Security, Peace and Stability and Rule of Law Committee Chairman State Administration Council Chairman Senior General Min Aung Hlaing addresses meeting 1/2021 of the committee

Nay Pyi Taw  February  26

The meeting 1/2021 of the Security, Peace and Stability and Rule of Law Committee took place at the meeting hall of the State Administration Council Chairman’s Office here this afternoon, with an address by Committee Chairman State Administration Council Chair-man Commander-in-Chief of De-fence Services Senior General Min Aung Hlaing.

The meeting was also attended by Council members General Maung Maung Kyaw, Mahn Nyein Maung and Jeng Phang Naw Taung, Union Ministers Lt-Gen Soe Htut, Lt-Gen Tun Tun Naung, U Myint Kyaing and U Khin Maung Yi, Attorney-General of the Union Dr Daw Thida Oo, Deputy Ministers Rear-Admiral Myint Nwe, Lt-Gen Than Hlaing and Maj-Gen Soe Tint Naing, Man-dalay Region Administration Council member U Myo Aung and officials.

Addressing the meeting, the Senior General said the council has formed five committees. Although this committee is responsible for ensuring security, peace and stability and rule of law, it has to deal mostly with management affairs. In doing legislation, thorough assessment is necessary as to whether it is in conformity with up to date terms and usages, the prevailing conditions of the State and the international relations policy. A law should be easy, simple and understandable to the people. Union ministries need to coordinate and discuss with each other in passing laws, rules and notifications and report to the Union Attorney-General’s Office for discussion.

In expanding and amending the areas of towns and cities, measures must be taken in accord with the procedure after seeking real opinions of local people. Ministries need to make detailed assessments in forming, reconstituting, renewing and dissolving associations. There are unlawful organizations. Associations need to act in accord with the law. An association needs funds to operate, and how such funds came must be monitored. Ministries must deal with this matter.

In the forestry sector, the country has the 1995 forestry policy. The ministry concerned and region/state administration councils need to correctly maintain the forests in accordance with the forestry policy. Deforestation has led to climate change in the country. Some reasons for deforestation are clearing forests for shifting farm, cutting for cropland and making firewood and charcoal. In future, villageowned forest plantations must be established without fail after the required amount of timber and firewood has been calculated. Timber production also must be based on domestic demand. Meanwhile, a forest conservation policy must be adopted. Only with systematic forest conservation, will there be benefits for the posterity. Thus, forest and environmental conservation tasks must be carried out without fail.   

There are still problems of tres-passing into protected forests at present. Those who have applied for permits to grow private forests must grow actually.  Some, despite having applied for permits, did not grow forests. They cut down trees on the pretext of land reclamation for growing forests, but have never grown new trees. This has resulted in land disputes. There is a need to systematically conserve stateowned forests, community-owned forests and private forests.

Some land issues were in fact already resolved, but then have resurfaced due to increase in land prices over time. Billions of kyats of money have been given in land compensation. So, there is a need to handle land issues in line with policy. The Tatmadaw on its part has abandoned over 100,000 acres of land in line with fourpoint policy. Ministries on their part must abandon inactive land systemati-cally and return it to the State. The committee has to present its action plan based on facts, and cooperate for security, stability and rule of
law.

Then, secretary of the Security, Stability and Rule of  Law Committee Union Minister Lt Gen Soe Htut reported on structure and tasks of the committee.

Union Minister U Myint Kyaing and member of Mandalay Region Administration Council U Myo Aung explained matters related to security, crimes, law, rules, policy and orders and notifications, revo-cation of forest status, security, peace and stability, rule of law and legal affairs.

Members of the State Adminis-tration Council Mahn Nyein Maung, Jeng Phang Naw Taung, Union ministers U Khin Maung Yi and Lt Gen Tun Tun Naung, and Attorney General of the Union Dr Daw Thida Oo explained plans to include departmental staff in village admi-nistration bodies for community peace and stability and rule of law, choose those capable of ensuring regional stability in appointing district, township, ward and village administration bodies and ward and village administrators, form support teams at different levels of councils, protect those who are not involved in the CDM, establish protected forests and implement greening works, establish community-based forests for firewood, confiscate inactive lands where private forests have not been established, count squatters living in the forests and move them out of forests, establish agroforests, and form support teams for community tranquility and rule of law.

Concerning the reports, the Senior General said that ministries are required to appoint legal consultants to amend and draft laws and it is necessary for the Ministry of Home Affairs to take effective action against traffic rule violations and the use of unlicensed vehicles while other relevant ministries are to offer assistance for awarenessraising campaigns. The Tatmadaw is now taking measures in accordance with the 2008 Constitution and adopting collective leadership in administrative affairs and it is necessary to appoint honest elders from villages and wards who are really capable of serving the interests of their villages and wards.

After tolerating the CDM to a certain extent, authorities will take effective action against staff who have violated rules and regulations in accordance with the Civil Servant Law. Government employees are required to be loyal to the State, to be willing to perform their duties and to possess healthy convictions. It is necessary to replant trees in places under deforestation as a national duty. In replanting trees, it is important to choose seedlings that meet the age and size require-ments for their proper growth and to monitor whether trees have been replanted in permitted private forest plantations in accordance with rules and regulations. The use of firewood and timber exploitation must be reduced significantly.  To reduce the use of firewood in rural areas, it is vital to implement solar power projects to help fulfil the electricity needs. As the duties and tasks of the committee is comprehensive, members are required to adopt an all-round approach in performing their tasks and duties and to consult with one another for matters arising from the current situation by seriously taking each issue into consideration without any mistake and by report-ing the issues to higher echelons to seek decisions.