Aid urgently needed for refugees fleeing spreading fighting and “orders to rape” in Kachin State

Over 16,000 refugees fleeing escalating fighting and systematic sexual violence in Kachin State and sheltering in makeshift camps along the China-Burma border are urgently in need of aid, according to the Kachin Women’s Association Thailand (KWAT) […]

Burma Army gives rapists free rein in northern Shan State offensive

The Burma Army is clearly authorizing rape as a terror tactic in its offensive against the Shan State Army-North (SSA-N), according to information documented by the Shan Women’s Action Network (SWAN) and the Shan Human Rights Foundation (SHRF) […]

Open Letter to ASEAN: Combat impunity and support a Commission of Inquiry into international crimes in Burma

Your Excellencies,

On the eve of the 44th ASEAN Ministerial Meeting (AMM), the International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH), the Alternative ASEAN Network on Burma (Altsean-Burma) and the Asian Forum for Human Rights and Development (FORUM-ASIA) strongly call on your government to support the creation of a United Nations Commission of Inquiry (CoI) into ongoing international crimes in Burma, as recommended by the UN Special Rapporteur on the human rights situation in Burma, Mr Tomás Ojea Quintana […]

Urging an End to the Violence in Burma

The United States is concerned by on-going violence in Burma’s northern Kachin State and other regions of the country and calls for a halt to hostilities. The Burmese Army and the Kachin Independence Army began fighting on June 9 and have continued over the past three weeks. We are particularly concerned by the reports of human rights abuses in the area […]

Kachin Women Demand Immediate End to Burmese Regime’s Use of Rape as a Weapon of War in Northern Burma Offensive

The Kachin Women’s Association Thailand (KWAT) is demanding an immediate end to the Burmese military regime’s widespread use of sexual violence in their offensive against the Kachin Independence Army (KIA) in northern Burma […]

Kachin Conflict Highlights Deep-seated Ethnic Concerns and Dire Need for a Commission of Inquiry

Yesterday, democracy leader Daw Aung San Suu Kyi celebrated her birthday in freedom for the first time in 7 years. However, her 66th birthday was marked by ongoing conflict between the Kachin Independence Army (KIA) and the Burma Army that broke a 17-year ceasefire between the two sides.

During an address at the National League for Democracy (NLD) headquarters, Daw Aung San Suu Kyi stated that there are “sparks of war flying” in Burma. With as many as 10,000 civilians displaced by the ongoing conflict in Kachin State, and documented conflict-related human rights violations, the past week’s conflict has only served to further highlight the failure of the regime to address the needs and concerns of ethnic communities in Burma […]

Kachin women denouncing offensive by the Burmese Army and atrocities against Kachin people

We, the Kachin Women’s Association Thailand (KWAT), strongly denounce the Burmese military’s offensives against the Kachin Independence Army (KIA), and atrocities against civilians including rape, murder and abduction of young men. The Burmese military attack to a KIA post in Eastern Kachin State on the 9th June 2011 and subsequent fighting has driven thousands of civilians out of their homes into the Kachin- China border areas […]

Pre-Election Military Operations by SPDC

The SPDC military junta has started pre-election military operations, targeting the innocent Karen civilians in the Karen State and other KNU areas.

1. On July 23 at 10:00 am, the SPDC troops heavily shelled with mortars Tha-dah-Der village in Papun (Mudraw) District for more than 4 hours […]

Burma regime continues to target civilians, UK tells UN Security Council

The British government has told the United Nations Security Council that Burma’s military dictatorship continues to target civilians, particularly from ethnic minorities, during a debate on the protection of civilians in armed conflict on 7th July 2010[…]

Crimes Against Humanity Committed Against Rohingyas in Western Burma, Irish Human Rights Centre’ Report Concludes

The Rohingya minority group in Western Burma has been victim of human rights violations amounting to crimes against humanity, according to a report released today by the Irish Centre for Human Rights. The report, entitled Crimes against Humanity in Western Burma: The Situation of the Rohingyas, was officially launched by Micheál Martin, the Irish Minister for Foreign Affairs, at Iveagh House […]