Articles

Wearing a torn grey t-shirt and shorts, U Aung Sein paddles his small bamboo raft across the muddy water reservoir that surrounds his dead betel nut plantation. He lays out his fishing net in the dirty water, but expects there will not be any fish. U Aung Sein says he is not a fisherman by choice, but since dirty run-off…

The issue of political prisoners in Burma is still critical, with arrests and government intimidation ongoing, claims a prominent activist organization. The activist organization Assistance Association for Political Prisoners (AAPP) has accused the Burma government, led by its President Thein Sein, a former Burma Army general, of ignoring basic civil and political rights with impunity. The current political situation in…

Villagers living along the Tavoy-Kanchanaburi Highway linking Burma to Thailand accuse Burma Army soldiers of demanding they provide trucks to transport foods and munitions for the military. Burma Army battalions under Coastal Command headquarters based at Myitta Sub Township, Tavoy, in the Tenasserim Division have since January this year ordered villagers from Sin Phyu Dai, Wartaw, Amo, Htee Htar, Maw…

The political prisoner advocate group, Assistance Association for Political Prisoners (Burma), released a statement last Friday requesting the Burma government drop charges against jailed KNU leader, Padoh Mahn Nyein Maung. AAPP’s statement asked for the U Thein Sein government to “drop the spurious and trumped-up charges recently brought against a prominent Karen leader, a member of the Karen National Union…

With the aim of strengthening their collective bargaining power, the Karen National Union met this week with the Democratic Karen Buddhist Army and the KNU/KNLA Peace Council. The KNU delegation led by Major Saw Hla Ngwe – joint secretary of KNU and Lieutenant General Oliver – Deputy Chief of Staff of the Karen National Liberation Army, met with the KNU/KNLA-PC…

The jailed Karen National Union leader, Padoh Mahn Nyein Maung will go to sentence on 13 March. His lawyer, said the court scheduled the decision date after hearing from both sides on March 8. “I tried to defend him at the hearing and explained to the judge why Padoh Mahn Nyein Maung should be released. The prosecutor also gave reasons…

The Karen Women Organization held a ceremony to honor the International Women’s Day on March 8, 2012 by celebrating their victories and at the same time vowed to continue their fight for the emergence of legal protection and a guarantee of protection of women against violence. Naw Dah Eh Kler, secretary of the KWO spoke to Karen News. “Now in…

Burma’s national journalism awards will be awarded for the first time in decades. The awards will be given to honor individual journalists by the country’s National Press Award Committee on 18th of March. The National Press Award Committee – a selection committee representing members of the Myanmar Writers and Journalists Association (MWJA), independent journalists and officials from the state Press…

The Karenni National Progressive Party (KNPP) agreed with the Burma government to open a liaison office for on-going peace talks after recently signing a state level ceasefire agreement. U Aung San Myint, the KNPP secretary 2, told Karen News. “We signed an agreement with the government for a ceasefire and to open a liaison office.” Ku Oo Rei, the KNPP…

The Karen National Union and the Burma government have agreed to meet in early April to formalize and finalize their preliminary ceasefire arrangement that was reached in a meeting on 12th January in the Karen State town of Pa-an. The KNU general secretary, Naw Zipporah Sein, told Karen News. “Both sides agreed to meet in early April to continue to…