Yangon – Testimony wrapped up Friday in the trial of Myanmar’s jailed opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi as the last defense witness argued that she is innocent because the military government charged her under a constitution abolished two decades ago. (more…)

The leader of Shan Nationalities League for Democracy (SNLD), Burma’s second largest winning party in the 1990 elections, Khun Htun Oo, 66, has been suffering from the swelling of his legs due to lack adequate exercise and regular medical treatment, according to Sai Lake, the SNLD spokesperson. (more…)

John William Yettaw, the American accused of unlawfully seeking refuge in Aung San Suu Kyi’s home, has been admitted to hospital in Rangoon’s Insein Prison after declining food for 49 days, according to his lawyer, Khin Maung Oo. (more…)

Burma’s former premier and spy chief Gen Khin Nyunt, who was ousted and placed under house arrest in October 2004,  recently appeared in public and appeared to be in good health, according to one Rangoon source.   (more…)

Ruili – Gem traders, who are members of the Burma Gem Traders’ Association, showcased their exhibits at the Gem Emporium in Kunming, Yunnan Province, inaugurated on Friday. (more…)

Another carrier of the flu virus H1N1, commonly known as ‘Swine Flu’, has been detected in Rangoon, and officially announced by the Burmese government television last night. (more…)

A number of children under 12 years of age have died from dengue in Kalemyo, Sagaing division western Burma.
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Prohibition on poppy cultivation enforced by armed groups in Burma’s Shan state has caused a dramatic cut in opium production, although the government has been ‘unwilling’ to help, says a report. (more…)

Richard Gere has backed a worldwide campaign calling for the release of five video journalists (VJs) imprisoned in Burma. (more…)

The Canadian Friends of Burma (CFOB), a Non-Governmental Organization, has exhorted Jean Chretien, former Canadian Prime Minister to cancel his contract with the Canadian firm Ivanhoe Mines operating a copper mine in northwest Burma. (more…)

The article by Solomon in Mizzima on 6 July highlights the latest data about foreign investment in Burma. Perhaps I might try to interpret them from the perspective of a former investment director. (more…)

TRUE TO form, Burma’s military dictator, General Than Shwe, showed only disdain when UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon visited that tortured land last weekend. Than Shwe and the other four generals in the ruling junta denied Ban’s requests for a democratic evolution. To his credit, Ban spoke out afterward, asking, “How much longer can Burma afford to wait for national reconciliation, democratic transition and full respect for human rights?” (more…)