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Year: 2022

Junta troops kill 9 unarmed civilians, including 4 teens, in war-torn Sagaing region

Editor06 mins

Junta troops in Myanmar’s embattled Sagaing region captured and killed nine unarmed civilians, including four teenagers, as they traveled to receive medical training, according to an official from their group and a family member of one of the victims. The nine medics with the Wetlet township branch of the Generation Z Special Task Force, an organization aligned with the anti-junta People’s Defense Force (PDF) paramilitary group, were detained by the military, and shot dead on Wednesday near Shwebo township’s Kunseik village while enroute to southeastern Sagaing’s Ayadaw township, some 60 kilometers (37 miles) away. A spokesman for the Generation Z Special Task Force told RFA Burmese that those killed included four women: Pa Pa Khine, 14, Win Ei Kyaw, 15, Naing Naing Aung, 24, and Thit Thit Hlaing, 34; and five men: Pho Htaung, 17, Phone Kyaw, 17, Thein Than Oo, 21, Aung Kyaw Moe, 27, and Pho Nyein, 27. The spokesman, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said that his group confirmed the identities of the victims after obtaining photos of the slaughter. “They didn’t have any weapons on them. They were going for medical training in an area where there was no fighting,” he said. “We sent for them after notifying our allied groups as there were no military activities around here [and could safely return]. We have no idea how they got captured. We heard about some arrests [on Wednesday] and only [on Thursday], when we saw the photos, did we realize they were our team members.” The mother of one victim said she was devastated by the news that her daughter and her friends were killed at such a young age. “She wanted to do this, even though she was so young. She always said that she wanted to have a role she could play,” said the victim’s mother, who also declined to be named. “Now that this has happened, I’m heartbroken. I’m so numb and I feel like I have nothing inside.” The junta has yet to comment on the incident and calls by RFA to junta deputy information minister, Maj. Gen. Zaw Min Tun, went unanswered on Thursday. The Generation Z Special Task Force said it will work to obtain justice for the families of the victims of the extrajudicial killings and to bring international attention to the incident with the help of Myanmar’s shadow National Unity Government. According to the Bangkok-based Assistance Association for Political Prisoners, security forces have killed at least 2,053 civilians since the military’s Feb. 1, 2021, coup, although the group acknowledges its records are incomplete and says the real number of deaths is likely much higher. Last month, the Institute for Strategy and Policy (ISP), a local think tank, said in a report that it had documented at least 5,646 civilian deaths in Myanmar between the coup and May 10. The ISP figure included people killed by security forces during anti-junta protests, in clashes between the military and pro-democracy paramilitaries or ethnic armies, while held in detention, and in revenge attacks, including against informers for the regime. At least 1,831 civilians were killed in shooting deaths, the largest number of which occurred in Sagaing region, where junta troops have faced some of the toughest resistance to military rule in clashes with the PDF paramilitaries that have displaced tens of thousands of residents since the coup, the ISP report said. Translated by Khin Maung Nyane. Written in English by Joshua Lipes.

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Will the people of Hong Kong ever run their own city again?

Editor013 mins

On June 30, 1997, pro-democracy members held the majority seats on Hong Kong’s Legislative Council (LegCo), the result of the city’s first fully democratic general election in 1995, under political reforms brought in at the 11th hour of British rule by then colonial governor Chris Patten. By the following day — the first under Chinese rule — the 1995 LegCo had been swept aside in favor of a China-backed “provisional LegCo,” packed with members viewed more favorably by Beijing. Twenty-five years after the handover, the ruling Chinese Communist Party (CCP) has rewritten the rules to ensure that only those it deems “patriots” can stand as candidates. The current LegCo — elected earlier this year under the new rules — now has no openly pro-democracy members at all. And while the city’s Basic Law — endorsed by the CCP — promised direct, popular elections for the city’s chief executive by 2017, incoming chief executive John Lee was selected by a Beijing-backed committee in a “perfected” election in which he was the only candidate. Meanwhile, dozens who once served as pro-democracy lawmakers are now behind bars, accused under a draconian national security law of “subversion” after they took part in a democratic primary in 2020. The lack of democratic participation in post-handover Hong Kong isn’t for want of trying. From a mass march in 2002 against national security laws, to a 2012 campaign against CCP propaganda in schools, to the 2014 Occupy Central, or Umbrella Movement, Hong Kongers have mobilized in their thousands, hundreds of thousands and millions to demand an end to the erosion of their traditional freedoms and that promises of autonomy and more democracy made before the handover be kept. Riot police launch tear gas into the crowd as thousands of protesters surround the government headquarters in Hong Kong, Sept. 28, 2014. Credit: AP Photo Extradition law protests draw brutal response In 2019, mass protests of one and two million erupted in response to then chief executive Carrie Lam’s plan to allow extradition of alleged criminal suspects to face trial in mainland Chinese courts. Mass public anger over a brutal response to these protests spurred the movement further, which broadened to include demands for fully democratic elections, police and government accountability, and an amnesty for Hong Kong’s growing number of political prisoners. As protesters started to fight back against police tear gas, water cannon, live ammunition and rubber bullets with Molotov cocktails and bricks, not everyone was on board with a departure from peaceful resistance and civil disobedience. But the District Council elections of November 2019 resulted in huge turnout and a sweeping majority for pro-democracy candidates across the board, among them many who had been expelled from LegCo for not being patriotic enough in the years before the national security law criminalized public dissent. By March 2021, China’s National People’s Congress (NPC) had voted to change Hong Kong’s electoral system to ensure that only vetted candidates approved by a Beijing-picked committee and cleared by the city’s newly installed national security police could run for or hold any kind of public office. The NPC announced that China would be “taking full political control” of Hong Kong, and that only patriots would be allowed to run for office. Riot police fire tear gas during the anti-extradition bill protest in Hong Kong, Aug. 11, 2019. Credit: AP Photo Meanwhile, the arrests of outspoken journalists and the closure of pro-democracy media outlets and civil society groups continued under the national security law. On July 1, 2019, protesters broke into and vandalized the LegCo chamber to protest plans to allow extradition to mainland China. Now, the building has been refurbished and the Chinese national emblem added to the wall. The 90-seat expanded chamber is no longer the scene of lively political debate, and only 20 seats are returned by public vote. “The whole basis on which we do politics has changed,” Bruce Liu of the pro-democracy Association for Democracy and People’s Livelihood (ADPL) told RFA. “Political development has been uneven since the handover, with ups and downs, like the wind and waves.” “It’s like a circle game that always ends up back where it started,” Liu said, adding that his party now no longer seeks seats in LegCo, preferring to focus on social welfare and constituency clinics instead. Police detain protesters after a protest in Causeway Bay before the annual handover march in Hong Kong, July 1, 2020. Credit: AP Photo Exile or prison Tik Chi-yuan, who represents the social welfare sector in LegCo and who holds one of the few seats still elected by individuals rather than block voting by organizations, said the CCP sees Hong Kong as a security risk. “The central government in Beijing perceives some kind of threat to its security calculus,” Tik — who describes himself as a “non-establishment” LegCo member told RFA. “I think we need to look to the future now. The Basic Law promised democratic elections, so we should take that as our goal. It’s a process.” With most of the former political opposition either behind bars or in exile, the younger generation who grew up protesting have also disappeared from public view, many to escape becoming Hong Kong’s next political prisoner. Former student leader Law Cheuk Yiu said he left for the U.K. out of fear for his personal safety. “When the situation started to look truly bleak, I decided to leave,” he said, recalling a relatively liberal political atmosphere in the years immediately following the handover. “Things have changed since those early years: they won’t ever go back to the way they were then,” Law said. “Nowadays, anyone with a dissenting opinion is totally suppressed, basically.” For Law’s generation of Hong Kongers born and raised after the handover the past few years have left them facing a crisis of identity — whether they try to live under the national security law or seek a freer life overseas, as an estimated 140,000 have already done. “Our generation knows only too well that China…

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Vietnam sentences 5 soldiers for beating death of platoonmate

Editor08 mins

A military court in Vietnam’s central region sentenced five soldiers to a total of 41 years in prison on charges of causing the death of another soldier last year, a punishment the victim’s bereaved father said was too light. Nguyen Van Thien, born in 1998 in central Vietnam’s Gia Lai province, began his mandatory military service in February 2020 and was just one month shy of finishing his two-year stint when he was found dead in a barracks bathroom last November. “Five people have been jailed, but the sentencing was not right,” Nguyen Van Lam, Thien’s father, told RFA’s Vietnamese Service. According to the investigation, the object that struck Nguyen Van Thein’s head and caused his death was a five-liter plastic pail. The defendant who was holding the pail when the death occurred claimed the death was an accident. “The plastic pail is too light to kill anyone,” Lam said. “The defendants described their positions when the killing happened, but it did not sound right. According to the lawyers, it was impossible to use a light plastic pail to cause someone’s death. So, we are not sure of the cause of death or who the killer is.” Four of the defendants were in the same platoon as Thien. Ksor Dim and Rmah Tuy were both sentenced to seven years, while Nguyen Dinh Tam, who was said to have been the main culprit, and Tran Van Mao, who stuck Thien in the head with the plastic pail, received nine-and-a-half year sentences. Squad leader Tran Duc Loi, meanwhile, got eight years. According to the military procuracy’s report issued on April 25th, 2022, three soldiers, Nguyen Van Thien, Huynh Van Trung and Nguyen Van Hung went out for drinks at 3 p.m. on Nov. 29, 2021. Their platoon leader discovered their absence after a roll call later in the day, and the platoon began searching for them. At about 7 p.m. Nguyen Dinh Tam and the three other defendants in the platoon discussed what punishments they could face because of Thien, Trung and Hung. According to the court, Nguyen Dinh Tam persuaded the others to beat the three absent soldiers for revenge. At 9 p.m., while in bed, Thien was called to the bathroom and beaten by the five defendants until he fell unconscious.  The defendants said that they tried to wake him up but could not, so they returned to their bunks thinking that Thien had blacked out because he had drunk too much. A moment later, another soldier passed by the bathroom and found Thien lying on the ground with foam in his mouth. He called for help, but Thien was pronounced dead on the way to the hospital. During the trial, a representative of the Gia Lai military command told Thein’s family that the bruises on his body were from autopsy cuts and because he fell, not because he was engaged in a fight. Vietnamese state media has not reported on the trial. Le Xuan Anh Phu, the lawyer who represented the victim, told RFA that according to the procuracy’s report, defendant Tran Van Mao was the one who hit Thien’s head with the plastic pail, causing him to fall. At the trial, however, Mao said he slipped and fell and that the pail had hit Thien’s head by accident. Phu said he requested another investigation because of discrepancies in the defendants’ statements and because he believes a five-liter plastic pail is too light to cause a serious head injury. But the request was denied. “They did not reenact the whole scene. They just examined the scene and then the prosecutors argued that there were many witnesses of the beating, and the defendants testified the same,” Phu said. “They concluded that they have enough evidence,” he said. “We argued that we need to reenact the whole scene to have a more convincing investigation and to satisfy the bereaved family.” Additionally, the five-liter pail shown in the courtroom was not the actual pail that struck Thien because investigators could not find the actual pail Mao allegedly used. Representatives of Gia Lai military command told the court that they have disciplined more than 20 people in this case but did not elaborate on the details.  Phu, the attorney, said that military policy allowing other soldiers to discipline their colleagues indirectly led to Nguyen Van Thien’s death. He said that the policy needs to be reviewed.  The victim’s father told RFA that the family will appeal the court’s verdict in an attempt to discover the real cause of his son’s death and determine who the real killer is.  Translated by RFA Vietnamese. Written in English by Eugene Whong.

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Taiwan hits out at Hong Kong’s vanishing freedoms, vows to protect its sovereignty

Editor012 mins

Democratic Taiwan on Friday said freedom had “vanished” in Hong Kong, as concerns were raised internationally over a political crackdown in the city after just 25 years of Chinese rule. “It’s only been 25 years, and in the past the promise was 50 years of no change,” Taiwan’s premier Su Tseng-chang told journalists as Hong Kong marked the 25th anniversary of the 1997 handover to Chinese rule. “Freedom and democracy have vanished,” he said, adding that Taiwan, which made a peaceful democratic transition in the 1990s after decades of authoritarian rule under the Kuomintang (KMT), must protect its own way of life in the face of Chinese territorial claims. “We also know that we must hold fast to Taiwan’s sovereignty, freedom and democracy,” Su said, in a reference to Beijing’s insistence that the island “unify” with China, despite never having been ruled by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), and despite widespread public opposition to the idea. “China’s so-called ‘one country, two systems’ has simply not stood up to the test,” Su said of the arrangement touted by Beijing as a success in Hong Kong, and as a possible pathway to a takeover of Taiwan. Taiwan’s Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) said CCP rule had led to the end of freedom and democracy in Hong Kong. In a statement, the council hit out at China’s imposition of a draconian national security law “to govern Hong Kong in a coercive manner, restrict the basic human rights of Hong Kong’s people, and to imprison democracy advocates, silencing the news media and prompting the collapse of civil society.” It also said recent changes to the city’s electoral system to ensure only “patriots” can hold public office “is even more contrary to goal of universal suffrage and the expectations of Hong Kong citizens.” “Democracy, human rights, freedom, and rule of law have seriously regressed in Hong Kong, compared with 25 years ago,” the MAC said, dismissing Beijing’s claims that the pro-democracy movement had been instigated by foreign governments. “Taiwan adheres to a free, democratic and constitutional government, that the Republic of China and the People’s Republic of China are not subordinate to each other, that sovereignty cannot be invaded and annexed, and that the future of the Republic of China and Taiwan must be decided by the people of Taiwan,” the statement said. “Taiwan will continue to safeguard universal values, democratic systems and ways of life, stand side by side with the international community, and firmly defend democracy,” it said. The statements from Taipei came after CCP leader Xi Jinping used the phrase “one country, two systems” more than 20 times during his speech on Friday marking the 25th anniversary of Chinese rule over Hong Kong, saying China’s tougher political grip on the city in the wake of the 2019 protest movement had enabled it to “rise again from the ashes.” MAC spokesman Chiu Chui-cheng called on China not to keep deceiving itself about the success of its policies in Hong Kong. “We solemnly urge [Beijing] to give the people back the democracy, freedoms and human rights that are their due,” Chiu said. Taiwanese political scientist Wu Rwei-ren said Xi wants to package the 25th anniversary as a kind of second handover. “The legal basis for one country, two systems was the 1984 Sino-British Joint Declaration [setting out the terms of the handover],” Wu told RFA. “By 2014, Xi Jinping’s regime had declared that it wouldn’t recognize [the treaty], saying it was a historical document with no meaning,” he said. “In this way, they redefined one country, two systems as a purely internal concept.” “The basis for [Hong Kong’s economic and social] achievements was the original political system, which has been destroyed by Xi Jinping,” Wu said. “He’s now saying that all sources of chaos have been eradicated, Hong Kong has returned to stability, and that everyone can start working hard to improve the economy,” he said. “But the institutional basis for that has been destroyed.” Wu said even the Taiwanese business community, which has typically been happy to overlook the CCP’s worst failings in the pursuit of greater profits, is now getting out of China and Hong Kong. “This isn’t about ideology; it’s about the very practical aspects of money,” Wu said. “These people were once more enthusiastic about making money than they were about their own country.” “They invested huge amounts in China because it was profitable, but now, faced with various deteriorating factors, they are getting out of China fast,” he said. Meanwhile, invitations were circulating overseas for people to attend a “Funeral for Hong Kong’s Lost Freedoms” in cities across the U.S., including New York, Washington and San Francisco. Hong Kong protest rallies were also planned in the U.K., Canada and Japan. A participant at the New York rally who gave only the nickname A Wai said the protest was over the CCP’s failure to deliver on its promises. “We’re only halfway through the 50 years during which Hong Kong was supposedly not going to change, and everyone can now see through the lie that is one country, two systems,” A Wai told RFA. “That’s why we chose July 1 to stand up … Hong Kong people are still angry about the crackdowns on protesters on June 12, 2019, July 21, 2019 and Aug. 31, 2019, and we can express all of that on July 1,” he said. Former 2014 Occupy Central leader Alex Chow said everyone will be wearing black — the color of the 2019 protest movements, but also the color of mourning in some cultures — and that protesters would lay funeral wreaths to signal the death of Hong Kong’s freedoms. “The situation in Hong Kong and the mainland is full of turmoil and tears,” Chow told RFA. “Behind the facade of prosperity, there is a lot of political in-fighting, and Hong Kong is one of the places where sacrifices are being made.” “That’s why Hong Kongers overseas who have enough freedom to do so … feel the…

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Hong Kong’s last hand-painted porcelain factory carries on the tradition

Editor02 mins

Step into Yuet Tung China Works, Hong Kong’s last remaining hand-painted porcelain factory, and you find yourself surrounded by stacks of dinnerware, each piece painstakingly decorated by hand with vibrant motifs of flowers, fruits and animals. Joseph Tso, the third-generation owner of the factory, and his small team are among the few people in Hong Kong who have mastered the traditional technique of painting “guangcai,” or Canton porcelain. It is a fading art in this modern metropolis, as fewer young people are willing to put in the time and effort required to master the craft or to work at the factory full-time. “The business environment in Hong Kong is not suitable for labor-intensive industries,” Tso said. “Hong Kong’s traditional handicraft industry is gradually declining. It will eventually disappear.” Guangcai, which comes from the nearby Chinese city of Guangzhou, is characterized by an overglaze technique in which the painter sketches a design on white porcelain and then fills it in with color using thin brushes before firing the piece in a kiln. Tso’s grandfather established the factory in Hong Kong’s Kowloon City in 1928. It rose to prominence over the years, becoming famous for its delicate craftsmanship and custom dinnerware.

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‘Hong Kong must not become chaotic again,’ China’s Xi warns on handover anniversary

Editor010 mins

Chinese leader Xi Jinping swore in a new, security-focused government in Hong Kong on Friday, 25 years after Britain handed the city back to China, saying the current arrangements — which have seen a citywide crackdown on peaceful dissent and political opposition — are here to stay. “For this kind of good system, there is no reason at all to change it. It must be maintained over the long term,” Xi said in a speech at the inauguration ceremony. “After experiencing wind and rain, everyone can painfully feel that Hong Kong cannot be chaotic, and must not become chaotic again … Hong Kong’s development cannot be delayed again, and any interference must be eliminated,” Xi said. “Power must be in the hands of patriots,” Xi said. “No country or region in the world will allow unpatriotic or even traitorous or treasonous forces and figures to hold power.” “In the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, power is firmly in the hands of patriots, which is an inevitable requirement to ensure long-term stability in Hong Kong, and it will be unshakable,” he said. Xi also swore in former security chief and ex-cop John Lee, who has been sanctioned by the United States for his role in implementing the national security law, as chief executive. Police outside ran a massive security operation that included no-sail and no-fly zones, as well as roadblocks around the Convention and Exhibition Centre where Xi gave his speech. Xi’s defense of Chinese rule in Hong Kong came after British prime minister Boris Johnson and U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken accused Beijing of failing to meet its handover commitments. China’s line is that the national security law ended months of mass protests for full democracy and official accountability in 2019, which saw some protesters fight back with makeshift weapons against riot police wielding batons, tear gas, rubber bullets, water cannon and even live ammunition. China’s President Xi Jinping (R) standing with Hong Kong’s new Chief Executive John Lee (L) after Lee was sworn in as the city’s new leader, during a ceremony to inaugurate the city’s new government in Hong Kong on July 1, 2022. Credit: Hong Kong’s Information Services Department. ‘New era’ Uniform decorations declaring a “new era” of stability were seen across many districts, including red lanterns and the Chinese national flag, and the Hong Kong regional flag. “Hong Kong has of course also encountered various challenges, including the global financial crisis, the unlawful occupy movement in 2014, the Mong Kok riots in 2016, the riots and violence in 2019 together with the interference in Hong Kong’s affairs by external forces which threatened our national security, and the COVID-19 pandemic,” Lee told the inauguration ceremony, thanking the ruling Chinese Communist Party (CCP) for its support. Lee also lauded the national security law for “bringing order out of chaos,” and new election rules under which he was selected as the only candidate for the city’s top job in May 2022. “It is therefore imperative that we should cherish and uphold the system for a long time to come, and we should make good use of it to effect sound governance,” Lee said, sounding the death knell for any hope of democratic development under the new regime. Chinese political scientist Chen Daoyin said Xi’s tone in the speech was condescending and parental, and that late supreme leader Deng Xiaoping’s promise that Hong Kong would remain unchanged for 50 years was already dead in the water. “What [Xi] talked about what different from what Deng Xiaoping proposed,” Chen said. “Deng said Hong Kong would be like mainland China after 50 years, and maybe not at all.” “Xi has a new view on Hong Kong, which he calls a new starting point, making the point that Hong Kong has been brought to order out of chaos,” Chen said. Current affairs commentator Sang Pu said Xi has deliberately distorted the meaning of “one country, two systems.” “If he admits that one country, two systems is over, that would be tantamount to inviting opposition from Europe and the U.S.,” Sang told RFA. “It would also make it look as if he has failed.” “Instead, he is repackaging it as a new beginning.” Sang said Xi’s mention of cooperation between Hong Kong’s judiciary and that of mainland China was worrying, suggesting that the authorities may start requiring “patriotism” from judges as well as from lawmakers and civil servants. Dutiful congratulations Across the internal border in mainland China, the CCP-controlled state media focused on a highly choreographed “welcome” for Xi in Hong Kong, and on praising Beijing’s governance of the city. “Some media didn’t report it at all, so we can see that Hong Kong isn’t a priority for the government, and that nobody cares if Xi or anyone else goes there,” a Chinese scholar surnamed Shen told RFA. “Hong Kong can never be given too much prominence in the Chinese media.” Official media reports on the anniversary garnered a few dozen comments, most of them dutifully congratulatory, on social media. Only one comment on an article by the China Youth Daily, the official newspaper of CCP’s Youth League, opined: “I wish Hong Kong a better tomorrow.” Current affairs commentator Johnny Lau said Xi’s promise of science and technology cooperation between Hong Kong and neighboring Guangdong province had likely been behind his visit to the Hong Kong Science and Technology Park on Thursday. “Hong Kong’s high-tech R&D is good, but there is a shortage of production capacity and talent,” Lau said. “Through cooperation with the mainland, we can ‘reap the east wind’.” Xi was likely taking the opportunity to try to reboot Hong Kong’s international reputation as a trading and financial center in the wake of the national security crackdown and the COVID-19 pandemic, Lau said. Xi was declaring to the rest of the world that he has confidence in Hong Kong’s future and its economic policies, to exiting foreign investors to return, he said. Translated and edited by Luisetta Mudie.

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Three lawyers assisting political cases arrested in Mandalay

Editor03 mins

Three lawyers who were representing clients in anti-regime political cases have been arrested in Mandalay, sources close to the legal community told RFA on Friday. A source close to the court told RFA Tin Win Aung, U Thuta and an unnamed lawyer were picked up on their return from working at Obo Prison’s court in Mandalay on Wednesday evening. “Three people have been arrested, the third name is still unknown,” he said. No contact had been made with the detainees and it is still not known where they were taken, the source told RFA, adding that six Mandalay lawyers, including Ywat Nu Aung, are now in custody. Aung was arrested on April 27 and charged under Section 50 (j) of the Anti-Terrorism Law. The prominent Mandalay lawyer was assisting members of the regional government, including the National League for Democracy’s (NLD) Mandalay Regional Chief Minister, Zaw Myint Maung. The Regional Court in Chan Aye Thar San Township, Mandalay Region. CREDIT: RFA In the third week of June, Khin Than Htay, another Mandalay lawyer who was assisting with political cases, was arrested by the military council and taken to Obo prison’s court. Sources said the legal transcript of her case was written at the court. Arrests of lawyers have not been confined to Mandalay. In Sagaing region’s Monywa, three lawyers appear to have been arrested in the past few weeks. One was Moe Zaw Htun, who was representing Myint Naing, the NLD government’s Chief Minister in the region. The other two lawyers are missing and it is not clear whether they have been arrested, Monywa residents told RFA. The military council has not commented on the arrests of any  of the lawyers. Calls to the military council spokesman by RFA went unanswered on Friday. According to data compiled by RFA, 27 lawyers have been arrested since the February 2021 military coup, including several representing people arrested on political charges.

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FET completes trials of advanced submarine rescue vehicle

Editor08 mins

U.S. firm Forum Energy Technologies (FET) has completed sea trials of an advanced submarine rescue vehicle (SRV), the main component of a submarine rescue vessel, for the Vietnamese Navy, reports said. A press release by FET said the Scottish branch of the Texas-based company “successfully completed sea trials” of the SRV “ahead of its deployment for an Asia Pacific-based navy.” Media sources said the client was the Vietnamese Navy which bought six Kilo-class submarines from Russia ten years ago.  Vietnamese military officials were not available for comment. Vietnam commissioned a homegrown multi-purpose submarine search and rescue vessel, which it named Yet Kieu after a legendary hero, in July 2021 but this final step “indicates that the vessel should be nearing an operational capability,” said Gordon Arthur, a defense analyst and Asia-Pacific editor of Shephard Media. “Given that Vietnam has been operating Russian-built Kilo-class submarines since 2014, it is perhaps surprising that it’s taken nearly ten years to get such a rescue capability,” Arthur told RFA. Highly advanced vehicle According to FET’s statement, the sea trials tested the SRV’s capabilities to “perform a variety of demanding operations, including deep dives, navigation, and mating with a target.”  In-country commissioning and testing took two months to complete, it said. The trials were done in close cooperation with the navy and Lloyd’s Register (LR), a maritime classification organization which “offered third party verification and supervised every part of the sea trials.” The SRV is divided into two sections including a command module for pilots and a rescue chamber for the chamber operator and people being rescued. It is capable of rescuing up to 17 people at a time and operates at depths of up to 600m, FET said. The vehicle boasts “some of the most advanced sensors and sonars” including a doppler velocity log, fibre optic gyroscope, sonar, and depth sensing to quickly locate a distressed submarine. FET will also be providing training for navy pilots as part of the contract, which includes theoretical training, maintenance, diving and recovery. The mother ship ‘927-Yet Kieu’ meanwhile is nearly 100m-long, 16m-wide and 7.2m-high, with a displacement of up to 3,950 tons, according to Vietnamese defense sources.  The multi-purpose vessel can operate continuously at sea 30 days and nights and it is capable of withstanding high wind and waves. Vietnamese army company Z189 began building the ship in mid-2018 after the commissioning of the last of six Russian-made submarines in 2017. Vietnam has the largest submarine fleet in Southeast Asia with six Kilo-class diesel-electric submarines, dubbed “black holes” for their stealthiness. With the new SRV, the Vietnamese navy has now joined the club of countries with submarine rescue capability in the Asia-Pacific including Australia, China, India, Japan, Malaysia and South Korea. Flag-hoisting ceremony on Kilo-class submarine Ba Ria – Vung Tau CREDIT: Vietnamese Navy ‘Expensive and dangerous’ “There has been a growth in the number of submarines in the region,” noted Gordon Arthur, adding that as submarine incidents have the potential to quickly become catastrophic, “it is vital that navies operating submarines have their own rescue capability, so that they can quickly swing into action.” “A submarine rescue capability is like a tuxedo. They are expensive and are rarely used – but when you do need it, absolutely nothing else can replace it,” he said. In April 2021 an Indonesian navy submarine, the KRI Nanggala, sank off the coast of Bali killing all 53 crew on board. Yet Jakarta is seeking to expand its submarine fleet from four at present to at least ten by 2029. “Some nations think that owning submarines will bring prestige and respect but submarines are not shiny toys. They are very expensive and underwater operations are inherently dangerous,” said Arthur. “Navies need to ensure they have the skills, money and rescue capability to keep their submarines in top condition.” Vietnam, China and some other countries are entangled in territorial disputes in the South China Sea and the new submarine force would enable Hanoi to defend its interests, the Vietnamese military leadership said. But compared to its neighbor, Beijing has a much larger fleet of nearly 60 submarines, a third of which are nuclear-powered. Analysts have questioned if Vietnam’s new SRV could be used for reconnaissance purposes besides submarine rescue missions. But some experts such as Collin Koh, Research Fellow at the S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies, point out that such submersibles are handicapped by range and endurance, “so they may have limited standoff reconnaissance capabilities.” “But such submersibles with suitable modifications can potentially do seabed espionage-related work, such as tapping undersea cables,” Koh said.

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Airstrikes target anti-junta forces in Myanmar’s Kayin state for 5th day

Editor09 mins

Five days of intense clashes between Myanmar’s military and joint anti-junta forces near the Thai border in Kayin state have left more than a dozen coalition fighters dead and several wounded on both sides of the conflict, sources in the region said Thursday. The fighting began on June 26 when prodemocracy People’s Defense Force (PDF) paramilitaries and fighters with the ethnic Karen National Defense Army/Karen National Liberation Army (KNDO/KNLA) launched a joint attack on a military outpost near Myawaddy township’s Ukrithta village, according to a report by the pro-military Myawaddy newspaper. The attack prompted a military retaliation that included artillery fire and airstrikes, the report said. More junta troops are being deployed to the area, the report said. Sources on the battlefield confirmed to RFA Burmese on Thursday that a joint force of ethnic Karen and PDF units led by Cmdr. Saw Win Myint of the KNDO Special Commando Battalion are fighting to take control of the Ukrithta camp held by junta troops. Battalion sources told RFA that at least 13 members of the coalition forces have been killed in the five days of heavy fighting, which includes clashes in the nearby villages of Wawlay and Myaing. KNDO officer Boh Salone said that Myanmar’s air force had been pounding opposition positions with strikes since June 26, including as recently as Thursday morning. “There are injuries on both sides but there are many on their side,” he said. “They have been attacking us with jet fighters for the past four days. All throughout the day. When they came, they flew over the area four or five times and fired at us. The jets came nine or 10 times a day. They have already come 10 times today.” The military has not released any information on the number of casualties from the fighting and repeated calls by RFA seeking comment from the junta’s deputy minister of information, Maj. Gen. Zaw Min Tun, went unanswered on Thursday. KNDO chief, Gen. Saw Nedar Mya, told RFA that the junta is “desperately fighting to prevent the camp from falling” because of its strategic importance, although he did not elaborate on its significance to the military. The fighting is occurring near the Thai border south of Myawaddy, in an area controlled by the ethnic Karen National Union’s (KNU) Brigade-6. Fighter jets scrambled Thailand’s air force scrambled two F-16 fighter jets to patrol the border area on Thursday after its radar captured Myanmar air force jets allegedly violating Thai airspace briefly during their aerial assault against the Karen rebels, according to a report by BenarNews, an RFA-affiliated news outlet. “At 11.16 hours, air force units found unidentified aircrafts violating territory at Pob Phra district, Tak province, to attack the minority along the border and later disappeared from radar screen,” the Thai air force said in a statement, adding that helicopters were also detected in the area, although they did not appear to enter Thai airspace. “Therefore, the air force scrambled two F-16s to promptly perform combat patrol mission along Pob Phra border area and directed the air force envoy to Yangon to warn Myanmar’s related agencies to avoid reoccurrence.” BBC Thai showed photos of a Russian-made MiG-29 jet flying over Thai soil and reported that it fired rockets into Myanmar’s Kayin state. The alleged incursion occurred a day after junta chief, Snr. Gen. Min Aung Hlaing, hosted a delegation headed by Lt. Gen. Apichet Suesat of the Royal Thai army in Myanmar’s capital Naypyidaw for the 34th meeting of the Thailand-Myanmar Regional Border Committee, according to a report by the official Global New Light of Myanmar. The report said that the two sides had discussed ways to strengthen cooperation between defense forces and anti-terrorism measures to improve stability in the border area. Zay Thu Aung, a former Myanmar air force captain who defected to join the anti-junta Civil Disobedience Movement (CDM), said videos of Thursday’s airstrike showed that the junta is using Russian-made MiG-29s to raid the area. “The videos show a MiG-29 attack, with the fighter gaining altitude following a bombing dive,” he said. “MiG-29s are very good as all-weather long-range attack fighters. They must have flown from [Yangon’s] Hmawbi Airbase.” A composite photo shows ethnic Karen rebels engaged in fighting in Kayin state’s Myawaddy township. Credit: Citizen journalist Residents fleeing Residents of Kayin’s Myawaddy township told RFA that Thursday’s clashes had been the worst of the five days of fighting. “There were a lot of airstrikes today. Quite a lot. We also heard today that there was fighting in [nearby] Lay Kay Kaw [township] last night. We heard the military fired more than 20 artillery shells,” one resident said, speaking on condition of anonymity. “At present, people from Wawlay, Myaing and Ukrithta are fleeing.” Sources in the area said that the number of people who have been forced to seek refuge is unclear. Several airstrikes have been conducted in the area since anti-junta coalition forces seized a police station in Wawlay on May 18, detaining three policemen including the station’s commander, and freeing several PDF fighters, they added. In December 2021, about 200 fully armed junta troops arrested several CDM staff and PDF members sheltering in a KNU-controlled area in Lay Kay Kaw. Several days of fighting ensued between junta forces and the KNU, causing more than 70,000 residents to flee the area. Translated by Khin Maung Nyane. Written in English by Joshua Lipes.

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Investigative Journalism Reportika © March 2022 by Ij-Reportika is licensed under CC BY 4.0