KNU Loses Another Leader

CFI Mourns the Death of Karen Leader Saw Ba Thin Sein

Friday, 23 May 2008 18:25

SAULT STE. MARIE, MI – (CFI News) – Christian Freedom International (CFI), a humanitarian organization that assists persecuted Christians worldwide, expresses deep condolences over the death of Saw Ba Thin Sein, chairman of the Karen National Union (KNU) in Burma.

The KNU, an ethnic rebel group that has been fighting for the Karen’s autonomy in Burma since 1948, lost its leader in the early morning hours of Thursday, May 22, 2008, in the Pa-an District of southern Karen State. Saw Ba Thin Sein, who joined the KNU in 1949 and became chairman in 2000, suffered from diabetes, asthma, and heart disease. He was 82 years old.

Throughout the chairman’s service, he stressed the need for unity among the Karen people, particularly after the division that led to the formation of the Democratic Karen Buddhist Army, a KNU-breakaway group that ultimately aligned itself with the ruling military junta. Although he did not live to see the Karen’s liberation, he will be remembered for his brave leadership and unwavering dedication to the Karen’s 50-year-old struggle for independence. “[He] was a friend to me for the past ten years…he will be missed,” says CFI president Jim Jacobson, who has personally delivered relief aid to persecuted Karen Christians in Burma since 1998.

The loss is also a hard-hitting one for thousands of Karen people in Burma, whose ongoing struggle for survival continues in the recent aftermath of Cyclone Nargis, and the junta’s denial of desperately needed relief aid into Karen-populated areas. According to a statement issued from KNU headquarters on Thursday, Tamla Baw, vice-chairman of the KNU and former chief commander of the Karen National Liberation Army, will succeed Saw Ba Thin Sein.

The chairman is survived by his wife and four children.

Yet Another Reason to Love the Junta

Democratic Voice of Burma: Cyclone survivors forced to work and pay for aid
Sat 17 May 2008
Filed under: News, Inside Burma
Cyclone victims in Bogalay township, Irrawaddy division, have had to pay for relief supplies provided to them by the international community, according to a private donor who just visited the area.

The donor also told DVB that local authorities had switched international aid with products from Industry-1 before distribution.

“On 10 May, local authorities in Ngabyayma village in southern Bogalay forced cyclone survivors to buy petrol for 1000 kyat a gallon,” he said.

“Villagers also had to buy canvas sheets marked ‘UNICEF’,” he went on.

“According to an eye witness, authorities there switched international aid with products from Industry-1 and then distributed it to the people. I heard they even switched food.”

He added that people in a temporary camp in Bogalay had been asked or forced to cut trees and reconstruct roads destroyed by the cyclone.

“I have learnt from those who just came back from Bogalay and Bassein that people in Bogalay camp have been forced by the authorities to collect trash and cut trees,” the donor said.

“They are paid 2000 kyat a day and asked to survive themselves,” he said.

“Food distribution in the camp is insufficient. People in the camp are ordered to provide unpaid labour as well.”

The donor also said authorities in Bogalay township were reportedly stockpiling some of the relief supplies from the international community in warehouses, and would distribute the rest of the supplies only if people voted ‘Yes’ in the 24 May referendum.

Another Reason to Love the Junta

May 15, Democratic Voice of Burma
Storm victims arrested and driven out from shelters – Aye Nai

The police attacked and arrested a storm victim and a member of South
Dagon Township National League for Democracy (NLD) member today for
attempting to meet with UN officials in Rangoon.

At 4’oclock this evening, Daw Khin Win Kyi was arrested for attempting to
tell the sufferings of refugees to senior government officials, diplomats
and UN officials who were inspecting the living condition of storm victims
with 15 other women, a local resident told DVB.

“She wanted the senior officials to know the sufferings of the people and
wanted to tell them face to face and went to wait at the route of the
official entourage. She told officials at Ward – 17 to let her see the
senior officials, and the police told her that they could not let her in,
and a shouting match followed. Then, the police sergeant punched her,
dragged her away and handcuffed her.”

South Dagon suffered severe damage caused by Cyclone Nargis that hit
Rangoon on 2 May and homeless victims have been taking refuge in
monasteries and schools, but they were helped only by private donors and
there has been no proper help from the government. The authorities placed
refugees inside forty tents donated by the international community and
tried to deceive foreign officials this way.

There are thousands of refugees in Wards 55 and 26 of South Dagon
sheltering inside monasteries and schools. The authorities have been
trying to evict the refugees from these places in order to make way for
the referendum for pro-army constitution which is to be held on 24 May,
the resident said.

“Those who refuse to obey the order will be prosecuted by the Internal
Affairs Ministry, I was told.”

At nearby Daw Pon, refugees who were sheltering in a storehouse were also
driven out into the rain, a refugee said.

“We told them that we have nowhere to live. They said, you can go anywhere
you like. If you don’t, we will ask the army to remove you tonight, the
ward authority chairman Nay Lin Aung said to us.”

Burmese Government Denies Cyclone Relief Aid to Karen Christians

SAULT STE. MARIE, MI (CFI News) -- As thousands of cyclone survivors cling to life in Burma,disturbing new reports about the military’s distribution of relief aid are surfacing from the devastated region.

Residents in the Irawaddy Delta, which bore the brunt of the cyclone that tore through the country on May 3, 2008, are now claiming that the Burmese military is diverting aid from areas heavily populated by ethnic Karen villagers -- a claim consistent with the government’s longstanding history of discriminatory practices against the Karen, the largest and mostly Christian minority ethnic group in the country.

In certain rural areas, reports also reveal that the military’s setup of strategically placed checkpoints is not only intended to block the passage of journalists and foreign aid workers, but to prevent relief aid from reaching Karen villagers in desperate need of help. It is also believed that the forced relocation of storm-affected victims into consolidated population centers -- a practice typically enforced in Karen State -- is part of the junta’s effort to increase civilian control, rather than for the benefit of the country’s affected population.

Cyclone Nargis, one of the worst storms to hit Southeast Asia since 1991, has taken the lives of over 38,000 victims in Burma, with the death toll still climbing. Thousands of survivors continue to remain homeless, with little or no access to food, clean drinking water or medical supplies, nearly one week after the storm blew through the region at 120 miles per hour.

Despite widespread condemnation for its refusal to accept outside humanitarian assistance, Burma’s government continues to tighten access to the disaster zone, even as its citizens face the risk of severe famine and disease outbreaks of unprecedented proportions. The situation has caused U.N. chief Ban Ki-moon to call an emergency meeting with representatives from various countries, in an effort to address the escalating crisis and the rising urgency for worldwide intervention.

As pressure from the international community continues to rise against the junta,a Michigan-based humanitarian organization is already slipping aid past Burma’s restricted borders. Christian Freedom International (CFI), an organization that has established numerous humanitarian projects in Burma on behalf of the persecuted Karen, has begun wiring donated funds for relief aid into the country through its network of underground house churches.

CFI’s team of indigenous backpack medics, who typically assist sick and injured Karen refugees hiding in the mountains or jungles, have also been dispatched into remote areas to help treat ailing cyclone victims.

For more information about CFI’s relief effort in Burma, call 1-800-323-2273.

128K Dead

May 14, Associated Press
Red Cross: Burma cyclone death toll could go up to 128K

The Red Cross says the death toll in Burma's cyclone may be between 68,833
and 127,990.

The government revised its death toll Wednesday to 38,491 and the number
of missing to 27,838. But the International Federation of Red Cross and
Red Crescent Societies said the number of people killed is probably
between 68,833 and 127,990.

The Red Cross said it arrived at the figure by pooling and extrapolating
assessments by 22 other aid groups and organizations in 58 townships. The
total affected population is estimated to be between 1.6 million and 2.5
million, it said.

U.N. humanitarian chief John Holmes also reported the same number for the
affected population. He said the death toll could be "in the region of
100,000 or even more."

The report issued Wednesday noted that "official government casualty
figures remain significantly lower."

The government says 34,273 people were killed and 27,838 are missing in
the May 2-3 Cyclone Nargis.

The Red Cross figure is the highest reported so far. The U.N. has said the
number of dead could be between 60,000 and 100,000.

What a Bargin!

From the Irrawaddy

Death Toll Climbs

Death Toll Climbs into the Thousands for Cyclone Victims in Burma

Written by CFI President Jim Jacobson
Tuesday, 06 May 2008 20:41

Christian Freedom International is preparing to dispatch backpack medical teams and other supplies into storm-ravaged areas where help is needed most in Burma.

SAULT STE. MARIE, MI -- A devastating cyclone has claimed the lives of as many as 22,500 victims in Burma, leaving hundreds of thousands more without homes, food or clean drinking water. Over 41,000 other victims have been declared missing in the storm’s aftermath.
Cyclone Nargis hit the Southeast Asian country in the early morning hours of May 3, 2008, where the 120-mile per hour winds tore the roofs off homes, hospitals and schools, and cut electricity in Yangon, Burma’s largest city. Reports from the low-lying Irawaddy region are indicating that as many as 95 percent of the homes in neighboring villages have been destroyed. Many other villages are still under water, cut off from all communications and with no relief aid in sight.

According to experts, reconstruction of many of the devastated towns could take years, and at least 40 days to reinstall electrical lines in some areas.

In the wake of the destruction, Burma’s government is now facing criticism from the international community for failing to properly alert its citizens of the impending storm. First Lady Laura Bush, a long-time critic of Burma’s repressive military regime, has also condemned the country’s leaders for not accepting U.S. disaster relief aid, claiming that their response to the cyclone is “the most recent example of the junta’s failure to meet its people’s basic needs.” After a meeting with foreign diplomats and U.N. representatives, Burmese officials were said to welcome international assistance; however, the restrictive conditions on what type of relief aid will be permitted into the country from outside agencies is potentially costing the lives of thousands of desperate victims.

CFI is among the independent humanitarian organizations preparing to deliver emergency assistance to cyclone victims in Burma. Fortunately, none of CFI’s existing schools, orphanages or medical clinics were destroyed in the storm, but we are preparing to dispatch backpack medical teams and other supplies into storm-ravaged areas where help is needed most.

As hundreds of thousands of victims in Burma face one of the worst disasters in recent history, you can help with our effort to get desperately needed aid into the region. Time is of the essence and your donation makes all the difference. Will you step forward for those suffering in Burma today?

Mrs. Bush Talks Tough

Today, in wake of the cyclone that whirled death and destruction about Burma, First Lady Laura Bush had some strong words for the Junta and thier totally toughtlessness towards the people of Burma.

Please read the Reuters article for more detail.

Laura Bush urges Myanmar to accept U.S. disaster team
Mon May 5, 2008 11:09pm EDT
By Matt Spetalnick and Susan Cornwell

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - First lady Laura Bush urged Myanmar's military rulers on Monday to accept a U.S. disaster response team that so far has been kept out, saying it would clear the way for broader relief in the wake of a devastating cyclone.

Making an unusual foray into foreign policy, Mrs. Bush, an outspoken critic of Myanmar's generals, also accused the junta of failing to warn its citizens in time about the approaching cyclone that has been blamed for at least 10,000 deaths.

The U.S. Embassy in Myanmar, an impoverished Southeast Asian country under heavy U.S. sanctions, authorized the release of $250,000 in immediate emergency aid, and Laura Bush promised, "More aid will be forthcoming."

But she made clear that Myanmar must first let in a State Department disaster assistance response team to assess the situation.

The scale of the devastation from Saturday's cyclone has drawn a rare acceptance of outside help from Myanmar's diplomatically isolated generals, who spurned such approaches in the aftermath of the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami.

But it may be harder for Myanmar to open up to the United States, which maintains heavy sanctions against the junta.

U.S. State Department spokesman Tom Casey said a disaster response team was "standing by and ready to go into Burma," now known as Myanmar, which has been ruled by the military for 46 years.

"I understand it the Burmese government has not given them permission to go into the country. ... My understanding was they had asked for permission but the initial response from the government was that they weren't inclined to let them in," Casey told reporters.

The State Department authorized the departure of nonessential embassy staff and family members from Yangon and urged U.S. citizens in areas hit by the cyclone to strongly consider leaving Myanmar. It also warned Americans against traveling to the country.

RARE APPEARANCE AT WHITE HOUSE PODIUM

In a rare appearance at the podium in the White House press briefing room, Laura Bush said, "If we can get some sort of team in there to assess what the other needs are, then I feel very assured that the United States government will follow with a bigger (aid response)."

But in a sign of the mistrust between the two countries, she added, "I'm worried that they won't even accept U.S. aid."

Laura Bush also took the opportunity to condemn Myanmar's junta for its human rights record, as she has repeatedly since a violent crackdown on protests led by Buddhist monks last September.

And she urged Myanmar's leaders to cancel a referendum on an army-drafted constitution they plan to go ahead with on Saturday. Critics say it would entrench the military's power.

President George W. Bush said last week a vote on a new constitution in Myanmar would not be "free, fair or credible" and imposed new sanctions on state-owned companies to put pressure for political change on the junta.

Also on Monday, Laura Bush said, "Although they were aware of the threat, Burma's state-run media failed to issue a timely warning to citizens in the storm's path."

"It's troubling that many of the Burmese people learned of this impending disaster only when foreign outlets, such as Radio Free Asia and Voice of America, sounded the alarm," she said.

Asked by a reporter whether she was accusing the junta of having "blood on their hands," she said it was clear they are "very inept."

She also disclosed that her husband on Tuesday will sign legislation awarding detained Myanmar democracy advocate Aung San Suu Kyi the Congressional Gold Medal, America's top civilian honor. Congress approved the award last month.

Suu Kyi's National League for Democracy won elections in 1990 but the junta refused to hand over power and has detained her for most of the time since then.

(Editing by David Alexander)


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Somebody sent me this pic, not sure where it's from, but it's really good.