Official: Rohingyas Provoked Fatal Shooting By ‘Attacking Authorities’
A spokesperson for President Thein Sein says last week’s fatal shooting of three Rohingya women by police was provoked by Muslim villagers who “attacked authorities”.
The UN rights envoy for Burma Tomás Ojea Quintana says the killing of three Rohingya by Arakan State police forces last week should be investigated.
Chinese companies on Friday defended the controversial Shwe Gas pipeline they are developing in Burma, but they did little to address concerns over its impact.
Ethnic NGOs want the government and ethnic rebel militias to address Burma’s worsening land rights situation, but two important government bodies refused to meet them.
The government and private construction firms plan to turn Rangoon into a “mega city” of 10 million inhabitants by 2040, doubling the city in size.
Burma’s Embassy in Indonesia escaped a terrorist attack while radical Indonesian Islamists now call for jihad against Burma, but Burmese Muslims “totally reject” the actions.
Burma is among the world’s worst violators of religious freedom, as Christian and Muslim minorities, and some Buddhist monks face persecution, a US commission says.
Ford is the first international automaker to sell new cars in Burma, but it’s unclear if the growing, volatile market will take to its vehicles.
President Thein Sein will be granted an international peace award Monday, but officials, opposition members and experts disagree on whether or not he deserves it.
Government reforms are boosting Burma’s economy, which is projected to grow 6.5 percent in 2013, while foreign investment is surging, the Asian Development Bank says.
During his visit to Burma, former US President Jimmy Carter voiced “deep concerned” about the recent sectarian violence and “hate speech” by some local leaders.
Satellite image released by Human Rights Watch show that mobs in Meikhtila destroyed three neighborhoods covering 60.5 acres and containing at least 828 homes.
The UN ranks Burma 149th among 185 nations in its latest global human development index, placing it among the three least developed countries in Asia.
Constitutional reform is central to establishing rule of law in Burma, but it is unlikely to happen before the 2015 elections, a new report says.
Burma’s President Thein Sein received support for his reforms during his first visit to the EU, but was urged to make peace with ethnic rebels.
Since September nine civilians have been killed and fourteen injured in Kachin State as a result of Burmese army artillery fire, rights activists allege.
Burma’s military and police are arbitrarily detaining Kachin civilians and torturing them into confessing to membership of the Kachin rebels, a human rights group alleges.
Burma’s Foreign Affairs Ministry rebukes a critical US Embassy statement on the Kachin conflict, saying that it “strongly objects and rejects” the Embassy’s remarks.
The Burmese army and ethnic rebel continue to recruit child soldiers and some are being deployed in the escalating Kachin conflict, a rights group says.
While the Kachin conflict raged this weekend, the international community signed an agreement with the government outlining how donor aid will flow into Burma.
