Myanmar’s military government Wednesday set May 10 as the date for a referendum on a new constitution, which pro-democracy activists have rejected as a means for the generals to entrench their rule. (more…)

Monks detained in Insein prison are being issued with lay identity cards in preparation for the May referendum, high-profile monk U Gambira told his sister during a recent prison visit. (more…)

The Burmese referendum commission has released a handbook for ballot station officers which gives guidelines and practical details on how voting will be conducted in the May referendum. (more…)

The Burmese military junta authorities wants the voting during the ensuing referendum in May to be secret. The National constitutional referendum commission has sent a circular to that effect to all its subordinate commissions at different levels. (more…)

Thousands of well-wishers and fans today bid their last farewells to veteran Burmese journalist and writer Ludu Daw Amar, immersing the ashes of her cremated body in the Irrawaddy River during funeral rites held on Wednesday. (more…)

It’s midmorning, and Thein Soe is hard at work on a new canvas. A leader of Burma’s underground art movement, he has been an artist for more than four decades. (more…)

A Burmese migrant worker who was paralyzed following an accident at a construction site hopes to win compensation from the Thai Social Security Office (SSO), with the help of a Bangkok-based human rights group. (more…)

Ten Bangladeshi prisoners were handed over by Burmese authorities to the Bangladeshi counterparts during a flag meeting that was held in Maungdaw, a western border town of Burma, on Sunday. (more…)

Two families were ordered to relocate their homes in Jueplut Village, near Three Pagoda Pass on the Thai-Burma border. (more…)

Leaders in exile have criticized the junta draft constitution concerning ethnic rights, at the Media Inputs for May Referendum meeting, held on April 4-6 on the Thai-Burma border. (more…)

Thailand’s PTT Exploration and Production PCL PTTE.BK and Chinese energy giant CNOOC Ltd (0883.HK: Quote, Profile, Research) have agreed to swap stakes in oil and gas blocks in army-ruled Myanmar, the Thai firm said on Wednesday. (more…)

Burma is one of the least environmentally protected countries in south-east Asia, and deforestation is acute as a consequence of timber exploitation and poor agricultural methods. Life should be simple for local man U Tin Naing: in the town of Hsipaw, where he lives, he grows enough food to feed his family and keeps his house in good repair with timber from the abundant teak forests. But this was before the Burmese military government and a race for profits conspired to sell off most of the wood, leaving the land bare and unproductive. (more…)

A bank employee was killed in a daring bank robbery in Rangoon’s suburban township of Thingankyun, local residents said. The robber fled with 900 million Kyat (approximately $ 820,000). (more…)

A bank employee was killed in a daring bank robbery in Rangoon’s suburban township of Thingankyun, local residents said. The robber fled with 900 million Kyat (approximately $ 820,000). (more…)

The Long March ended for Burmese activists yesterday at the border town of Cox’s Bazar, Bangladesh, after 13 days of walking from Dhaka. (more…)

U.S. President George W. Bush and Singapore Senior Minister Goh Chok Tong on Wednesday urged Myanmar’s ruling military junta on Wednesday to begin talks with opposition forces. (more…)

China and Russia objected to a draft UN Security Council presidential statement on Burma on Monday that called for an early end to military rule and full participation of all political opposition groups. (more…)

There are striking similarities between Tibet and Burma – both are strategically located, endowed with rich natural resources, suffering under long-standing repressive rule, resisting hard power with soft power and facing an influx of Han settlers. Yet the international response to the brutal crackdown on monk-led protests in Tibet and Burma has been a study in contrast. (more…)

It is now apparent that unless the Chinese government makes some drastic moves in the next few weeks, the global protests against its human rights performance may well overshadow the Beijing Olympics. (more…)

It’s now clear that many people in Burma will cast a “No” vote against the military government’s constitutional referendum in May. (more…)