“Kyaw Zaw Lwin spent seven months in unjust confinement and we are all relieved that his ordeal is now over.  Sadly, while he is coming home, Burma’s junta continues to hold its grip on 2,200 political prisoners. All are jailed for one reason — their efforts to convince the Burmese junta to respect basic human rights and agree to a genuine democratic process.” – John Kerry, U.S. Senator from Massachusetts

Bangkok — A pro-democracy activist from Myanmar who is a naturalized American citizen has been released from prison a month after a court sentenced him to five years of hard labor, the United States Embassy in Yangon said on Thursday. (more…)

Pyapon, Myanmar — In the dried mud of the Irrawaddy Delta, workers are welding together the final pieces of a natural-gas pipeline that the country’s ruling generals say will keep the lights on in Yangon, Myanmar’s main city, after years of debilitating blackouts. (more…)

Yangon, Myanmar – Myanmar opened the registration period Thursday for political parties ahead of elections this year, in what the government bills as a key step toward democracy but which critics suspect will entrench the country’s military rulers. (more…)

Nay Pyi Taw – The meeting (6/ 2010) of the Union Election Commission took place at the meting hall of the UEC office here this morning. (more…)

Chiang Mai – Officials from the Myanmar Garment Manufacturers Association said the industry, affected by the global economic downturn, is still struggling to achieve its previous position. (more…)

Claims that Thailand’s navy last week pushed 93 Rohingya ‘boat people’ out to sea where they drifted for 45 days have been flatly rejected by the Thai government. (more…)

The Report states that in 2009, the government of Burma “continued its egregious human rights violations and abuses.” (more…)

Burma’s Union Election Commission published the technical regulations for political parties on Thursday, which favor wealthy candidates. (more…)

In response to the military regime’s new election laws, Burma’s Movement for Democracy and Rights of Ethnic Nationalities is holding a press conference to present their analysis of the election laws, perspectives on the 2010 elections based on the experience of the 1990 elections, and the position of ethnic nationalities. The Movement will also launch a global campaign calling for genuine democracy and national reconciliation. (more…)

The Burmese junta released prisoner of conscience Nyi Nyi Aung from prison on Thursday, March 18, 2010; he will be arriving in the United States late Friday afternoon. (more…)

Manila — Myanmar on Wednesday pledged to promote a culture of tolerance, despite international outrage over an appalling human rights record that includes its crackdown on Buddhist monks. (more…)

Burma’s main opposition party, faced with a choice of registering for this year’s election without its leader Aung San Suu Kyi or disbanding, is showing signs of internal division, according to senior party members. (more…)

More than 12 ministers in Burma’s junta are reportedly preparing to resign and to run for seats in parliament in the 2010 election, according to military sources. (more…)

Nay Pyi Taw, 16 March -As a gesture of taking heed of the request of the US Embassy, Consul Mr. Colin P. Furst and a member of the US Embassy were allowed to hold a consular meeting with prisoner Nyi Nyi Aung (a) Kyaw Zaw Lwin who was naturalized as a US citizen at the office of the in-charge of Pyay Jail in Pyay at 12.55 p.m. on 12 March. – MNA

Bangkok – After surviving 60 years of war, Mu Haw is close to giving up. “I’m too old to keep on running for my life,” she says. “If no one helps us, I will die here.” (more…)

Chaing Rai – In the mountains of Myanmar’s strife-torn Shan state, the colourful blossom of opium poppies has become a more frequent sight of late. A businessman based in the Shan state notes that the flowers now bloom more freely in areas under the control of the ruling junta than in the shrinking zones held by local rebels. (more…)

Hundreds of Myanmarese activists took out a rally in New Delhi on Wednesday to protest against the military junta’s new election laws in Myanmar. (more…)

The Burmese junta is using the 2010 elections to smother the opposition and its democratic activities to cement and legitimize military rule in the guise of elections and democracy, said Dr Sein Win, Prime Minister of the National Coalition Government of the Union of Burma in  exile. (more…)

The Burmese regime announced its anticipated election laws last week and will definitely hold its promised election this year. (more…)