At least 11 people have been killed by a landslide in a jade mine in northern Burma and many more are feared missing.
Rescue workers are searching for bodies after a wall of unstable earth collapsed during a downpour on Monday night in Hpakant, Kachin state, the war-torn area that feeds a huge demand for the precious stone in neighbouring China. (Courtesy of thetimes.co.uk)
May 24, 2016
India-Burma: Border Perils – Analysis
The Myanmar operation will leave behind no lasting legacy beyond the sorry spectacle of people in high office claiming undeserved victories, seeking undeserved honours… This was a relatively minor operation, and will have only transient tactical and psychological significance. An operational success has been imposed, and the rebels, who have till now had almost undisturbed sanctuary in Myanmar, will lose their sense of impunity. Over time, however, they will adapt and draw deeper into the jungles and take fuller precautions against discovery and neutralization, unless the present operation is followed up by a more sustained and enveloping campaign. — “Covert should remain Covert” (Courtesy of eurasiareview.com)
Burma Army Accused of Killing, Burning Bodies of Shan Villagers
According to Kachin and Shan community leaders, the Burma Army is responsible for killing and burning the bodies of several villagers in northern Shan State.
Sai Tun Win, a state lawmaker with the Shan Nationalities League for Democracy (SNLD), said that on a recent visit to the Kyaukme area, he found at least eight burned corpses and that local Shan people had accused the Burma Army of the killings.
“We found three dead bodies—from Noung Kwan village—in one area and another five bodies in separate locations in and around Wow Long village,” Sai Tun Win said. (Courtesy of irrawaddy.com)
Sai Tun Win, a state lawmaker with the Shan Nationalities League for Democracy (SNLD), said that on a recent visit to the Kyaukme area, he found at least eight burned corpses and that local Shan people had accused the Burma Army of the killings.
“We found three dead bodies—from Noung Kwan village—in one area and another five bodies in separate locations in and around Wow Long village,” Sai Tun Win said. (Courtesy of irrawaddy.com)
Army Supports Peace Conference, Senior-General Says
The Burma Army supports the government’s proposed “Panglong-style” peace summit, but continued political participation rests on the country’s stability, said Commander-in-Chief Snr-Gen Min Aung Hlaing, during his meeting with US Secretary of State John Kerry in Naypyidaw on Sunday.
The meeting followed talks between Kerry and Burma’s foreign affairs minister and de-facto leader, Aung San Suu Kyi.
A Facebook post by Min Aung Hlaing said Kerry praised the Burma Army, also known as the Tatmadaw, for its role in the country’s historic political transition and for supporting a free and fair election last November, as it had earlier promised to do. (Courtesy of irrawaddy.com)
The meeting followed talks between Kerry and Burma’s foreign affairs minister and de-facto leader, Aung San Suu Kyi.
A Facebook post by Min Aung Hlaing said Kerry praised the Burma Army, also known as the Tatmadaw, for its role in the country’s historic political transition and for supporting a free and fair election last November, as it had earlier promised to do. (Courtesy of irrawaddy.com)
Thailand: Lawyers submit appeal for two Burmese migrants on death row for Koh Tao murders
A TEAM of lawyers representing two Burmese migrant workers on death row for the murder of a British couple in Koh Tao Island, Thailand, have submitted a 198 page appeal against the conviction.
Together with the pro bono lawyers, May Thein and Phyu Shwe Nu – the mothers of the accused, Zaw Lin and Wai Phyo – traveled from Rakhine State in Burma to Thailand on Saturday to submit the appeal to the Koh Samui court today.
The mothers also visited their sons, both 22 years old, who have been held in the high security Bang Kwang Prison in Nonthaburi since January. (Courtesy of asiancorrespondent.com)
Together with the pro bono lawyers, May Thein and Phyu Shwe Nu – the mothers of the accused, Zaw Lin and Wai Phyo – traveled from Rakhine State in Burma to Thailand on Saturday to submit the appeal to the Koh Samui court today.
The mothers also visited their sons, both 22 years old, who have been held in the high security Bang Kwang Prison in Nonthaburi since January. (Courtesy of asiancorrespondent.com)
A VETERAN'S RETURN TO RANGOON
Ken Joyce was bracing for a fight when his gunboat powered up the Yangon River on May 2, 1945.
The longest British campaign of World War II was drawing to a close. After years of retreat, General William Slim’s 14th Army was streaming south through central Myanmar, and the Japanese defeat seemed all but assured. Bogyoke Aung San’s Burma National Army had recently defected to the British side, and the race was on to capture Rangoon before the monsoon rains began.
But as the invasion force approached the city, in what was known as Operation Dracula, the ferocity and tenacity of the Japanese troops was never far from their mind. Few expected them to completely abandon the prized capital of then-Burma. (Courtesy of frontiermyanmar.net)
The longest British campaign of World War II was drawing to a close. After years of retreat, General William Slim’s 14th Army was streaming south through central Myanmar, and the Japanese defeat seemed all but assured. Bogyoke Aung San’s Burma National Army had recently defected to the British side, and the race was on to capture Rangoon before the monsoon rains began.
But as the invasion force approached the city, in what was known as Operation Dracula, the ferocity and tenacity of the Japanese troops was never far from their mind. Few expected them to completely abandon the prized capital of then-Burma. (Courtesy of frontiermyanmar.net)
Rohingyas in Bangladesh Seek Recognition from Myanmar’s New Government
Stateless Rohingya Muslims who have been trapped for years in refugee camps in Bangladesh are looking to Myanmar’s new de facto leader, Aung San Suu Kyi, to help them return to Rakhine state as citizens.
But during a Sunday press conference alongside U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry, the Nobel laureate and longtime leader of Myanmar’s pro-democracy movement declined to utter the word “Rohingya, ” saying that the National League for Democracy (NLD) party -led government needed to be given room to solve the issue.
The word “Rohingya” was an “incendiary” term for Buddhists living in western Rakhine state, Suu Kyi told reporters in Naypyitaw. (Courtesy of benarnews.org)
But during a Sunday press conference alongside U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry, the Nobel laureate and longtime leader of Myanmar’s pro-democracy movement declined to utter the word “Rohingya, ” saying that the National League for Democracy (NLD) party -led government needed to be given room to solve the issue.
The word “Rohingya” was an “incendiary” term for Buddhists living in western Rakhine state, Suu Kyi told reporters in Naypyitaw. (Courtesy of benarnews.org)
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