Myanmar Morning News For May 9

UN Security Council: Refer Myanmar to ICC
The United Nations Security Council should immediately refer the situation in Myanmar, including the widespread and systematic abuses against ethnic Rohingya, to the International Criminal Court (ICC), Human Rights Watch said today.
— Human Right Watch

US retiree accused of running ‘sex tours’ on Thai-Myanmar border
An American man has been arrested in a sting operation for allegedly running a online brothel service matching men in northern Thailand with Myanmar sex workers across the border, police said Tuesday (May 8).
— Channel NewsAsia

Ooredoo Myanmar enters eSports tie-up with HOG
Ooredoo Myanmar has entered a partnership with Myanmar’s first eSports center Halls of Gamers (HOG) to provide high-speed connectivity for competitors.
— Telecomasia.net

Myanmar refugees hope for peace and stability, head home from Thailand: UN
Ninety-three refugees from Myanmar who have been living in camps in Thailand have gone home, the second such return since 2016, the UN refugee agency said on Tuesday (May 8), raising hopes for the eventual closure of some of Asia’s oldest refugee camps.
— Channel NewsAsia

IFC may invest up to $13m in Myanmar’s microfinance firm Keb Hana
The International Finance Corporation (IFC), a member of the World Bank Group, is considering a proposal to extend up to $3 million equity financing and a local currency equivalent loan of up to $10 million to Keb Hana Microfinance Limited (KHMF), a deposit-taking microfinance company in Myanmar, according to a disclosure.
— DealStreetAsia

Despite pleas to cancel, Leeds United arrive in Myanmar for controversial tour
LEEDS UNITED ARRIVED in Myanmar today, kicking off an end-of-season tour mired in controversy over whether the visitors should be playing in a country the UN accuses of ethnic cleansing against its Rohingya Muslim minority.
— The42

Myanmar refugees hope for peace and stability, head home from Thailand
Ninety-three refugees from Myanmar who have been living in camps in Thailand have gone home, the second such return since 2016, the UN refugee agency on Tuesday (May 8), raising hopes for the eventual closure of some of Asia’s oldest refugee camps.
— The Straits Times

China resists Britain’s push for UN statement in probe on Myanmar’s Rohingya crisis
China is resisting a British push at the UN Security Council for a statement calling on Myanmar to try those responsible for attacks on the Rohingya, according to a draft seen on Tuesday.
— South China Morning Post

Myanmar exports 400 m cubic feet of natural gas daily to China
Myanmar is selling 400 million cubic feet of natural gas produced from Shwe offshore natural gas project to China daily, according to Ministry of Electricity and Energy.
— Eleven Myanmar

Over the last year, Myanmar’s energy sector stumbles in right direction
Home to one of the world’s oldest oil and gas industries, oil exploration in Myanmar began in the early Bagan era. During the reign of King Anawrahta in the Bagan Era, evidence shows that the Buddha’s Three Teachings were coated with oil to prevent damage.
— The Myanmar Times

Myanmar to hold parliamentary by-election on Nov. 3
Myanmar will hold parliamentary by-election to fill vacant seats on Nov. 3 this year, said a release of the Union Election Commission late Tuesday.
— Xinhua Net

Rotary International hopes for increased engagement with Myanmar
On his second visit to Myanmar, Rotary Foundation Chair Paul Netzel spoke on Saturday at the Chatrium Hotel to express his hopes for what the country can accomplish through better engagement with Rotary International, a service organisation with a membership of 1.2 million spanning more than 200 countries.
— Mizzima

93 Refugees Repatriated from Thailand-Myanmar Border Camps
Ninety-three Myanmar refugees from five camps along the Thailand-Myanmar border returned to their homes on Monday through a voluntary repatriation program facilitated by the UNHCR, and the Thai and Myanmar governments.
— The Irrawaddy

Senior officials of China, Myanmar meet on law-enforcement cooperation
China’s State Councilor and Minister of Public Security Zhao Kezhi met here Tuesday with Myanmar’s Minister of Home Affairs Kyaw Swe on cooperation.
— Xinhua Net

Myanmar mining: Long-term health impact on villagers
Villagers in Myanmar living near open pit mines and coal plants complain of the long-term adverse impact to their health. In this second of a five-part series, Channel NewsAsia talks to residents who are suffering the ill-effects of mining projects.
— Channel NewsAsia (video)

Expanding political imagination beyond constitutional limits in Kachin
Kachin civil society has been frustrated by the chief minister’s inability to intervene to help the thousands of IDPs trapped by renewed fighting in the country’s north, for which the 2008 constitution is not an excuse.
— Frontier Myanmar

Emotional Memorial for Karen Environmentalist Shot by Soldiers
Ethnic Karen gathered for an emotional memorial service in Mae Sot, Thailand, on Saturday, a month after the fatal shooting of environmentalist Saw O Moo, described by colleagues as one of their “most committed land protectors, peace advocates and indigenous rights defenders.”
— The Irrawaddy

More War Refugees Transported to Safety in Northern Myanmar’s Myitkyina
More than 200 war refugees arrived in the capital of northern Myanmar’s war-torn Kachin state Tuesday evening after aid workers helped them escape ongoing hostilities between the national army and an ethnic armed group.
— Radio Free Asia

Crisis in Myanmar’s Kachin means jungle treks to escape war
As the Myanmar army’s bombs started falling near her home in Kachin state, Nlam Numrang Doi and her neighbors decided they had no choice but to grab what they could and scatter into the jungle.
— Star Stripes

Myanmar traders to start up gold export, import business
Myanmar’s local gold traders are planning to start up gold export and import businesses following the government’s announcement of relaxing rules for trading gold products abroad, the official Global New Light of Myanmar reported Tuesday.
— Xinhua Net

Police Sue Protest Organizers in Mandalay, Yangon
Police in Mandalay and Yangon have sued the organizers of weekend protests calling on authorities to immediately rescue villagers in Kachin State who have been trapped for weeks by fighting between the Myanmar military and the Kachin Independence Army (KIA).
— The Irrawaddy

Feature photo Philip Roeland

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 May 9 added by Leakhena Khat on May 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.