Mizzima Editor in Chief Soe Myint sat down with Mr Nigel Roberts, Interim Director of the Technical Secretariat of the Joint Peace Fund this week to talk about his mission and the progress being made to bring peace to Myanmar. As a prelude to the interview, Mr Roberts said he has been filling in between one director and another with the Joint Peace Fund, so he said he did not consider himself an expert on the Myanmar peace process. However, he did stress that he has a lot of experience in other countries, so he could refer to that and some of the lessons and comparisons there. What do you think are the main challenges for the Myanmar peace process in 2018? Well first of all, at the end of this month you have the next UPC (Union Peace Conference). This I think is very important because there have been many questions asked about the speed and the effectiveness of the peace process, and in many quarters there has been a loss in confidence. So this offers an opportunity to rees...

By  NYEIN NYEIN  12 December 2017 “Realizing Peace in Myanmar”, a collection of background papers published by the Euro Burma Office in Myanmar between 2015-17 was launched on Monday at an event to mark the 20th anniversary of the founding of the EBO. Author Paul Keenan compiled his research on the Myanmar conflict and highlighted the diverse nature of the conflict and the many obstacles that remain to peace. Keenan has been based in Southeast Asia doing research on Myanmar for almost two decades and is the current consultant on research and analysis at EBO Myanmar. He shared his perspectives on the Myanmar peace process with Irrawaddy senior reporter Nyein Nyein this week. What is the key message in your book? Paul Keenan: The key message I think is the fact that, for the conflict in Burma, people cannot just see it as a similar conflict elsewhere because there are far too many individuals who need to be given what they are asking for. Obviously, you know, it is ve...

By ZARNI MANN 5 December 2017 In an interview with The Irrawaddy on Tuesday, ultranationalist monk U Wirathu offered his personal views on the current situation in Rakhine State and the government’s legal action against nationalist Buddhist monks. The Irrawaddy’s senior reporter Zarni Mann met with U Wirathu at the Dhama Thaharya Kyaung at Masoeyein monastery. The Army and the government have been criticized for their handling of the conflict in Rakhine State. What is your view? The government has been unreliable on this matter. So, we have had to rely solely on the Tatmadaw [Myanmar’s military]. Personally, I fully support [military chief] Senior General Min Aung Hlaing, and I believe him when he says the Tatmadaw will provide full protection to minorities in Rakhine State in order to protect them from genocide. When it comes to protecting the national identity, we only have him to rely on. But the Army’s actions in relation to the conflict in Rakhine State have resulted in ...

28 August 2012 Mawkun magazine interviewed Dr. Jacques P. Leider, a Rakhine history expert, on the recent communal conflict in Rakhine State. He has conducted academic research on Rakhine State for more than two decades. By Nyan Lynn and Zayar Hlaing “Rohingya is a name, not an ethnic category, that has been revived in modern days to identify Muslims in Rakhine as a separate social group. One may eventually compare it with the name of the Chinese Muslims in Myanmar who are called ‘Panthay’.  ” MAWKUN: What does “Rohingya” mean? LEIDER: I would like to say that “Rohingya” is definitely an old,though rare word. It is not a newly invented word from the 1950s as was often stated. It is tracedin an article by a British medical doctor, Francis Hamilton, at the end ofthe 18th century. He states that this was the word that the Muslims living in Rakhine at that time used for themselves. The word is derived from the Bengali noun for Arakan which is Roshanga, but people like to pr...

By THE IRRAWADDY 1 September 2017 On August 25, the Arakan Rohginya Salvation Army attacked some 30 police outposts and an army base in Rakhine State, causing the Myanmar Army to respond with security clearance operations. The renewed violence has sent thousands of Rohingya Muslims and Arakanese Buddhists fleeing their homes to temporary camps in the region or across the border to Bangladesh. In light of the renewed conflict, The Irrawaddy revisits this interview from July 2012 with Rakhine history expert Dr. Jacques P. Leider, who has been conducting research as well as contributing articles to academic journals on Rakhine State for more than two decades. Question: What is the meaning of “Rohingya?” Answer: [The term Rohingya] appeared for the first time at the end of the 18th century in the report of an Englishman who went to the Chittagong area, the Rakhine area. His name was Francis Buchanan-Hamilton. He was a medical doctor [and this term appeared] in one of the papers t...

By NAN LWIN HNIN PWINT / THE IRRAWADDY| Tuesday, May 10, 2016  Arakan Army leader Brig-Gen Tun Myat Naing. (Photo: JPaing / The Irrawaddy) Arakan Army leader Brig-Gen Tun Myat Naing. (Photo: JPaing / The Irrawaddy) Founded in 2009 in northern Kachin State, far from their homeland, the Arakan Army (AA) were trained and supported by the Kachin Independence Army (KIA), and joined the KIA and the Myanmar Democratic Alliance Army (MNDAA), in skirmishes with the Burma Army in the country’s northeast last year. In March 2015, the first clashes between the AA and the Burma Army were recorded in Arakan State itself. This quickly receded, but clashes resumed in December 2015, acquiring a new intensity and prolonging into the term of the new government. The violence has spread beyond Kyauktaw Township to Buthidaung, Mrauk-U, Rathedaung and Ponnagyun townships of central and northern Arakan State. More than 1,700 local residents have been displaced this year by the fighting. Althoug...

By   NAN LWIN HNIN PWINT / THE IRRAWADDY |  Monday, January 11, 2016 | Arakan Army Commander-in-Chief Brig-Gen Tun Myat Naing. (Photo: JPaing/The Irrawaddy) Clashes erupted between the Arakan Army and the Burma Army around Mt. Yam Chaung, in Kyauktaw Township, from Dec. 27 to Jan. 4. Though conflict has subsided, tensions remain high and hundreds of villagers have already been displaced by the fighting. Myawady Daily, a military-owned newspaper, reported on Jan. 7 that the Burma Army had suffered casualties during the 9-day conflict. The newspaper referred to the Arakan Army, an ethnic armed group that has been excluded from peace negotiations, as an insurgent group, vowing that the the government forces would “annihilate” them. The Irrawaddy recently spoke with Arakan Army Commander-in-Chief Tun Myat Naing about what happened in Kyauktaw and how his views on the peace process. What is the current situation in Kyauktaw Township? There is no fighting for the time...

Htoo May, the Arakan National Party candidate contesting the upper house seat in constituency number 11, Ann and Ramee townships, spoke to  DVB   about her campaign plans and priorities for her community. Question: Who do you see as your main contender in the elections? How have you prepared for the win? Answer : I can say my main contender in the elections will be the USDP [Union Solidarity and Development Party] candidate Dr Ba Swe, as the USDP is financially strong. As for preparation, I plan on going to campaign rallies to explain my party’s policies to the public and how our policies can serve their interests. Q: Have you started campaigning? A : I am in Rangoon to collect the vinyl banners and will be heading down to my constituency afterwards. Our party has already launched our campaign there. Q: You are running election for an upper house seat in Ann and Ramee townships. What will you do for the local population if you win? A : The main po...