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Tenasserim Chief Minister Lei Lei Maw: ‘We Will Rebuild Our Country’

By Nantiya Tangwisutijit

Lei Lei Maw, a sitting lawmaker in the regional legislature for Tenasserim Division, was appointed chief minister of the division on Monday, becoming one of Burma’s first females to hold the position.

Burma’s state and divisional parliaments this week announced the incoming regional heads, appointed by President-elect Htin Kyaw, and the list included two women—Lei Lei Maw and Karen State’s Nang Khin Htwe Myint. Despite pro-democracy icon Aung San Suu Kyi’s prominence in Burma, women have been largely excluded from top political posts in her incoming National League for Democracy (NLD) government.

Lei Lei Maw, 51, is a medical doctor who joined the NLD in 2012 and ran in the November 2015 general election, representing Thayetchaung constituency. The ethnic Karen-Burman, Christian, and mother of four has run a private clinic for more than 20 years and has delivered free health care in remote villages.

She will succeed the Union Solidarity and Development Party’s (USDP) Myat Ko, who sought re-election in 2015 but was defeated. The ceremonial transfer of power will occur on Wednesday night in Naypyidaw.

The Irrawaddy spoke with Lei Lei Maw following her parliamentary appointment on Monday.

Thailand’s transparency deficit: Haste makes waste on mega-projects

By Nantiya Tangwisutijit

One of the country’s top bankers is stressing the need for faster action to transform Thailand into a hub for CLMV countries (Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar and Vietnam).

Kevin Tan, CEO of HSBC Thailand, was speaking during an interview on Vietnam’s increasing attractiveness to foreign investors. Vietnam’s gross domestic product grew a whopping 797 per cent between 1995 and 2014, from US$20.74 billion to $186.2 billion. Thailand’s GDP growth was sluggish in comparison, rising from $169.28 billion to $404.8 billion over the same period.

And with big names like Intel, Apple and Samsung now showing interest in Vietnam, it seems the times are against Thailand.

The grand vision for mainland China’s Nu River can become a model for the region

By Nantiya Tangwisutijit

China’s slowing economy would not seem a good time to scrap hydroelectric dam projects. That would seem especially so in southwest Yunnan’s Nu River valley, among the nation’s poorest regions. Yet provincial authorities have decided to put the way of life of villagers and the environment first by calling a halt to small-scale schemes. It is a hopeful sign for those in the area and downstream in Myanmar and Thailand who rely on the waters for their livelihoods.

The valley is a Unesco World Heritage site included for its scenery and biodiversity, accounting for 6,000 different types of plants and half of China’s animal and fish species. Plans in 2004 for a 13-dam cascade to be built in the upper reaches of the Nu were shelved under pressure the following year, but revived in 2013 on a lesser scale with an eye on meeting national renewal energy targets. The province’s Communist Party chief, Li Jiheng, said earlier this month that projects for coal mines and small hydro plants beside the river and on tributaries would not go ahead. In five to 10 years, with vegetation restored, the valley would be a tourist attraction rivaling the US’ Grand Canyon.

A reality check for renewable energy

By Nantiya Tangwisutijit

The clean-and-safe energy revolution is not imminent. In fact, according to the information compiled by Looking Ahead: The 50 Global Trends That Matter,1an annual compendium of data and graphics on subjects ranging from economics to demography to energy, the majority of the planet’s electricity needs will still be fueled by coal and natural gas in 2040—despite strong growth in nonhydro renewables such as wind, solar, and geothermal. The report also expects the shale phenomenon to abate, with Saudi Arabia reasserting itself as the world’s leading oil producer in 2030.

Looking Ahead, which is produced by an independent think tank supported by Abu Dhabi’s Crown Prince Court, does not take a view on these trends; instead, it simply lays out the best available information from a wide variety of sources, including governments, consultancies, think tanks, corporations, and multilateral institutions. The overriding aim of the publication is to highlight issues that matter in compelling visualizations that make it easier for readers to grasp a large amount of interlinked data—and thus better understand both the nature of the problems the world faces and how to address them.

Thais must face up to China reality

By Nantiya Tangwisutijit

There has always been a special bond between China and Thailand, which hosts the largest overseas Chinese community in the world. In Thai culture, the Chinese influence is easily traced, through descendants whose origins can be found in rural areas of the southern Chinese mainland, from where their ancestors fled poverty, communism and political oppression to the more hospitable environs of Thailand.

China has always been perceived as a friend — a friend indeed who never leaves a friend in need. The phrase is not just a cliche. Comrades from the mainland have proven their love. During the tom yam koong economic crisis in 1997, this friend lent the debt-ridden Thailand much-needed funds, while other friends gave it the cold shoulder.

The Manual: Community consultation and monitoring on the impact of hydropower

By Paritta Wangkiat

According to the report of the Commission on Science, Technology, Environment and Government, by 2013 Vietnam has had 113 terraced Hydroelectric power plants on some major rivers and 1,108 small hydropower plants are now being projected. The development of this manual is important as it illustrates the many evidences of hydropower impacts on the environment and society. This manual was produced when state policies and guidelines were aimed at promoting the role of community participation and supervision.

NEO-Esaan Movement order to stop NCPO’s order no. 3, 4, 9/2559

By Paritta Wangkiat

NEO-Essan Movement released statement which results in the deprivation of citizens’ rights in a number of areas in the Northeast as well as other areas around the country. From the statement, it was claimed that the NCPO’s orders destroyed the public participation rights instead of protecting it, undisclosed the information to public instead of promoting public freedom of expression which is a fundamental rights of every citizen.

Decentralization and Proper Resources Allocation from the extractive industries could promote peace in Myanmar

By Paritta Wangkiat

ၿဖိဳးေ၀ Rakhine Oil Watch, has launched a report on March 22 at Summit Parkview Hotel in Myanmar. The research and recommendation says, “Only the decentralization and proper resource allocation from the extractive industries could promote peace in Myanmar” especially in ethnic areas. The decentralization is the constitutional rights of the local government, but it has […]

NGOs question China’s dam release

By Nantiya Tangwisutijit

One week ago, China doubled the quantity of water released from the Jinghong Dam along the Mekong River in Yunnan province. This came two days following Vietnamese officials meeting in Beijing to request the increase due to severe drought conditions and low flows in the Mekong Delta. But at a press conference in Bangkok yesterday, representatives of Thai civil society and communities denounced the action as destructive and insincere.

“No one doubts that people in the Vietnamese Delta may be suffering from salt water intrusion due to low Mekong flows this dry season,” said Montree Chantawong from Towards Ecological Recovery and Regional Alliance (TERRA), “But these additional dam releases can’t really help them, yet are hurting many of us.”

China leaves little doubt who is master of the Mekong

By Nantiya Tangwisutijit

Supalak Ganjanakundee China is demonstrating that it has real power to control and manage the Mekong River, as Beijing launches a diplomatic campaign to engage with affected countries downstream. This situation has become clear after China’s contacts with the other five countries along the river – Myanmar, Laos, Thailand, Cambodia and Vietnam. Physically, about half […]