Australia says Foreign Minister Kevin Rudd will travel to Burma this week to discuss ways Australia can support positive reforms and development in one of the poorest countries in Southeast Asia. Rudd’s office said in a media release Friday that the visit will be the first to Burma by an Australian foreign minister since 2002. […]
US Signals Support for Burma Investigation
Posted June 25th, 2011 at 1:35 pm (UTC-5)
The United States says it is working to establish an international commission of inquiry into human rights violations in Burma. In a statement issued Saturday, the U.S. State Department said Washington is committed to seeking accountability. The statement says the U.S. is consulting with its friends, allies and other partners at the United Nations to […]
US Concerned By Violence, Rights Abuses in Northern Burma
Posted June 24th, 2011 at 7:10 pm (UTC-5)
The United States says it is concerned by violence between Burma’s government and rebels in northern Kachin state, particularly by reports of human rights abuses in the area. A State Department spokeswoman said Friday there are reports of casualties, rapes, and the displacement of thousands of local residents. She called for an end to the […]
Four Bomb Blasts Hit Burma
Posted June 24th, 2011 at 9:25 am (UTC-5)
A series of bomb blasts ripped through three Burmese cities Friday, wounding at least two people. A Burmese government official says a bomb blew up in a house in the administrative capital of Naypyidaw. The home was located across from a market but no one was hurt. Another explosion destroyed a car in a market […]
Bombs Explode in 2 Burma Cities
Posted June 24th, 2011 at 4:35 am (UTC-5)
A Burmese government official says two bombs exploded Friday, one in the administrative capital and a second in the country’s second-largest city. The official said the first explosion occurred in the city of Mandalay. There were no confirmed reports of injuries, although residents say two people were wounded. The second blast occurred soon after in […]
Aid Groups Say China is Expelling Kachin Refugees
Posted June 23rd, 2011 at 5:00 am (UTC-5)
Refugee aid workers say China is ordering hundreds of refugees who fled fighting between Burmese government troops and Kachin rebels to return to Burma. The aid workers say at least 2,000 villagers have been displaced by the Burmese offensive against rebels of the Kachin Independence Army, which began earlier this month. Most have sought shelter […]
Burma’s Aung San Suu Kyi Asks for US Support for Inquiry
Posted June 22nd, 2011 at 2:50 pm (UTC-5)
Burmese opposition leader, Aung San Suu Kyi told members of the U.S. Congress that a United Nations Human Rights Council resolution passed earlier this year is good guide for how Burma can move toward democracy. In videotaped comments to the House subcommittee on Asia and Pacific Affairs Wednesday, the Nobel Peace laureate said the resolution […]
Burmese Opposition Leader to Speak to US Lawmakers Via Video
Posted June 22nd, 2011 at 7:30 am (UTC-5)
Members of a U.S. congressional committee will watch videotaped remarks Wednesday from Burmese democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi, who will discuss her country’s recent national elections. The remarks by the Nobel Peace laureate is part of a hearing on last November’s elections being held by a U.S. House subcommittee on Asia and Pacific affairs, […]
Kachin Exiles Accuse Burmese Forces of Systematic Rape
Posted June 22nd, 2011 at 12:20 am (UTC-5)
A Burmese exile group is accusing government forces of systematically raping and sometimes killing women during its advance on strongholds of an ethnic rebel group. In a press release issued late Tuesday, The Kachin Women’s Association Thailand says at least 18 women and girls were gang-raped in a nine-day period after the offensive began on […]
European Delegation Meets Democracy Leader in Burma
Posted June 21st, 2011 at 4:40 pm (UTC-5)
A European Union delegation visiting Burma has held talks with the country’s main opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi. The delegation led by Robert Cooper, a special adviser to EU foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton, met with Burma’s pro-democracy leader Tuesday in the coastal city of Rangoon. Details of the talks were not disclosed, but […]
