There appears to be no end in sight for the Burma sanctions debate: recent appeals by Southeast Asia’s regional bloc and ethnic parties inside Burma to end the blockade have been met with a sharp rebuke from the old guard of Burma’s pro-democracy movement, and observers are feeling a sense of deja vu. Why does the issue remain so divisive, and can the pro-sanctions lobby continue to promote the status quo when any tangible results are so obviously lacking? (more…)

Heavy snowfall in northern Kachin State on Sunday caused the collapse of several buildings belonging to a customs office in the Panwa Valley, near the border with China, according to local residents. (more…)

Eight Thais from Tak’s Phop Phra district were arrested by Burmese soldiers after the villagers crossed the border on Wednesday morning. (more…)

Two children have been hospitalised in eastern Burma with bullet wounds sustained whilst fleeing fighting in Karen state. (more…)

Phnom Penh – Cambodia and Myanmar have agreed to begin direct flights in a bid to boost tourism, local media reported Wednesday. (more…)

Three Burmese migrant workers in Malaysia have been deported and an additional two have gone missing after requesting that their employers uphold contractual obligations over payment. (more…)

Bangkok – While floods and droughts are often highlighted in the media for devastating the world’s rice production, a lesser-known culprit has been able to scurry away without being fingered for causing damage – rats. (more…)

Bangkok — A human rights group says a survey it conducted reveals flagrant and widespread abuses by Myanmar’s army, and could be used as evidence to prosecute the country’s military rulers for crimes against humanity. (more…)

Washington — Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton is pledging to work with Nobel laureate Aung San Suu Kyi to promote democracy in Myanmar. (more…)

Bangkok – The International Labor Organization (ILO) says it is encouraged by proposed legislation in Burma to allow greater freedom for labor unions, but remains concerned about the use of forced child labor in the military and private sector. (more…)

For years, critics of Western sanctions against Burma’s ruling regime have accused supporters of the country’s opposition of obsessing about the fate of Aung San Suu Kyi. Now, however, it seems the shoe is on the other foot, as those same critics argue that Suu Kyi’s release late last year was such a momentous event that it warrants ending sanctions once and for all. (more…)

Karen-Burmese author/activist Zoya Phan worries that an ascendant Aung San Suu Kyi might get assassinated, chides nostalgia for pre-colonial Burma, where minorities were oppressed, and calls sanctions busters naive or stupid. This interview was conducted in late November and early December by email. (more…)

Nearly 92 Percent of Chin Families Subjected to Forced Labor in One Year (more…)

Burma’s opposition party, the National League for Democracy (NLD), said it would continue to support targeted sanctions against the country’s ruling regime while the party is reviewing other trade sanctions, according to a senior party official. (more…)

New Delhi – The Ministry of Industry (1) forcibly evicted families from a three-storey apartment block at 33rd Street in Kyauktada Township in Rangoon on Tuesday, according to area residents. (more…)

The 1000-plus MPs preparing for the first session of parliament on 31 January have been carefully instructed in what to wear, and what not to bring. (more…)

A young reporter arrested following the Rangoon bombings in April last year and sentenced to eight years in prison is being tortured on a daily basis, a prison source claims. (more…)

Bangkok – What one of the world’s most repressive dictatorships could not silence, the global recession and shifting donor policies finally did. The Irrawaddy, considered the most influential English-language magazine covering events in military-ruled Burma, indefinitely suspended publication of its print edition this month because of financial difficulties. “It is a sad and painful decision, but we must be realistic,” Aung Zaw, the founder and editor, tells TIME. He vowed to press ahead with the magazine’s growing website, but added that it has been a struggle to increase revenues from online publishing. (more…)

Mae Sot—During the three-hour bus journey from Mae Sot to Umpiem refugee camp there are at least five checkpoints. For Myat Thint this is a problem. He tried to avoid eye contact with the police as they circled the taxis demanding papers. (more…)

Chinese firm awarded contract to rebuild Stilwell Road, fallen into disrepair since its completion in 1945. (more…)