Myanmar morning news for April 14, 2020

Myanmar rock icon one of 21 new COVID-19 patients
Myanmar’s most famous rock star, Myo Gyi, is among the 21 latest COVID-19 victims, bringing to 62 the total number of infected people in the country, the Health Ministry said on April 14.
— Myanmar Times

Key challenges to Myanmar’s development and governance remain
Myanmar’s efforts to reverse a legacy of isolation began with the quasi-civilian government (QCG) led by former president U Thein Sein.
— AEC News Today

The China-Myanmar Economic Corridor: Delays Ahead
Although no new deals were struck during People’s Republic of China (PRC) President Xi Jinping’s trip to Myanmar on January 17 and 18, the visit was significant for several reasons.
— James Town

Govt expands list of relief measures for businesses, investors
The government has been rolling out a slew of relief measures to help ease the pain for businesses affected by the COVID-19 pandemic and keep investors interested in Myanmar.
— Myanmar Times

Myanmar Trucks, Fruit Snagged at China Border Crossing Under COVID-19 Restrictions
Chinese border authorities are not letting cargo trucks from Myanmar pass through a key entry point into China from northern Myanmar’s Kachin state under a new cross-border cargo policy to control the spread of the coronavirus, drivers and a state government official said Monday.
— Radio Free Asia

COVID-19: Myanmar extends ban in international flights
The Myanmar government extended a ban on all international flights into the country’s airports Saturday to contain the spread of coronavirus pandemic.
— Brinkwire

KB Kookmin Bank expands presence in Cambodia, Myanmar
KB Kookmin Bank has gained two important footholds for its continuous expansion in Southeast Asia ― Cambodia and Myanmar.
— Cambodia Daily

Myanmar Awards Licences to Seven More Foreign Banks
The preliminary licences were awarded to three Korean banks, two Taiwanese banks, one Hong Kong bank and one Thai bank.
— Regulation Asia

Myanmar Must End Repression Now, Says Rights Group in New Report
The call comes amid expected elections later this year.
— The Diplomat

Telenor Myanmar launches SMS-to-donate channel to support covid-19 prevention, control, treatment
Telenor is calling on its 22 million customers in Myanmar to be part of the nationwide prevention, control and treatment of covid-19.
— Telecompaper

Call For Myanmar To Release Jailed Rights Defenders And Activists
Aung San Suu Kyi and her government have overseen the continuing harassment, intimidation, arrest, prosecution and imprisonment of human rights defenders and activists since coming to power in Myanmar four years ago, Amnesty International said in a new briefing published Monday.
— One News Page

For Myanmar Muslims, religious freedom founders in red tape
A committee trying to resurrect shuttered and burned-down mosques has been frustrated by government bureaucracy, leaving many Muslim communities without local places of worship.
— Frontier Myanmar

Officials say eight killed in Myanmar’s Rakhine state; army says has no information
Eight people were killed by shelling in Myanmar’s Rakhine state on Monday, two local officials and a resident said, but the army said it had no information about such an incident and rejected accusations by villagers and insurgents that its forces were involved.
— Wibqam

Test runs for Chinese gas plant to take place this month
One of Myanmar’s five emergency power plants will carry out test runs this month after missing an initial deadline to go live on March 31.
— Myanmar Times

Community based facilities quarantine established for returnees from Thailand
The Mon State government has arranged for Community Based Facilities Quarantine (CBFQ) for returnees from Thailand to Myanmar. According to U Myint Than Win, the Mon State Government Office Director this initiative will help support national health care in response to Covid-19. Returnees must stay in the facilities quarantine for 14 days to ensure they are not carrying the virus.
— BNI ONline

Suu Kyi bets on coronavirus stimulus with little room for error
Myanmar’s government is pushing ahead with an economic stimulus package that from one vantage point looks to be unprecedented but from another does not appear to be up to the job of combating the economic impact of the novel coronavirus.
— Nikkei Asian Review (paywall)

From Cyclone Nargis to COVID-19, Myanmar has come a long way
The government’s handling of the coronavirus pandemic has its flaws, but is heartening for those who remember the military junta’s callous response to Cyclone Nargis in 2008.
— Frontier Myanmar

UN concern over Myanmar fighting
Independent UN human rights experts have voiced grave concern over the killing and displacement of civilians in north-west Myanmar due the intensifying conflict between the military and Arakan Army rebels, amid an information blackout in some parts of Rakhine and Chin states.
— Nenow

Visiting Myanmar’s Pearl Farm Paradise
On the southern tip of Myanmar, a tiny, colourless town, Kawthaung, looks out towards paradise.
— Myanmore

MPT launches PUBG Mobile Data Promotion for gamers
Myanmar operator MPT, the official Telecom Partner of PUBG Mobile Myanmar Championship 2020, has started a PUBG Mobile Data promotion. Under this campaign, mobile data usage to play the game will be free for all players, MPT said.
— Telecompaper

Unpaid Myanmar Immigrant Wants To Cycle From Kedah To Penang To Look For His Brother
Not all of us are fortunate enough to think of this MCO as an extended period of time to spend time with our families. There are some people out there, especially those who earn a daily wage are struggling to make ends meet.
— World of Buzz

Garment workers in Cambodia, Myanmar and even Asia lose jobs as Covid-19 hits them hard
Advocates urge brands to honour their agreements with cash-strapped factories as hundreds of thousands in Asia, especially in South-East Asia, face job losses.
— The Star Online

BGB fires blanks to stop Rohingya refugees at Bandarban border
Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB) members yesterday fired blank shots near Ghumdhum border in Bandarban’s Naikhyangchhari upazila to stop the entry of Rohingya refugees from Myanmar.
— The Daily Star

BURMESE RETALIATORY AIRSTRIKES KILL 21 CIVILIANS, DISPLACE 1,500 IN CHIN STATE
The March 14 attack on Meiksa Wa villages 2 and 3 in Paletwa Township of Chin State killed 12 people. The next day, additional airstrikes killed eight in Wetma village and one in Pyaing Tain village. Twenty-eight civilians were wounded in the two days of attacks, and 1,500 others fled.
— The alabamabaptist

Persecution of critics ‘continues in Aung San Suu Kyi’s Myanmar’
Amnesty urges Myanmar’s leader to release prisoners of conscience and drop charges against those facing imprisonment.
— Aljazeera

Myanmar virus toll increases to four, cases rise to 41
The health ministry reported on April 12 the death of another COVID-19 patient, bringing to four the total number of people killed by the deadly disease in Myanmar, with two new infections detected on April 13.
— Myanmar Times

Myanmar public support closing wildlife markets over virus fears: survey
The majority of Myanmar people support shutting down wildlife markets to prevent another pandemic, an Asia-wide survey released by the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) indicates.
— BNI Online

KDB acquires a license to establish Yangon branch in Myanmar
Korea Development Bank (KDB) has obtained a license from Myanmar’s central bank to establish a branch in Yangon.
— Korea Times

14 more coronavirus cases reported in Myanmar
Myanmar on Monday has reported 14 more cases of coronavirus, bringing the country’s total number of infections to 52.
— AA

Chinese Automakers Move Into Myanmar to Battle Japanese Rivals
Chinese automakers are ramping up local production in Myanmar as they go head to head with dominant and entrenched Japanese rivals in the fast-growing market.
— Nikkei Asian Review (paywall)

Working from home, in Myanmar
For the first time many Myanmar employees have been told to work from home, a luxury some could only dream about in the past. But along with the comforts of the couch and surround-sound music, working from home brings a whole new set of responsibilities and challenges.
— Myanmar Times

Govt to prioritise having sufficient space for quarantine: DASSK
Ensuring there is sufficient room to quarantine people at risk of spreading COVID-19 is a top priority for the government, State Counsellor Daw Aung San Suu Kyi told Yangon residents during a Facebook livestream dialogue on April 13.
— Myanmar Times

Turning good intentions into better outcomes
Last Thursday, State Counsellor Daw Aung San Suu Kyi announced that a historic programme of distributing food would be launched to benefit the “citizens of the basic strata of society who don’t have regular incomes.”
— Myanmar Times

10 Thingyan revellers charged in Shan State
A restaurant owner and nine cohorts, were charged on April 13 for splashing water and dancing in the street to celebrate the Thingyan Festival, despite a nationwide ban on mass gatherings as part of the government measures to fight COVID-19.
— Myanmar Times

COVID19 pandemic and Rohingya refugees
Keeping the refugees and IDPs confined in the camps uninformed may be detrimental to effective enforcement of the authorities’ efforts and measures to prevent and contain the spread of the pandemic.
— Orf Online

Feature photo Myanmar Red Cross Society
This week’s Myanmar morning news feature photo focus on COVID-19 in Asean.

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).

—

About Myanmar morning news.

Myanmar morning news roundup is the most comprehensive hand-curated selection of Myanmar English language news headlines published. Each weekday we scour hundreds of local and international news sites and websites to find the freshest Myanmar English language news today.

We filter our the dull, the boring, the repetitive, and the click-bait and package all of the Myanmar daily news that you need to know to start your day into an easy to read, time saving format of Myanmar news headlines and first paragraphs before 7.00am Naypyitaw time.

We clearly identify the source of all the Myanmar news headlines, whether it is behind a paywall, a media release, or whether the news site uses annoying pop-up advertising or auto-play video, in case those things annoy you too. If a website uses particularly invasive pop-up adverts, we’ll tell you.

This enables you to make an informed choice of whether you want to learn more by clicking directly through to the original Myanmar news article, or keep on reading the remaining Myanmar daily news headlines.

Click here to get your Myanmar English language news today by email before 7.30am Naypyitaw time daily. Remember to watch out for the confirmation email from us to confirm your subscription. Check your trash folder if you do not see it.

For more immediate updates download the AEC News Today Mobile App from the Apple or Google stores, or follow us on Twitter.

#Independentmedia

Governance, not government; policies not politics.