2 THE MYANMAR TIMES MARCH 10 - 16, 2014

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THE INSIDER: The local lowdown & best of the web
it would be gauche to suggest consultants with demonstrated expertise in the matter: Indonesia. It would seem the gay couple whose recent union gave way to signicant controversy can breathe a sigh of relief, with Eleven reporting that the police now say they have no intention of investigating or pressing charges. The Voice, 7 Day and Democracy Today all ran with the line that the March 2 ceremony had stirred reactions from Buddhist monks, with online media outlets calling the event illegal and immoral. Had the authorities wanted to rain on their parade, however, section 377 of the Penal Code would have been the relevant legislation under which charges could have been pursued. This section, referred to in the Code as Unnatural Offences (sodomy is referred to euphemistically in Myanmar language as going against nature) reads thus: Whoever voluntarily has carnal intercourse against the order of nature with any man, woman or animal shall be punished with transportation for life, or with imprisonment of either description for a term which may extend to ten years, and shall also be liable to ne. The law, a relic from British colonial times, reportedly presents signicant problems in terms of gathering evidence and is generally only invoked when a party to the act in question makes a complaint about it. It is not unheard of for a wife to lodge a complaint against her husband if he repeatedly tries to convince her of the merits of going against nature. Most 377-category offences are thrown out of court.

online editor Kayleigh Long | kayleighelong@gmail.com

A commission has been formed to draft two controversial new bills focused on conversion and balancing the increasing population according to The New Light of Myanmar which in its roundabout way refers to the mildly alarming push to, in the very least, signicantly complicate the process for those wishing to secure an interfaith marriage. With the proposed bills for what is being called the Patriotic Act having now received the endorsement of President U Thein Sein, the movement has gained some serious traction since its inception as a campaign spearheaded by monks. Front and centre of the proselytising movement is course, U Wirathu, whose crack teams tireless work on the issue saw over 2 million signatures collected a logistical feat that surely must have earned the admiration of those charged with wrangling data collection operations for the impending census. Among the tasks assigned to the commission is to Seek advice from persons and organizations who are experienced in relevant subjects. One cant help but wonder if

Gotta have faith

Burmese Gays

A feature on traditional boxing from post-war British publication Burma To-Day

Courtesy of Pansodan Gallery

offered readers a tantalising glimpse of what they could expect to see inside: Bullock carts still useful for transporting goods between villages. It transpires that bullock carts are, indeed, still useful for transporting goods and are preferred over motorized vehicles by the sample group of villagers in Meiktila apparently quizzed on the matter. The reasons listed were twofold. The operating costs on an ox cart are lower than that of a car or motorbike. They are also better suited to the roads in rural areas or lack thereof.

Once was Burma...

Every day Im buffering

1970s socialist propaganda magazine Forward. Date unknown.

Deputy Information Minister and prolic Facebook user U Ye Htut posted a YouTube video on his ofcial page last week, accompanied by a somewhat cryptic statement: Something exciting is happening in Myanmar. Whether or not this is true remains to be seen, but the video entitled

HAPPY (We are from Myanmar) appears to be a viral stunt with a local twist, piggybacking on a new single from US artist Pharrell. I say appears to be, because its still buffering and I havent actually watched it yet. The irony of U Ye Htut posting videos as though people would allocate precious bandwidth and time to watching them is rarely lost on his followers, who are often quick to point it out. The length of the video is 3:13 ... it takes 19 minutes to view until the end for me. I am using MPT GSM phone internet. About 16 minutes is wasted because of MPT, commented one Facebook user.

Than Shwe 3D

and is apparently set to enter talks with Oscar-winning director Steven Soderbergh with a view to collaborating. The ever-cheeky Zarganar told DVB that nding an actor to take on the role of the former dictator shouldnt be too much of an ask as many people in Burma, perhaps unfortunately, bear his likeness. The script for the project is reportedly yet to be eshed out, but one local cinephile said he hopes it will be presented in ashback format, la The Iron Lady starring Meryl Streep as Margaret Thatcher: long ashbacks interspersed with cut-tos of Than Shwe in his twilight years, shufing around the tunnels of his Nay Pyi Taw bunker. A pointer on the front page of The New Light of Myanmar on March 8

News in brief: Telenor billboard on Sule Pagoda Road a contender for worlds longest Next week: Man laments running
out of business cards at Strand happy hour, describes it as a disaster

Satirist Zarganar is looking to take on the role of assistant director in an upcoming Than Shwe biopic,

Headline of the week