Articles

More than 130 villagers from 20 villages in Hlaingbwe and Hpa-An Township signed a petition letter and sent to the state parliament demanding a solution to the dispute over farmland that was granted concession to businessman for a rubber plantation. Daw Nan Say Awa, a member of parliament from the Pyithu Hluttaw [House of Representatives], Karen State said that the…

From out of Mae Tao Clinic’s Child Outpatient Department the sound of crying babies can be heard. A queue of parents, children in tow, wait outside the basic concrete building for their children to be weighed, measured and checked for serious diseases. “We have six medics and four community health workers to cope with the children.” Dixie, a medic from…

Kayah civil society organizations plan to run a landmine education awareness campaign in Kayah (Karenni) State using grants awarded by the US Embassy in Rangoon. A total of six Kayah civil society organizations plan to carry out the mine risk education according Khu K’law Reh, joint coordinator of the Kayah Phu Christian Social Welfare Department. Speaking to Karen News, Khu…

The Nationwide Ceasefire Coordination Team (NCCT) selected its nine-member delegation team to draft a nationwide ceasefire agreement together with a government team. The NCCT, a technical team working on the nationwide ceasefire agreement on behalf of the ethnic armed resistance organizations previously agreed in its last meeting with the government’s Union Peacemaking Work Committee in Rangoon, to form a joint…

Last night’s fire at Mae La Refugee Camp destroyed 19 houses and another 31 were dismantled to stop the flames spreading. Thai ambulances and fire trucks from surrounding villages attended the fire at the Mae La Refugee Camp that is located on the Thai Burma Border in Thailand’s Tak Province. Saw Honest, the Mae La camp leader spoke to Karen…

Tonight at around 9.30pm a fire broke out in Zone B Section 4 and 5 at Mae La Refugee Camp on the Thai Burma Border in Thailand’s Tak Province. A Karen News reporter, at the camp spoke to a camp resident, Saw Hla Win, who was close to the fire when it broke out. “We were asleep. Most people were…

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…