To avoid double collection of income tax from Burmese workers, campaigners have sent a registered letter to the Burmese embassy in Singapore today.

The leaders of Double Taxation Avoidance Initiative in Singapore or DTASG went to the Burmese embassy on Thursday morning to hand over a letter to the ambassador but an official refused to receive it and advised them to send it through the post. The campaigners sent a registered letter addressed to the Burmese embassy the same day.

“The Singapore and Burmese governments have an agreement to avoid double taxation. According to it, a Burmese working in Singapore needs to pay tax to the Singapore government and a Singaporean has to pay tax to the Burmese government if he works in Burma. However, the Burmese embassy in Singapore has been collecting income tax from Burmese citizens working in Singapore. That’s why we urge the ambassador to take action in accordance with the agreement,” said Naing Moe Aung from DTASG.

The letter written in Burmese shall reach the embassy in three days, he added.

This rare campaign in a country which has a good relationship with the Burmese military junta and is at the same time sensitive to the Burmese opposition’s pro-democracy movement on its soil, generated excitement among Burmese workers, with more than 250 email subscribers registered within two weeks of the campaign.

“We want to seriously point out that following the agreement between the two countries shall benefit the country,” the letter said.

The campaigners said they have evidence that Singapore and Burma singed the agreement on April 2004, and Article 26, clearly states not to collect double tax from a Burmese worker paying tax to the Singapore government from his income.

At least one fifth of 50,000 Burmese workers in Singapore are paying ten percent income tax to the Burmese embassy in Singapore and the estimated amount is at least two million US $ a year.

“We gave the embassy our address and phone numbers. We can be summoned any time if they want to explain to us. We are hoping for a reasonable explanation from them. Moreover, we want leaders of our country know that we have been contacting officials in Singapore on this case. We believe very simply and honestly that we should do it,” said Naing Moe Aung.