Burmese media report that the government has signed a peace agreement with the armed ethnic group Shan as part of an effort at national reconciliation. Reports Tuesday say that representatives of Shan and the central government reached an 11-point peace agreement in the Shan state capital of Taunggyi. The signing of the deal was a […]
Burma Reaches Peace Deal With Shan Minority
Posted January 17th, 2012 at 4:35 pm (UTC-5)
Leave a comment
McConnell Says Suu Kyi’s Views Will Drive Sanctions Decision
Posted January 17th, 2012 at 10:45 am (UTC-5)
U.S. Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell said Tuesday that U.S. officials will be heavily influenced by the views of Burmese pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi as they consider whether to ease economic sanctions on the Southeast Asian nation. McConnell, for decades a leading force behind the sanctions, also said he sees definite evidence of […]
Key US Senator Hails Burmese Reforms
Posted January 16th, 2012 at 12:15 pm (UTC-5)
A key U.S. senator and backer of Burma’s democracy movement says he is impressed with reforms initiated by the country’s new, nominally civilian government, but says more needs to be done. Mitch McConnell, the Senate Republican minority leader, spoke Monday, after meeting for more than an hour in Rangoon with pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu […]
French FM Meets Burma’s Aung San Suu Kyi
Posted January 15th, 2012 at 4:30 pm (UTC-5)
French Foreign Minister Alain Juppe has awarded Burmese pro-democracy activist Aung San Suu Kyi one of France’s highest honors. At a ceremony in Rangoon Sunday, Juppe presented Aung San Suu Kyi with the Legion of Honor in recognition of her long struggle for democracy. Speaking alongside Aung San Suu Kyi, Juppe said France and the […]
Clinton Holds Talks With Burmese Leaders
Posted January 14th, 2012 at 6:45 pm (UTC-5)
U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton says Burma can improve relations with the United States if it releases all remaining political prisoners, ends violence against minorities and cuts military ties with North Korea. In a telephone call Saturday with the country’s Foreign Minister, Wunna Maung Lwin, Clinton said that Washington is committed to walking […]
US to Exchange Ambassadors With Burma
Posted January 13th, 2012 at 5:30 pm (UTC-5)
U.S. President Barack Obama is calling Burma’s decision to release hundreds of political prisoners “a substantial step forward for democratic reform.” United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon described Friday’s prisoner release as the most significant to date because it included a number of key, prominent political figures who will be able to contribute to national reconciliation. […]
US To Exchange Ambassadors With Burma
Posted January 13th, 2012 at 12:45 pm (UTC-5)
U.S. President Barack Obama is calling Burma’s decision to release hundreds of political prisoners “a substantial step forward for democratic reform.” The Burmese government and democratic activists said 651 prisoners walked free on Friday as part of a mass amnesty that falls in line with demands made clear by U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton […]
Prominent Dissidents Freed from Burmese Jails in Wide-Ranging Amnesty
Posted January 13th, 2012 at 10:50 am (UTC-5)
Hundreds of Burmese political prisoners walked free Friday, part of a mass amnesty that could signal more political reforms are on the way. Officials and democratic activists said the 651 prisoners had been locked away under the rule of the country’s military junta. But Burma’s new military-backed government has been reaching out to the West […]
Prominent Dissidents Freed from Burmese Jails in Wide-Ranging Amnesty
Posted January 13th, 2012 at 3:50 am (UTC-5)
Burma on Friday freed a number of prominent political prisoners, in what many say could be the country’s most significant prisoner release in decades. Journalists, religious leaders, and a former prime minister were among the anticipated 651 prisoners that began trickling out of prisons across Burma on Friday. Among those to be released was democracy […]
Burma Begins Releasing Political Prisoners
Posted January 13th, 2012 at 12:05 am (UTC-5)
Burma has begun releasing some prominent political prisoners as part of a government amnesty program, in the latest move toward political reform by the country’s military-backed government. Burmese state media said that 651 detainees were being freed under a presidential pardon in order to take part in “nation-building.” Family members said prominent democracy activist Min […]
