ASEAN would likely suffer if it expelled Myanmar, despite the fact that its defiant military rulers have barred foreign media from covering the Nov. 7 election, experts say. (more…)

Vietnam, Burma, Thailand, Cambodia and the Philippines are all moving towards Chinese-style internet censorship. (more…)

United Nations — With just over two weeks until the first elections in Myanmar in 20 years, a United Nations envoy on Thursday questioned the fairness of the vote. (more…)

What will happen to Burma’s minorities after the national election? (more…)

‘Health emergency’ caused by block on humanitarian aid shows that junta is not about to release iron grip on citizens. (more…)

Natural phenomena have long been regarded as a visible precursor to significant political or historic events in Burma. In a land where superstition runs deep, any natural disaster is said to portend to the end of an era, a death or a major shift in the country’s political sands. (more…)

With elections in Burma just over two weeks away, the United Nations general assembly has been hearing yet another grim report on the state of human rights in the country and the prospects for a genuine poll. After three visits to Burma, including access to some political prisoners, the UN’s special rapporteur, Tomas Ojea Quintana, has expressed disappointment that despite a year of preparations the election process remains deeply flawed. Mr Quintana has also used the release of his report to try to push his proposal for an international commission of inquiry into Burma, but some countries are against the idea. (more…)

“I have to say that as a loyal Indian citizen, it breaks my heart to see the prime minister of my democratic country—and one of the most humane and sympathetic political leaders in the world—to engage in welcoming the butchers from Myanmar and to be photographed in a state of cordial proximity… Nothing perhaps is more important right now as the day of the phony electoral event approaches than global public discussion of the real nature of the forthcoming electoral fraud…” – Amartya Sen, Nobel Prize-winning economist and Harvard University professor (AFP, Irrawaddy).

Yangon, Myanmar — Myanmar’s highest court has agreed to hear a final appeal to release opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi from house arrest, her lawyers said Thursday, pressing forward with the case despite her scheduled release in less than a month. (more…)

Yangon – Myanmar’s junta Thursday ordered the hoisting of a new national flag as specified by the country’s new constitution, even though it is not yet in force, leaving many baffled. (more…)

Farmers in Burma’s northern Kachin state claim the party led by Burmese Prime Minister Thein Sein is collecting votes in advance for the looming 7 November elections. (more…)

Flooding rain and destructive winds will threaten western Myanmar as it takes a hit from Tropical Cyclone Giri (TC 4B). (more…)

More than 100 Thai police carried out a surprise raid at the Mae La refugee camp yesterday following a tip-off that drugs and firearms were being stashed there. (more…)

Hanoi – Asian leaders at a summit next week will call for free, fair and inclusive elections in Myanmar, a draft communique obtained Thursday says. (more…)

With his appointment to vice chairman of China’s Central Military Commission at the end of the fifth plenary session of the 17th Central Commmittee of the Communist Party in Beijing on Monday making him the most likely successor to President Hu Jintao in 2011, Vice President Xi Jinping will play a crucial role in relations between China and Burma. (more…)

Nobel laureate Amartya Sen on Thursday rapped India over its Myanmar policy, saying the country “completely abdicated” its responsibility on morality after getting a “bit of power” and pleaded for global scrutiny of the November 7 general elections under the military junta. (more…)

London – London stands in solidarity with democracy advocates in Myanmar and calls for the release of all political prisoners, the British foreign secretary said. (more…)

Junta dictator Snr-Gen Than Shwe is carefully and slowly moving away from 20 years of iron-fisted rule. Chinese influence, especially in the area of ethnic issues, could prove to be critically important. (more…)

The days of fear and submission are over for Eh Mon and some other 900 migrant workers from Burma. An ethnic Shan woman held on tightly to her passport and work permit as she left a factory in Khon Kaen for another plant in Samut Sakhon province. (more…)

Burma’s ruling military regime, the State Peace and Development Council (SPDC), consistently trumpets its adherence to a “seven-step roadmap to a flourishing democracy.” However, detractors believe that this roadmap merely perpetuates the aim of legitimizing military rule. Nevertheless, in accord with its self-imposed obligation the SPDC has set an election date of November 7, 2010.  This has set off a heated debate among democratic opposition leaders and activists as well as international and regional stakeholders over whether or not Burma’s people should participate in the election. (more…)