Euro Burma 10 Yr Report[1]

8/9/2019 Euro Burma 10 Yr Report[1]

1/52

IntroductIon

EBoS

concEptual

FramEwork

FundInG

StructurE

oF EBo actIvItIES

EBo tarGEt

GroupS

and prIorItIES

advocacy

womEn youthEthnIc

mInorItIES

rElIGIouS

mInorItIES

kEy achIEvEmEntS

and challEnGES

StratEGIc

analySES, polIcy

BrIEFInGS

and nEwS

Support

For polItIcal

conSultatIonS to

rESolvE conFlIctS

Support to dEvElop

common StratEGIES

and prIorItIES

Support to EnaBlE

thE plannInG

oF proGrammES

Support For

IntErnShIpS and

capacIty-BuIldInG

proGrammES

Support For mEdIa

and InFormatIon

projEctS

BackGround

oF thE nrp

mandatE

oF thE nrp

vISIon

oF thE nrp

GoalS

oF thE nrp

typE and naturE

oF nrp actIvItIES

how doES

thE nrp work

thE nrp oFFIcEnrp proGrammE

commIttEEconcluSIon

orGanISatIonS

FundEd

By EBo/nrp

FInancIal

rEport

rEport on ovEr a dEcadE oF actIvItIES

Euro-Burma OfficeWorking to promote democracy in Burma

03 131104 05

171614 1915

2120

25 353127 28

393837 4037

4341 4440 46


2/52


3/52

02 About us

10 Targets and priorities

18 Key achievements and challenges

34 The National Reconciliation Programme

42 Conclusion

rEport on ovEr a dEcadE oF actIvItIES

Euro-Burma OfficeWorking to promote democracy in Burma


4/52

2 Euro-Burma Oce | Activity ReportAbout us


5/52

Euro-Burma Oce | Activity Report 3

IntroductionEuro-Burma Ofce (EBO) in Brussels is the

operations centre o the Associates to DevelopDemocratic Burma Inc (ADDB), a Canadian

not-or-prot corporation.

EBO was established in 1997 with support rom

the European Parliament, the European Com-

mission, the Friedrich-Ebert-Stitung (FES),

and the Burmese democracy movement.

The aims of EBO are to:

Help the Burmese democracy movementprepare or a transition to democracy, and

Keep the international community

inormed about Burma.

EBO has been unded by the Swedish

International Development Agency

(Sida) directly, and through the Olo

Palme International Center, the Danish

International Development Agency (Danida)

through the Danish Burma Committee, the

European Commission, Canadian Internation-

al Development Agency (CIDA) through Ca-

nadian Lutheran World Relie, the Norwegian

Ministry o Foreign Aairs, Trocaire

(Ireland), FriedrichEbertStitung, the

Norwegian Burma Council, the Institute orPublic Administration (Irela nd), Evangelische

Missionswerks, the Dag Hammarskjold Foun-

dation, the National Endowment or Democ-

racy (USA), People in Need (Czech Republic)

and the National Coalition Government o the

Union o Burma ( NCGUB).

The Associates to Develop Democratic

Burma Inc was ounded in 1990 and incorpo-

rated in 1994 in Canada.

The objectives of the ADDB are to:

a

Restore democracy and respector human rights in Burma.

b Encourage and enable all in Burmato participate in the democratic process.

c Facilitate the development o democraticvalues and traditions in Burma.

d Monitor and continue to promotedemocracy in Burma in thepost-dictatorship era.

e Help uture governments and the Burmesepublic consider, analyze and ormulatesocial, economic and other policies criticalto a democracy.

The ADDB was initiall y unded by membership

ees and the Canadian International Centre orHuman Rights and Democratic Development

(nowRights & Democracy).

Activities of the EBO over

the past 13 years have included:

a Strategic analyses, policy briengs andrecommendations, and news updates;

b Support or intra- and inter-ethnicpolitical consultations to resolve conficts(principally through the NationalReconciliation Programme - NRP);

c Support or broad-based political

inrastructures to developcommon strategies and priorities(principally through the NRP);

d Support or a primary database to enablethe planning o a comprehensive humanresources development programme;

e Support or internships andcapacity building programmes;

f Support or media and inormation projects.

Priority target groups

of the EBO have included:

Political parties, political activists

and organizations;Civil society and community-basedorganizations;

The international community especially theUnited Nations and relevant governments.

Within each o the groups identied, the EBO

has paid special attention to disenranchised

communities, in particular, women, youth,

ethnic minorities and religious minorities.

Domestic (within the Burmese community)

and international advocacy components are

integrated into all areas o EBO's activities.


6/52

4 Euro-Burma Oce | Activity Report

EBO works on the basis that development (poverty eradication),

human rights and security (peace) are all intertw ined and interde-pendent. One cannot be achieved without the other.

ConceptualFramework

This statement by Ko Annan refects

the growing consensus that human

rights and poverty eradication are

inetricably linked. In the past, human

rights and development cooperation tended

to be approached by dierent actors through

dierent strategies and policies. NGOs

themselves traditionally split into two di-

erent categories - those promoting human

rights (most o them ocusing on individual

civil rights and democratisation) and those

involved in development cooperation work.

Since the collapse o the bi-polar world at

the end o twentieth century these two areas

o work have increasingly begun to overlap,acknowledging that human rights, individual

as well as collective (political & civil, as well

as social, cultural and economic rights), are

at the heart o democratic transormation, as

well as poverty eradication.

A rights-based approach creates a ramework

or a more inclusive, participatory way o

doing development, and highlighting the

aBout uS

Kofi AnnanIn larger reedom:

towards development,

security and human

rights or all

Secretary-General

UN, 2005

The world must advance the causes o security,development and human rights together, otherwisenone will succeed. Humanity will not enjoy securitywithout development, it will not enjoy developmentwithout security, and it will not enjoy either withoutrespect or human rights.

accountability o governments and other

development actors to ull obligations and

responsibilities towards their citizens accord-

ing to international commitments 1.

EBO is deeply aware o the benets o this

approach and although the ocus o its work is on

democratization, peace and reconciliation and

good governance, it recognizes the importance

o creating policy that is coherent with those

working towards poverty alleviation in Burma.

Thereore, EBO sees itsel as a bridge between

the development world and actors working

towards democracy and human rights, knowing

that both parties are essential to the achievement

o a long-term transition to democracy in Burma,

where the citizens o Burma will be ree rom

want, ear and discrimination, including a

holistic approach to human rights in its own

activities and priorities.

1 Taken rom CONCORDs Rights-based approach sub-

group, discussion paper on a rights-based approach to de-

velopment, June 2006


7/52


Both National Reconcilia-

tion Programme (NR P)and EBO projects

ollowed the same guidelines

and had the same reporting re-

quirements. Projects that could

not be unded through the NRP

process either because they did

not all within the mandate o

the NRP or were more politi-

cally sensitive (security condi-

tions due to implementation

inside Burma), were reerred by

the NRP to EBO or unding. In the same way, less politically

sensitive projects and those that were reconciling in nature

were reerred by EBO to the NRP or unding.

A major dierence between the two was that the NRP pub-

lished all its guidel ines and requirements, while EBO did not,

although they were essentially the same. The NRP unding

decision process was and continues to be very transparent and

accountable through its 18-member Programme Committee

o stakeholders, which makes all o its decisions public. The

EBO decision process was not ormally recorded (or security

reasons) although a large number o stakeholders were con-

sulted inormally.

Another dierence was that while NRP had dedicated project

and administrative sta in Thailand to monitor and report on

NRP activ ities, EBO did not have the same level o stang due

to concerns about high overheads in Europe. This sometimes

led to a less-than-satisactory reporting process or EBO

direct unded projects.

To refect the increasing compleities in programming,

administ ration and security, it became necessar y and prudent

to review the management structure and administrative

capacity o EBO. In response, the management and adminis-

trative structures we re-organised as ollows:

In the beginning, the overall

EBO programme wasmanaged as ollows:

Funding Structureof EBO activities

EURO-BURMA OFFICE:

A COORDINATED STRUCTUR E

Associates to Develop Democratic Burma, Inc (ADDB) in

Canada is the legal headquarters o EBO. Board meetings and

annual general meetings o the members o ADDB usually

take place in Canada. There are currently 18 members o

ADDB, o which 5 represent the boa rd.

The office in Brussels

The administrative centre o EBO is based in Brussels. It

provides inormation to the international community through

its website (daily news, brieng papers and political analyses).

It also coordinates donor unding or projects which take place

in Burma or on its borders. It assists and supports Burmese

organisations to lobby the European Institut ions when needed.

It acilitates EBO analysis and research.

The office in New Delhi

EBO India became unctional on 1 January 20 07 and is based

in New Delhi. EBO India develops contacts with Members

o Parliament (MPs), politicians, bureaucrats, academics,

journalists and activists in India. EBO India also disseminates

inormation by sending out EBO analyses and brieng papers,

as well as relevant statements by other Burmese organizat ions.

The oce has also acilitated visits to India or the ENC and

other organisations such as the Womens League o Chinland,Burma Online Library, Christian Solidarity Worldwide,

Humanitarian Aid Relie Trust, Burma Assist, and Dutch

Young Socialists . EBO India also works on research activities

such as giving talks, as well as meeting with researchers,

students, lmmakers, etc.

The office in Chiang Mai

In Chiang Mai, the EBO has an administrative role along

with project coordination with project implementers. The aim

o the oce in Thailand is to collect narrative and nancial

reports rom project partners and ensure they are correct

and can be reported to donors. It also aims to ma ke sure that

all the decisions o the various programme committees are

adhered to, and that donor requirements are met. The project

managers and ocers are also in charge o monitoring projects

and making sure that the unds are spent according to plan.

aBout uS

ADDB Inc(Montreal)

Euro-Burma Ofce(Brussels)

EBO India

(New Delhi)

EBO Foundation

(Chiang Mai)

EBODirector

nrpci

nrppe

Fiedie

oepes


8/52


ADDBBoard

Executive Director

EBOProject Ofcer

OperationsDirector

EBO IndiaProject Manager

EBO FoundationProject Manager

EBO BelgiumProject Manager

Operations

Overamanagementand governance

OperationsDirector

Admin & Europe

DirectorResearchDirector

FinanceDirector

NRPProject Ofcer Civil SocietyProject Ofcer

NRPprojects

Civi Societyprojects

Projects onwestern borders

EBO directunded projects

aBout uS


9/52


Admin & EuropeDirector

Administration

EBO IndiaManager

EBO FoundationManager

EBO BelgiumManager

FinanceDirector

Finance

EBO IndiaAccountant

EBO FoundationAccountant

EBO BelgiumAccountant

NRPprojects



EBO directunded projects

ProjectBookkeepers

ProjectBookkeepers

ProjectBookkeepers

ProjectBookkeepers

Consultant


EBO Directunded projects

NRPAdmin Ofcer

Civil SocietyAdmin Ofcer

NRPprojects


aBout uS


10/52


AUDITORS

ADDB accounts in Canada are audited by Michael A. King,

C.A. o London, Ontario.

EBO accounts in Brussels, Belgium

are audited by:

a Norwegian Funds SCPRL Joiris, Rousseaux & Co,Reviseurs dentreprises associs, Mons, Belgium.

b Swedish Funds Price Waterhouse CoopersOhrlings, Stockholm, Sweden.

c Other Funds Price Waterhouse CoopersOhrlings, Stockholm, Sweden.

EBO accounts in New Delhi, India, are audited by P rice

Waterhouse Coopers Ohrlings, S tockholm, Sweden.

EBO accounts in Chiang Mai,

Thailand, are audited by:

a Danish NRP Funds Mr DhanatatHattakitthatree authorized auditor no. 5018,Excellent Consultant, Bangkok, Thailand

b EIDHR Funds Price WaterhouseCoopers Ohrlings, Stockholm, Sweden.

c Other Funds Price Waterhouse CoopersOhrlings, Stockholm, Sweden.

aBout uS


11/52


EBOFundedProjects

For security reasons, EBO

consults only with relevantadvisors or each project.

5-memberEBO Project

Committee

EBO Paneo Resource

peope

I necessary,the poject

can berecommended

to other unders

EBO OfceProject

Proposas

Other

Funders

EBO FUNDING DECISIONS:

Decisions on unding activities along the

borders o Burma (in Thailand, China, India

and Bangladesh) are made through already

eisting str uctures such as the National Recon-

ciliation Programme (NRP) and committees /

resource groups or other projects.

EBO direct-unded projects and activities

inside Burma that are more sensitive in terms

o the security o the implementers are carried

out in a low-prole and condential manner in

ormal consultations with local stakeholders

and relevant members o the EBO panel o

resource people.

For proposals submitted to the NRP, please

see page 40.

aBout uS


12/52


Targets

and priorities


13/52


Euro-Burma OfficeEBO target groups and priorities

EBO has activities and

operations in the ollowing

geographic locations:

Burma

Europe

AsiaNorth America

1

2

3

4

1 Harn Yawnghwe, Executive Director o Euro-Burma Oce with Padoh Saw Ba Thinn, Karen National Union2 EBO Consultation December 2009 3/4 Working group discussions at EBO consultation 2008

Priority target groups

o EBO include:

Political parties, politicalactivists and organizations,

Civil society and community-based organizations,

The international communityespecially the United Nationsand relevant governments.


14/52


In Burma, political parties and civil society

groups are not commonly known or theirpolicies. They tend to be known by their

leaders who usually come rom reputable

amil ies. Decisions are taken by the leader and

ollowed by the party or organisation. When

there is a change in leadership, party members

may decide to stay with the old leadership

and orm another organization. Furthermore,

many societies in Burma are traditional and

hierarchical. Thereore, the process o democ-

ratisation in Burma sometimes has to overcome

cultural barriers and can be time-consuming.

EBO is endeavouring, step by step, to supportleaders who want to see a change in the stat us

quo and who understand the importance o the

ormation o democratic political parties and

civil society organisations based on principles

and the rights o individuals.

EBO believes strongly in the process o democ-

ratization, rather than placing the emphasis

on dramatic, overnight changes. With this in

mind, the long term development and capacity

building o Burmese political groups and

individuals and civil society in Burma is at the

core o the EBO approach. The ocus is on thecreation o policy towards a transition. The

international community can then support this

strategic vision through the dierent tools

they have at their disposal.

In his recent book, David Steinberg states that:

Democracy is neither inevitable nor inaccessible inMyanmar. I it were to come, it would not be instantly bornully ormed rom the head o some Zeus-like person orevent. Democracies evolve, oten in unbalanced directions,and political cultures also evolve to accommodate and thenencourage democratic continuity and deepening. A politicalsystem recognized internationally as a democracy is cer-tainly possible over time in that country. But to expect thateven a peaceul transer o power to a real civilian regimewould automatically, ipso-acto, result in such a system,which seems to be the unsophisticated international mantra

o the moment, is more than unrealistic. That is not to claimthat there should not be political change, just that evolutionis ar more likely than revolution in this instance. The rangeo criteria to dene democracy is complex, and elections are just one element in that process [...] Because democracyis a process, there are intermediate stages that might beencouraged. The most obvious is some orm o politicalpluralism. Fostering this development is possible throughthe assistance in the development o civil society [...] Evenunder the present administration, these organizations havegrown [...] and they were give a

great impetus by Cyclone Nargis[...] For them to have an impact ondemocratic growth, there needs tobe close interplay among networkso such organizations.

David SteinbergBurma/Myanmar:What Everyone Needs

to Know, Oord

University Press, 2010

pp 172-175

Within each o the groups identied,

the EBO pays special attention to the

disenranchised, particularly:

Women

YouthEthnic minorities

Religious minorities

One o EBOs aspirations is to draw in

groups that are let out o the democratic

political process. The word disenran-

chised communities reers to groups o

people who were not previously included

in the negotiation process o the demo-

cratic movement.

For eample, in 1990, ater the National

League or Democracy (NLD) won the

elections in 1990, international unding

agencies began unding the Burmese

democracy movement. However, ethnic

nationality groups were generally not

unded. Even the National Council o

the Union o Burma (NCUB) could not

be unded because its membership

included the National Democratic Front

(NDF) a key ethnic organization.

The ear amongst unders was that i

ethnic groups are unded, they could be

contributing to armed confict because

some ethnic groups are armed.

In 1997, these groups continued to be

ecluded rom political discussions. The

inclusion and active part icipation o these

groups in the democratic polit ical process

then became an important point o ocus

or EBO. Thanks to the will and energy o

these ormerly disenranchised groups,

their activities have been so successul

that they are now widely accepted as

political partners in negotiations. The

blossoming o this new landscape within

the disenranchised communities is very

encouraging or the uture o Burma, and

the quality o participation rom young

people and women in politics is deeply

linked to the sustainability o a peaceul,

democratic society. This achievement is

o great signicance when one considers

that 10 years ago the movement was

almost eclusively led by older men who

were leaders o either political parties or

military groups.

tarGEtS and prIorItIES


15/52


With the empowerment o disenranchised

communities and a rights-based approach atthe heart o the overall EBO programme, ad-

vocacy naturally becomes a mainstreamed and

integrated element o all EBO activities.

A common denition and understanding o

advocacy is:A set o targeted actions in support

o a cause or an issue, because one wants to

build support or that cause or issue, infuence

others to support it, or try to infuence or change

legislation that aects it.

There are a number of different

advocacy techniques and

strategies including:

a Awareness raising and public campaignson a particular issue;

b Lobbyingpolicy makers and decisionmakers to infuence legislation or tomobilize resources to meet an unmet need;

c Networking bringing togetherindividuals or groups to work togetheror a common purpose;

d Data collection and researchto promoteor acilitate a particular issue

e Facilitation o community level attitudinal

and behavioural change.

AdvocacyIndividual elements o these var ious advocacy

strategies are refected in detail in the reporto each activit y/priority o the EBO, which are

both domestic and international.

Since 1997, EBO has acilitated the lobbying

eorts o the Burmese democracy movement,

including or eample, the National Coalition

Government o the Union o Burma (NCGUB),

the Womens League o Burma (WLB), the

Ethnic Nationalities Council (ENC), youth or-

ganisations, and civil society organisations, etc.

EBO has also enabled the individuals and

organisations in the Burmese democracy

movement to carry out necessary research

and data collection to acilitate advocacy, as

discussed in later sections.

Networking towards a common goal is a key

element o every EBO activity a nd the process

o changing attitudes and behaviours is a

crucial element o the EBO programme, as

also demonstrated in later sections.



16/52


Despite Aung San Suu Kyis leadership o the National League or

Democracy (NLD), women had long remained a minority within t heleadership o the Burmese democracy and ethnic movements. Prior

to 1999 there was no organized independent organisation representing

women. Women were eectively ecluded rom the political process.

However, women orm the backbone o Burmese society and needed to be

more involved in the politica l process. Thereore, EBO has made it a priority

to und organisations and projects to support the inclusion o women in the

democratic movement.

WomenEBO unded the rst orum o womens organi-

sations, which paved the way or the creationo a governance structure and the overall

programme objectives o the Womens Leag ue

o Burma (WLB), which was successully

established on 9 December 1999.

Today, through the WLB, women are

represented on all major committees and

delegations. Although EBO still unds a small

percentage o their annual budget (appro

15%), the WLB has become such a crucial and

dynamic organisation that they now receive

unds rom many dierent donors. They actively

contribute to policy development and thedevelopment o strategic objectives ensuring

that the perspective and needs o women

are refected. The participation o women

in a broad range o activities is now taken or

granted. Until WLB was ormed, women had

no major role in the political decision making

process, and the idea o including women in the

movement has changed the dynamics o the

movement. The Ethnic Nationalities Council

(ENC) has made a quota o 30% o the board or

women, and the WLB is a member o the ENCs

Strategy Coordination Committee (SCC). The

acceptance o the role o women in politicalinrastructure especially decision making

bodies has certainly changed the dynamics

o the movement and the society's perception

o the role o women. There is not yet gender

parity in leadership structures, but the dynamic

has certainly changed over the last 10 years.

1/2 An NRP unded meeting:photos taken ater successullyorming the WLB on 9 Dec 1999

WLB and its member organisa-

tions are part o the demo-

cratic movements lobbying

to seek support rom the international

community or meaningul political

change in Burma. The WLB and its mem-

ber organisations have also had a major

impact on international perceptions o

the political problems o Burma and

the abusive role o the State Peace and

Development Council (SPDC). Women

delegates are included in all delegations

and lobbying activities. Policy papers

developed by the WLB and Mon, Shan,

Kachin, Karen, Chin, Palaung and Lahu

womens groups have had a major impact

on the political process both domesti-

cally and internationally. For eample,

the publication oLicense to Rape by the

Shan Womens Action Network (SWAN)

and the WLB had a major world-wide

impact in increasing the international

prole o the political and human rights

abuses by the SPDC.

The Shadow Report presented in 2008 by

women rom various Burmese womens

groups through the WLB to the UN

CEDAW (Committee on the Elimination

o all orms o Discrimination Against

Women) is another eample o this.

The report met international standards

(many o their recommendations were

taken up by the ocial committee

report) and showed the level o womens

awareness on gender equity issues

related to Burma, which was much

higher than the Burmese governmental

NGOs sent to the CEDAW review by the

military regime.

1

2



17/52


Youth are also an important

constituency in the movement.Like womens groups, EBO has

empowered youth in their activities, as

well as encouraging active partic ipation

in policy making processes. Two youth

umbrella organizations, the Nationali-

ties Youth Forum (NY Forum) and the

Students and Youth Congress o Burma

(SYCB), are members o the Strat-

egy Coordination Committee (SCC)

and play an important role in Strategic

Consultation Meetings (SCM). The

constituencies represented within the

democratic movement have been e-

tended by the involvement o the youth

groups. Recognizing and accepting the

role o youth in political inrastructure

has not only given more legitimacy to

the broader mandate o the movement,

but has also mobilized a huge sector

o the population to get involved in the

political process.

The EBO, primarily through the NRP,

has supported the NY Forum anorganisation where youth rom dierent

ethnic backgrounds work together on

areas o common interest such as the

environment, land conscation, human

rights, youth capacity building, etc.

For eample, EBO has supported the

Karen Youth Organization (KYO) to

do a Youth Political Advocacy training.

EBO had originally hoped that the

youth, like the women, would be able to

orm an umbrella organisation like the

Womens League o Burma, however

this has proven to be very dicult given

the many dierent youth organisations

even within one ethnic group. The

strategy now is to enable youth to work

together on specic issues, such as

environmental challenges. While ethnic

youth have achieved recognition in the

Burmese democratic movement, it is

worth mentioning that they have also

established and maintained ecellent

grassroots networks within their com-munities inside Burma.

EBO has unded, among others, the

ollowing youth organizations - Stu-

dents and Youth Congress o Burma

(SYCB), Nationalities Youth Forum

(NYF), All Kachin Students and Youth

Union (AKSYU), Chin Students &

Youth Federation (CSY F), Karen Youth

Organization (KYO) through Karen

State Coordinating Body, Karenni

National Youth Organization (KNYO),

Kayan New Generation Youth (KNGY),Mon Youth Progressive Organization

(MYPO), Shan Youth Committee, Shan

Youth Power, Kaw Dai (Shan State

Youth), All Arakan Students and Youth

Congress (A ASYC), United Lahu Youth

Organizat ion (ULYO).

Youth

3Mon Youth Seminar 2009 4 Karen Youth Conerence

As an ethnic youth alliance, NY Forum is being recognized by otheralliances as an important group o Burmas democracy and ethnic movement.

NY Forum has chance to be member o SCC and can have the same levelo policy making with other alliances. Ethnic youths voice are recognizedand welcomed. NY Forum is ully participating, cooperating and takingresponsibility in the SCC, SCM... NY Forum is also taking responsibility as acoordinator to orm broad based alliances o movement.

AungNaing Soe

General

Secretary

o NY Forum

3 4



18/52


19/52


EBO believes that the empowerment and

inclusion o religious minorities in thepolitical process are very important

or the movement in order to establish a

durable solution to decade-long problems.

The movement has positively responded to

this and has started to apply this concept to

reality. Instead o ecluding minorities, EBO

has worked to include these communities into

the political process. An eample o this is the

work with Rohingya communities. The Araka n

people live in Ara kan state which borders Chin

State, Burma and Bangladesh. The majority o

the Arakanese are either Buddhist or Muslim,

and there have been conficts between these

two religious groups in the past. Prior to 1999,

the our Arakan polit ical organisations did not

talk to each other and at times ought each

other. The Muslim Rohingya in Arakan State

are denied citizenship by the SPDC, and prior

to 1999 they were ignored by the Burmese

democracy movement. The Rohingyas attempts

to be recognized and included in the political

mainstream were rejected.

Beginning in 2000, EBO began working with

dierent Rohingya groups to build internal

unity and to include them in discussions aboutthe uture Union o Burma. In 2008, the Arakan

Rohingya Council was ormed. It includes the

three main Rohingya political organisations

and civil society actors. Through negotiations

with EBO, the Organisation o the IslamicConerence (OIC) has decided to sponsor a

Rohingya Unity Seminar and has tasked EBO

to work with appropriate civil society and

political leaders in order to encourage the

unity and reconciliation process. In principle,

the Arakan National Council (ANC) has also

agreed to work together with the Rohingya.

EBO has also provided nancial support or the

advocacy work o the Arakan Project, which

conducts valuable research and advocates

on behal o the Rohingya (both those inside

Burma and those living outside as reugees).The Arakan Project is the primary organisation

to be consulted by the UN, international

governments and other members o the

international community on key issues related

to the Rohingya.

Religiousminorities tarGEtS and prIorItIES


20/52


Key achievements

and challenges


21/52


Activities of the EBO :Key achievements and challenges

1 Harn Yawnghwe taking part in a panel discussion on Burma 2 Global Conversation onDemocracy and Democratisation organized by the Centre or the Study o DevelopingSocieties in New Delhi, India 3 Ethnic Nationalities Council (ENC) meeting with theIndian Parliamentarian Forum or Democracy in Burma ( IPFDB)

All photos are related to policy briengs and advocacy work

(see overlea on page 20 or more inormation)

This section gives an overview o some o the

key activity areas o the EBO over the past13 years and oers some refections on the

successes and challenges o the activiti es.

Activities of the EBO have

principally included:

a Strategic analysis, policy briengs andrecommendations, and news updates

b Support or intra- and inter-ethnicpolitical consultations to resolve conficts(predominantly supported through theNational Reconciliation Programme)

c Support or broad-based political

inrastructures to develop commonstrategies and priorities (predominantlysupported through the NationalReconciliation Programme)

d Support or a primary database to enablethe planning o a comprehensive humanresources development programme

e Support or internships andcapacity building programmes

f Support or media and inormation projects

It should be highlighted here that EBO does not

directly implement projects. EBO principally

unds projects and activities that are within itsobjectives, which are proposed and implemented

by the stakeholders o the communities. The

successul outcomes o any o the ollowing

activit ies are dependent on the commitment and

hard work o the project implementers and the

communities themselves.

1

2

3


22/52


Internationally, EBO has been successul in

raising awareness on the comple situationin Burma. As with all areas o EBO activities,

EBO has actively encouraged the participation

o ormerly disenranchised Burmese groups

in international policy. EBO has acilitated the

participation o Burmese women, youth, and

ethnic groups and religious minorities into

international policy orums. The inclusion o

these groups has depended and broadened the

policies o the international community, and

changed perceptions. The ethnic nationalities

are now seen by the international community

as equal partners in political and constitutional

reorm, and international policies better refect

their needs and aspirations.

EBO activities to mobilize international

support were initially through lobbying but

increasingly are or policy development and

strategic planning. EBO helped orge an

international consensus to maintain political

pressure on the Burmese milita ry regime whileconcurrently eploring alternate strategies

to promote a transition and to provide more

humanitarian aid to an increasingly vulnerable

population. EBO also aims to ensure that

concerns and aspirations o individuals and

civil society groups working inside Burma

towards democratic reorms are disseminated

to the international community without risking

their personal or proessional security.

EBO disseminates inormation on develop-

ments within Burma to governments and

decision-makers, parliamentarians, politicalgroups and parties, and NGOs. EBO provides

the international community with inormation

on developments within the ethnic groups, the

Burmese democratic movement and the SPDC.

It also bries governments on parti cular topics

as requested.

The EBO raises

awareness onBurma issues

internationally,

with a focus on:

the United Nations (UN),

Asia (principallyIndia, China & otherneighbouring countries,ASEAN and Japan),

Australia

Institutions and MemberStates o the EuropeanUnion (and also other

non-EU countriessuch as Norway andSwitzerland), and

North America(USA and Canada)

1 Strategic analyses, policybriefings and recommendations,and news updates

Burmas huge problems in terms o

ongoing confict in ethnic areas,

lack o social inrastructure

(such as health and education) and

increasing poverty have not only had animpact inside Burma, but also across its

borders in Thailand, China, India, and

Bangladesh. These unresolved issues

raise concerns or regional stability,

and EBO has ocussed on brieing

neighbouring countries to create a

common perception o the situation

and to appeal to the sel interests o

the neighbouring countries. Burma is

not the top oreign policy priority or any

Asian country, but many now recognize

that the milit ary does not have the will or

the ability to resolve Burmas problemsand that the status quo could lead to

urther instability. However, they are not

willing to interere publically.

EBO supports the ENCs call or

multi-party talks on Burma as a pos-

sible international ormat or strategic

international talks on Burma. The

multi-par ty talks would ollow a similar

ormat to the North Korea Si Party

Talks, only w ith the inclusion o the U N.

The principles o national sovereignty,

territorial integrity o the Union and

national control o the process o

change would need to be maintained.

Multi-party talks could have a number

o possible concrete benets increasedhumanitarian aid and cross border

assistance, technical assistance rom

the World Bank and stronger strategies

to combat social issues, such as health

and education. Hence, EBO is working

on a long-term political and diplomatic

approach in order to prepare Burma or

a sustainable political transition and

asks the support o the international

community on this initiative.

This consensus paved the way or the

ormation o the Tripartite Core Group

. the SPDC, ASEAN, and the UN to

deliver much needed humanitarian aid

ater Cyclone Nargis struck in May 2008.

The consensus has also broadened to

include non-Western nations such as

Japan, China, and India. EBOs crucial

role has been recognized and it is

requently requested to brie the United

Nations Special Advisor to the Secretary-

General on Burma, the European

Commission, the EU Special Envoy or

Burma, the Foreign Ministries o the 27

EU-Member States, the Organisation o

the Islamic Conerence, the Government

o Canada, and numerous policy think-

tanks including those in China and India.

EBO has also participated in and unded

numerous successul international

meetings and conerences which have

deepened the understanding o the

international community on Burma

issues. These conerences also provide

opportunit ies or Burmese to interact with

their international counterparts through

lectures, seminars and conerences and

to share understanding and epertise.

EBO has also, since the very begin-

ning, supported and unded a number

o international advocacy delegationvisits rom Burmese political and civil

society groups.

kEy achIEvEmEntS

and challEnGES


23/52


2 Support for intra-and inter-ethnic politicalconsultations to resolve conflicts

EBO has supported through the NRP a huge

number o intra and inter-ethnic political con-sultations to resolve conficts. Two important

consultative processes the state constitution

drating process and the ederal constitution

drating process are discussed in detail in this

chapter to highlight these processes and to indi-

cate some key achievements and challenges.

The grassroots work on constitutional matters

through the State Constitution DratingCommittees (SCDCs) continues to receive

unds rom EBO today.

STATE CONSTITUTION

DRAFTING PROCESS

Both the state constitution drat-

ing process and the ederal

constitution process started

with support rom EBO and NR P. When

the ENC was created, it took over these

initiatives through its State Coordinat-

ing Bodies which enables them to

connect with constituencies.

The NRP has supported Constitution

Drating Committees (CDCs), such as

the Shan CDC known as Shan State Con-

stitution Drating Committee and the Chin

CDC, etc. The ocial name or the whole

process is the Supporting Committee or

State Constitutions (SCSC), which was

initiated by the Joint Action Committee

(JAC) o the United Nationalities League

or Democracy Liberated Area (UNLD -

LA) a nd the National Democratic Front

in March 2001, but transormed into

the SCSC in 2003. The NRP supported

the state constitutions drating process

through the SCSC. The First Chairman

o SCSC was Dr. Chao Tzang Yawnghwe.

Special allocations were earmarked or women and youth, recognising that

these groups need special attention in

the process. C onstitutional development

committees are now operating in all

states and each o them has produced

at least the rst drats o their respec-

tive state constitutions. Constitutional

consultations are on-going in all states.

All state constitutional development ac-

tivities a re now coordinated through the

State Coordinating Bodies, which are

ormed under the ENC, ecept or Shan

State. Constitutional positions refectedin the New Panglong Spirit have been

adopted by consensus by all groups.

The basic principles or rebuilding the

Union o Burma dened in 2004 as part

o the Ethnic Nationalities Solidarity

and Cooperation Committee work on the

New Panglong Initiative (supported by

the NRP) remain as critica l today as they

were when they were rst envisioned.

The si basic principles are:

a A peaceul resolution o the crisis

in the Union,b The resolution o political problems

through political dialogue,

c Respect or the will o the people,

d The recognition and protection othe rights o all citizens o the Union,

e The recognition and protection othe identity, language, religion, andcultural rights o all nationalities, and

f The recognition and protection othe rights o the constituent stateo the Union through a ederalarrangement.

1 2

1 Jack Sterken and Dr. Lian Sakhong2 Khaing Mar Kyaw Zaw and Rimon Htoo at an ENC meeting


24/52


1st step

Members o the state constitution drating committees andleaders participated in a series o workshops and seminars on

ederalism and states-ederal relations, which also included

echanges, discussions and debates. These discussions took

place between leaders o the movement within an intra- and

inter-ethnic dialogue.

The rst State Constitution Seminar was held in August 2001,

organised by the JAC. The guiding pr inciples and rameworks

were discussed by leaders and participants rom various

ethnic nationalities within a state ormat. The outcome was

the ormation o constitution drating committees. The

state constitutions drating or a rather study and eplora-

tion process continued apace with a landmark workshop/seminar where part icipants (which included leaders rom the

big political groups, various organisations and members o

state constitution drating committees) were presented with

a model state constitution, compiled rom state constitutions

o the United States o America. This workshop was jointly

organized by the NDF and the UNLD-LA.

2nd step

This step started with study tours and eploration o state

constitutions in other eisting ederations in the world. The

participants were members o the Federal Constitution Drat-

ing Committee and State Constitution Drating bodies. Thestudy group toured Germany and Belgium and met members

o state governments, and state assemblies or legislat ures and

held discussions and briengs. They also consulted with con-

stitutional eperts and scholars. The group also studied local

governments, where the participants ga ined some knowledge

and an understanding o how local governments unctioned

and were run in a democratic, decentralized system , through

many briengs and discussions wit h mayors and members o

the local government councils, in both Germany and Belgium .

Other ederal education trips were in Thailand and to Berlin

(Seminar o December 2002 and 2003).

3rd step

There were, and continue to be, regular consultations with

grassroots communities, leaders, political parties, academics,

and other interested and concerned parties.

4th step

Workshops were held to discuss the completed rst drats

o the various state constitutions. Participants included

members o the various state constitution drating bodies,the ederal constitution drating committee, political leaders,

representatives rom womens and youth groups, and leaders

rom ethnic-based organisations. Eperts or persons with

knowledge o state constitutions and local governments (in

decentralized democratic systems) acilitated discussions

and claried points that needed clari cation or elaboration.

The rst workshop looked at the rst drat o the Chin State

Constitution written by the drating committee. The drat

Chin State Constitut ion was discussed widely and etensively

by the participants and resource persons, beore eamining

the work done by the other drating committee o other

constituent states.

kEy achIEvEmEntS

and challEnGES

1

1 Participants on the way to an ENC conerence 2 Meetingto establish the Ethnic Nationalities Council at Law Khi Lah3 Conerence participants having dinner

3

2


25/52


It might be noted that the end goal othe state constitutions drating process is notto produce actual state constitutions, but toprepare leaders, activists, the politically awaresegments, and as well the grassroots or a timeto come in the near uture when a new Union willbe rebuilt. The aim rather is to arm the peoplewith an awareness and knowledge about con-stitutions and how they relate most signicantlyto the aspirations o the ethnic nationalities orreedom, sel-determination, sel-rule, human

security, human dignity,rights that are alien-able to every man andwoman.

The process o creating these

drat state constitutions has

created an environment or all

ethnic groups to come together, discuss

challenges and aspirations and to create

a strategy to act collectively within andamong ethnic groups. For eample, the

Shan State Constitution Drating Com-

mittee (SS CDC) is an ecellent eample

o how the dierent non-Shan ethnic

groups in Shan State (Kachin, Lahu, Wa,

Pa-O, Lisu etc...) became involved in the

constitutional process and were able to

open lines o communication. To make

these drat state constitutions accessi-

ble and acceptable to the constituencies

and to the militar y government remains

a challenge. However, EBO, through

the Ethnic Nationalities Council (ENC),continues to acilitate the process

by reaching out to constituencies and

continues to strengthen this process.

Preparation or building a ederal union

began with drating state constitutions in

each state, but there are other challenges

that still need to be addressed. There re-

mains the need or more cooperation and

coordination among ethnic nationalities on

many other issues such as human resourc-

es management, inormation gathering,

data collection and knowledge echange.

The creation o the ENC came out rom

the need o the ethnic nationalities move-

ment. All ethnic nationalities share the

common goal o rebuilding Burma as a

ederal democratic state and they are all

willing to work together in cooperationwith Burman counterparts. There was a

need or more coordinat ion among ethnic

people to nd solutions and prepare or a

democratic transition. The constitution

drating process provided a platorm

that could be used or policy making

and policy coordination on other matters

and in response to urgent humanitarian

needs. These considerations urged the

ethnic nationalit ies to look into a broader,

more ecient approach and cooperation,

which resulted in creating the ENC.

Drawing up state constitutions in each

state is an initial and important step

or the uture o Burma. Civilians rom

each state should have access to the

constitutions as they are the intended

beneciaries. There should also be

opportunities or ethnic states to study

constitutions rom other ethnic states

in order to encourange understanding

and cooperation while the needs are

sometimes very dierent rom one state

to another, learning rom one another is

the cornerstone o the democratic process.

One particularly good eample o a

successul state constitution drating

process is the eample rom Chin State.

Prior to 1999, the Chin community was

divided into at least 8 actions and two

armed-groups. In 1998, a meeting wasorganised in Ottawa by EBO and the

International Center or Human Rights.

Dierent clans rom Chin State met

together and at the end o this meeting,

the Chin Forum was ormed. This

pan-Chin platorm includes dierent

Chin organisations and individuals

who come together to discuss issues

concerning Chin people and the Union

o Burma. From discussions at the Chin

Forum, a political consensus was ormed

and eventually led to the creation o

the Chinland Constitution Drating

Committee, which is a model or other

ethnic groups. Due to consistent support

rom EBO or Chin political consultation,

the Political Aairs Committee o

Chinland was able to be created in 2004

and subsequently the Chin National

Council was established in 2006. This

is a state coordinating body o the Chin

people made up o Chin civil society and

political organisations. It is working

in line with the ENC policy toward re-

building the Union.

Dr. Chao TzangYawnghwe

Working on the dratChin State Constitution

kEy achIEvEmEntS

and challEnGES


26/52


FEDERAL CONSTITUTION

DRAFTING PROCESS

The ENC is committed to rebuilding the

Federal Union o Burma based on the spirit o

the Panglong Agreement which will guarantee

democratic rights, political equality, and sel-

determination. The initiative o preparing

or ederalism in Burma started even beore

ENC was ormed. The ENC will continue the

process until ederalism is well established

in Burma.

To rebuild the Federal Union o Burma in the

spirit o Panglong will require the undamental

rights or all citizens to be guaranteed. The

oundation o this is the United Nations

Declaration o Universal Human Rights, and

the principles o indivisibility o human rights

and non-discrimination.

T

he process o ormulating the

basic principles or the uture

Federal Constitution o the Union

o Burma began in May 2004. In Septem -

ber 2004, the Joint Action Committee

(JAC) was ormed to drat the basic

principles. The JAC had 9 members :

the National Coalition Government o

the Union o Burma ( NCGUB), National

Council o Union o Burma (NCUB),

National Democratic Front (NDF),

United Nationalities League or De-

mocracy Liberated Areas (UNLD-LA)

and Womens League o Burma (WLB)

in collaboration with the Federal Con-

stitution Drating Committee (FCDC)and Supporting Committee or State

Constitutions (SCSC). The aspiration is

to produce basic principles or a uture

Federal Constitution o the Union o

Burma as General Aung San did in

1947, which could be used to respond e-

ectively to SPCDs National Convention

(the 6 objectives including 104 Art icles)

and Road Map, and which could bring

peace and democracy to the countr y.

Between October 2004 and February

2005, the JAC conducted ve meetings-cum-workshops. The JAC worked as

neutral body rather than as group o

political organisations, and the main

task o the JAC was to produce the

legal ramework o the principles.

The JAC applied three approaches in

ormulating the Basic Principles or the

Future Union o Burma - identiying

the original principles o the Union o

Burma in 1947, collecting historical

acts and supporting documents, and

dening and writing a concept paper

on the Basic Principles or the Future

Union o Burma.

On 12 February 2005 - the Union Day

o Burma, representatives o the Chin,

Kachin, Karen, Ka renni, Mon, Myanmar

(Burman), Rakhine (Arakan) and Shan

(more than 106 representatives rom 42

organisations, including elected MPs,

senior leaders o ethnic nationalities

and political parties, and representa-

tives o women and youth organisations)

met and agreed that the political crisis

in present Burma is not an ideological

conrontation between a democracy

and totalitarianism, but a constitutional

problem rooted in the question o sel-

determination or non-Burman nation-

alities who joined the Union o Burma as

equal partners in 1947 at the Panglong

Conerence. Thereore, the best way o

solving the political crisis in Burma was

to establish a genuine Federal Union

based on the principles o equality or

all ethnic nationalities, the right o sel-

determination or all member states othe Union, and democratic rights or all

citizens o the Union o Burma. The del-

egates unanimously endorsed the basic

principles o sovereign power, equality,

sel-determination, ederal principles,

minority rights, democracy, human

rights, gender equality, secular state,

and a multi-party democracy system or

the uture ederal constitution.

At this meeting, the Basic Principles

identied by the JAC or the Future Fed-

eral Constitut ion o the Union o Burma

were adopted. It was also unanimously

decided to orm a new committee that

would work towards orming the uture

Federal Constitution o the Union o

Burma with the identied Basic Prin-

ciples. Thus, the Federal Constitution

Drating and Coordination Committee

(FCDCC) came into eistence on 19

April 2005, comprising o the ollowing

groups: NCGUB, NCUB, NDF, UNLD,

WLB, Nationalities Youth Forum

(NY-Forum) and Students and Youth

Congress o Bur ma (SYCB).

The FCDCC presented the rst drat o

the Federal Constitution o the Union

o Burma at the Federal Constitution

seminar held rom 6 to 9 April 2006,

which was adopted by 101 participants

rom 52 organizations, including demo-

cratic orces and ethnic nationalities.

Subsequently, the FCDCC adopted the

second drat o its constitution or the

Federal Republic o the Union o Burma

in February 2008 .

EBO has unded the process o ederal

constitutional drating through the JAC,

the FCDCC and the member organisa-

tions o the FCDCC since the beginning,

although such a pivotal process has also

attracted unding rom additional donors.

kEy achIEvEmEntS

and challEnGES


27/52


The development o broad-based inrastructure includes

support to ormerly disenranchised groups such as women, youth and religious minorities. These were discussed in

detail previously.

The speciic role o the Ethnic Nationalities Council (ENC)

as a critical broad-based inrastructure has not yet been

discussed in detail, thereore an analysis o the successes

and challenges o the ENC is included in this section in

greater depth.

T

he development o the ENC into a

major player on both the domes-

tic and international scene has

provided unprecedented opportunities

or input by the ethnic and disenran-

chised communities o Burma. These

communities now have a structure

mandated to negotiate political issues

relating to establishing democratic gov-

ernance in Burma. Work inside Burma

epanded beyond all epectations.

This rapid epansion was the product

o both the political and constitutional

priorities developed with the support o

the NRP, and the events driven by the

imposition o the SPDC constitut ion andreerendum in 2008. These events, in

addition to the Cyclone Nargis disaster,

have created unprecedented fuidity in

the political process. Preparations or

the planned 2010 SPDC elections have

the potential to create additional space

or political activities and consultations

inside Burma. The ENC is acilitating

etensive consultations between cease-

re groups and elected political leaders

inside Burma and between cease-re

leaders and political and armed groups

on the border. These consultations arecritical or maintaining solidarity in the

ace o intensive pressure and manipula-

tion by the SPDC. These activities are

an immediate consequence o the

capacities developed, and strategies

and policies identied by the ethnic

and disenranchised communities with

the support o the NR P. It is an unavoid-

able consequence o success in political

programming that both the range and

intensity o activities will increase.

The ENC was created with the specic

mandate to coordinate any negotiating

processes on behal o the ethnic na-

tionalities o Burma. Its mandate is

to coordinate the development o the

negotiating positions, policies, priori-

ties and constitutional proposals and to

acilitate the meaningul participation

o Burmas ethnic and disenranchised

communities in negotiations with the

NLD and SPDC to achieve democratic

governance in Burma. Delegates to the

ENC are currently nominated by the

seven ethnic state coordinating bodies.

The 1st Ethnic Nationalities Seminarwas held rom 7-14 January 1997 at Mae

Tha Raw Hta in the base area o the

Karen National Union (KNU), during

which the Mae Tha Raw Hta Agree-

ment was signed.

The outcome o the second Ethnic

Nationalities Seminar was the creation

o the Ethnic Nationalities Solidarity

andCooperationCommittee(ENSCC).

At the 3rd Ethnic Nationalities Seminar

in January 2004, the ENSCC was trans-

ormed into the ENC with a broader

mandate.

As the process progressed, at the 4th

Ethnic Nationalities Conerence in

April 2005, a new structure or the ENC

was adopted, when the ENC became

statebased. In this new structure,

representation to the ENC was based

on the eisting Arakan, Chin, Kachin,

Karen, Karenni (Kayah), Mon and

Shan States.

These conerences have been a very

important part o trust building and

have led to cooperation among ethnic

nationalities. Through conerences,

seminars, and workshops, dierent eth-

nic groups have discussed dierences

learned rom each other, tried to create

understanding and build trust key

ingredients or successul cooperation.

Confict resolution workshops, semi-

nars, and conerences were platorms

or groups rom dierent backgrounds

to come together, to discuss, and to

learn more about easible solutions or

problems within one ethnic group or

among ethnic groups.

The importance o the ENCs restruc-

turing rom an organisation-based body

to becoming the representative body

o the seven ethnic states in the Union

o Burma was that the past political

landscape had been dened by armed

groups, whereas the state coordinating

bodies have a political coordinat ion role

that includes all groups in the state, in-

stead o just representing the ethnic ar-

mies groups. This new structure orced

all groups within each state political,civil society, and religious to work to-

gether. This also removed the barriers

between ceasere and non-ceasere

groups, as well as groups operating in-

side Burma and those outside. The ENC

has also become the main coordinating

body or disenranchised communities

in Burma.

3 Support for broad-basedpolitical infrastructures to developcommon strategies and priorities kEy achIEvEmEntSand challEnGES


28/52


The establishment o ENC as a state

based organization is very important. The aimis to open up or all seven ethnic nationalityStates to work together collectively in thecommon goal o establishing the FederalUnion o Burma based on the principles othe Panglong Agreement which will guaranteedemocratic rights, political equality, and sel-determination. ENC is also working to promotea democratic system o government and toabolish all types o totalitarianism, including

military dictatorship in Burma. Indeed, the creation o ENC is a success.

The issues o the ethnic nationalities democrat-ic movement and their suering had not been

highlighted or noticed beore the creation o

ENSCC. Now, ENC has broadened the mandateo ENSCC to represent seven States. It is impor-tant to note that democracy will not necessarilyguarantee equal rights and wellbeing o ethnicnationalities. Thereore, the existence o ENC iscrucial as to establish a genuine Federal Uniono Burma, which will not come easily.

Operationally, some State CoordinatingBodies are working well, while a ew Statesare in the process o creating State Coordinat-

ing Bodies. It might taketimes, but eventually allState Coordinating Bod-ies will unction well.

The coordinating bodies also organize

workshops and consultations among their

constituencies. The ENC has also been working

towards investing in the uture democratic

transition. Coordinating human resources and

implementing projects in seven states with

many restrictions imposed by the military

government is a big challenge, which has

sometimes created misunderstanding among

members in ENC. However, the ENC has

always overcome these challenges. In addition

to the NRPs unding, EBO has also unded

ENC advocacy delegations.

Khu HtehBu Peh

ENC Chairman in 2009

1 Khu Hteh Bu Peh2 ENC training on operating

digital mapping sotware3 Digital mapping activities

The credibility o the ENC is sustained

by improved consultations with its

constituencies through the seven state

coordinating councils and the broadening o

the constituency base participating meaning-

ully in the political process. In particular,

ormally unrepresented youth and womens

groups have become a major orce in strateg ic

planning and policy development. The broad-

ening o the constituency base and increasing

sophistication in the political and constitutional

positions o these communities is the basis or

the international credibility o the ENC. This

has resulted in broadly-based consultations

with all major international players attempti ng

to resolve Burmas political problems.

Since the beginning, the NRP has supported

the ENCs operational costs, including State

Coordinating Bodies and Constitutional

Development Committees. In some states, the

Constitution Drating Committee cooperates

with the State Coordinat ing Body.1

kEy achIEvEmEntS

and challEnGES


29/52


30/52


Another EBO priority is the unding o internships

and trainings. While the EBO itsel cannot managea broad internship programme, the idea is to support

organisations on the border which can take on interns rom

inside Burma, train them, and send them back to work with

their organisations inside. The internships also serve as a

bridge to narrow the gap between educational levels in Burma

and internationally. The internships ll a much needed void

in the Burmese democracy movement.

The objective o the EBO internship programme is to counter

the brain drain being eperienced in the democracy

movement as well-qualied reugees have resettled in third

countries. In Burmese reugee camps based in Thailand,

there are dierent programmes which oer resettlement tothird countries (i.e. the USA, Australia, Sweden...). This gives

a wonderul opportunity to individuals to start a new lie and

to learn rom democratic states. However, these programmes

tend to cherry-pick the small number o educated elites othe disenranchised communities. Some have lost essential

human resources, especially small communities such as the

Karenni. When 10 teachers or 10 nurses leave, this is a disaster

or the rest o the community, and eventual ly, once they live ar

rom their country, many Burmese dont get involved in the

democratic movement.

To help counter this brain drain, EBO has ocused its training

programme in the region. In 200 9, EBO supported programmes

inside Burma to prepare students who are going to study in

Thailand or India by improving their English prociency,

while the NRP receives increasingly urgent requests to

support human resource development programmes by state-based organisations, especial ly youth and women groups.

5 Support forinternships and capacity-building programmes

THREE ExAMPLES OF RECENT

INTERNSHIPS INCLUDE:

a Kachin Womens Associationin Thailand (KWAT) Internship

Programme

EBO has unded KWAT to provide an internship

programme to young women rom Kachin State since

the internship programme started in 200 6. The overallaim o this project is to promote womens education

and to encourage Kachin women to increase their

parti cipation in the various sectors o society, working

or political, economic and social change in Burma

through the delivery o capacity building and empow-

erment activities.Between 2006 and 2008,KWAT has

trained a total o 26 women, mostly in their early twen-

ties. The cost per student is around 2,300 or 6 months

o classroom training and a practical internship. The

classroom training includes some o the ollowing

courses: English, Thai, computer skills, politics, de-

mocracy, human rights, women's rights, constitution

drating, peace building, gender, reproductive health,environmental issues, media and communications,

human tracking issue, documentation and research,

proposal writing and undraising. Records kept by

KWAT on the rst 17 young women alumnae vshow

that every woman who graduated rom the internship

went on to work or the Kachin communit y or another

organisation associated with the democracy move-

ment. The scheme has become so successul and the

demand or training is so great, that KWAT has been

asked to accept and train young men rom Kachin

state as well as young women. Men were accepted into

the programme or the rst time in 2009.

Inside Burma, I would never have dreamed olearning about politics and various knowledge that Ilearned through the internship. It is very dicult toget the right inormation about what is happeningin the real world and in our own country. Almostall inormation is just propaganda. I believe thatto become a strong society, all individuals must

be strong and well-empowered. When somebodygets knowledge, that person can share to his/hercommunity and society. I the civil society is welleducated and empowered, it can support theirgovernment and help to build a good country. Beorecoming and studying at KWAT internship, I wasntmuch interested in politics and education. I also didntknow much about human rights, womens rights anddemocracy. Ater completing my internship, I knewhow much education and knowledge about these

elds are important or the civil society. Subsequently,I had known more about the injustices committedin my country as there is no rule o law under thecurrent military regime. Now I eel dierent, I eel thatI can help the democratic movement and be useulin the society. I also know that we, ethnic people,are discriminated in Burma. Thereore, I strongly eelthat this internship wasvery constructive and awonderul opportunity tounderstand my country.

Ah Nohintern at K WAT rom July

2007 to January 2008

kEy achIEvEmEntS

and challEnGES


31/52


In my country there is noRule o Law anywhere. Most o thepeople dont know what constitu-tion, Law, or Human Rights are. Butall this inormation is given by theKWAT internship programme. In thisinternship, I also exchanged experi-ences with other organisations. Thatis very important to me because inBurma, we dont know about theevents happening in other regions.

For example, I am Kachin so I dontknow about the Chins sueringclearly. During the KWAT internship,I could really understand what ishappening. I am one o the sons oa revolutionary who served in KIO/KIA throughout his lie. But the Jun-ta government always interruptedmy childhood and I fed rom townto town every year. Hence, I want tobe released rom this poverty and

always searchthe way howto change ourcountry politi-cally.

Zau Diintern at KWAT

rom July 2009 to

January 2010

KWAT interns gender training

b School for Shan StateNationalities Youth

(SSSNY)

The EBO-unded School or Shan

State Nationalities Youth (SSSNY)organizes an internship programme or

young men and women rom Shan State .

The SSSNY was created in 2001 and

oers a 9-month in-depth Social Justice

Education Programme with dierent

types o lessons: human rights, history

o Burma and Shan state, computer

skills, English grammar and pronun-

ciation, writing skills, environment,

systems o governance and democracy

studies, international crisis and confict

studies, international news, basic video

production and media studies, maths,

basic science and health.

The SSSNY is based in Thailand and

aims to graduate dedicated and pro-

active Shan State youth committed to

social and political change by providing

them with the necessary skills. The

goal is to empower and educate Shan

State youth aged 16 to 30 o dierent

backgrounds and ethnicity, so that they

can have a more active role in the strug-

gle or democracy, human rights and

gender equality.

The school provides not only education

and general knowledge skills, but also

ood, acilities, pocket money, and ac-

commodation during the programme.

The students also learn how to do

research so that they can be involved

in these types o activities in the uture.

There are also many guest speakers

during the internship who give courses

on issues such as HIV/AIDS, human

rights, constitution trainings, etc.

kEy achIEvEmEntS

and challEnGES


32/52


More than a school, the SSSNY also serves as a venue or

building trust and cooperation among the dierent ethnicnationalities rom Shan State (Shan, Pa-O, Wa, Akha, Lahu,

Palaung, Kachin, Lisu, Miao, Intha, Danu, Kayan and

Kokang...). In a book cal led Candles in the Dark published in

2008, young students wrote their lie-stories and eplained

what they learned at t he SSSN Y. Noom Wann is one o them:

I am one o the students rom SSSNYSchool. I come rom Southern Shan State,Burma. I live in a small village. There are about50 households in my village and I have manyriends. I let the school ater I passed grade 4.

At that time, Mong Tai Army (MTA) led by KhunSa, was the most powerul armed group inShan State against the SPDC or many years.This MTA recruited young boys rom everyhousehold in the Southern Shan State rom 7years old up. But at last , the MTA did nothing orthe Shan State and surrendered to the SPDCin 1996. Many boys were caught to be soldiersby MTA troops until 1996 and some who werein the village became drug addicts. It is easyto buy the drug (like amphetamines). We can

buy it everywhere; even a 4 or 5 year old child

knows how to buy it when their parents orced

them to. Most o the young boys or girls invillages do not have chance to go to school.They have to help their parents at their work.My village is situated near by a SPDC militarycamp; whenever they come to the village, theyask the villagers about the Shan resistance.I we say we dont know anything, the SPDCsuspects we take the side o the Shan soldiersand they take us to their military camp. There,they interrogate us about everything and at

last, i they didnt get what they wanted, theytorture us by many ways. Some were killedwithout any reason. There is no law to protectus. Everything ends by the power o the gunsin the Burmese soldiers hands. Beore I cameto Thailand, I did not knowanything, even aboutmysel. This is a light orme that I have chance tostudy in SSSNY School.

The SSSNY is a huge success. From 2001 to 2009, 234 students

have graduated rom the programme.

Noom Wann

testimony rom

the book Candles

in the Dark

c Shan State ConstitutionDrafting Committee (SSCDC)

Internship Programme

EBO unded the Shan State Constitution

Drating Committee (SSCDC) to provide an

internship programme in constitutional law

to young men and women rom Shan State.

SSCDC has been running the internship

programme since it was established in 2000.

The priority is given to youth rom insideBurma, as due to the long drawn-out confict,

the educational level o the ethnic communities

is low. To bridge the educational gap, the

SSCDC has provided internships to ethnic

youth rom Burma in Chiang Mai. The school

considers the personal development o the

students o the utmost importance, however it

is also the most dicult to substantiate.

A crucial role o the SSCDC is to ensure an inclu-

sive and participatory constitutional process in

Shan State including as many communities as

possible, and the interns play an important role

in SCCDCs constitutional awareness-raising

programmes. The SSCDC has played an im-

portant role in coordinating and disseminating

inormation to communities in Shan State on

the drat versions o the Shan State constitu-

tion. It also assists with the operations o all

Shan state projects (political prisoners, youth

capacity building trai ning, etc).

EBO has also either hosted or acilitated

internships and eposure visits or young

Burmese change agents in Brussels and

elsewhere.

kEy achIEvEmEntS

and challEnGES


33/52


Karen people used to have a Karen High School whichtaught in Karen until 1962. I personally learned my languageat home. But I did not learn how to read and write it. I couldonly speak and understand it. When I let the country andfed to Thailand, I started to study it because there wereschools in the reugee camps. But I elt very rustratedbecause there were only our books in Karen language. So,sometimes, I eel like what is the point o being a Kareni I am not allowed to speak, read or write my language?When I remember my riends who still live in Burma, I eel sosorry or them because I know they can only speak Karen

but dont know how to write our language. Hence, they mixKaren with Burmese since theystudy Burmese language at schooland they do not consider Karen asan important language anymore.

To strengthen civil society in Burma,

publications and brieng documentsavailable in ethnic languages are

etremely important. Investment in ethnic

research and media enable the ethnic commu-

nities to preserve their culture, to understand

other communities, and to ensure that the

cause o ethnic groups is not orgotten in a

uture Burma and that they will be equal part-

ners in a transition. They are also important

or reporting human rights abuses, historic

events and political, social and economic devel-

opments in each state. EBO has supported the

development and epansion o ethnic media

organisations in all ethnic states.

The development o national, independent,

and ree media organisations in Burma is also

o critical import ance and EBO has invested in

the development o these since 1997.

This ocus on ethnic media gives the possibility

to preserve the language o each community.

Many ethnic languages are orbidden to be

taught in schools inside Burma:

6 Support for mediaand information projects

Lay Wah Pawa 25 year old

Karen woman

B y promoting the reporting o dierent

issues (humanitarian, political, socio-economic...), EBOs goal is also to

inorm policy makers, international institutions

and neighbouring countries. In addition, EBO

researchers provide in-depth brieng papers

and analysis (available or consultation on the

EBO website).

EBO is also an information source

and provides in-house research

and analysis through:

the EBO website (www.euro-burma.eu)and publications

interviews and articles, which appearin international and Burmese media

SHAN was ormed in 1991 and has been publishingthe Independence monthly since. Many Shan organisationsinside our State load our reports in Shan, make copies anddistribute them within their communities. As a result, a goodmany have become news addicts. Some people naturallywant to contribute, helping us to gain more news sources(during the Kokang campaign in August, we gained threehitherto unknown sources). This, in turn, has helped toproduce more and better reports not only in Shan, but alsoin English, Burmese and Thai. The EBO is the only underthat ocuses on non-Burmans. As such, it will continue to

contribute to the peace and democracy building in Burma.Assisting non-Burmans and minoritiesmay not be quite popular but discardingthem will only encourage separatismand continued confict in Burma. TheEBO is certainly on the right track.

KhuensaiEditor o Shan

Herald Agency

or News (SHAN )

kEy achIEvEmEntS

and challEnGES


34/52


EBO was very instrumental in strengtheningMizzimas capacity, especially when we were in need o ITsupport some years ago. The strength o the EBO is thatit knows the needs o a grassrootsorganisation and how it is importantand crucial or Burmas democrati-sation process.

HISTORY SEMINARS

E

thnic research has been a high

priority or the EBO as a tool to

bolster the ethnic nationalities, sothat they will be able to rmly establish

their place and role in the Burmese state

and become equal participants. There

has been special emphasis to support

the development o ethnic historical

research, with a ocus on eploring and

documenting the diversity o Burmese

ethnic history, while demonstrating

unity through diversity. This has been

accomplished by supporting individual

researchers, projects ocusing on

specic ethnic groups, as well as ethnic

historical seminars.

The rst historical seminar was on

Arakan State and was an important rst

step in the inclusion o Rohingya people

in the ongoing reconciliation process.

EBO also unded a Mon History Coner-

ence in October 2007 at Chulalongkorn

University, Thailand. It oered an occa-

sion or Mon scholars to come together

in order to discuss and share knowledge

on the history o the Mon.

From 13-15 October 2008, an EBO-und-

ed international seminar on Eploring

the history, culture and identity o the

Chins was held in Aizawl, India. An

array o issues were discussed rom eth-

nicity, identity, linguistics and language,

nomenclature and ethnonym, various

aspects o Chin history and historical

methods to ood and culinary practices,

globalization, music, psychology, and -

nally, agricultural and arming methods.

These kinds o seminars are seen as

landmarks or Chin people, who are try-

ing to unite the diverse Chin communit y.

It allowed dierent communities to be

brought closer culturally, linguistically

and politically. The aim is also to open

up opportunities or uture ruitul co-

operation between the two divided com-

munities namely the Chins (in Burma)

and the Mizos (in India). Seminars like

this one benet signicantly the Chin

struggle or reedom and democracy as

well as the preparation or a democratic

transition in Bur ma as a whole.

Soe Myint

Editor o Mizzima

Book launch o the Chin Historical Seminar. Front row: Hi Phei (MP, Raja-Sabah, India), Harn Yawnghwe,Lian Uk (MP-elected 1990, Burma), Lal Thanhawla (Chie Minister o Mizoram, India), Dr. Lian Sakhong,Ngun Hre (ormer MP rom Burma) and Dr. Robin Khuly (Mizoram University).

kEy achIEvEmEntS

and challEnGES


35/52


One o the highlights o 2009 was the

rst international conerence onShan Studies in Bangkok rom 15-17

October, jointly organized by the Institute

o Asian Studies (IAS), Chulalongkorn

University and EBO. The conerence sought to

bring together scholars o Shan Studies rom

all over the world to share thei r knowledge and

discoveries, as well as to meet and promote

their co-operation.

The conerence contributed greatly to the

building up o the awareness and knowledge

on various developments in Shan political

and social history, arts, language, literature,perorming arts, religions and belies. The

orum also served as a secure meeting place

or participants rom Thailand and other

parts o the world to create and strengthen

collaboration, at national and international

levels, on their research on political and social

work in Shan State.

In addition to the historical seminars,

EBO has also employed Burmese returning

epatriates to conduct general research on

ethnic nationalities and to promote the concept

o unity in diversity.

The signicance o this book release is what weare celebrating; it is not just the result o an academicventure. This is a celebration o the brotherhood o thechildren o this homeland. The very purpose o this seminar

is searching or our origins, our history, our identity, andour culture so that we will be ableto call ourselves, to declare our-selves, as brothers and sisters. Nomatter which side o internationalboundaries we happen to live, nomatter where we are, we are stillbrothers and sisters o the sameancestors and we are the childreno this homeland.

Dr. Lian HSakhong

Research Director o

Euro-Burma Oce,

on 16 November

2009, Chin: History,

Culture and Identity

book release

kEy achIEvEmEntS

and challEnGES


36/52


The NationalReconciliation

Programme


37/52


The National Reconciliation Programme (NRP) is a

programme established in 1999 by the EBO withsupport rom the Burmese democracy movement,

and Canadian Lutheran World Relie with unds rom

the Peacebuilding Fund o the Canadian International

Development Agency (CIDA). The NR P has also been unded

by EBO, Danish Burm

Euro Burma 10 Yr Report[1]

Documents

Transcript of Euro Burma 10 Yr Report[1]