News

Why indigenous land rights matter in Myanmar

The customary land rights of Myanmar’s indigenous peoples have been a much-discussed subject for decades, including during the “democratic transition” period that ended on February 1. The most striking aspect of this discussion, however, is how reluctant Myanmar policymakers—regardless of their political orientation—have been to ...

Esther Wah

Consumption of plastics doubles in Myanmar amid pandemic: environmental group

According to Thant Myanmar, the consumption of plastic has doubled during the Covid-19 pandemic in Myanmar. Ma The Su Aye, manager of Thant Myanmar’s Rural Waste Management, told DMG that the increase was due to the increasing use of plastics, which are currently being used during ...

Development Media Group

Cambodia PM's visit to Myanmar sparks protests from coup opponents

Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen will start a visit to Myanmar on Friday (Jan 7) for talks with its military rulers, triggering protests across the conflict-torn nation by coup opponents who fear that his trip will provide more legitimacy to the junta. His visit will be the first ...

Reuters/kg

How does political instability in the Mekong affect deforestation?

Myanmar’s rainforests, home to the endangered Malayan tapir (Tapirus indicus), critically endangered Sunda pangolin (Manis javanica) and endangered lar gibbon (Hylobates lar), are some of the most biodiverse in the world. But the relative flatness of the terrain, and the valuable timber species found here, ...

Sheryl Lee Tian Tong

Over 4,400 Myanmar refugees flee to Thailand to escape fighting

Over 4,400 people from Myanmar have fled into the country since Thursday last week to escape clashes between government soldiers and an armed ethnic minority group, the Thai military said Wednesday. As the fighting between Myanmar’s ruling military and the Karen National Union intensifies in south-eastern ...

Kyodo News

Illegal gold mines operate unchecked in Myanmar’s Kachin state since coup

Illegal gold mine operations have run unchecked in the capital of Myanmar’s Kachin state since the military seized power 10 months ago, raising concerns for villagers who spent years protesting a massive Chinese-backed dam project in the early 2000s. Local sources along the Irrawaddy River in ...

Reported by Myanmar Service. Translated by Khin Maung Nyane. Written in English by Joshua Lipes.

U.N. says about half of Myanmar's people could sink into poverty in 2022

Urban poverty is on course to triple in Myanmar, pushing nearly half the population below the poverty line next year, the United Nations said on Wednesday, as the twin impact of the pandemic and a military coup threaten progress made in the past decade. The army ...

Reuters

Climate danger grows in ‘vulnerable’ Myanmar after military coup

There is increasing concern that Myanmar is at risk of a serious environmental crisis, as the generals who seized power in a coup on February 1 focus on cementing their control and shoring up their position by stepping up lucrative but devastating policies of exploiting ...

John Liu, Rory Wallace and reporter in Myanmar

Chinese-Owned Banana Plantations Fueling Exploitation in Myanmar

The early 2000s saw a boom in the banana farming sector in southern China. By 2008, the fruit had become an increasingly popular target of investment, with low supply and soaring prices, and banana plantations were set up across China, as well as in Myanmar ...

YAN NAING

Myanmar junta court sentences former NLD chief minister to 75 years for ‘corruption’

A military court in Myanmar on Tuesday sentenced the former National League for Democracy (NLD) chief minister of Kayin state to 75 years in prison for “corruption,” the latest example of a harsh punishment observers say is aimed at undermining party leadership. Nang Khin Htwe Myint, ...

Reported by RFA’s Myanmar Service. Translated by Khin Maung Nyane. Written in English by Joshua Lipes.

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