Far and Away: Reporting from the Brink of Change

453 The homesickness of Burmese refugees is described in Julia Lyon, “Invited to escape to America, some refugees just say no,” St. Louis Tribune, September 14, 2009; and Ron Corben, “Burmese refugees in Thailand long to return home,” Deutsche Welle, December 13, 2011.

453 Among dissidents demanding an apology from their former captors is Win Tin; see Kyaw Phyo Tha, “Ex–political prisoner Win Tin demands apology from junta leaders,” Irrawaddy, October 30, 2013.

453 See Aung San Suu Kyi, The Voice of Hope: Conversations with Alan Clements (2008).

453 Myanmar’s low-occupancy capital is described in Matt Kennard and Claire Provost, “The lights are on but no one’s home in Myanmar’s capital Naypyidaw,” Guardian, March 19, 2015; and Katie Amey, “Government-issued housing, super-highways that span 20 lanes but not a soul in sight: Inside Myanmar’s haunting capital city,” Daily Mail, April 18, 2015.

454 See US Department of State, “U.S. economic engagement with Burma,” US Embassy in Rangoon, June 2014.

454 Although many Burmese professionals have removed to Singapore, the tide is slowly turning; see Kyaw Zwa Moe, “Burmese professionals earn good money in Singapore but still miss home,” Irrawaddy, March 2007; and Joanna Seow, “More Myanmar professionals in Singapore heading home to tap booming economy,” Straits Times, March 24, 2014.

455 Shwe Mann’s pragmatic alliance with Aung San Suu Kyi engendered misgivings among his fellow USDP members, including President Thein Sein, who staged Mann’s dramatic ouster from his role as head of the party; see Thomas Fuller, “Conservatives in Myanmar force out leader of ruling party,” New York Times, August 13, 2015; British Broadcasting Corporation, “Aung San Suu Kyi hails Shwe Mann as an ‘ally,’ ” BBC News, August 18, 2015; and Hnin Yadana Zaw and Antoni Slodkowski, “Myanmar’s ousted ruling party head to work with Suu Kyi,” Reuters, November 5, 2015.

455 See the highly regarded biography by Peter Popham, The Lady and the Peacock: The Life of Aung San Suu Kyi (2012).

456 Aung San Suu Kyi’s Nobel Lecture can be found on the Nobel Prize website at http://nobelprize.org/nobel_prizes/peace/laureates/1991/kyi-lecture_en.html.

456 See previously cited sources on the Burmese constitution: Fuller (2014 and 2015), op. cit., and Ferrie, op. cit.

457 Robert San Pe discusses constitutional reform in the twenty-four-minute video “Legal adviser to Aung San Suu Kyi, Robert Pe,” Reliefweb Labs, May 5, 2015.

457 Donors to Myanmar’s fledgling Parliamentary Library include Canada, the United States, and the Asia Foundation; see “Baird bears gifts,” Mizzima, March 9, 2012; Malaysian Myanmar Business Council, “U.S. contributes publications to parliamentary library,” October 24, 2012; and Asia Foundation, “The Asia Foundation donates books to parliamentary library in Burma,” October 24, 2012.

457 For discussion of the impact and dynamics of Nargis, see Michael Casey, “Why the cyclone in Myanmar was so deadly,” National Geographic News, May 8, 2008.

458 Consul General Ye Myint Aung’s outrageous statement appeared in a letter dated February 9, 2009 (available online at http://asiapacific.anu.edu.au/newmandala/wp-content/uploads/2009/02/the-consul-generals-letter.pdf), and was originally reported in Greg Torode, “Myanmese envoy says Rohingya ugly as ogres,” South China Morning Post, February 11, 2009.

458 For the Myanmar government’s interpretation of the history of its Muslim population, see Republic of the Union of Myanmar, “Final report of inquiry commission on sectarian violence in Rakhine State,” July 8, 2013.

459 Several NGOs have prepared overviews of the history of the Rohingya; see, e.g., Euro-Burma Office, “The Rohingyas: Bengali Muslims or Arakan Rohingyas?” EBO Briefing Paper No. 2, Euro-Burma Office, 2009; and Eliane Coates, “Sectarian violence involving Rohingya in Myanmar: Historical roots and modern triggers,” Middle East Institute, August 4, 2014.

460 Speculation that the Rohingya have links with terrorist groups is disputed by security experts and Burmese parliamentarians; see Paul Vrieze, “Experts reject claims of ‘Rohingya mujahideen’ insurgency,” Irrawaddy, July 15, 2013.

460 Human Rights Watch has documented the persecution of Rohingya in Matthew Smith et al., “ ‘All you can do is pray’: Crimes against humanity and ethnic cleansing of Rohingya Muslims in Burma’s Arakan State,” Human Rights Watch, April 2013.