Myanmar morning news for December 20 – AEC News Today

Bipartisan senators call for US ‘genocide’ label of Myanmar killings
A bipartisan group of U.S. senators on Wednesday called on Secretary of State Mike Pompeo to designate the Myanmar military’s campaign against the Rohingya Muslim minority a genocide.
— Channel News Asia

EU GSP decision may affect over one million workers in garment and fishery industries
Confederation of Trade Unions Myanmar (CTUM) Chairman Maung Maung said that over 1 million workers from the garment and fishery industries might be affected if Generalized System of Preferences (GSP) was revoked by European Union (EU).
— BNI

Facebook kicks military-linked pages off platform
Facebook has removed hundreds of pages and accounts with hidden links to Myanmar’s military, the platform said Wednesday, as the company scrambles to respond to criticism over failures to control hate speech and misinformation.
— Frontier Myanmar

ASEAN, Myanmar to formalise cooperation on refugee repatriation
The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and the government on Tuesday discussed the Terms of Reference (ToR) that will formalise their cooperation in the repatriation of refugees from northern Rakhine State living in cramped camps in Bangladesh.
— The Myanmar Times

Kachin displaced in Myanmar face land loss
La Dee, an internally displaced person (IDP) in Myanmar’s northern Kachin State, did not envisage being dispossessed of his farmlands through changes to land laws. But he and thousands of other displaced people are now afraid that this will happen.
— UCA News

‘Tone from the top’ crucial in anti-corruption: DICA
There is a lack of awareness about the transparency and corporate governance aspects of the new Companies Law, according to a senior government official, who argued for the importance of tone from the top in combating corruption.
— The Myanmar Times

Myanmar’s military in the headlines with 71st air force anniversary
Recent commemoration highlights developments within the service and the country’s wider defense modernization.
— The Diplomat

Questions raised over Chinese loans and the debt burden they cause
House of Representatives MP from Pale constituency Khin San Hlaing said that with regard to most of the yearly loan repayments being made to China, it was hard to find any remarkable projects being done with these loans.
— BNI

IDPs from Ponnagyun arrive in Buthidaung Township
The Internal Displaced Persons (IDPs) from Ponnagyun Township, Rakhine State, are sheltering at Buthidaung Township due to flash battles between the military and the Arakan Army (AA), according to the sources.
— Eleven Myanmar

Analysis: Deft diplomacy required as China, Japan court Myanmar
While the West abandons Myanmar over the human rights crisis in Rakhine, China and Japan, understanding the value of the country’s strategic location in Southeast Asia, have done the opposite, accelerating their collaboration in a bid to get the upper hand and further their own grand plans.
— The Irrawaddy

China vows to strengthen ties with Vietnam, Cambodia, Thailand, Myanmar
Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi is now in Laos for the Fourth Lancang-Mekong Cooperation Foreign Ministers’ Meeting. Wang held talks with Vietnamese, Cambodian, Thai and Myanmar officials before Monday’s meeting, aiming to boost cooperation.
— CGTN

S. Korea foundation scraps award for Suu Kyi
One of South Korean largest human rights groups will strip Myanmar’s de facto leader Aung San Suu Kyi of its 2004 prize because of her “indifference” to the atrocities against the Rohingya minority, organisers said Tuesday.
— Mizzima

Myanmar’s USDP delegation visits Vietnam
A delegation from Myanmar’s Union Solidarity and Development Party (USDP), led by Chairman U Than Htay, is paying a visit to Vietnam from December 17 to 22.
— Nhan Dan

Myanmar: 2019 humanitarian needs overview
In Kachin and Shan, ongoing armed conflict continues to result in displacement and family separation
— Relief Web (report)

WY ecstasy tablets worth over 200 million kyats seized in Maungdaw Township
The Myanmar Police Force said that it had seized 1,140,000 WY ecstasy tablets worth 228,000,000 million kyats, hidden in Ma Ma instant noodle cartoons in a room in the municipal market, Myoma West Ward, Maungdaw township.
— BNI

Inflation spikes ahead of Central Bank’s rate liberalisation plans
Inflation in Myanmar has hit a two-year high of 8.2 percent since August, up from 5.5pc last year as a result of a steep drop in the value of the local currency against the US dollar, rising food prices and a recent spike in global oil prices, according to the World Bank.
— The Myanmar Times

Kachin latest state to launch Citizen’s Budget
The government of Kachin State became the latest regional executive to publish a Citizen’s Budget. The regional parliament speaker hopes that this will mean a step forward in bridging the gap between the government and the citizens, raising transparency on public financial management.
— The Myanmar Times

CHIDB lends over Ks227 B for construction, commercial and housing sectors
Construction, Housing and Infrastructure Development Bank (CHIDB) has lent over Ks227 billion for construction, commercial and housing sectors with interest rates of 10.5, 11 and 13 per cent per annum respectively, sources said.
— Eleven Myanmar

Govt responsible for security of migrant workers: vice president
Vice President U Myint Swe said yesterday the government is responsible for ensuring the security and welfare of migrant workers in other countries.
— The Myanmar Times

Procedures still causing delays in sending marine workers to Thailand
Although a memorandum of understanding has been signed between Myanmar and Thailand for sending Myanmar marine workers, only a few hundreds of workers could have been sent due to the procedures for ensuring legitimate entry into Thailand, said Thein Swe, Union Minister for Labour, Immigration and Population.
— Eleven Myanmar

Magwe aims to replace pigeon peas with cotton
The Magwe Region government will arrange the growing of cotton instead of pigeon peas in coming growing season, Regional Minister for Agriculture, Livestock and Irrigation U Win Maw Htay told The Myanmar Times. Pigeon peas are one of the crops that lost access to the Indian market after the country changed regulations for the import of pulses and beans earlier this year.
— The Myanmar Times

International tender for Yangon-Pyay railway upgrade to be held next year
State-owned Myanma Railway (MR) will hold an international tender for the upgrade of the Yangon-Pyay railway “within the next 8-9 months,” a spokesperson from MR said. Work is expected to commence in 2020 or 2021 and take three years to complete.
— The Myanmar Times

Local fuel prices fall by 14% to 27% in two months
Local fuel oil prices have decreased by 14 percent to 27 percent over the past two months due to decreasing global oil prices and slight fluctuation in the dollar price , according to petrol stations.
— Eleven Myanmar

Sinopec makes second connection to China-Myanmar pipeline
Sinopec started supplying regasified LNG through a second pipeline connection to PetroChina’s China-Myanmar gas pipeline on 9 December.
— Interfax Global Energy

GS E&C wins bridge construction deal in Myanmar
South Korean builder GS Engineering & Construction has won a construction deal in Yangon, the biggest city and former capital of Myanmar, the firm said Wednesday.
— The Korea Herald

Deloitte appoints new country leaders for Singapore and Myanmar
Deloitte Southeast Asia has appointed new Country Managing Partners for Singapore and Myanmar practices, with Cheung Pui Yuen and Aye Cho to assume the roles from the beginning of next year.
— Consultancy Asia

Myanmar continues efforts to generate international demand for local gems
The Second Yangon International Gems and Jewelry Fair is set to take place in Yangon’s Lotte Hotel from January 9 to 13, according to the Gems and Jewellery Entrepreneurs Association
— The Myanmar Times

Declining price of coffee beans ‘no cause for alarm’
U Win Aung Kyaw, chair of the Ywar Ngan Coffee Association, said coffee farmers who are about to harvest the beans this month need not worry because the price will soon stabilise.
— The Myanmar Times

Myanmar government approves 35 small-scale projects for Rakhine state
The government has approved 35 projects to be carried out by the United Nations Development Program (UND) and the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) in Rakhine State.
— United News of India

Remittances by Myanmar migrant workers hit over $1428 m
According to the remittances to the Central Bank of Myanmar via the State-owned banks and private banks between April, 2016 to June, 2018, the remittance money by 1,454,867 Myanmar migrant workers hit US$1428.468 million.
— Eleven Myanmar

Myanmar to accelerate 5G development despite risks
Common challenges for developing nations in their digital transformation including the lack of infrastructure and technical knowhow may not be able to deter Myanmar from embracing the fifth generation of wireless technology known as 5G, according to speakers at the Myanmar 5G Forum2018 held on Wednesday.
— Eleven Myanmar

DPI Holdings plans to venture into new markets like Vietnam, Myanmar
Aerosol spray paints maker DPI Holdings Bhd is seeking a listing on Bursa Malaysia’s ACE Market in early January, raising RM31.6 million at a market capitalisation of RM121.7 million, with most of the proceeds allocated for business expansion.
— The Edge Markets

Prisons built for 66,000 people are holding 92,000, says watchdog
Reducing chronic overcrowding in Myanmar’s prisons is an essential first step to reforming the criminal justice system, says a report by civil society group, Assistance Association of Political Prisoners (Burma).
— Frontier Myanmar

Rohingya women stitch their lives back together
Through all the turmoil and bloodshed that the Rohingya community has had to face, some have found a ray of hope in an inspiring initiative as they rebuild and rehabilitate their lives.
— The Diplomat

A teak tycoon’s lasting bequest
Two imposing Buddhist shrines at a monastery in a quiet Kayin State village are the legacy of a feisty teak tycoon who took on the Irrawaddy Flotilla Company and lost.
— Frontier Myanmar

Feature photo Thierry Falise/ILO

This week’s Myanmar morning news feature photo acknowledges International Human Solidarity Day, December 17.

Find our previous morning news feature photos in the AEC News Today Morning News Feature Photos gallery where you will find a pictorial display of daily life throughout the Asean Economic Community (AEC).

Myanmar morning news by AEC News Today is your one stop source for Myanmar news on matters of governance and policies affecting Asean business communities. It is published M-F by AEC News Today: Governance, not government; policies not politics.

The following two tabs change content below.


A professional photographer of 20 years experience, Roy has worked as editor of newspaper mastheads across Australia, from Albany in the south-west to Torres Strait in the north-east.

In 2009 he was Lifestyle Editor of Cambodia’s only award-winning newspaper, The Phnom Penh Post, and Deputy Editor at the launch of its weekly magazine, 7Days.

He holds a Postgraduate Diploma in Journalism and a Bachelor of Arts in Photomedia.



Support independent media by sharing


Thank You
https://aecnewstoday.com/2018/myanmar-morning-news-for-december-20-2/