Articles

Thai police have decided that the family of a Karen refugee killed in a road accident will be paid 235,000 baht compensation by the truck driver responsible for the woman’s death last week. Mae La refugee camp officials said Thai police have now settled the case and the truck owner involved in the incident that killed the woman will pay…

Karenni people from different regions are keen to learn a Karenni language created in 1955 by the former chairman of the Karenni National Progressive Party, Ku Htae Bu Peh, and mainly taught in Shadaw Township up until now. The KNPP explain that people from Loi Kaw and Demoso Townships have asked to learn the Karenni language. The KNPP are planning…

A humanitarian organisation that delivers aid to displaced communities in rural Burma reports that despite peace-talks between the Karen National Union and the Burma government armed clashes, forced labour and other abuses are still ongoing in Karen State. The organisation, the Free Burma Rangers has documented abuses by the government’s army and its militia allies in five districts in Karen…

The Karen National Union announced in a media statement that its third round of ‘peace-talks’ with the Burmese Government was a success and the two sides will meet again later this year. The KNU official statement was released on September 4 after the latest ‘peace-talks’ held in Hpa-An Town, two days ago. Naw May Oo Mutraw, a spokesperson with the…

A military ceasefire Code of Conduct was the first and the main issue discussed during the third round of peace-talks held between the Karen National Union and the Burma government at the Zwekabin Hotel in Hpa-an Town, Karen State yesterday. Both the KNU and government presented their draft Code of Conduct to each other for an in-depth discussion of the…

A coalition of Shan community groups have voiced concern about the repatriation of over 500 refugees from a camp on the northern Thai border into an area of conflict. On August 27th, the Norwegian Refugee Council, part of the Norwegian-led “Myanmar Peace Support Initiative,” began house-to-house surveys of refugees in Koung Jor camp, northern Chiang Mai province, asking about their…

Burma’s Ministry of Immigration, working together with the Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC), has issued 350 people living in the remote rural area of Hlaingbwe Township, Karen State with national identity cards. The joint country project to distribute identity cards is known as the Moe Pwint program and is located in a monastery in Kwan Ta (Ta Waw Ta) village. The…

The Karen National Union’s vice chairman, Saw David Tharc Kapaw, acknowledged that Burma’s recent cabinet reshuffle has cast President U Thein Sein as a reformer. The KNU leader told Karen News. “I see a positive change. These newly appointed people are not regarded as narrow minded and self-serving. I think President U Thein Sein is a reformer who really wants…

The Karen National Union, despite being classified as an illegal organization, has attended a traditional wrist tying ceremony in Government controlled territory. Under article 17/1 of the Illegal Organization Act the KNU is still considered an outlaw group despite entering ‘peace-talks’ with the government. In what is considered a welcomed historic first by many Karen, the KNU celebrated the 35th…

The Karen National Union (KNU) and the Burma Government announced today that they have agreed on the dates and location for the third round of their ‘peace-talk’ negotiation. The two parties finally agreed to meet in Hpan-an, Karen State on September 3rd and 4th after the Burma Government had earlier postponed the ‘peace-talks’ that were originally scheduled for August 27th…