Burma’s president said Friday that construction of a Chinese-backed hydroelectric dam would be suspended. In a note read to Parliament, President Thein Sein said the Myitsone dam, Burma’s largest hydroelectric project, would be shelved during the term of his government. The announcement was a rare gesture to environmentalists and Burma’s opposition pro-democracy movement. Opposition leader […]
US, Burmese Diplomats Hold Rare Meeting In Washington
Posted September 29th, 2011 at 6:35 pm (UTC-5)
Burma’s foreign minister has made a rare visit to the U.S. State Department to meet with senior government officials. A State Department spokesman said Burmese Foreign Minister Wunna Maung Lwin met Thursday with the top U.S. diplomat for East Asia, Kurt Campbell, and the U.S. special envoy to Burma, Derek Mitchell. He said the meeting […]
Aung San Suu Kyi to Meet Burmese Minister on Friday
Posted September 29th, 2011 at 6:40 am (UTC-5)
A spokesman for Aung San Suu Kyi says the Burmese democracy leader will meet Friday with Labor Minister Aung Kyi. It will be the third meeting between the two since Aung San Suu Kyi was released from house arrest late last year. She has also met with President Thein Sein as the new government cautiously […]
Kachin Rebels Lose Shan State Base to Burmese Forces
Posted September 28th, 2011 at 11:40 pm (UTC-5)
Rebel commanders say the headquarters of the ethnic Kachin Independence Army’s 4th Division in northern Burma has fallen to government forces. Zaw Raw, the commander of Kachin forces in Shan state, confirmed that government troops took control of the base late Tuesday after rebel forces withdrew in the face of sustained intense mortar fire. Brigade […]
Burmese Reform Pledge Challenged by Rights Group
Posted September 27th, 2011 at 2:10 pm (UTC-5)
Burma says the social and political reform process in the country is irreversible and is promising to extend equal rights to all its citizens. The pledge came in an address Tuesday by Burmese Foreign Minister U Wunna Maung Lwin to the U.N. General Assembly in New York. His claims of economic and social policy reforms […]
Burmese Ethnic Group Calls for Political Negotiations
Posted September 27th, 2011 at 1:25 am (UTC-5)
A Burmese ethnic group says it will not end its civil war until the government agrees to seek a political solution to the conflict. Lanyaw Zawang Hra, the chairman of the Kachin Independence Organization, spelled out his terms Monday in a letter to U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon. Mr. Ban has been seeking negotiations to end […]
US Diplomats Meet Burmese Official at UN
Posted September 26th, 2011 at 9:59 pm (UTC-5)
Top U.S. diplomats have met with Burma’s foreign minister at the United Nations, holding what the United States describes as a productive and open meeting. The State Department said Assistant Secretary of State Kurt Campbell and the new U.S. coordinator for Burma policy, Derek Mitchell, welcomed recent positive steps that Burma’s nominally civilian government has […]
Burmese Protesters Hold Rare Gatherings
Posted September 26th, 2011 at 4:30 pm (UTC-5)
Small groups of democracy activists gathered Monday in Rangoon to mark the fourth anniversary of the so-called Saffron protests. Truckloads of riot police were seen in the city telling people not to assemble, but there were no reports of violence. Dozens of protestors gathered briefly for a prayer vigil in the city, but a planned […]
Burmese Activists Demand Details of 2007 Government Crackdown
Posted September 26th, 2011 at 10:10 am (UTC-5)
A leading Burmese exile group is demanding a full government accounting for more than 1,600 pro-democracy demonstrators — many of them Buddhist monks — who were arrested four years ago in a violent crackdown on public dissent. The demand came Monday from the Thai-based Assistance Association for Political Prisoners. The group says it obtained a […]
Burmese Activists Demand Details of 2007 Government Crackdown
Posted September 26th, 2011 at 9:40 am (UTC-5)
A leading Burmese exile group is demanding a full government accounting for more than 1,600 pro-democracy demonstrators — many of them Buddhist monks — who were arrested four years ago in a violent crackdown on public dissent. The demand came Monday from the Thai-based Assistance Association for Political Prisoners. The group says it obtained a […]
