Coup Leader Starstruck by Putin; Media Crackdown Set to Worsen; and More

Simply because the army junta escalates its crackdown on impartial media in Myanmar, it was determined at a gathering on Tuesday led by the regime’s Union Legal professional-Normal and Minister of Authorized Affairs Daw Thida Oo to amend the 2014 Printing and Publishing Legislation, indicating that extra restrictions are on their technique to curb free voices in Myanmar.

For a few years below the earlier army regime, the Data Ministry’s infamous Press Scrutiny and Registration Division, jokingly often known as the “Press Kenpeitai” after the brutal Japanese army police unit throughout World Conflict II, imposed a draconian system of pre-publication censorship. It was solely abolished in late 2012 as a part of media reforms, permitting uncensored non-public dailies to come back into circulation in 2013.

The Printing and Publishing Legislation promulgated in 2014 offered higher freedom for impartial media in Myanmar. However because the coup, the junta-controlled Data Ministry has been stretching the regulation and imposing it because it pleases, stripping native retailers of their media licenses and prosecuting journalists. Thus far, it has revoked the licenses of 9 media retailers, two printing homes and 4 publishing homes.

From what we’ve got seen of the regime’s therapy of impartial media to this point, the amendments are more likely to embrace the resurrection of draconian censorship, and harsh penalties for failing to conform. On the identical time, the regime has teamed up with Russia’s state-owned media Sputnik.

Coup chief’s electrical automobile desires persist

Whereas individuals in Myanmar have needed to more and more depend on energy banks to maintain their cell telephones working, the junta’s Ministry of Electrical energy and Vitality is planning to determine 5 charging stations for electrical vehicles alongside the Yangon-Mandalay Freeway.

Every charging station may have the capability to cost 50 automobiles on the identical time, in response to a letter despatched by the Naypyitaw Electrical energy Provide Enterprise to its Yangon and Naypyitaw branches. The letter requested the 2 branches to element which energy stations alongside the freeway can provide energy for the charging stations.

To Myanmar individuals, Min Aung Hlaing’s fantasy of making a metro rail system and an electrical bus community is a operating joke.

In June, the regime even shaped a nationwide committee to guide the event of electrical automobiles and associated companies, chaired by Protection Minister Normal Mya Tun Oo, a member of the regime’s governing physique, the State Administration Council (SAC). Transport Minister Normal Tin Aung San, who can be on the SAC, serves because the vice chair of the committee.

Lower than a month after the coup, Min Aung Hlaing promoted his concept of manufacturing electrical vehicles to scale back the nation’s gas imports. In distinction to those delusions of grandeur, the truth because the army takeover has been widespread blackouts which have continued for months till immediately. Currently, public buses are even being compelled to scale back their working hours as a consequence of gas value hikes.

However none of this has deterred Min Aung Hlaing, who persists together with his electrical automobile plan. If he isn’t completely deluded, he’s absolutely doing this only for present.

Min Aung Hlaing lastly will get his photo-op with Putin

Throughout his newest journey to Russia this week, Myanmar’s junta chief seemed like a baby visiting a zoo as he was granted his first viewers with Russian President Vladimir Putin at a international funding discussion board within the Russian Far East. As the top of a regime internationally shunned for grabbing energy from Myanmar’s democratically elected authorities and killing at the least 2,000 individuals to this point for rejecting army rule, it’s the first time the coup chief has been welcomed by a global head of state. To Min Aung Hlaing’s delight, the Russian president addressed him as “Mr. Prime Minister”—a place not acknowledged regionally or internationally. It may assist to clarify Min Aung Hlaing’s beaming visage through the assembly, as captured in photographs. To indicate his gratitude for this acceptance, the junta chief praised his host as “a frontrunner of the world” who had caused worldwide stability, ignoring the devastation Putin has wrought by means of his invasion of Ukraine.

However Min Aung Hlaing got here throughout as merely delusional when he shamelessly claimed to Russian information company RIA that the scenario in Myanmar was below management. On the contrary, native and worldwide media in addition to international observers unanimously agree that his regime continues to be not answerable for the nation, and is in actual fact dropping territory to resistance teams who’ve taken up arms to combat his rule. Even former UN consultants on Myanmar mentioned in a current evaluation that the revolutionary forces have efficient management over 52 % of the territory of the nation.

All in all, Putin’s acceptance of Min Aung Hlaing is solely a case of Russia looking for to offset the damaging affect of worldwide sanctions by luring a small regime in Asia as a doable supply of additional revenue by promoting it extra arms, oil and different requirements that Min Aung Hlaing would possibly discover useful. The junta’s declare of Myanmar being below his management is nothing greater than face saving.

Destroyer of farms provides ‘meals safety’

Junta chief Min Aung Hlaing shared his “perception” on the significance of meals on the Japanese Financial Discussion board in Russia on Wednesday, saying meals offers power for people to outlive. He included his discovering in his dialogue “Myanmar’s Essential Position in Meals Safety and Higher Alternatives for Funding.” He mentioned Myanmar can produce sufficient primary meals objects for its personal wants whereas additionally exporting agricultural and livestock merchandise to neighboring and different international locations, including, “If pleasant international locations can provide assist, agricultural manufacturing may be doubled, contributing lots to meals safety.”

Don’t take his phrases significantly, nevertheless: He was mendacity.

Opposite to his boast of with the ability to “contribute lots to meals safety”, Myanmar is on the verge of ravenous as a consequence of his regime’s mismanagement on each entrance. Gas shortages have been reported for months, prompting costs of requirements like rice, the nation’s fundamental staple meals, to soar. Farmers are complaining of a surge in imported chemical fertilizer costs as a result of regime’s restrictions on international change charges, heralding a pointy lower in yields. Rice and different farms upcountry are abandoned, as locals flee for his or her lives as Min Aung Hlaing’s troops raid farming communities there and torch complete villages. On the bottom, this month persons are paying 2,100 kyats per viss (about 1.6 kg) for the bottom grade of rice, up 75 % from April.

So keep in mind—dictators by no means inform the reality.