The UN warning came as it emerged the Dalai Lama had written to Aung San Suu Kyi urging Myanmar’s de facto civilian leader to find a peaceful solution to the crisis in the mainly Buddhist country.

The Rohingya, a stateless Muslim minority, have faced decades of persecution in Myanmar where they are regarded as illegal immigrants.

But since the latest upsurge in violence on August 25, hundreds of thousands have flooded across the border into Bangladesh bringing stories of entire villages burned to the ground by Buddhist mobs and Myanmar troops.

On Monday the UN human rights chief Zeid Ra’ad Al Hussein accused Myanmar of waging a “systematic attack” on the Rohingya and warned that “ethnic cleansing” seemed to be under way.

Rohingya refugees try to get a mosquito net and a bowl as a relief from an organisation in the streets of Teknaf, Bangladesh, 10 September 2017.  // EPA-EFE

“Because Myanmar has refused access to human rights investigators the current situation cannot yet be fully assessed, but the situation seems a textbook example of ethnic cleansing,” he told the UN Human Rights Council.

Suu Kyi, a Nobel peace laureate, has come in for strong international criticism over the military crackdown on the Rohingya, which began when militants ambushed security forces on August 25.

The UN special rapporteur on human rights in Myanmar has said the latest violence may have left more than 1,000 dead, most of them Rohingya.

A further 27,000 ethnic Rakhine Buddhists as well as Hindus have also fled violence that has gripped northern Rakhine, where international aid programmes have been severely curtailed.

– ‘Appalled’ –

On Monday it emerged that the Dalai Lama had joined fellow Nobel peace laureates Malala Yousafzai and Archbishop Desmond Tutu in urging Suu Kyi to intervene.

“Questions that are put to me suggest that many people have difficulty reconciling what appears to be happening to Muslims there with Myanmar’s reputation as a Buddhist country,” the Tibetan spiritual leader wrote in a letter to Suu Kyi shortly after the latest fighting broke out.

“I appeal to you and your fellow leaders to reach out to all sections of society to try to restore friendly relations throughout the population in a spirit of peace and reconciliation.”

The UN refugee agency says at least 313,000 Rohingya have now arrived in Bangladesh from Myanmar’s Rakhine state since August 25, around a third of the total population of 1.1 million.

A Rohingya man carries his old mother as they enter Shahporir Deep in Teknaf, Bangladesh, 10 September 2017. // EPA-EFE

The true figure could be even higher — the UN said many new arrivals are still on the move and are therefore left out of the calculations.

Most have walked for days and the United Nations says many are sick, exhausted and in desperate need of shelter, food and water.

Safura Khatun, 60, was among the hundreds who crossed into Bangladesh on Monday.

She told AFP it had taken her 15 days to reach Bangladesh from her village south of Maungdaw, where her husband and three sons had been killed.

“I had only water for the last five days,” she said, rocking on the spot in a yellow headscarf.

“I don’t know what I will do here. We will follow the others.”

Refugee camps and makeshift settlements near the border with Myanmar already hosted hundreds of thousands of Rohingya before the latest influx and are now completely overwhelmed.

That has left tens of thousands of new arrivals with nowhere to shelter from the monsoon rains.

Dhaka, which initially tried to block the Rohingya from entering, said Monday it would start registering all new arrivals.

The Bangladesh government plans to build a huge new camp that will house a quarter of a million refugees.

It remains unclear when or whether they will be able to return.

The UN’s Zeid said he was “appalled” by reports that Myanmar security forces were laying mines near the border to stop the Rohingya returning.

Three Rohingya are reported to have been killed by a mine, and at least two more have lost limbs. One of the victims was a young boy.

On Sunday the Arakan Rohingya Salvation Army militant group whose attacks sparked the latest crackdown, declared a unilateral ceasefire to allow aid to reach the increasingly desperate refugees.

There was no immediate response from Myanmar’s military, but on Saturday authorities said they would set up three relief camps in Rohingya-majority areas.

The artwork covering approximately 6,000 square meters was produced with over 600 liters of biodegradable paint made from natural pigments, water and a milk protein and is part of the celebration for the 125th anniversary of the Glion Rochers-de-Naye train line.

 “There was one farm where the eggs were contaminated … and the owner came forward on his own,” Agriculture Minister Stephane Travert told the Europe 1 radio station.

“All the (other) cases of contamination found in France were imported from our neighbours Belgium and the Netherlands,” he added.

Eggs tainted by the insecticide mostly originate from farms in those two countries but have since been found in 45 nations worldwide, the European health commissioner Vytenis Andriukaitisa said last week.

Possible misuse of the insecticide has been reported from seven farms in Germany, 10 in Italy and two in Hungary.

The European Commission said last week that the illegal use of fipronil started as far back as September 2016.

The problem is believed to stem from a substance used by a Dutch company, Chickfriend, which farmers in the Netherlands and Belgium say they hired to treat their chickens.

EU ministers are scheduled to meet in Brussels on September 26 to discuss how to improve food safety and prevent fraud in light of the scandal.

The EU insists there is no threat to humans, but the World Health Organization says that when eaten in large quantities fipronil can harm people’s kidneys, liver and thyroid glands.

Thimphu police apprehended 26 people, between 15 and 42 years, in connection with alleged trafficking and abuse and possession of controlled substances during the last two weeks.

Of the total, 15 were arrested and detained in connection with the alleged illicit trafficking while 11 were alleged of abusing them. Three are female and two are students.

Thimphu police’s officer-in-command (OC), Major Wangdi, said that the 11 people arrested for drug abuse are referred to Bhutan Narcotic Control Authority for counselling and treatment.

Police seized 1,580 spasmoproxyvon (SP) capsules, 30 N10 and 42.223 grams of hashish.

Major Wangdi said the increase in the number of illicit traffickers and abusers could be because of easy availability of these substances in border towns. “People might be taking the opportunity of the black market.”

Meanwhile, Sarpang police arrested two men, aged 23 and 27, for allegedly possessing 1,580 pieces of spasmoproxyvon plus (SP+), 72 grams of dried marijuana leaves and a hookah pipe on September 10.

The duo was on their way to Thimphu from Gelephu in a public transport bus when police was inspecting the bus at the Sarpang check post.

Police sources said that the controlled substances were found wrapped in

brown cello tape and concealed with clothes in a luggage bag.

The two men told police that the drugs were bought from Jaigaon, India, which is a border town with Bhutan.

Of the two arrested, the 27-year-old man is from Nangkhor, Zhemgang and is a bachelors of education (BEd) graduate. The 23-year- old is a student of Sikkim Manipal University, India from Samkhar, Trashigang.

Police said this is the third arrest made so far this year for illegal possession of SP+.

They violated th provisions of the Narcotic Drugs, Psychotropic Substances and Substance Abuse Act of Bhutan, 2015.

The section 137 on illegal possession of narcotic drugs and psychotropic substances states, “A defendant shall be guilty of an offence of illegal possession of narcotic drugs and psychotropic substances, listed in Schedule III or IV of this Act if the quantity is less than the limit determined in Schedule VII of this Act but fails to produce a prescription from a registered physician for licit use.

”Section 139 of the Act on illicit trafficking of narcotic drugs and psychotropic substances states that a defendant shall be guilty of the offence of Illicit trafficking of narcotic drugs and psychotropic substances if he or she possesses, imports, exports, stores, sells, purchases, transports, distributes, or supplies: any substances under Schedules I and II of this Act regardless of the degree of purity or formulation; or any substances under Schedules III and IV of this Act regardless of the degree of purity.

Hundreds of thousands of Rohingya have arrived in Bangladesh in recent weeks after violence flared in neighbouring Myanmar, where the stateless Muslim minority has endured decades of persecution.

The top Buddhist leader is the latest Nobel peace laureate to speak out against the violence, which the UN special rapporteur on human rights in Myanmar says may have killed more than 1,000 people, most of them Rohingya.

“Those people who are sort of harassing some Muslims, they should remember Buddha,” the Dalai Lama told journalists who asked him about the crisis on Friday evening.

“He would definitely give help to those poor Muslims. So still I feel that. So very sad.”

Myanmar’s population is overwhelmingly Buddhist and there is widespread hatred for the Rohingya, who are denied citizenship and labelled illegal “Bengali” immigrants.

Buddhist nationalists, led by firebrand monks, have operated a long Islamophobic campaign calling for them to be pushed out of the country.

Myanmar’s de facto civilian leader Aung San Suu Kyi has been condemned for her refusal to intervene in support of the Rohingya, including by fellow Nobel laureates Malala Yousafzai and Desmond Tutu.

Archbishop Tutu, who became the moral voice of South Africa after helping dismantle apartheid there, last week urged her to speak out.

“If the political price of your ascension to the highest office in Myanmar is your silence, the price is surely too steep,” Tutu said in a statement.//AFP

The government agreed to use more electronic methods in tax collection in the wake of a revenue shortfall and vowed to deal with financial leaks.

These were some of the highlights of a two-day meeting held between government cabinet members, the Vientiane mayor and provincial governors, which wrapped up on Friday.

The meeting was chaired by Prime Minister Thongloun Sisoulith and also attended by representatives from the National Assembly, judicial bodies, and Party and mass organisations.

The Ministry of Planning and Investment was told to re-prioritise State investment projects to determine which projects should be carried out first, and ensure the effectiveness of those projects.

The Bank of the Lao PDR was asked to maintain stable exchange rates and boost foreign currency reserves to further facilitate economic growth.

Prime Minister Thongloun stressed the need to seek more funding for the payment of debts owed to State development projects and pointed to the importance of levying taxes on luxury goods.

The prime minister reiterated the importance of enhancing productivity and building up the business sector in various regions according to their potential.

Thongloun called for all sectors to maintain security and social order by addressing social ills, particularly drug use and trafficking, robbery, and road accidents.

Concerning the enforcement of government orders, resolutions, decisions and notices, the meeting agreed that these had been implemented fruitfully in past years.

Nevertheless, the enforcement of some legislation had not progressed as anticipated so the meeting agreed to improve collaboration between the relevant sectors so that orders and regulations were strictly complied with.

The government also stressed the importance of using modern technology in State administration including computers, internet and other electronic devices to improve collaboration between State sectors.

Meeting participants discussed the enforcement of Prime Minister’s Order No. 15 issued on May 13, 2016, which bans the export of all types of unfinished wood products including timber and logs.

The government is committed to strongly enforcing this order in the battle to clamp down on the illicit trade in wood, and vowed to penalise all those who contravened the order.

The meeting discussed plans to bolster commercial production and food security and the government’s preparations for Visit Laos Year 2018.

In addition, the government debated issues concerning obstacles to the construction of the Laos-China railway and the payment of compensation for people affected by the US$5.8 billion railway, which will link Vientiane to the Chinese border.

“The market for paid online content just started in China and shows remarkable growth. …Without copyright protection, paying for content would no longer exist, particularly when large scale pirating occurs,” said Lyu Benfu, a professor specialized in online economy at the University of Chinese Academy of Sciences in Beijing.

Netizens are increasingly willing to pay for valuable content.

“Five years ago, it was almost free to listen to music online. Nearly all music websites were free. I had no idea that what I downloaded was pirated copies, which harmed my favorite singers’ intellectual property,” said Zhang Hui, a magazine editor in Shanghai.

As a magazine editor, Zhang has sometimes been upset to find her articles being stolen online. But previously, it rarely occurred to her that she was encouraging copyright infringement by never paying to read or listen to music online.

“I do now,” she said.

Zhang is not the only one to raise copyright protection awareness in China.

A recent study by iResearch, a Beijing-based consulting firm, showed that nearly half of Chinese netizens are willing to pay or have paid for online content, compared with 30 percent in 2014.

“Valuable content created by scholars, scientists and artists was published online for free in the past. But in recent years, more and more people have started to believe they should pay for access to that content.

“So, many websites have created platforms to collect payment,” said Xiang Songzuo, deputy director of the International Monetary Institute at Renmin University of China in Beijing.

“It will be an inevitable trend. Knowledge, especially high-quality knowledge, should command a good price. … Authors will pay more attention to their content when it costs money to access. It is mutually beneficial. Consumers willingly pay for high-quality content. Authors will be encouraged to create better content,” he said.

Some new technology prevents digital content infringement online.

“Suizhi uses a new technology involving code and digital copyright technologies to prevent online infringement. The company has obtained seven patents. Digital content including video, audio and text files can be sold at a certain price. Payment is for one copy. The new technology helps turn knowledge into money,” said Liu Tongpeng, founder of Suizhi.com, an e-commerce content website.

Suizhi allows authors to upload their works and sell their knowledge at a certain price.

The  Education Minister made this remark at the opening ceremony of the 23rd Asean Council of Japan Alumni (ASCOJA) Conference held at The Centrepoint Hotel in Gadong.

Some 200 participants from Asean member countries and Japan-linked organisations are attending the three-day conference to discuss ways to boost Asean-Japan cooperation.

The Asia Japan Alumni International (ASJA)-ASCOJA symposium on tapping into the Halal market in Asean and Japan was also held during the afternoon session of the conference yesterday.

Through the symposium, Japan and other Asean member countries can learn from Brunei Darussalam’s perspective and experience in developing the industry, the minister said. “The Halal industry is now a global phenomenon and has broadened into our everyday lifestyle such as food products, cosmetics and there is even Halal tourism and the industry has widely penetrated non-Muslim consumers as well,” noted the minister, while expressing his hope that the conference will provide a good platform to discuss potential ways for Asean and Japan to contribute to the development of the Halal industry.

The minister said that there are many more areas of collaboration that can be ventured into by Asean and Japan apart from the Halal industry and highlighted Japan’s strong presence in Asean. “Asean and Japan continuously seek a stronger and closer partnership and this conference is one way of strengthening this close cooperation,” he added.

On Brunei-Japan friendship, the minister said the years-old stable and fruitful relationship both countries share is evident from increasing bilateral trade, two-way investments and the number of tourists and student exchanges at various levels including higher education.

This year’s ASCOJA Conference, hosted by the Brunei Association of Japan Alumni (BAJA), in association with the Brunei’s Ministry of Education (MoE) and the Embassy of Japan in Brunei Darussalam, is themed ‘Enriching Asean-Japan Relations through Culture, Education and Economy’. The theme is chosen in line with the 50th anniversary of Asean’s establishment and also to mark the 40th year of the establishment of ASCOJA.

The main event of the conference will be the panel discussion by each ASCOJA chapters based on the theme of the conference which aims to address the need for multi-disciplinary approaches to achieve a truly integrated Asean with one heart and one mind, with Japan as a partner.

The conference will also explore potential areas for further collaboration among Asean and Japan and share strategic plans of each ASCOJA chapters on their expected roles in enriching Asean-Japan relations.

Established in 1977, ASCOJA is a regional association of major alumni organisations of former graduates, scholars, students and trainees of Japanese universities, schools and training institutions in all 10 Asean member countries and it aims to catalyse friendship, education, culture and social relationships among its members towards creating a dynamic Asean-Japan relationship.

Former Prime Minister of Japan Yasuo Fukuda was present as special guest at the opening ceremony yesterday. Also present was Deputy Minister of Education Pengiran Dato Seri Paduka Haji Bahrom bin Pengiran Haji Bahar.