Articles

More than 2,000 civilians have fled a Burma Army offensive in Shan State, with shelling in village areas and reports of government soldiers engaging in looting, forced labour and torture, a human rights group has said. The Burma Army attack, which allegedly involved more than 1,000 government troops, led to the attacks of village areas in Nawng Khio Township over…

A report by a political prisoner advocacy group has condemned the government’s ongoing arrest of political opponents. The Association Assisting Political Prisoners (AAPP) point out that Burma’s President, U Thein Sein has failed to deliver on his promise to the international community to release all political prisoners by the end of 2013. “Regardless of the government statements that no more…

Villagers from Myaung Byo, located in Dawei District, have filed a court case over damages allegedly caused by the Heinda mining project operated by Myanmar Pongpipat Company Ltd. “It has had many negative social and economic impacts on our community,” Myaung Byo’s villagers said in a joint statement. Myaung Byo village has around 100 households, with over 500 people, locals…

The European Burma Network has added its voice to a large and growing coalition of political, humanitarian and community organisations calling on Burma’s government to postpone the country’s national census that is set to start on March 30. “We believe that carrying out the census at the current time will exacerbate ethnic and religious tensions in the country,” the European…

An international organisation representing journalists worldwide said it welcomed the passing of Burma’s first press laws, but raised concerns over elements of the legislation as being “unnecessarily controlling.” The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ), called on President Thein Sein’s government to “continue its dialogue with journalists” in order to “develop a free and robust media” in Burma. The statement comes…

Burma’s transformation from international pariah to political success story is being called into question by widespread and ongoing human rights abuses that Western interests increasingly refuse to acknowledge, humanitarian advocates claim. Burma Campaign UK director Mark Farmaner said that a recent British Foreign Office quarterly report on the human rights situation in the country willfully neglects the severity of such…

An international coalition of Karen community-based-organizations (CBOs) has sent a letter to the United Nations Population Fund expressing “deep concern” with Burma’s approaching national census – urging it be postponed. The letter argues that the census is being carried out prematurely citing issues with the categorization of ethnic nationalities, and that the census forms would only be in Burmese language.…

Fortify Rights, an international human rights organization based in South East Asia, raised concerns regarding Burma’s upcoming national census, citizenship law and national ID card scheme, arguing that in their current form they entrenched ethnic rifts and threatened peace. The Burma Government’s census, National ID card scheme and citizenship law are adding to ethnic discrimination, Matthew Smith, executive director and…

Burma’s government and the Thai company involved in the construction of the Asia Highway have paid compensation to landowners affected by the construction, but some landowners have claimed that they did not receive the compensation that the authorities initially promised. The landowners had their land damaged by the building of the highway between Myawaddy to Thin-gan-nyi-naung and then through to…

A humanitarian worker from Free Burma Rangers (FBR) was shot and badly wounded on February 18 while working in Northern Karen State. Saw Shae Say, 25, who works as a video recorder with FBR, was shot while monitoring Burma Army troop movements near Luthaw Township, Papun District, in Karen National Union (KNU) territory, despite a ceasefire being in place. Karen…