The grass, one year on, has finally taken hold in the salty soil of the cemeteries. The bodies, nearly 85,000 of them, have been fished from the rivers, dug from the mud, cleared from the ponds, put to rest. The graves, finally, are greening up. (more…)

Last week, I was at the Foreign Correspondents’ Club of Thailand (FCCT) to attend a panel discussion organized by the BBC Burmese Service to mark the one-year anniversary of Cyclone Nargis, Burma’s worst recorded natural disaster. (more…)

We, the members of the National League for Democracy (NLD) including the Central Executive Committee, representatives of State and Division organizational committees, the Members of Parliament-elect still standing with the NLD, Representatives of the Central Women’s Affairs Committee, representatives of the Youth Affaires Implementation Committee gathered on the 28th and 29th of April 2009 in the meeting hall of the Head Quarter of the NLD on West Shwegondaing Street and held discussions on the political and organizational situations and the analytical report regarding the Constitution with the aim to resolve all the political impasse in striving to build up the Union of Burma as the democratic state in accordance with the inspiration of all the people. (more…)

Members of detained pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi’s party said Tuesday they will wait to see whether laws governing next year’s elections conform with democratic standards before deciding if they will contest the polls. (more…)

With the health of famous comedian and film director Thura a.k.a. Zarganar, serving 35 years in prison, deteriorating, he was finally allowed a medical check-up on Monday. (more…)

The crippling of local businesses in the Irrawaddy delta following cyclone Nargis last year has pushed increasing numbers of women into prostitution, said a resident in one of the delta’s worst-hit towns. (more…)

Leaders of the two ethnic Kachin ceasefire groups’ in Burma’s northern Kachin State arrived in the state’s capital Myitkyina two days ago to meet the junta’s Northern Command commander Brig-Gen Soe Win, said local sources. On the meeting’s agenda is the role the groups will play in next year’s general election. (more…)

Myanmar is in urgent need of secured houses for about 500,000 cyclone survivors in the stricken regions ahead of the coming monsoon in June, Tuesday’s local Weekly Eleven reported. (more…)

Two Thai soldiers and one civilian were injured and hundreds of villagers were evacuated as soldiers of the Burmese army and the Democratic Karen Buddhist Army (DKBA) launched a cross border attack along the Thai-Burmese border on Monday, according to Thai media. (more…)

The Myanmar Livestock Breeding and Veterinary Department Tuesday warned against swine flu in humans in the wake of detection of the disease in people of some four countries. (more…)

When the teacher asked her class how it can help Cyclone Nargis victims in Myanmar, Steven Bawmying suggested laying a long underground pipe to send drinking water from Malaysia. (more…)

The European Union has said that sanctions against the Burmese regime have had an impact but can only continue to work if accompanied by dialogue. (more…)

Burma’s military rulers have repeatedly described U.S. and EU sanctions as an “unjust and inhumane act” that will cause chaos and anarchy in the country. The junta has also said that economic sanctions are unilateral actions taken by big powerful countries against developing countries, ignoring the equality among nations, which the international community accepts. (more…)

The outbreak of diarrhea cases in poor neighborhoods of Rangoon has highlighted the woeful lack of health care standards, and the military government’s neglect of basic funding to the public health care system. (more…)

Members of pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi’s party came from across Myanmar on Monday to discuss elections planned for next year by the ruling junta, a spokesman said. (more…)

Two of Burma’s main armed ethnic groups have said that accusations in a United Nations report that they continue to recruit child soldiers are wrong and damage the credibility of the report. (more…)

The Burmese military junta is preparing to form village councils throughout Arakan State comprised of pro-tatmadaw people in order to win the 2010 election in Arakan, said a senior clerk from the Maungdaw district office on the condition of anonymity. (more…)

Ten garment factory workers in Bago division were sacked last week without reason after speaking to foreign media about mistreatment in the workplace. (more…)

“When the water is below us, we can make a living. But when it is above us, we die,” 76-year-old U Toe mused, looking back at the damage dealt by Cyclone Nargis nearly a year ago on May 2, 2008. (more…)

The mistreatment of Burmese migrants, asylum seekers and refugees in Malaysia is the focus of a report released Thursday by the US Senate Committee on Foreign Relations. (more…)