Myanmar Morning News For February 9

Special Report: How Myanmar forces burned, looted and killed in a remote village
Bound together, the 10 Rohingya Muslim captives watched their Buddhist neighbors dig a shallow grave. Soon afterwards, on the morning of Sept. 2, all 10 lay dead. At least two were hacked to death by Buddhist villagers. The rest were shot by Myanmar troops, two of the gravediggers said.
— Reuters

After Targeted Sanctions, It’s Time to Engage With Myanmar’s Moderates
The sudden and dramatic resignation of high-profile U.S. diplomat Bill Richardson from Aung San Suu Kyi’s international advisory panel on Rakhine state is a stark reminder of the fraught circumstances surrounding the civilian government’s mismanagement of Myanmar’s Rohingya crisis.
— The Diplomat

Ooredoo Myanmar expands 4G+ to 200 townships
Ooredoo Myanmar has announced it has deployed its “4G+” LTE-Advanced Pro network network across 200 townships in Myanmar as part of a major network upgrade.
— Telecom Asia

Rohingya flee Myanmar despite repatriation deal
Hundreds of Rohingya Muslims continue to flee Myanmar’s restive Rakhine State for neighboring Bangladesh despite a repatriation deal between the countries.
— Ucanews

North Korea, Myanmar in a sanctions-busting embrace
If Hau Do Suan, Myanmar’s ambassador to the United Nations’ headquarters in New York, is to be believed, his country has “no ongoing relationship whatsoever with North Korea” and is abiding by UN Security Council resolutions imposed against the isolated regime’s nuclear and missile programs.
— Asia Times

Myanmar investors betting on the crypto-bubble
Local enthusiasts and speculators are navigating scammers and payment problems to plough their money into cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin.
— Frontier Myanmar

What’s Behind Myanmar’s Big New Military Exercise?
From February 2 to 4, Myanmar’s military carried out their first tri-service exercise in over two decades. The drills reinforce the military’s determination to advance its modernization even amid continued international scrutiny over its behavior.
— The Diplomat

In Myanmar, private sector under pressure to stand with Rohingya
Activists are once again looking to Unilever, a major investor in Myanmar, to take a stand against the country’s persecution of the Rohingya minority.
— Devex

Feature: Lion, dragon dance enthralls audience in Myanmar ahead of Chinese New Year
The booming, rhythmic beating of drums captured the attention of scores of people in a popular shopping district just north of downtown Yangon, with the percussive euphony whipping up a festive atmosphere ahead of the traditional Chinese Spring Festival, or Chinese New Year.
— Xinhua Net

Government mulls construction of second Chin airport
Plans to build a new airport in Thantlang, Chin State, are underway, U Ye Htut Aung, Deputy Director General of the Department of Civil Aviation (DCA), told The Myanmar Times Tuesday. It is the second airport project in the State after the ongoing one at Falam.
— Myanmar Times

Japan to maintain support for Myanmar forces’ humanitarian role
Japanese forces will continue helping Myanmar’s military bolster its capabilities in humanitarian assistance and disaster response, a special adviser to Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe said Thursday, despite growing international concern over the Rohingya refugee crisis.
— Nikkei Asian Review

Myanmar Denies Report of ‘Massacre’ in Rakhine
The government of Myanmar has answered a report by the Associated Press that said there are mass burials in a village in Rakhine state.
— VOA

Does Myanmar’s LNG power plan stack up?
JANUARY 30 was the biggest day for Myanmar’s power sector in many years. At a ceremony in Nay Pyi Taw, the government green-lighted four private sector projects that, if implemented, would double the country’s generation capacity over the next four years.
— Frontier Myanmar

American chamber gets ready for business
The American Chamber of Commerce in Myanmar no longer operates under the auspices of its Thai counterpart and has now scaled up its permanent team in Yangon.
— Myanmar Times

Myanmar should pursue ‘green’ development, says visiting UN official
A visiting UN official says Myanmar has an “enormous opportunity” in pursuing an environmentally sustainable path to development in the coming years.
— Mizzima

Tourism project to be implemented in Chin, Kayin and Taninthari
According to the National Export Strategy, plans are underway to implement Community Based Tourism Project in Chin and Kayin States and Taninthari Region, says Aung Soe, Director-General of Myanmar Trade Promotion Team under the Ministry of Commerce.
— Eleven Myanmar

Yangon government earns big from karaoke
Karaoke parlours are doing good business in Yangon, with a total of 326 parlours licensed to operate in the region since the year 2000, according to Karen ethnic minister Daw Naw Pan Thinzar Myo at a Yangon Regional Parliament session on Wednesday.
— Myanmar Times

Myanmar Food Expo: Why packaged and processed beats fresh and local
Over 80 food brands came together in Yangon last Sunday to show off their wares at the 5th Myanmar Food & Drink Expo.
— Coconuts Yangon

Myanmar Experiments with Drones to Replant Dwindling Mangroves
Environmentalists in Myanmar used to plant mangroves by hand. On Wednesday, however, the Worldview International Foundation staged a drone-planting demonstration in Yangon with plans for a pilot project in the Irrawaddy delta.
— The Irrawaddy

Feature photo Jaume Escofet

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

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

Myanmar Morning News For February 9 added by Leakhena Khat on February 9, 2018
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Leakhena Khat

Leakhena is a junior journalist at AEC News Today who is also currently studying International Relations, which she finds adds perspective to her work reporting on the Asean Community.

“I love what I am doing so much as it gives me a lot of great experience and provides challenges to my mind.