News Story: IMO secretary-general visits Singapore

IMO Flag (Wiki - Image: Wiki Commons)

SINGAPORE, Aug. 31 (Xinhua) -- Secretary-General of the International Maritime Organization (IMO) Kitack Lim is on a four-day visit to Singapore from Monday to Thursday, according to a statement by the Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore (MPA) on Wednesday.

This is Kitack Lim's first visit to the city state since assuming the position of IMO Secretary-General on Jan. 1, 2016. MPA said that his visit underscores the strong ties between IMO and Singapore.

Lim called on Singapore's Coordinating Minister for Infrastructure and Minister for Transport Khaw Boon Wan on Wednesday.

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News Story: UN is steady partner for Myanmar's reform and reconciliation process - Ban Ki-Moon

Ban Ki-Moon (Image: Wiki Commons)

NAY PYI TAW, Aug. 31 (Xinhua) -- The United Nations (UN) has been a steady partner to support the reform and reconciliation process of Myanmar, UN chief Ban Ki-Moon told the 21st Century Panglong Ethnic Conference in Nay Pyi Taw Wednesday.

Marking the conference as a historic transition, Ban pledged in his address that the UN will continue efforts to smooth the differences, lower tensions and move parties towards better understanding and dialogue in line with the goals and values of the UN Charter.

The Secretary-General urged the participants to accept that no party involved in the reconciliation process can expect to achieve all its aims. Conversely, every side must win something if the process is to succeed.

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News Story: Historic peace conference in Myanmar boosts national image, paves way for development

BEIJING, Aug. 31 (Xinhua) -- Myanmar is again in global news headlines Wednesday as the country starts a landmark peace conference, dubbed the 21st Century Panglong Meeting, in reference to a historic gathering in 1947 that led to the country's independence from Britain.

The conference, attended by the government and 11 ethnic armed groups, is the most inclusive peace talks the country has ever seen since it slid into a long-running civil war some 60 years ago.

Generations of Myanmar national leaders have tried various means to resolve the ethnic issues at the heart of the protracted war, but such attempts failed to bring lasting peace.

Nowadays there is consensus in the Myanmar society that political dialogue is the only way forward to national reconciliation and peace.

The ruling National League for Democracy, led by Aung San Suu Kyi, has made national reconciliation a priority, and Aung San Suu Kyi herself said on various occasions that "without peace there can be no sustained development."

Despite a lack of official data on civil war casualties in Myanmar, it is estimated that armed conflicts claimed tens of thousands in the country in the past several decades.

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News Story: Myanmar's Panglong peace conference kicks off with call for national reconciliation

NAY PYI TAW, Aug. 31 (Xinhua) -- The 21st Century Panglong Peace Conference of Myanmar, which aims to unite with all ethnic nationalities and build a democratic federal union through dialogue, kicked off in Nay Pyi Taw Wednesday.

The four-day historical Panglong Conference gathered representatives of the government, the parliament, the military, invited political parties, ethnic armed and non-armed organizations and civil society totaling about 1,600.

Among the attendees of government leadership at the opening ceremony were President U Htin Kyaw and two vice presidents.

The 17 ethnic armed organizations present at the event include eight signatories and seven non-signatories to the Nationwide ceasefire Accord (NCA), represented by the United Nationalities Federal Council (UNFC) as well as Mongla and Wa groups.

The opening of the conference was also attended by UN agencies and resident foreign diplomats in the country.

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News Story: Myanmar kicks off 21st Century Panglong Peace Conference

Hanoi (VNA) – Myanmar’s 21st Century Panglong Peace Conference opened in the capital of Nay Pyi Taw on August 31, aiming to end nearly-seven-decade-long conflicts in the country. 

The five–day historical event sees the participation of about 1,800 representatives of the government, the military, ethnic armed groups, political parties, foreign diplomats, and international organisations, among others.

Unlike previous ceasefire accords or peace conferences which only gathered some particular ethnic communities, the 21 st Century Panglong Peace Conference invited almost all ethnic armed groups, including non-signatories to the Nationwide Ceasefire Accord (NCA) reached in last October.

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News Story: UN Secretary General visits Myanmar

Ban Ki-moon (Image: Wiki Commons)

Hanoi (VNA) – Secretary General of the United Nations Ban Ki-moon arrived in Nay Pyi Taw on August 30, beginning his two-day working visit to Myanmar.

The UN Chief is scheduled to meet State Counsellor Aung San Suu Kyi and deliver a speech at the opening session of the 21st century Panglong peace conference which is set to open on August 31.

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News Story: Two Japanese destroyers dock Philippine habour

JS Yugiri (Image: Wiki Commons)

Hanoi (VNA) – Two Japanese destroyers docked at the South Habor in Manila on August 30 for a three-day visit to the Philippines, bringing the number of Japanese ships to the Southeast Asian nation to eight so far this year.

Destroyers JS Yuudachi and JS Yugiri are both from the Escort Division Seven of the Japanese Maritime Self-Defence Force (JMSDF), according to the Philippine Navy.

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News Story: Seminar discusses post-PCA peace, unity in ASEAN

Kuala Lumpur (VNA) – A seminar titled “ASEAN: Peace and Unity after the PCA Ruling” was organised following the ruling of the Arbitral Tribunal in The Hague, the Netherlands, on the case the Philippines brought against China’s claims in the East (South China) Sea . 

The event was co-organised by the Worldfuture TV, the News Agency of Bernama, the Malaymail and the Independent Newspapers in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia on August 30. 

Addressing the opening ceremony, Malaysia’s former Foreign Minister Syed Hamid Albar attached the significance of the East Sea to ASEAN member nations in the fields of economics, politics and security. 

He welcomed the PCA’s ruling and reiterated that ASEAN nations need to unite and work together to peacefully solve territorial disputes in the East Sea. 

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News Story: Malaysia arrests three suspects over attacks on Independence Day

Kualua Lumpur (VNA) - Malaysian police on August 31 announced that they arrested three suspects linked to the Islamic State (IS), who had plotted to launch attacks on Malaysia’s Independence Day.

The suspects, captured in a raid between August 27-29, received orders from Malaysian IS-linked militant Mohamad Wanndy Mohamad Jedi to carry out attacks at an entertainment centre, a Hindu temple and a police station on August 30, one day before Malaysia’s Independence Day.

Jedi, believed to be the mastermind of a grenade attack in suburban Kuala Lumpur in June this year, the first IS-linked attack in Malaysia.

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News Story: Thailand’s tourist town attackers linked to Muslim rebels

Bangkok (VNA) – Thailand’s police have said suspects in a series of bomb attacks on the country’s tourist towns have links to southern Muslim rebels.

This is the first time the Thai authorities have confirmed a link to the southern insurgency. Earlier, the government ruled out connection between the bombings and southern insurgents. 

No one has claimed responsibility for the bombing which hit popular resorts across the south on August 11-12, killing four and wounding dozens including European visitors. 

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