Articles

The Karen National Union has opened, in response to village concerns, a clinic to give remote and isolated rural communities access to healthcare. The Kawkreik Township, Dooplaya District KNU office opened the clinic in the Mae Kanel village in Nu Poe area on November 20, 2013. Pa Doh Saw Eh Kaw Thaw, secretary of the KNU’s Kawkareik Township office said…

Despite a ceasefire in place villagers in southern Burma allege that government troops are abusing their authority by threatening them at gunpoint. A villager from Myitta east of Dawei Town claims that a Burma Army officer based in Kwe Waw Wa (Ain Wine), on the Dawei-Htee Kee Road, abused him without reason at gunpoint. U Zaw Min Oo repeated the…

Villagers in Southern Burma are under attack as rats swarm their rice farms and devour their crops. P’doh Saw Htee Wah, secretary of the Karen National Union’s (KNU) Tenaseerim Township, told Karen News. “Villagers in the areas of Ma Noe Ro, Ta Ket, Pa Wat, Kay are facing a huge problem as rats attack their crops at night and destroyed…

In part two of her exclusive interview with Karen News, *Zoya Phan, the Campaigns Manager at Burma Campaign UK, outlines what she thinks the international community needs to do to have the Burma government engage in genuine political dialogue. Zoya Phan said that despite some changes in Burma the country “still has a long way to go and lots of…

In an exclusive two-part interview with Karen News, *Zoya Phan, the Campaigns Manager at Burma Campaign UK and recognized as a Young Global Leader by the World Economic Forum, outlines what Burma’s government needs to do if it is to have genuine political dialogue with the country’s people. Zoya Phan, the Campaigns Manager at Burma Campaign UK explained to Karen…

Burma’s media joined forces with the International Federation of Journalists to call for a media environment without censorship and to be included in the legislation that shapes the country’s media laws. The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) issued a media statement supporting Burmese journalists as “they work to create a more open media landscape” for the country’s journalist to work…

The ethnic alliance, the United Nationalities Federal Council, blamed the government for the fighting in Kachin State. The UNFC said the ongoing fighting in kachin State is a result of the government’s territorial containment policy in ethnic states. The UNFC said that thousands of Kachin civilians have been forced from their homes due to the recent fighting on November 17…

Dawei residents in Southern Burma held a press conference on November 12 in Rangoon in an attempt to highlight what the residents have had to face because of mining in the region. The Dawei villagers from the western Dawei area said the mining has been going on before and after ceasefire agreements between the Karen National Union and the government.…

Burma’s President, U Thein Sein, amnesty on November 15 saw the release of 69 political prisoners, including Naw Ohn Hla. Naw Ohn Hla who was imprisoned for two years because of her involvement in leading protests against the Letpadaung Copper Mining Project, a Chinese copper mine operating in the Sagaing Region. Naw Ohn Hla spoke to Karen News. “I was…

Despite being resettled, displaced Karen villagers in Thar Mae Plaw, in southern Burma, are still living in fear after the Burma Army repeatedly entered their newly resettled site. Saw Honny, a relief worker helping the displaced to resettle in Thar Mae Plaw spoke to Karen News. “Burma Army, Infantry Battalion 101, about 26 soldiers led by 2nd Battalion Commander Aung…