Myanmar pro-democracy leader holds talks with UN special representative after her recent release from house arrest. (more…)

Yangon – The chief of staff of UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon on Sunday called for the release of all remaining political prisoners in Myanmar and a ‘national dialogue’ in the wake of the country’s first general election in two decades. (more…)

Yangon, Myanmar – Freedom of speech for members of parliament in military-controlled Myanmar will be restricted under laws that dictate the functioning of the newly elected government. (more…)

The first meeting between recently freed pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi and members of the Committee Representing the People’s Parliament (CRPP), a committee formed by Suu Kyi’s National League for Democracy (NLD), took place on Friday afternoon. (more…)

Chiang Mai – The New York Times misread party leader Aung San Suu Kyi’s views by reporting that she disagreed with supporters’ efforts to bring the military junta to the International Criminal Court for crimes against humanity, a National League for Democracy leader said of an article published three days ago. (more…)

A fresh outbreak of heavy fighting in eastern Burma has caused more than a thousand refugees to cross back and forth over the border with Thailand, barely three weeks after a mass exodus left 20,000 displaced. (more…)

Dawei, Myanmar — The vast, pristine stretch of coastline here is almost deserted, save for fishermen hauling their bountiful catches onto white-sand beaches. But a deal signed this month would transform these placid waters into a seaport for giant cargo ships. Cashew nut groves and rice fields would be plowed under and replaced with a warren of factories, refineries and an expansive coal-burning power plant. (more…)

Bangkok — Despite doubts about how Burma’s ruling generals will respond to recent calls for renewed talks to resolve the country’s ethnic issues, supporters of Aung San Suu Kyi say they believe her proposal for a second Panglong Conference is vital to any future reconciliation and reform in the country. (more…)

I spent my childhood in Burma, and indeed it is difficult for me to talk about Burma without a deep sense of nostalgia. My earliest memories are all of Burma, where I grew up between the ages of three and six, where the world presented itself to me, as I started sensing that there existed an external world beyond me. (more…)

With the release of pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi from prolonged house detention, it’s time for the United States and its European partners to moderate their sanctions policy against Burma so as to create incentives for greater political openness and to insulate ordinary Burmese from the rigors of the penal actions. (more…)

Recently, The Irrawaddy published a news piece under the headline “West Waits for Suu Kyi Sanctions Signals (more…)

Aung San Suu Kyi has been free now for over a week. She has met many activists and supporters as she starts to plan for the future. She has already spoken with several world leaders, including United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon and Philippine President Benigno Aquino III, and plans to have talks with Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva next week, according to the National League for Democracy’s senior spokesman, Win Tin. (more…)

Chiang Mai  – The Burmese Army’s Northern Command has ordered the Kachin Independence Organisation to close its 16-year-old liaison offices, a liaison officer says. (more…)

Nine news journals in Burma have been temporarily suspended after allocating key space in their publications for coverage of Aung San Suu Kyi’s release. (more…)