Karen News

Karen community-based-organizations have come to the aid of civilians displaced by fighting between government troops and the Democratic Karen Benevolent Army (DKBA) in Kawkareik Township. The Karen CBO’s have set up a committee to coordinate the assistance for the displaced people. The committee composed of nine members which includes Saw Lay Kway Doo, as negotiation official, Ko Aung San Oo…

Recent fighting between the Democratic Karen Benevolent Army and Government troops displaced more than 1,000 people from their homes, left them stranded and in urgent need of assistance for food, shelter and other basic items. The villagers fled their homes to avoid being caught in the conflict that started on July 2nd on the Myawaddy-Kawkariek Asia Highway. Today, three weeks…

The senior delegation negotiating the Nationwide Ceasefire Agreement on behalf of Burma’s ethnic armed organisations said in a statement that its talks with the government’s team got off to a good start. The statement released on Wednesday 22 July, said that the two negotiating teams, the Ethnic Armed Organizations’ Senior Delegation (SD) and the Union Peace-making Work Committee (UPWC) said…

Community-based-organizations in Karen State are coming together to increase their efforts to educate people about voting in the national elections to be held on November 8, 2015. A workshop on voter education, led by the Nyein Civil Organization was held together with Karen community-based-organizations at Hpa-an in the second week of July, to raise awareness about voting in the various…

Land confiscation in Karen state has continues to increase according to a new report from the Karen Human Rights Group. The KHRG report titled, “With only our voices, what can we do?” was released on July 15 in the Thai border town of Mae Sot. The report documents the increased land confiscation by government officials and the Burma Army and…

A senior member of the Hpa-an based, Plone-Sgaw Democratic Party (PSDP), a Karen political party, said that they are planning to contest all constituencies in Karen State for the November 8, 2015 general election. Speaking to Karen News, the party’s vice-chairman Mahn Aung Pyi Soe said. “We will contest all 36 constituencies including places where Burman, Pa-o, Mon ethnic people…

The Committee to Protect Journalists urged the Burma government and relevant authorities to “prosecute the perpetrators” of an attack on the owner of the Eleven Media Group. The Burmese media reported that slingshot-wielding assailants attacked Than Htut Aung, the owner of the Eleven Media Group last Tuesday. The Committee to Protect Journalists issued a statement condemning the attacks. The CPJ…

Specialists are predicting this year’s outbreak of the deadly fever could have life-threatening consequences for people across the region Dr Pipat is a worried man. As head of the paediatric department and deputy director of Mae Sot Hospital, he fears that 2015 is going to be a bad year for dengue cases. “I am concerned. We know that this year…

About 700 migrant workers from the Garman (aka A1) garment factory in Mae Sot, Thailand staged a protest over seven demands. Karen News is led to understand that the factory workers have been in negotiations since July 4, with the factory owners and officials but have yet to reach a settlement. A worker organiser, Kyi Soe, told Karen News that,…

The Karen Peace Support Network (KPSN) released a statement that said that fighting between the DKBA and government army during July on the Asia Highway had damaged recent peace initiatives. The newly built Asia Highway connects Myawaddy and Kawkareik in Karen state and saw fierce fighting between the Burma Army and the DKBA over security for the road. The KPSN…