Burma

A statement by the Committee for Shan State Unity (CSSU) has criticised Burmese Government plans to dam the Salween river, questioning the economic benefits of various projects and raising concerns over their environmental impact and effect on the ongoing conflict situation in Shan and Kachin States. According to the community based organisation Salween Watch, six hydropower projects are being developed…

YANGON (Myanmar Now) – Last month, Phyu Phyu made a life-changing decision that few women in Myanmar dare to take in her situation: the 38-year-old mother of two left the family home in Yangon’s Thingangyun Township to escape her abusive husband. “I was hit with a broken glass, and got bruises and cuts on my head. Once I was hit…

In an exclusive interview with Karen News, P’Doh Naw Zipporah Sein, Vice-chairperson of the Karen National Union, discussed the issues and agreements reached at the ethnic armed organization plenary meeting held from July 26 to 30 in Mai Ja Yang, Kachin State. Q: Could you tell what issues were discussed during the five days of the Mai Ja Yang meeting?…

The NLD’s ongoing narcotics crackdown has caught many drug addicts, but health experts say they should be treated as patients, not punished. YANGON (Myanmar Now) – Several young men were standing near the entrance of Thingangyun Hospital in central Yangon on a recent July morning, waiting impatiently for a fellow drug addict to exit the facility. They had just received…

The delay in the National Electrification Project (NEP) has caused villagers to doubt it will become a reality, but they are worried that the second installment they paid for is now lost. The National Electrification Project is a joint venture by the World Bank and the Department of Rural Development that was supposed to deliver electricity to villages by late…

In an effort to foster trust in the country’s peace building and in future political movements, ethnic youth from all over Burma formed an alliance at their latest conference. The National Ethnic Youth Conference was held from July 27 to August 1 in Panglong, Lwelin Township in southern Shan State. A Burma ethnic youth alliance comprised of 26 ethnic groups…

A new report by the Karen Human Rights Group has documented the insecurity and mistrust ethnic women have to Burmese authorities following decades of armed conflict. The report, entitled Hidden Strengths, Hidden Struggles, catalogues some of the main concerns ethnic women have as they go about their daily lives, including fears over personal security, sexual violence, land confiscation and access…

Delegates from ethnic political parties and women groups are to be invited to the plenary ethnic armed groups’ summit scheduled to be held from July 26 to 29 at Mai Ja Yang, Kachin State. The decision to invite ethnic political parties and the women’s groups was decided the Delegation for Political Negotiation (DPN) and leaders from Coordination Team (CT) of…

A group of 19 community based organizations has called for an official investigation into the destruction of religious buildings in Burma. The statement was signed on behalf of a range of ethnic and human rights groups both local and international including Burma Campaign UK, Fortify Rights, and the Kachin Women’s Association of Thailand. The statement comes after a spate of…

Burma’s new Government, led by Aung San Suu Kyi’s National league for Democracy party, is in a position to repeal a swathe of colonial-era laws that criminalize cornerstones of a functioning democracy, including freedom of assembly and free speech. Human Rights Watch has called on the new Government to use its parliamentary majority to repeal draconian laws, detailed in a…