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Junta Watch
Min Aung Hlaing and his spouse on the seventy fifth Union Day celebration in February 2022. / Cincds
By The Irrawaddy 5 November 2022
Spendthrift boss tells subordinates to tighten belts
Min Aung Hlaing has once more urged his regime’s ministries to tighten their belts whereas he himself spends recklessly. As an alternative of investing in issues that might ship sensible advantages to the nation—and which could even win him some fashionable assist—the junta boss has been busy squandering public funds on vainness initiatives.
He’s having a large Buddha statue—touted because the world’s largest sitting Buddha picture—in-built Naypyitaw, to not point out holding lavish feasts for and presenting offertories to Buddhist monks, in a bid to painting himself as the good promoter of Buddhism. The junta chief has additionally spent billions to confer hole titles on people, together with navy supporters, after showering athletes who gained medals on the SEA Video games with giant money awards.
At his regime’s cupboard assembly on Tuesday nevertheless, Min Aung Hlaing repeated his name for an economic system drive and a wholesome steadiness sheet, and demanded that state-owned enterprises keep within the black.
Min Aung Hlaing has additionally urged the general public to eat much less gasoline, cooking oil, rice, electrical energy and water. Nicely, it shouldn’t be too exhausting for Myanmar individuals to avoid wasting vitality, at the least, because the regime helps them with frequent blackouts.
Junta troopers haven’t been spared Min Aung Hlaing’s financial lectures, both. At any time when he visits battalions, he at all times urges personnel to spend inside their means.
In the meantime, he’s getting ready to have a good time Myanmar’s seventy fifth Independence Day, which falls on Jan. 4, on a scale even grander than the seventy fifth annual Union Day celebration, for which he squandered billions of kyats.
Min Aung Hlaing is saying one factor and doing one other. And what a pity he thinks these vainness initiatives will make him the true head of state of Myanmar!
Lawlessness on the rise
“If there isn’t any safety, well-off individuals must do the evening watch bearing their belongings,” was what Min Aung Hlaing instructed his junta ministers on the identical cupboard assembly on Tuesday as he highlighted the significance of regulation and order, and rule of regulation. Apparently, he’s not conscious of simply how lawless Myanmar has grow to be for the reason that coup.
Excessive unemployment and the rising value of dwelling have led to a criminal offense wave starting from financial institution heists and deadly robberies to thefts and muggings dedicated blatantly in broad daylight in cities together with the business capital, Yangon.
Aren’t there police to deal with these crimes? Sure, there are. However they’ve been busy working along with junta troopers to mount crackdowns on opponents of the regime—in different phrases, serving to to strengthen the navy dictatorship—so that they don’t have any time for regulation enforcement. The rising crime wave bears testimony to the truth that the individuals can’t fill in for the police and do their job for them.
In the future after Min Aung Hlaing careworn the significance of rule of regulation, a constructing supplies store in downtown Yangon was robbed, and the proprietor needed to be hospitalized. Earlier this week, an 80-year-old physicist and his spouse had been killed at their home in an armed theft in Mingalar Taungnyunt, in Yangon’s downtown.
Ministry goes all out to spare basic’s blushes
The junta’s Electrical energy Ministry doesn’t appear significantly involved about Myanmar individuals dwelling at midnight, nevertheless it dreads inflicting Min Aung Hlaing to lose face ought to he himself be hit by an influence outage in public.
Due to this fact, the ministry mounted a particular operation to make sure a relentless energy provide as Min Aung Hlaing provided Kathina robes to Buddhist monks in Naypyitaw on Wednesday.
On Oct. 30, a staff led by Deputy Electrical energy Minister Dr. Aung Zeya drove to Uppatasanti Pagoda, the venue for the regime’s Kathina robe-offering ceremony. He instructed ministry employees to observe the electrical energy provide to the venue constantly, and to report to him instantly in case of any downside.
He additionally instructed them to verify the transformer, management panel, backup energy strains and diesel mills had been working correctly, and to have backup mills and different tools prepared. Going to extremes, the deputy minister even ordered his employees to verify USPs and energy banks had been in good situation and prepared for use on the event.
The truth that ministerial-level officers need to personally get entangled to be certain that a ceremony attended by their boss could be held with out a blackout signifies how unhealthy the scenario has grow to be.
Myanmar has been tormented by blackouts since late final 12 months, within the wake of the coup. The regime promised that the electrical energy provide would return to regular in Could, however blackouts are nonetheless widespread. As hydropower is the principle supply of electrical energy in Myanmar, and November marks the tip of the wet season, Myanmar individuals are sure to face additional severe blackouts within the months to return.
Guidelines tightened on civil society organizations
Junta chief Min Aung Hlaing on Oct. 28 signed a brand new Group Registration Regulation into impact, concentrating on the favored resistance motion.
The brand new regulation replaces an identical regulation enacted in 2014 below President U Thein Sein’s administration, making it obligatory for organizations to register, whereas approval is topic to related ministries.
The regulation prohibits organizations from supporting or in any other case having direct or oblique hyperlinks with teams and people that the regime has labeled terrorists or that actively oppose the regime, in addition to with illegal associations and their members.
What’s worse, the broadly outlined Article 39 carries jail sentences of as much as 5 years for any act deemed to hurt, both immediately or not directly, the sovereignty of the nation, rule of regulation, nationwide safety and nationwide solidarity.
The regulation will govern the operations of civil society organizations and worldwide non-governmental organizations working in Myanmar. It additionally will increase registration charges, at a time when many charities are being compelled to restrict their operations as a consequence of excessive gasoline costs.
For the reason that coup, the regime has tightened its restrictions on media, printing and publishing, and movies, and is now concentrating on civil society organizations.
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