Amid transition, general emerges from the shadows

Like many of his generation, the head of Myanmar's powerful military is a recent but enthusiastic convert to Facebook. On his profile background picture, the commander-in-chief gives a "thumbs up" from the cockpit of an aeroplane. Posts show him celebrating New Year in a traditional boar tusk head-dress and visiting wounded soldiers.

It's a far cry from just a few years ago, when the only glimpse into the work of the military top command came in turgid reports from state media, and offers a daily reminder that the changes sweeping the nation have reached even the secretive generals who ruled for almost 50 years until 2011.

As he cements his position as de facto number two on Myanmar's post-election political scene, Sen Gen Min Aung Hlaing has transformed himself from taciturn soldier into a politician, public figure and statesman, say diplomats in Yangon. (Courtesy of Bangkok Post: News)

Myanmar: Rights group wants gov’t to allow Rohingya home

A Southeast Asia-based human rights group is calling on Myanmar’s government to immediately and unconditionally facilitate the right to return for more than 145,000 Rohingya Muslims and others confined to 67 internment camps in Rakhine State, now that a plan to sell their properties has been frozen.

In a statement released Friday, Fortify Rights said that the government should ensure safe and voluntary reintegration and return of displaced Muslims to their original homesteads, and provide reparations for lost property and livelihoods in accordance with international law and standards.

The government of the troubled western state had planned to sell Muslim-owned properties and commercial licenses in the state capital Sittwe but it recently put the plan on hold. (Courtesy of Fulton News)

Thein Sein's potentially important and lasting legacy

The Myanmar army’s imminent plan to launch military offensives against a member of the United Nationalities Federal Council (UNFC) threatens to derail Myanmar's peace process promoted by Myanmar President Thein Sein.

Fears of the offensive against the UNFC member, the Myanmar National Democratic Alliance Army (MNDAA), prompted the alliance to call an urgent meeting in Chiang Mai from Feb 18-21. The federal council comprises nine ethnic groups that did not sign a Nationwide Ceasefire Agreement (NCA) with the Thein Sein government in October last year. (Courtesy of Bangkok Post: Opinion)

BD takes initiative to boost its outreach with Myanmar society

Bangladesh Embassy in Yangon, Myanmar has taken an initiative to increase its outreach with the Myanmar society and people in order to project strengths of Bangladesh culinary and culture and dispel any misperception through public diplomacy.

As part of the Embassy's ongoing public diplomacy campaign in Myanmar to showcase Bangladesh's cultural diversity and rich tradition particularly her culinary tradition, a Pitha Utsab (traditional cake festival) was organised in Yangon on Tuesday.

It was arranged to introduce Bangladesh's culinary tradition to Myanmar and resident foreign nationals, said a PID handout on Friday. (Courtesy of Financial Online News Portal)

Rohingya refugee crisis: Mediterranean rescue ship to help migrants from Myanmar

A rescue ship credited with saving thousands of migrants stranded in the Mediterranean Sea is to embark on a new mission in south-east Asia. The MY Phoenix, owned by charity Migrant Offshore Aid Station (MOAS), has been used to rescue almost 13,000 people making the perilous journey from north Africa and the Middle East to Europe.

But now its crew is sailing the 40-foot vessel to the Bay of Bengal and Andaman Sea, where it will spend four weeks helping rescue Rohingya refugees. Last year tens of thousands of migrants from Myanmar and Bangladesh attempted dangerous sea crossings to reach Malaysia and Indonesia. (Courtesy of ibtimes.co.uk)

Refugee search-and-rescue team launches ship in Southeast Asia

The humanitarian team that sent ships to rescue refugees and migrants in the Mediterranean will launch a Southeast Asia mission this weekend to comb the seas for boat people, including Rohingya Muslims fleeing persecution in Myanmar.

American entrepreneur Christopher Catrambone and his Italian wife Regina set up the Migrant Offshore Aid Station (MOAS) in response to the 2013 Lampedusa tragedy, when several hundred migrants drowned after their boat sank, as they tried to cross to Europe from Libya.

In Samut Prakan, a Bangkok suburb on the Gulf of Thailand, Catrambone on Friday took journalists on a tour of the M.Y. Phoenix, whose crew will coordinate with coast guards, navies and NGOs to track and rescue boat people as needed.

“If we can save one life, this entire mission is worth it,” Catrambone said. (Courtesy of euronews.com)