The Center for Southeast Asian Studies » Myanmar

Song of the Week: Sai Sai (Myanmar)

Ronald Gilliam — Mon, 07 Nov 2011 16:39:39 +0000

Sai Sai Kham Hlaing (Burmese: စိုင်းစိုင်းခမ်းလှိုင်) is a popular Burmese singer-songwriter, model, novelist, and actor of ethnic Shan descent. He is best known for his hip hop music. He was born on 10 April 1979 in Taunggyi to Cho Cho San Tun and Kham Hlaing of an ethnic Shan aristocratic family. His great-grandfather Sao San Tun, Saopha of Mongpawng, was a signatory to the 1947 Panglong Agreement that was the basis for the formation of modern Myanmar, and one of nine senior government officials assassinated on 19 July 1947. The day of the assassination is commemorated each year as the Martyrs’ Day in Myanmar. The hospital he was delivered in was his great-grandfather’s namesake—the Sao San Tun Hospital. He is the eldest son and has two younger sisters and a younger brother. Soon after he was born, his parents moved to nearby Aungban for two years before moving back to Taunggyi. His parents divorced when he was got to 4th standard. He was living in two houses soon after the divorce but ended up with his father. He would not see his mother for another six years. He did not recognize his own mother when they met again in Yangon. Sai Sai attributes his interest in music to his father. He grew up listening to songs by Sai Htee Saing and Aung Yin that his father listened to on a “small mono cassette player”. Sai Htee Saing and his father were friends. But it was after his parents’ divorce that Sai Sai earnestly took up music. His father bought him a guitar at 5th standard, and he learned to play it by 6th standard. Sai Sai became a judo player at 8th standard. He won district level competitions in high school, and even competed in national youth competitions in Yangon. Sai Sai came to Yangon and enrolled in Dagon University as an English major. He received his bachelor’s degree in English from Dagon University and a graduate diploma in English from the University of Foreign Languages, Yangon. His mother lives in Australia and his father died in 2006. -Wikipeida

Official Homepage | Myanmar Music Online Page

Print PDF

Hard Hitting Reports on Conflict/Health in SE Asia

Ronald Gilliam — Thu, 23 Jun 2011 23:50:47 +0000

The World Health Organization (WHO) and the Transnational Institute, an organization devoted to the distribution of research by scholar activists, have recently published several hard hitting research papers on social problems in Southeast Asia related to sexual health, drug abuse, and political conflict.

HIV/AIDS among men who have sex with men and transgender populations in South-East Asia
Published by the WHO
Same-sex behaviour is identified in all societies. However, in the South-East Asia Region, the majority of men who have sex with men andtransgender persons are highly stigmatized and discriminated against. There are an estimated 4-5 million men who have sex with men; among the transgender population, the number is less clear. Many of them are involved in high risk sexual behaviours that put them at risk for HIV infection, resulting in a high and increasing HIV prevalence in several countries of the Region. Control of HIV infections among these populations is thus an urgent public health priority. This report provides information on the status of the epidemic among these populations in the South-East Asia Region. It highlights the need for improved advocacy efforts and a greater national response to save the lives of these populations who are at risk for HIV infection.

WHO link | download here

Burma’s New Government: Prospects for Governance and Peace in Ethnic States
Transnational Institute
This paper takes an initial look at what the prospects are in this area, two months after the new government took office. Of course, any analysis at this early stage can only be tentative, but there have already been a number of sufficiently important developments – the first sessions of the legislatures, the appointment of standing committees, and the appointment of local governments – to make such an analysis worthwhile. Two key areas will be assessed: firstly, the composition and functioning of the new governance structures, particularly the decentralized legislative and executive institutions, and the impact that these could have on the governance of ethnic minority areas; and secondly, the status of the ceasefires and ongoing insurgencies, and the prospects for peace.

Transnational Institute | download here

Kratom in Thailand: Decriminalisation and Community Control?
Transnational Institute
by Pascal Tanguay
Kratom is an integral part of Thai culture and has neglible harmful effects. Community level control and education are recommended for the best path to harm reduction. In early 2010, the Thai Office of the Narcotics Control Board (ONCB) developed a policy proposal to review different aspects of the criminal justice process in relation to drug cases. The possibility of decriminalising the indigenous psychoactive plant, kratom, was included in the ONCB’s proposal for consideration by the Ministry of Justice. This briefing paper provides an overview of issues related to kratom legislation and policy in Thailand as well as a set of conclusions and recommendations to contribute to a reassessment of the current ban on kratom in Thailand and the region. Kratom has been traditionally chewed by people in Thailand, especially on the southern peninsula, as well as in other countries in Southeast Asia. In southern Thailand, traditional kratom use is not perceived as ‘drug use’ and does not lead to stigmatisation or discrimination of users. Kratom is generally part of a way of life in the south, closely embedded in traditions and customs such as local ceremonies, traditional cultural performances and teashops, as well as in agricultural and manual labor in the context of rubber plantations and seafaring. People from the southern provinces, especially in Pattani, Yala and Narathiwat provinces, are predominantly Muslim and are prohibited from drinking alcohol based on the dictates of Islamic beliefs. With strict controls on alcohol, kratom is an alternative substitute, not specifically prohibited by the clergy, but regulated by the state.

Transnational Institute | download here

On the Frontline of Northeast India: Evaluating a Decade of Harm Reduction in Manipur and Nagaland
Transnational Institute
Conflict and underdevelopment in Northeast India have contributed to drug consumption and production, and are hampering access to treatment, care and support for drug users. Northeast India is a region with serious drug use problems. This briefing examines the drug-related problems and evaluates the policy responses in Nagaland and Manipur, two sparsely populated states in that region, bordering Burma. These states have the highest prevalence of injecting drug users (IDUs) in India. Unsafe practices, especially needle sharing among IDUs, have been the main drivers of the HIV/AIDS epidemic in the region. By the end of the 1990s, Manipur had become the “AIDS capital of India”, and also Nagaland is suffering a high incidence of HIV among injecting drug users. Northeast India is an isolated and mountainous area, home to a wide range of different ethnic groups, each with its own distinct culture, traditions and language. Many of these ethnic groups are in conflict with the Indian government, demanding more autonomy or independence. Several ethnic movements are in armed struggle, pressing for their political demands. There has also been communal violence between villages of different ethnic groups.

Transnational Institute | download here

Print PDF

Bookshelf Spotlight: Burma and Its Borders

Ronald Gilliam — Tue, 21 Jun 2011 23:52:23 +0000

Featured Books

* Burma Redux: Global Justice and the  Quest for Political Reform in Myanmar
* State and Society in Modern Rangoon
* Ruling Myanmar: From Cyclone Nargis to National Elections
* Spreading the Dhamma: Writing, Orality, and Textual Transmission in Buddhist Northern Thailand
* Dynamics of Cross Border Industrial Development in Mekong Sub-region: A Case Study of Thailand
* The Last Paradise on Earth: The Vanishing Peoples & Wilderness of Northern Burma

Burma Redux: Global Justice and the  Quest for Political Reform in Myanmar

by Ian Holliday
Hong Kong University Press, 2011

Contemporary Myanmar faces immense political challenges, and the role outsiders might play in dealing with them is highly contentious. Drawing on views expressed by local citizens, Burma Redux argues for committed strategies of grassroots involvement that engage international aid agencies, global corporations and foreign states. The wide-ranging discussion positions Myanmar’s history, contemporary politics and social circumstances within broader discussions of global justice, democratic transitions, the aid business, corporate social responsibility and international sanctions.

Hong Kong U. Press

Return to Top

State and Society in Modern Rangoon

by Donald M. Seekins
Routledge, 2010

While most of Asia’s major cities are increasingly homogenized by rapid economic growth and cultural globalization, Rangoon, which is Burma’s former capital and largest city, still bears the imprint of a unique and often turbulent history. It is the site of the Shwedagon Pagoda, a focus of Buddhist pilgrimage and devotion since the early second millennium C.E. that continues to play a major role in national life. In 1852, the British occupied Rangoon and made it their colonial capital, building a modern port and administrative center based on western designs. It became the capital of independent Burma in 1948, but in 2005 the State Peace and Development Council military junta established a new, heavily fortified capital at Naypyidaw, 320 kilometers north of the old capital. A major motive for the capital relocation was the regime’s desire to put distance between itself and Rangoon’s historically restive population. Reacting to the huge anti-government demonstrations of “Democracy Summer” in 1988, the new military regime used massive violence to pacify the city and sought to transform it in line with its supreme goal of state security. However, the “Saffron Revolution” of September 2007 showed that Rangoon’s traditions of resistance reaching back to the colonial era are still very much alive.

Amazon | Routledge

Return to Top

Ruling Myanmar: From Cyclone Nargis to National Elections

by Nick Cheesman, Monique Skidmore and Trevor Wilson (eds)
Institute of Southeast Asian Studies, 2010

November 2010 sees the first elections in Myanmar/Burma since 1990, to be held as the culmination of the military regime’s ‘Road Map for Democracy’ The conditions under which the elections are being held are far from favourable, although the laws and procedures under which they will be conducted have been in place for seven months and quite widely publicized. Political controls remain repressive, freedom of expression and assembly does not exist, and international access is restricted by government controls as well as sanctions. While the elections represent a turning point for Myanmar/Burma, the lead-up period has not been marked by many notable improvements in the way the country is governed or in the reforming impact of international assistance programmes. Presenters at the Australian National University 2009 Myanmar/Burma Update conference examined these questions and more. Leading experts from the United States, Japan, France, and Australia as well as from Myanmar/Burma have conributed to this collection of papers from the Conference.

Goodreads | Amazon | ISEAS Publishing

Return to Top

Spreading the Dhamma: Writing, Orality, and Textual Transmission in Buddhist Northern Thailand

By Daniel Veidlinger
University of Hawaii Press, 2006

How did early Buddhists actually encounter the seminal texts of their religion? What were the attitudes held by monks and laypeople toward the written and oral Pali traditions? In this pioneering work, Daniel Veidlinger explores these questions in the context of the northern Thai kingdom of Lan Na. Drawing on a vast array of sources, including indigenous chronicles, reports by foreign visitors, inscriptions, and palm-leaf manuscripts, he traces the role of written Buddhist texts in the predominantly oral milieu of northern Thailand from the fifteenth to the nineteenth centuries.

Veidlinger examines how the written word was assimilated into existing Buddhist and monastic practice in the region, considering the use of manuscripts for textual study and recitation as well as the place of writing in the cultic and ritual life of the faithful. He shows how manuscripts fit into the economy, describes how they were made and stored, and highlights the understudied issue of the “cult of the book” in Theravâda Buddhism. Looking at the wider Theravâda world, Veidlinger argues that manuscripts in Burma and Sri Lanka played a more central role in the preservation and dissemination of Buddhist texts.

Goodreads | Amazon | UH Press

Return to Top

Dynamics of Cross Border Industrial Development in Mekong Sub-region: A Case Study of Thailand

By Chuthatip Maneepong
LAP LAMBERT Academic Publishing, 2010

An important strategy for turning the periphery of border area into centre of growth, and for accelerating economic concentration away from capital cities is maximizing the value of border location. Large-scale industry located in border areas and relocated to border towns has a growth potential by exploiting the location advantages of the abundant and cheap labour force in peripheral area, as well as cross border infrastructure services with the support of ethic ties between two adjoining countries. This theory has been successfully applied in several cross border areas, e.g. the US-Mexico border zone, and Singapore-Johor-Riau Growth Triangle zone. It is not matter of whether policies supporting the industrial development in border towns are right or wrong. This book raises the question of whether they are applicable, feasible and effective in less developed border region with a majority of small and medium-scale industries such as in Thai border towns, especially during times like the Asian Economic Crisis. The book thus discusses: what produces entrepreneurs and how do they operate?, What are advantages of border locations for entrepreneurs?, What are impact of government investments and other measures? What other factors contribute to and hinder industrial establishment and growth in border towns, and how?.

Amazon

Return to Top

The Last Paradise on Earth: The Vanishing Peoples & Wilderness of Northern Burma

By Wade Brackenbury
Flame of The Forest Publishing, 2005

Since independence from Britain in 1948, Burma has been plagued by civil war and ethnic conflict. These bitter struggles have led to the loss of thousands of lives. In Kachin state, nestled at the foot of the Himalaya in the upper reaches of the Irrawaddy River, the people indigenous to this region seem blissfully unaware of the strife beyond their river shores. They live peacefully in a lush and virgin environment, protected by its inaccessibility and untouched by modernization, in what the author considers the last paradise on earth. This photographic diary of the author’s extensive travels to this region allows us a privileged glimpse into a very special world where the inhabitants and the landscape are touchingly different from our own.

Goodreads | Amazon | Flame of the Forest Publishing

Return to Top

Print PDF

Song of the Week: Zaw Win Htut (Myanmar)

Ronald Gilliam — Fri, 03 Jun 2011 19:00:48 +0000

Zaw Win Htut is a Burmese rock, country, and blues singer, and the lead vocalist of the band Emperor.

Zaw Win Htut was born into a musical family in Yangon, Myanmar. His father Kyi Khin was a physician, and his mother Tin Aye was a famous folk singer with the stage name Htar. His maternal grandfather was Shwe Taing Nyunt, a famous songwriter of classical Burmese music. His nickname was Nyi Htut. He received a bachelor’s degree in English from Yangon University.

Zaw Win Htut began his career in music as a drummer in a band called Oasis. He formed his own band, Emperor, in the 1980s with five members, Zaw Myo Htut (his brother and lead guitarist), Cin Khan Pun (bass), Wai Tun (drums), Maung Maung Lwin (keyboards), John O’Hara (acoustics). He was strictly a country, rock and roll singer in his early career. His first album, released in 1983, was not a success. His third album Hlyatsit Moe Kaungkin, released in 1989, made him a star.

Like most Burmese pop singers, Zaw Win Htut became famous with Burmese language covers of foreign (mostly Western rock and pop) hits, written by successful cover “songwriters” such as Thukhamein Hlaing, Min Chit Thu, Win Min Htwe, Saw Khu Sae. Unlike most Burmese pop stars, this grandson of Shwe Taing Nyunt was actually embarrassed about it. He famously said that singing those songs were like wearing someone’s else shirt. In a 2004 interview he said that his goal was to make original music.

He decided to make only “original” (i.e. non-cover) albums in mid 1990s. He was one of the first in the Burmese pop music industry to break away from taking the easy route of cover songs. (To be sure, some successful singers like Sai Htee Saing and Soe Lwin Lwin never recorded a cover song.) He did score a few hits with A-Hnaing-Me and Achit Mya Thu Si Mha. Nonetheless, his contrition has limits. He continues to perform his famous cover hits in concerts although he performs only the original songs in his overseas concerts. In a 2010 interview, he admitted that he refused to do any concerts overseas for many years because he did not have a sufficient number of original songs, and that he began doing overseas concerts only after he had collected enough original songs. In the same interview he said he had done over 20 overseas concerts. In 2000, he introduced the blues to his records.

“Though their profession calls for them to strut onstage like rebels, Burma’s rockers can only mime the anti-establishment part. Zaw Win Htut works in the sanitized vacuum of a country run by military rulers who view him automatically as a threat, a potential subversive, because he holds a microphone. Burma’s cultural input is zealously monitored and artistic expression heavily censored.” ”As one of Burma’s biggest rock stars, Zaw Win Htut faces constant government scrutiny of his lyrics, album covers and music videos, but some of his biggest clashes concerned the length of his hair.” -taken from Wikipedia

Facebook Page | Last.fm | iLike | Time Magazine Article

Print PDF

Song of the Week: Wyne Su Khine Thein (Myanmar)

Ronald Gilliam — Fri, 25 Feb 2011 18:30:47 +0000

Wyne Su Khaing Thein, born 24 December 1986, is a Burmese actress and singer. She began her modelling career after finishing high school from Dagon 1 in 2003. She attended Talents and Models and the got public recognition featuring in Saung Oo Hlaing’s hit, Kaung Ma Lay Ta Yaut A Kyaung (About A Girl). After that, she made a steady climb, both as an actress and singer, starring in over 100 videos and three movies. In July 2009, she released her first solo album, titled “Met Laut Sa Yar” and sold over 5000 copies within the first month. The album featured R Zarni, L Lun War, He Lay and Sandy Myint Lwin and included 14 songs. -taken from Wikipedia

Official Website | Facebook Fan Page | San Francisco Performance Article | Golden Sexy Girl Article

Print PDF

Four Thousand Years of SEA Art Podcast

Ronald Gilliam — Tue, 04 Jan 2011 00:21:18 +0000

Hawai’i’s strong connection with Southeast Asia is probably most easily felt through the influx of residents from the area. Many don’t realize that the University of Hawai’i is an extraordinary resource for Southeast Asian scholarship, the only university in the U.S. with Southeast Asianists in both art history and archaeology, a Center for Southeast Asian Studies plus related faculty in the history department. Noe Tanigawa found two specialists for this visit with “Four Thousand Years of Southeast Asian Art” at the Honolulu Academy of Arts. “Four Thousand Years of Southeast Asian Art,” works from Ban Chiang, Angkor and the Sukhothai Kingdom, continues at the Honolulu Academy of Arts through January 9th. Check www.honoluluacademy.org for details.

Link to podcast on Hawaii Public Radio

Print PDF

Next Generation in Asian Affairs Fellowship

Ronald Gilliam — Wed, 24 Nov 2010 01:41:27 +0000

The National Bureau of Asian Research (NBR) is pleased to announce the Next Generation Leadership in Asian Affairs Fellowship for 2011-12. This year-long program, based in Seattle, focuses on bridging the gap between scholarship and policymaking. Fellows support NBR research projects and collaborate with leading scholars to conduct independent research and share research findings with the policymaking community in Washington, D.C.

The fellowship is open to U.S. citizens and permanent residents. Individuals who have received their master’s degree diplomas up to twelve months prior to the application deadline may apply to the program. Applicants must have completed a master’s or equivalent professional degree (MA, MBA, LLM, JD, etc.) by the time the fellowship begins. Prospective fellows should apply only for the year that they expect to participate. No deferrals are permitted.

The Next Generation Leadership program, now entering its sixth year, is training young Asia specialists from a wide variety of fields to bridge the gap between scholarly research and the needs of U.S. policy toward a rapidly changing Asia.

The application deadline is January 15, 2011. Fellowships begin June 1, 2011, and conclude May 31, 2012. For further information and application materials, please visit the Next Generation Fellowship website: http://nbr.org/about/nextgenfellowship.aspx.

The print-friendly announcement posting is available at: http://nbr.org/downloads/pdfs/NBR/NextGen_announcement_2010.pdf

For more employment, funding, internships, and professional networking opportunities, please join the CSEAS Alumni & Community Linkedin Group!

Print PDF

Ye Lay

Ronald Gilliam — Fri, 19 Nov 2010 19:35:09 +0000

Ye Lay is a Myanmar Hip Hop and R & B singer who is popular among young listeners.

He also acted in several films in the past. His latest album was entitled “third rhyme.”

“Struggling to establish a place for himself in the music industry for the past seven years, hip hop star Ye Lay has just released his third album, First Live Concert, on July 26. Like the previous albums, the hip hop icon has released five new songs together with a few new versions of his famous works.

The Myanmar Times met up with Ye Lay at a hip hop concert to ask him a few questions about his new album and how he works…

How long did it take to make the album?
It took about seven months to finalise this album. It is successful because I always make my works honestly and I get a lot of support from my fans.

How satisfied are you with the new album?
I’m very satisfied with it because it is really cool and I did my best. I even have a VCD and DVD, which I hope to release soon. After cyclone Nargis struck, people haven’t paid much attention to music. We had loss and tragedy but it is now time for people to try and rebuild their lives. So I released this album to make people happy with my songs.

You are a good composer. Where do you find inspiration for your rhymes and lyrics?
I never use other sources when composing a song. The words come to me automatically. I guess I’m just lucky.

If you had the chance to hold a live performance the way you want, how would you make it great?
I want to hold a one man show at a football pitch. I hope I can do this very soon.

At performances, how do you feel when people boo you?
I don’t care and I forgive them their rude behaviour. I may have 90 out of 100 fans, so why should I care about 10? I don’t neglect them though, it’s my duty to persuade them to accept me. So I always try and I like that kind of challenge.

What was your first experience of live performance?
I was treated as if I was inconsequential but the fans encouraged me so I became more confident. I realised that the encouragement from my fans is one of the most important reasons why I make music.

So, for you, music is..?
It means a lot to me. If I had to choose between love and music, I would choose the latter.

Wow, that’s great. Is it also because of music that you have recently halted your acting career?
Yes, it’s true. I’ve stopped acting because I want to focus on making music. It is really difficult to balance these careers, both music and acting. You can act whenever but in singing, your vocal tones get lower as you become older.

How important are live performances for a singer?
They are really important as they are the events by which people judge your career. If you get an opportunity to perform you should accept without hesitation.

What kind of changes do we need to make for a better music industry? And, as an artist, what are you doing to help?
It will be a change for the better if there was less music piracy, to create more opportunities for the new artists. And I want the standard of live performance to be higher than at present. I’m doing my best and always try to give my best performance for my fans. So, as a reflection, I want the recognition for my works from my audiences.

-taken from Myanmar Times Timeout Article

Facebook | Last.fm | Soundmaven | iLike | Myanmar Times Article

Print PDF

Secretary Clinton Honolulu Speech

Ronald Gilliam — Thu, 04 Nov 2010 00:33:30 +0000

View Secretary Clinton’s speech at the Kahala Hotel in Honolulu Waikiki on October 28, 2010 entitled, “America’s Engagement in the Asia-Pacific” below:

US Dept. of State | Official Speech Transcript | Facebook Page | Twitter Feed

Print PDF

Myanmar (Burma) Links

Ronald Gilliam — Thu, 30 Sep 2010 00:47:01 +0000

General Information

Embassy of Myanmar
World Press
Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN)
Lonely Planet World Guide
On-line Burma Library
US-ASEAN Business Council
Outreach World
University of Hawaii Press

Newspapers

BurmaNet News (English)
Burma Project Southeast Asia Initiative (English)
Irrawaddy (English)
Myanmar Times (English)
Kachin Post (English)
New Light of Myanmar (English)
ReliefWeb (English)

Burmese Version

The Mirror (Burmese)
Democratic Voice of Burma (Burmese)

Forums

Lonely Planet Thorn Tree Travel Forum

Wish to share a link not posted on this page? Contact us and let us know!

Print PDF