Myanmar Monitor Weekly
National
New Clashes in Western Myanmar Leave Army Commander, 20 Soldiers Dead
Army commander Myo Min Tun and 20 soldiers from the government army were killed during fresh fighting with an armed ethnic army in western Myanmar’s Rakhine state during hostilities that erupted on 16 April, a spokesman for the rebel army said on 19 April. “Some from the AA are injured, but no one was killed,” he added. The Myanmar military, which rarely discusses battle casualties, was not available for comment.
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21 die in boat capsize off Myanmar: UN
At least 21 people including nine children died after a boat capsized in rough waters off the coast of Myanmar’s restive Rakhine state on 19 April, a UN spokesman said. The vessel was transporting around 60 passengers, majority of whom were internally displaced people from the Sin Tet Maw camp, to a local market for an “authorised day trip”, according to Pierre Peron, a spokesman for the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (UNOCHA) in Myanmar.
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Politics
Child labour poses challenge for Myanmar government
The demand for labour has risen drastically since the Myanmar economy opened up five years ago. About one-in-five children aged 10-17 go to work instead of school, despite laws that curb child labour. “I think it should be a priority area but needs to be combined with positive policies. If you try to ban child labour, there’s a danger that you drive it underground,” said Michael Slingsby from the United Nations Development Programme. The new government which took power this month has said tackling child labour was one of the party’s goals.
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Business and Investment
Chevron seeks buyers for Myanmar gas assets worth $1.3 billion
US oil and gas major Chevron Corp has put its Myanmar gas block stakes worth an estimated US$1.3 billion up for sale in what would mark the biggest M&A transaction involving the country’s assets. Sources said suitors could number about half a dozen and would likely include Australia’s Woodside Petroleum, Thailand’s PTT Exploration and Production, Japanese trading houses and Chinese companies.
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Viettel placing US$1.5 billion bet on Myanmar’s mobile market
Vietnam’s military-run telecom company, Viettel Group, intends to invest US$1.5 billion in a joint venture in Myanmar’s burgeoning wireless market. A Viettel representative said the company secured a license from Myanmar’s government earlier this month and is now in final negotiations with two Myanmar companies to form a joint enterprise, of which Viettel will own 49%.
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Int’l bank group provides loan for Myanmar industrial port development
World Bank Group’s International Finance Corporation (IFC) has provided a US$ 40 million long-term loan to boost the development of Myanmar Industrial Port (MIP), according an IFC announcement on 19 April. The loan is the first phase of a US$ 200 million long-term senior loan financed by IFC to support the port to complete the first phase of its expansion plans.
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