Media Monitoring Reports – UNHCR Thailand
THAILAND
8 – 21 February 2017
MEDIA MONITORING REPORT # 163
PEACE AND RECONCILIATION
Second 21st Panglong Conference postponed
Mizzima, 15 February 2017
Pa-O National Liberation Organization (PNLO) patron Col. Khun Okkar confirmed to Mizzima the
postponement of second 21st Panglong Conference scheduled to be held at the end of this month.
The meeting was postponed because
they had to wait for the completion of
the Chin State National Dialogue and a
scheduled meeting between Union
Peace Commission (UPC) led by Dr. Tin
Myo Win and Northern Alliance.
Col. Khun Okkar said, “The meeting was
postponed to March but the exact date
is not yet available. The meeting will
certainly be postponed because the
national dialogues in ethnic states have
been permitted to be held including in
Chin State. The Chin will hold the national dialogue only after their Chin National Day which falls
on February 20. So they cannot complete it in time before scheduled date at the end of this
month.”
Chin State National Dialogue is scheduled to be held on February 23.
“In the meantime, there are many appointments and meetings. UPC will meet Northern Alliance
and then they will meet with another group in Chiang Mai. However, it means they want to take
more time for other organizations to prepare,” Col. Khun Okkar added.
The first meeting of 21st Panglong Conference was convened at the end of August 2016 and at the
meeting held on February 6 in Naypyitaw, Union Peace Dialogue Joint Committee (UPDJC) agreed
to convene the second conference on February 28.
Link: http://www.mizzima.com/news-domestic/second-21st-panglong-conference-postponed
NMSP denounces observer role in 21st Century Panglong Conference
Mon News Agency, 14 February 2017
The New Mon State Party (NMSP), the ethnic armed group of the Mon people, will not take part in
the upcoming 21st Century Panglong Conference, if it’s only allowed to attend as an observer,
according to NMSP’s Chairman Nai Htaw Mon.
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The Chairman stated the above in a press
conference after the 70th Anniversary of Mon
National Day central celebration in Japan Well
Village, a NMSP controlled area, in Three Pagodas
Pass (TPP) Sub-township, Thai-Burma border.
“We won’t attend the 21st Century Panglong
Conference if we are not allowed to present or
discuss anything. If we are invited just to be an
observer, we won’t go,” said Nai Htaw Mon.
“We will sign the NCA if they accept the UNFC’s
requested 9 points. We stand with the UNFC
alliance,” said Nai Htaw Mon, adding that the UNFC’s 9-points included that the government must announce a
nationwide ceasefire, international witnesses must be included in the NCA inking, and tripartite talks must be
held for political issues.
Of the 21 ethnic armed groups in the country, only 8 groups have signed the NCA. The NMSP is yet to sign the
accord.
Over 1000 people, including members of the TPP-based Mon Women Organization, Mon health and education
organization, veterans, and locals, participated in the [NMSP-led] celebration of the 70th Mon National Day in
Japan Well Village.
The Mon State Government’s Security and Border Affair Minister warned the NMSP not to conduct an armed
parade during its central celebration of 70th Mon National Day [held] at the football field in Japan Well Village,
Thai-Burma border.
The 70th Mon National Day central celebration was held in Kyaikmaraw Town, Mon State, and celebrations also
took place not only in Mon State but in Karen State, Yangon Region, Mandalay Region, and Nay Pyi Taw Capital,
as well as other parts of the world, including U.S. and Australia, where Mon people have resettled.
Link: http://monnews.org/2017/02/14/nmsp-denounces-observer-role-in-21st-century-panglong-conference/
Suu Kyi urges ethnic groups to sign peace deal
The Straits Times, 13 February 2017
De facto leader Aung San Suu Kyi urged all of the country's armed ethnic groups to sign a ceasefire agreement,
as her government seeks to end decades of conflict between the military and armed ethnic groups, reported
the Associated Press.
Speaking during the annual Union Day celebrations
yesterday, Ms Suu Kyi said that ethnic groups who had
not joined the peace process could still participate in the
movement for peace by signing the Nationwide
Ceasefire Agreement (NCA).
This landmark deal was agreed upon by the previous
government and eight of the organizations in 2015.
"I want to ask those ethnic groups who haven't signed
the nationwide ceasefire to trust yourself and sign it and
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please participate in our 21st Century Panglong Conference," Ms Suu Kyi said, referring to the major ethnic
peace conference that was first held in August last year.
Ms Suu Kyi was speaking yesterday in the town of Panglong, located in restive Shan state, where the
government held a state ceremony to mark the 70th anniversary of the country's Union Day.
Ms Suu Kyi also urged all stakeholders in the peace process yesterday to make sacrifices in the interest of the
people.
Ms Suu Kyi made the peace process her government's top priority when she took office last year, and has tried
to start a dialogue with ethnic armed groups to craft a lasting peace deal. But fighting continues between the
military and groups that were not party to the ceasefire deal reached in 2015.
Link: http://www.straitstimes.com/asia/se-asia/suu-kyi-urges-ethnic-groups-to-sign-peace-deal
Building a democratic federal union is the solution to resolve armed conflicts: President
Mizzima, 13 February 2017
President Htin Kyaw said in his message on the 70th Union Day that the main solution to resolve armed
conflicts and build national reconciliation was to build a ‘Democratic Federal Union’.
The message was read on February 12 by Yangon
Region Government Chief Minister Phyo Min Thein at
a ceremony held in Yangon.
“The fundamental building of a democratic federal
union is union spirit. Union spirit means the political
will and firm determination of building a union
through coordination and cooperation among all
ethnicities in the country. We cannot build a
democratic federal union without this firm union
spirit and without an enlightened and vibrant union
spirit,” the President’s message said.
Politics and economics go hand in hand for development of the country and the most important point in the
fundamentals of our economic policy are national reconciliation, the President’s message further read.
Similarly, the 70th Union Day held at the Panglong stone monument in Panglong, southern Shan State, State
Counsellor Aung San Suu Kyi urged ethnic armed forces which had not yet signed the Nationwide Ceasefire
Agreement (NCA) to sign the agreement for the cessation of ongoing armed conflict in the nation.
In his message on Union Day, the President urged all to carry out the four main objectives of the 70th Union
Day namely enlightened and vibrant union spirit, building concrete national unity, the emergence of a
democratic federal union and uplift of the livelihoods of the people.
Link: http://www.mizzima.com/news-domestic/building-democratic-federal-union-solution-resolve-armedconflicts-president
KNU to hold party congress on March 14
Myanmar Times, 21 February 2017
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The Karen National Union (KNU) - a political organization with an armed wing - is holding its 16th party
congress and election on March 14.
KNU central executive committee member Padoh Saw Ta Doh Moo said the congress, which would see the
election of a new leadership, would be held in the Lay Wah area of Kayin State’s Hlaingbwe Township.
“This was decided in an emergency meeting last Saturday,” he told The Myanmar Times.
During the last KNU congress in December 2012, the CEC was formed with 11 members headed by General Saw
Mutu Say Poe, who was chosen as chair and Padoh Naw Zipporah Sein as vice-chair.
The previous congress was attended by all representatives from the seven brigades and seven districts,
including leaders from KNU’s military wing, the Karen National Liberation Army (KNLA).
The KNU was founded in 1947. Prior to the NCA in 2015, it also signed the initial ceasefire agreement with the
government in January 2012.
Link: http://www.mmtimes.com/index.php/national-news/25022-knu-to-hold-party-congress-on-march14.html
State Counselor to Meet UNFC’s Peace Negotiation Team
The Irrawaddy, 21 February 2017
State Counselor Daw Aung San Suu Kyi will meet an ethnic armed bloc’s Delegation for Political Negotiation
(DPN) next week in Naypyidaw, although neither side has yet officially announced a date for the talks.
The DPN is the peace negotiation team of the
United Nationalities Federal Council (UNFC), an
alliance made up of ethnic armed organizations
that opted out of signing the nationwide ceasefire
agreement (NCA) in 2015. Daw Aung San Suu Kyi
met with UNFC senior leaders for the first time in
July 2016.
The DPN requested a meeting with the State
Counselor, who is also the head of the National
Reconciliation and Peace Center at their Jan. 13 informal meeting with the government peace commission’s
adviser in Chiang Mai, Thailand.
U Zaw Htay, spokesperson of the President’s Office told The Irrawaddy on Tuesday, “We are still working on a
date when the State Counselor can meet the DPN.”
“In the meeting, the leaders will talk about policies regarding peace implementation and the DPN’s nine points
of demand, and it will be discussed in detail with the [government] peace commission afterwards,” added U
Zaw Htay.
The DPN proposed March 1 as a potential date. According to sources close to the peace negotiators, it is very
likely that Daw Aung San Suu Kyi will meet the DPN then.
Last week, the government proposed meeting the DPN on Feb. 23, as the State Counselor was free at that time
and then could have further meetings with the peace commission the following day.
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But Khu Oo Reh, the head of the DPN, said that the ethnic leaders could not attend a meeting this week,
because some UNFC members are traveling to the Wa Self-Administrative Zone for an ethnic armed group
summit hosted by the United Wa State Party/Army (UWSP/A) from Feb 22-24.
The DPN and UNFC have said they would not join the peace conference if they are invited as observers, but a
decision on their status has not yet come out of a Union Peace Dialogue Joint Committee, of which Daw Aung
San Suu Kyi is the chair.
Link: https://www.irrawaddy.com/news/burma/state-counselor-meet-unfcs-peace-negotiation-team.html
LAW AND GOVERNANCE
Two laws to be amended to solve land disputes
Myanmar Times, 14 February 2017
To resolve disputes over confiscated lands and to streamline the process of returning them to the rightful
owners, the Union government will amend two land-related laws, said Dr Aung Thu, Union Minister for
Agriculture, Livestock and Irrigation.
He added that since taking office, his ministry has
been reviewing related disputes for up to two to
three months, and he has received about 1000
complaint letters.
The return of confiscated lands was one of the
main issues during former president U Thein
Sein’s time and remains of concern to the current
government, which came into power last year.
Previously, lands had been seized by government
departments, private groups and some military
units for various projects and the construction of
buildings. But due to inaccurate land records, the
farmlands of local farmers were also taken.
The first Hluttaw and U Thein Sein’s government had supported the recommendation to return the seized lands
on which there were no projects or buildings to the rightful owners.
However, due to difficulties, such as incorrect land records and owners unable to present sufficient
documentation of ownership, the government has had to deal with land disputes.
“The farmland laws will soon be revised at the Pyithu Hluttaw,” said Dr Aung Thu.
“Following that, the conditions of the vacant, fallow, virgin land management law will be improved,” he added.
The amended land laws will be submitted to Hluttaw, but details about the amendments were not given.
The previous government had created a commission for the return of the confiscated lands, and the current
government has set up an investigative committee to handle the issue.
The farmers were granted possession of the farmlands after the land laws were established by the first
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Hluttaw.
Previously, the farmers only had rights to farm, and as such, they were not concerned or interested in farmland
possession.
Link: http://www.mmtimes.com/index.php/national-news/nay-pyi-taw/24943-two-laws-to-be-amended-tosolve-land-disputes.html
Kayah Hluttaw to scrutinize state budget
Myanmar Times, 17 February 2017
THE Kayah State government has proposed a budget of K51 billion for the fiscal year 2017-18. The budget will
be spent evenly on all sectors with the aim to facilitate the region’s development, said Kayah State Hluttaw
Speaker U Hla Htwe.
He said this amount of budget seems sufficient for the state and last year’s budget was also similar in scale.
“The state government has proposed K51 billion for the state’s budget … We have fairly reduced the budget for
the irrigation sector. At the moment, we are working on the roads and bridges [infrastructure] sector.”
“With this budget, we will provide support for transport infrastructures and also electricity supply in areas
which at present have no access. The state will have an even development [for different sectors and regions] if
we manage to spend the budget fairly,” the speaker said.
The state hluttaw was only able to scrutinize budget allocations for irrigation, roads and bridges and the power
(electricity) sector as the hluttaw only had a little time to deliberate the budget proposal submitted by the state
government, he said. Therefore, the hluttaw will seek more time to debate the budget proposal in future years.
“Some [government employees] still don’t want to change their old habits … they still steal as much chance as
they can. We are still trying to change them as much as we can while working with them. But if they continue
acting in such a manner, we will take action against them in the coming year,” he said.
According to the speaker, border trading gates in Kayah State have already been opened and the state
parliament will try to bolster regional economic development. There is also a plan to implement an industrial
zone in the state.
Link: http://www.mmtimes.com/index.php/business/24998-kayah-hluttaw-to-scrutinise-state-budget.html
ECONOMICS AND SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT
B4.5bn Dawei development loan okayed
Bangkok Post, 15 February 2017
Plans for the Dawei special economic zone have inched ahead after the Myanmar government agreed to
borrow 4.5 billion baht from Thailand to finance the construction of a 132-kilometre road from Dawei's
proposed deep-sea port to Ban Phu Nam Ron in Kanchanaburi.
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Transport Minister Arkhom Termpittayapaisith, who
led a Thai delegation to meet Myanmar officials last
Friday, said the Myanmar government agreed to a
lending facility with an interest rate of 0.1%, a 10-year
grace period and repayment in 20 years.
The Thai government initially offered the loan in 2015.
The Thai cabinet already endorsed the loan plan, but
road construction was delayed as the new Myanmar
government asked to re-study the plan.
Mr Arkhom said work on the long-delayed Dawei
development project will continue. Myanmar and Thailand first signed a memorandum of understanding to
develop the area in 2008, with an aim to transform Dawei into Southeast Asia's largest industrial and trade
zone.
Of the 18,000 rai, 12,000 rai has been slated for an industrial estate for light industry as demanded by the
Myanmar government, which wants to focus on creative jobs for local workers.
Link: http://www.bangkokpost.com/business/news/1198633/
New 500-bed hospital to be built in Bago later this month
The Global New Light of Myanmar, 14 February 2017
The Local government will develop a new 500-bed
hospital in Bago Region using a Ks2.4 million budget
on the project.
Organized by the Ministry of Health and Sports, the
six-story hospital is planned to be constructed on 25acre of plot beside bypass near Kali Village beginning
from later this month.
The invitation to tender for the project has already
been announced by authorities, who target to spend Ks800 million budgets this fiscal year, U Maung Maung
Lwin, Bago Region Minister for Development Affairs, said when he met with media persons.
After completing the project, local from the region and nearby areas will receive better healthcare at the new
hospital.
The land for the project was donated by a well-wisher.
Link: https://issuu.com/myanmarnewspaper/docs/14_feb_17_gnlm
Better health care in remote areas under new budget
Myanmar Times, 13 February 2017
Health care for people in remote and hard to reach areas will be one of the priorities under the over K1000
billion budget allocation for health in the 2017-18 fiscal year, said Permanent Secretary of Ministry of Health
and Sports Professor Dr Thet Khaing Win.
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He said the other areas of focus under the health allocation will be the construction of new hospitals and
housing for hospital staff and health workers, upgrading of facilities and medical equipment at existing
hospitals and procurement of medicines.
“The plan has been drafted for effective and systematic utilization of the funds. Upgrading of medical
equipment at hospitals, procurement of new equipment and replenishment will be conducted as required.
“Assistance programs for remote and hard to access areas are also included,” said Professor Dr Thet Khaing
Win.
The health budget for 2017-18 fiscal year is over K1077 billion, higher than the K850 billion allocated in 2016-17
budget, he added.
The health allocation will be utilized strictly in line with the Health and Sports Ministry’s five-year (2017-2021)
national health plan, said Professor Dr Thet Khaing Win.
It is learnt that more health workers, especially midwives and public health supervisors, will be employed from
next month to reach remote areas and interviews are being conducted.
Professor Dr Thet Khaing Win said in addition, a financial assistance program for pregnant women in the
remote Chin State is being jointly conducted by the Ministry of Social Welfare, Relief and Resettlement and
Livelihoods and Food Security Trust Fund (LIFT).
Under the program, midwives from Ministry of Health and Sports help give out K15,000 per month to pregnant
women until their children reach the age of two years.
More similar financial assistance programs under the Union budget will be extended to Naga areas and Rakhine
State in the coming year, said Professor Dr Thet Khaing Win.
Link: http://www.mmtimes.com/index.php/national-news/yangon/24924-better-health-care-in-remote-areasunder-new-budget.html
Thailand-Burma link at Three Pagodas Pass reopened
Democratic Voice of Burma, 13 February 2017
The Three Pagodas Pass border crossing into Burma through Kanchanaburi has reopened after being
temporarily shut following a hostage taking incident last month.
Colonel Banyong Thongnuam, chief of the 9th Infantry
Division’s Latya Task Force, on Saturday said
authorities decided to allow the crossing to open to
Thais heading to Payathonzu, a Burmese border town,
via the checkpoint in Sangkhla Buri district after
Burmese authorities promised to prevent a recurrence
of the incident.
Both Thai and Burmese authorities also agreed to step
up their efforts to provide security for their people as
well as to strengthen the relationship between the
two countries.
Earlier, Thai tourists were temporarily prohibited from
crossing the border into Burma after a Karen Border Guard Force (BGF) arrested
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37 Thai tourists at a Payathonzu fresh market opposite the Three Pagodas Pass on 21 January.
The tourists were freed that evening and returned safely to Thailand following negotiations between the police,
military officers and local officials, and the BGF.
The incident was in apparent reprisal for a sting operation conducted by police from the Anti Human Trafficking
Division on the Thai side which subsequently led to the arrest of underage sex workers in Payathonzu on 18
January.
Over 100 local residents along the border reportedly work as tour guides with a service fee of 350 baht ($10)
for each tourist.
Link: http://www.dvb.no/news/thailand-burma-link-three-pagodas-pass-reopened/74083
Myanmar plans to sign labour pact with Japan
Myanmar Times, 15 February 2017
Myanmar is planning to sign a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Japanese government to send
Myanmar workers to Japan, according to the Ministry of Labour, Immigration and Population on February 13.
“Japan and Myanmar have similar lifestyles. So, they are like Myanmar. To my knowledge, Japan has had no
other arrangements with other countries regarding labour,” Ministry of Labour’s Permanent Secretary U Myo
Aung told The Myanmar Times.
Both countries are now discussing details of the labour migration arrangement, following which the Ministry of
Labour will submit the MoU draft contract to the Office of the Attorney General of the Union to be confirmed
and prescribed, said U Myo Aung.
“Now, we are negotiating to reduce the agency’s service fees.
“We also have asked their employers what kind of skillful labour they want and also have requested for the
employers to pay for labour training,” he said.
Currently, Myanmar agencies have been sending workers to Japan to work in the agricultural, construction and
commodity productions industries. Japan has a high demand for workers in their construction industry.
U Myo Aung said that agencies collect about US$2,800 from workers going to Japan. The Ministry of Labour is
trying to reduce that service fee with the new MoU contract.
There are about 200 to 300 Myanmar workers who have been going to Japan for jobs monthly.
According to an official from the Ministry of Labour, there are over 10,000 Myanmar workers who have been
going to Thailand every month and there are about 10,000 Myanmar workers who have been going to Malaysia
and other countries for work.
Link: http://www.mmtimes.com/index.php/national-news/24955-myanmar-plans-to-sign-labour-pact-withjapan.html
Education plans for illiterate, special needs children ready by April
Myanmar Times, 14 February 2017
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Plans to raise the literacy rate in the country and to
provide education to less fortunate children and
youth will be ready by April end, said Dr Khine Myae,
director general for the Alternative Education
Department.
“The Alternative Education Policy Framework is
intended to provide the required knowledge to those
who are
not in school,” he said.
The policy is aimed at children from migrant families,
those with disabilities, and also plans to address adult illiteracy as well as provide lifelong education for youths,
children from the conflict areas and street children.
“We estimate the policy draft will be ready at the end of April. Strategies of the policy were obtained at the
central level meeting. The draft will then be presented at the central level meeting of the regional/state level
for feedback,” added Dr Khine Myae.
The central level meeting on the alternative education policy framework was held on February 7 and 8 at Nay
Pyi Taw, Mingalar Thiri Hotel.
U Kyaw Kyaw Min Htut, Chairman of the BEAM Education Foundation who attended the central level meeting,
praised the policy, saying it would allow children from migrant families to obtain formal or informal education.
“It is good for migrant families,” he said, adding that they could also get access to higher education.
The Department of Alternative Education, which was established in October 1 under the Ministry of Education,
has been conducting literacy movements in Kayah State and southern part of Shan State in December 2016 and
January this year.
It held its first meeting on the alternative education policy in December 2016 and the second in January this
year in Yangon.
Link: http://www.mmtimes.com/index.php/national-news/nay-pyi-taw/24937-education-plans-for-illiteratespecial-needs-children-ready-by-april.html
Education Ministry to Introduce New Exam System
The Irrawaddy, 9 February 2017
Burma’s Ministry of Education will introduce a new examination system to monitor and assess year-round
performance, marking a major policy shift for basic education schools.
Under the current system, final exam results are the only measurement used to determine if a student is ready
to advance to a higher grade.
“Under the new system, we’ll determine if a student is qualified for the higher grade based on his overall
performance throughout the academic year. We will not only look at his final exam results,” Dr. Khaing Mye,
spokesperson for the Ministry of Education, told The Irrawaddy.
The new system will be applied to all grades in the basic education level, but not the matriculation level, he
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said.
The new system is aimed at improving students’ all-round performance. Students will be required to cooperate
more with their parents and communities on schoolwork—scoring well at exams will no longer be enough.
Teachers will monitor and assess the performance of students throughout the academic year, said an officer
from the education ministry.
“For example, there will be five exams in a year and we’ll calculate a grade point average and divide the
students into grades A, B, C, and D. Students will be able to earn 60 points from exams, and the remaining 40
points will depend on their individual performance,” said the officer.
When grade point averages are calculated, a D grade will be treated as failing. Grades A, B, and C are a pass.
Dr. Khaing Mye said the new exam system was designed by the Ministry of Education and scholars.
The ministry briefed leaders from division, state, and district education departments on Jan. 26 and 27,
according to U Myint Lwin, a director in the Basic Education Department.
“We have provided the guidelines, so schools can start applying the new system in the coming academic year,”
he said. In basic education schools, the new academic year usually begins in June.
“We will apply the new system mainly to fifth grade and ninth grade students,” he said.
According to the Basic Education Department in Naypyidaw, there are about 9 million basic education students,
400,000 teachers, and 45,981 basic education schools.
Link: http://www.irrawaddy.com/news/burma/education-ministry-introduce-new-exam-system.html
Certificates of Identity to be Issued to Migrant Workers in Thailand
The Irrawaddy, 8 February 2017
CHIANG MAI, Thailand – The issuance of the certificate of identity (CI)—a document for Burmese migrants
proving that they are Burmese citizens—will start this month and be provided at six different service centers in
Thailand.
U San Yu Kyaw, the Consul from the Burmese
Consulate in Chiang Mai said the CI service centers
would open soon in Mae Sai—on the Thai-Shan
State border—for migrants resides in northern
Thailand, as well as in Tak Province’s Mae Sot, and
the provinces of Ranong and Samut Sakhon. There
will also be two centers in Mahachai, outside of
Bangkok.
Aiming to spread knowledge of the procedures of
issuing CIs to migrants who do not have legal
documents, Thai and Burmese officials joined the
workshop organized by Thailand’s Human Rights and
Development Foundation on Wednesday in Chiang Mai.
U San Yu Kyaw said that Thai employment and immigration officials, lawyers, and Burmese consulate
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representatives and migrant workers discussed cooperation in addressing the various problems faced by
Burmese migrant workers in Thailand.
The governments of Thailand and Burma are still in negotiations regarding how to precede with migrant
workers whose legal documentation will expire while they are working in Thailand; it has been unclear which
document holders could apply for a CI.
Link: http://www.irrawaddy.com/news/burma/certificates-of-identity-to-be-issued-to-migrant-workers-inthailand.html
Ministry Plans to Expand Kawthaung Airport to Boost Tourism
The Irrawaddy, 8 February 2017
RANGOON — The Ministry of Hotels and Tourism announced that it is eager to expand Kawthaung Airport, in
the far south of Burma, to be the nation’s next international airport.
Minister U Ohn Maung said his office and the Tenasserim Division government have discussed the proposed
expansion of Kawthaung domestic airport,
according to local media source 7 Day Daily.
The minister pointed out that the Mergui
Archipelago—the cluster of islands surrounding
Myeik—has huge potential to attract tourists if the
transportation infrastructure can be built up.
“If we want to develop this region, we need to
expand Kawthaung Airport so that it can receive
direct international flights. We have discussed this
idea with the divisional government and the
Ministry of Planning too,” Minister U Ohn Maung
said in the report.
However, U Ye Htut Aung, the deputy director general for Burma’s civil aviation department, told the Irrawaddy
on Wednesday that his department has not been involved in discussions about expanding Kawthaung Airport.
The civil aviation department would need to give its approval before the government could proceed.
“We still have no plan to turn Kawthaung into an international airport,” said U Ye Htut Aung.
Currently, there are only three airports in Burma that are permitted to receive international flights: Rangoon,
Mandalay, and Naypyidaw. A fourth, Hanthawaddy Airport in Bago Division, is under construction and expected
to start operations in 2022.
The Mergui Archipelago consists of more than 800 islands spread over 10,000 square miles in the Andaman
Sea, off the coast of Burma’s southern Tenasserim Division.
The Ministry of Hotels and Tourism plans to promote this region as a major tourist destination in the future.
Currently, the Kawthaung district has a total hotel capacity of only 482 rooms.
According to the ministry’s figures, Burma’s tourism industry earned US$1.8 billion in 2014, up from $254
million in 2010.
Link: http://www.irrawaddy.com/business/ministry-plans-to-expand-kawthaung-airport-to-boost-tourism.html
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