Love Modesto: Volunteers help Burma refugees plant veggie garden

By Rosalio Ahumada
rahumada@modbee.com

 

MODESTO -- Volunteers on Saturday chose to show some love to a group of refugees from Burma, welcoming these newcomers with help in their vegetable garden and producing much more than fresh ingredients for their traditional meals.
"It just shows the love of the community," said Pam Scholl, one of the volunteers. "When people come together to help them it really makes them feel that they now have a village here."
The garden work was one of about 60 projects created by Love Modesto, an all-volunteer effort to improve the community. About 2,500 people participated in neighborhood cleanups, community outreach and public service efforts.

The projects ranged from creating a long-jump pit for the upcoming Special Olympics to cleanup efforts at various schools throughout the city. The events began with a downtown rally in the morning before volunteers were sent to neighborhoods.
The Modesto volunteers were part of a larger contingent of more than 6,500 who signed up for 450 projects in cities throughout the Central Valley.
In Ceres, a crew of three volunteers repaired a porch for an elderly woman who had fallen through it when the worn out wood broke. Alex Magana of Hughson, Troy Slaybaugh of Ceres and David Thompson of Ripon strengthened the porch's stairs at Las Casitas Mobile Home Park.
The volunteers in Modesto spent Saturday building a foundation for a new life for the refugees from Burma. Pam and Jeff Scholl of Modesto helped lead the group of volunteers who planted winter vegetables.

Strong work ethic

The Scholls spent three months in Burma and Thailand this year and grew to love the people of the Southeast Asian country. They discovered people there have a strong work ethic. When the couple learned earlier this year that refugees from Burma had arrived in Modesto, they decided to reach out to them.
"Even though they came here with very little, they have enormous hearts," Pam Scholl said.
The refugees have two plots in a community garden behind the Church of the Cross in north Modesto.
Gin Khual, who came to this country with his wife and three sons, is the primary gardener, but he recently had surgery.
So the volunteers helped Khual plant cabbage, bok choy, cauliflower, broccoli, onions, sweet peas and other winter vegetables.
Scholl said the vegetables will help the refugee families prepare their meals without overspending on their food budget. They're also not used to canned vegetables, she said, so the fresh produce is just what they need.
"This enables these families to plant the vegetables they love," Pam Scholl said. "It makes this community feel like home to them."
Bee staff writer Rosalio Ahumada can be reached at rahumada@modbee.com or (209) 578-2394.

Read more here: http://www.modbee.com/2012/09/29/2394466/love-for-modesto-volunteers-help.html#storylink=cpy

Read more here: http://www.modbee.com/2012/09/29/2394466/love-for-modesto-volunteers-help.html#storylink=cpy

 

 

Norwegian ambassador: No repatriation of Myanmar refugees

  Katja Christina Nordgaard, Norwegian ambassador to Thailand, Cambodia and Burma meets Thai Foreign Minister Surapong Tovichakchaikul in Bangkok.

The Norwegian-led Myanmar Peace Support Initiative (MPSI) was launched earlier this year to prepare the ground for the eventual return of internally displaced persons (IDPs) from Burma’s border areas in the wake of government ceasefires with ethnic armed groups.

However, local non-governmental and community-based organizations (NGOs and CBOs) have criticized the scheme for supposedly cutting traditional cross-border funding and acting too hastily when Burma’s nascent political reforms appear fragile.

This culminated in a group of Shan CBOs calling for the postponement of a consultation meeting in Chiang Mai on Aug. 27 citing a lack of notice, and also protesting about a door-to-door survey of Koung Jor refugee camp, northwest Chiang Mai Province, which was apparently earmarked for a refugee return project.

Katja Christina Nordgaard, Norwegian ambassador to Thailand, Cambodia and Burma, talked to The Irrawaddy journalist Charlie Campbell about the MPSI and the recent concerns of local groups.

Question: Is the MPSI currently preparing for the return of refugees?

Answer: The repatriation of refugees is not going to happen. This is an ongoing consultation program and there has to be some changes and refinements in relation to what came up in the first discussions. There will not be any repatriation of refugees, it will be focused on IDPs.

Q: So there was no consultation in refugee camps in Thailand?

A: No, nothing like that. That comes much later with the return of refugees—that is not part of the MPSI at all. The repatriation of refugees is absolutely not on the agenda. It is a difficult issue that has to be handled in quite a different context and with other actors, of course.
It is all going on inside and it is about having pilot project interventions in the ceasefire areas in order to provide the ground opening up and building confidence and interaction between local actors to open up space for more aid to come. And the refugee repatriation is something that will come later and be quite different when that comes on the agenda. It will not be something that the MPSI will handle.

Q: What happened with the Chiang Mai meeting in September which Shan groups tried to call off?

A: That took place and maybe there was an issue with some groups being upset about the timeline before the meeting. We went ahead as we had so many different people coming along so we thought it was worthwhile having the meeting anyway. But that was not about refugees at all. MPSI is not about the returning of refugees. That is very important as that would be a misunderstanding.
The response [on our website] acknowledged that ideally we should have had more time in advance but because we brought along different groups and ourselves—we had groups talking about the peace centers and the ILO [International Labor Organization] there—so we decided to go along anyway and have more meetings at a later date.

Q: Is there much progress being made with the MPSI?

A: Absolutely, we are going out in the different states, of course, with different groups. So it is not like one big consultation process.

Q: Do you think that NGOs are objecting to the MPSI out of self-preservation?

A: I think that’s a natural thing and it is strange now but I think that everybody at this time has to be prepared to change and it’s about acknowledging that we are now facing a new situation and, of course, that goes for the groups on the border.
Again one of the misunderstandings is that Norway has tried to advocate that there shouldn’t be any more aid given to the groups and rumors like that. And, of course, we have not done that. And, of course, the groups that are there represent some expertise and knowledge and have been good players for many years.
There will be room for them also and I wouldn’t be surprised if there was resistance to that but the aim has to be part of a normal structure inside and that’s what we are working for. We are not there now but we are trying to open up space so it will be possible for NGOs and the international community to come in with aid for people from the inside.
There’s a lot of misinformation around but it’s important to try and actually look at what’s going on and it’s never been about kicking anyone out and we are still supporting the camps and everything. I would be surprised if these groups are not in favor of these areas opening up for aid and trust-building and a normal situation—it’s their people.

Q: How much consultation has there been with NGOs and groups established on the ground?

A: We have been going to Chiang Mai and meeting with [UN Envoy] Charles Petrie and his people and so trying as much as possible, but it is also important to see that the MPSI is not doing anything that has not been asked for or agreed by parties [on the ground]. Maybe one has to look into the amount of consultation going on between non-state armed groups and their civil society CBOs and NGOs.

Q: Are armed groups pushing for peace for economic gain?

A: I’m not sure about that actually. We also receive a lot of positive feedback from groups at the borders. There are some which are very critical but it would be good to speak to people on the inside. There are groups who have legitimate concerns and we are trying to accommodate and listen to everyone. I think it’s very important to sound out several stakeholders.

Q: Is there one area of the border region in which MPSI work seems the most promising?

A: I don’t think there is any area … they are so different—different faiths, different groups and the different circumstances on the ground with different dynamics and different roles. The situation is different from place to place but what we have done in the pilot area in Kyaukkyi [in Kachin State] is where the intervention has materialized the most.
In some of the other areas it is a lot about consultations. It’s being concentrated by the different actors, it’s not that you can say somewhere is more successful than somewhere else—it’s a continuous process going on. It’s possible to have concrete projects by the end of the year. There are different types of projects—the IDPs in Kyaukkyi are already receiving aid and some livelihood equipment and such.

KP1M aid for refugees arrives in Myanmar

By MOHD HAFIZEE MOHD AROP

  YANGON: Malaysian vessel Sinar Bima, carrying 500 tonnes of living and medical supplies for Myanmar refugees, has reached the country’s landing waters and is waiting to anchor at the port here.

The vessel, which was flagged off by Deputy Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin for Putra 1Malaysia Club (KP1M) mission to help the Myanmar refugees, took five days to reach here on Sunday midnight.

KP1M logistics coordinator Noor Azmi Abu Bakar said the team is now waiting for customs clearance to enable the goods to get tax exemption.

He said KP1M does not expect any disruptions as they had secured permission for landing from the Myanmar government and also the tax exemption before the vessel left Malaysia.

“After landing, it would take up to 15 hours to transport all the containers and all the aid would be taken out to load it unto the barge.

“The supplies would be carried by barge with the capacity of 1000 tonnes and shipped to Sittwe Port, which would take 15 days,” he said after a discussion with the Malaysian Ambassador of Myanmar Dr Ahmad Faisal Muhamad.

Noor Azmi said the aid was to be transported by trucks initially, but recent landslides have blocked the path that the team had planned to take.

KP1M vice president Mohd Farid Hassan, who heads the advance team in the mission, said discussion is still ongoing whether to bring the main team of volunteers by road as it takes two days to travel by land rather than the five-day travel by sea.

The advance team of 14 members including doctors and four media personnel were sent to evaluate the current situation here and build a medical base before the main team arrives.

The main team is expected to arrive on Sunday to proceed with the mission to help the internally displaced people of Myanmar who are seeking shelter in refugee camps following clashes between the Rakhine Buddhists and Rohingyan Muslims since last May.

Refugees Lose Interest in Resettling in Japan

A Japanese program to resettle Burmese refugees living in camps in Thailand has failed to attract a single applicant, according to a report by Japan’s public broadcaster NHK. The program, which was initiated two years ago, has so far brought 45 refugees from nine families to Japan. However, 16 refugees from three families who were expected to participate in the program this year have all withdrawn, citing concerns about adjusting to life in Japan. The Japanese government plans to continue the program next year, but is now reconsidering how it will be administered.

US to ease sanctions on imports from Myanmar

In a move that is expected to give a significant economic boost to Myanmar, the US has said it will begin easing restrictions on imports of goods from the southeast Asian country in recognition of efforts by its government to bring the country back on the road to democracy.

The announcement was made by Secretary of State Hillary Clinton during her meeting with Myanmar’s President U Thein Sein on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly on Wednesday.

It comes just a week after Myanmar’s pro-democracy icon Aung San Suu Kyi embarked on a historic visit to the United States and urged lifting of sanctions on her country.

“In recognition of the continued progress toward reform and in response to requests from both the government and the opposition, the United States is taking the next step in normalizing our commercial relationship. We will begin the process of easing restrictions on imports of Burmese goods into the US,” Clinton said before her meeting with Sein here.

Clinton expressed hope that the move would provide more opportunities for the people of Myanmar to sell their goods into the US market.

“We have watched as you and your government have continued the steady process of reform, and we’ve been pleased to respond with specific steps that recognize the government’s efforts and encourage further reform,” she said.

CHO CHIN WOMAN RAPED BY BURMESE SOLDIER

(Photo: Chinland Guardian)

A 23-year-old Chin woman was raped by Burma Army soldier in Kyauktaw, Rakhine State on 28 July 2012.

Three soldiers were said to have stopped the Chin woman while she was looking for her husband who was thought to be recently recruited by Burma Army battalion based in the Rakhine town.

The victim, from Mindat Township, Chin State, was quoted as saying that three soldiers grabbed her but only one soldier committed the sexual abuse in the early afternoon.

A Chin Christian pastor from Rakhine State said the victim was rescued last Sunday and taken to Mindat town via Mrauk-U in Rakhine State.

The soldier gave a total amount of 500,000 Kyats in compensation to the Chin victim and the case was settled, according to the pastor.

Detailed information about the parpetrator remains unknown up to date.

There are 10 Infantry Battalions of the 9th Military Operations Command (MOC-9) based in Kyauktaw alone.

Kidnapped Chin Refugee Safely Home after Three Days

Chin refugee children and women in Malaysia (Photo: CHRO)

Mr. Kung Bawih, a Chin refugee from Burma, safely got back to his rented apartment in Kuala Lumpur after being kidnapped for three days by 'uniformed' police in Malaysia.

 The 37-year-old refugee was stopped and threatened near the Immanuel Charity Home in Jalan Imbi around 7am while on his way to give money to his relatives on 28 July 2012.

"Two persons wearing a police uniform on their bike passed by and asked me an ID card in the early morning. When I presented my UNHCR refugee card, they said they didn't accept it. They started groping my whole body in search of any valuable items," said the Chin victim.

"Once they knew that I had money, they said they arrested me because I couldn't prove any identity card that they accepted. They let me sit on their bike and stopped by the bridge between Pudu and Imbi. They talked on the phone for a while and another person in a casual dress took me on his bike," added Kung Bawih.

When asked about the direction after quite a distance, the bike driver, who was later joined by another two 'non-uniformed' Malaysians, said they were on their way back to his place.

Kung Bawih said he didn't remember what happened afterwards, recalling: "When I woke up in the morning on 30 July, my head and throat were very painful."

The Chin refugee said he found himself left alone in the jungle outside the Malaysian capital city and all his money was lost by the time he became conscious.

Kung Bawih eventually made his way back to Jalan Imbi of Kuala Lumpur around midnight after taking a long walk, adding: "I asked for help from a male Malaysian who gave me 3 Ringgits and I took a Metro bus up to the Kuala Lumpur City Center."

He has been arrested at least 50 times during his arrival in Malaysia over the past five years, according to the Seihnam newsletter, a weekly journal published in Hakha-Chin in Kuala Lumpur.

Due to the incident, Kung Bawih, from Thantlang town of Burma's Chin State, was unable to attend an interview at the UNHCR Office for his resettlement to Australia 30 July 2012.

Detained Chin Refugees Face Immigration Charges

Map of Langkawi Island and Kuala Perlis in Malaysia (Source: Google Map)

Three undocumented Chin asylum seekers are facing immigration charges after being arrested by Malaysian police in Kuala Perlis last Wednesday.

Ai Mung Phyu Hla, Ai Aung Lin Tun and Ai San Aung in their mid twenties have been held in custody at an immigration detention center in the Malaysian port town near Thailand.

It is believed that none of them have recognition from the United Nations agency.

The three Chins, originally from Kyaukphya village in Paletwa Township of Chin State, Burma, were pinched while waiting for a ferry to go to Langkawi, an island some 30 km off the mainland coast of northwestern Malaysia.

Ko Lwin Lwin, Cordinator of the Paletwa Khumi Community based in Kuala Lumpur, was quoted by the Khumi Media Group as saying that there was communication with the three detainees and that attempts have been made to release them as soon as possible.

It is claimed that the three Chins would be put on trial at court after 14 days of detention and could face punishment if a legal intervention is not made on time.

Ai Aung Lin Tun and Ai San Aung are members of the Alliance of Chin Refugees (ACR), a community-based voluntary organization providing social services to Chin refugees, while Ai Mung Phyu Hla only arrived in Malaysia on Tuesday.

Aung Lin Tun and San Aung arrived in Malaysia in 2011, according to the Khumi Media Group.

An estimated 800 Khumi Chins are currently stranded in Malaysia after fleeing their native places as refugees from Paletwa Township, Chin State of Burma.

Refugee Children from Burma Provided Recreational Lessons in Delhi

(Photo: CHRO)

20 September 2012: About 250 refugee children from Burma currently living in New Delhi were provided educational and recreational lessons at a playground in Vikaspuria of the Indian city last Saturday.

The one-day event included sessions of drawing and essay writing competition for children aged 12 and above on a theme entitled 'My Life in Delhi' while children under the age of 12 did on 'My Home in Delhi'.

Organized by EBO (Euro-Burma Office) Foundation in association with Burmese Women Delhi (BWD), Chin Human Rights Organization (CHRO), Chin Refugee Committee (CRC) and Chin Students Union (CSU), the one-day event provided a chance for children from eight communities of the Arakan, Kachin and Chin ethnic groups to get together and improve their skills.

Dr. Achan, Director of E.B.O Foundation, said: "This program aims to bring children from different schools together with an attempt to create space for them to get to know each other and to build up relationship. It is also important to bring the children out of their congested room, at least for a day, to let them play freely with their friends. Thus, in a nutshell, by organizing this recreational program, we want to encourage the children in their education in an interesting way, express what they are going through and have fun playing with other children from different community."

"In our daily struggle for survival, many of us have forgotten the children. We have failed to recognize the need of the children. Their daily lives and struggles are not heard. Each Drawing and Essay is a story of their lives that need to be heard. The community's effort to provide education to the children by establishing community based schools is worth praising. However, most of the schools are limited to a particular group," added Dr. Achan.

During the program, children were divided into two groups as Junior and Senior, and they played ten different games in a team and individually.

The program ended with presentations of prizes for each competition and game. Winners of the essay writing and drawing competition received a cash prize of 1,500 Indian Rupees each, with the runner-ups and the second runner-ups getting 1,000 and 500 Indian Rupees. Children were also given prizes for ten different games.

"The children are very happy as it is a very good recreational program. The program is very educational, too. Thanks to EBO Foundation for organizing the event," said one of the volunteers from Burmese Women Delhi.

It was the first program organized for refugee children from Burma stranded in New Delhi of India, facilitated by Indian and Burmese volunteers.

Van Hmun Lian, a volunteer from CHRO, said: "These children are from informal schools and they do not have extracurricular activities and it is wonderful to see that these children have a chance to express their views and play games. Children do not lie and their writings and essays speak a lot for all the sufferings of Burmese refugees in New Delhi. It is interesting that some children still find some positive viewpoints in their lives when some adults are totally negative on their daily difficulties as refugees. We need to have such program in the future too, I think all these children forget that they are refugees for at least a day."

Myanmar: UN refugee agency 'seriously concerned' over returns from China

The United Nations refugee agency is “seriously concerned” over reports that China has sent back from its Yunan province groups of Myanmar nationals who sought safety there from violence in neighbouring Myanmar’s Kachin state.

“UNHCR is urging the Government of China to offer temporary protection to those who fled the fighting, to respect their humanitarian needs and not send them back to a situation where their safety and livelihood could be at risk,” a spokesperson for the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), Adrian Edwards, told a news briefing in Geneva.

“We stand ready to support China in assisting these people until the situation stabilizes in their home areas,” he added.

The UN estimates that some 75,000 civilians have been displaced within Kachin and Myanmar’s northern Shan states since fighting broke out between Government troops and rebels last year, with more people continuing to flee insecure areas every day.

Mr. Edwards said that some 5,000 ethnic Kachins – who had fled fighting between Government troops and rebels that broke out in Kachin state in June last year – have been returned from China since mid-August, and were living in makeshift camps in border areas of the Myanmar state.

The spokesperson noted that more than 3,400 returnees are now staying in camps for internally displaced people in Kachin state because their homes were destroyed in the fighting and they are afraid to return to their villages. “They desperately need food, medicine, shelter and other relief items,” he added.

Despite repeated requests to the Chinese authorities, the refugee agency has not been able to reach or assist Kachin groups living along the Chinese side of the border, but recently a UNHCR team travelled to the town Lwe Je on the Myanmar side to provide aid and assess the needs of the returnees.

Some of those interviewed said that local authorities in China pulled down their shelters, and others reported that plainclothes policemen put them on a truck, loaded their belongings on another truck, and drove them to a border crossing point.

Staff of a local non-governmental organization saw what happened and arranged for trucks to take the returnees to the nearest camps in Myanmar, according to Mr. Edwards, who also noted that local groups say they expect more people to be sent back from China.

UNHCR has distributed relief items to the 1,200 returnees in the four camps for internally displaced persons in Lwe Je, including tarpaulins, blankets, mosquito nets, kitchen sets and basic toiletries. On Thursday, the agency’s team completed a second visit to the town to deliver aid and to assess the returnees’ needs in a more comprehensive way.

US formally announces lifting of Burmese import ban

The US announced on Tuesday it would lift its ban on Burmese imports as a reward for the former military dictatorship’s embrace of political and economic reforms.

US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton announced the move in a meeting with Burma’s President Thein Sein on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly in New York, where Thein Sein will address the grouping on Thursday.

Burmese opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi, who also called for the lifting of sanctions, also met with Thein Sein the New York on Tuesday after meeting US President Barack Obama last week at the White House.   

Thein Sein said the Burmese people were “very pleased” with the easing of economic sanctions and "very grateful" for the US action, according to an article on the Radio Free Asia website on Thursday.

“In recognition of the continued progress toward reform and in response to requests from both the government and the opposition, the United States is taking the next step in normalizing our commercial relationship,” Clinton told Thein Sein, according to media reports.

“We will begin the process of easing restrictions on imports of Burmese goods into the United States. We hope this will provide more opportunities for your people to sell their goods into our market,” she said.

The lifting of the import ban would provide a significant boon to Burma’s economy, which has suffered greatly under a military dictatorship for decades, which ended last year when Thein Sein's nominally civilian government took over.

The Burmese leader, in his UN address, is expected to highlight the reforms implemented by his government and ask the international community for support and encourage investment in Burma. 

Late Tuesday, Thein Sein and Suu Kyi, who is on a tour of the US, met informally in his suite at the Mark Hotel in New York City.

Thein Sein said that the two met in line with their cooperation to smooth the way for Burma’s transition to democratic rule.

“Daw Aung San Suu Kyi came to greet the president. We met and exchanged things about our trip and few things about the needs of the country,” a presidential assistant told RFA’s Burmese service on Wednesday.

“We are working together for the benefit of [Burma’s] nearly 60 million people. Sister Daw Aung San Suu Kyi is doing her job for the country, and the president is doing his job for the country as well. So it is a joint effort,” he said.

The spokesperson said Thein Sein would not meet with US President Barack Obama, adding that he was not concerned about being upstaged by Aung San Suu Kyi, who was welcomed to the Oval office for a private meeting with the US leader last week.

“Whether or not we met with Obama is not the issue. Some would say, ‘He’s meeting with this person but not with that one.’ We don't have that thought,” said the spokesperson.

He said the relationship between the president and the leader of his opposition has become closer.

“It is not like before, when [they] didn't meet each other. Now it has changed, and they are like brother and sister,” he said.

Analysts said the lifting of the USimport ban would be a big boost for the Burmese leadership.

“The timing of this announcement is a big win for Thein Sein,” Suzanne DiMaggio, New York-based Asia Society’s vice president of Global Policy Programs told RFA.

“He will return from his first visit to the US as Myanmar’s president with a major boost to his reform agenda. It’s a concrete deliverable that will go a long way towards muffling critics and hardliners at home," she said.

She said Aung San Suu Kyi’s endorsement of a further easing of sanctions to audiences in Washington last week helped to bring about the change.

Kachin groups urge Suu Kyi to ‘speak out’

Reflecting disappointment in Aung San Suu Kyi’s statements on fighting in Kachin State, a group of 23 Kachin organizations have issued a public letter calling for her “to speak out about the abuses being committed against our people.”

Refugees in Kachin State in northeast Burma at a KIO camp, where displaced persons are in need of more aid including food, medicine and shelter material. Photo: Mizzima

“If you were to speak out, the international community would listen, all the people of Burma regardless of ethnicity or religion will stand up for the wholesale principles of democracy and human rights,” said a letter released on Thursday.

“As a renowned champion for human rights, by not condemning the abuses in Kachin State you are not only condoning the state-sanctioned violence, but you exemplify to the masses in the country that the notion of conditional human rights is tolerated,” the letter said.

The letter cited Suu Kyi’s comments at the London School of Economics in Britain in June 2012, “when you stated that there was a need to establish the facts of the root cause of the Kachin conflict.”

“Further, in your meeting with the Burmese Community in the USA on 22nd September, you stated: ‘Basically, what is it that I have to strongly condemn? If it is a human rights violation as well as any acts of breaching the rule of law then I will strongly condemn.’”

The letter said, “You are yet to take a stance on the human rights abuses taking place in Kachin State; your statement, combined with the comments you made at the LSE gives the impression to the people of Burma and international community that you do not believe human rights abuses are taking place.

The letter continued: “Many international human rights organizations including Human Rights Watch, and international media including the BBC have reported and verified that heinous abuses are committed against the Kachin population by the Burmese army."

In March 2012, the United Nations Special Rapporteur stated he had reports of: “…attacks against civilian populations, extrajudicial killings, internal displacement, the use of human shields and forced labour, and the confiscation and destruction of property. He has also received reports of gang rapes by army soldiers, although the numbers provided by different sources vary," said the statement. “In the report of the Secretary-General on conflict-related sexual violence, it was noted that as many as 32 women and girls throughout Kachin State were allegedly raped by the military between June and August 2011.”

The letter invited Suu Ky to visit the Mai Ja Yang refugee area, where the majority of the displaced people are protected by the Kachin Independence Organization.

“You will be able to hear directly from the victims about the human rights abuses that have been committed against them. You will see for yourself the suffering caused by the Burmese government’s refusal to allow humanitarian aid into these areas. As you often refer to your father General Aung San in your political speeches, we do hope that you uphold his promise for the Union of Burma where all ethnic people including Burman will be equal,” said the letter.

It continued: “As an elected MP and daughter of General Aung San, talk of ‘unity’ while staying silent on the suffering of the ethnic masses will only polarize the country further.

"All of those who believe in the cause of human rights and democracy in our country must work together. We must all make efforts to restore trust, and therefore in the spirit of Panglong we extend this invitation to you. You are now able to travel all over the world and speak openly to large audiences… We have trust in you that you will recognize the urgency and importance of this request and not refuse the invitation.

“The government of Burma broke the 17 year-long cease-fire in June 2011 to annex Kachin Independence Organization (KIO) controlled areas. From this time, the Burmese army has not only launched full-scale war against the Kachin Independence Army (KIA) but also committed genocide and other heinous human rights violations deliberately attacking innocent civilians. The direct military actions by the Burmese army in a clear violation of Geneva Conventions have resulted in the forced displacement of 100,000 Kachin civilians to date.

“Human rights abuses committed by the Burmese army against our people include rape and gang-rape against women and even children, the elderly and disabled; killing many victims of sexual violence; arbitrary executions; torture; mutilations; beatings; forced labour; mortar bombing and burning of villages; looting of villages and other thefts; and use of child soldiers many of which constitute war crimes and crimes against humanity. Given the climate of violence, fear and suffering our people are enduring everyday, it is disheartening not to hear you speaking out against injustice for those who have been forcibly silent, instead you declared you have a soft spot for Tatmadaw that your father founded, the very institution that is responsible for such miseries.

“As you and your fellow parliamentary members are well aware, the government of Burma is not providing emergency relief and is refusing to allow the free delivery of humanitarian aid to tens of thousands of internally displaced people in direct and open violation of international law.

“In your position as chair of the Lower House of Parliament’s Rule of Law Committee you have the power to initiate and the responsibility to minimize the immense suffering of Kachin IDPs that includes women and young children who are suffering from malnutrition and other illnesses without sufficient medical or education facilities,” said the letter.

Signed by

1. All Kachin Students and Youth Union (AKSYU)
2. Kachin Canadian Association
3. Kachin Women's Association Thailand (KWAT)
4. Kachin National Organization (KNO)
5. Kachin Association of Australia (KAA)
6. Kachin Centre-Thailand
7. Kachin Refugee Committee- Malaysia (KRC)
8. Kachin National Organization (KNO-Japan)
9. Kachin National Organization (KNO-Denmark)
10. Kachin Christian Fellowship (KCF-Denmark)
11. Kachin National Organization (KNO-USA)
12. Kachin National Organization (KNO-United Kingdom)
13. Kachin National Organization (KNO-India)
14. Kachin National Organization (KNO-Malaysia)
15. Kachin National Organization (KNO-Australia)
16. Kachin Community in United Kingdom
17. Kachin Community in Sweden (KCS)
18. Kachin Community in Netherlands (KCNL)
19. Kachin Association Norway
20. Kachin Alliance (USA)
21. Pan Kachin Development Society (PKDS)
22. Queensland Kachin Community
23. Singapore Kachin Community

Burmese ethnic delegation leaders travel to US

A joint delegation of the ethnic United Nationalities Federal Council (UNFC) and the National Council of the Union of Burma (NCUB) has arrived in the US to talk about Burma's ethnic peace processes with US and UN officials.

David Thackarbaw, the delegation’s leader

The delegation will meet with Burma’s ethnic communities and UN and US officials, among others, to support sustainable peace for Burma’s ethnic nationalities, said the group's leaders.

David Thackarbaw, the delegation’s leader, said, “Until and unless the Burmese military actually ceases its attacks against the ethnics, ‘stability’ and ‘reconciliation’ in Burma will not be possible," in a statement released on Thursday.

“We are ready for more dialogue with all the stakeholders of Burma,” he said. “We believe that having international community involvement will help pave the way to national reconciliation.”

Khun Okker of the UNFC said that a unified political and democratic dialogue is a must following the signing of a series of individual cease-fire agreements between ethnic resistance groups and the Burmese government.

In the midst of Burmese military offensives and widespread human rights abuses in Kachin and Shan states, the joint-delegation is advocating an “ethnics’ benchmark.”

Recently, both the UNFC and the NCUB called for Burma’s political situation to be resolved before 2015 in a “Benchmarks for Renewed Engagement with Burma” statement.

Ethnic leaders said they seek a genuine dialogue for reconciliation and a political solution, but without the engagement and support of both the Burmese government and the National Defense Security Council, they do not believe that durable peace will be possible.

“We would of course like to resolve Burma’s political issues within a time frame because we have all suffered enough decades of civil war. However, we are also prepared and will continue to defend our people until peace, national reconciliation, and federalism are achieved in Burma,” the statement said.

Kachin to hold US rally at UN headquarters

Kachin in the US will hold a rally in New York City to urge President Thein Sein to address the humanitarian crisis faced by the Kachin ethnic group and to seek UN intervention and assistance.
 

A view of the UN building in New York City. Photo: UN

The Kachin community in the US said it is deeply concerned that the civil war being waged in the Kachin region in northeast Burma along the Burma-Sino border has continued since the resumption of hostilities in June 2011, claiming thousands of lives and sending refugees throughout the area to seek safe shelter.

Thein Sein is scheduled to address the 67^th UN General Assembly on Thursday.

The fighting has “caused untold miseries to tens of thousands of our kinsmen,” said a statement released on Thursday. “Our friends and family members have been forced to flee homes and villages, and are in dire need of the most basic human needs.

“They are living in constant fear and uncertainty, driven back into conflict zones from camps along the China border, and experiencing the violation of their rights even in the sanctity of church-run camps in government-controlled territory,” it said, adding that ethnic residents of the area face harassment, interrogation and arbitrary detention

The rally is organized by the Kachin Alliance, a network of Kachin communities and organizations in the US.

A statement called for the free flow of humanitarian aid to Kachin refugees along the Burma-China border, and an end to the war by implementing a peaceful resolution through political dialogue.

It also asked the UN to send personnel to observe the current crisis, to facilitate a free flow of humanitarian aid along the Burma-China border, and to facilitate a process leading to a peaceful resolution.

Suu Kyi cautiously optimistic for Myanmar future

• 
  In this Thursday, Sept. 20, 2012 photo, Burmese residents wait in the lobby of the Burmese Advocacy Center in Fort Wayne, Ind. The center, which is funded by federal grants and private donations, helps refugees find jobs and homes and navigate issues from laws and customs to getting a driver’s license. Photo: Darron Cummings / AP

FORT WAYNE, Ind. (AP) — Thousands of elated supporters greeted Myanmar opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi with rapturous cheers and a standing ovation as she took to an arena stage in an Indiana city that is home to one of the largest Burmese communities in the United States.

The 67-year-old Suu Kyi, who spent 15 years under house arrest for opposing Myanmar's military rulers and was recently elected a member of parliament, is on a 17-day tour of the United States. She has already met with President Barack Obama and received the Congressional Gold Medal. Suu Kyi voiced optimism for democracy in her Southeast Asian home.

"The important thing is to learn how to resolve problems. How to face them and how to find the right answers through discussion and debate," the Nobel Laureate told the approximately 3,000 people gathered at the Memorial Coliseum in Fort Wayne, Ind.

"We should all have a conscience and not exploit our role in politics," she said. Suu Kyi delivered her speech in Burmese with an English translation by video.

Thousands of Burmese refugees live in Fort Wayne, and hundreds of supporters lined up outside the arena hours before Suu Kyi was due to speak. As the doors opened at 7:30 a.m., supporters flooded inside to claim the best seats.

Factory worker Kaung Shein, 42, said he had been among the approximately 1 million students who took part in a failed pro-democracy uprising to protest Burma's military-backed regime in August 1988. Oxford-educated Suu Kyi rose to prominence during that period.

"We are from the 88 Generation," Kaung Shein said. "We align with her. ... We are very excited to be here. We've been waiting for 20 years."

Thousands of the 1988 protesters were killed and tens of thousands more — including Suu Kyi — spent years as political prisoners. Her National League for Democracy party was for years stymied by the junta's iron grip on the country, but Suu Kyi voiced cautious hope.

"The differences and problems we have amongst ourselves, I think we can join hands and reconcile and move forward and solve any problems," she said.

Myanmar's half century of military rule has made the country something of a pariah in the international community, inviting decades of crippling sanctions. But President Thein Sein has introduced political and economic reforms in recent years, and his separate visit this week to the United Nations General Assembly — the first to the U.S. by a Myanmar leader in more than 40 years — raised hopes that some of those restrictions could be eased.

Since 1991, when a single Burmese refugee resettled in Fort Wayne — about two hours north of Indianapolis and 8,000 miles from southeast Asia — thousands more have followed, many of them relocating under a federal program after years in refugee camps in Thailand. They join other political refugees from a host of countries who have made the city a second home since the fall of Saigon in 1975, thanks largely to the help of Catholic Charities.

For some of Fort Wayne's Burmese residents, Suu Kyi's visit is the first tangible connection with the homeland some hope to return to one day.

Thiya Ba Kyi, a former dentist who earned an MBA after coming to the U.S. in 1994 and now works for Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield, wants to be a part of the change Suu Kyi is expected to bring. He said he wants to teach his people, who have no experience of freedom, what democracy is about.

"I would like to move back," he said. "Hopefully, they'll need educated people who have experience in a democratic country."

Many Burmese refugees left behind careers and have had to learn new skills while others rely on food stamps to survive.

U Tun Oo was elected to parliament in the 1990 election won by Suu Kyi's party that was nullified by the military regime and served as finance minister for the elected government in exile. Now Tun Oo, who was a construction engineer in Asia, works in a Fort Wayne factory. When he's not working, he heads the local branch of Suu Kyi's party.

"She is the hope for the people," said Ba Kyi, who helps the Burmese opposition in exile. "She can bring democracy again in Burma."

But in her Tuesday speech, Suu Kyi cautioned her supporters — this time in English — that she is not infallible.

"A popular leader is not the same as a good leader," Suu Kyi said. "I hope you keep that in mind."

Read more: http://www.sfgate.com

ARAGON: Promise still to be filled in Burma

I was working in Thailand this summer when Aung San Suu Kyi came to town. The Nobel Peace Prize winner and international symbol of democracy was on her first trip out of Burma since 1988. Though I didn’t see her, colleagues described a mood of ecstasy and hope among the crowd of 5,000 Burmese refugees.

Suu Kyi spent an hour in Mae La, the largest refugee camp in Thailand and home to over 40,000 Burmese refugees. The camp residents waited for hours in the mud and sun to hear Suu Kyi speak, after having woken at dawn to decorate the camp with pictures of her. Despite the often bleak life in a refugee camp, these people welcomed their hero with open arms, asking only that she not forget them.

Burmese people and others deeply admire Suu Kyi, but after decades of oppression and violence, many also deeply distrust the Burmese government. Burmese leaders have done little to assuage their fears.

In Burmese refugee camps this summer, I got to know many young students in a peace and conflict education program. In discussions of recent Burmese reforms, students often said they feared the changes are more aesthetic than substantive. Political prisoners have been released, only to meet restrictions on speech. Military rulers have refused to honor president Thein Sein’s two requests to cease fighting in the eastern ethnic states. In February, the military began bombing one of those states, ending a 17-year ceasefire.

One girl I spoke to described the refugee camp as a safe cage. Though opportunities for educational and economic advancement are highly limited in the camp, at least inhabitants know they can send their children to camp schools and that rations will reach the table. Refugees worry that as soon as displaced minority populations return to Burma, the government will return to its discriminatory — and, historically, genocidal — practices or ignore the people completely, in line with decades of systematic neglect.

Disappointingly, however, Suu Kyi and her political allies have remained largely silent on the subject of the continued persecution of ethnic minorities. This silence has everything to do with the undemocratic military hierarchy still in place: The top official in Burma today is the military commander-in-chief rather than the civilian president, who is relegated to a third-tier role. Though Suu Kyi is a member of parliament, that body is only partly elected; a quarter of the seats are reserved for military officials.

In her address to students during last night’s Chubb Fellow dinner, Suu Kyi acknowledged that the ethnic Burmese had not treated the ethnic minorities in the country fairly. She reminded students that though Burma had made progress, there was still much to do to secure a free and democratic country for all Burmese citizens.

While she was under house for much of the last two decades, Suu Kyi refused to back down from advocating for democracy and freedom in Burma. Now, out from house arrest, elected to the parliament and internationally influential, she must be all the more emphatic in her support for peace and collaboration with Burma’s beleaguered ethnic minorities. If the current leaders of Burma want true progress and unification, Suu Kyi and those around her must not shy away from these issues for fear of political retaliation. They must remember that they stand not just for citizens in Burma’s capital but also for the refugees who turned out in droves to embrace Suu Kyi and her promise of equality.

I was walking around the refugee camp in Thailand one day when I heard a young man calling after me, yelling “Teacher, teacher!” I turned around, startled by the urgency in his voice. In a quick exchange, the young man introduced himself as a school teacher in camp. He was in the middle of an English class and wanted me to speak to his students so they could practice English with a native speaker.

As I stood at the front of the bamboo schoolroom asking the teenagers questions, the young teacher interrupted me. He began to explain that he was going nowhere in life, because even after reaching the highest education level possible in the camp, neither the Thai nor the Burmese government recognizes his school certificates.

The man wanted to know what I could do to change this situation. Almost in tears, he asked me “Can you change this? Can you tell anyone? We don’t have a future here in camp. I don’t have a future.”

I didn’t have an answer.

Katherine Aragon is a junior in Timothy Dwight College. Contact her at katherine.aragon@yale.edu.

Reprieve for Shan Refugees amid Return Fears

Shan children in Koung Jor refugee camp run to get breakfast after visiting the temple. (Photo: Tom Rosen / Branch Foundation)

Ethnic Shan refugees living by the mountainous Burmese border in northern Thailand have expressed relief that a controversial Norwegian-backed repatriation proposal has been shelved.

Sprawling Koung Jor camp is home to 136 families in northeast Chiang Mai Province and was earmarked for a pilot return project orchestrated by the Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC). But a group of Shan community-based organizations (CBOs) issued a joint statement on Aug. 27 complaining about a house-to-house survey and the scheme was suspended.

However, many vulnerable people in the camps remain confused as officials have since insisted that the Norwegian-backed Myanmar Peace Support Initiative (MPSI), run in conjunction with the NRC, never intended to do any work with refugees.

Katja Christina Nordgaard, the Norwegian ambassador to Thailand, Cambodia and Burma, told The Irrawaddy last week that the idea of refugee repatriation was not even under consideration.

“The repatriation of refugees is absolutely not on the agenda,” she said. “It is a difficult issue that has to be handled in quite a different context and with other actors, of course. But that was not about refugees at all. MPSI is not about the returning of refugees. This is very important as that would be a misunderstanding.”

However, Chris Bleers, Burma country director for the NRC, confirmed to The Irrawaddy via email that the planned survey of the refugee population in Koung Jor was postponed last month but declined to provide any further details—still denying that a return of refugees was on the cards.

“NRC is currently in a very early stage of a process that eventually will lead to a decision as to whether or not we are going to start up program activities among Shan IDP communities who live within the sovereign boundaries of Myanmar,” he said.

“However, further to the idea of a survey of the displaced population residing in Koung Jor camp mentioned in your questions, it was postponed as of the Aug. 24 in a communication to the camp leader, Sai Leng, and has not been conducted.”

Despite the repeated denials, Shan sources insist that they had to strongly object to any survey of refugees and repatriation was being suggested.

Sai Leng, the head of Koung Jor, told The Irrawaddy on Tuesday that he tried to discourage a scheme to return 80 refugee families with relatives linked to the ethnic rebel Shan State Army-South (SSA-South) to Mong Hta, an almost deserted village around 20 km across the border.

“[The NRC] came one time in June or July and I explained that we couldn’t go in this type of situation to Shan State in Burma,” said the 60-year-old. “[Chris Bleers] said he would want to start a pilot project with some of the families from the Shan State Army-South as he is friendly with [SSA-South chief] General Yawd Serk.

“But I gave him some of my experience about finding a market for their products because every family grows rice. And so if they can’t sell then maybe these people will grow opium around the mountains and after some years they might start to use opium themselves.

“I explained why people in Shan State like to grow opium for [ease of] transportation—in some cases there are no roads and so it’s easier for them to grow opium. And when there is fighting they can carry the opium very easily and a small amount can mean a lot of money—for food, cooking oil or medicine.”

Mong Hta was apparently designated as a resettlement site during peace negotiations between the SSA-South and Burmese government. Yet there have been ongoing skirmishes, including in Mong Hta, between rebel and government troops since an initial ceasefire was signed last December.

Aung Min, a minister in the President’s Office and Naypyidaw’s chief peace negotiator, promised the sub-townships of Ho Mong and Mong Hta, bordering Thailand’s Mae Hong Son and Chiang Mai provinces, to the SSA-S during peace talks but more than 40 Burmese military camps remain in these areas, according to Shan sources.

Ongoing human rights abuses, a lack of sustainable crop alternatives to the poppy and a proliferation of landmines also make the situation on the ground perilous.

“The refugees must not be used as guinea-pigs to test out the peace process,” said Sai Khur Hseng, of the Shan Sapawa Environmental Organization. “Instead of putting pressure on the refugees, international donors should pressure the Burmese government to negotiate a just and lasting peace.”

The ethnic Shan occupy a legal grey area as they cannot be granted refugee status in Thailand, contrasting with more than 100,000 ethnic Karen farther south who are eligible to be refugees. This means Koung Jor residents must instead apply for migrant worker status to officially remain in the country, find illegal employment as day laborers or rely on internal manufacturing projects set up by NGOs such as The Branch Foundation.

A statement on the Norwegian Embassy’s website published on Sept. 2 following a meeting of the MPSI, NRC, SSA-South and Shan Relief and Development Committee in Chiang Mai responded to the concerns of local CBOs by denying that refugees were ever targeted for resettlement.

Ashley South, a Burma analyst working as a consultant for the MPSI, spends around a third of his time inside Burma working with a variety of groups.

“To make it very, very clear we have absolutely no intention in doing anything with refugees,” he told The Irrawaddy. “It is very clearly not the right time for refugees to be repatriated. There are not the right conditions for refugees to return to Burma in safety and dignity and it’s not our business—MPSI is working inside the country with IDPs and other agents.”

The MPSI aims to facilitate talks between the government and armed ethnic groups through funding for consultations with local communities, needs assessments and the establishment of liaison offices near conflict zones.

“We have a number of projects now up and running in different ethnic centers of Burma,” added South. We are doing three different types of projects—the first one is support for the liaison offices which are set up under agreements with the government and the non-state armed groups; the second is community-based monitoring of the peace process and also consultations between the different armed groups and ethnic communities; and the third is needs assessments which are implemented by local organizations.”

Initial criticism of the initiative was sparked by perceptions that funds would be diverted from aid groups that assist vulnerable populations inside Thailand—an allegation strongly denied by Norwegian officials.

“There’s a lot of misinformation around but it’s important to try and actually look at what’s going on and it’s never been about kicking anyone out and we are still supporting the camps and everything,” said Ambassador Nordgaard.

Suu Kyi tells Burmese in US to look back to home country, voices cautious optimism for Myanmar

By Associated Press, Published: September 25

FORT WAYNE, Ind. — Myo Myint lost most of his right arm and right leg and several fingers fighting for the Burma army before he began working against Myanmar’s military rulers and became a political prisoner.

The 49-year-old political refugee would like to return to his homeland one day, but he doesn’t believe it will happen, even after hearing Myanmar opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi say she would work to make sure people like him could come back.

Myint was among thousands of elated supporters who greeted Suu Kyi with cheers, tears and a standing ovation Tuesday as she took to the stage at the Allen County War Memorial Coliseum in Fort Wayne, Ind., the fourth stop on her 17-day U.S. tour.
Like Suu Kyi, Myint was imprisoned in 1989. But Myint, who spent 15 years as a political prisoner, said he doesn’t believe Suu Kyi will be able to help him go back to Myanmar. That’s because he says he’s too well-known for working against the junta, having been featured in an HBO documentary called “Burma Soldier.”
“She cannot do anything. She is not in the power,” he said.

Sixty-seven-year-old Suu Kyi, who was recently elected to parliament after spending 15 years under house arrest for opposing Myanmar’s military rulers, voiced optimism for democracy in her Southeast Asian home.
“The important thing is to learn how to resolve problems. How to face them and how to find the right answers through discussion and debate,” the Nobel Laureate told the more than 5,000 people who gathered to hear her speak. Fort Wayne is home to one of the largest Burmese communities in the United States.
Myint said he lost his arm and leg in a battle with communist insurgents while serving in the Burma army. After he left the army, he switched sides, meeting with resistance groups and working against the military rulers.

“We were looking together to find a way to end the civil war,” he said.
Suu Kyi rose to prominence during a failed pro-democracy uprising to protest Burma’s military-backed regime in 1988. Thousands of the 1988 protesters were killed and tens of thousands more — including Oxford-educated Suu Kyi — spent years as political prisoners. Suu Kyi’s National League for Democracy party was subsequently stymied by the junta’s iron grip on the country.

But Suu Kyi voiced cautious hope Tuesday.

“The differences and problems we have amongst ourselves, I think we can join hands and reconcile and move forward and solve any problems,” she said. Suu Kyi delivered most of her speech — and answered most questions — in Burmese, with an English translation by video.
Since 1991, when a single Burmese refugee resettled in Fort Wayne — about two hours north of Indianapolis and 8,000 miles from Myanmar — thousands more have followed, many of them relocating under a federal program after years in refugee camps in Thailand.
After his imprisonment, Myint spent three years in Thailand before applying to become a political refugee. A brother who had fought against the Burma military rulers in 1988 already lived to Fort Wayne.
Both were excited to attend Suu Kyi’s speech Tuesday. Though Myint doesn’t believe he will ever be able to return, he was pleased to hear her say she would work to clear the way for the return of those who left.

“I would love to go back but I have no chance,” he said.
For some Burmese residents, Suu Kyi’s visit was the first tangible connection with the homeland they hope to one day return.
“I would appreciate and be very grateful if you could look back to your home country, which is Burma,” she said.

Myanmar’s half century of military rule invited crippling international sanctions. But President Thein Sein, who is visiting New York this week, has introduced political and economic reforms in recent years, and the U.S. is considering easing the main plank of its remaining sanctions, a ban on imports.
Suu Kyi, who already has met with President Barack Obama and received Congress’ highest honor, said the sanctions were effective in pushing the junta to reform but that “they should now be lifted” so Myanmar can rebuild its economy.
“We cannot only depend on external support and support of our friends from other nations. We should also depend on ourselves to reach this goal,” she said.

Side by side, opening doors

LOWELL -- Kler Htoo's race to success begins when the burning afternoon sun hits Cross Street.
The French doors to a corner room in the Cambodian Mutual Assistance Center, where local Burmese students and their tutors meet three times a week, open at 4 p.m. Htoo always arrives by 3:30.
When arriving in the U.S. in 2010 from a Burmese refugee camp in Thailand, he barely finished second grade because he kept failing his classes, said Kler, a Lowell High School freshman. Some people at the camp had tried to teach him.
"Not too much help," Kler said.
It's hard to catch up with his classmates now. He sometimes has difficulty memorizing math formulas, said his tutor, James Thawnghmung. But Kler isn't giving up.

James Thawnghmung works with Lowell High freshman Kler Htoo, 14. More tutors are needed. SUN / JULIA MALAKIE

Farther back in the room, Lowell High sophomore Nawnaw Paw often keeps her nose buried in a book. She remembers her first day of school four years ago, when her teacher took her by the arm to let her know she needed to move to a different classroom. She did know that the school bell, which she had never heard in a Burmese refugee camp, signaled time to switch classes.
The fast-talking teenager no longer needs hand signals to communicate with her classmates. Some English sentences in textbooks are still confusing to her, but she knows she can always ask a tutor who speaks her language.
"School cannot afford to teach one on one," Thawnghmung said.
And giving the students much-needed undivided attention to help them

---

The Burmese free tutoring program that a group of local immigrants launched in January continues to grow. It started out with one student who needed help and with Thawnghmung's wife, Ardeth, serving as the tutor. On the first day of school this month, 35 students showed up while only two volunteer tutors were in the room. Ardeth Thawnghmung, an associate professor of political science at UMass Lowell, has managed to recruit some additional tutors since then,

Lee Say and her husband, Leep Ber, of Lowell have their son come to the after-school tutoring program. Say, who taught in their refugee camp in Thailand, is volunteering herself. SUN / JULIA MALAKIE

Sun staff photos can be ordered by visiting our MyCapture site.

including a Burmese immigrant who is pursuing a master's degree in education at a college in Boston. But the program could use more help. The students are mostly in middle school. Burmese refugees began arriving in Lowell from refugee camps in Thailand in 2007 after decades of civil war in their homeland. Some of them have left Lowell for other refugee destinations, such as Texas, where the cost of living is lower, Ardeth Thawnghmung said.
The Burmese population in Lowell now stands at about 200, and nearly half of them are children under age 18, according to James Si Si Aung of Lowell. Aung, who works for the state Department of Public Health's refugee and immigrant-health program, volunteers many hours providing assistance to

LIFTING UP, ONE ON ONE: Ardeth Thawnghmung, left, who started the tutoring program for local Burmese, holds her son, Vaal, 6, at the Lowell center Wednesday. She's joined by her husband, James, who is working with Kler Htoo, right, a Lowell High freshman. Htoo only went to school in Burma up to the second grade. SUN / JULIA MALAKIE

fellow Burmese refugees with various needs from making doctors appointments to filling out legal documents. Some students bring their younger siblings to the tutoring program, Ardeth Thawnghmung said. On a recent Wednesday afternoon, a fourth-grader and her kindergartner brother quietly read books by their older friends. The books are written in English, and the young ones speak the language nearly flawlessly.
But things are much harder for older students. Many have academically fallen far behind their American counterparts while in refugee camps. There are fifth- and sixth-graders who can't do multiplication, Thawnghmung said. They also can't get help from their parents, most of whom never finished second grade.
Lee Say, a mother of an eighth-grader from Lowell, for one, said she only has seventh-grade education and is grateful that her child has access to free tutoring. The students cannot only get help for themselves, but also share knowledge with other Burmese students, Say said through translation by Thawnghmung.
Those who have learning disabilities never obtained the help they needed. Students who have done well in school also must overcome the language handicap and differences in learning styles between the two countries.
"In the United States, you have to do more thinking," rather than simply memorizing books, Nawnaw said.
Nawnaw is now fluent in English, but still has some difficulty understanding textbooks. Memorizing words and phrases also take her twice as long as her American classmates, she said. But that makes her want to work even harder toward her goal, to enroll college and find work that "has to something to do with medical" fields.
All students come to the tutoring program at their own will. Most walk from home. They show up without any incentives, a testament to their desire to succeed, Thawnghmung said.
Thawnghmung, who came to the U.S. in 1990 as a foreign student, and five other leaders of Lowell's Burmese community are also committed to assisting fellow immigrants in any way they can.
"We are considering forming a formal organization so we can be all part of it," Thawnghmung said.
Being together -- "that's what we are all about," she said.
The tutoring program is looking for volunteers. Tutors do not need to speak Burmese, but those who are capable of teaching middle school and high school math are particularly needed. Those interested may contact Thawnghmung at 978-452-6144 or by email at ardeth.thawnghmung@gmail.com.

Nobel Peace Prize winner San Suu Kyi speaks in Louisville

Burmese democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi told an audience at the University of Louisville on Monday that she is “cautiously optimistic” about reforms taking place in the southeast Asian nation as it emerges from decades of rule by a repressive military junta.

The 67-year-old international human-rights figure and Nobel Peace laureate also said she supported the lifting of remaining U.S. sanctions against her country despite still-fledgling democratic change and concerns about human-rights abuses.

“If we take the view that only sanctions will be able to put an end to human rights violations, it is in a sense an abrogation of responsibility” for the nation to police its own problems, said Suu Kyi, who was recently elected to parliament after 15 years under house arrest in Myanmar, formerly called Burma.

She told the audience of refugees, students and supporters that she believed the changes under way would eventually help “build the kind of Burma for which we’ve all dreamed.”

Her appearance in Louisville was part of a landmark 17-day U.S. tour and was arranged by U.S. Sen. Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., one of the ousted military regime’s strongest critics. Last week in Washington, D.C., Suu Kyi received a Congressional Gold Medal in the wake of recent democratic reforms that this year led President Barack Obama to ease an investment ban and send an ambassador to Myanmar for the first time in 22 years.

McConnell introduced Suu Kyi Monday by likening her to Gandhi and Martin Luther King Jr. and said her “quiet resolve” and “luminous heroism” made her the “most unlikely of revolutionaries.”

Kentucky is home to more than 2,400 mostly ethnic Karen refugees from Myanmar who have resettled in the state since 2006, many after spending years in refugee camps in Thailand. Dozens were in attendance Monday, although many more had sought tickets to see the soft-spoken leader they adoringly call “The Lady.”

U of L political science professor Jason Abbott, who directs the university’s Center for Asian Democracy, said “the event was tremendously important to the city and state’s Burmese populations, most of whom come from the country's ethnic minority populations who have been subject to a ceaseless campaign of violence ... for over four decades.”