New education bill clears first parliamentary hurdle

A new National Education Bill has been passed by Myanmar’s national parliament or upper house – clearing the first of several parliamentary hurdles.

It was amended to replace a previous education law that sparked months of protests by students and civil society groups, and includes the right of students and teachers to freely set up unions, currently barred by the education law.

However, military members of the parliament which make up 25% of the body, declined to include a reference to freedoms to speak and write freely, which could hamper true academic freedom.

Although not fully made public, the draft also includes some terms and conditions for universities to increase their managerial autonomy over their institutions, on an individual basis, and a rewording of commitments to increase the amount of the budget allocated to education – a key student demand.

According the draft, the overall education budget will be increased year by year over five years but without stipulating the proportion of the budget that will be allocated.

Students, angry at the continued detention of those who protested against the original law passed in September 2014, are not celebrating the draft changes approved by the upper house on 26 March after two days of debate.

Ei Phyu Phyu Htun, a third-year geography student at East Yangon University – who was arrested during a police crackdown on students protesting in Letpadan, in Pegu Division, on 10 March, and released after three days – said the government had already broken the four-party agreement between students, activists, parliament and the government, agreed in early March, which included a promise not to crack down violently on students.

“We want them to give us 100% [of our demands],” she said.

Central control

The draft has now been submitted to the lower house, according to the Union Parliament chairman Thura U Shwe Mann in an announcement on 30 March.

Parliament’s education committee and higher education committee will comment on the draft law with discussions also taking place with Aung San Suu Kyi, chairman of the state and stability committee. Suu Kyi had previously distanced herself from the student protests during negotiations on the drafting of the amendments, saying the students should allow the parliamentary process to play out.

The Secretary of the National Parliament bill committee Myat Nyanna Soe said some 77% of the students’ demands had been “met through compromise” in the new draft.

However, Nyo Nyo Thin, a member of the Yangon Regional Parliament, told University World News: “It’s not true that the parliament approved 77% of the [students’] demands. They are exaggerating.

“They have tried to keep alive central control over education which the students never wanted,” she said.

A National Education Commission to oversee universities is still being kept in the new draft of the bill which indicates no reduction of central control, she said.

“They are using the method of ‘blow hot, blow cold’, which means the problem will be never solved,” Nyo Nyo Thin said.

U Soe Than Maung, father of student Aung Zaw Hein, imprisoned after the Letpadan crackdown, said the government is making “easy promises” to stop the student protests.

“I don’t think we fully got what was in the students’ demands even after the bill was approved [by the upper house]” he told University World News.

Still detained

After the 10 March crackdown when 127 students and their supporters were arrested, other students started protesting to press for their release.

“We will protest again to demand the release of the students who are still in custody but we don’t know when and how yet,” said Ei Phyu Phyu Htun.

“The students know they could go to prison if they keep protesting but they don’t care anymore,” said Ma Nandar, another supporter of the students.

Si Thu Maung, founder of the student union of the Yangon Institute of Economics, told University World News he believed the students would only be released after the general elections due to be held in late October because the government wanted to maintain stability in the country.

According to the students, 69 detainees are still in custody. Charges that could be laid against them include unlawful assembly, incitement, rioting and causing harm to stability in country.