‘We are no longer part of nationwide ceasefire agreement’: Myanmar’s KNU

August 11, 2023

NEWS DESK As the junta’s military has already destroyed the Nationwide Ceasefire Agreement (NCA), it no longer needs to be abided by, the Karen National Union (KNU), one of Myanmar’s oldest ethnic armed groups, said at a press conference on Aug. 10, The Irrawaddy reports. “We no longer have any cause to abide by the […]Continue Reading

At least 17 dead after Rohingya boat breaks up off Myanmar: rescuers

August 10, 2023

At least 17 people drowned when a boat carrying Rohingya refugees fleeing Myanmar’s Rakhine state broke up at sea this week, rescuers said Thursday. Thousands of Rohingya risk their lives each year making perilous sea journeys from camps in Bangladesh and Myanmar to try to reach Muslim-majority Malaysia and Indonesia, AFP reports. Byar La, a […]Continue Reading

War crimes by Myanmar’s military ‘more frequent and brazen’, UN probe finds

August 9, 2023

War crimes committed by Myanmar’s military, including the bombing of civilians, have become “increasingly frequent and brazen”, a team of United Nations investigators said in a report published on Tuesday, Reuters reports. The report by the Independent Investigative Mechanism for Myanmar (IIMM), which covered the period between July 2022 and June 2023, Continue Reading

Myanmar poet turned rebel leader seeks new territory; worries about ‘ephemeral revolutionaries’

August 5, 2023

Poet turned militia leader Maung Saungkha, one of the most prominent figures fighting for democracy in Myanmar, says his armed group plans to start carving out territory in the country’s heartlands to confront the junta more directly, Reuters reports. Maung Saungkha said the move is a key strategic aim for his Bamar People’s Liberation Army […]Continue Reading

Myanmar’s civilian government releases blacklist of junta collaborators in Yangon

August 5, 2023

NEWS DESK Myanmar’s National Unity Government (NUG) has blacklisted 49 government officials in Yangon Region—including former military personnel transferred to the civil service, deputy director generals, and directors of the Yangon City Development Committee—for collaborating with the junta to persecute striking civil servants, The Irrawaddy reports. The 49 personnel are Continue Reading

Myanmar’s Aung San Suu Kyi granted partial pardon

August 2, 2023

Myanmar’s ruling military has granted partial clemency to deposed leader Aung San Suu Kyi, pardoning the Nobel laureate in five of the 19 offences for which she was convicted and jailed for a total of 33 years following a coup two years ago, according to media reports, Al Jazeera reports. The pardons, announced on state […]Continue Reading

Manipur: India’s Supreme Court hears plea by women in viral assault video

July 31, 2023

NEWS DESK India’s Supreme Court has questioned the federal government on “systemic” and “unabated” violence in the north-eastern state of Manipur while hearing a petition filed by two women who were seen in a video that sparked outrage, BBC reports. The viral video showed the women being paraded naked and molested by a mob. They were […]Continue Reading

Myanmar junta extends state of emergency, signalling poll delay

July 31, 2023

NEWS DESK The Southeast Asian nation has been ravaged by deadly violence since a coup deposed Aung San Suu Kyi’s government more than two years ago, unleashing a bloody crackdown on dissent that has sparked fighting across swathes of the nation while tanking the economy, AFP reports. Junta chief Min Aung Hlaing acknowledged that much […]Continue Reading

‘Put learners first’: Unesco calls for global ban on smartphones in schools

July 26, 2023

Smartphones should be banned from schools to tackle classroom disruption, improve learning and help protect children from cyberbullying, a UN report has recommended, The Guardian reports. Unesco, the UN’s education, science and culture agency, said there was evidence that excessive mobile phone use was linked to reduced educational performance and that high levels of Continue Reading

Baby dies after teargas fired at Rohingya trying to escape Indian detention centre

July 25, 2023

A five-month-old girl has died after Indian forces fired teargas at Rohingya refugees trying to escape a detention centre where they have been held for more than two years, The UK’s The Guardian newspaper reports. Videos – sent to Rohingya activists by detainees at Hiranagar jail, now operating as a holding centre – appear to […]Continue Reading