Articles

A Canadian charity and the Karen National Union launched Karen State’s first modern teaching hospital this weekend. The 24-bed, Taw Naw Teaching Hospital will train local healthcare practitioners and help boost local public health services, according to Global Neighbors Canada Inc. Padoh Saw Eh K’lu Shwe Oo, head of Karen State’s Department of Health and Welfare, said the Taw Naw…

Tourists are increasingly finding their way to a unique enclave in Kayin (Karen) State where the Telaku Karen live, village elders told KIC news. The Telaku village in Hpa-an township is home to just over three dozen members of the sub-group of the Karen people. Though the residents live just 30 minutes from the state capital, they have kept fairly…

Migrant workers and employers find the resulting process of the official joint agreement of the Thai and Burma governments to issue them with new legal papers time consuming, difficult and complicated. The two governments reached an agreement to issue the new paperwork known as, the Certificate of Identity (CI) in October last year, but there has been delays in implementing…

Journalists working at Australia’s Sydney Morning Herald, The Age in Melbourne and the Australian Financial Review took strike action on Wednesday 10 May to protest management’s decision to cut 125 full time jobs at the newspapers. Staff took strike action after management cut the workers out of negotiations that will see newsroom staff cut by 25%, a reduction that furious…

A Burma embassy official denied what he said were “rumors” about migrant workers being arrested or left stranded at the Myawaddy-Mae Sot border. Prior to Thingyan, Thailand announced a New Year’s gift for its large community of migrant workers, declaring that passport-holding laborers could return home for the holidays without having to pay for a visa and without fear of…

Angered over recent electricity price increases and frequent blackouts, over 200 people staged a protest on May 1 in Myawaddy township, Kayin State. Protesters complained that the recent change in power distributors was not handled transparently, and said the new arrangement is not beneficial to the public. “In the past, we only had to pay 4.30 baht [per kWh] for…

Today workers around the world take to the streets to commemorate May Day and to show their solidarity for their hard fought rights and to continue to protest for a better world. For workers in Burma it’s an especially hard life. Low wages, often a dangerous working environment and failure of employers to recognize international workers’ rights such as holidays…

Villagers demanded the return of their land, confiscated by the Burma Army, with members of the Karen State Ceasefire Joint Monitoring Committee – State level (JMC-S) who held its first meeting with local villagers on April 26 at Kya-in Gyi village, in Kyain Seikgyi Township. Sources from civil society organizations and local villagers, said the Burma Army had confiscated villagers’…

Authorities are holding discussions on using a solar power system in the Lay Kay Kaw newtown in Myawaddy Township, Karen State until electricity is available for the settlement development project. Lay Kay Kaw newtown is situated nine -miles south of Myawaddy town and was built to accommodate conflict affected communities, including displaced villagers, refugees and families members of the Karen…

In an exclusive interview with Karen News, Padoh Naw Zipporah Sein, despite losing her position as vice-chairperson in the Karen National Union’s 16th Congress recent election, urged the new leaders to work for a genuine peace and to be united with the country’s ethnic nationalities. The KNU 16th congress have elected new a chairperson, vice-chairperson, secretary, joint secretary 1 and…