Myanmar journalists embarks on northeast tour

Our Correspondent
Imphal, Dec. 2 (EMN): India should be proactive and take up similar initiatives as China has taken up in various sectors in Myanmar to strengthen the relationship between the two countries. This message was conveyed by a team of journalist from Myanmar who are on a ten day study tour in northeast states, during an interaction programme here on Friday.
“China has been inviting various professionals from Myanmar for tours in various parts of China. So India also should start such practices to strengthen the relationships,” conveyed Aung Htun U, Advisory Board member of Yangon Journalism School. ‘Of course the Indian Embassy helped a lot in making this study tour in India’s northeast this time’, Htun U said.
Htun U along with 12 journalists from various parts of Myanmar besides Bertil Lintner, eminent Swedish journalist, author and strategic consultant who has been writing about Asia for nearly four decades, are touring Assam and Manipur since November 25. Another group of journalists from Myanmar is also currently in China.
‘For the first time we are conducting such kind of cross border training in India after experiencing cross border training in Thailand. “Our country has many ethnic groups and minorities. So we also want to know how Indian government handles ethnic groups in India. We have learnt a lot about north east and it is very interesting to visit places like Guwahati and Imphal during our tour,’ asserted Htun U.
‘Imphal is an important place for Burmese because of the battle between British and Japanese and it is even included in a chapter in our books’, the visiting the journalist informed. Even though Myanmar has a new government the journalists are still facing difficulties in terms of collecting information as military are still controlling things, they maintained.
After visiting Loktak Lake in Bishnupur district Myanmar journalists’ team felt that Loktak is similar to that of Inle, a freshwater lake in Myanmar’s Shan state where the lake dwellers row their boats with their legs etc.
During their stay in Manipur the Myanmar journalists also visited the popular Ima Keithel, a women market, Kangla Fort both in Imphal town and Moreh,the border town located about 110 km south of Imphal along Indo-Myanmar border.
Friday night interaction session was also joined by Bertil Lintner, the writer of popular books ‘Land of Jade’ and ‘Great Game East’ which critically engage with the various political struggles in the region and Imphal based journalists and others.