vowing to keep the exit from the eurozone referendum on whether the debt-wracked country in president Jose Manuel for their economies. country stays in the euro, as This was not a political being raised. the eurozone as officials Barroso summed up the For his part, French parties opposed to austerity prepared behind the scenes leaders view by saying: The message to Greece, insisted for a possible doomsday message that we send today the diplomat, but was a P r e s i d e n t F r a n c o i s measures needed for future Hollande said: I cant say bailouts gain significantly is clear: we will stand by normal thing to do. scenario of exit. It does not mean that we that there has not been in the polls. After an EU summit Greece while Greece stands European leaders dominated by fears have warned that if of a Grexit that went into the early We will stand by Greece while Greece stands by its commitments. the next government reneges on promised hours of the morning, reforms Greece EU president think the situation will get work done on simulating cannot hope to continue H e r m a n V a n R o m p u y by its commitments. drawing international loans, Nevertheless, diplomats that far, he said, adding a Greek exit. told journalists: We want B u t i f I s t a r t e d t o which would likely lead to it Greece to remain in the said on the sidelines of t h a t y o u w o u l d h a v e euro area while respecting the summit that officials said we were dreaming talk publicly about the leaving the eurozone. Van Rompuy said that hypothesis of Greece had been tasked to make otherwise. its commitments. In Athens, a government leaving, that would mean after the elections, EU The EU chief hailed the contingency plans in the significant efforts already event of Greece exiting the statement said the finance sending a signal to Greece leaders expected the new Greek government to made by the Greek citizens eurozone, sending European ministry categorically and to the markets. I prefer to address the choose the path of reform but appealed to Athens stocks and the euro sharply denies such plans. Greeces caretaker leader Greeks and say: France and staying in the euro. to continue to implement down on the markets. AFP A diplomat told AFP that Panayotis Pikrammenos and Europe want you to reforms that he said were

US sends aid for injured Yemenis

WASHINGTON The US Air Force delivered nearly six tonnes of emergency medical supplies to Sanaa on May 23 to help treat Yemeni soldiers wounded in a suicide bombing that left 96 killed, officials said. Al-Qaedas Yemen branch claimed responsibility for the attack on May 21, when a suicide bomber wearing a soldiers uniform detonated explosives as troops were rehearsing for a parade. The bombing injured about 300 soldiers and was quickly condemned by Western governments, with President Barack Obama vowing to help the Yemeni government fight al-Qaeda militants.

Trade Mark CauTion

NOTICE is hereby given that Continental reifen deutschland GmbH a company incorporated in the Germany and having its principal office at Vahrenwalder Str. 9, 30165 Hannover, Germany is the Owner and Sole Proprietor of the following trademarks:-

AIRFIX
(reg: nos. iV/7919/2005 & iV/11763/2011) in respect of:tyres, inner tubes for tyres Class: 12

Daring stuntman sets a risky record

LONDON A British stuntman became the worlds first skydiver to land without a parachute on May 23, falling 731 metres (2400 feet) to land safely a crashpad of cardboard boxes. Wearing a specially-made wing suit, Gary Connery, 41, leapt from a helicopter over Henley-on-Thames in southern England, aiming at a runway of 18,000 cardboard boxes. He landed successfully onto the boxes, but the anxious crowd had to wait several minutes before he emerged from the pile. AFP

(reg: nos. iV/2369/2004 & iV/11765/2011)

CONTI

ContiPremiumContact
(reg: nos. i V/7204/2004 & iV/11766/2011) the above two trademarks are in respect of:tyres, complete wheels, solid tires; inner tubes for tyres Class: 12

Trade Mark CauTion

n.V. organon, a company incorporated in The Netherlands, of Kloosterstraat 6, 5349 AB OSS, The Netherlands, is the Owner of the following Trade Mark:-

(reg: nos. iV /544/1999 & iV/11764/2011) in respect of:Solid tires, vehicle tyres and tubes therefore, complete wheels Class: 12 Any fraudulent imitation or unauthorized use of the said trademarks or other infringements whatsoever will be dealt with according to law. U Kyi Win Associates for Continental reifen deutschland GmbH P.O. Box No. 26, Yangon. Phone: 372416 Dated: 28th May, 2012

andrioL
reg. no. 1915/1996 in respect of Medicines and pharmaceutical preparations for human use. Fraudulent imitation or unauthorised use of the said Trade Mark will be dealt with according to law. Win Mu Tin, M.A., H.G.P., D.B.L for n.V. organon P. O. Box 60, Yangon E-mail: makhinkyi.law@mptmail.net.mm Dated: 28th May, 2012

An annular solar eclipse, as seen in Tokyo on May 21, where the phenomenon was visible for the first time in 173 years. Millions of sky-gazers viewed the spectacle of a lifetime when the eclipse crossed from northern Asia to the United States, in a 13,600 kilometre (8500 mile) arc across the Pacific. An annular solar eclipse occurs when the moon passes in front of the sun. Pic: AFP

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Islamic militants could not recapture power. The Taliban may have the ability to launch attacks, to explode IEDs (improvised explosive devices), to send suicide bombers. But for them to come and take over the country and take it backwards, no, Karzai told CNN. Afghanistan has moved forward and Afghanistan will defend itself. And the progress that we have achieved, the Afghan people will not allow it to be put back or reversed. But in a sign of growing frustrations with the dragging conflict, Frances new President Francois Hollande said his country had done more than its duty since the 2001 US-led invasion ousted the hardline Taliban leadership. And a row over reopening Pakistan supply routes into Afghanistan to NATO convoys also lingered, although Obama and NATO chief Anders

MyanMar tiMes

NATO maps a way out of Afghanistan

CHICAGO NATO leaders last week mapped a path out of the unpopular war in Afghanistan, backing plans to hand Afghans the combat lead from mid-2013 while vowing to stand by them as they seize their own destiny. In a Chicago summit declaration on May 21, US President Barack Obama and his NATO military allies ratified an irreversible roadmap to gradually and responsibly withdraw 130,000 combat troops by the end of 2014. But they also ordered military officers to begin planning a post-2014 mission to focus on training, advising and assisting Afghan troops to ensure the government can ward off a stubborn Taliban insurgency. As Afghans stand up, they will not stand alone, Obama told the gathering of more than 50 world leaders, focused on ending a decade of war that has left over 3000 coalition soldiers and tens of thousands of Afghans dead. Afghan President Hamid Karzai, who attended the talks, sought to reassure nervous allies that the sacrifices made on all sides would not have been vain, maintaining Taliban

Foreign troops in Afghanistan

Major contributors to NATOs International Security Assistance Force
Germany 4,900 UK 9,500 Poland 2,475 Coalition deaths
600 521 400 295 232 711 566

90,000

USA

France 3,308 Spain 1,481

200

160

Afghanistan 2001 2012

Italy 3,816
Source: ISAF/icasualties.org

Romania 1,843

Turkey 1,845

Australia 1,550

French troops by the end of 2012 a year early would be drawn up within the next 10 days, as Hollande signalled reluctance to allocate more cash for

South Korea, issued a final statement saying Afghans will be in lead for security nationwide by mid-2013. Though NATO troops will gradually shift focus

until late 2014. The summit gave Obama a platform to show a warweary American public that he has global support for plans to end the war

Afghanistan has moved forward and Afghanistan will defend itself.

Fogh Rasmussen seemed optimistic the issue would be resolved. French officials said a calendar for withdrawing Afghan security forces. The 28 NATO leaders and their 22 partners in the war, as far afield as Australia, Georgia and to training and support, alliance officials stressed for ei gn s oldier s would still participate in combat operations when needed ahead of a tough reelection campaign against Republican Mitt Romney in November. NATO leaders also sought

to reassure Karzai that the international community would not abandon his country after the combat troops are gone. The 50 nations involved in the war endorsed a US plan to provide US$4.1 billion in annual security aid to Afghanistan and reduce the size of Afghan forces from a peak of 352,000 to 228,500. The United States has offered to pay half the bill while the international community is expected to fund the rest. But the summit declaration makes clear that the security aid will not last forever. The declaration says the Afghan governments share of the bill will increase progressively from $500 million in 2015, with the aim that it can assume, no later than 2024, full financial responsibility for its own security forces. Canada agreed to continue funding Afghan forces until 2017, officials said, contributing some $108 million annually for three years beyond 2014. Canada will honor its commitment and complete its current training mission but our country will not have any military mission in Afghanistan after March 2014, Prime Minister Stephen Harper said. AFP

Chen begins new life in US

NEW YORK Blind Chinese dissident Chen Guangcheng began his new life in the United States on May 20 after a warm welcome but in Beijing he leaves behind a diplomatic mess that may prevent him ever returning home. Chen, a self-taught lawyer, landed in New York with his wife and two young children on May 19 to a rapturous reception from his hosts and he quickly praised the restraint and calm, shown by the Chinese government in his case. Chen, 40, who is to become a research fellow at New York Universitys School of Law, has repeatedly said he is not seeking exile in the United States and may one day want to go back to China. But the Chinese governments decision to allow a convicted citizen to leave its territory weeks after he managed to flee house arrest and caused them huge international embarrassment is unlikely to be forgotten, analysts said. It will be very difficult, retired Shandong University professor Sun Wenguang told AFP. The authorities will not welcome him back. He brought on diplomatic turmoil and became a focus of the international press. After arriving in New York, Chen, his wife, Yuan Weijing, and their two young children were greeted with cheers on arrival at the university apartment block in Manhattan that becomes their home. Other leading activists

Chen Guangcheng and his wife, Yuan Weijing, arrive at the New York University apartments in Manhattan on May 19. Pic: AFP who have trod Chens path include the dissident Wei Jingsheng, who left China in 1997 on medical parole in a deal brokered by the United States, and Christian activist Bob Fu, a close friend and supporter of Chen who lives in Texas. Past cases suggest Chinese leaders will be reluctant to allow a man like Chen whose activism created diplomatic and domestic hurdles, to come home. Chinas communist rulers remain perturbed that civil unrest could blight its rise as a political and economic power and has barred the return of numerous activists linked to the 1989 Tiananmen democracy protests and the Falungong spiritual group that Beijing outlawed in 1999. Getting Chen Guangcheng and his family on a plane is the easiest part of this saga, said Phelim Kine, Asia researcher for the New York-based Human Rights Watch. The harder, longer term part is ensuring his right under international law to return to China when he sees fit. Chinas official explanation for agreeing to allow Chen to go abroad was so that he could study in accordance with his rights as a Chinese citizen. But Beijing-based rights lawyer Jiang Tianyong said the authorities would think twice about letting Chen return even though the government is obliged under international law to allow its citizens back into the country. Under the current political climate, I doubt the government will allow him to return, he said. AFP

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The case for caution with drones

By Louise Arbour WHEN NATO leaders met in Chicago on May 20 and 21, they unveiled a series of new projects, among them, apparently, a program to develop and expand the use of unmanned aerial vehicles or drones so as to confront the security threats of the future and make better use of tighter budgets. Used first for surveillance, and increasingly for strikes, drones have considerable operational attraction. But killing with these stealth weapons stretches legal boundaries to the breaking point, and alienates people in Pakistan, Somalia and Yemen, countries in which neither NATO nor the United States, its most powerful member, are actually fighting wars unless we count the war on terror has having opened the entire world as a battlefield. NATOs attraction to drones, almost exclusively US-built at the moment, is understandable. They are relatively cheap, can be deployed quickly in inhospitable terrain over vast distances, and help keep troops and airmen out of harms way. But this pushbutton solution to warfare poses real risks to civilians, especially as targeting criteria deteriorate to the point where a special rapporteur to the United Nations has described them as a vaguely defined licence to kill. The rules for using strike drones should be clarified and the tests that determine who is a legitimate target should be explicit. The standards that NATO sets and its respect for A missile-armed US Predator drone taking off from Bagram air base in Afghanistan, in a file photo taken on November 27, 2009. Pic: AFP more reluctant to account for their actions publicly and transparently. This may be an unintended consequence of their perceived expanded exposure to prosecutions, whether before the International Criminal Court or elsewhere. For instance, as much as the NATO leadership might be satisfied with its campaign in Libya, there has still been no transparent assessment of the number of civilians who were killed in the UN-authorised airstrikes there, which included the use of drones, and of the circumstances of their deaths. While these strikes are described as clinical and surgical, there is no independent way for the public in NATO countries to evaluate the extent of their impact on civilians. It may well be that the requirement of proportionality in the laws of war that civilian casualties not be disproportionate to the legitimate military objective of the operation is satisfied in a given operation. But this cannot be taken for granted, particularly if these supposedly precision operations result in one civilian killed for every five combatants. As NATO countries prepare to withdraw thousands of troops from Afghanistan and expand their drone programs commensurately, they must carefully weigh the policies and practices for using a weapon that distances them from the human, political, legal, and moral costs of war. The leaders of NATO member nations must clarify under what conditions these hi-tech weapons should be used, who might constitute a legitimate target, and ultimately ensure that their use respects international law. Foreign Policy (Louise Arbour is president and CEO of the International Crisis Group).

Drone strikes kill nine militants in Pakistan

MIRANSHAH, Pakistan A US drone strike on a militant compound early on May 24 killed five insurgents in northwest Pakistans lawless tribal region near the Afghan border, officials said. The May 24 drone strike, which came a day after another killed four international law will stand as a powerful example to all, especially as many other governments seek to expand their production and use of drones. The dangers of slippage are clear. Already under the cover of the war on terror, some states have challenged the fundamental premises of the protection of civilians in the Geneva Conventions, by including more civilians in their definition of combatants, and pushing the boundaries of acceptable collateral damage. After two long and costly wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, the United States is set to double its spending on militants in the same region, was the fourth such strike reported in Pakistan since parliament in March demanded an end to the attacks on Pakistani territory, as part of new guidelines for Islamabads often stormy relationship with Washington. Pakistan says the missile attacks are counter productive, violate its sovereignty, kill civilians and fuel anti-US sentiment. The New America Foundation think-tank in Washington says drone strikes have killed between 1715 and 2680 people in Pakistan in the past eight years. AFP in May that drone attacks are illegal and violate its sovereignty and territorial integrity. But even this clear expression has not stopped the Obama administrations use of this tool. Accountability has also declined as the use of drones has expanded. Top al-Qaeda suspects were once carefully vetted for assassination, but the list for these killings has grown; targets now include, for example, drug lords in Afghanistan and militants in Somalia. Operations are conducted in isolated areas under the utmost secrecy, making it virtually impossible to determine who has been killed or injured, and whether the strike complied with the laws of war. Recent studies estimate that one civilian dies for every four to five suspects killed. Many modern armies claim to be increasingly attentive to their legal obligations. But at the same time, they seem ever

drones over the next decade to more than US$11 billion. This is an understandable choice. Senior defence officials say that remotely piloted aircraft can be flown for hours over treacherous terrain and great distances waiting to surgically shoot Hellfire missiles at enemies visible perhaps only for just a few minutes. The danger to soldiers and the financial and political costs of deploying them they argue, is massively diminished. Moreover, its a more surgical enterprise: on-board cameras give pilots hundreds or thousands of miles away a clear picture of the target and any civilians who might

be in the way. But beyond being of dubious legitimacy under international law, the use of such technologies may be counter-productive. In Pakistan, Somalia and Yemen, unmanned planes are being flown by the CIA an organisation that clearly lacks the militarys culture and training in international humanitarian law. Meanwhile, Washington interprets within its rights under the war on terror the use of lethal force against enemies in a foreign country when that state consents or is unable or unwilling to act. While Pakistans position in the past has been ambiguous, the government said publicly

Trade Mark CauTion

NOTICEisherebygiventhatHisamitsuPHarmaceutical co., inc a joint stock company duly organized under the laws of Japan, manufacturers and merchants of 408, Tashiro Daikancho, Tosu, Saga, Japan is the Owner and Sole Proprietor of the following trademark: -

(reg: no. iV/3246/2003) in respect of:- Pharmaceutical and veterinary preparations; sanitary preparations for medical purposes; dietetic substances adapted for medical use, food for babies; plasters, materials for dressings; material for stopping teeth, dental wax; disinfectants; preparations for destroying vermin; fungicides, herbicides. Any fraudulent imitation or unauthorized use of the said trademark or other infringements whatsoever will be dealt with according to law. U Kyi Win Associates for Hisamitsu PHarmaceutical co., inc P.O. Box No. 26, Yangon. Phone: 372416 Dated: 28th May, 2012

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from a forthcoming ITV television documentary to mark the queens jubilee, William, 29, said he went to his grandmother with his concerns about the guest list drawn up by royal officials. There was very much a subdued moment when I was handed a list with 777 names on not one person I knew or Catherine knew, he said. I went to her (the Queen) and said, Listen, Ive got this list, not one person I know what do I do? and she went, Get rid of it. Start from your friends and then well add those we need to in due course. Its your day. The April 29 wedding at Westminster Abbey in London was attended by about 2000 people and more than one million people lined the processional route to see the happy couple. William, the second in line to the throne after his father Prince Charles, admitted that his grandmother was a tough act to follow. Theres not much wriggle room left for me to try and find my own path but I will do, said the searchand-rescue helicopter pilot in the extracts published in the Radio Times magazine. Its just a matter of learning whats gone before me. Shes an incredible role model. I would like to take all of her experiences, all of her knowledge and put it in a small box and to be able to constantly refer to it. William said he was much closer to his grandmother now than he was as a child. Were definitely a lot closer than we used to be, he said. Being a small boy its very daunting seeing the Queen around and not really quite knowing what to talk about. AFP

MyanMar tiMes

Queen said its your day so ditch the list, William reveals
LONDON Queen Elizabeth II told her grandson Prince William to rip up the guest list he was given for his wedding and do it again himself to include his friends, he said in an interview. The Duke of Cambridge also said he got just half an hours sleep before last years wedding to Catherine Middleton, which was watched by billions around the world. In extracts released on May 22

Putin bolsters grip on power with Kremlin appointments

MOSCOW Russian President Vladimir Putin defied calls on May 22 to bring fresh faces into top jobs by shifting his old ministers into the Kremlin and putting a key lieutenant in charge of the giant state oil firm. The swift reassignment of officials to the Kremlin one day after they formally left the cabinet further cements Putins command of Russia and limits the sway of Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev. Top Putin ally Igor Sechin will run Rosneft after using his cabinet seat to engineer three global tie-ups to help the firm exploit vast reserves in the Arctic, from which it can grow into one of the worlds top firms. The move highlights an understanding by Putin that Russias economic fate still revolves closely around its biggest energy companies despite repeated attempts to diversify into other sectors of growth during his 12year rule. But the appointments also underscored Putins continued refusal to look outside his team of most trusted advisors and amplified concerns that his old guard was not prepared to fully embrace muchneeded economic reform. It is obvious that the presidential administration intends to run everything, former Kremlin advisor Gleb Pavlovsky told AFP. Any talk of modernisation now is laughable, said Higher School of Economics professor Yuly Nisnevich. Putins election in March was preceded by months of protests on the streets of Moscow over the prospect of the former KGB spy extending his domination of Russia until at least 2018 with the same clique of top officials. His aides seemed sensitive to the criticism and had promised in the two weeks since Putins May 7 inauguration a complete government overhaul design to shed the ruling partys image of bureaucracy and waste. But Putin issued a decree on May 22 announcing that he was appointing to the Kremlin administration seven top former ministers who were not included in Medvedevs new government. They included former interior minister Rashid Nurgaliyev despised by the opposition over harsh crackdowns on protests and cases of police torture and other abuse who was given the job of deputy head of the national security council. The ruling party meanwhile rammed a bill through parliament that increases fines for joining illegal protests to more than three times the annual wage. There has been a marked similarity between the lightning pace at which Putins third term was starting and his quick imposition of authority more than a decade ago. Putins 2000-2008 presidency witnessed an unprecedented centralisation of power that saw huge companies come under state control and the regions lose the right to elect their own top officials. AFP

Clegg issues warning over eurozone crisis

BERLIN Europe faces a new wave of extremism and nationalism if the eurozone fails to resolve its problems, Britains Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg has warned in a German news magazine. If the eurozone doesnt come up with a comprehensive vision of its own future, youll have a whole range of nationalist, xenophobic and extreme movements increasing across the European Union, he told the May 21 edition of news weekly Der Spiegel. Asked whether he believed German Chancellor Angela Merkel was not active enough on leading eurozone crisis-fighting efforts, he replied: everybody should be more active and that the current situation of emergency summits, bailouts and governments being voted out of office could not continue. We know this much from our continent: The combination of economic insecurity and political paralysis is the ideal recipe for an increase in extremism and xenophobia, he said, according to an English transcript of the interview. And I, as a passionate liberal and pro-European, think it would be a disaster if a lack of grip and a lack of a comprehensive solution were to lead to a push to the extreme right or extreme left. But thats where we are heading, said the former member of the European Parliament. Clegg also said that the 17-member eurozone cannot thrive through fiscal discipline alone adding that fiscal transfers taxes from one eurozone member being directed to help another member were unavoidable and could take different forms, including joint eurobonds. AFP

Romney attacks Obama on jobs, economic management

h a d declaring on May 21 that his WASHINGTON economists Republican White House already projected that rivals record at the helm of h o p e f u l M i t t R o m n e y unemployment would reach private investment firm Bain Capital was fair game. vowed on May 23 to cut six percent by that point. Obamas reelection What is interesting about unemployment to six percent if elected, saying he has the this is that Romney moved campaign had the previous right business acumen and the goal posts in just a week rolled out new ads policies and warned US matter of weeks, LaBolt attacking Romney as a heartless corporate raider, President Barack Obama told reporters. He said he was going to but the spots triggered not to attack success. I t w a s a d a y o f get it down to four percent a backlash among some counterattack by Romney several weeks ago. Now he D e m o c r a t s , i n c l u d i n g Newark Mayor Cory Booker after the president hit out says six percent. Romneys message to a who called the attacks on at his corporate record, with the challenger insisting hed crowd of Hispanic American Bain nauseating. Republican leaders be a better steward of the business leaders on May economy and charging that 23 was that the incumbent pounced on the denunciations Obama just doesnt have has not done nearly enough as proof that Obama was out of step with American a clue about how to support for the free turn things around. market and Romney Romney told Time President Obama has pressed the point. magazine that hed Make no mistake. have greater success decided to attack success. When I am president, at reducing the you wont wake up jobless rate, a crucial US economic barometer that to help right the economic every day and wonder if the president is on your side, Democrats and Republicans ship. This is a time when Romney said. alike insist needs to be The candidate was brought down from its e v e r y b o d y i n t h i s stubbornly high perch of administration should be speaking to an audience doing everything in their o f s o m e 2 5 0 H i s p a n i c 8.1 percent. A Romney presidency, power to support you, he Americans, a voting bloc Romney has struggled to he said, would preside over told the group. Instead, sadly, President win over. very dramatic change A new national survey t o t h e U S b u s i n e s s Obama has decided to attack environment and would success. Its no wonder so showed Romney and Obama get the unemployment many of his own supporters locked in a tight contest, rate down to six percent or are calling on him to stop but among Latino voters Romney trails badly. perhaps a little lower after this war on job creators. Obama holds a 61-27pc The remarks were the four years. O b a m a c a m p a i g n strongest by Romney since lead among Latinos, showed spokesman Ben LaBolt Obama opened a bitter front the NBC News/Wall Street argued that government in the election battle by Journal poll. AFP

The shattered remains of a church in the northeastern Italy city of San Carlo on May 21, the day after the region was hit by an earthquake. Pic: AFP

Earthquake rattles northeastern Italy

ROME The Italian government declared a state of emergency in northeastern Italy on May 22, where 5000 people were camped out in temporary shelters amid fears of aftershocks after an earthquake hit the region. The government declared a 60-day state of emergency for the area around Bologna, Modena and Ferrara and promised 50 million euros (US$63 million) in aid to help rebuild houses and family-owned factories destroyed in the May 20 earthquake. Prime Minister Mario Monti visited several of the quake-struck towns on May 22 and met the families of victims the 6.0-magnitude quake, which killed six people and reduced homes and historic buildings to rubble. The regions priceless architectural treasures were worst hit, with churches, chapels and castles wrecked and famous frescoes destroyed. The earthquake rattled the cities of Ferrara a UNESCO World Heritage site as well as Bologna, Verona and Mantua and several smaller towns. Monti, who cut short a trip to the United States where he was attending a NATO summit, slept in the nearby city of Ferrara on May 21 before heading to SantAgostino, where the clock was stuck at 4:05am the hour the quake hit. The disaster struck just over three years after a 6.3-magnitude quake devastated the city of LAquila in central Italy in March 2009, killing some 300 people and leaving tens of thousands homeless. AFP

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Prosecutors seek life in jail for Bali bomb maker

JAKARTA Indonesian prosecutors on May 21 asked for a life sentence rather than the death penalty for Bali bomb maker Umar Patek, arguing that his remorse in the dock should spare him from a firing squad. Patek, 45, is accused of masterminding attacks on two nightclubs on the resort island in October 2002 which killed 202 people, including 88 Australians, and on churches in Jakarta on Christmas Eve 2000. When the trial started in February, prosecutors had said they would seek capital punishment for Patek, who was held last year in the Pakistani town of Abbottabad, four months before al-Qaeda chief Osama bin Laden was killed there. Dubbed Demolition Man by local media for his bomb making prowess, Patek is charged with premeditated murder. The West Jakarta District Court is expected to deliver its verdict on June 21. Prosecutor Bambang Suharyadi told the court that the case against Patek, the final key Bali suspect to stand trial, for premeditated murder had been shown without doubt. But he said they were seeking a lighter sentence because the defendant had been remorseful and cooperative. We the prosecutors recommend... the defendant Umar Patek be given a life sentence, Suharyadi said. He has been polite and cooperative during the trial and regretted what he has done. The prosecutor added that Patek will remain in prison until he dies. Patek on May 21 repeated an apology he made to the relatives of those killed in the Bali and church attacks. I regret what I have done... (and) I apologise to the families of victims who died Indonesians and foreigners, said Patek. Terrorism expert Noor Huda Ismail said it was important that Patek remain alive because of the information he could still yield. Patek is an encyclopedia of information on the whos who of al-Qaeda in Southeast Asia, said Ismail, executive director of the Institute for International Peace Building in Jakarta. Three JI members were executed by firing squad in November 2008 for their roles in the attacks. Patek denies he led the bomb making team for the Bali attacks, confessing only to playing a minor role. He admitted to mixing the chemicals for the explosives, but said that he did not know how the bombs would be used. AFP

Doctors 33-year sentence brings US aid cut threat

WASHINGTON Angry US lawmakers on May 24 threatened to freeze millions of dollars in vital aid to Islamabad after a Pakistani doctor who helped hunt down Osama bin Laden was jailed for 33 years. As the case of Shakeel Afridi, also fined 320,000 rupees (US$3500) after being found guilty of treason, stunned Capitol Hill, US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton denounced h i s All of us treatment as unjust and unwarranted. We regret both the fact that he was convicted and the severity of his sentence, Clinton told reporters. Troubled ties between the United States and Pakistan have not recovered since they sank to all-time lows after the killing of bin Laden by US commandos in a raid on his compound in the garrison town of Abbottabad in May 2011. Relations frayed further when US air strikes killed 24 Pakistani soldiers in November, causing Pakistan to shut its Afghan border to NATO supply trucks. The Afridi sentencing on May 23 was announced just two days after US President Barack Obama appeared to snub Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari at a NATO summit over Islamabads refusal to lift the blockade on the vital transit routes. surgeon in the lawless tribal district of Khyber, seemed to be weak and depressed at the central prison in the northwestern city of Peshawar where he is being held. In a sign of mounting anger, the Senate Appropriations Committee voted 30-0 to freeze a symbolic $33 million in foreign aid to Pakistan, or $1 million for each year of the sentence, in an amendment to the $52 billion US imprisonment and sentence foreign aid budget. We need attacks, but US officials have Pakistan, Pakistan needs us, persistent concerns that some but we dont need Pakistan elements of the establishment double-dealing and not have maintained support for seeing the justice in bringing Osama bin Laden to an end, extremists. All of us are outraged said Republican Senator at the imprisonment and Lindsey Graham. The appropriations bill, sentence of some 33 years, virtually a death sentence, which includes a total of to the doctor in Pakistan, $1 billion in assistance for Senator John McCain told Pakistan, will go now to the Senate floor. It represents a reporters. A Pakistani official told 58 percent cut in the amount AFP that Afridi, who worked of aid Obama had requested for years as a government for Pakistan. AFP as well as ours and the rest of the worlds, Clinton said. US lawmakers threatened to suspend the aid to Islamabad until Afridi is freed, the Pakistani government ends support for terror groups and re-opens Afghan supply routes. The United States has given Pakistan more than $18 billion in assistance since al-Qaeda orchestrated the September 11, 2001

Briefs
Indian PM admits govt can do better
NEW DELHI Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh has acknowledged the large unfinished agenda facing his government after three years in power, and vowed to tackle corruption and fiscal mismanagement. I will be the first to say we need to do better, Singh said on May 22 as he presented his graft-tainted coalitions annual report card at a function in New Delhi. Singhs second term in office has been marked by slowing economic growth, accusations of policy paralysis and a series of corruption scandals that have combined to undermine optimism about Indias future development.

are outraged at the

The action of Afridi who had run a fake vaccination program designed to collect the DNA of the Al-Qaeda leaders family to bring about the end of the reign of terror designed and executed by bin Laden was not, in any way, a betrayal of Pakistan, Clinton said. Afridi had been instrumental in taking down one of the worlds most wanted murderers. That was clearly in Pakistans interest,

Hundreds arrested in telecom scam

BEIJING Nearly 500 people were seized by police throughout Asia over an US$11.5-million telecom scam targeting people in China, state media said on May 24. Most of the 482 suspects were from China and Taiwan. They were arrested there and in Thailand, Malaysia, Indonesia, Cambodia, Sri Lanka and Fiji, state-run Xinhua news agency said. The accused were arrested on May 23, and police in China said the ringleaders of the scam were from Taiwan.

Anwar vows to fight new charge

KUALA LUMPUR Malaysian opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim was charged on May 22 for his part in an election reform rally, a case he denounced as another government attempt to remove him from politics. Anwar and two party colleagues were charged with violating a controversial new law governing public gatherings and a court order that banned the April 28 rally from the centre of the capital Kuala Lumpur. The charge came four months after Anwar was acquitted of sodomy in a long-running trial that the charismatic leader has said was engineered by the government of Prime Minister Najib Razak to remove him as a political threat. We will fight. This is political intimidation, Anwar, 64, told reporters as he left the court in Kuala Lumpur after pleading not guilty. Najib is afraid to face me in elections. I want to tell Najib not to use the courts and the flawed (assembly) law passed in parliament to intimidate political opponents. The judge scheduled a July 2 hearing to set a trial date, with the United States urging Malaysia to ensure due process. A Malaysian government spokesman rejected Anwars allegations of meddling. The public prosecutor decides that a conviction would strip the opposition leader of his eligibility to stand for election, although he could run on appeal. The charge of participating in an illegal protest carries a fine of 10,000 ringgit (US$3100) under the new law. In Malaysia, anyone fined more than 2000 ringgit for a crime is barred from contesting elections for five years. Najib must call national elections by early next year and many observers expect a tight contest after the Anwar-led opposition handed the ruling coalition its worst poll showing in 2008. Tens of thousands of Malaysians marched in last months rally organised by electoral-reform group Bersih 2.0, demanding changes to an election system that they say is rigged in the ruling coalitions favour. Protesters breached barricades, touching off clashes in which police used tear gas and water cannon. The police were filmed beating protesters as other marchers fought back. The government has accused Anwar of inciting the violence, which he denies. The new charges have triggered fresh criticism of the new law on public assemblies, passed late last year amid strong criticism from the opposition and human rights groups. AFP

Sri Lanka seizes 1.5 tonnes of ivory

COLOMBO Sri Lankan authorities have seized 1.5 tonnes of African ivory marked as plastic waste and addressed to a buyer in Dubai, a customs official in Colombo said on May 23. The container carrying 359 pieces of ivory had originated from Kenya and was going through the main sea port of Colombo when customs agents found it after a tip-off, director Udayanath Liyanage said. The illegal trade in ivory from African elephants is driven by Asian and Middle Eastern demand for the tusks used in ornaments.

Anwar Ibrahim says he is a victim of political intimidation. Pic: AFP whether to press charges against an individual based solely on the strength of the evidence against them, he said in a statement. Anwars lawyers and a top Election Commission official have confirmed

Fonseka freed, ready to face war probe

COLOMBO Sri Lankas former army chief said on May 22 he was prepared to face a war crimes investigation, but rejected allegations that tens of thousands of civilians were killed by troops under his command. Sarath Fonseka, who was released from jail the previous day after more than two years in detention, led security forces to victory over Tamil Tiger rebels in 2009 but then fell out with President Mahinda Rajapakse. There are certain allegations, but I dont agree that 40,000 civilians died. All that is nonsense, Fonseka told reporters on his first full day of freedom. I am ready to clarify and answer these allegations, he added. Fonseka, who was jailed two weeks after he failed to unseat Rajapakse in January 2010 presidential elections, has repeatedly vowed to testify before any international tribunal despite Colombos opposition to foreign scrutiny. The Sri Lankan military defeated the Tamil Tigers in May 2009 after a massive offensive in the northeast that ended decades of separatist warfare. Fonseka said he agreed with part of a US-led resolution against Sri Lanka in March at the United Nations Human Rights Council urging Sri Lanka to ensure reconciliation and accountability for war crimes. There are major areas in the resolution like human rights violations which are true, Fonseka said at his home outside Colombo. This government has failed in reconciliation. AFP

Penguin back home after 82 days on run

TOKYO A penguin on the run from a Tokyo aquarium for 82 days was recaptured alive and well on May 24, a report said. The Humboldt, one of 135 penguins kept at Tokyo Sea Life Park, was recaptured on a riverbank about eight kilometres (five miles) from its home, Kyodo news agency said. Were relieved to see the penguin come back alive, Kazuhiro Sakamoto, vice head of the aquarium, was quoted as saying by Kyodo. AFP

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The Public Security Bureau needs to clean out the foreign trash, wrote Yang on his microblog, accusing expatriates of engaging in human trafficking and spreading lies about China. He made his comments after Beijing police the previous week launched a 100-day crackdown on foreigners working illegally in the capital, with posters showing a clenched fist and a phone line for residents to inform on visa violators. Yang urged police to focus on areas popular with expatriates in Beijing, and also welcomed the recent expulsion of Al Jazeera journalist Melissa Chan, which has been strongly condemned by rights organisations and by Washington. We kicked out that foreign harpy and closed Al Jazeeras Beijing bureau. We should shut up those who denigrate China and send them packing, wrote Yang, whose comments have been widely criticised in the foreign media though his employer, CCTV, has remained silent. In a statement on May 22, Yang said he intended his comments to be a wake-up call for foreigners who violated Chinas laws, citing the recent example of a British tourist accused of sexually assaulting a Chinese woman. The man, who is believed to be in custody, was caught on camera and the footage went viral after it was posted online, sparking a barrage of anti-foreigner sentiment. Days later, footage showing a Russian cellist verbally abusing a female passenger on a train in China was posted online, adding to the growing controversy. The cellist has since been fired from his position with the Beijing Symphony Orchestra, which said its reputation had been badly damaged by the actions of Oleg Vedernikov, a move welcomed by many Chinese bloggers. Vedernikov has apologised over the May 14 incident. AFP

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TV presenter in China launches attack on foreign trash

BEIJING A well-known state television presenters call for China to kick out foreign trash and two highly publicised incidents of bad behaviour by visitors have set off a heated debate on foreigners in China. The vitriolic comments posted online by Yang Rui, who presents a daily talk show in English on the state-run China Central Television network, have channelled into a growing controversy on Chinas popular microblogs.

Territorial dispute: Beijing says RP is lacking sincerity

BEIJING China accused the Philippines on May 24 of not being sincere in seeking a peaceful end to a standoff over disputed waters, escalating the rhetoric a day after confirming the deployment of more ships. The Chinese foreign ministry made the remark as tension lingered over the Scarborough Shoal in the South China Sea, a vast body of water which stretches almost to the Equator and is claimed in its entirety by China. During the whole process, China has been appealing for diplomatic consultations to resolve the situation there, foreign ministry spokesman Hong Lei told a regular briefing. But the actions of the Philippine side cannot but raise our doubt over the sincerity of the Philippines to properly resolve the current situation. As of early last week, there were five Chinese government vessels up from three and 16 fishing boats at the shoal, the Philippine foreign department said on May 23. Chinese state media later confirmed a strengthened presence, and Hong on May 24 also suggested that China had boosted the number of vessels. From the beginning of the incidents, China had launched solemn and immediate representations, demanding the Philippines to withdraw their vessels, he said. Now the Philippines is still taking some provocative actions there and China has to strengthen control and raise alert there. Both countries have had ships posted around the shoal since early April, when Chinese vessels prevented a Philippine

Navy ship from arresting Chinese fishermen. We urge the Philippine side to respect Chinas territorial sovereignty in earnest and stop all provocations and show sincerity and carry out serious and earnest diplomatic dialogue with China, Hong said. In a separate development, China said on May 23 it had cancelled a highlevel military trip to Japan, as the two neighbours bicker over a disputed island chain and a recent Uighur symposium in Tokyo that angered Beijing. Guo Boxiong, vice chairman of the powerful Central Military Commission and Chinas highest ranking military officer, will not visit Japan due to work commitments at home, the defence ministry said in a statement. The China Daily said the visit had been due to begin on May 24, with Guo scheduled to meet Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda. The cancellation came after China condemned Japan for allowing the World Uyghur Congress, which Beijing considers an exiled anti-China separatist grouping, to meet in Tokyo in mid-May. In April, Beijing also angrily condemned remarks by Tokyo Governor Shintaro Ishihara, who re-ignited a long-simmering maritime territorial dispute by vowing to buy the disputed group of uninhabited islands. The Tokyo city government said on May 24 members of the public had pledged almost one billion yen (US$12.5 million) to buy the islands. AFP

A panda dozes in the Olympic Games Panda Bear enclosure at the Beijing Zoo on May 22. The zoo, in the grounds of a Ming dynasty imperial palace, opened to the public in 1908. Pic: AFP

Activists brother in capital: lawyer

BEIJING The brother of a blind Chinese activist who triggered a diplomatic row between Beijing and Washington arrived in the capital on May 24 after escaping his heavily guarded home, a rights lawyer said. Chen Guangfu, the elder brother of Chen Guangcheng, fled his home village of Dongshigu in eastern Chinas Shandong province under cover of darkness and travelled to Beijing, where he met a rights lawyer to discuss his sons case. His son is in police custody, charged with attempted murder over an attack on a local official who broke into the family home after discovering that Chen Guangcheng had escaped following nearly two years under illegal house arrest. He escaped from Dongshigu village in the middle of the night, lawyer Ding Xikui said of Chen Guangfu, adding that the activists brother had also been effectively held under house arrest in the village. There were people monitoring him and controlling his movements. They were not allowing him to leave the village, he had been confined to the village, Ding told AFP by telephone. Ding refused to reveal how Chen Guangfu got away, but his daring flight appeared similar to his brothers escape from Dongshigu to the US embassy in Beijing last month. Police in Shandong said on May 10 that Chen Kegui had been charged with murder and he remains in custody there. Ding refused to reveal where Chen Guangfu was in Beijing. Im concerned about his safety, Ding said, adding that Chen Guangfu feared that police from Shandong could come looking for him and arrest him even though he has not committed any crime. AFP

First contracts signed for ambitious pipeline project

AVAZA, Turkmenistan Turkmenistan last week signed agreements with India and Pakistan to deliver gas through a new pipeline that will transit Afghanistan, the first contracts in the ambitious project. The 1700-kilometre (1050mile) TAPI pipeline aims to transport more than 30 billion cubic metres of gas a year from Turkmenistan to energy-hungry consumers in Pakistan and India as well as relieving shortages in Afghanistan. The sale-purchase agreements for the yet-tobe-built pipeline were signed on May 23 at a ceremony on the sidelines of the annual Turkmenistan oil and gas congress in its Caspian Sea resort of Avaza. The TAPI (Turkmenistan- where tribal unrest is cubic metres of natural gas They were inked by a day through the pipeline. the head of the state gas A f g h a n i s t a n - P a k i s t a n - common. Turkmenistan is also being But Indias Oil Minister c o m p a n y T u r k m e n g a z India) natural gas pipeline, Sakhatmurad Mamedov which is backed by the S. Jaipal Reddy said that courted by the West and w i t h r e p r e s e n t a t i v e s Asian Development Bank, is his fast-growing nation was China for its immense gas of Indias Gail Ltd and regarded with suspicion as a waiting impatiently for the reserves which, according Pakistans Inter State Gas wildly ambitious pipedream pipeline to be ready, noting to British auditors Gaffney, that Indias energy demands Cline and Associates, are by some analysts. System. the second largest in the Much of the pipeline will would quadruple by 2017. Today we are witnesses Afghanistans Mining world. of a historic event, not go through Afghanistan The country is also just of regional but keen on diversifying of world scale, said Turkmenistan Today we are witnesses of a historic event its export routes which remain dependent Deputy Prime on its former Soviet Minister Baimurat which neighbours both M i n i s t e r W a h i d u l l a h master Russia with whom it Khodzhamukhamedov. T u r k m e n i s t a n a n d Turkmenistan and Pakistan S h a h r a n i s a i d t h a t has had occasionally prickly A f g h a n i s t a n s i g n e d but remains wracked by the project will spread relations. It has already begun peace and help our region a m e m o r a n d u m o f violence and instability. exporting gas to China The pipelines route would flourish. understanding for Financial details and through a pipeline opened cooperation in the gas take it straight through sector but no contract. the regions most turbulent precise volume details of the by Chinas President Hu Khodzhamukhamedov said areas, including conflict-torn contracts were not disclosed Jintao in December 2009. The ADB says the TAPI negotiations were continuing Helmand and Kandahar but according to the ADB, with Afghanistan on the provinces in Afghanistan as the contracts will lead to the in 2008 was estimated to well as Quetta in Pakistan, supply of up to 90 million cost at least US$7.6 billion price of deliveries. (6.0 billion euros) and the partners now face the task of attracting commercial partners to build, finance, and operate the pipeline. The project enjoys the support of the United States, which is keen to deter subcontinent states from dependency on energy supplies from its arch foe, Iran. Crucially, the pipeline project also signals a further warming of economic ties between the traditional rivals India and Pakistan. Each country stands to gain, making this not only the Peace Pipeline, but a pipeline to prosperity as well, said Klaus Gerhaeusser, director general of the central and west Asia department at the ADB. AFP

Time out
Wathann Film Festival invites entries
By Zon Pann Pwint ORGANISERS of the Wathann Film Festival are calling on directors to submit work for the 2012 edition of the event, scheduled to be held at Maha Thandi Thukha Monastery in Tarmwe township, Yangon, from September 6 to 8. Submissions are being accepted in three categories: Short Fiction Film, Documentary Film and Other (animation, experimental film and video art). The events director, Ma Thu Thu Shein, said the first annual Wathann festival, held last September, was the first step in introducing the concept of film festivals to Myanmar. Visitors to the festival had the chance to talk directly with local directors. We also held workshops and seminars during the festival. I found a lot of young visitors showed great interest in short films and documentary films, she said. Ma Thu Thu Shein said that ever since she visited an overseas film festival in 2008, she has dreamed of organising a similar event in Myanmar. My dream came true in September 2011 when I organised the first Wathann Film Festival. Its less a competition than a chance for artists to share their creations. Its intended to improve the standards of local films and inspire directors to produce higher-quality and more artistic films. At the same time, it aims to increase the popularity of documentary and short films in our country, she said. Ma Thu Thu Shein added that there will be no theme for entries into this years festival. Directors have the freedom to make films about whatever they like, she said. The festival will also include the first screening of the feature-length documentary Nargis: When Time Stopped Breathing, directed by Pe Maung Same and The Maung Naing. The film has never been shown locally but it has received international film awards. It is a poetic documentary film, Ma Thu Thu Shein said. Among the retrospective movies to be shown will be the 1973 film Chay Phawar Taw Nu Nu (Delicate Sole), directed by Maung Wunna. Entries can be submitted to No 15 (3B), Obo Road (near Shwe Phone Pwint Pagoda), Ye Kyaw, Pazundaung township, Yangon, from June 10 to 30. For further information about submission guidelines, visit www.wathannfilmfest.net . The winner in each of the three categories will receive K300,000 and an artwork. A writing contest will also be held as part of the film festival, on the theme of Myanmar Beyond the Travel Brochure. Short fiction and nonfiction stories about nontouristic travel in Myanmar can be submitted via email to contest@ecoburma.com. Submissions can be in English or Myanmar languages. More information on the writing contest can be found at www.ecoburma.com/contest. The submission deadline is July 31.

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Prisoner used collage art as a means of survival

By May Sandy THE collage art of Ko San Zaw Htway might fall short of qualifying as masterpieces of the genre, but the melancholic story behind the images helps bring them alive with a power that is rare in contemporary art. The collages, made using plastic packaging and exhibited at Lokanat Gallery in Yangon from May 21 to 26, were created by ex-prisoner Ko San Zaw Htway while he was serving a 12-year sentence at Insein and other prisons. After living in prison for a long time, some people start writing short stories and poems to escape from the distress of incarceration. For me, I used collage art to free my anger and prevent myself from dwelling on painful thoughts, the artist said. Ko San Zaw Htway, now 38, was sentenced in 1999 to 36 years in prison for his involvement in the All Burma Federation of Student Unions (ABFSU) and the 9/9/99 movement. He was arrested at a tea shop in Ahlone township shortly after his first year examination at Bohtataung University, where he was majoring in history. The lack of proper art material in prison prompted him to experiment with cardboard and plastic packaging, which he recycled from food containers given to him by the families of other prisoners. When I discovered the colours from the plastic packaging, I realised that I could turn it into artwork. So I collected packaging from my friends and sorted it into separate bags according to the colour, he said. As would be expected, as a prisoner Ko San Zaw Htway lacked the freedom to create whatever images he desired, with prison staff often showing their disapproval. Prison staff were very concerned when I made images of someone important like General Aung San or Daw Aung San Suu Kyi. Some of them put pressure on me to stop, so I made landscape images when others were around, and I made the images I wanted when everyone else was asleep, he said. He said some of his collage pieces were confiscated or even destroyed by prison staff when he tried to send them outside. I had to hide my artwork under my bed and in my pillow, he said. Last weeks exhibition included 70 of the 100 or so artworks he brought from prison when he was released on January 13. The collages mostly depicted landscapes and portraits, but he also managed to make some watercolour paintings depicting prison life. and many other rock/punk music bands, will be held at Kandawgyi, Myawsinkyun from 4pm on May 29. Tickets cost K5999.99, available at all City Mart Supermarket branches. I tried to create something pleasant, not showing too much hatred or anger because I was eager to escape from unhappy thoughts. For example, when I created images with monks or pagodas, I felt peaceful as if I was really there, Ko San Zaw Htway said. Even in the watercolour paintings I made about the prison, I didnt include any human figures because I believe people do not belong in prison. The Lokanat Gallery exhibition also featured an installation piece consisting of a tree surrounded by iron bars and hung with candy and snacks, and with empty medicine packaging and bottles piled around the trunk. Ko San Zaw Htway told The Myanmar Times that the packaging and bottles were from medicine that his mother took while he was in prison. He said that in his next exhibition he would use the packaging to create new artwork. When I was in prison, I created a piece of art using packages of used medicine from fellow prisoners who had HIV. At that time I told my mother to save her empty medicine packaging because I would use them to create art someday after I was released from prison, he said. If these packages from my mother arent enough for my needs, I will ask for more packaging from HIV and other medical clinics, he added.

Resurrected Stone Roses play first show in 16 years

LONDON The Stone Roses, one of the seminal bands to emerge from the Manchester indie rock scene in the 1980s, on May 24 played their first show since bitterly disbanding in 1996. Singer Ian Brown, guitarist John Squire, bassist Gary Mani Mounfield and drummer Alan Reni Wren opened the secret free gig in Warrington, northwest England, with the classic hit I Wanna Be Adored in front of 1500 guests. It is the first time Wren has performed with the band since his departure in 1995, a year before the band fell apart after the acrimonious departure of Squire. The band was resurrected last year after Brown and Squire patched up their differences at the funeral of Mounfields mother. The 225,000 tickets for the three official comeback shows at Heaton Park in Manchester on June 29, 30 and July 1 sold out in an hour, a British record. B r o w n s n o t o r i o u s l y unpredictable voice, which plumbed the depths during the bands disastrous final show at the 1996 Reading Festival, held up throughout the show on May 24, despite pre-show anxiety. Ive never seen Ian nervous before, Stone Roses biographer John Robb told the NME. But he was, just as they came on. They sounded great. But how could they not with the worlds best drummer? Oasis singer Liam Gallagher watched from one of the balconies and took to microblogging website Twitter during the show to declare: The Stone Roses are back! Spiky frontman Brown mocked audience members who were filming on their mobile phones, while Wren recalled the spirit of 1989 Britains second summer of love by emblazoning the groups iconic lemon motif on his bass drum. The band recorded just two albums and their 1989 self-titled debut is regarded as a seminal work, fusing psychedelic pop with dance music. With tracks such as Fools Gold and I Am The Resurrection, they were one of the leading lights of the Madchester indie scene in the late 1980s and early 1990s, alongside acts like Happy Mondays and The Charlatans. AFP

Events Flash
with ...

Chit Soe Collection 2012

U Chit Soe will hold a solo photo exhibition of around a hundred photos of natural landscapes and ancient arts in Myanmar. The show will run on June 2-3 at No 8, Komin Kochin Road, Bahan Township from 9am to 4pm.

Nuam Bawi

Art Exhibition
Artist Pyae Phyoe Aung will hold his first solo exhibition of sketches of Myanmar women as reflections on the nature of beauty. The exhibition is at the Lokanat Gallery from 28-30 May, 9am to 5pm.

Thukha Yeikmyone Childrens Painting Exhibition

New Zero Art Space will hold an exhibition presenting sketches of children who received free art training by New Zero. The exhibition will start on May 28 and run until June 3, from 9.30am to 5pm at No. 54 (1-E), Bo Yar Nyunt Street, 1st Floor, Dagon Township.

Rock-On Concert
Iron Cross will perform at Myawsinkyun, Kandawgyi on June 9 from 6pm until 11pm. Tickets cost K6500 and are available at Bo Bo Music Production, Orange Supermarket, Blazon, Nobody, Fashion Star, Conqueror and Capital Hypermarket.

Nine Planets Concert

A rock concert featuring S.I.R, Drive, Fever 109, Nightmare, Side Effect

Pic: Ko Taik

timeout 2
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At long last, Side Effect release their debut album

By Nuam Bawi LOCAL alternative rockers Side Effect finally released their debut album on May 5, just months after the groups efforts to raise funds on the internet fell prey to international sanctions. At the beginning of the year the band raised nearly US$3000 from supporters through US website IndieGoGo, with plans to use the money to release their first album and buy new equipment. H o w e v e r, I n d i e G o G o informed Side Effect on January 13 that it had cancelled the bands campaign over fears that transferring donations to the designated offshore bank account might contravene US sanctions, which prohibit Myanmar citizens from accessing the US banking system. Despite this setback, the band managed to scrounge up enough cash to release the 10-song album, titled Mo Nya Eain Met Mya (Rainy Night Dreams), in early May. This is our first album, so we would like to introduce our style to music fans and let them know that this is our music, said Darko, the bands vocalist and guitarist. The other band members are bassist and guitarist Jozeff K and drummer Tser Htoo, with Hein Lwin playing bass for live performances. Since its founding in 2004, the band has cultivated an alt-rock sound that combines punk, power pop and other genres in a manner similar to bands like The Strokes, Franz Ferdinand and The Pixies. We dont focus on one music genre. Instead we focus on our own style, Darko said, adding that primary influences include Nirvana, Placebo and The Strokes. He admitted, however, that fans who prefer the sort of melodic, sing-along pop tunes that dominate Myanmars music scene might not enjoy listening to Side Effects songs. In our country most people enjoy listening to pop vocals and melodic music, so they might not like our songs. Were not a melodic band, and we dont write many sweet songs aimed at attracting a lot of fans, he said. I think its much better that were doing what we want to do with honesty. Weve created the songs that we wanted to create, rather than catering to what fans might want. So fans are free to decide whether they like us or not, he said. Tser Htoo said the fact that the band has had the same members since the beginning has helped them develop their distinct sound. I knew Darko even before we were band mates. Our personalities and our ideas about music were the same so we became close friends, and after a while we often knew what each other was thinking without even talking, Tser Htoo said. He said the band members also agreed that they did not want to take the same path to fame followed by other musicians in Myanmar. Even underground bands strive to release albums and play a lot of live concerts. But we never really tried to do that because we all had the same idea that we didnt want to be influenced by producers. Thats why we took so long to release an album, even though weve been playing together for a long time, he said. Side Effect marked the release of the album with a free concert in Kandawgyi Park on May 12, along with guest performers Big Bag, No U Turn and Nov 24. Darko said he considered the show, which was attended by about 200 people, to be the bands best-ever performance. We were happy because some of the fans were singing along with songs while we were playing. This had never happened at any of our previous concerts, he said. Darko said that the cover of Rainy Night Dreams, designed by Yangon-based Swedish artist Cap, was intended to convey the excitement of a live performance by Side Effect. This photo was taken when we performed in Bali, Indonesia, last November as part of ASEAN Fair 2011. It shows concert staff hanging a banner behind the stage before we started playing, so it gives the sense that Side Effect is coming to perform now. We are starting now, he said. The Bali concert, along with wide press coverage of the IndieGoGo debacle, has helped Side Effect gain international attention. The next logical step, once the album was completed, was to arrange for the songs to be available for download on sites such as iTunes, Amazon and Spotify. There are many people from overseas who know about our band from the news about the freezing of our funds by IndieGoGo. So they are interested in our band even though they havent heard our music. Thats why weve put our songs on iTunes, Amazon and Spotify, so they can be downloaded and heard, Darko said. The price on Amazon is US$0.89 per song, or $5.99 for the entire album.

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Pentagon invites kids to share peace game

By Susan Svrluga WASHINGTON The US secretary of defence had to end his 11:30am meeting abruptly when he was called to the White House. His guests didnt mind they liked seeing all the men with walkie-talkies swoop in to usher Leon Panetta out. Awesome! Besides, they wanted to play with the coins he had given them. Its not every nine-yearold who gets invited to talk with some of the worlds most powerful people. But this class of Charlottesville, Virginia, fourth-graders has read Sun Tzus The Art of War, learned to avoid battles by outthinking their opponents and negotiated simulated crises involving arms dealers, oil spills and insurgents. They also solved global warming. In a week. The class is led by a charismatic long-time teacher whose past led him to think in unexpected ways. He was one of a handful of children chosen to integrate an all-white Virginia school, then wandered through Asia studying religion and philosophy before devising a game to teach kids how to solve problems. They are learning to decrease suffering in the world, John Hunter said, and increase compassion. Suddenly, people from Harvard to the United Nations are listening. And that includes Panetta, who said recently that the United States was within an inch of war almost every day in the area around North Korea. Whether the Pentagon invitation was an innovative way to bring inspiration to a stolid institution or an odd play by officials mired in endless warfare, the kids in the class are pretty sure of one thing: The class got the officials thinking. The impact was really profound on us here at the Pentagon, said Beth Flores, director of the Leadership and Organisational Development Office of the undersecretary of defence for policy. This odd partnership military leaders and young kids learning from one another started with a game that Hunters Agnor-Hurt Elementary School students play: the World Peace Game. The children work to solve thorny problems erupting around the map. Everyone has to win for the game to be won. Inspired by Gandhian principles, the game aims to get players to build harmony while accepting the reality of violence, Hunter said. He talks about fostering the Buddhist concept of emptiness, the space and serenity to think deeply about complex issues. Plus, he wants it to be fun. The game has four countries with made-up names but real-world problems: cyberattacks, ballooning debt, ethnic tensions. Hunter tells the students that he doesnt know how to solve the problems, so they will have to figure out a way. Their collective wisdom, he said, is much greater than his. Over eight weeks, they play the game, small people carrying dossiers, negotiating deals, starting wars. When Hunter rings the bell to start the game, something between a hum and a roar fills the classroom as they argue and barter, pout, form alliances, cut deals and, sometimes, have a little temper tantrum. Sarah Schmidt, who is nine, was chief financial officer of a large country, a diplomat and, secretly, a saboteur chosen by Hunter to undermine everything. No one suspected, she said, for the longest time. Then I went quick. They got vicious when I tried to coup detat my prime minister. Some kids just want to blow everything up. But as they see the consequences ripple out after each battle, Hunter said, they begin to look for other options. R e c e n t l y, t h e g a m e has been getting a lot of attention. Chris Farina, an independent filmmaker in Charlottesville, produced a documentary that led to screenings and speeches by Hunter at universities. Flores invited Hunter and Farina to the Pentagon this past fall. They didnt invite us to talk about war, Hunter said, surprised. Theyre the greatest military machine in history. They wanted to seriously have a discussion about peace and how we do that. Hunter said Pentagon officials told the two: Weve been at war 10 years. Were tired. Were worn out. Weve

Kaitlyn Gallaway (left), Samuel Knotts and Sarah Schmidt, fourth-grade students at Agnor-Hurt Elementary School in Charlottesville, Virginia, are shown with the World Peace Game. Pic: The Washington Post/Norm Shafer been through this with no end in sight. So one morning last month, the ministers of defence, the ethnic leaders, the arms dealers, the saboteur and all their friends took a bus to the Washington area to tell the Pentagon how they brought peace to the world. The event was closed to the news media, a spokeswoman said at the time. But as with so many high-powered gatherings, centre of the Pentagon was the site of a bunker full of nuclear missiles. It was actually a hot-dog stand. Shortly before noon, the children sat down with Panetta for about half an hour. He asked them about the crises they had solved, they said, and how they had done it especially climate change. Pa n e t t a g a v e t h e m commemorative coins, a military tradition to honour someone. When he was called to the White House, they devoured pizzas, tossed the coins and stuck them in their eyes like monocles. They had a mock news conference with Pentagon press secretary George Little, drilling him with questions such as whether America is ready to protect Taiwan at all costs against Chinese aggression. They ended the day with a hot wash, the typical debriefing to discuss important take-aways. Samuel Knotts, a 10-yearold prime minister, said they were invited to help get a whole new perspective of the world and how to solve problems. If somebody steals your lunchbox, you dont go up and punch him in the face to get it back you want to reason with them, find out why they took it or talk to a teacher. The teacher in that case would be the United Nations. Albemarle County Schools Superintendent Pamela Moran said officials seemed struck by the students insistence that they couldnt solve problems in isolation and how fierce the students were when asking tough questions. Flores said she thinks Pentagon officials learned the value of stepping back from the constant rush of the inbox to think with a fresh perspective about world problems. I think they were reminded of their own personal commitment to public service. The visit was part of a transformation in the policy department to encourage continual learning, strategic thinking, new perspectives and inspiration through things such as talks by scholars or working in another agency for a year. Flores said she and Hunter have talked about an ongoing partnership between his class and the Pentagon. Can we go back? Please? Sarah and Aimee Straka, the nine-year-old head of the United Nations, asked Hunter recently. Its a really fun place that we could explore more, Sarah said. Long time, no see, Mr Panetta! Aimee called out, giggling. They may save us all, Hunter said later. I hope so. The Washington Post

students The learning are to decrease suffering in the world and increase compassion.

Teacher John Hunter (left) and his students from AgnorHurt Elementary School in Charlottesville, Virginia, listen to Defence Secretary Leon Panetta explain some world clocks at the Pentagon. Pic: US Defence Department

firsthand accounts leaked out afterward. The students were wowed by the size of the building, by the September 11 memorial and by their tour guide, who not only walked backward while leading them down long hallways, but also walked backward down the escalator. They loved a story about the Soviets concluding from satellite surveillance that a small building at the

Whaam! Lichtenstein retrospective opens in Chicago

By Mira Oberman CHICAGO The colourful, comic dots of Pop art icon Roy Lichtenstein burst off the walls at the first retrospective since his death in 1997. Scenes of war and romance lifted from comics and recast onto massive canvases lead seamlessly into his more abstract explosions and brushstrokes, his reworking of classics like Monets Haystacks, and the luminous Chinese landscapes Lichtenstein painted near the end of his life. More than 160 works including never-before-seen sculptures, drawings and paintings from private collections are bunched in a major exhibit that opened in Chicago on May 22 before heading to Washington, London and Paris. Lichtenstein is rightly recognised for being a foundational Pop artist who created some of the most iconic works of the 20th century, said co-curator James Rondeau of the Art Institute of Chicago. Our aim with this exhibition is to explore the full range of absorbing contradictions at the heart of Lichtensteins work starting with the paradox that Lichtenstein systematically dismantled the history of modern art while becoming a fixture in that canon. Born in New York in 1923, Lichtenstein began painting seriously after his service in World War II. But he did not find fame until he abandoned cubist and abstract styles and challenged the art world with his artless cartoons beginning in 1961. Lichtensteins Look Mickey which opens the exhibit is considered to be the first Pop art painting. Its simplistic subject an illustration from a book he read to his sons of Donald Duck hooking a fishing line on his shirt while Mickey covers his laughing mouth was seen as heretical, pedestrian or banal. It was an incredibly radical gesture, said co-curator Sheena Wa g s t a f f o f L o n d o n s Ta t e Modern. When he came up with these images, he was fairly derided, as many artists have been in the avant garde. Nobody really understood what he was doing. Hand-painted Ben-Day dots that mimicked commercial printing processes became Lichtensteins signature as he blurred the lines between low and high art. By embracing and elevating the commonplace, Lichtenstein and other Pop artists like Andy Warhol helped redefine art and beauty at a time of major social and cultural upheaval. His comic book panels of damsels in distress and blonde heroines of domesticity came at a time when feminists were challenging traditional gender roles. His dramatic depictions of daring war heroes captured sentimental and idealised ideas of masculinity at the height of the Cold War. The cheerful, tongue-in-cheek playfulness of his work has also contributed to Lichtensteins lasting popularity as has his capacity to capture a moment of intensely engaging narrative. Its part of a story and Im taking a part out, which implies that something happened before and after, and you dont know what it is, Lichtenstein once said. I pick them to be disturbing in that way, or humorous in that way or evocative in some way. The aim of the exhibit is to help artists and the general public understand Lichtensteins work in a fresh and new way rather than as a historical figure locked into 1964 when it was high pop art, said Jack Cowart, director of the Lichtenstein Foundation. We hope it will be a Wow! I never knew he did that kind of thing, Cowart said. The exhibit runs through September 3 at the Art Institute of Chicago. It will then travel to the National Galley of Art in Washington from October 14 until January 13, 2013. It opens at Londons Tate Modern on February 21, 2013 and runs through May 27, 2013. The retrospective will appear at the Centre Pompidou in Paris from July 3 to November 4, 2013. AFP

soCiAlite
May 28 - June 3, 2012
Rose Mary Collection Gems & Jewellery shop opening
This week socialite started with Rose Mary Collection Gems & Jewellery shop opening at Junction Squate on May 16. On the following W I T H M A Y S A N D Y day she showed up at the opening of Shayi Fashion new location in Bahan township before she went to Traders Hotel dinner with their new General Manager, Mr Phillip Couvaras. On May 18, she attended the Ikon Mart t Electrolux Demonstration event in the morning and Ponds Flawless White event at Sedona hotel in the evening. The next day she went to Healthy Shop 5th anniversary and Healthy Plus 3rd anniversary event at the National Theatre. She ended her week on May 20 at Enavorse skin care event at Sedona hotel in the morning.
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SOCIALITE

Ma Moe, Ma Thandar Aye Aung and Ma Phyu Thant Paing

Ma Hinn Moe Aung, MaTheint and Ma Khine Wai Thwe

Traders Hotel dinner with new General Manager

Khin Sandar Myint, Ye Min Thu and May Myint Mo

Ma Winnie, Major Selva Kumar and Zaw Win Than

May Phyu Phyu

Guests Mya Hnin Yee Lwin and Phyu Nwe Khine General Manager Mr Phillip Couvaras Ko Phyoe Wai Yar Zar

Enavose Skin Care Launch

Mr Craig Powell & Mrs Powell, Ma KhinMarlar

Healthy Shop 5th Anniversary and Healthy Plus 3rd Anniversary

Kayzin Myo Nyunt and Nay Lin Oo Thanda Hlaing

Ma Aye Aye Su

Ma Khine

Thida Aye

Daw Tin Tin Win

Ms. Florine Eipe and Ma Khin Marlar Ms Felicia Chang and Ms Adrina Kay Moh Moh

Model

U Myo Thwin

Nan Su Yati Soe Khine Thazin Yu War

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May 28 - June 3, 2012
Opening of Shayi Fashion at new location

MyanMar tiMes

IKON Mart Electrolux Demonstration Event

Daw Mya Sandar Min, U Aung Than Htay, U Thant Zin Htun, Varun Bajaj and Miki

William & Steve Thida Shayi Staff

Chan Chan

Ko Than Naing Zaw and Steven

Daw Tin Tin Win

Ma Marlar Win and U Maung Maung Myint

San Bauk Ra

Ma Khin Thaik Htay and Ma Khin Thaik Htwe

Eddie Varun Bajaj, Miki and William

Ariel Thuta

Thinzar Nwe Win

Ponds Flawless White

Ma Su Thar and Noemi Almo

Ms. Wachirapan Soponkij- Bobby Soxer

Nay Toe

Model Ms. Karat Roonpraphun

Tin Moe Lwin

trAvel
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Preserving daily life in Old Havana

By David Montgomery EUSEBIO Leal, a diminutive, silver-haired man in a dark suit, sips sweet Cuban coffee in an elegant salon of the Cuban Interests Section mansion o n 1 6 th S t r e e t N W i n Washington DC and recalls the day they began calling him crazy in Havana. The year was 1967, in a country not known for rewarding dissent, and Leal, then 25, was relatively new on the job as a city preservationist. He was leading a project to skin the asphalt off a historic street, revealing the original wooden surface, and he had a special load of vintage wood to restore the centuries-old grandeur. But government officials told him the street would have to be paved over immediately so it could be used for an important diplomatic visit. The next morning, crews came to do the work and Leal lay in front of the trucks to save the street. The mayor had to come to persuade me, Leal recalls in his deep voice, through an official interpreter. I didnt get up until he guaranteed that we could complete our work. He kept his word. It was a very tense moment. Then they started saying I was a madman but in that kind of aspect in which being a madman is a good thing. All these years later, at 69, Leals mad passion has made him a beloved figure in Cuba and a globally admired hero of the historic preservation movement. With the unlikely title of city historian, he has rescued hundreds of landmark buildings in Old Havana (Habana Vieja), the colonial section of the city founded in 1519. He devised a mechanism to use tourist dollars to fund preservation, making the city more attractive to visitors thus begetting more tourist dollars and more preservation. He did it while taking a stand against gentrification, and against the themeparking of history, by insisting that real people must continue to live, work, study and retire amid the historic plazas, palaces, museums and boutique hotels. Leal filled lecture halls in the Washington and New York earlier this month, sharing the human drama and professional secrets of his work with kindred spirits for whom standing in front of demolition bulldozers is utterly sane. He had a vision, and he made it happen, says Richard Moe, former president of the National Trust for Historic Preservation, introducing a talk by Leal at the trust. The restored Plaza Vieja [Old Plaza] is now one of the great public spaces not just in Cuba, not just in this hemisphere, but in the world. One reason the licensed cultural tours to Cuba by

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Old Havana includes many buildings still in need of restoration. Pic: Paul Edmondson/National Trust For Historic Preservation groups such as the trust Preserving the old city was a meeting about Old Havana, foreign correspondents have and National Geographic not a priority, according to Castro asked Leal, What can been able to find former Old Havana residents who echo are all the rage among the American preservationists we do? Leal recalls. Leal proposed that his Carmen Garcia, quoted in cosmopolitan set is they who watched from afar. There was what we office be given unprecedented the Boston Globe in 2001: offer a glimpse of Leals work. The United States think was a purposeful authority to generate its Yes, its a nice home we government permits few abandonment of Havana own revenue. Castro liked have and better than all four of us living in one room other opportunities to visit by the revolution, and it the idea. Starting with a budget with one light-bulb. But I was through the will of the island. Back home, Leal likes people who refused to let from the state of just $1 miss Old Havana. He is keenly aware of a to walk the streets of Old this happen in Cuba that million, we bet on rescuing Havana. He started a radio they actually forced the a small hotel three small paradox at the centre of and television show called conservation movement to restaurants and a set of his lifes work: The tourism Andar la Habana (Walking be accepted. So its truly houses in ruins, Leal says. that is saving Old Havana The hotel happened to be could destroy it. A familiar heroic, says Araoz, whose Havana). Ive walked with him in family left Cuba when he the Ambos Mundos, where pattern in tourist Meccas Havana, and people come up was a boy in 1960. Eusebio Ernest Hemingway is said around the world is for to him to ask him favours, i s p r o b a b l y t h e m o s t to have written part of For waves of comparatively rich visitors to overwhelm and Whom the Bell Tolls. and, more than favours, emblematic. Since then, Leals operation distort local culture. The day Leal lay in front of people come to him to thank Leals solution is to him, says Gustavo Araoz, the pavers, he had just been has grown to operating 16 president of the International given his first big restoration hotels, a tour company, preserve people as much Council on Monuments and assignment the Palace of restaurants, museums, a as buildings; he is trying to Sites. He has immense the Captains General. The radio station and more. Last create an infrastructure for work took 11 years, and in the year, revenues were $119 daily life to continue. popular support. It would be easier to make a movie set, he says. The city must live essentially around They started saying I was a madman but in that kind its people. The restoration is not only a historiographical of aspect in which being a madman is a good thing. project but a project trying to recover quality of life. Tourists will overwhelm Leals quiet pride in his late 1970s, the palace became million, profits $23 million. the place. Thats why its About 74,000 people live important for people to work accomplishments is tinged the City Museum, with Leal in Old Havana, and the there and live there, to create with melancholy at how as the first director. By 1981, he had won border between the restored spaces of silence where there much is yet to be done. Landmark structures are Castros support, and the and the ruined is starkly arent tourist installations collapsing before he can get work began in earnest visible. On the ruined but are real neighbourhoods. to them. He has always said with a master plan and side remains a complex And even in the most visited restoring Old Havana, and US$11 million to renovate problem of housing, water, places, put schools, little the rest of the city, would 30 buildings. Leal hired sanitation, communication, hospitals. We are trying to put up curtains in the path take more than one lifetime, dozens, then hundreds of promiscuity, Leal says. What people criticise of the wave. and now, it is late in his architects, archaeologists, American preservationists p r e s e r v a t i o n i s t s , sometimes is that renovation career. To some extent we have craftspeople and labourers. doesnt get to them quickly marvel at Leals evident political and bureaucratic But after the break-up enough. succeeded, Leal says. When a historic dwelling skills to have pursued I wish I had been more of the Soviet Union, Cuba hit an economic crisis. sheltering six families in his professional passion successful. Even before the 1959 Fixing buildings seemed slum conditions is properly so successfully within the revolution that brought Fidel less important when people restored, there might only Cuban system. Maybe he is be room for one or two crazy like a fox. Castro to power, Old Havana were going hungry. In my country, he During the very hard families. Leal is building was ailing. The nearly four square kilometres had period of the [early] 1990s, new housing in Old Havana, says, there is a first act been abandoned by well- he made sure all his workers b u t s o m e f a m i l i e s a r e of forgiveness for madness, to-do residents in favour had enough food, Araoz given new housing outside when it is accompanied by of tonier neighbourhoods. says. He just figured out the area. Leal says most these other words: Hes a After the revolution, the where to find it. He has who leave prefer modern madman, but hes a very hard worker. construction. government focused on performed miracles. The Washington Post But, over the years, One night in 1993, during developing the countryside.

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May 28 - June 3, 2012

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DOMESTIC FLIGHT SCHEDULES

DAYS Flight
MON AW 891 6T 405 AW 911 6T 401 K7 222 W9 011 6T 801 AW 761 6T 351 K7 824 AW 791 K7 224 6T 501 K7 228 YH 909 6T 405 AW 891 AW 901 W9 251 6T 401 6T 801 YH 729 AW 761 K7 622 K7 224 6T 501 AW 891 AW 911 6T 401 6T 331 K7 222 6T 801 AW 751 YH 737 K7 824 K7 622 W9 261 AW 791 YH 731 6T 501 YH 909 AW 891 AW 901 6T 401 W9 255 6T 331 YH 729 AW 201 K7 226 K7 224 6T 501 YH 731 AW 891 W9 251 6T 401 YH 917 6T 331 K7 222 AW 751 AW 211 K7 824 6T 501 YH 731 W9 271 6T 403 YH 909 AW 891 AW 911 6T 401 YH 729 6T 801 AW 601 K7 622 K7 224 6T 501 AW 891 YH 909 AW 891 6T 401 W9 255 K7 222 6T 801 AW 211 AW 751 K7 622 6T 501 YH 634 AW 892 6T 402 K7 223 W9 262 6T 802 W9 021 YH 728 AW 762 K7 224 6T 502 K7 825 W9 009 AW 902 AW 892 6T 402 YH 910 W9 011 YH 812 6T 802 W9 251 W9 150 AW 762 K7 224 YH 730 6T 502

INTERNATIONAL FLIGHT SCHEDULES

DAYS Flight
MON W9 143 AW 892 YH 918 W9 011 6T 402 K7 223 AW 792 K7 225 AW 892 YH 918 W9 011 6T 402 W9 116 K7 827 K7 225 W9 143 AW 892 YH 918 6T 402 K7 223 W9 143 AW 892 YH 918 6T 402 K7 827 K7 225 W9 143 AW 892 YH 918 6T 402 K7 223 AW 911 W9 143 AW 892 YH 918 6T 402 K7 827 AW 752 K7 225 AW SPL AW 892 YH 918 W9 011 6T 402 K7 223 AW 752 W9 116 YH 738 6T 611 W9 309 6T 611 W9 309 6T 611 W9 309 6T 611 W9 309 6T 607 W9 309 K7 426 6T 611 W9 309 6T 611 W9 309 K7 426 6T 612 W9 310 6T 612 W9 310 6T 612 W9 310 6T 612 W9 310 6T 608 W9 310 K7 427 6T 612 W9 310 6T 612 K7 427 K7 319 6T 707 AW 301 K7 313 6T 707 K7 313 6T 707 K7 319 6T 707 AW 301 AW 301 K7 319 6T 707 K7 319 6T 707 K7 319 6T 707 AW 301 K7 320 6T 708 K7 314 6T 708 AW 302 K7 314 6T 708 AW 302 K7 320 6T 708 K7 320 6T 708 K7 320 6T 708 K7 320 6T 708 AW 302

Dep
06:15 06:15 06:30 06:30 07:00 07:30 08:30 11:00 11:30 12:30 14:30 15:00 15:00 06:00 06:15 06:15 06:15 06:15 06:30 06:30 08:00 11:00 11:00 13:30 15:00 15:00 06:15 06:30 06:30 07:00 07:00 10:45 11:00 11:00 12:30 13:30 13:30 14:30 15:00 15:00 06:15 06:15 06:30 06:30 06:30 07:00 10:30 11:00 13:30 15:00 15:00 15:00 06:15 06:30 06:30 06:30 07:00 07:00 11:00 11:00 12:30 15:00 15:00 06:00 06:15 06:15 06:15 06:30 06:30 10:30 10:45 11:30 13:30 15:00 15:00 16:15 06:15 06:15 06:30 06:30 07:00 08:00 11:00 11:00 13:30 15:00 08:35 08:35 08:55 09:35 10:50 13:20 14:10 16:30 16:35 16:45 17:20 18:20 08:30 08:35 08:35 08:55 09:25 09:25 13:25 13:30 13:35 16:20 16:35 16:45 17:20 17:20

Arr
08:20 08:20 07:55 08:35 09:15 08:30 09:55 12:55 12:55 13:55 15:55 16:25 17:00 07:25 07:55 08:20 08:20 08:20 07:55 08:35 09:25 12:40 12:55 14:55 16:25 17:00 08:20 07:50 08:35 08:25 09:15 12:10 12:10 13:10 13:55 14:55 14:55 16:25 17:10 17:00 07:55 08:20 08:35 08:35 08:55 08:25 13:30 12:55 14:55 16:25 17:00 17:10 08:20 07:55 08:35 08:50 08:25 09:15 12:25 12:55 13:55 17:00 17:10 07:25 07:40 07:55 08:20 07:50 07:50 13:30 12:10 12:55 14:55 16:25 17:00 08:20 08:30 08:20 08:35 08:55 09:15 09:25 12:25 12:25 14:55 17:00 10:00 10:30 10:55 11:45 12:15 14:45 15:10 17:55 18:00 20:00 19:25 19:45 09:30 10:00 10:30 10:55 10:50 11:10 14:50 14:55 15:00 17:45 18:40 20:00 18:45 19:25

DAYS Flight
WED W9 009 AW 892 6T 332 6T 402 K7 223 W9 021 6T 802 AW 792 YH 738 AW 752 6T 502 K7 825 W9 009 AW 892 6T 332 AW 902 6T 402 YH 812 W9 021 AW 202 K7 224 YH 730 6T 502 W9 009 AW 892 6T 332 YH 918 6T 402 K7 223 W9 251 AW 212 YH 731 6T 502 W9 232 YH 728 K7 825 6T 404 AW 892 6T 402 W9 011 W9 262 YH 812 6T 802 AW 602 K7 224 YH 730 6T 502 W9 009 YH 910 AW 892 6T 402 W9 011 K7 223 W9 256 YH 812 6T 802 AW 212 YH 738 6T 502 W9 143 AW 891 YH 633 6T 401 YH 917 K7 222 K7 224 W9 143 AW 901 AW 891 6T 401 YH 917 K7 224 W9 143 AW 891 6T 401 K7 222 YH 917 AW 781 AW 891 W9 009 AW 901 6T 401 YH 917 K7 224 AW 891 W9 009 6T 401 YH 917 K7 222 AW 891 6T 403 W9 009 6T 401 YH 917 6T 801 K7 224 W9 143 AW 891 YH 909 W9 009 6T 401 YH 917 K7 222 K7 222 AW 792 W9 109 YH 732 6T 502 K7 225

Dep
08:30 08:35 08:45 08:55 09:35 14:10 15:35 16:40 17:10 17:50 17:20 18:20 08:30 08:35 08:45 08:50 08:55 13:10 14:10 16:00 16:45 17:15 17:20 08:30 08:35 08:45 08:50 08:55 09:35 13:35 16:30 17:10 17:20 17:35 17:45 18:20 08:00 08:35 08:55 09:25 10:50 13:10 15:35 16:40 16:45 17:15 17:20 08:30 08:35 08:35 08:55 09:25 09:35 11:20 13:10 13:30 16:00 17:10 17:20 06:00 06:15 06:15 06:30 06:30 07:00 15:00 06:00 06:15 06:15 06:30 06:30 15:00 06:00 06:15 06:30 07:00 06:30 15:00 06:15 06:30 06:30 06:30 06:30 15:00 06:15 06:30 06:30 06:30 07:00 06:15 06:15 06:30 06:30 06:30 10:30 15:00 06:00 06:15 06:15 06:30 06:30 06:30 07:00 08:40 17:50 17:25 17:55 18:05 18:40

Arr
09:30 10:30 10:10 10:55 11:45 15:10 17:00 18:45 18:35 19:15 19:25 19:45 09:30 10:30 10:10 10:15 10:55 14:35 15:10 17:25 20:00 18:45 19:25 09:30 10:30 10:10 10:45 10:55 11:45 15:00 17:55 19:25 19:25 19:00 19:10 19:45 10:05 10:30 10:55 11:10 12:15 14:35 17:00 18:05 20:00 18:45 19:25 09:30 10:00 10:30 10:55 11:10 11:45 12:45 14:35 14:55 17:25 18:35 19:25 07:20 07:35 07:50 07:50 08:05 08:20 18:20 07:20 07:35 07:35 07:50 08:05 18:20 07:20 07:35 07:50 08:20 08:05 17:10 07:35 07:25 07:50 07:50 08:05 18:20 07:35 07:25 07:50 08:05 08:20 07:35 08:30 07:25 07:50 08:05 11:50 18:20 07:20 07:35 07:50 07:25 07:50 08:05 08:20 11:45 19:10 18:20 19:15 19:25 20:00

DAYS Flight
TUE YH 910 AW 762 W9 109 AW 792 6T 502 YH 732 K7 225 K7 222 W9 109 AW 792 YH 732 6T 502 YH 910 W9 109 YH 732 6T 502 K7 225 K7 222 W9 109 YH 732 6T 502 YH 910 6T 404 W9 109 YH 732 6T 502 K7 225 K7 222 YH 910 W9 109 YH 732 6T 502 W9 255 W9 251 K7 622 K7 622 AW 201 W9 255 W9 251 K7 622 AW 211 W9 255 K7 622 W9 256 W9 252 K7 623 K7 623 AW 202 W9 256 W9 252 K7 623 W9 256 K7 623 K7 222 W9 119 AW 761 YH 727 6T 501 YH 731 K7 224 K7 826 6T 801 W9 115 AW 761 YH 811 6T 501 YH 731 K7 224 AW 911 K7 222 W9 119 YH 737 AW 791 6T 501 YH 731 K7 826 AW 761 AW 201 YH 811 W9 109 6T 501 YH 731 K7 224 K7 222 AW 211 W9 109 6T 501 YH 731 K7 826 AW 751 W9 119 YH 811 6T 501 YH 731 K7 224 K7 222 AW SPL AW 751 W9 115 YH 811 6T 501 YH 731 YH 737

Dep
08:40 17:20 17:25 17:25 18:05 18:10 18:40 08:40 17:25 17:25 17:55 18:05 08:40 17:25 17:55 18:05 18:40 08:40 17:25 17:55 18:05 08:40 08:45 17:25 17:55 18:05 18:40 08:40 08:40 17:25 17:55 18:05 06:30 06:30 13:30 13:30 06:30 06:30 06:30 13:30 06:00 06:30 13:30 09:45 12:05 16:50 16:50 09:35 09:45 12:05 16:50 09:45 16:50 07:00 11:00 11:00 11:00 15:00 15:00 15:00 07:00 08:00 11:00 11:00 11:15 15:00 15:00 15:00 06:30 07:00 11:00 11:00 14:30 15:00 15:00 07:00 11:00 11:00 11:00 14:30 15:00 15:00 15:00 07:00 11:00 14:30 15:00 15:00 07:00 11:00 11:00 11:00 15:00 15:00 15:00 07:00 07:30 10:30 11:00 11:00 15:00 15:00 11:00

Arr
10:00 18:40 18:20 18:45 19:25 19:30 20:00 11:45 18:20 18:45 19:15 19:25 10:00 18:20 19:15 19:25 20:00 11:45 18:20 19:15 19:25 10:00 10:05 18:20 19:15 19:25 20:00 11:45 10:00 18:20 19:15 19:25 09:25 09:25 16:30 16:30 09:20 09:25 09:25 16:30 08:50 09:25 16:30 12:40 15:00 19:50 19:50 12:25 12:40 15:00 19:50 12:40 19:50 10:10 12:10 12:10 12:25 16:10 16:25 17:20 08:15 10:20 12:10 12:10 12:40 16:10 16:25 17:20 08:40 10:10 12:10 12:25 15:40 16:10 16:25 08:15 12:10 12:10 12:25 15:25 16:10 16:25 17:20 10:10 12:10 15:25 16:10 16:25 08:15 12:10 12:10 12:25 16:10 16:25 17:20 10:10 08:40 11:40 12:10 12:25 16:10 16:25 12:25

Dep
09:05 09:20 09:35 09:40 09:45 10:30 16:55 17:40 09:20 09:35 09:40 09:45 16:45 11:15 17:40 09:05 09:20 09:35 09:45 10:30 09:05 09:20 09:35 09:45 11:15 17:40 09:05 09:20 09:35 09:45 10:30 08:55 09:05 09:20 09:35 09:45 11:15 17:15 17:40 08:55 09:20 09:35 09:40 09:45 10:30 16:45 16:45 17:20 11:15 13:00 11:15 13:00 09:00 13:00 11:15 13:00 11:15 13:00 15:00 11:15 13:00 11:15 13:00 15:00 12:55 15:00 12:55 15:00 10:40 15:00 12:55 15:00 12:55 15:00 16:40 12:55 15:00 12:55 16:40 07:00 11:30 07:00 07:00 11:30 07:00 11:30 07:00 11:30 12:45 07:00 07:00 11:30 07:00 08:00 07:00 11:30 12:45 11:50 15:55 09:30 15:55 17:15 09:30 15:55 11:30 11:50 15:55 11:50 15:55 11:50 12:25 11:50 15:55 17:15

Arr
10:15 10:30 10:45 10:35 10:55 11:45 19:10 20:00 10:30 10:45 10:35 10:55 17:55 12:30 20:00 10:15 10:30 10:45 10:55 11:45 10:15 10:30 10:45 10:55 12:30 20:00 10:15 10:30 10:45 10:55 11:45 11:05 10:15 10:30 10:45 10:55 12:30 18:25 20:00 10:05 10:30 10:45 10:35 10:55 11:45 17:55 17:55 18:35 12:40 14:45 12:40 14:45 10:25 14:45 12:40 14:45 12:40 14:45 16:20 12:40 14:45 12:40 14:45 16:20 14:20 16:45 14:20 16:45 12:05 16:45 14:20 16:45 14:55 16:45 18:00 14:20 16:45 14:20 18:00 09:10 13:30 09:05 09:10 13:30 09:10 13:30 09:10 13:30 14:50 09:05 09:10 13:30 09:10 10:00 09:10 13:30 14:50 14:00 17:55 11:40 17:55 19:20 11:40 17:55 13:35 14:00 17:55 14:00 17:55 14:00 14:25 14:00 17:55 19:20

DAYS Flight
MON FD 3771 8M 335 TG 304 PG 702 8M 331 PG 704 FD 3773 TG 306 TUE FD 3771 8M 335 TG 304 PG 702 8M 331 PG 704 FD 3773 TG 306 WED FD 3771 8M 335 TG 304 PG 702 8M 331 PG 704 FD 3773 TG 306 THUR FD 3771 8M 335 TG 304 PG 702 8M 331 PG 704 FD 3773 TG 306 FRI FD 3771 8M 335 TG 304 PG 702 8M 331 PG 704 FD 3773 TG 306 SAT FD 3771 8M 335 TG 304 PG 702 8M 331 PG 704 FD 3773 TG 306 SUN FD 3771 8M 335 TG 304 PG 702 8M 331 PG 704 FD 3773 TG 306

Dep Arr
08:30 10:15 08:50 10:35 09:50 11:45 10:55 12:50 16:30 18:15 16:40 18:35 17:40 19:25 19:45 21:40 08:30 10:15 08:50 10:35 09:50 11:45 10:55 12:50 16:30 18:15 16:40 18:35 17:40 19:25 19:45 21:40 08:30 10:15 08:50 10:35 09:50 11:45 10:55 12:50 16:30 18:15 16:40 18:35 17:40 19:25 19:45 21:40 08:30 10:15 08:50 10:35 09:50 11:45 10:55 12:50 16:30 18:15 16:40 18:35 17:40 19:25 19:45 21:40 08:30 10:15 08:50 10:35 09:50 11:45 10:55 12:50 16:30 18:15 16:40 18:35 17:40 19:25 19:45 21:40 08:30 10:15 08:50 10:35 09:50 11:45 10:55 12:50 16:30 18:15 16:40 18:35 17:40 19:25 19:45 21:40 08:30 10:15 08:50 10:35 09:50 11:45 10:55 12:50 16:30 18:15 16:40 18:35 17:40 19:25 19:45 21:40

DAYS Flight
SAT 8M 231 MI 511 8M 6232 MI 517 SUN 8M 231 MI 511

Dep Arr
08:00 12:25 10:10 14:45 11:25 15:50 16:40 21:15 08:00 12:25 10:10 14:45

DAYS Flight
MON 8M 336 FD 3770 TG 303 PG 701 PG 703 FD 3772 TG 305 8M 332 TUE 8M 336 FD 3770 TG 303 PG 701 PG 703 FD 3772 TG 305 8M 332 WED 8M 336 FD 3770 TG 303 PG 701 PG 703 FD 3772 TG 305 8M 332 THUR 8M 336 FD 3770 TG 303 PG 701 PG 703 FD 3772 TG 305 8M 332 FRI 8M 336 FD 3770 TG 303 PG 701 FD 3772 PG 703 TG 305 8M 332 SAT 8M 336 FD 3770 TG 303 PG 701 PG 703 FD 3772 TG 305 8M 332 SUN 8M 336 FD 3770 TG 303 PG 701 PG 703 FD 3772 TG 305 8M 332

Dep Arr
07:10 07:55 07:10 07:55 07:55 08:50 09:15 10:05 15:00 15:50 16:25 17:10 17:50 18:45 19:25 20:10 07:10 07:55 07:10 07:55 07:55 08:50 09:15 10:05 15:00 15:50 16:25 17:10 17:50 18:45 19:25 20:10 07:10 07:10 07:55 09:15 07:55 07:55 08:50 10:05

DAYS Flight
SAT MI 512 8M 6231 8M 232 MI 518 MI 520 SUN MI 512 8M 232 MI 518 MI 520

Dep Arr
07:55 09:20 09:10 10:35 14:10 15:35 14:20 15:45 15:20 16:40 07:55 09:20 14:10 15:35 14:20 15:45 15:20 16:40

YANGON TO MANDALAY

HEHO TO YANGON

YANGON TO BANGKOK

BANGKOK TO YANGON

WED

TUE

THUR

8M 233
MI 517

14:15 18:40
16:40 21:15

THUR

TUE

YANGON TO SIEM REAP

WED 8M 401 SAT 8M 401 08:50 11:25 08:50 11:25

FRI

WED

8M 234

19:40 21:05

KAULA LUMPUR TO YANGON

MON MH 740 8M 502 AK 850 TUE MH 740 8M 502 AK 850 WED MH 740 AK 850 THU MH 740 8M 502 AK 850 FRI MH 740 8M 502 AK 850 SAT MH 740 AK 850 SUN MH 740 8M 502 AK 850 10:05 11:15 14:00 15:00 15:40 16:45 10:05 11:15 14:00 15:00 15:40 16:45 10:05 11:15 15:40 16:45 10:05 11:15 14:00 15:00 15:40 16:45 10:05 11:15 14:00 15:00 15:40 16:45 10:05 11:15 15:40 16:45 10:05 11:15 14:00 15:00 15:40 16:45

FRI

SAT

YANGON TO KUALA LUMPUR

MON 8M 501 MH 741 AK 851 TUE 8M 501 MH 741 AK 851 WED MH 741 AK 851 THU 8M 501 MH 741 AK 851 FRI 8M 501 MH 741 AK 851 SAT SUN MH 741 AK 851 8M 501 MH 741 AK 851 WED CZ 3056 THUR 8M 711 SAT CZ 3056 09:00 13:00 12:15 16:30 18:50 23:05 09:00 13:00 12:15 16:30 18:50 23:05 12:15 16:30 18:50 23:05 09:00 13:00 12:15 16:30 18:50 23:05 09:00 13:00 12:15 16:30 18:50 23:05 12:15 16:30 18:50 23:05 09:00 13:00 12:15 16:30 18:50 23:05 11:20 15:50 08:45 13:15 11:20 15:50 08:45 13:15

THUR

WED

SUN

FRI

YANGON TO MYITKYINA
MON TUE WED THUR FRI SAT SUN

SAT

SAT

15:00 15:50 16:25 17:10 17:50 18:45 19:25 20:10 07:10 07:10 07:55 09:15 07:55 07:55 08:50 10:05

THUR

SUN

SUN

MYITKYINA TO YANGON
MON TUE WED THUR FRI SAT SUN

15:00 15:50 16:25 17:10 17:50 18:45 19:25 20:10 07:10 07:10 07:55 09:15 07:55 07:55 08:50 10:05

FRI

YANGON TO SITTWE
MON TUE WED THUR FRI

YANGON TO GAUNGZHOU

GUANGZHOU TO YANGON
WED CZ 3055 THUR 8M 712 SAT CZ 3055 08:50 10:30 14:15 15:45 08:50 10:30 14:15 15:45

YANGON TO NYAUNG U
MON

SAT

YANGON TO HEHO
MON

16:25 17:10 15:00 15:50 17:50 18:45 19:25 20:10 07:10 07:10 07:55 09:15 07:55 07:55 08:50 10:05

SAT SUN

SUN 8M 711

SUN 8M 712

TUE

YANGON TO TAIPEI
MON CI 7916 WED CI 7916 FRI CI 7916 14:00 19:25 14:00 19:25 14:00 19:25

TAIPEI TO YANGON
MON CI 7915 WED CI 7915 FRI CI 7915 09:55 12:45 09:55 12:45 09:55 12:45

TUE

SITTWE TO YANGON
MON TUE WED THUR FRI

WED

SUN

YANGON TO KUNMING
TUE CA 906 14:15 17:35 14:15 17:35 14:15 17:35 14:15 17:35 14:15 17:35

15:00 15:50 16:25 17:10 17:50 18:45 19:25 20:10 07:10 07:55 07:10 07:55 07:55 08:50 09:15 10:05 15:00 15:50 16:25 17:10 17:50 18:45 19:25 20:10

KUNMING TO YANGON
TUE CA 905 12:35 13:15 12:35 13:15 12:35 13:15 12:35 13:15 12:35 13:15

THUR

WED

WED CA 906 THUR CA 906 SAT SUN CA 906 CA 906

WED CA 905 THUR CA 905 SAT SUN CA 905 CA 905

MANDALAY TO YANGON
MON

FRI

THUR

SAT SUN

YANGON TO KOLKATA
Mon FRI IC734 IC734 13:30 16:40 13:30 16:40

KOLKATA TO YANGON
Mon FRI IC733 IC728 10:00 14:55 15:50 16:40

SAT

YANGON TO MYEIK
MON TUE

FRI

YANGON TO CHIANG MAI

THUR W9 9607 SUN W9 9607 12:00 13:30 12:00 13:30

SINGAPORE TO YANGON
MON MI 512 8M 232 MI 518 07:55 09:20 14:10 15:35 14:20 15:45

CHIANG MAI TO YANGON

THUR W9 9608 SUN W9 9608 14:30 15:00 14:30 15:00

SUN

YANGON TO SINGAPORE
MON 8M 231 MI 511 08:40 13:05 10:10 14:45

SAT

WED THUR

TUE

8M 233
MI 517 TUE 8M 231 MI 511

14:15 18:40
16:40 21:15 08:00 12:25 10:10 14:45

YANGON TO HANOI
MON VN 956 WED VN 956 FRI SAT VN 956 VN 956 19:10 21:30 19:10 21:30 19:10 21:30 19:10 21:30

8M 234
TUE MI 512 8M 232 MI 518

19:40 21:05
07:55 09:20 14:10 15:35 14:20 15:45

HANOI TO YANGON
MON VN 957 WED VN 957 FRI SAT VN 957 VN 957 16:35 18:10 16:35 18:10 16:35 18:10 16:35 18:10

FRI

NYAUNG U TO YANGON
MON

SUN

SAT SUN

8M 233
MI 517 WED 8M 231 MI 511 8M 6232 MI 517 THUR 8M 231 MI 511

14:15 18:40
16:40 21:15 08:00 12:25 10:10 14:45 11:25 15:50 16:40 21:15 08:00 12:25 10:10 14:45

8M 234
WED MI 512 8M 6231 8M 232 MI 518 THUR MI 512 8M 232 MI 518 MI 520

19:40 21:05
07:55 09:20 09:10 10:35 14:10 15:35 14:20 15:45 07:55 09:20 14:10 15:35 14:20 15:45 15:20 16:40

Domestic
6T = Air Mandalay W9 = Air Bagan AW = Asian Wings K7 = AIR KBZ YH = Yangon Airways FD & AK = Air Asia TG = Thai Airways

International
8M = Myanmar Airways International PG = Bangkok Airways MI = Silk Air VN = Vietnam Airline MH = Malaysia Airlines CZ = China Southern CI = China Airlines CA = Air China IC = Indian Airlines Limited W9 = Air Bagan 3K = Jet Star

MYEIK TO YANGON
MON TUE

YANGON TO CHI MINH

TUE VN 942 14:25 17:10 14:25 17:10 14:25 17:10

HO CHI MINH TO YANGON

TUE VN 943 11:40 13:25 11:40 13:25 11:40 13:25

THUR VN 942 SUN VN 942

THUR VN 943 SUN VN 943

WED THUR

YANGON TO PHNOM PENH

WED 8M 401 SAT 8M 401 08:50 12:50 08:50 12:50 FRI

PHNOM PENH TO YANGON

WED 8M 402 SAT 8M 402 13:50 15:15 13:50 15:15

8M 233
MI 517 FRI 8M 231 MI 511 8M 6232 MI 517

14:15 18:40
16:40 21:15 08:00 12:25 10:10 14:45 11:25 15:50 16:40 21:15

8M 234
MI 512 8M 6231 8M 232 MI 518 MI 520

19:40 21:05
07:55 09:20 09:10 10:35 14:10 15:35 14:20 15:45 15:20 16:40

Subject to change without notice

FRI SAT SUN

YANGON TO GAYA
WED 8M 601 SAT 8M 601 09:00 10:30 09:00 10:30

GAYA TO YANGON
WED 8M 602 SAT 8M 602 11:30 15:00 11:30 15:00

teA BreAk
May 28 - June 3, 2012
the

40
MyanMar tiMes

Chefs stew over foie gras

By Michael Thurston SANTA MONICA, California A simmering row between animal rights campaigners and a handful of Californias top chefs is coming to the boil, ahead of a looming ban on foie gras in the western US state. Protestors took their message to the streets last week as a series of high-end restaurants staged events with menus including foie gras ice cream to celebrate the gastronomic delicacy, made from force-fed ducks. Helpless ducks are force fed, eat somewhere else instead, chanted some 30 protestors outside the Michelin two-starred Melisse restaurant in Santa Monica. We were out there being the voice for the ducks, who obviously dont have a voice, said Amber Coon of the Animal Protection and Rescue League, adding that famously liberal California is leading the way for other states. Californias foie gras ban comes into force July 1, and a group of chefs have formed the Coalition for Human and Ethical Farming Standards (CHEFS) to combat the perception they dont care how animals are treated. Inside Melisse, owner and chef Josiah Citrin offered guests at the ticket-only event a mouth-watering sixcourse menu including foie gras French for fatty liver in every dish, from entrees to desserts. Prepared by a team of eight top chefs, the US$200a-head meal included pressed foie gras terrine, duck and foie gras parfait, foie gras tortelloni, and pistachio crusted foie gras. There was also Maine lobster with foie gras and salsify, and wild king salmon prepared with foie gras, bloomsdale spinach, french radish and jus au vin rouge, while the The larger impact however, is that a powerful special interest group with an anti-meat agenda was able to impose its morals on us all, he added. He cited a study published in th e Worlds P oultry Science Journal in 2004, which he said concluded that based on the extra physiological use of a natural fattening phenomenon, foie gras has been recognised as a non-pathological and nonharmful product. We do not believe that foie gras farming, when done correctly, is harmful or hurtful to a duck, he added. The anti-foie gras protestors are not convinced, and showed photos and an iPad video to passers-by and diners arriving at the Santa Monica restaurant, a few blocks back from the Pacific Ocean. We were just letting them know that they cant get away with [presenting] foie gras in a humane sustainable farming practice, said Coon. Most of them tried to ignore us they obviously knew that they were going to a fundraiser by a lobbyist to repeal an animal welfare law, so thats the type of crowd youre going to get anyway, she said. She noted that the ban was agreed eight years ago, but enforcement was put off to allow the Sonoma farm and restaurateurs to prepare. More than 100 restaurants have removed foie gras from their menus, before the upcoming deadline. Obviously this is not a surprise to all these chefs who are suddenly whining about it theyre all of a sudden upset about it. But this has been in the works for years, she said. Theres really just a few, very well connected wealthy hold-outs such as Melisse who are making a big fuss about this, she said. AFP Aquarius

YOUR STARS
By Astrologer Aung Myin Kyaw Jan 20 - Feb 18
Problems with relatives will disturb you slightly, but you will soon be able to provide for the needs of your family. Detach yourself from close friends who might be preventing you from attaining positive spiritual change. With the right effort, based on wise decisions, you can discover opportunities that had previously been hidden. You wont find love without making the effort to search for it.

Pisces

Attitudes are more important than facts. Discover truths about yourself that will make your life happier and more interesting, both to you and your loved ones. Disappointments in friendship will take a long time to heal, and you must make a point of learning more about the value of your social relationships.

Feb 19 - Mar 20

Aries

Chef Mark Dommen (left) and a sous chef put the finishing touches on orders of artisan foie gras and liberty farms duck at Melisse restaurant in Santa Monica, California, on May 14 as animal-rights activists protest outside. Pic: AFP roasted liberty farms duck came with artisan foie gras. For dessert there was foie gras butter kuchen with local cherries and foie gras ice cream. Citrin is even selling T-shirts emblazoned with Touche Pas a Mon Foie Gras (Keep Your Hands Off my Foie Gras), with a picture of a duck in a little white chefs hat. The event aimed to raise money and awareness about this legislation, which singlehandedly attacks foie gras but fails to address the lack of humane or ethical standards and treatment for other items in our food chain, he said. Our guests have been extremely supportive of our restaurant, Citrin said. All the ingredients that I try to use, that I use in my restaurant, I really work hard to find humanely raised animals by farmers who really care about it. The CHEFS lobby group presented a petition to lawmakers in Sacramento a few weeks ago, and at least four Los Angeles-area restaurants held events last week to highlight the cause. But even more directly in the firing line is Californias only farm producing the delicacy, the target of animal rights protests in various countries in recent years. Artisan Sonoma Foie Gras Farm was founded more than 20 years ago by Guillermo and Junny Gonzalez from El Salvador who studied i n F r a n c e s P e r i g o r d region before establishing themselves in Sonoma, north of San Francisco. They insist their production methods adhere to the highest standards, and are not cruel and that their family business was closing down as a result, with the loss of jobs and tax revenues for California. Our farm is being forced to shut down at the end of June, and the most unfortunate fact is that science has not been given a chance to play a role in this debate, Guillermo Gonzalez said.

Showing respect and love for one another among family and friends will help create emotional and spiritual values that are fundamental to building trust in society. You should strive to cultivate this approach as well. Self-confidence without an action plan gains nothing it is time to apply your skills more intelligently. You will find a compatible partner by chance, when and where you least expect it.

March 21 - April 19

Taurus

Never feel disappointed to feel empathy towards other peoples feelings. You should also learn to curb your tendency to evaluate people according to their material wealth. Demonstrative emotion will play a key role in your quest for love. Cultivate the ability to share your deep thoughts with others in your social circle. Encourage yourself to work for the common good.

April 20 - May 20

Gemini

You can move toward your goals faster if you suppress your tendency to ask a lot of meaningless questions and flit from one subject to another like a graceful and beautiful, but depthless, butterfly. One of your biggest weaknesses is your inability to accept the ideas and thoughts of others; in fact, its a bit like a psychological disease that, once cured, will vastly improve your outlook on life. Love matters are clear and fine this week.

May 21 - June 20

Cancer

Dont indulge in the game of trying to own your lover, or you will surely risk losing those who need the space to live their own lives. Let rational judgment enter into any situation that might develop between you and the one you love. Making the right decisions, and taking on the right challenges, will open up new opportunities in your life. Learn to make the best of any given situation.

June 22 - July 22

Leo

Your self-promotion ardently requires positive attention, and you must learn that others have their own needs and motivations. Take advantage of your tremendous capacity to use your own energy to arouse the enthusiasm of others. Your creative talent and leadership skills will make you great. You will soon experience a wonderful love.

July 23 - Aug 22

Virgo

New glass to revolutionise wine?

HONG KONG A French glassmaker is hoping to revolutionise the experience of drinking wine with a new design that promises to settle the age-old argument between alcohol and the grape. The tulip-shaped glass, with a wide flat base and a vertical chimney, will prevent the alcohol from overpowering the aroma of wine when the glass is swirled, according to Baccarat, a maker of luxury crystal glassware. The design prevents the usual large-scale swirling movement which oxidises the wine and burns off the delicate aromas, and retains the subtlety in the vintages, the firm said. This is revolutionary. This is a design that is geared towards revealing the wine, said Francois Mainetti, Baccarat general manager for Greater China. He said the balance between the alcohol and the aroma in wine is as important as yin and yang in Chinese philosophy. Its just like a balance between fire and water, the glass balances the fire that comes from the alcohol and the aroma in the water component, Mainetti said. The glasses went on sale in France earlier this year and were launched in China and Hong Kong last month. China has seen an explosive growth in wine sales in recent years, linked to the Hong Kong governments decision in 2008 to drop wine import duties. China displaced Britain to become the fifth largest wine consuming country last year, according to trade show Vinexpo and International Wine and Spirit Research. There is large consumption in China, so it is a legitimate territory for us to launch the glass, said Mainetti, who was confident Chinese customers would be happy to pay the asking price of HK$900 (US$116). You always hear about the impressive [auction] prices and investment, but the reality is there is a sincere group of wine lovers and there is a growing passion for wine [in China]. AFP

Avoid accepting anything that lacks tangible evidence, and display no feeling that can reveal vulnerability. Be courageous enough to face any challenges that lie waiting along your path. Perform good deeds that will help support changes toward making your life more meaningful and valuable. True love will enter your life before long.

Aug 23 - Sept 22

Libra

Dedicate more time to cultivating balance, harmony and justice in social exchanges and other forms of human contact. Enhance your social function by your presence and articulate manner in conversation. Avoid taking sides in any personal dispute. You are likely to face indecision and uncertainty this week due to rejection, particularly in the realm of love.

Sept 23 - Oct 22

Scorpio

Your tendency to regard people as specimens for examination will do you no favours. You need to learn to value the skills of others, and to work towards understanding human motivations and failings in ways that will benefit society. Pay attention to situations requiring high visibility, and observe your surroundings carefully before taking on new challenges. Dont feel obligated to be repentant about love lost because of incompatibility.

Oct 23 - Nov 21

Sagittarius

Prepare yourself to face new social risks and challenges. Psychological interference will disturb you, but no one can make you feel disappointed or force you to change. Share your ideas and thoughts with friends and colleagues, and dont be afraid to use your talent for instilling others with the courage to rise up and improve themselves. Dont be too quick to take action. For now, make an extra effort to manage your emotional desires.

Nov 22 - Dec 21

Capricorn

Love requires free thinking and sociable qualities that you have not quite learned to cultivate. Organise yourself to accept realistic and balanced judgments concerning future developments. Increasing your fortune will require reconciliation and self-indulgent decisions that, in the short term, will seem to reduce happiness and personal security. Love is a form of giving that opens the heart.

Dec 22 - Jan 19

A wine glass from the new line by French luxury crystal glassmaker Baccarat is seen at the company showroom in Hong Kong on May 18. Pic: AFP

For a personal reading contact Aung Myin Kyaw, 4th Floor, 113 Thamain Bayan Road, Tamwe Township, Yangon. Tel: 0973135632, Email: williameaste@gmail.com

Business
INSURANCE Business! I have more than 10 years experiences in Insurance Business from Singapore. Looking for Investors & Business Partners for liberalization in Myanmar Insurance Sector. Yeo Po Min, LLB, FMSA, CLU/S, ChFC/S, Yangon (HP): 09-420082606, Singapore (HP): +65 9852 7516, E-mail: yeopomin@yahoo. com. sg

Computer
SHWE SA KAR : Computer for Kids , Basic Accounting for Job I-Office , Advanced Excel Course, DTP Course MYOB Software, Peach Tree Software, Window Shortcut Course, Email & Internet Course Mp3, Mp4, Video Editing, Multimedia Course. Ph: 09-4440-11279 COMPUTER Services (On Call) Networking & CCTV installation ph: 09-430-52564 , 09730-85511 CLICK (Computer System). Window Installation, Software Installation, virus cleaning, Game Installation, Network Installation, wire & wireless Installation, Configuration, server Installation Contract for factory, office, Company & Internet shop (weekly & Monthly) We will offer training & services everywhere. Ph: 09732-48398, 09-49321642. ACTIVE Computer Systems : Computerized Software System (Data Application) Computer Networking System (Office / Home), Computer Hardware & Maintenance Service (Office/Home), Computer Training (Basic / Advance), Home Service etc .. Contact: 09-730-75931 , email: zinmyintzx@ gmail.com dyNaSty: Computer Designing & Training Centre. I-Office-18000, Advanced Course25000, Business in Excel Special-15000, DTP-20000, A+-25000, A+ Advanced Course30000, Photoshop Only25000, Professio-nal Graphic Design-30000, Auto CAD (2D/ 3D) Intermediate-40000, Internet & E-mail-5000, Networking-50000, Ph: 09-431-54613. SAI PON PON Computer Services (On Call) Networking & CCTV installation ph :09-43052564, 09-730-85511. R.V Networking & computer maintenances Windows installation , software, game, internet, network, virus cleaning, Ph :09-420-033781. Add: 75 (d), Thitsar Rd, 13 Block, Yankin, Yangon HIGH Performances Computer System. Computer and Network service/ Operation System, Application Software, Virus cleaning, Internet services, Microsoft Server Configuration, Wire & Wireless Network Installation, Configuration, Ph: 09-43182486.

tion. Exam preparation class for May 2013 examination. Practice with 15 years old questions. Classes will start in first week of June. 25% Discount for first 5 students. Fulltime air-conditioned! Near Hledan Sein Gay Har. Ph: 524617, 09858-1761. WOULD YOU like to apply for scholarships? College admission essay and personal statement writing. U Thu Ya : 09-50-66913 STUDY GUIDE for Secondary Students (International School) Ph : 09 4200 31866 SCHOLAR TEACHING and Guide Association founded with Me, Be & Master with 12 years experience in teaching and guide field. Role & Responsibility:Making the students develop problem solving skill, critical thinking skill and I.Q & E.Q enriching skill. Student who can contact : from Public & International School (Total, ILBC, CISM, YIUS, Horizon, ISM) Teacher Min Aung ph: 09-490-070692 NEW WORLD English School. KG to Gr-8, Mon to Fri 9 am to 3 pm, IELTS, SAT (Eng), SAT (Maths). 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10 Tuition+Guide, 25-A, Ywama Kyaung St (Hlaing), Ph: 09-8620094, 09-515-6310. EXPERIENCED Myanmar Teacher of Foreign Students If you would like to be fluent in Myanmar language, contact Saya , Min Thu on Email : luckyboy.star@ gmail.com (or) ph : 01-7313 8659. Saya Min Thu has 3 years experience teaching Myanmar to foreign students from over 10 different countries. References are available upon request. STUDY GUIDE for Secondary Students (International School) Ph : 09 4200 31866 INTERESTED in studying abroad? Kant Kaw Education Centre is now accepting applications for its June university foundation classes. Limited fee waivers are available so apply now! Available courses Academic Reading and Writing English Foundation General Education (development studies) IELTS Preparation Deadline for applications: May 16, 2012. Add: (605/A), San Yeik Nyein 6th St, Kamaryut. Ph: 01 502 884, Email: info@ gmail.com WOULD you like to apply for scholarships? College admission essay and personal statement writing. U Thu Ya 09-506-6913 I N T E R N AT I O N A L Schools Subjects : English, Maths, Science, Hindi & Social. Will coach your

MATHEMATICS : If your child (Kg to Sec-3) from any international schools, is very weak in Mathematics, pls contact : 09-500-4993, 544594. STUDY GUIDES for Grade 10, 11 & Intl school (ISY, MISY,ILBC, Total, PISM, Crane, MLA, Diplomatic, RV) GCSE, SAT , IELTS, TOEFL, Teachers who have got Teaching experience in Singapore, Now back to Myanmar/ Teaching combination of Foreign & Myanmar Style/ Skillful Teachers, Saya Bryan M.E(IT) 09-2150075 , Tr. Ahme B.Sc ( IC) Ph: 09-730-592 65, Saya Htet B.E(IT) Ph: 09-215-0075, 09730- 35744, Saya Thet (MBBS) 09-731-11782, Korean Native English Teacher Tr. Kim (after 6 p.m) 655647 , Tr. Phyu 09-430-83117 , Sayar Min Aung 09-492-80 490 SPARE just a few hours every week. With steady pace you can achieve, See for yourself at ease! (Home tuition available) Teacher Moe (Retired Lecturer) Ph: 09-560-0747. ABC PRESCHOOL, Subjects : English 4 skills, Science, Basis Mathematics, Concepts, Myanmar, Hand Work, Drawing & Colouring, Performing Art, Social Studies, Poems , Songs & Rhymes, Excursion. Time Duration ; School hour:9:00~15:00(Close only Sat & Sun). English, Chinese language, Computer course : Sat & Sun. 17, Kamarkyi Rd, Thuwunna .Email : preschoolabc@gmail. com SUMMER and regular English Classes: Four skills and grammar will be taught by an experienced teacher with int'l exposure: An ideal home tutor & will guide your children with special care and attention: Teacher Maw Maw:ph 09-431-97513 maw. san@gmail.com

Myanmar citizens or nons to cooperate with us as w will take responsibilities with our citizenship scrutiny For those who interest & want to cooperate with us may contact Bryan (Bryan) 09-420-07 0692, Htet Oo Lwin (Engineer) 09-2150075. CoNStRuCtioN: We have skilled civil Construction workers and Engineers. (R.C.C. & Steel Structure) S Civil Engineering (Science 1990) Ph: 09500-5817. LICENSED Tour Guide English - Italian - Malay. Khine Tint (O) Gianni. No.11, 5th Flr (Left), Kyun Taw Kyaung St, Kyun Taw Ward (South), Sanchaung, Yangon. Ph: 09-420-030798. IOLAR Translation Service Ph : 09-73172792, 229301 Email: i o l a r. t r a n s l a t i o n @ gmail.com

to keencentre @gmail. com.

For Rent
OFFICE SPACES for rent at Pearl Condominium. No Agent. Please call 0973250368.

For Sale

Language
LANGUAGE Proficiency (A) Effective & Scienti-fic way, (B) Intensive Class, (C) Interpreter - part time/ Full time (Under mentioned languages), (D) Hindi/ Myanmar/ English (Basic Advance for Embassy staff/ Foreigner/ A group single / Kids + Teens / NGO - INGO personal/ (Special rate for national peoples) by an Expert Tutor. (1) Home tuition available in groups or single. (2) Translation of English/ Hindi/Sanskrit/Bengali/ Nepali & Myanmar are also available. (3) Business Guide & Agency Services. (4) Partnership business welcome. Rs. Verma. B.Sc., (Bot), Yangon. (UFL-English), Yangon. Email: rsverma. maynamar@gmail. com, Ph: 09-730-42604, Add: 125, 43rd St, 5th Flr (R), Botahtaung. ENGLISH study with reading literature and short stories can be learnt here. ESL study for beginner and intermediate students are available. The student treat with film for the listening practice, academic essay writing , biography writing etc & also Critical reading, If you had tried as much as you can to follow the lesson & with skill you got good experiences. This program will help you capability and fill your luck of knowledge... Academic Spanish can also be inquired here. U Thant Zin : ph 09- 5035350 , 547442. No: 28 - 3 B, Thatipahtan St, Tamwe. RUSSIAN : speaking , reading, writing. ph; 09-731-61269. PRIVATE Myanmar Language classes for foreigners who live in Myanmar. Progressive and effective teaching systems are available. For details, pls contact

Expert Service
LINUX (Server/Admin) Professional Home Tuition Teaching phone 09-731-81642 GENERATOR: 24 hour Services. MESS Engineering. Ph: 09730-58252, 09-5078426. ENGLISH to MYANMAR, is available...Ph : 09420-070692. REAL ESTATE Agent If youre an expatriate needing to find an apartment or house in Yangon, Min Thu can help. He has experience and is very reliable. Call Min Thu on 09731-38659 or email :thecleverson@ gmail. com REAL ESTATE or Landhousing investment in Myanmar. We coor-dinately invite

HR Software Package: Price 200,000. Modules: Employee Management, Time Attendance, Payroll. (Available : FingerPrint /Card). POS Software Package: Price 150,000. Modules: Inventory Control, Purchase, Sale, Account Payable (Available :Barcode Printer/ Scanner). Contact Ph: 09-5042775, 09-506-2812 GENERATOR (Japan) 25 KVA sound proof, 3 phase , running condition Ph: 09-5071454 WOOD working machines BEST German second hand reconditioned machinery from single unit to complete line of production or full factory Very attractive price - Machines in stock - Assistance Hp: 09-513-6419 E-mail: dsavariau@ gmail.com ELECTRONIC Piano, Roland MII, With Stand & Stool. Ph: 09-43141889. BLACK PLAYSTATION 3 slim 160GB. Bought in the USA. Used very lightly. About 6 months old. In great condition almost new. 1 controller, HDMI cable, HDMI to DVI converter cable, AV cable, USB cable and one original game included (PES 2012). Owner is moving abroad. Serious buyers only. Call 095454554 HONDA ACCORD, 88model. 1A/8... ,Auto Gear, CA1 engine,dark green colour, power window, CD player, Aircon, good condition, 135Lakhs Ph: 09-5015200, 09-731-222 11 HD GAME, app (install) iPhone, iPod touch 6000ks, iPad 8000ks, iTunes account open (free game, app download), All iDevices iOS 5.0.1 version upgrade full untethered jailbreak (power off) 3gs, iPhone 4, iPhone 4s, iPad 2. contact : 09514-7480 NISSAN AD Van [2007 Model] [ABS Airbag, AC, PS, PW] Contact : 09-492-75744 FAMOUS PIZZA Restaurant for sale Siem Reap, Cambodia. Profitable & popular restaurant in great downtown location near Old market. All equipment & inventory included. Est. 2001. 4 years remaining on lease. Low monthly rent. Turn-key operation. USD$ 96,000. For details, contact: E-mail: cs_clark@yahoo.com Tel: +855-11-590463 ZTE C-R 750 (CDMA 800 + GSM) Handset

ph : 09-428-125107 NEW IPAD (white) 16gb, Razer Starcraft 2 Headphone, Apple superdrive new Ph: 09-730-48374 TAIWAN use Generator Sale : 60 KVA 400V Mitsubishi 7500 US$ 60 KVA 400V Iveco 7500 US$ 60 KVA 400V johndeere 8100 US$ 30 KVA 400V Mitsubishi 5500 US$ 25 KVA 400V Mitsubishi/Nissan 4200 US$ contact number 09-510-3439

PROPERTY
HousingforRent
NORTH DAGON, Shwe Pin lone Housing,Good Estate, Located in 80' x 80', 2 MB, 2SB, Without Furniture,Fully Furnished Good neighborhood, near Pinlone Hospital, Foreigner Welcome 4.5 Lakhs, Ph: 09432-00669 or email : nicerealproperty@ gmail. com VIRTUAL OFFICE Have your office at the prestigious Central Towers for only 39,000 kyats a month. Pls call 09-516-6859, 09-49247013, 01-377151 Ext: 80643 for more details about the facilities and services offered. HOTEL in new Bagan Spacious compound good locality reason-able price 3 star standards. Ph: 09-512-3186. KAMAYUT, Attia Rd, Big compound, 2 Storey, 4MB, 2 Living room, .027 acre land, Foreigners welcome, call. Ph: 389706, 09-200-4467. BAHAN, Apartment along New University Ave Rd, Good electricity & water essential. Fully furnished with 2-3 rooms with attached toilet. Rent Rate - USD500 to USD700 per month. (6 month advance rental). Rental period 1 to 3 years. Pls contact : 09512-8095 - Ma Thinzar Oo Building in Ngapali near beach 2 plots of land near Sandaway main road to Mazin airport. Ph: 09-430-65789. HLAING THAR YAR, Large sewing factory ideally located in Hlaing Thar Yar industrial zone one is available for rental ,the factory is well equipped with boilers, generator, large cutting, packing and material storage areas, plus 500 sewing machines all ready and set to run, well suited for someone who is interested in starting a garment factory. Pls contact Bill on 525746, 09-550-5220 or email gthreds33@gmail. com,all inquiries are welcome. BAHAN, (1) Pho Sein Rd, 100' x 80' Land (2) Shwegondine Rd, 30 x 90' Land, Kabaaye Pagoda Rd, 30 x 90' Land. Ph: 09-731-05296, 09-540-5482. HLAING, Aye Yeik Mon Sakawar St, 74' x 96', RC 2 storey, 4 MB, Ph, AC, Ph; 684936, 09-5120747. PWIN OO LWIN, 170' x 70', 1 RC, price : 2300 Lakhs. Ph: 09-5055522 MAYANGONE, 9 mile, 50' x 60', 2 RC, 3 MBR, 4500 Lakhs. Ph: 09-5055522

General
CLARION International - Sandar@Sonia : Managing Partner : Ph: 09-43122557. ISO 9001-2008 certification Event Management, Travel & Tourism, Matrimony Services, Training & Placement, Education.

Training

LAND Survey Training: Course Contents, Types of survey, Basic Trigonometry. Angles, bearings, azimuths and coordinates. Leveling, Traversing, Topographic surveying. Setting out survey, Introduction to GPS. Terra Myanmar: 42/B, Rm-4B, New University Avenue, Bahan, Yangon, Tel: 553875,400599 Email: info@terramyanmar. com Website: www. terramyanmar.com KO ZAW NGE : Guitor Shop & Training. Add : Aung Zaya 1 St, Thuwunna Zay, Yangon Thit Quarter, Thingangyun. Ph: 09-421072045. PC MUSIC Creation & Sound Design (Teach To Home) Ph: 09-73194925

Rent / Sale
BAHAN, Moe Myint San Condo, 2400 sqft, 2 MB, 1 BR, newly apartment f.f or no furn. 3 A/C, Lift, 15 Lakhs for rent, 3000 Lakhs for sale. Owner Maureen : 09- 518-8320. No agents pls.

Housing for Sale

NAYPYIDAW, 15 acres of land near Naypyidaw Highway 20 miles. Ph: 09-512-3186. NGaPaLi: Land and

Travel
CHAUNG THA vacation stay at a wooden house for a family for a very cheap price. 3 nigths, 4 days - 30,000 kyats per night Maximum 5 people. Need to bring your own beddings and kitchen wares. Contact - 561899 ext-119. Additional fee of 5000 - 10,000 kyats involved for cleaning fee. Only house and compound with a fence offered.

Want To Buy
SECOND HAND Laptop, Notebook , Netbook, MacbookPro, Macbook Air, Samsung Galaxy Tablet, External Hardisk, External R/W,Used Phone Nokia Blackberry Motorola LG HTC Sony Ericsson Samsung Galaxy S2 Galaxy Note, Galaxy Nexus Huawei Ipod Touch 4G Iphone 3gs iphone 4, 4s handset Ipad Ph: 09-517-8391, 01-376420

Education
IGCSE Physics: Exam preparation class for January 2013 examina-

Employment
INGO Position
WELTHUNGERHILFE is looking for Agronomist 1 post : Myanmar National. Adequate university education in relevant technical field (agriculture), or relevant long term professional experience. 3 years of NGO experience, 3 years of experience as an agricultural advisor. Good knowledge in computer use (office package). Qualified women are encouraged to apply! Pls send your electronic application including English cover letter, CV, copies of relevant certificates, referees & a passport photo to E-mail: Uwe.Hermann@ welthungerhilfe.de; gaa.delta.admin@ gmail. com Closing date: 5 June, 2012. COMMUNITY-Based Disaster Risk Reduct-ion Manager Duty Station: Sittwe with frequent travel to targeted villages in Rathedaung, Sittwe, Pauk Taw & Myebon, Rakhine State : Degree in Science, Social Science, Humanity etc. or equivalent qualification with at least 1 year experience in DRR programme. Should be a Myanmar national; Ability to develop written reports in English & Myanmar . Pls submit application incl: Cover letter, CV, photo, references to nearest Malteser Int'l Office; Sittwe Programme Office: 85, U Uttama St, Kyaung Tat Lanne, Sittwe, Rakhine State (or)Email: hlamyintzu. malteser.nrs02.gmail. com Malteser Int'l Country Office: 14/15 -6F Pyae Taw yeik Tha St, Yankin, Yangon (or) Email: hr.co.malteser@gmail. com Closing date: 4th June2012 SOLIDARITES Int'l (SI) is seeking (1)HR officer :Humanitarian values & strong motivation to gain experience with Int'l Humanitarian organization. Last years of University degree (preferably in Int'l relations, Publics relations, Diplomatic career, Public administration, Business administration,accountancy or related area) or related experience in similar area. (2) Interim Logistics Support for Yangon (Country Office): Preferable experience in Logistics field with INGO/ NGO. University Degree or Diploma (preferably in Logistics or related area). Or related proven experience in similar area. Knowledge of IT management and MS office (excel, word, power point & networking). Demonstrated team management and planning abilities. For 1 & 2 : Good spoken & written English. Good writing & communication skills. Pls submit application (CV, cover letter, references) by email to ygn. adm. coordo@ solidaritesinternational.org, hr. solidarites.mm@gmail. com. Closing date: 31.5.2012. MALTESER Int'l is seeking (1) Medical Coordinator- in Maungdaw, Northern Rakhine State: Myanmar National Medical Doctor or related field with post graduate degree in Public Health. Excellent know-ledge & strong experien ce regarding communi-ty based health programme & activities. Good oral & written presentation skills (analysis, synthesis, clarity) in English. Good computer skills (Microsoft Office) (2) Nurse in Maungdaw & Buthidaung, Northern Rakhine State : Diploma of Nurse, preferably with 1 year experience, Ability to work independently in remote area; Ability to live & work with minimum available basic facilities (working schedule of 10 days fieldwork and 4 days compensation); Pls submit application incl. CV, photo, copy of educational certificates and references to the nearest Malteser Int'l Office; Maungdaw Programme Office: : Myo Thit, Ward 4, Maungdaw, Northern Rakhine State Email: h r. m a l t e s e r. n r s 0 1 @ gmail. com (or) Sittwe Office: 85, U Uttama St, Kyaung Tatlann Quarter, Sittwe, Rakhine State, Maynmar (or) Malteser Int'l Buthidaung Office: Oogar Pyan St, Ward (4), Buthidaung, Northern Rakhine State, Myanmar (or) Malteser Int'l Country office: 1415 (6F), Pyi Taw Aye Yeik Thar St, Yankin, Yangon. Email: hr. co.malteser@gmail. com Closing date: 30th May 2012 MALTESER Int'l is looking for (1) Medical officer in Pang Kham, Northern Shan State Qualified medical doctor with 2 years in public health, preferab-ly with clinical / management expe-rience in HIV / AIDS & STIs programmes; Ability to ensure supportive supervision, data collection & report-ing; Good communicat-ion skills & ability to facilitate training (2) Logistic officer in Pang Kham & Mong Lar, Shan State : Age above 25, Degree/ Diploma in Accountancy, financial management/ Administration or equivalent education. 3~5 years experience. Good knowledge (reading, speaking skills) in English, Myanmar & Chinese. Good writing, communication and reporting skills. Good computer literate in MS office suite. Pls submit application incl. CV, photo, copy of educatio-nal certificates & references to the nearest Malteser Int'l Office; Kyaing Tong Programme Office: 159 Airport St, Myo Thit, Kyaing Tong Email: adfi. malteser. ess@ gmail.com (or) Malteser Int'l Tachileike Office: 193 Par Lain 3 St, Taw Kawt, Tachileike Email :adfi. malteser. sr @ gmail. com (or) Malteser Int'l Country Office: 14-15 (6F), Pyi Taw Aye Yeik Thar St, Yankin, Yangon Email: hr. co. malteser@gmail. com Closing Date: 30th May 2012 services experience in Hotel is more preferable (9). PA Attendants/ General Worker - M/F 2 Posts : PA services experience in Hotel is more preferable. Pls submit an application letter, C.V with a recent photo, copies of NRC & Labour Registration card, Educational certificate and others testimonials to HR Department not later than 16 June, 2012. New Property Company with strong international connections wishes to employ staff in administration and property rentals/ sales. Must speak and read English. Ability to communicate with foreign investors essential, as well as Word and Excel proficiency. CV and covering letter to CIMyanmar@gmail. com. Please let me know the price with discount and i can visit and pay in cash today. My mobile is 09-421034026. OUR COMPANY is Foreign base Freight forwarding company. We are urgently seeking for a Chines Interpreter, any graduate , proficient in Chinese and Myanmar, good communication skills and personality, male or female. Pls send your update CV, photo & other data reference to nicerealproperty@ gmail. com or contact Ko Shein Bo:09-5167085. MEKONG ECONOMICS :Are you a bright, confident & organized person with good English and computer skills? If so, we would be interested in talk to you about full-time employment as an administrative staff member in our office. Pls send CV to bart. robertson@ mekongec onomics. comInterviews will begin after June 16th. (1) GM - M 1 Post : MBA (or) BE (Mechanical) or Any Master Degree. 5 year experiences in Corporate Management, Sales & Distribution. Age 40 ~ 45 . (2) Sales & Marketing - M 1 Post : Any Graduate with Marketing Diploma /cerfificate. 3 years experience in sales & marketing management. Age 30 ~ 40 . For 1 & 2 : Pleasant perso-nality & effective com-munication skill. Be able to speak & write English. (3) Technical Service Manager M 1 Post : BE (Mechanical). 5 years exeperiences in Engineering field. Experiences in Farm Machinery is priority. Be able to speak and write English. Pls send detailed up-to-date CV with relevant documents, copy of labour registration card, copy of NRC card, recommendation from police force, non-returnable photograph & contact ph to Alligator Industry Co., Ltd : 9, Lion City Bldg, Shwe Marlar Avenue, Bayint Naung Rd, Kamayut. Ph: 512239 ~ 59. Closing Date 30-05-2012. BUSINESS Manager /Analyst This is a fantastic opportunity for a business manager/ analyst with two to ten years experience to step up into a career with a leading investment management and holding company. We are a key player in several industries in Asia and have an opening in our business development team for a technical-minded individual to assist in all aspects of deal execut-ion. Your responsibilities will include: Performing Research on Companies. Liaising with Companies. Finan-cial Modeling. Recog-nizing business problems and growth opportunities. Requirements: Any graduate. 2 to 10 years experience. Proficient in, or can quickly grasp applicable business processes & functions. Effective verbal & written communication skills in English & Myanmar. Proficiency with Microsoft Suite (Word, Excel, & Power Point) If you have what we are looking for pls contact Cynthia on +95-942-105-3104 or send CV to kntanwani@ mpic.com.ph DOORA Cargo Services Co., Ltd (1)Manager - M or F 1 Post : Age 25 ~ 35, Any University graduate, Good personality, Fluent in English & good computer skill, 3 + years in forwarding environment preferably. (2) Assistant - F 1 Post :Age : 20 ~ 30, Any graduate, Good personality, Accounting knowledge & Good computer skill preferab-ly (3) Driver M 1 Post : Age under 35, Good driving skills and willing to work. (Base on working experience and qualification). Interested candidates are required to submit a comprehen-sive resume and expected salary together with a recent color photo to below address (or) send E-mail not later than 16 June, 2012. No. 310 (F), Paukzaydi St, 8mile, Mayangone Tsp, Yangon, Myanmar. Email. doorargn1@ gmail.com. doorargn@ gmail.com. Ph: 01667505, 09-731-66017, 09-541-8798. MYANMAR Wonders Travel Ltd (Yangon) is seeking (1) Travel Manager - 3 years experience, in preparing and creating tour programs, in managing quotation, being able to manage the team assisting with all areas of booking, able to work under pressure with good time manage-ment skill, good computer knowledge (excel & words), fluent in English & French (written & spoken) . (2) Tour Operation - must have experience in the related filed, being able to handle all areas of bookings such as reservation for hotels, restaurants, guides, transportations, meals, work closely with suppliers on all reservations to ensure the smooth operation of travel programs, good computer knowledge (excel & words), good knowledge in English . French is an advantage. Pls apply with updated resume to Rm 907, FMI Center, Bogyoke Aung San Rd, Pebedan, Tel : 248060 AN INT'L company is looking for an assistant accountant / admin. Graduate from university level or equivalent in account-ing. Experienced and good knowledge of computer, accounting softwares, fluent in English. Email to: wk-cimb@myanmar. com.mm by end May. ASSISTANT Teacher - F 1 Post : At an English Language Centre Ph : 01-221677, 09-5079896. NANNY, 26, experienced with expat children, best references, seeks employment. Call Stella on 543315 or email : stella.win11@ gmail. com FOREIGN company will establish a milk dairy production in Myanmar & is looking for a young dynamic marketing sales manager. Also a executive secretary both fluent English speaking with good knowledge and skills in computers lady or gents,who is willing to work hard and grow with the company. The benefits will be satisfactory Forward your C.V Attention Chris Karageorges with a photo & contact phone number. email : asiadairies@ yahoo. com, SKYPEdoncristo6 KELVIN CHIA Yangon Ltd., a foreign legal consultancy firm based in Yangon, is looking for (1)lawyers who will work on a variety of corporate & commercial matters & transactions in Myanmar. If you are a Myanmar-qualified lawyer with strong English language skills, you are invited to apply to join our Myanmar practice group. Myanmar nationals admitted to int'l bars are also welcome to apply. Training will be provid-ed. Applicants may email csg@ kcyangon. com & submit their curriculum vitae. (2) Corporate Affairs Managers: you will be involved with business development, networking, market research & liaison work. Applicants should be proficient in English, energetic and selfmoitvated. All nationalities are welcome (Myanmar, Japanese, Korean, Chinese, Taiwanese, etcetera). pls email application & curriculum vitae to csg@ kcyangon.com. INT'L TRAVEL Agency : The ICS Travel Group is looking for new colleagues to support our operations & reservation departments in our office in Yangon (Sanchaung): Good communication & inter-personal skills. Fluent in spoken & written English. Travel busi-ness experience. Excellent computer skills (Microsoft Office, Internet & Email). Must possess ability to work under pressure. Highly motivated & outgoing personality. Pls submit CV with photo & other certificates personally or per e-mail. 11(A), Maharmyaing St, Sanchaung, Tel: 511658, 511701 Email: zinzin @ is-myanmar. com. VACANCY for Local Air Cargo Staff <Operation Staff-Myanmar.doc> <Accountant.doc> <Cargo Sales ManagerMyanmar.doc> Please log below to the websites for further information & application. Alternatively, you can email your resumes to info@ bewelllimited. com or call 377151, 389524 ext:80643 ANNAMMyanmar Co.,Ltd is seeking Accountant, B r a n d / S a l e s / Marketing Manager - French Cosmetic, Senior Sales Manager - Beverage, Logistic (Import) Manager, Sales & Marketing Executive - Beverage, Sales & Marketing Executive - Cosmetic, Email: maythu. annam @ gmail. com Ph: 09 504 3929 ESTABLISHED Multinational Co is seeking qualified candidate for the below position; (1). Business development Manager - Imports ( Food Stuff & correlated areas ) - M/F 1 post (2).Business development Manager -Imports (construction,metals & correlated areas ) - M/F 1 post key requirements for (1) & (2) : Experienced, self starter, market knowledge, motivated, willing to travel, Qualification : Graduate or M.B.A. Should be able to communicate well in English.Good pay. Pls submit the resume along with relevant documents to sandarstar@gmail. com or call 095124850. WE ARE an International School in Yangon urgently looking for : (1) admin officer- F 1 post: Any graduate or higher, preferably with education back-ground, Age 40 ~ 50, excellent knowledge in English 4 skills (2) Admin assistants - F 2 posts : Any graduate, age 23 ~ 30, good command in English, previous experience in administration required (3) Receptionist - F 1 post : Age 20 ~ 30, good command in English and have good oral communication skills. All the candidates must have a good knowledge to use Microsoft office applications (word, excel & power point). Pls submit C.V together with a covering letter and scanned copies of academic certificates by e-mail to gkl1950 @ gmail.com COMPANY Dealing in Foreign Brand Product is looking for Sales & Marketing Manager & staff - M/F 3 posts: Graduate. 2 years experience. Age 25 ~ 30 . Experience preferred. Pls, send application together with update CV, Photo & other data reference to gimperial @ myanmar. com.mm, Ph: 523536, 09-730-08077 (1)BUSINESS Development Manager - M 1 post : 7 years direct experience in a business development fields & activities, Knowledge in tender project (2) Logistics Manager M 1 post : Knowledge in timber business, More than 10 yrs experiences and Ex-government official are encourage to apply. (3) Chief Accountant - F 1 Post : B.Com (CPA), LCCI (Diploma), At least 5 years experiences with manufacturing. (4) Business Development Executive - M/F 3 post : 3 years direct experience,Knowledge in tender project, Can travel to Nay Pyi Daw, domestic and aboard. (5) Business Analyst M/F 4 posts : Market analysis & establishing market trends, Strong presentation, documen tation & reporting skills, Must be able to travel local / Abroad hr.ayar swanah@gmail.com

Embassy
WE ARE seeking for a personal driver for diplomat, who can drive very well and nondrinker. Its preferable who live in near Pun Hlaing Golf Estate. For more detail information, please feel free to call 527142~4 in office hour.

Local Position
SUMMIT PARKVIEW Hotel is seeking (1). Account Executive - F 1 Post : B.Com, LCCI Level III, Graduated in any disciplin. 2 years experience in hotel field. Must have good leadership skills . Profi-ciency in English. Experience in (ACE Payroll software & ACCPAC software) is preferable. (2) Night Auditor - M 1 Post : Graduate in any discipline. 1 year experience in hotel field. Proficiency in English. (3). Security officer - M 1 post : Graduate in any discipline. 3 years experience, knowledge & skill. Can speak English. Must have necessary physical fitness & strength (4). Receptionist - M/F 2 Posts : Age under 25, Good personality. Proficiency in English. For 1, 2 & 4 : Computer literate. (5). Porter/Driver M 2 Posts : 1 year experien-ce in related field is more preferable. Good ability to speak in English (6). Waiter/ Waitress - M/F 2 Posts : Proficiency in English. (7). Linen Attendants - F 2 Posts : Linen services experience in hotel is more preferable (8). Room Attendants - M/F 2 Posts : Room

The Essentials
EMBASSIES Australia 88, Strand Road, Yangon. tel : 251810, 251797, 251798, 251809, 246462, 246463, fax: 246159 Bangladesh 11-B, Than Lwin Road, Yangon. tel: 515275, 526144, fax: 515273, email: bdootygn@mptmail.net. mm Brazil 56, Pyay Road, 6th mile, Hlaing Tsp, Yangon. tel: 507225, 507251, 507482. fax: 507483. email: Administ.yangon@ itamaraty.gov.br. Brunei 317/319, U Wizara Road, Sanchaung Tsp, Yangon. tel: 526985, 524285, fax: 512854 email: bruneiemb@ bruneiemb.com.mm Cambodia 25 (3B/4B), New University Avenue Road, Bahan Tsp, Yangon. tel: 549609, 540964, fax: 541462, email: RECYANGON @mptmail. net.mm China 1, Pyidaungsu Yeiktha Road, Yangon. tel: 221280, 221281, 224025, 224097, 221926, fax: 227019, 228319 Egypt 81, Pyidaungsu Yeiktha Road, Yangon. tel: 222886, 222887, fax: 222865, email: egye mbyangon@mptmail. net.mm France 102, Pyidaungsu Yeiktha Road, Yangon. tel: 212178, 212520, 212523, 212528, 212532, fax: 212527, email: ambaf rance. rangoun@ diplomatie.fr Germany 9, Bogyoke Aung San Museum Road, Bahan Tsp, Yangon. tel: 548951, 548952, fax: 548899 email: info@rangun. diplo.de India 545-547, Merchant Street, Yangon. tel: 391219, 388412, 243972, fax: 254086, 250164, 388414, email: indiaembassy @mptmail. net.mm Indonesia 100, Pyidaungsu Yeiktha Road, Yangon. tel: 254465, 254469, 229750, fax: 254468, email: kukygn @indonesia.com.mm Israel 15, Khabaung Street, Hlaing Tsp, Yangon. tel: 515115, fax: 515116, email: info@ yangon.mfa.gov.il Italy 3, Inya Myaing Road, Golden Valley, Yangon. tel: 527100, 527101, fax: 514565, email: ambyang.mail@ esteri.it Japan 100, Natmauk Road, Yangon. tel: 549644-8, 540399, 540400, 540411, 545988, fax: 549643 Embassy of the State of Kuwait Chatrium Hotel, Rm: No.416, 418, 420, 422, 40 Natmauk Rd, Tarmwe Tsp, Tel: 544500. North Korea 77C, Shin Saw Pu Road, Sanchaung Tsp, Yangon. tel: 512642, 510205, fax: 510206 South Korea 97 University Avenue, Bahan Tsp, Yangon. tel: 527142-4, 515190, fax: 513286, email: myanmar@mofat.go.kr Lao A-1, Diplomatic Quarters, Tawwin Road, Dagon Tsp, Yangon. tel: 222482, fax: 227446, email: Laoembcab@ mptmail. net.mm Malaysia 82, Pyidaungsu Yeiktha Road, Yangon. tel: 220248, 220249, 220251, 220230, fax: 221840, email: mwkyangon@mptmail. net.mm Nepal 16, Natmauk Yeiktha, Yangon. tel: 545880, 557168, fax: 549803, email: nepemb @mptmail.net.mm Pakistan A-4, diplomatic Quarters, Pyay Road, Yangon. tel: 222881 (Chancery Exchange) fax: 221147, email: pakistan@ myanmar. com.mm Philippines 50, Sayasan Road, Bahan Tsp, Yangon. tel: 558149-151, fax: 558154, email: p.e. yangon@gmail.com Russian 38, Sagawa Road, Yangon. tel: 241955, 254161, fax: 241953, email: rusinmyan@mptmail .net.mm Serbia No. 114-A, Inya Road, P.O.Box No. 943Yangon. tel: 515282, 515283, fax: 504274, email: serbemb@ yangon.net.mm Singapore 238, Dhamazedi Road, Bahan Tsp, Yangon. tel: 559001, fax: 559002, 559922, email: singemb_ ygn@_ sgmfa. gov.sg Sri Lanka 34 Taw Win Road, Yangon. tel: 222812, fax: 221509, email: slembassy. yangon@gmail.com, info@slembyangon.org, www.slembyangon.org Thailand 94 Pyay Road, Dagon Township, Yangon. tel: 226721, 226728, 226824, fax: 221713 United Kingdom 80 Kanna Road, Yangon. tel: 370867, 380322, 371852, 371853, 256438, 370863, 370864, 370865, fax: 370866 United States of America 110, University Avenue, Kamayut Township, Yangon. tel: 536509, 535756, 538038, fax: 650306 Vietnam Building No. 72, Thanlwin Road, Bahan Township, Yangon. tel: 511305, fax: 514897, email: vnemb myr@ cybertech.net.mm Royal Embassy of Saudi Arabia No.287/289, U Wisara Rd, Sanchaung Tsp. tel : 01-536153, 516952, fax : 01-516951 UNITED NATIONS ILO Liaison Officer Rm (M1212~1220), 12 Fl-A, Traders Hotel. 223, tel: 242 393, 242811. fax: 242594. IOM 12th Flr, Traders Hotel, 223, tel: 252560 ext. 5002 UNAIDS Rm: (1223~1231), 12 Fl, Traders Hotel. tel: 252361, 252362, 252498. fax: 252364. UNDCP 11-A, Malikha St, Mayangone tsp. tel: 666903, 664539. fax: 651334. UNDP 6, Natmauk Rd, Bahan tel: 542910-19. fax: 292739. UNFPA 6, Natmauk Rd, Bahan tsp. tel: 546029. UNHCR 287, Pyay Rd, Sanchaung tsp. tel: 524022, 524024. fax 524031. UNIAP Rm: 1202, 12 Fl, Traders Hotel.tel: 254852, 254853. UNIC 6, Natmauk St., BHN tel: 52910~19 UNICEF 14~15 Flr, Traders Hotel. P.O. Box 1435, KTDA. tel: 375527~32, fax: 375552 email: unicef.yangon@unicef. org, www.unicef.org/myanmar. UNODC 11-A, Malikha Rd., Ward 7, MYGN. tel: 666903, 660556, 660538, 660398, 664539, fax: 651334. email: fo.myanmar@unodc.org www. unodc.org./myanmar/ UNOPS Inya Lake Hotel, 3rd floor, 37, Kaba Aye Pagoda Rd, Mayangone Tsp. tel: 951657281~7. Fax: 657279. UNRC 6, Natmauk Rd, P.O. Box 650, TMWE tel: 542911~19, 292637 (Resident Coordinator), fax: 292739, 544531. WFP 3rd-flr, Inya Lake Hotel, 37, Kabar Aye Pagoda Rd. tel: 657011~6 (6-lines) Ext: 2000. WHO 12A Fl, Traders Hotel. tel:250583. ASEAN Coordinating Of. for the ASEAN Humanitarian Task Force, 79, Taw Win st, Dagon Township. Ph: 225258. FAO Myanma Agriculture Service Insein Rd, Insein. tel: 641672, 641673. fax: 641561.

General Listing
ACCOMMODATIONHOTELS
Chatrium Hotel Royal Lake Yangon 40 Natmauk Rd, Tarmwe. tel: 544500. fax: 544400. Summit Parkview Hotel 350, Ahlone Rd, Dagon Tsp. tel: 211888, 211966. fax: 227995. Thamada Hotel 5, Alan Pya Phaya Rd, Dagon. tel: 243639, 243640, 243641. Traders Hotel 223 Sule Pagoda Rd. tel: 242828. fax: 242838. Winner Inn 42, Than Lwin Rd, Bahan Tsp. tel: 535205, 524387. email: winnerinnmyanmar @gmail.com Yangon YMCA 263, Mahabandoola Rd, Botataung Tsp. tel: 294128, Yuzana Hotel 130, Shwegondaing Rd, Bahan Tsp, tel : 01-549600, 543367 Yuzana Garden Hotel 44, Alanpya Pagoda Rd, Mingalar Taung Nyunt Tsp, tel : 01-248944

ACCOUNTANTS AND CONSULTANTS

Charted Certified, Certified Public Accountants. tel: 09-5010563. drtinlatt@matglobal.com

AIR CONDITION
Chigo No. 216, 38 Street (Upper), Kyauktada Tsp, tel : 373472

No.7A, Wingabar Road, Bahan Tsp, Yangon. Tel : (951) 546313, 430245. 09-731-77781~4. Fax : (01) 546313. www.cloverhotel.asia. info@cloverhotel.asia Confort Inn 4, Shweli Rd, Bet: Inya Rd & U Wisara Rd, Kamaryut, tel: 525781, 526872 Golden Aye Yeik Mon Hotel 4, Padauk Lane, 4th Word, Aye Yeik Mon Housing, Hlaing. tel: 681706. Hotel Yangon No. 91/93, 8th Mile Junction, Mayangone. tel : 01-667708, 667688. Inya Lake Resort Hotel 37 Kabar Aye Pagoda Rd. tel: 662866. fax: 665537. Orchid Hotel 91, Anawrahta street, Pazundaung Township, Yangon, . Tel: 399930, 704740, 293261. E-mail: orchidhotel@myanmar. com. mm.

ACCOMMODATIONHOTELS (NAy PyI TAw)

The First Air conditioning systems designed to keep you fresh all day GUNKUL Engineer supply Co., Ltd. No.437 (A), Pyay Road, Kamayut. P., O 11041 Yangon, Tel: +(95-1) 502016-18, Mandalay- Tel: 02-60933. Nay Pyi Taw- Tel: 067-420778, E-mail : sales.ac@freshaircon. com. URL: http://www. freshaircon.com General 83-91, G-F, Bo Aung Kyaw St, Kyauktada Tsp, tel : 706223, 371906

Reservation Office (Yangon) 262-264, Pyay Road, Dagon Centre, A# 03-01, Sanchaung Tsp, Yangon. Tel: 95-1-501937, 536255, 09-520-0926.
The Oasis Hotel (Nay Pyi Taw)

ASTROLOGER
Saya Min Thoun Dara Astrologer No(2), Maha Wizaya Pagoda North Stairway, Dagon Tsp. tel: 296184

Tel: 95-67-422088, 422099

ACCOMMODATION LONG TERM

No. 205, Corner of Wadan Street & Min Ye Kyaw Swa Road, Lanmadaw Tsp, Yangon. Myanmar. Tel: (95-1) 212850 ~ 3, 229358 ~ 61, Fax: (95-1) 212854. info@myanmarpandahotel .com http://www. myanmarpandahotel.com Panorama Hotel 294-300, Pansodan Street, Kyauktada Tsp. tel: 253077. PARKROYAL Yangon, Myanmar 33, Alan Pya Pagoda Rd, Dagon tsp. tel: 250388. fax: 252478. email: enquiry.prygn@ parkroyalhotels.com Website: parkroyalhotels. com. Savoy Hotel 129, Damazedi Rd, Kamayut tsp. tel: 526289, 526298, Seasons of Yangon Yangon Intl Airport Compound. tel: 666699. Sweet Hotel 73, Damazedi Road, San Chaung Tsp, Ph: 539152 Sedona Hotel Kabar Aye Pagoda Rd, Yankin. tel: 666900. Strand Hotel 92 Strand Rd. tel: 243377. fax: 289880. Easy Expat Accommodation Specialist in Yangon. Tel: 09-730-33776. Eco-Apartment Fully Furnished Ga 21, Pearl Centre (Pearl Condo), Bahan Tsp. Tel: 557488. Espace Avenir No 523, Pyay Rd, Kamaryut Tsp. tel: 505213-222. Golden Hill Towers 24-26, Kabar Aye Pagoda Rd, Bahan Tsp. tel: 558556. ghtower@ mptmail.net.mm. Marina Residence 8, Kabar Aye Pagoda Rd, Mayangone Tsp. tel: 6506 51~4. fax: 650630. MiCasa Hotel Apartments 17, Kabar Aye Pagoda Rd, Yankin Tsp. tel: 650933. fax: 650960. Sakura Residence 9, Inya Rd, Kamaryut Tsp. tel: 525001. fax: 525002. The Grand Mee Ya Hta Executive Residence 372, Bogyoke Aung San Rd, Pabedan Tsp. tel 951-256355 (25 lines). fax: 951-256360. email: gmer@ mptmail.net.mm, www. grandmeeyahta.com Yangon City Villa (Residence) Pyay Rd, 8 Mile Junction, MYGN, tel: 513101

BARS
50th Street 9/13, 50th street-lower, Botataung Tsp. Tel-397160.

Green Garden Beer Gallery Mini Zoo, Karaweik Oo-Yin Kabar.

Emergency Numbers
Ambulance tel: 295133. Fire tel: 191, 252011, 252022. Police emergency tel: 199. Police headquarters tel: 282541, 284764. Red Cross tel:682600, 682368 Traffic Control Branch tel:298651 Department of Post & Telecommunication tel: 591384, 591387. Immigration tel: 286434. Ministry of Education tel:545500m 562390 Ministry of Sports tel: 370604, 370605 Ministry of Communications tel: 067-407037. Myanma Post & Telecommunication (MPT) tel: 067407007. Myanma Post & Tele-communication (Accountant Dept) tel: 254563, 370768. Ministry of Foreign Affairs tel: 067-412009, 067-412344. Ministry of Health tel: 067-411358-9. Yangon City Development Committee tel: 248112. HOSPITALS Central Womens Hospital tel: 221013, 222811. Children Hospital tel: 221421, 222807 Ear, Nose & Throat Hospital tel: 543888. Naypyitaw Hospital (emergency) tel: 420096. Workers Hospital tel: 554444, 554455, 554811. Yangon Children Hospital tel: 222807, 222808, 222809. Yangon General Hospital (East) tel: 292835, 292836, 292837. Yangon General Hospital (New) tel: 384493, 384494, 384495, 379109. Yangon General Hospital (West) tel: 222860, 222861, 220416. Yangon General Hospital (YGH) tel: 256112, 256123, 281443, 256131. ELECTRICITY Power Station tel:414235 POST OFFICE General Post Office 39, Bo Aung Kyaw St. (near British Council Library). tel: 285499. INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT Yangon International Airport tel: 662811. YANGON PORT Shipping (Coastal vessels) tel: 382722 RAILWAYS Railways information tel: 274027, 202175-8.

INYA1 Resturant & Bar No.(1), Inya Road, Kamayut Tsp. Tel: 01-527506 email: inyaone@gmail.com www.inya1.com

Strand Bar 92, Strand Rd, Yangon, Myanmar. tel: 243377.fax: 243393, sales@thestrand.com.mm www.ghmhotels.com

Lobby Bar PARKROYAL Yangon, Myanmar. 33, Alan Pya Phaya Road, Dagon Tsp. tel: 250388.

mt QuiCk guide
May 28 - June 3, 2012
ADvERTISING
WE STARTED THE ADVERTISING INDUSTRY IN MYANMAR SINCE 1991

44
the

MyanMar tiMes

Inya Day Spa 16/2, Inya Rd, Kamayut Tsp, Yangon, Myanmar. Tel: 537907, 503375.

SAIL Marketing & Communications Suite 403, Danathiha Center 790, Corner of Bogyoke Rd & Wadan Rd, Lanmadaw Township, Yangon, Myanmar. Tel: (951) 211870, 224820, 2301195. Email: admin@ advertising-myanmar.com www.advertising-myanmar. com

Room - 4021, 3rd Floor, Taw Win Centre. Ph: 8600111 (Ext:4021), 09-803-2581. Qi Foot Spa At Inya Lake Hotel, Yangon. Tel: +951-662866, 662857 Ext: 1725 Zen Wellness Care No.62 (A), Rm-3, Yaw Min Gyi St, Dagon Tsp, Yangon. Tel: +951-252939.

MYANMAR BOOK CENTRE Nandawun Compound, No. 55, Baho Road, Corner of Baho Road and Ahlone Road, (near Eugenia Restaurant), Ahlone Township. tel: 212 409, 221 271. 214708 fax: 524580. email: info@ myanmarbook.com

CONSTRUCTION

ENTERTAINMENT

GAS COOKER & COOKER HOODS

24 hours Cancer centre No. 330, Yangon International Hotel, Ahlone Road, Dagon Tsp, Yangon, Myanmar. Tel: (951) 218388, 218292 Fax: (951) 218389

CAFS

Zamil Steel No-5, Pyay Road, 7 miles, Mayangone Tsp, Yangon. Tel: (95-1) 652502~04. Fax: (95-1) 650306. Email: zamilsteel@ zamilsteel.com.mm

Dance Lessons Mon-Fri 12:00 to 23:00. Sat-Sun 10 am to 8 pm Fun dancing Friday nights with Filipino musicians 4, U Tun Myat St, Tamwe. Tel: 01-541 550 The Uranium Dance Studio Pearl condo Bldg (C), 2nd flr, Bahan Tsp. Tel: 09731-42624, 09-514-0404.

DOMAIN
La Brasserie (International) PARKROYAL Yangon. 33, Alan Pya Phaya Road, Dagon Tsp. tel : 250388. Cafe de Angel Always Pure & Fresh No.24, Baho Rd, Ahlone Tsp. tel : 703449 Opening Hour: 9 am to 11 pm

Yangon : A-3, Aung San Stadium (North East Wing), Mingalartaungnyunt Tsp. Tel : 245543, 09-730-37772. Mandalay : Room No.(B,C) (National Gas), 35th St, Btw 80th & 81st, Chanayetharzan Tsp. Tel : 09-6803505, 02 34455, 36748, 71878.

GEMS & JEWELLERIES

ARCHITECH

.biz.mm .per.mm .com.mm .org.mm

FITNESS CENTRE
Espace Avenir 523, Pyay Rd, Kamayut Tsp, Tel : 505214, 505222 FIT Club - Rm 101~3, Marina Residence, 8, Kaba Aye Pagoda Rd, Mayangone Tsp, Tel : 650634, 650651 Ext:102 Parkroyal Fitness & Spa Parkroyal Yangon. 33, Alan Pya Phaya Road, Dagon Tsp. Tel: 250388.

Architecture 3 Construction Co, Ltd. No. 154, 39th Street, Between Maha Bandoola & Anawratha Road, Kyauktada Tsp, Yangon. Contact: Ma Khaing Tun Business Development 09-502-5782

La Source Beauty Spa 80(A), Inya Rd, Kamayut. tel: 512 380, 511 252. Sedona Hotel, Kabar Aye Pagoda Rd. tel: 666 900 My Way Diamond Condo, Bldg(A), Rm (G-02), Pyay Rd, Kamayut Tsp, Yangon. Tel: 52717, 09 51 70528

No. (8), Panchan Tower, Sanchaung Tsp, Yangon. Tel: 951-516891~3 sm@mtg.biz.mm, www.mtg. biz.mm, www.mmnic.biz.mm.

DUTY FREE
INYA1 Resturant & Bar No.(1), Inya Road, Kamayut Tsp. Tel: 01-527506 email: inyaone@gmail.com www.inya1.com Traders Caf Traders Hotel, Yangon. #223, Sule Pagoda Rd. Tel: 242828 ext: 6519

Natural Gems of Myanmar No. 30 (A), Pyay Road (7 mile), Mayangone Tsp, Yangon, Myanmar. Tel: 01-660397, 654398, 654399.

24 hours Medical centre No. 330, Ground Flr, Yangon Intl Hotel, Ahlone Road, Dagon Tsp, Yangon, Myanmar. 24 hour Call Centre : (951) 218 445 Clinic : (959) 4921 8159 Office : (951) 218 446 Fax : (951) 218 389 www.leomedicare.com
Shimmering Gold Services Co., Ltd.
VICTORY FOR LIFE

GENERATORS

BANGKOK, THAILAND

BEAUTY & MASSAGE

BATTERY

CHOCOLATE
A Little Dayspa No. 475 C, Pyi Road, Kamayut, Yangon. Tel: 09-431-28831.
ISO 9001:2008 (QMS)

Duty Free Airport Shopping Yangon International Airport Arrival/Departure Tel: 662676 (Airport) Office: 17, 2nd street, Hlaing Yadanarmon Housing, Hlaing Township, Yangon. Tel: 500143, 500144, 500145.

Heavy Equipments & Genset

Mr. Betchang No.(272), Pyay Rd, DNH Tower, Rm No.(503), 5th flr, Sanchaung Tsp, Tel: 095041216 The Yangon GYM Summit Parkview Hotel 350, Ahlone Rd, Dagon Tsp. tel: 211888, 211966. Traders Health Club. Level 5, Traders Hotel Yangon#223 Sule Pagoda Rd, Tel: 951 242828 Ext: 6561

Traders Hotel, 5th Floor Tel: 242828,Ext: Coreana. Sedona Hotel, Mandalay Ground Fl. Tel: 02-36488, Ext: Coreana

Proven Technology Industry Co., Ltd. No. FS 14, Bayintnaung Rd, Shwe Sabai Yeik Mon, Kamayut Tsp, Yangon. Tel: 951-951-701719~20, 527667, 531030, 531041, 530694. Fax: 527667, 531030. http//www. toyobatterymyanmar.com.

EDUCATION CENTRE
MHR Business & Management Institute 905, 9th floor, Modern Iron Market(Thanzay Condo) Lanmadaw St. Tel: 707822. NLEC 82 Anawrahta Rd, Corner of 39 St, Kyauktada Tsp. Tel: 250225.

Winning Way No. 589-592, Bo Aung Kyaw St, Yangon-Pathein highway Road. Hlaing Thayar Tsp. Tel: 951645178-182, 685199, Fax: 951-645211, 545278. e-mail: mkt-mti@ winstrategic.com.mm

VEJTHANI MYANMAR REPRESENTATIVE OFFICE No.125(C), West Shwe Gon Dine Road, Bahan Township, Yangon, Myanmar. 01-3449977. Hot Line: 09-507-1111, 01-555448, 555998. vejthani@myanmar.com.mm www.vejthani.com

HOME FURNISHING

HEALTH SERvICES
22, Pyay Rd, 9 mile, Mayangone Tsp. tel: 660769, 664363.

G-A, Ground Floor, Pearl Center, Kabaraye Pagoda Road, Yangon. Tel: 09 500 6880 Email: chocolateheaven. sale@gmail.com

FLORAL SERvICES

BOOK STORES

COLD STORAGE

ELECTRICAL

Lemon Day Spa No. 96 F, Inya Road, Kamaryut Tsp, Yangon. Tel: 514848, 09-732-08476. E.mail: lemondayspa.2011 @gmail.com

Innwa Book Store No. 246, Rm.201/301, GF, Pansodan Street (Upper Block), Kyauktada Tsp. Tel. 389838, 243216, 374324, 514387

Est. 1992 in Myanmar Cold Storage Specialist, Solar Hot Water Storage Solutions. Tel: 09-504-2196, 09-73194828. E-mail: gei.ygn2@ gmail.com, glover2812@ gmail.com

Est. 1992 in Myanmar Electrical & Mechanical Contractors, Designers, Consultants. Tel: 09-504-2196, 09-73194828. E-mail: gei.ygn2@ gmail.com, glover2812@ gmail.com

Floral Service & Gift Shop No. 449, New University Avenue, Bahan Tsp. YGN. Tel: 541217, 559011, 09-860-2292. Market Place By City Mart Tel: 523840~43, 523845~46, Ext: 205. Junction Nay Pyi Taw Tel: 067-421617~18 422012~15, Ext: 235. Res: 067-414813, 09-49209039. Email : eternal@ mptmail.net.mm

81, Kaba Aye Pagoda Road, Bahan Township, Yangon. Tel: 548022, 542979, 553783, 09-8030847, 09-730-56079. Email: asiapacific. myanmar@gmail.com.

HOTEL MANAGEMENT

Agent Office, 5th Floor, Junction Centre (Maw Tin), Lanmadaw Township, Yangon. Myanmar. Ph: 09-731-56770, 09-5117584, Fax: 01-516313, myanmarmeditour@gmail. com

Hotel ManagementConsultants (Singapore) Yangon Office Tel. : 09-516-6400 Email: info@univel.com.sg

LEGAL SERvICE
U Min Sein, BSc, RA, CPA.,RL Advocate of the Supreme Court 83/14 Pansodan St, Yangon. tel: 253 273. uminsein@mptmail.net.mm

Floral Service & Gift Centre 102(A), Dhamazaydi Rd, Yangon.tel: 500142 Summit Parkview Hotel, tel: 211888, 211966 ext. 173 fax: 535376.email: sandy@ sandymyanmar.com.mm.

MARINE COMMUNICATION & NAvIGATION

Acupuncture, Medicine Massage, Foot Spa Add:No,27(A),Ywa Ma Kyaung Street, Hlaing Township, Yangon. Tel: 01-511122, 526765. Piyavate Hospital (Bangkok) Myanmar Represent ative (Head office) Grand Mee Yahta Executive Residences. No.372, Bogyoke Aung San Rd, PBDN. Ph: 256355, Ext: 3206. Hotline: 09-73777799. Email: piyavate@cnt. com.mm, piyavate.cnt@ gmail.com, Website: www. piyavate.com PHIH-Specialist Clinic FMI Centre (4th Floor) #380, Bogyoke Aung San Road, Pabedan Tsp. tel: 243 010, 243 012, 243 013

Foral Service & Gifts shop No.2, Corner of Khay Mar St & Baho Rd (Near Asia Royal Hospital), Sanchaung Tsp, Yangon. email: yangonflorist@ myanmar.com.mm. Tel: 01-510406, 09-73184714.

Top Marine Show Room No-385, Ground Floor, Lower Pazundaung Road, Pazundaung Tsp, Yangon. Ph: 01-202782, 09-851-5597

Media & Advertising

FOAM SPRAY INSULATION

Foam Spray Insulation No-410, Ground Floor, Lower Pazuntaung Road, Pazuntaung Tsp, Yangon. Telefax : 01-203743, 09730-26245, 09-500-7681. Hot Line-09-730-30825.

FURNITURE
NatRay Co., Ltd. Rm 807, La Pyayt Wun Plaza. tel : 01-370833, 370836

24 hours Laboratory & X-ray No. 330, Ground Flr, Yangon Intl Hotel, Ahlone Road, Dagon Tsp, Yangon, Myanmar. Tel: (951) 218388, (951) 218292 Fax: (951) 218389

Intuitive Design, Advertising, Interior Decoration Corporate logo/Identity/ Branding, Brochure/ Profile Booklet/ Catalogue/ Billboard, Corporate diary/ email newsletter/ annual reports, Magazine, journal advertisement and 3D presentation and detailed planning for any interior decoration works. Talk to us: (951) 430-897, 553-918 www.medialane.com.au 58B Myanma Gon Yaung Housing, Than Thu Mar Road, Tamwe, Yangon.

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May 28 - June 3, 2012
Streamline Education 24, Myasabai Rd, Parami, Myangone Tsp. tel: 662304, 09-500-6916. No.35(b), Tatkatho Yeik Mon Housing, New University Avenue, Bahan Township, Yangon. Tel: 951-549451, 557219, 540730. www.yangon-academy.org Myanmar. Tel: 95-1-535783, 527705, 501429. Fax: 95-1-527705. Email: salesikon@myanmar.com.mm Junction Mawtin Bogyoke Aung San Rd, Cor of Wadan St. Lanmadaw Tsp. Tel: Junction Square Pyay Rd, Kamayut Tsp. Tel: Ocean Supercentre (North Point ), 9th Mile, Mayangone Tsp. Tel: 651 200, 652963. Pick n Pay Hyper Market Bldg (A,B,C), (14~16), Shwe Mya Yar Housing, Mya Yar Gone St, Mingalartaungnyunt Tsp. Tel: 206001~3, Fax: 9000199 Sein Gay Har 44, Pyay Rd, Dagon Tsp. Tel: 383812, 379823. Super 1 (Kyaikkasan) 65, Lay Daunt Kan St, Tel: 545871~73 Super 1 (Shwe Bonthar) 397, Bogyoke Aung San St, Pabedan. Tel: 250268~29 Victoria Shwe Pone Nyet Yeik Mon, Bayint Naung Rd, Kamaryut Tsp. Tel : 515136. Schenker (Thai) Ltd. Yangon 59 A, U Lun Maung Street. 7 Mile Pyay Road, MYGN. tel: 667686, 666646.fax: 651250. email: sche nker@mptmail.net.mm. Kan Yeik Tha Road Mingalar Taung Nyunt Tsp. Yangon, Myamar. 22, Kaba Aye Pagoda Rd, Bahan Tsp. tel 541997. email: leplanteur@ mptmail.net.mm. http://leplanteur.net House of Memories Piano Bar & Restaurant Myanmar Cuisine & International Food 290, U Wizara Rd, Kamaryut Tsp, Yangon. tel: 525 195, 534 242. e-mail: houseofmemories 9@gmail.com

MyanMar tiMes

MARKET RESEARCH

MMRD Research BLDG C, New Mingalar Market, 10-story BLDG, 8 & 9 flr, Coner of Mill St & Banyardala Rd, Mingalar Taungnyunt Tsp. Tel: 200326, 200846, 201350. Fax: 202425.

OFFICE FURNITURE
Legendary Myanmar Intl Shipping & Logistics Co., Ltd. No-9, Rm (A-4), 3rd Flr, Kyaung St, Myaynigone, Sanchaung Tsp, Yangon. Tel: 516827, 523653, 516795. Mobile. 09-512-3049. Email: legandarymyr@ mptmail.net .mm www.LMSL-shipping.com

French Restaurant Tel: 299255~9, Ext: 7776 Fax: 382917 reception@ kandawgyipalace-hotel. com www.kandawgyipalacehotel.com

Phoenix Court (Chinese) PARKROYAL Yangon. 33, Alan Pya Phaya Road, Dagon Tsp. tel: 250388.

SCHOOLS

SOLAR SYSTEM
The Brightest AC CFL Bulb 21, 9th St, Lanmadaw Tsp. Ph: 212243, 216861, 216864. spsolarstation@ gmail.com. www. spsolarstation.com

Monday to Saturday (9am to 6pm) No. 797, MAC Tower II, Rm -4, Ground Flr, Bogyoke Aung San Rd, Lamadaw Tsp, Yangon. Tel: (951) 212944 Ext: 303 sales.centuremyanmar@ gmail.com www.centure.in.th

Kan Yeik Tha Road Mingalar Taung Nyunt Tsp. Yangon, Myamar.

No. 105/107, Kha-Yae-Bin Road. between Pyi Daung Su Yeik Tha (Halpin) and Manawhari Road/Ahlone Road, Dagon Tsp. Tel/Fax: 538895, Tel: 09730-29973, 09-540-9469.
padonmar.restaurant@ gmail.com. www.myanmarrestaurantpadonmar.com

Horizon Intl School 25, Po Sein Road, Bahan Tsp, tel : 541085, 551795, 551796, 450396~7. fax : 543926, email : contact@horizonmyanmar. com, www.horizon.com ILBC 180, Thunandar 9th Lane, Thumingalar Housing, Thingungyung.tel: 562401.

STEEL CONSTRUCTION

PLEASURE CRUISES
Bo Sun Pat Tower, Bldg 608, Rm 6(B), Cor of Merchant Rd & Bo Sun Pat St, PBDN Tsp. Tel: 377263, 250582, 250032, 09-511-7876, 09-862-4563. Tel: 299255~9, Ext: 7801, 7802 Fax: 382917 reception@ kandawgyipalace-hotel. com www.kandawgyipalacehotel.com

PEB Steel Buildings 60 (A), Halpin Road, Yangon. Tel: 01-218223, 218224. Fax: 218224. marketing@pebsteel.com. mm www.pebsteel.com.mm

Moby Dick Tours Co., Ltd. Islands Safari in the Mergui Archipelago 4 Days, 6 Days, 8 Days Trips Tel: 95 1 202063, 202064 E-mail: mobydicktours@ gmail.com. Website: www. moby-dick-adventures.com

RESTAURANTS

Road to Mandalay Myanmar Hotels & Cruises Ltd. Governors Residence 39C, Taw Win Rd, Dagon Tsp, Yangon. Tel: (951) 229860 fax: (951) 217361. email: RTMYGN@mptmail.net.mm www.orient-express.com

24 hours open. 5, Alan Pya Phaya Rd, Dagon Tsp, inside Thamada Hotel. tel 243640, 243047, Ext: 32.

Kan Yeik Tha Road Mingalar Taung Nyunt Tsp. Yangon, Myamar. Taste Paradise Chinese Restaurant

The Ritz Exclusive Lounge Chatrium Hotel Royal Lake Yangon 40, Natmauk Road, Tamwe Tsp, Ground Floor, Tel: 544500 Ext 6243, 6244

ILBC IGCSE SCHOOL No.(34), Laydauntkan Road, Tamwe Tsp, Yangon. Tel: 542982, 545720, 549106,545736,400156 Fax: 541040 Email: info@ilbc.net.mm www.ilbcedu.com ISM Intl School W 22/24, Mya Kan Thar Housing, Hlaing Tsp. tel:530082, 530083. International School Yangon 20, Shwe Taung Kyar St, Bahan Tsp. Tel: 512793.

SUPERMARKETS
Asia Light 106, Set Yone Rd.tel: 294074, 294083. Capital Hyper Mart 14(E), Min Nandar Road, Dawbon Tsp. Ph: 553136. City Mart (Aung San Branch) tel: 253022, 294765. (9:00 am to 9:00 pm) City Mart (47th St Branch) tel: 200026, 298746. (9:00 am to 9:00 pm) City Mart (Junction 8 Branch) tel: 650778. (9:00 am to 9:00 pm) City Mart (FMI City Branch) tel: 682323. City Mart (Yankin Center Branch) tel: 400284. (9:00 am to 9:00 pm) City Mart (Myaynigone Branch) tel: 510697. (9:00 am to 10:00 pm) City Mart (Zawana Branch) tel:564532. (9:00 am to 9:00 pm) City Mart (Shwe Mya Yar Branch) tel: 294063. (9:00 am to 9:00 pm) City Mart (Chinatown Point Branch) tel: 215560~63. (9:00 am to 10:00 pm) City Mart (Junction Maw Tin Branch) tel: 218159. (9:00 am to 9:00 pm) City Mart (Marketplace) tel: 523840~43. (9:00 am to 10:00 pm) City Mart (78th Brahch-Mandalay) tel: 02-71467~9. (9:00 am to 10:00 pm) IKON Mart IKON Trading Co., Ltd. No.332, Pyay Rd, San Chaung P.O (11111), Yangon,

TRAvEL AGENTS

Asian Trails Tour Ltd 73 Pyay Rd, Dagon tsp. tel: 211212, 223262. fax: 211670. email: res@ asiantrails.com.mm Htoo Travels 209/c, first flr, Shwe Gonedaing Rd, Bahan. Tel: 548554, 548039. Sun Far Travels & Tours 27, Ground flr, 38th st, Kyauktada Tsp. Tel: 380888.

PAINT

Lunch/Dinner/Catering 555539, 536174 INYA1 Resturant & Bar No.(1), Inya Road, Kamayut Tsp. Tel: 01-527506 email: inyaone@gmail.com www.inya1.com

Tel: 299255~9, Ext: 7778 Fax: 382917 reception@ kandawgyipalace-hotel. com www.kandawgyipalacehotel.com

Tiger Hill Chinese Restaurant Chatrium Hotel Royal Lake Yangon 40, Natmauk Road, Tamwe Tsp, Lobby Level, Tel: 544500 Ext 6253 Traders Gourmet Corner Level 1, Traders Hotel, #223 Sule Pagoda Road, Kyauktada Tsp. Tel : 242828 ext : 6503 Traders Gallery Bar Level 2, Traders Hotel, #223 Sule Pagoda Road. tel: 242 828. ext: 6433 Traders Lobby Lounge Level 1, Traders Hotel, #223 Sule Pagoda Road. tel: 242 828. ext: 6456

Admissions Office: No. 44, Than Lwin Road, Bahan Township, Yangon. Tel: 535433, 09-850-3073. Email: rviacademygn@ rvcentre.com.sg

WATER HEATERS

TOP MARINE PAINT No-410, Ground Floor, Lower Pazundaung Road, Pazundaung Tsp, Yangon. Ph: 09-851-5202

RELOCATION

No.430(A), Corner of Dhamazedi Rd & Golden Valley Rd, Building(2) Market Place (City Mart), Bahan Tsp, Yangon. Tel : 01-523840(Ext-309), 09-73208079.

Relocation Specialist Rm 504, M.M.G Tower, #44/56, Kannar Rd, Botahtaung Tsp. Tel: 250290, 252313. Mail : info@asiantigersmyanmar.com

Kohaku Japanese Restaurant Chatrium Hotel Royal Lake Yangon 40, Natmauk Road, Tamwe Tsp, Lobby Level, Tel: 544500 Ext 6231

95, Anawrahta Rd. Tel:296552, 293754. 336, Pyay Rd, Sanchaung Tsp. Tel: 526456. New University Avenue, 551521, 551951, 553896. U Wisara Rd, Tel: 524599, 501976.

The Global leader in Water Heaters A/1, Aung San Stadium East Wing, Upper Pansodan Road. Tel: 251033, 09-730-25281.

Same as Rinnai Gas cooker and cooker Hood Showroom Address

Water Heater

WEB SERvICES

REMOvALISTS

Crown Worldwide Movers Ltd 790, Rm 702, 7th Flr Danathiha Centre, Bogyoke Aung San Rd, Lanmadaw. Tel: 223288, 210 670, 227650. ext: 702. Fax: 229212. email: crown worldwide@mptmail.net.mm

Italian delicatesse & Ice-cream No.150, Dhamazadi Rd, Bahan Tsp. (Monunent Book Shop) Open Daily 9:00am to 7:00pm. Italian Ice-cream, Pasta, Pizza & Bar (2) G/F, City Mart, Myaynigone Centre. tel : 508469, 508470 ext. 113 Open Daily 9:00am to 10:00pm. Black Canyon Coffee & International Thai Cuisine 330, Ahlone Rd, Dagon Tsp. Tel: 0980 21691, 395052. email: blackcanyon@ yangon. net.mm.

Enchanting and Romantic, a Bliss on the Lake 62 D, U Tun Nyein Road, Mayangon Tsp, Yangon Tel. 01 665 516, 660976 Mob. 09-512-7795 operayangon@gmail.com www.operayangon.com KSS Setyone Rd, Mingalar Taung Nyunt. tel: 203320.

1. WASABI : No.20-B, Kaba Aye Pagoda Rd, Yankin Tsp,(Near MiCasa), Tel; 666781,09-503-9139 2. WASABI SUSHI : Market Place by City Mart (1st Floor). Tel; 09-430-67440 Myaynigone (City Mart) Yankin Center (City Mart) Junction Mawtin (City Mart) Royal Garden Nat Mauk Road, Kandaw Gyi Natural Park, Bahan Tsp. tel: 546202

Yangon International School Fully Accredited K-12 International Curriculum with ESL support No.117,Thumingalar Housing, Thingangyun Township, Yangon. Tel: 578171, 573149 www.yismyanmar.net Yangon International School New Early Childhood Center Pan Hlaing Golf Estate Housing & U Tun Nyo Street, Hlaing Thar Yar Township, Yangon. Tel: 687701, 687702

World-class Web Services Tailor-made design, Professional research & writing for Brochure/ Catalogue/e-Commerce website, Customised business web apps, online advertisement and anything online. Talk to us: (951) 430-897, 553-918 www.medialane.com.au 58B Myanma Gon Yaung Housing. Than Thu Mar Road, Tamwe, Yangon.

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Trade Mark CauTion

PT HanJaYa MandaLa SaMPoerna TBk (HMS), and having its registered office at Jalan Rungkut Industri Raya No.18, Surabaya 60293, Indonesia, is the sole and exclusive owner and proprietor of the following trademarks:EAGLE Label (reg. no. iV/ 2497/1997)

Stadiums in Pakistan lie abandoned

By Shahid Hashmi KARACHI Karachis National Stadium was once a dusty, sweaty hell for visiting cricketers, a cauldron of heat and noise where Pakistan went unbeaten in tests for more than 45 years. But now, three years after international sides stopped coming to the country in the wake of a deadly militant attack on a Sri Lankan team bus, the stands are silent, deserted and rusting with disuse. It is a scene repeated in stadiums across Pakistan. Since the gun attack in Lahore, the country has not hosted a full international in any sport, barring a short series of hockey friendlies against lowly China. Last month it organised a visit by the Bangladesh cricket team, only to have it postponed a week later over security fears, to the dismay of Pakistani officials. And Pakistans announcement on May 10 that Canada may visit this year was quickly played down by Cricket Canada chief Doug Hannum, who called it a potential tour and said no formal talks had taken place. Pakistans 180 million people are well known for being cricket-mad but the nation also boasts a proud history in field hockey three Olympic gold medals, four World Cups and three Champions Trophies and squash, where the Khans, Jansher and Jahangir, ruled the world in the 1980s and 1990s. In 1994 Pakistan even boasted the unique distinction of being world champions in cricket, hockey and squash at the same time. Even the aftermath of the September 11, 2001 attacks on the US did not deter foreign teams: Pakistan hosted arch-rivals India considered the biggest target for militants for cricket tours in 2004 and 2006, and staged the World Open squash tournament in 2003 and Champions Trophy hockey in 2004. But when gunmen attacked the Sri Lankan team bus during the third cricket Test in Lahore in March 2009, killing eight people and wounding seven players, Pakistan was cast into sporting purdah. It was no longer true that sports were not a target for militants and ever since, teams have been unwilling to come. For three years, Pakistan have held their home cricket series in neutral countries, mostly the United Arab Emirates. All their Davis Cup tennis matches and hockey fixtures have been played away from home. Ehsan Mani, former president of the International Cricket Council (ICC), believes the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) are going the wrong way about seeking to end their isolation. The Bangladesh team not coming to Pakistan is a setback, Mani said. But I would say that the PCBs strategy is totally wrong as they are, like, begging teams to come, which is wrong. Mani said Pakistan needs to get the ICC to set security guidelines. But he added that even if Bangladesh had come, others were not likely to follow. I cant speculate whether Bangladesh Cricket Board wanted to send the team or not, but Bangladeshs visit would not have convinced England or Australia, he said. The situation means talented young players like Umar Akmal, Azhar Ali, Wahab Riaz and Asad Shafiq who between them have 50 test caps, 95 one-day and 39 Twenty20 internationals have yet to play before their home crowds. But most dangerous are the financial implications. PCB would feel the financial pinch soon, Tauqir Zia, a former PCB chairman, said. Their expenses per year are 1.6 billion rupees (US$17.6 million) and this cannot be borne until you earn by hosting cricket. Otherwise you have to go to the ICC and ask for funds. Hockey survives on millions of rupees in government grants, while football is supported by international body FIFA through the Goal development scheme. For former Pakistani Test fast bowler Jalal-ud-Din, the key to Pakistan coming in from the cold is wooing the old enemy next door: India. Cricket revival, I believe, is related to India because they are the super powers, he said. PCB must form a team of players and diplomats and send it to various countries in order to convince them to tour. Jalal also blamed poor governance in the PCB, saying that under former chairman Ijaz Butt our relationship with other countries worsened and we are paying for that. When a spot-fixing scandal broke during Pakistans disastrous 2010 tour of England, Butt incensed the hosts by accusing them of throwing a one-day international at the Oval. He later apologised and retracted the allegation. With Pakistans security situation still unstable, it seems the wait for top-level international competition will go on, both for the countrys sports fans and its under-used stadiums. AFP

SAMPOERNA X-TRA Label (Color) (reg. no. iV/3188/2001) used in respect of All goods in International Class 34, namely, cigarette, tobacco, tobacco products, etc.

PreSCoTT
(reg. no. iV/5238/2003)

GOLDEN EAGLE Label (Open Pack 2/White background) (Color) (reg. no. iV/ 2498/1997)

DJI SAM SOE Label (Color) (reg. no. iV/ 764/2004) used in respect of All goods in International Class 34, namely, cigarette, tobacco, tobacco products GOLDEN EAGLE (Open Pack) (Color) (reg. no. iV/ 2499/1997) used in respect of Cigarettes, tobacco products

DJI SAM SOE

(reg. no. iV/6888/2008) SAMPOERNA A Device (Color) (reg. no. iV/669/2004)

SAMPOERNA
(reg. no. iV/6897/2008) used in respect of Tobacco, raw or manufactured; tobacco products, including cigars, cigarettes, cigarillos, tobacco for roll your own cigarettes, pipe tobacco, chewing tobacco, snuff tobacco, kretek; tobacco substitutes (not for medical purposes); smokers articles, including cigarette paper and tubes, cigarette filters, tobacco tins, cigarette cases and ashtrays, pipes, pocket apparatus for rolling cigarettes, lighters; matches Any unauthorized use, infringement or fraudulent imitation of the said trademarks will be dealt with according to law. Thein Aung B.Sc., R.L., D.B.L Advocate
MYanMar TradeMark and PaTenT LaW FirM

SAMPOERNA A (Dv.) (w/Underlined OE) (Color) (reg. no. iV/3058/1995) (reg. no. iV/4272/1998) (reg. no. iV/1073/2001) used in respect of All goods in International Class 34, namely, cigarette, tobacco products

EAGLE
(reg. no. iV/5320/1996)

E-mail: mtpip@mptmail.net.mm for eCCLeS & Lee Solicitors Patent Attorneys and Trade Mark Attorneys, Hong Kong. Dated. 28th May, 2012

GOLDEN EAGLE
(reg. no. iV/5321/1996)

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MyanMar tiMes

Lippi faces rollercoaster ride in China comeback

By Cameron Wilson SHANGHAI When Marcello Lippi announced that he was ready to get back into football, few imagined the celebrated Italian coach would find a home in China. Now Lippi, one of the worlds most successful managers, is facing one of his trickiest tests in the trigger-happy Chinese Super League (CSL) with his new club, Guangzhou Evergrande. On May 20, the white-haired Lippi, 64, whose last assignment was leading defending champions Italy at the 2010 World Cup, started his new life with a narrow 1-0 home win over basement club Qingdao Joonon. Around 40,000 fans flocked to Guangzhous Tianhe stadium to see Lippi, the most famous coach to join a Chinese team, with many wearing the shirts of Juventus, his former team, and one banner reading Forza Li Pi. Supporters chanted Lippis name constantly in a heros welcome for the man who won the 2006 World Cup with Italy and who is now expected to deliver the Asian club title for the vastly ambitious Guangzhou. With the reigning Chinese champions already top of the league, Lippis task begins in earnest on May 30, when he will attempt to steer Guangzhou past FC Tokyo and into the AFC Champions League quarter-finals. Its a daunting challenge: a one-off game, just two weeks into the job, with an unfamiliar group of players. And in China, as other coaches have learned, the price of failure can be high. Last month Jean Tigana, then the Super Leagues highest profile coach, departed Shanghai Shenhua after just Italian coach Marcello Lippi reacts during his first match as head coach of Guangzhou Evergrande against Qingdao Junoon at the Tianhe stadium in Guangzhou on May 20. Pic: AFP

Drogba confirms Chelsea departure

LONDON Ivory Coast striker Didier Drogba confirmed on May 22 he will leave newly-crowned European champions Chelsea when his contract expires at the end of June. The 34-year-old leaves the London club on a high after scoring a late equaliser against Bayern Munich in the Champions League final on May 19 and then converting the decisive penalty in a dramatic shoot-out after extra-time. I wanted to put an end to the speculation and confirm that I am leaving Chelsea, he told Chelseas website. It has been a very difficult decision for me to make and I am very proud of what we have achieved, but the time is right for a new challenge for me. Drogba has been at the Premier League club since 2004, joining from French side Marseille, and has scored 157 goals in 341 appearances helping the Blues win 10 trophies. Drogba is the clubs fourth highest scorer and his 34 goals in European competition is a Chelsea record by 10 goals. During his eight seasons he won three Premier League titles, four FA Cups, two League Cups, and the Champions League title. As a team we have accomplished so much and have won every single trophy possible, said Drogba, who won the Premier League Golden Boot twice. Saturday was a very special moment for everyone at the club and for all the fans, and I am very proud to have played my part in bringing many trophies to this club, which has been my home for the last eight years. I wish the club all the best and continued success for the future you will always be in my heart. Chelsea Chief Executive Ron Gourlay added: Didier is undoubtedly a Chelsea legend and will always be part of the Chelsea family. He is certainly leaving on a high after Saturday night but he feels the time is right for a new challenge. We have known for some time that this outcome was likely but Didier and the club only made a final decision on that in the last couple of days, because for obvious reasons neither Didier nor the club wanted to distract focus away from the Champions League Final. English media have linked the Ivorian target man scorer of 55 goals in his 84 international appearances with Chinese side Shanghai Shenhua, where his former Chelsea team-mate Nicolas Anelka is player-coach. AFP

a handful of games, and was replaced by a makeshift coaching line-up including French striker Nicolas Anelka. And Guangzhou showed no emotion with Lippis predecessor Lee JangSoo, who won promotion and then the Chinese title in consecutive seasons, and was sacked with the club leading the league and qualified for the continental knock-outs. Lee had squabbled with star player Dario Conca, who received a ninematch ban for publicly criticising the coach a ban that was quietly shelved as he played in last weeks Champions League game, and again on May 20. Lippi has experience in dealing with assertive players at Juventus, with whom he won five Serie A titles and the European Champions League, as well as expectant team bosses. But a cautionary tale comes from

Scots-born Australian manager Lawrie McKinna, who left Chinas Chengdu Blades last year over boardroom interference and quickly found a similar situation at his next club, Chongqing Lifan. I got called into the bosss room and he started to tell me a few of the older players I had not been playing had to come back in to the team, McKinna wrote on an Australian football blog. I could not agree with what he was saying and so decided to hand in my resignation as I had been through this at Chengdu last year and was not going to go through it again. Lippis last job ended badly, when reigning champions Italy were knocked out of the 2010 World Cup at the group stage, and it was nearly a year before he said he was ready to coach again. He will hope for happier times in China. AFP

Welcome to Afghanistan, home of worlds most extreme golf

By Lawrence Bartlett KABUL Welcome to the most extreme golf in the world, says the European Union ambassador to Afghanistan, as half-a-dozen heavily armed bodyguards fan out around him and scan the Kabul Golf Club course. But Vygaudas Usackas is not talking about security threats facing golfers in a war zone hes talking about the course. It is one big hazard, with unfair fairways of rock and thistles, sand-and-oil greens and the chance of falling into a ditch making even the most wicked of traditional sand traps and water hazards seem benign. But in a country where guns far outnumber golf clubs and diplomats live in compounds set deep behind blast walls and razor wire, Usackas revels in the chance to get out and get some fresh air. The air at Afghanistans only golf course a halfhour drive out of Kabul is certainly easier to breathe than the dust and pollution of the chaotic capital, but golfers accustomed to the eye-soothing sight of immaculate lawns would be in for a shock. And they can leave the fancy two-tone spiked shoes behind, being well-advised to don army style boots to cope with the terrain. As for clubs, forget about the state-of-the-art Titanium driver that cost a few hundred dollars and choose, like anybody else, from a dusty collection of bags containing ancient woods and irons in the spartan, single-room clubhouse. Then, equipped with two caddies, one to carry the bag, the other to stake out the likely landing area of your perfect shot so that he can maybe see the ball ricochet off a rock into a pile of rubble, you are ready to play. The fore-caddy will also warn picnickers and cricketers and the riders of passing donkeys that balls may soon be coming their way. They tend to be most accommodating, shifting temporarily from the direct line of fire and applauding any good shot in this bizarre game, in which Usackas and his party of one reporter and Afghanistans only golf pro were the sole players. The pro, Mohammad Afzal Abdul, 52, has been the manager and coach at the club for 35 years apart from warforced closures and a couple of stints in jail under Soviet invaders and hardline Taliban Islamists for associating with foreigners. A photograph of him with Tiger Woods in Dubai recently takes pride of place on the walls of the clubs office. I invited Tiger to visit Kabul. He said okay, but no plans have been made, says Afzal. I like him, I like all golfers hes a good man. Also on the wall is a large poster of the rules of the course. Tip #1: Play aggressively. There are no gimmes [a shot that players agree can count automatically]. Dont even ask for the stroke index because this is Afghanistan and theyre all tough. The tee boxes seem invisible in the scruffy terrain, except to Afzal, who has a scratch handicap and plays the course like the pro that he is. The fairways can barely be distinguished from the rough and are scarred by ditches every 20 yards or so in preparation for a sprinkler system and dreams of covering the course in grass but it has been like that for a year. The greens are grey, made from sand and waste oil in an effort to provide a smooth surface. And the holes are, as Usackas says, like everything here relative. Some have cups, others are just scratched depressions in the sand. The course was built some 60 years ago during the rule of the then-king, Zahir Shah, but has been destroyed by 30 years of war: a line of rusting Soviet tanks from the 1980s can still be seen on a nearby hill. The Russians were followed by civil war and rule by the hardline Islamist Taliban, who were ousted by a US-led invasion in 2001 for sheltering Al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden after the 9/11 attacks on New York and Washington. When the Western-backed President Hamid Karzai came to power, Afzal returned to his beloved course. I didnt even recognise it, he says now. Deminers cleared the course, but as an extra precaution Afzal set several thousand sheep roaming over it for five days they set off no mines and all survived. But war still plagues Afghanistan, with the Taliban waging a 10-year insurgency against Karzais government and 130,000 US-led NATO troops. On the golf course, if youre playing with the ambassador, that means the age-old instruction for playing a shot Dont lift your head takes on a new meaning. If you do, you are likely to spot a man with an automatic rifle kneeling a few yards away which could put you off your stroke. AFP

EU ambassador Vygaudas Usackas (centre left) and Afghan pro golfer Mohammad Afzal Abdul stand beside a signboard at the Kabul golf course on May 11. Pic: AFP

tImESsPORt
Singapore approves $2.5 billion F1 float
An overview of the lighted circuit for the Formula One Singapore Grand Prix night race on September 19, 2011. Pic: AFP By Philip Lim SINGAPORE Singapore has cleared the sale of Formula One shares for more than US$2.5 billion in one of the worlds biggest flotations this year, reports said on May 22, with pre-marketing to begin immediately. Private equity firm CVC Capital Partners, which has a majority stake in the glitzy motor sports holding company, will gauge interest among investors and fund managers with a view to selling part of its stake at the end of June. Dow Jones Newswires said the Singapore Exchange had approved a listing by Formula One, which has been rumoured for the past two months. A spokesman for the bourse, citing standard policy, said: It is not our practice to publicly comment on our dealings with listing aspirants. Reports of the initial public offering (IPO), which could raise as much as $3 billion, would be the biggest IPO this year in Singapore, that also approved a float by Manchester United in September, according to sources. The English Premier League football club is said to be awaiting better market conditions. Some companies are looking at Asias cash-rich markets to raise funds as Europe grapples with a debt crisis and the United States pursues a fragile recovery. Singapore also hosts a popular Formula One night race, one of 20 stops on its global tour this year, and has a strong fanbase for the sport. Dow Jones said ordertaking international roadshows would begin in the second week of next month. But the suggested timing of the IPO is brave after turbulence returned to global financial markets last week. Look at the muted firstday response to Facebooks $ 1 8 .4 b i l l i o n IP O l as t Friday. The F1 listing is not nearly as attractive and long-awaited as that, an unnamed investment banker

May 28 - June 3, 2012

told the Straits Times. Reports of a possible share float broke in March and received a generally cool response among team principals in the sport, many of whom are battling financial problems. But Caterham boss Tony Fernandes, the man behind

successful budget airline AirAsia, backed the plan spearheaded by Formula One supremo Bernie Ecclestone. As a businessman I think if public money can improve the sport, and accountability and transparency, then we should go for it, Fernandes said in March.

I saw some comments where the team bosses said they were against it. I think until we know more about it, its silly to be against it. Lets hear about it in the open. CVC took majority control in 2006 of Ecclestones Formula One Group, which

has the right to commercially develop the sport, stage and promote events, sell broadcast footage and offer sponsorship and hospitality packages. According to CVCs website, Formula One Group has turnover of 1.17 billion euros ($1.49 billion). AFP

Mourinho extends contract with Real

MADRID Real Madrid coach Jose Mourinho has extended his contract until June 2016 after taking the Spanish giants to victory in La Liga, the team said on May 22. The 49-year-old, who joined Real in May 2010 on a four-year deal, said early in May he had no ambition to coach in new countries. But media reports had continued to speculate on his returning to England, with some linking him to a move back to his former side Chelsea. Real Madrid and Jose Mourinho have reached an agreement to extend the latters contract with the club until June 30, 2016, the club said in a statement published online. The self-appointed Special One took Real Madrid to their 32nd league title last month, ending a run of three successive league crowns for bitter rivals Barcelona. That made him only the fourth coach to have won four different league titles after taking the English, Italian and Portuguese crowns, along with Austrias Ernst Happel, the late Croat Tomislav Ivic and Italian veteran Giovanni Trapattoni. At this mature level of my career, I need big challenges which force me to still try to be the best, said Mourinho. To remain with Real seems to me to be the perfect challenge for the coming four years. We must improve as a team and also as individuals, and we must play a football that aims not only at winning matches but also winning over lovers of the game. Mourinho added in typically brash style: We have played the best football in the world even if we didnt win the Champions League. But we did win La Liga, which is more difficult, by playing a fantastic style of football, something which I think is the most important. Mourinho hinted at a couple of off-season transfers for a squad he deemed remained young. Its not a team on the way to extinction, he said. Its not a team thats playing its last high-level footballing years, quite the opposite. Its a team that has everything to go for. With a couple of transfers to improve the squad we have, the team of 100 points [in the league], which I think will remain in the history of Real Madrid, deserves all our trust for next season. During his first season at the club, critics said the Portuguese coachs approach was too aggressive both on the field and in comments at press conferences about rivals and referees. In one infamous incident in August last year when Barcelona won the domestic Super Cup against Real, a brawl broke out after Marcelo was red carded for a reckless challenge on Cesc Fabregas. During the melee, Mourinho was shown on public television poking his finger into the eye of Barca assistant coach Tito Vilanova who has since been promoted to the top to replace departing Pep Guardiola after a four-year reign, saying he felt drained. Asked about the incident at the time, which earned him a twomatch ban, Mourinho famously asked journalists at a post-match news conference: Pito Vilanova? I dont know who this Pito is. Mourinho has been supported through thick and thin by Real president Florentino Perez. Former Real director general Jorge Valdano had unsuccessfully argued against Mourinhos appointment, but then found himself out of a job. In May 2011 Perez terminated the position of director general occupied by Valdano to give Mourinho more autonomy, in what was seen as a victory for the Portuguese coach. Real striker Cristiano Ronaldo praised Mourinho in an interview published on May 22 in Spanish sports daily AS, calling him the best coach in the world. Its great to work with him because, right now, he is the number one manager. AFP

UNICEF country representative in Yangon, Ramesh Shrestha, discusses the current situation of Myanmars education sector with The Myanmar Times Editor of Special Publications, Myo Lwin.
Q: How would you assess current situation of state school education here? A: The government of Myanmar invested substantially in expanding primary school infrastructure during the past 20 years, extending access to almost all primary school age children. As a result the net primary enrolment has reached 84 percent, but completion rate remains low compared to the other countries in the region. The key question is who are the 16pc who are not in school and how they can be reached? Q: What can be done to make Myanmar primary education universal and improve quality? A: There needs to be a focus on two main areas. First there is a need to extend the networks of post primary infrastructure all the way up to high schools so that every child has an equal opportunity to complete high school. Second, there must be equal emphasis in improving quality of teaching learning so that the internal efficiency of investment in education is improved. This will directly contribute to retention of pupils in the schools as well as prepare school leavers to enter into vocational training or university education as they wish. The current government policy on free and compulsory primary education where free textbooks are distributed to schools is a good starting point. The Ministry of Education started ground work for implementation of comprehensive education sector review which will review all aspects of education starting from early childhood education to higher education. The review will take into account all aspects of the sector that will influence policy, legislation, quality and access in education. This initiative is the product of the recently held development policy options seminar which recommended educa-

Myanmar 'just needs a roadmap'

Children pay attention at their lessons at a monastic school in Yangon . Cherry Thein

Ramesh Shrestha. The Myanmar Times

tion sector review as one of the national priorities keeping in pace with the progressive changes in Myanmars political scenario. Q: What are the major challenges and your recommendations to overcome them? A: The investments in education do not have immediate return. As a result education has to compete with other sectors where returns are immediate and substantial. The recent decision by the government to substantially increase the education budget is a refreshing breakaway from the past budget allocation procedure. Even with this increase a large proportion would be spent on recurrent costs such as teacher salary. There are four key challenges in the education sector. First, there is a need to improve the quality of teachers to improve the quality of teachinglearning environment. The child friendly methodology implemented by the Ministry of Education is contributing to improvement in primary education through in-service training of thousands of teachers annually. But we need to

address this at the source by targeting teacher education colleges so that all newly trained teachers will graduate with new methodologies of child friendly interactive teaching as opposed to didactic teaching. Teacher development and management requires major reform in Myanmar. The Ministry of Education is beginning to address this. Second, there is a need to produce a wide range of reference materials for all grades of students to help critical thinking and learning processes. Children have enormous capacity to learn but children need to be exposed to new opportunities that would challenge them to think creatively and analytically. They also need to be surrounded by books and have access to developmentally appropriate reading materials. The MoEs Lets Read Initiative with the Box Library supported by UNICEF should be expanded and a new book flood initiative needs to get started in Myanmar. Third, the current rate of transition from early childhood to primary to post primary to lower secondary to high school should be improved and access increased.

This would require large scale investments in school infrastructure together with expansion of teacher training and recruitment. This is not an easy task but it has to be done. This is more than a financing issue as it needs medium to long term planning to ensure that infrastructure is matched by teacher production and employment and student intake. Fourth is a review of the job market. As the Government decides to diversify its economy through creation of industrial zones, expansion of industries, manufacturing, etc. it will require a diverse range of semi-skilled to highly skilled human resources. In addition Myanmar has enormous potentials in its agro industry and hydropower. These two areas call for speedy attention for immediate to medium term plans as these are also the areas that would generate substantial immediate economic returns. Q: Is Myanmar on track to meet the Millennium Development Goals? A: While the global goals and targets provide broad guidelines and benchmarks Myanmar should set its own goals.

Myanmar has made much progress in reducing infant, child and maternal mortality. Polio and measles which are serious and debilitating childhood diseases are under control. Primary school enrolment is at an all time high with gender parity. What is essential is to close the wide gaps between the rural urban divide in terms of quality and access of basic services. Q: The South Korean president emphasied the importance of HRD when he met with the Myanmar president recently. What is your comment on that? A: Indeed, human resource development is key to national success. Three countries in this region - South Korea, Japan, and Singapore have achieved their economic success through investments in building human resource capacity. None of these countries have natural resources of any significance. Their economic success is purely attributable to their investments in human capital. Taiwan and Hong Kong are two other success stories of investments in human resources. To cite another example,

Ghana and Malaysia gained independence in the same year. At the time of independence both these countries had similar per capita income but Ghana had already a welldeveloped palm oil industry. Malaysia imported palm oil trees from Ghana. Today these two countries are not comparable in any indicators. The difference is investments in human resource capital. As Myanmar opens up politically and economically it needs human resources with the best possible calibre. There is no alternative to investment in human resource for Myanmar's future, and investment in education is a good starting point. Myanmar is blessed with huge natural resources such as the largest arable land in the Southeast Asian region together with large water resources essential for agriculture; a wide range of minerals and mines; huge energy in the form of oil and gas and large rivers for hydropower and a young working age population base. Myanmar has what it needs to explode economically as a regional economic powerhouse. The destination is clear. It just needs a roadmap.

Making people before Rural-urban disparities making products a concern for parents
By Myo Lwin

yANMAR couldnt be busier this year, hosting many foreign dignitaries of whom the most recent one was South Korean president Lee Myung-bak. During his meeting with president U Thein Sein on May 14, Mr Lee Myung-bak discussed strengthening of friendly relations, technical assistance for development of Myanmar. The statement highlighted human resource development among other general areas of cooperation. It proves the saying making people before making products continues to be a universal truth whatever industry or career you are involved in. Here, we can not make people overnight. It is a long term plan that needs commitment, investment and most important of all the professionalism. Among the changes to be made here, the government has rightly placed high priorities to two sectors- education and health. The Government has increased its educational budget to K310,020 million for the financial year ending last March from K266,906m the previous year. Of the total budget for the Ministry of Education, the majority of the allotment is to be spent on basic education which in my opinion is a prudent decision. It cannot be disputed that education starts with basic education particularly at state schools.

A high school teacher checks her students' homeworks . The Myanmar Times

Thinking about some numbers, we have 41,000 schools in basic education employing 276,000 teachers who are guiding 8.2 million students from primary to high school levels in a country of nearly 60 million people, according to the Ministry of Education figures released last year. It means the government must spend a certain amount for each student at the basic education and higher levels while each teacher is handling 32 students on average. A state school accommodates 200 students on average. Numerically, the ratios are not bad. But the question is the quality of education or in other words the ability, opportunity and motivation of those involved in the industry. There have been repeated complaints about the quality of education and the quality of teachers which stands out as an alarming issue to look into. In other words, we need a change in that particular area if we really are to implement president U Thein Seins stated vision of a knowledge-based

society. The country representative of the United Nations Children Fund (UNICEF), Ramesh Shrestha, mentioned a wide gap in transition from primary to secondary to higher education as one of the basic issues that need to be addressed urgently. Myanmar needs to prepare a human resources development plan that realistically complements the president U Thein Seins knowledge-based society, said Mr Shrestha in an article published last month. Basic infrastructure exists for primary education but massive investment is needed to improve the quality of secondary and tertiary education, he said, adding that similar investment will be needed in the health sector. To develop and maintain democratic governance a strong and skilled middle class will be required, and it can only be built through highquality education, he said in the article contributed to the Myanmar Times.

THE gap in the quality of education between urban and rural areas remains a worry, according to parents. These days the sound of a whole class of students reading out loud, carried across the neighbourhood, is hardly heard compared to a decade ago. However, most parents agree that the style of their childrens learning in schools is still based on formulaic rote learning. There is a lot of homework for the kids. Because rote learning is forced, children are not really thinking, which makes them weaker, Ma Zin Mar, a mother of a daughter in middle school in Pyinmana who moved from yangon, said to The Myanmar Times. Much of this rests on the differences in the qualifications of teachers between rural and urban areas. She said it was important to raise the skills level of teachers working outside of yangon. Just as the meaning of Myanmar literature is scarcely explained in depth, the teachers themselves cannot pronounce English words properly. Simply hammering everything into the head of the child should be stopped, Ma Zin Mar said. The emphasis on repetitive learning determining what sort of studies are taught is also criticized by parents. Homework is given for improving handwriting. Even if parents push them to do homework, this would fare badly because they lose their enthusiasm when doing it, Daw Thin Thin, mother of a second grader from Pyinmana, said. They are given frequent but ineffective weekly tests. They

By Su Hlaing Htun
have to take these tests after being given what they need to answer. I dont think it helps for real qualifications. This leads to only a handful of students who understand the textbooks thoroughly and are classed for further outstanding students tests. A 45-year old mother Daw Thandar said the really qualified students are those who are already chosen as outstanding students. The majority of children end up being unconcerned about the tests at all. Only the students who get a good position work harder for a better one. There is no concern about what is asked in the exam as most of the students are made to sit down and write out the answer they learn by heart, Daw Thandar said. Due to this way of teaching, with the lessons simply about rote learning and the exams simply repeating the lesson, students make less effort. There is almost no intention to think or imagine, and instead just learn the given lesson by heart, she said. When many parents are already struggling to provide their children with the opportunity to study and improve their life, the quality of teaching becomes a further barrier. Ma Lai was forced to pay her childrens school expenses by borrowing money with interest due to her lowly income. I am always worried about the school expenses when the school is set to reopen. As I see other parents enrol their children in school, I

envy them. I am in a situation where I must try hard to earn money to feed my family. My relatives support my daughter and sons schooling and even some neighbours help out a little. But now I can send only the two younger siblings to school. Ma Lai has four children. I try to make sure our children do not lead the same life as I do. My children do not misbehave at school. But it is frustrating that I am not in the position to support them adequately. I really want them to have good education." Despite the many problems, teachers say levels are getting better. Daw Soe Soe, a primary school teacher from Thit Seint Pin village near Pyinama, said her students are improving. We cannot compare with the children from schools in towns. The children there have better knowledge experience. But the way teachers teach is also important. To this end, the government provides two refresher courses each year focusing on alternative teaching methods where the children are seen as the priority. But beyond the skill levels of teachers, Daw Soe Soe said the teachers at her primary school have to teach all subjects due to the lack of teachers. The problems would end if there were enough teachers in the village schools like ours. However, she said it was encouraging that parents realise the need for their children to have good education to not miss out on at least tenth standard level of education. Parents are really encouraging their children, she said.
Translated by Thit Lwin

Performance is a multiplication of ability, motivation and opportunity

By Phyo Wai Kyaw
HE performance and quality of teachers in state schools depends not only on their commitment and the incentives they receive but also their career development aims, according to educational analysts. Teachers shouldnt be content with their current educational achievements such as bachelor degrees in either science or education or master degrees in the same subjects, said Dr Than Htaik Soe, the principal of No 26 Basic Education High School in Mandalay, which has nearly 4000 students. They should have in mind the need to upgrade their educational standard at all times. They should be aiming high. But there must be incentives for them. Only then the education sector will improve, he said. While teachers are required to have the willingness and ability to learn more, there should be opportunities for them to continue to learn so that teaching quality will improve. More important is to provide incentives depending on their improvement in their studies, he said. There should be different salaries and positions commensurate with their qualifications, Dr Than Htaik Soe said. The government has initiated some refresher or crash courses and capacity building training programs for teachers in the last few years.In the refresher courses, faculties from universities skilled in relevant subjects such as chemistry, physics, mathematics and biology are giving training to teachers from state schools. A course takes one month, and has a notable effect on teaching quality and performance of the teachers, say teachers in Mandalay.

Military method of success

By Zon Pann Pwint

Children participate in a closing ceremony of a summer course at Horizon International school in Mandalay earlier this year. Phyo Wai Kyaw

But, the number of such training courses are few and far between. The education system is still reliant on the initial training of teachers at teacher training colleges. As some people decide to pursue a teaching a career

private tuition teachers. There is little research done on students themselves; which line of profession students can choose when they pass their exams; how many students deviate from the education route; and do they study the

English proficiency and they lay the onus on teachers if the students are poor in English. The method of teaching in Myanmar isnt wrong but there are not many chances to use the language. We need to create more environments

[Teachers] should have in mind the need to upgrade their educational standard at all times. They should be aiming high. But there must be incentives for them.
even after graduating with different degrees, prospective teachers are required to undertake basic education level training at the teacher training colleges and then go on to work as primary teachers, ensuring they come into the education sector with a diploma in teaching. However, a weak point in the Myanmar education system is an understanding of student focus, according to several subjects they are really interested in. It was pointed out that students could be outstanding if given the chance to study the subject they like. Moreover, English proficiency is a key quality in education, according to education experts. The ability to use English in Myanmar and Thailand is not so different. Thailand ranks teachers by testing their where we can interact more in the English language. In other words, we need to speak more and interact more with native speakers, said Dr Than Htaik Soe. For example, in India which is a lot much more populated than Myanmar and much poorer in some areas, the proficiency in English and standard of education is better than Myanmar. There are schools in every corner of

every ward in India that links with each other to inform about opportunities to gain better language skills. The schools also inform each other how much they can upgrade their living standard if their English is better, the headmaster said. This is exemplified in the success of the Indian IT sector for Western countries due to the good command of English. With more private schools in Myanmar, the challenge for teachers and students in public schools may increase, say several teachers. Social class may end up being divided between two extremes, with moneyed classes who can spend more on education on one side, and poorer classes who cant even afford to provide their children with basic education on the other, said U Kyaw Thura, a private school teacher in Mandalay.
Translated by Thiri Min Htun

yOUNG people should practice a spirit of assisting, self-discipline and goodwill to achieve success, according to U Chit Naing, author of a series of self help books for the young. The method is based on his experience as a young soldier posted in Shan State in a battalion in need of some discipline. When I was 22, I was posted to a light infantry battalion in Lashio. At the time I was senior officer and the battalion commander was Abel [later becoming Minister for National Planning Economic Development Brigadier General (retired) David Abel], he said. When they didnt follow procedure, the soldiers were hated by the villagers who were afraid of the soldiers. When Abel arrived to lead the battalion, he trained the soldiers to follow a spirit of assisting others, to be self-disciplined and to have goodwill, he said. When the rain was heavy in the village and the river was flooded, teachers were unable to come to schools so we taught the children. you could see there was a close bond between the soldiers and villagers after we assisted them, he said. The soldiers no longer stole hens and pigs. We practiced what Abel trained. The battalion succeeded in organising locals. Later our battalion received a reputation for high standards of discipline, he said. Thats why I train young people to practice these things, he said.

Changing attitudes to education

By Cherry Thein

M S

y daughter will attend medical university this year, U Win Htay, a farmer from Hlaing Tharyar township said. uch a chance is rare for someone coming from a poor background in Myanmar. Given the high scores required, as well as the costs of attending university, most are dissuaded from going. Although the fees for entering university prohibits many, parents will often struggle to send their children for the potential it has, as well as the pride it bestows. Education is the light out of poverty. Although I will have to struggle to pay for her tuition fees and other costs, I am proud of her. I am just a farmer and dont have an education. That lack of education makes my life more difficult, U Win Htay said. I dont wish her to have the same poverty and ignorance I had. I want her to become a doctor not just a daughter of a farmer, he said. U Win Htay knows nothing besides farming, being the son of a long line of farmers. He inherited expansive farmland but in the last decade has seen much of it requisitioned for road construction projects without receiving compensation. Making ends meet from his reduced livelihood, and paying for two daughters to attend middle school and now his third aspiring to university, is a constant struggle for U Win Htay. What should I do, I have no idea. It seems life is bittersweet for me. I am so happy when I see my hard-working daughters, but so indignant when my land is taken away, he said.

Children of Yankin State High School (1) smile at the camera. The Myanmar Times

Attaining an education at all levels is a problem for children of lower income families. Officially the government provides free primary education to ensure all children receive a basic education. While the official cost for attending middle and high school is about 10,000 a year but this varies between schools as the reputation all too often determines the cost of a child attending. Daw Hla Than Oo, a teacher at a high school in Kamaryut township said that most welloff parents exaggerate how many necessities are needed for schooling while others struggle to provide their child with a school lunch. The Ministry of Education officially recommends not asking for any extra fees from parents but many find they have to pay additional fees depending on the reputation of the school, especially in yangon, she said. With the cost of attending a popular school making such an option unaffordable for most, there are cheaper options and also charitable institutions such as monastic schools that provide education services. However, the problem extends beyond financial concerns, with a lack of awareness

of the benefits of education prevalent among families who have themselves received little education. Some schools are too expensive to attend and some schools are irresponsible but there are many children who do not attend school because their parents are unable to appreciate the value in education, Daw Hla Than Oo said. As the cost of education is not the sole issue, the value of getting an education should be promoted among poor families, said Daw Theingi Myint, a private teacher from Sanchaung township. It is harder for poor children to get an education, or finish school. And then such a lack of education makes it hard to improve their opportunities to get a job. It is cause and effect and becomes a vicious circle, she said. But attitudes towards education can all too easily cross a fine line and become detrimental and unconstructive when attempting to understand the result of poverty on lack of education. It is essential to get out from the cycle of ignorance. We need to provide more awareness of the value of education by targeting the grass-

roots level. It is not the point that education is out of their reach but they themselves dismiss education because they prefer an easy life. What a pity, they are content in their muddy cottages as though it was paradise, she said. If the government would officially offer part-time job opportunities for those children who are not interested in formal education, or work for a meagre income at a tea shop or home industries, it would be helpful in preventing or protecting street kids from abuse, she said. A news editor from a local journal, Daw May Win Mon, said she felt it was sad that children beg or do cheap labouring rather than attend school. Not all struggling children

or parents desire an education, they have different needs. They become used to an easygoing-life, with no will to gain knowledge or an education. It is enough to get a daily meal by begging or selling water, Daw May Win Mon said. A potential improvement would be for the Ministry of Education to cooperate with the Ministry of Social Welfare, Relief and Resettlement to solve the wider problems stymieing children from lower income families to get an education, said Daw May Win Mon. However, talking with families and children unable to attend school, the problem is not as simple as a lack of awareness of the value of education. Too often the awareness is there but the lack of support means priorities lie elsewhere. Daw Cho Cho Mar, 35, living in Insein township, earns her living as a housemaid and washing clothes from house to house. Her husband works as a trishaw driver and cannot rely on him financially as he is too old to work hard. It is my fate. I remarried because I thought I could rely on him. I have two children at present. She has a ten-yearold boy and a one-year-old girl. Before I dreamt of my son getting an education but as my income is not enough, and with my husband no longer healthy, I cant pay for his schooling, she said. Her son, Mg Than Phyo

Aung, reached grade four but decided not to go to school when he could no longer pay for all the additional costs. I couldnt counsel him because I have so many things to do. For us, the priority is not education but to get a daily meal, Daw Cho Cho Mar said. She said she and her son decided to go to Dawei in Thanintaryi region to work for a trading business, leaving her daughter and husband with well-meaning neighbours. Mg Aye Chan, 12, from South Dagon township earns money on the street by singing songs and playing bamboo pipes. He has seven siblings. His mother earns about K3000 to K5000 a day but her income is barely enough to feed seven hungry mouths. All her children have to work depending on their strength, of course it also depends on their job luck. He said he is begging for charity but is working to help his family. He has a brother taking his matriculation exams, sisters attending grade eight and seven and another brother in grade one. Mg Aye Chan said that he aims to attend grade-four this year, and he works so that he can do that. I sing only in the holidays with my younger brother. I am not afraid because there are many children like us. My grandmother asked me to earn money so we can help the family, Mg Aye Chan said.

Are we stressing Vocational training out our kids? courses grow in Mandalay
Stressed out, over-scheduled, hurried: These words are often used to describe children these days.
By Marian Wilde , GreatSchools Staff
Stanford School of Medicine indicates that the number of children, ages 7-17, treated for depression more than doubled between 1995 and 2001. Whats causing the stress? From kindergarten through high school, the causes of childhood stress are numerous. One of the most commonly cited is standardizedtest stress, which starts in first-grade in many states. High-stakes tests, such as the TAKS in Texas and the FCAT in Florida, are particularly stressful, for students and teachers alike. Students in certain grades must pass these tests to advance to the next grade. In Florida, children as young as 8 years old face the prospect of being held back if they fail the test. Whether you are for them or against them, highstakes test create considerable stress. And while experts are debating whether homework loads are in fact heavier now than in the past, many agree that it is being assigned at an earlier age than before. Another source of schoolrelated stress occurs in high school where more students are taking more rigorous classes, such as Advanced Placement (AP) classes offered by the College Board. In the past 25 years, there has been explosive growth in the number of students taking AP classes, with onequarter of all high-school graduates having taken at least one in 2004. In addition, more high-school students are now taking the PSAT twice and the SAT and ACT at least once, if not multiple times.

RE we unwittingly lowering the quality of life for those we mean to nurture? Are we degrading childhood by demanding ever more of our children? Many parents worry about these questions, as students report that theyre feeling stressed out. I have been really stressed because of the homework that is being assigned, a middleschool student from Utah recently wrote in an email to GreatSchools. In pre-algebra, we get at least three pages of homework. In English, we get at least one page and a reading assignment, at least 30-50 pages in our books. Then there is science, five-six pages are assigned all days except Friday. In Utah studies, we get one page with the option of extra credit, which is another page. In French, we have to do two to three pages of verbs in the French dictionaries. In Spanish, 80 flashcards are assigned two days before the test. As you can see, I dont take any extra activities because I dont have time! Stress on the rise Everyone has their own way of measuring stress, depression being one measure, says Denise Clark Pope, author of Doing School How We Are Creating a Generation of Stressed-Out, Materialistic, and Miseducated Students. But the consensus is that there are more stressed-out kids. One recent study from the

By Khin Su Wai
ESPITE being one of the countrys central business regions, Mandalay is not seeing much uptake on long term academic style vocational and career training courses as students favour quick fix crash courses, according to owners of training schools. Computer and vocational training courses have become popular among young people in Mandalay rather than more academic courses such as business management and human resources management. Its only crowded in courses that support getting a job in the short-term. So we have to run jade or diamond cutting and appraisal short-term training courses at two-week intervals, said U Zaw Min Tun who founded Tip Top education agency in 1997. Most teaching centres in Mandalay run computer and accounting courses as well as special day classes. Early child care and development classes are also regularly full, whereas academic based courses usually have a smaller number of trainees, he said. "Many young people attend only career courses because they want to get a job as soon as their course ends, said U Zaw Min Tun. I operate marketing courses once every three months but there are only a small number of students. Similarly, journalism and capacity building courses are usually empty. Capacity building is generally taught within NGOs but the number of NGOs in this area is small, U Zaw Min Tun said. I also plan to train civic education without any fee because I want to educate the younger generation to know the rights and duties of every citizen, he said. U Zaw Min Tun runs training courses in both Mandalay and yangon and said there are different attitudes to the teaching methods between the cities.

Signs of distress in a student

In young children: Thumb sucking Hair twirling Difficulty leaving parents In children of all ages: Changes in eating habits Changes in sleeping habits Feelings of sadness on a daily basis for more than two weeks at a time Signs of self-mutilation, such as wearing long sleeves all the time Talk of suicide, even in a joking way Stomachaches Trouble breathing Headaches Insomnia Reluctance to go to school or to scheduled activities Persistent fatigue Trouble completing homework on a regular basis Behavioral changes, such as mood swings or acting out Trouble concentrating Withdrawal Lying Defying authority Nightmares In adolescents: Marijuana, alcohol or prescription drug use

A representative of a private education instituion explains about the courses to a Myanmar parent in Yangon . The Myanmar Times

www.greatschools.org

I run entrepreneurial courses once every two months there [yangon] and its normally attended by an adequate number of students. But there has been no interest from students in Mandalay so there is rarely one class every six months there, he said. We noticed a weak point that shows many economists do not become businessmen while businessmen are weak in theoretical economic knowledge. Business management courses taught in Mandalay are not in harmony with practical methods. The teaching methods seem to be of a higher standard [in longer term courses, said U Zaw Min Tun. A young person will become either an employee or employer who runs his own business. Thats why I did this course but there are no students in the class, he said. However, other analysts say there will be more academic training courses as Mandalay opens up allowing many more business opportunities to come. A decisive factor for growth in academic courses in Mandalay will rest on the increase in business opportunities once the Kyaun-phyu Port Special Economic Zone in Rakhine State is completed, opening an economic corridor to China. A lecturer of the privateowned Chindwin College in Mandalay, U Khin Maung Soe said like language centres,

private business schools are now becoming a popular and lucrative market. The best example to show that trend is not too far away is Chindwin College Myanmar recently adding a business school to its services at both its Mandalay and yangon campuses, said U Khin Maung Soe, who is also doing an MBA. Myanmar is opening up to the outside world for the integration of the regional market as well as the global market. Therefore, there will be more demand for people with good business and management knowledge, he said to The Myanmar Times in an email. Cost also remains a factor for students in deciding whether to choose longer term business courses. Personally, Id like to do a Master of Business Administration here. But I cant afford to do that as it would be expensive, said Ma Zar Chi Lin, a 34-year old woman from Mandalay. However, UNDP consultant, Dr Aung Htun Thet, said a Myanmar MBA is relatively cheap compared to others in the region. The government is providing subsidies as it is the first course of its kind to come to Mandalay. To pursue an MBA is really challenging and difficult. My professor says success comes with pain but that pain is also enjoyable when you succeed.
Translated by Zar Zar Soe

Back to School Special Feature

Editors: Writers: Myo Lwin, Ben White Zon Pan Pwint, Su Hlaing Htun, Khin Su Wai, Cherry Thein, Phyo Wai Kyaw, Shwe Yi Saw Myint, Design and DTP: Photographers: Tin Zaw Htway, Khin Zaw, Kaung Htet, Ko Taik, Lwin Maung Maung Contact: myolwin@myanmartimes.com.mm

secret Five key skills for academic success Sleep: Thesuccessweapon for school
Its never too early or too late to help your child develop the skills for academic success. Learn how to build these Lack of sleep is a national epidemic for todays children, and the consequences are serious. skills and stay on track all year long.

OST children say they want to do well in school, yet many still fail to complete the level of work necessary to succeed academically. The reason is often motivation. Tapping into your childs interests is a great way to get him geared to do well in school. It takes a combination of skills organization, time management, prioritization, concentration and motivation to achieve academic success. Here are some tips to help get your child on the right track. Talk to your child. To find out which of these skills your child has and which he can develop further, start a simple conversation that focuses on his goals. Identify problem areas. Start here to help your child identify which of the five skill areas are trouble spots. 1. Organization Whether its keeping track of research materials or remembering to bring home a lunch box, children need to be organized to succeed in school. Tips to help your child get organized: Make a checklist of things your child needs to bring to and from school every day. Put a copy by the door at home and one in his backpack. Try to check with him each day to see if he remembers the items on the list. Find out how your child keeps track of his homework and how he organizes his notebooks. Then work together to develop a system he will want to use. Shop with your child for tools that will help him stay organized, such as binders, folders or an assignment book.

2. Time Management Learning to schedule enough time to complete an assignment may be difficult for your student. Even when students have a week to do a project, many wont start until the night before its due. Tips to help your child manage time: Track assignments on a monthly calendar. Work backward from the due date of larger assignments and break them into nightly tasks. Help your child record how much time she spends on homework each week so she can figure out how to divide this time into manageable chunks. Together, designate a time for nightly homework and help your child stick to this schedule. 3. Prioritization Sometimes children fall behind in school and fail to hand in assignments because they simply dont know where to begin. Prioritizing tasks is a skill your child will need throughout life, so its never too soon to get started. Tips to help your child prioritize: Ask your child to write down all the things he needs to do, including non-school-related activities. Ask him to label each task from 1 to 3, with 1 being most important. Ask about each task, so that you understand your childs priorities. If he labels all his social activities as 1, then you know where his attention is focused. Help your child change some of the labels to better prioritize for academic success. Then suggest he rewrite the list so all the 1s are at the top. Check in frequently to see how the list is evolving and

IS your child having behavior problems and trouble in school? Making sure she gets enough sleep may be the solution. Sleep deprivation can affect cognitive skills and academic achievement. A continuing lack of sleep is linked to serious health problems including diabetes, obesity, heart disease, depression and a shortened life span. Why arent kids getting enough sleep? Children ages five to 12 need 10 to 11 hours of sleep, according to the National Sleep Foundation. yet studies show that most kids are getting about an hour less sleep each night than they did 30 years ago. Why? Extracurricular activities, such as sports teams and arts programs, may schedule events at night. Working parents who get home late may feel guilty and want to spend time with their children in the evening. Too much homework and the many distractions of television, video games and computers all play a role. In addition, all the pressures and stresses of todays frenetic lifestyles may make it difficult for kids to calm down so they can fall asleep. Catching up on sleep is not a good option Parents may think theyll let their children catch up on sleep on the weekend. But sleep experts at the Mayo Clinic advice against this practice as irregular sleep schedules can affect the biological clock, hurt the quality of sleep and cause greater irritability. Children who sleep in on the weekend may have an even harder time getting up for school on Monday morning, according to the American Academy of Sleep Medicine. Its better, the experts say, to keep similar schedules during the week and on the weekends. Make sleep a priority Mary Sheedy Kurcinka, teacher, parent educator and author of Sleepless in America, says parents can play a key role by placing a high value on their childrens sleep. She says the first step for parents is to make sleep a priority. Scientific research links heart disease, type 2 diabetes and obesity with lack of sleep. Theres also a study out of the University of Michigan, adds Kurcinka, that shows that 20 to 25 per cent of kids with ADHD have sleep disorders. Sleep is not a luxury. This is about health and well being. Some parents may think that their child isnt sleeping much because he just doesnt need as much sleep as other children. But Kurcinka doesnt buy that argument. She says, When I hear a parent say, He is a kid who doesnt need sleep, generally this means he is a kid who cant sleep. He needs help learning to calm himself to get to sleep. If I see a child who has behavior problems, cant focus or pay attention, a child whos getting sick a lot, craving carbohydrates, Ill want to look at how much sleep hes getting. Maybe the child is just exhausted.
-GreatSchools

Students from Yankin State High School No 1 in Yangon Lwin Maung Maung

how your child is prioritizing new tasks. 4. Concentration Whether your child is practicing her second-grade spelling words or studying for a trigonometry test, its important that she works on schoolwork in an area with limited distractions and interruptions. Tips to help your child concentrate: Turn off access to email and games when your child works on the computer. Declare the phone and TV offlimits during homework time. Find space that fits the assignment. . Help your child concentrate during homework time by separating her from her siblings. 5. Motivation Most children say they want to do well in school, yet many still fail to complete the level of work necessary to succeed academically. The reason is often motivation.

Tips to help motivate : Link school lessons to your childs life. If hes learning percentages, ask him to figure out the price of a discounted item next time you shop. Link your childs interests to academics. If hes passionate about music, give him books about musicians and show how music and foreign languages are connected. Give your child control and choices. With guidance, let him determine his study hours, organizing system or school project topics. Encourage your child to share his expertise. Regularly ask him about what hes learning in school. Congratulate your child, encourage him and celebrate all his successes. Often what holds children back from trying is the fear of failure or the memory of a time they didnt do well. you can help break this cycle by celebrating your childs successes.
-GreatSchools