About 200 people in Taunggot Township in Arakan State in western Burma were prevented from staging a demonstration on Thursday by soldiers and security forces, according to local sources.
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The Burmese government censor board has imposed a one-week ban on the weekly Myanmar Times newspaper after it published a story about the postponement of new satellite license fees.
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Local authorities in Arakan state and Bago division are demanding cheap rice from farmers for military rations, despite the junta’s claims they would no longer buy rice direct from farmers.
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Rangoon – In a bid to stop the flow of information outside Burma one of the most popular blog sites www.blogger.com has been banned by the Myanmar Post and Telecomm Ministry as of Thursday morning, according to bloggers in the former capital.
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Britain’s ambassador to Burma today predicted more anti-government streets protests of the kind that were brutally put down last September.
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By announcing a new programme to expand its work in military-ruled Burma, a U.N. food agency has shed more light on the dire economic realities faced by that country’s impoverished people.
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The economic crisis in Burma has forced more migrant workers-many illegal-to enter Thailand recently, according to labor rights groups.
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Burmese migrant workers were robbed by a group at Surat Thani province, Tha Chana, Township, on Tuesday night. Eight people, including two young Mons looted the property of Mon migrant workers. (more…)

Only a change in the political system will usher in economic reforms because the economy is in the vice like grip of the Burmese military, said a Burmese economic expert.
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Some 2,000 people in Burma will soon be able to go to South Korea to work legally, due to the Korean government’s decision to offer working visas to foreign workers.
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Myanmar’s foreign minister on Thursday called on Japan to invest in the country’s rich natural resources, boasting that China and India were doing business there despite Western sanctions.
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Since the September crackdown on peaceful protesters, Burma’s military regime has increased the communication fees.
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Shweli: About 100 Chinese manufactured military trucks have been arriving on the Sino-Burma border, Jie Gao since yesterday. These ‘First Automobile Works’ (FAW) trucks are to be handed over to the Burma Army.
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Japan urged Myanmar’s junta on Thursday to hold talks with detained opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi and work harder to implement democratic reforms.
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The United Nations Security Council (UNSC) was scheduled to hold a close door meeting on Burma on Thursday, according to the UN’s official Web site.
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The Security Council on Thursday huddled behind closed doors with UN troubleshooter Ibrahim Gambari to discuss what several diplomats described as “the lack of progress” toward democratic reform in Myanmar.
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The Inter-Parliamentary Union is calling for India and China to apply pressure on the Burmese government to release 26 imprisoned parliamentarians. The Inter-Parliamentary Union says India and China should follow the example of Venezuela and Brazil, which recently helped gain the release of two hostages held by rebels in Colombia. Lisa Schlein reports for VOA from Geneva.
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After much fanfare, the Hollywood movie “He is Back” premieres on January 25. The movie features action hero Rambo on a rescue mission to Burma and was filmed on location around Chiang Mai in Thailand.
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Burma’s ruling military junta is definitely feeling some pressure from Canada’s economic and trade sanctions, while foreign investments are stalling the restoration of democracy in the country, says Liberal MP Larry Bagnell. (more…)