Activist Jailed For Ploughing On Confiscated Land – Free Aung Soe!

Burma Campaign UK today strongly urged Hugo Swire MP, British Foreign Office Minister with responsibility for Burma, to pressure the military-backed government in Burma to repeal all repressive laws and release all remaining political prisoners immediately.

Regardless of the changes in Burma, almost all the repressive laws which enabled the jailing of political prisoners still remain in place. The unconditional release of all political prisoners is an essential step towards genuine democracy and freedom in Burma […]

Burma Army Shows Contempt of Buddhism During Latest Attacks in Shan State

During attacks last week violating the ceasefire with the Shan State Army-North (SSA-N), the Burma Army shelled a Buddhist temple in central Shan State, displacing dozens of monks, and turned the temple into a military base […]

Burma: Kachin Civilians Killed Despite Agreement to End Hostilities

Christian Solidarity Worldwide (CSW) has learned that a Kachin civilian named Zahkung Lum Hkawng was tortured, beaten and shot dead by the Burmese Army in Northern Shan State on 14 June. The killing occurred just weeks after the Burmese government and the Kachin Independence Organisation (KIO) signed a seven-point agreement […]

Statement by the Restoration Council of Shan State

In recent trip, invited by the Union Peacemaking Working Group (UPWG), RCSS chairman, Lt. Gen. Yawd Serk led a delegation of RCSS Peace Making Committee to meet and discuss with president U Thein Sein. At this golden opportunity, the delegation also met with political parties, foreign diplomats, civil societies and Shan State people of the north, the south and the east. The trip started on 09 June 2013 and ended at RCSS headquarters, Loi Tai Leng on 23 June 2013. This statement is released as an outcome of the trip […]

Alternative Trade Groups on ASEAN Economic Integration in 2015: “A Hazy Future for the People”

Two years before the economic integration of the Southeast Asian economies, critics of neoliberal policies and the current global trade and investment regime, alternative trade campaigners and human rights activists raised concerns over the existing trade and investment policies in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and its member-governments and the effects of these policies to the peoples and communities in the region […]

Burma Non-Compliant in Implementing Burma-UN Joint Action Plan on the Recruitment and Use of Child Soldiers

On June 27, 2012, after nearly five years of negotiation, the Burmese government signed a joint action plan with the UN to end the recruitment and use of children as soldiers in the Tatmadaw Kyi (the Burmese army) and Border Guard Forces (BGFs). The Burmese government has failed to meet a range of commitments under the action plan and its actions amount to non-compliance. The Burmese military has released only 66 children since the action plan was signed, a pitifully low figure given that the number of children within the ranks of the Tatmadaw Kyi is estimated to be around 5,000, not including all those who were recruited as children but have since turned 18 […]

Burma: Telecom Winners Should Safeguard Users

Burma’s new telecom license winners should make a public commitment to strong human rights policies and broad transparency measures, Human Rights Watch said. Firms should say how they plan to protect users from illegal surveillance and censorship, given the current lack of legal human rights protections […]

Burma: Ratify the UN Convention Against Torture

In honor of the International Day in Support of Victims of Torture, the Assistance Association for Political Prisoners (Burma) urges the Government of Burma to immediately consider ratifying the UN Convention Against Torture (CAT) and to codify provisions into domestic law […]

Burma: Arrest Warrants Issued Against Messrs. Moe Thway, Wai Lu and Wai Hmuu Thwin

The Observatory has been informed by reliable sources about the issue of arrest warrants against Messrs. Moe Thway, a member of Generation Wave Youth Force, a network of human rights defenders that campaigns for civil and political rights, including the signature of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights by Burma, and that campaigns against the Letpadaung copper mine project, and have brought the campaign to national attention, as well as Wai Lu and Wai Hmuu Thwin, members of Yangon People Service Network, which campaigns for the respect of rule of law and democracy in Burma and has been involved in the campaign against the Letpadaung project […]

One Year After the Violence Began: Civil Society Organisations Deeply Concerned by the Human Rights and Humanitarian Situation of Stateless Rohingya

The Rohingya, a stateless minority of Myanmar, have endured decades of abuse, persecution and discrimination. One year ago, on 3 June 2012, the massacre of ten Muslims travelling in Rakhine State, following the killing and reported rape of a Buddhist woman, marked the beginning of a series of violent attacks against the Rohingya and other Muslim communities. The violence of June and October 2012 resulted in countless deaths, destruction to property, large scale internal displacement and segregation within Rakhine state of Myanmar. Consequently, thousands of Rohingya have fled to Bangladesh, Thailand, Malaysia and
beyond […]