In Myanmar It’s Free Beer But No TIME

July 5, 2013
The Diplomat
  Luke Hunt


As Myanmar continues its reform process, the politics is throwing-up a bevy of contrasts – some welcomed and others not. One tour company is offering free beer while the government has banned the recent issue of TIME Magazine, featuring a cover of a Buddhist monk blamed for the recent carnage against Muslims in the country’s north.
The July 1 edition of Time carried the cover photo of Burmese monk Ashin Wirathu, a known fundamentalist and head of the 969 group, which has deployed the age-old technique of mixing rabid nationalistic and religious sentiment to stir up hatred against minorities.
He would like to see a ban on the marriage of people from different faiths and remains unapologetic for the waves of anti-Muslim violence that has to date claimed more than 200 lives in the country and forced another 150,000 people from their homes.
In a recent interview with the Global Post he even added: “Muslims are like the African carp. They breed quickly and they are very violent and they eat their own kind. Even though they are minorities here, we are suffering under the burden they bring us … because the Burmese people and the Buddhists are devoured every day, the national religion needs to be protected.”
Burmese President Thein Sein seemed sympathetic and is on the record as saying Wirathu is “a son of Lord Buddha” and his 969 movement is “just a symbol of peace”.
“The cover story of the magazine, depicting a few individuals who are acting contrary to most of Myanmar, is creating misconceptions about Buddhism, a religion practiced by the majority of Myanmar’s population,” the President’s office said in a statement.
This comes after proposals to impose a breeding limit on Muslims with a two-child policy.
Oddly, it was among those temples which Wirathu insists are in need of his protection from non-Buddhist influences that one tour company is offering free beer if it rains for more than 10 minutes. The gimmick is for Bagan, Mandalay and Inle Lake only and is part of a broader strategy to convince tourists to visit during the rainy season. Soft drinks are also available.
Edwin Briels, General Manager of Khiri Myanmar, the company behind the free beer offer, added: "Hotel prices are favorable, the scenery is green, the sightseeing, culture and markets are all vibrant during the summer … it's a great time to come."
Reconciling the great divides within Burmese society – whether it’s the Buddhists and Muslims or warring minorities like the Kachin or Shan – could take some time yet. But helping business to deal with these stark realities could take a bit longer.

Luke Hunt can be followed on Twitter at @lukeanthonyhunt.

ASEAN Needs To Do a Rethink on Burma’s Rohingya Issue

(Photo: Flickr)

May 10, 2013

The Diplomat

Luke Hunt

The Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN) has long been criticized as a toothless tiger for its inability to deal with controversial and often bloody issues. The Sabah Insurgency launched in March by Philippine-based mercenaries, the Cambodian-Thai dispute overterritorial rights at Preah Vihear and overlapping sovereign claims in the South China Seas are among the nastiest and most recent examples.

However, ethnic violence launched against Burma’s Rohingya population has repeatedly underscored the absence of a collective moral backbone among ASEAN’s 10 members and unraveled Burmese opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi’s lauded role in promoting democracy and human rights.

Long-time observers and non-governmental organizations have been loud in their condemnations and warnings about the potential for conflict between Muslim Rohingyas and militant Buddhists to spiral out of control, while Western governments continue to welcome Burmese efforts to “normalize”.

New York-based Human Rights Watch says the Burmese government is ethnic cleansing.

Those predictions of violence are now proving true. In Indonesia anti-terror police shot dead seven men and arrested 13 suspected of involvement in a plot to bomb the Burmese embassy in Jakarta. Two raids were carried out in the operation. The unit raided their hideout in a house on the outskirts of West Java’s capital city of Bandung, but suspects refused to surrender. The ensuing firefight lasted seven hours.

Five assembled pipe bombs were found in a backpack and the authorities said the attack was planned for last Friday.

The deadly confrontation came at the end of a difficult month for Indonesian authorities, who are dealing with a growing influx of Rohingyas fleeing violence in Burma. Their status as refugees can hardly be challenged given the well-documented threats they have lived under, which clearly violate UN laws.

At the same time, much of the world is beating an economic path to Southeast Asia in search of closer regional ties and free trade agreements. In so doing, Western countries would rather separate their business agendas from their moral obligations by leaving the distasteful business in Burma’s north to ASEAN.

While the escalating violence has displaced thousands, last month the European Union congratulated Burma on a “remarkable process of reform” as it lifted all of its sanctions except an arms embargo. The U.S. followed suit by sending Acting U.S. Trade Representative Demetrios Marantis to the country to formulate a trade framework.

In Indonesia, home of the world’s largest Muslim population, anger is rising over the Burmese government’s handling of the issue.

If ASEAN governments cannot defuse the tense situation, Rohingyas will be pushed towards the harder edges of the region and into the waiting arms of Islamic militants who still hold court in parts of Indonesia, Malaysia, southern Thailand and the southern Philippines. At that point it could become a regional issue with the potential to undermine ASEAN’s ambitious money–making agenda.

Luke Hunt is a South-east Asia correspondent for The Diplomat and has worked in journalism for more than 25 years. He has served as bureau chief for Agence France-Presse in Cambodia and in Afghanistan during the Taliban occupation where he was commended by the United Nations for the 'best and most insightful' coverage of the Afghan civil war.