Here is another blogger with the same interest as me :-) --- technology, Burma, amd freedom.

http://dathana.blogspot.com/

ALOHA 20

I had a chance to visit Phuket to check out Burmese Tsunami victims. I wrote about my experiences in my Aloha.

Here is a picture of Burmese Tsunami victims:

Lwin Moe in front of Similana resort in Phuket

Fellowship with Mon families in Phuket

Having dinner with Mon families in Phuket

I left from Lao today. I finished my contract with Digital Divide Data (http://www.digitaldividedata.org). We had farewell on the 12th. Here are two students of mine from DDD. The girl is Metta and the guy is Somkhith.

Grace singing, Thongchangh and Lwin Moe

A restroom with food advertisement :-)

A close-up of Dimsum advertisement :-)

Freedom of Dress?

I know many university students in Burma don't want to wear uniforms :-) Here is what Bogyoke Aung San and U Thant debated about the dress code in school

http://khitpyaing.org/modules.html?name=Sections&op=viewarticle&artid=38 from the New Era Journal.

At my old school, Yenangyaung, this system of uniform dress is not foisted upon us; the teachers first set the example and we follow it voluntarily. In my case, the idea of brotherhood is an ordered thing to me after I have adopted the uniform dress of Pinni, and I come to know only then that it is not a social stigma on anybody to wear Pinni. I remember how my friends and myself paraded together with our heads held up high wearing the newly adopted uniform clothes in going out for boating, to football matches, examination halls and on National day. We didn't then think that our personal freedom had tremendously impaired. And this brings me to say again that freedom of dress is not essential to the development of personal freedom in the school children.

Updates about the blasts in Burma

http://khitpyaing.org/modules.html?name=Sections&op=viewarticle&artid=58 That news piece is in Burmese, though.

This piece of information was from one of the forums on the Internet. They are talking about Tay Za, a business tycoon in Burma. I later found out that the poster got this info from the Irrawaddy.

He is not yet 40 years old but Tay Za reach already extends far in Burma's economy. As President and Managing Director of Htoo Trading Company, he is a major player in Burma's tourism, logging, real estate, and hotel and housing development industries. He founded Htoo Trading with an initial investment of US $333,333 in the early 1990s to export timber. By 1993, he expanded into supplying aircraft parts. His Myanmar Avia Export is Burma's sole representative of Russia's Export Military Industrial Group (MAPO) and of the Russian helicopter company Rostvertol. He was instrumental in helping the junta buy MiG-29 fighter jets and helicopters from Russia and is suspected of selling smaller arms also.

Htoo Transportation Services is involved in heavy duty land and marine transport services and his Aye Shwe Wah Co owns rice mills as well as a farm machinery and servicing company. Htoo Trading is involved in building the controversial Nanmyint Tower in the world heritage site Pagan. But this year journals in Rangoon have been told not to report on Htoo companies, but no reason was given.

Htoo and Treasure Beach runs hotel and housing projects in Rangoon, including the Espace Avenir Serviced Apartments, which overlook Rangoon University. Espace is rumored to be a favorite concubine headquarters for high ranking military officers. Its website touts the complex as "a good reason to stay home surrounded in luxury and command your business empire."

Te Za and Htoo Trading were named in a recent report on deforestation in Burma by the UK-based advocacy group Global Witness. The report claimed Htoo's logging and resource extraction activities are responsible for much of the environmental degradation in Burma, particularly in "brown areas" controlled by the Karen National Union around Nyaunglaybin Township in Pegu Division. Among Htoo Trading's four directors are Sit Taing Aung, son of former Forestry Minister U Aung Phone, and Te Za's wife, Thida Zaw.

Te Za owns a home in Singapore and recently built a large mansion in Rangoon, which was designed by a British architect and reportedly has been furnished with $1 million worth of Versace furniture.

Although now conducting business as a civilian, Te Za is no stranger to the army. He attended the Defense Services Academy in Maymyo before dropping out in his final year to marry Thida Zaw. The couple has three children. Family members rejected rumors the marriage is on the rocks, but did admit that the eldest daughter of junta chairman Sr-Gen Than Shwe has been courting the young tycoon. Te Za's father, Lt-Col Myint Swe, a retired military researcher in his 80s, is considered one of the founders of Burma's Military Intelligence Service in the 1960s.

And another piece: (this one seems to be the poster's own writings because the language is quite rude.)

Tayza owns 'myanmar shopping mall' on Sule Pagoda road next to central fire station. It must be bombed in stead of City Mart. TayZa'residence is near corner of Inya Road and University avenue. He built a tall viewing tower in Bagan. Our ancient heritage doesn't match entirely with that modern structure. Tayza doe[s]n't even deserve to be born. He is blood sucker, Than Shwe's C0CK Sucker.

".... former 'diplomatic store' (Than Ta Man Kone Tike) on Sule pagoda road, next to Fire station Tower. Tayza bought that place from his father in law and renovated as one of a kind shopping mall in yangon. The goodies are sold with US dollars. He use this business and other beach hotels business for money laundering. He is actually former boy friend of than shwe's daughter, Kyi Kyi Shwe. Now Tay Za has bought Bauk htaw Mhat Tan Yone ( military record office) and there will be demolishing process starting now. He is mastermind behind trading of myanmar teak with russian and poland helicopters. One day, he will end up with the same fate as Khin Nyunt."

Burma Bomb Blast

http://english.dvb.no/news.html?id=4670

http://www.thestandard.com.hk/stdn/std/Weekend/GE07Jp01.html

The article talked about Burma and China border and what's going on there.

I quoted some from the article

Ruili is the underside of China's boom, a gathering place for gamblers, prostitutes, drug addicts and smugglers. Here on the frontier, lawlessness rules.

One of them is Bo Saung, a petite young woman slouching against a tree. Her pale face has been made up carelessly, her cheeks covered in patches of thanaka, the yellowish powder worn as a cosmetic by Burmese women, and her eyebrows lie flat like two dead worms. She clutches bony hands over a pink jacket to cover her protruding sarong-wrapped belly.

Bo Saung is five months pregnant, so she's selling her body at rock-bottom prices: Five yuan per session. She needs money for heroin, food and rent. The 30-year-old Burmese has been here for 11 years.

http://english.dvb.no/news.html?id=4570

Maung Myo Min (Yin-Twin-Phyit) told the situation about Burma as follows:

"In order to penetrate the international market, we need to compete with the international films. We didnt become film directors by watching Burmese films, but by watching foreign films. We had to watch foreign films all our lives to become directors. As we wont be able to watch them anymore, we are feeling rather strange. I am becoming a bit of a psycho, I think. As we do not have film school and the like here, for example, not being able to watch foreign films makes me feel that we are not current and I think I am feeling rather psycho. Then, we are not allowed to read books published recently. There are quite a lot of young people like me who are feeling rather psycho like me with this feeling of being out of date. I am a bit worried that young people might feel dejected by it."

I admire Burmese artists in a sense that they try their best with the resources they have.

Today I read the news about "The Voice" journal

http://www.irrawaddy.org/aviewer.asp?a=4569&z=153

The news said that the Voice has been banned for a month because of the front page story published on March 28, 2005. The news is about Vietnam's withdrawal from water festival celebrations in Mandalay.