Burmese Vice-President Tin Aung Myint Oo is famous for his foul mouth and being one of the former regime’s most corrupt generals. But recently, some visitors were astonished to see the battle-hardened military man preach teachings from the Buddha. (more…)

Skepticism regarding the value of the Myanmar Human Rights Commission (MHRC) has been virtually universal—leading to tired jokes that the very term is in itself an oxymoron. (more…)

In any contest, the obvious winner is rarely ever the only winner. This is often lost sight of in the moment of euphoria. The overwhelming victory of Aung San Suu Kyi and her National League for Democracy (NLD) in the 45 by-elections to Myanmar’s Parliament has other winners, too. (more…)

The latest craze amongst destinations for the diplomatic community globally seems to be Myanmar. The deluge started with Hillary Clinton flying down in November 2011. However, is all the enthusiasm, easing of sanctions and ambassadors being deputed going to enhance the avowed objective of the democratisation of Myanmar? Is there a possibility of reforms slowing down with too much being offered too early? (more…)

New Delhi should encourage the current political reforms in Burma so that a free election is held as scheduled in 2015. Also, it must boost bilateral trade and investment (more…)

Burmese opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi and other members of the National League for Democracy have taken their seats in the Southeast Asian nation’s parliament, a month after the party’s victory in widely-watched by-elections. In a protest over the wording of the oath of office that they “safeguard” Burma’s controversial 2008 military-drafted Constitution, they had initially refused to take their seats until the wording of the oath was amended. But in a compromise, they were sworn in on May 2 and it is hoped they and the government will work together to continue to build Burma’s future.  (more…)

AS U.N. SECRETARY General Ban Ki-moon was urging the world last week to expand investment into Burma, the Irrawaddy, a Burmese magazine-in-exile, was publishing a story about 7,800 acres of Burmese farmland being confiscated by the government to make way for copper mining. (more…)

While Aung San Suu Kyi enjoys iconic status in Myanmar (also known as Burma), women remain invisible in this country steeped in Buddhist tradition and emerging from decades of military rule. (more…)

Not every politician’s maiden entry into parliament makes history. But then, Aung San Suu Kyi is no ordinary politician. When she took her oath as a member of Myanmar’s parliament last week, it was an extraordinary change for her and for her country. For most of the last two decades, she had been the world’s best-known political prisoner. The parliament of which she is now a member is not exactly a model for a democratic institution. It was created by a constitution which Myanmar’s erstwhile military rulers foisted on the country through a rigged referendum. The constitution’s provision for reservation of 25 per cent of the seats in each of the two houses of parliament makes the whole exercise rather spurious. Also, the first elections to parliament under the new constitution were held without Ms Suu Kyi’s party — the National League for Democracy — which stayed away from them. The only time Myanmar had a free election in 1990, the NLD swept it but the military rulers annulled it. The government that now runs the country is only nominally civilian. So long and so compete has been the army’s control of every aspect of life in Myanmar that the generals can hardly think of any other form of government. (more…)

It’s been a long journey for Aung San Suu Kyi. The gritty lady has spent most of the last two decades in detention, placed under house arrest by Myanmar’s military junta regime, walking free barely a year-and-a-half ago amidst much celebration amongst the people of Myanmar and the global media. (more…)

Washington – As governments continue to discuss how to ease sanctions in Myanmar, fears are increasing that a sudden massive influx of foreign investment could be detrimental to the delicate ongoing transition. (more…)

Daw Aung San Suu Kyi’s long resistance to Myanmar’s brutal dictatorship gave her people — and the world — hope that her country would someday be free. Her swearing in this week as a member of Myanmar’s Parliament is an important step forward, but the struggle to establish a real democracy is not over.
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Landslide: There’s no other way to put it really when you look at the results. The National League for Democracy wiped the floor with the Union Solidarity and Development Party in Burma’s April 1 by-elections, not to mention the 15 other parties and handful of independent candidates that contested the vote. (more…)

It has become a pattern. Whenever the ethnic Muslim Rohingya boat people from Myanmar reach Thai shores, the authorities arrest them as a matter of course, then provide them with water and food before pushing them out to sea again so they can go to their intended destination. (more…)

Burma’s government is using the promise of development as a key component in its current peace negotiations with armed ethnic organizations, proposing ceasefire first, then development, and finally a national political agreement. This process has been tried before in Kachin State with disastrous consequences. (more…)

Thus far, Ban Ki-moon’s trip to Burma has proven surprisingly productive, and the U.N. chief has been far more vocal than on previous visits, when he deferred too readily to the then-military regime, and at times even seemed unprepared for the complexities of dealing with Burmese politics, including the tricky ethnic issues. (more…)

Despite the current euphoria over Burma, the reality is a depressing picture. It is even more important now to study and write on it, and not just about the big picture but the details. (more…)

Suu Kyi’s compromise on the Parliament oath of office issue is a welcome relief to the political stalemate. Evidently, judging from events, the NLD will now have to go through a steep learning curve in order to avoid other political missteps. (more…)

After decades of self-imposed isolation and self-inflicted pariah status, Burma’s regime is pushing ahead with political reform and diplomatic openness. (more…)

With many sanctions against the military-backed government in Burma in the process of being suspended or lifted, there is intense interest from European companies in investing and trading with Burma. (more…)