A Thousand Protesters in Myanmar Demand Court Drop Charges on Farmers

Around 1,000 farmers demonstrated in Myanmar’s northern Sagaing region Wednesday demanding that the authorities drop charges against comrades who had held protests calling for the return of land confiscated by the previous military junta.

Farmers in Kantbalu township held posters and shouted slogans calling on the government to drop charges against more than 300 who had also protested in May against the land grab, including 60 who had been convicted of trespassing on the disputed property.

The junta had seized their land covering 3,500 acres (1,416 hectares) and handed it to sugar companies in the 1990s, according to the protesters. 

Protest leader Tin Tun Naing said they wanted the Sagaing Regional Court to overturn last month’s sentencing by a lower court of about 60 farmers to between three months and three years in prison for the May protest, in which they defiantly tilled land used by the sugar companies.

“We are protesting because farmers were detained and sentenced unfairly, as there is no rule of law for us,” he told RFA’s Myanmar Service.

Tin Tun Naing said that the group, which had obtained official permission to hold Wednesday’s gathering, “will continue our protest at the district and regional level.”

The Irrawaddy online journal quoted protester Aung Khaing, among those facing charges, as saying that the farmers had complained to the Kantbalu District Court about the sentencing of their comrades, but that their grievances went unheard.

“We just want justice, our lands back and the release of our friends,” he said.

The farmers had expected to gather thousands of people for Wednesday’s protest, which involved a march to the township government office, but heavy rains prevented many from attending, local reports said.

Roughly 240 other farmers are awaiting their verdicts in the trial over the May protest in coming weeks and many could face imprisonment, according to the Irrawaddy.

The Kantbalu farmers have been trying to reclaim their land for several years and have filed several complaints with authorities.

Land seizures by the army were widespread during the military junta rule stretching five decades until 2011.

After President Thein Sein’s quasi-civilian government took power following elections and began enacting democratic reforms, the Ministry of Defense announced it would return confiscated lands to farm communities across the country.

After the announcement, the Irrawaddy said, around 100 farmers in Kantbalu were told by local authorities that they would receive several acres of land each.

However, the companies which leased the land has reportedly refused to vacate their sugar plantations and only a few farmers received back some land, sparking the May protest.

Support for farmers

On Wednesday, Nyi Pu, a central committee member of opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi’s National League for Democracy (NLD) party, called on the authorities to return the land to the Kantbalu farmers.

“They are already poor and their lives are getting worse … [Before the current administration] they couldn’t do anything to get it back as they lacked laws to protect them under the former military government,” he told RFA.

Nyi Pu said that the farmers were now pushing for the land they had been promised would be returned to them and exercising their right to protest under the new freedoms afforded by Thein Sein’s administration.

“They were happy because they were told that their lands would be returned to them but, actually, [little land was returned] and more farmers were … charged. That’s why they are protesting,” he said.

“In my opinion, their lands should be returned to them as soon as possible.”

Su Su Nway, an activist championing the cause of the farmers, said that while the government and sugar companies said that they had given land back to the residents after the decree by the Ministry of Defense, “it was only about one-third of what was confiscated.”

“[Also], when the farmers reported the confiscation, the authorities never took action against the offenders,” she said.

“That’s why the farmers’ anger is growing—it is as if the government is creating instability in the country.”

Local law

Aung Thein Lin, a lawmaker for the ruling Union Solidarity and Development Party (USDP) and a member of the parliamentary Farmland Investigation Commission—which was formed in 2012 to look into allegations of land grabbing—said disputes like the one in Kantbalu were caused by local authorities disregarding central laws.

“We have laws for these land problems and they could be resolved if the local level authorities approach them according to law,” he said.

“According to [the existing] land law, there is no right to lease these confiscated lands to others. If someone does it, it is breaking the law.”

Aung Thein Lin said that his commission had received thousands of complaints over land confiscation since it was formed two years ago and that the government had already resolved many of the cases.

“Some received compensation and others did not … We have to investigate each individual problem to decide whether the petitioner is right or not,” he said.

In December, the Hong Kong-based Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) accused Myanmar's military of grabbing land and hiding the seizures under a false veneer of legality, saying the actions cast doubt on the country’s commitment to political reform after decades under military rule.

Activists also say Myanmar is facing a scourge of land seizures by the government, private companies, and the well-connected as the former pariah state opens up to global foreign investment.

Some of the disputes involve residents displaced from their homes, while many involve farmers kicked off their fields. 

Chinese Police Open Fire at Tibetan Protest, Nearly A Dozen Wounded

Tibetans shouting slogans at the protest in Loshu township in Sershul county in Sichuan province's Kardze prefecture, Aug 12, 2014.

Photo courtesy of an RFA listener.

Chinese police opened fire to disperse hundreds of Tibetans protesting the detention of a respected village leader in Sichuan province, seriously wounding nearly a dozen people, exile sources said Wednesday, quoting local contacts.

Many Tibetans were also detained and beaten in the violent crackdown in Sershul (in Chinese, Shiqu) county in the Kardze (Ganzi) Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture on Tuesday, a day after police whisked away village leader Dema Wangdak from his home at midnight, the sources said.

Wangdak, 45, was detained after he complained to the authorities over the harassment of Tibetan women by senior Chinese officials at a cultural performance the local community was forced to host during their visit to the county, the source said.

“Hundreds gathered to call for Wangdak’s release because he is innocent, but the Chinese authorities sent in security forces to crack down on the protesters,” Demay Gyaltsen, a Tibetan living in exile in India, told RFA’s Tibetan Service.

“The security forces used tear gas and fired live ammunition indiscriminately to disperse the crowd during the protest in Loshu township,” he said, adding that about “10 Tibetans were seriously wounded” by the gunshots.

Communication links cut off

Dema Wangdak in an undated photo.

Among the injured were Wangdak’s son and brother, both of whom suffered two gunshot wounds each, said Gyaltsen, who heads an organization in India for Tibetans from Sershul’s neighboring Dege county.

After dispersing the protesters, he said, the authorities sought reinforcements and stepped up security late Tuesday, when many Tibetans were detained and communication lines were cut off.

“The village is now entirely surrounded by security forces and many of the adults in the village have gone to the hills to hide,” Jampa Youten, a monk in South India told RFA.

“Those who remained were the younger Tibetans and women, who have been interrogated and tortured by the Chinese security forces,” he said, also citing local contacts.

Illegal ceremony

A Tibetan protester showing gunshot wounds in his abdomen.

Youten said that when Wangdak, who is a leader of Shopa village, criticized the Chinese officials for harassing the Tibetan women, the authorities accused him of holding an illegal ceremony at the beginning of a local horse festival in which Tibetans burned incense and made prayer offerings.

“Wangdak voiced strong opposition to the treatment of the women, which led to a verbal altercation with the officials, who then accused the village leader of holding the ceremony and horse racing without the authorities’ permission,” Youten said.

“Under these circumstances, he was taken away secretly at midnight on Aug. 11.”

The Chinese authorities did not cite any reasons for Wangdak’s arrest.

“The Tibetans do not believe he was held for allowing horse racing, as this is a traditional activity and is a very normal thing,” said Tenpa, another exile source in India with contacts in the region.

“His arrest is arbitrary and he didn’t violate any pertinent laws,” he said.

'Speaking up for the poor'
Wangdak has a reputation for “standing up for the weak and speaking up for the poor as well as victims of harassment.”

Tibetans in Kardze prefecture are known for their strong sense of Tibetan identity and nationalism, and “the political climate in the region has been deeply oppressive,” the International Campaign for Tibet (ICT), an advocacy group, said in a report.

Last year, at least eight Tibetans were injured when Chinese police fired gunshots and used tear gas to disperse about 1,000 monks and nuns who had gathered in a restive county in Kardze in July to mark the birthday of Tibet's spiritual leader, the Dalai Lama.

Sporadic demonstrations challenging Chinese rule have continued in Tibetan-populated areas of China since widespread protests swept the region in 2008.

Some 131 Tibetans to date have set themselves ablaze in self-immolation protests to oppose Beijing’s rule and call for the return of exiled spiritual leader the Dalai Lama.

Sugar giant in spotlight for abuse

Thailand's human rights commissioner has issued damning preliminary findings against Asia’s largest sugar producer in relation to alleged abuses committed on large economic land concessions in Oddar Meanchey province.

A complaint was filed with the National Human Rights Commission of Thailand (NHRCT) by local NGOs on behalf of 602 villagers in Samrong and Chongkal districts in May last year.

They alleged that systematic rights abuses had occurred during the establishment of three concessions for industrial sugar cane production awarded to shell companies owned by Thai firm Mitr Phol Sugar Corporation in 2008. The concessions are also allegedly linked to ruling party senator Ly Yong Phat, though his company denied that claim yesterday.

At a press conference yesterday, NHRCT commissioner Dr Nirun Phitakwatchara said that after visiting three villages and one resettlement site earlier this week, he had found that local communities had “collapsed” as a result of the concessions.

“The concessions have resulted in the illegal confiscation of land from local people, destruction of their homes, killing of livestock, arson, looting of crops, beatings, threats, intimidation and arrest of villagers – which led to extreme food insecurity and impoverishment over a period of several years,” he said.

While Nirun had only communicated with Mitr Phol in writing, he would seek face-to-face meetings in Thailand, he said.

Mitr Phol could not be reached for comment yesterday but has previously said it had “followed a land concession process prescribed by law”.

Nirun added that he had only seen cassava crops, and not sugar cane, during his fact-finding mission.

Um Sokhon, a Samrong city councillor, confirmed that the companies had cleared sugar cane crops last year.

“The companies are under pressure from the international community, which stopped buying their sugar, so sugar cane was cut down last year to plant cassava instead,” he said.

Sokhon also said that the three concessionaires – which Mitr Phol has admitted are part of a joint venture – are under the control of Yong Phat.

But Seng Nhak, director of the senator’s Phnom Penh Sugar company, said he could “categorically deny that there is any link” between Yong Phat and Mitr Phol in Oddar Meanchey.

A separate complaint was lodged with the NHRCT in January 2010 by communities in Koh Kong province against Thai sugar company KSL.

The commission’s preliminary findings regarding that case in July 2012 also backed their allegations and Nirun said that a final report will be issued in October.

While Nirun admitted that the NHRCT “had no power” to sanction firms or take legal action, he said its reports on both cases would “tell the truth” and could be used to support litigation.

Two hundred Koh Kong families have filed a lawsuit in London against UK sugar firm Tate and Lyle, which they say owes them compensation because it purchased sugar from KSL.

10,000 m2 of timber burnt to ash at Quy Nhon Port

The fire broke out at 12pm on August 11.    The fire emanated from a pile of logs west of the port.    The heat contributed to the raging flames.     As the fire could not be put out immediately, the Quy Nhon Port Authority mobilized all forces to remove the wood and isolate the fire.   Tens of thousands of cubic meters of wood were burnt down. The outdoor wood dump at Quy Nhon port is about 1 hectare.        Many fire trucks and hundreds of officers and soldiers were sent to the scene to put out the fire. However, due to hot weather and high winds, the fire spread quickly.     The fire was extinguished after more than five hours.

Pictures: Saigon’s unique trees

After over 300 years of history, Ho Chi Minh City has preserved many ancient trees as the living proof of the primeval forest in the past.

Mr. Nguyen Van Sang, an official of the Saigon Zoo, who has been working here for over 50 years, said this gui tree is the only and last living representative of the primary forest. Saigon today used to be a large primeval forest, which was explored by the French. This gui tree is even older than the zoo.   The tree is considered by the zoo authorities as the "god tree". The tree is inviolable. "Many people think that it is a normal tree but this tree has great historical significance because it confirms the origin of the formation of Saigon. And for that reason, the tree is taken care in a very special way," Sang said. Thanks to the unique trees like this, the Saigon Zoo is among the world’s top 10 zoos and botanical gardens in the world where the oldest species of trees are preserved.   The banyan tree on Ly Tu Trong Road, in front of the HCM City City Museum, is probably the oldest tree in Saigon. The tree is over 300 years old and regarded as a green symbol of the city.   Now over several hundred years old, the tree remains green and healthy.   The tamarind tree in the Thu Thiem monastery is more than 170 years old, the same with the monastery.   At the foot of the tree is a stone stele noting the day this tree was planted - 1840.   However, this tree may be cut down for the expansion of the Thu Thiem urban area.   This is the largest tree in the Saigon Zoo and HCM City, with the number 1552. It is over 40 meters high, with a trunk diameter (1.3 meters from the root) of nearly four meters. In 1864 the zoo was founded, and the tree was planted the next year. It is over 150 years old.   Some people believe that if they touch this mahogany tree and pray, good luck will come. Any visitor to the Saigon Zoo takes photo with the tree. The fig tree in the Saigon Zoo is the oldest fig tree in Saigon. It is more than 160 years old.   Its trunk diameter is over 2m and it is over 10m tall.   The tree yields fruits in August-September.   This almond tree was brought from the Spratly Islands and planted on the bank of Nhieu Loc - Thi Nghe canal. It was planted by former President Nguyen Minh Triet and HCM City Party Secretary Le Thanh Hai 12 years ago. This tree is considered a symbol of an indomitable spirit.

Justin Bieber pleads guilty to careless driving, makes donation in DUI case

Justin Bieber made a $50,000 donation to a youth charity as part of a plea deal to settle a Miami drunken driving case Wednesday.

Bieber, 20, was not in court when a judge accepted his guilty plea to careless driving and resisting arrest in connection with the Miami Beach incident last January.

Prosecutors dropped the drunken driving charge in the agreement, which requires Bieber to get 12 hours of anger management counseling, attend a program that teaches about the impact of drunken driving on victims and make the large donation to the "Our Kids" organization.

The charity donation, although a prosecution demand, could not legally be required in the plea deal, a prosecutor noted during the hearing. As a result, the payment was made before the judge accepted the agreement.

Judge William Altfield delivered a lecture to Bieber, which he hoped his lawyers would relay to their client, asking him to become a better role model for his young fans.

"I hope that he realizes that his actions not only lead to consequences that affect him, but they lead to consequences that affect others who are looking up to him as a role model," the judge said.

Although Bieber has never been charged with a felony crime or a drug charge -- and he has never been in drug or alcohol rehab -- the judge compared the singer to actor Robert Downey Jr. when he was young.

Altfield said that Downey got into trouble "because of the drugs, because of the alcohol, because of the fame, because of all of the pressures that he had on a daily basis and look at what he's done with his life. He turned himself around."

"Here is someone who is young," Altfield said of Bieber. "His whole life is ahead of him and he just hopefully will get the message. He will grow up. He will use all of his talents positively for young persons."

The lead prosecutor, in a written statement to CNN, said "the strengths and weaknesses of the case" led both sides to agree to the plea deal.

"The ultimate purpose of the Miami Beach Police Department's initial traffic stop was to end some rash juvenile type conduct before a tragedy occurred," State Attorney Katherine Fernandez Rundle said. "The intervention and counseling parts of the plea should provide a pathway toward adult responsibility."

Miami Beach Police Chief Raymond Martinez said officers arrested Bieber January 23 after they saw him driving a yellow Lamborghini in a race against a red Ferrari in a residential area. The cars were speeding at about 55 to 60 mph in a 30 mph zone, he said.

Police said Bieber was argumentative during the arrest and failed a field sobriety test.

Bieber has had a number of run-ins with the law in recent months.

In July, a judge in Los Angeles ordered Bieber to pay $80,900 restitution for damaging his former neighbor's mansion by throwing eggs.

The pop star accepted a plea deal to settle a vandalism charge that puts him on probation for two years. The probation will be supervised until he completes 12 weekly anger management sessions, works five days of community labor and pays the restitution.

He was charged with assault in January after he was accused of hitting his limousine driver in Toronto.

In January, the Federal Aviation Administration looked into allegations that Bieber and other passengers on board a charter flight from Canada to New Jersey interfered with the flight crew, the agency said. In July, the FAA cleared them.

In February, police in Georgia searched Bieber's limousine and found small amounts of marijuana and drug paraphernalia. No charges were filed "due to the small amount," police said.