Advocacy group Human Rights Watch has criticised slow progress in addressing historical land grabs, which continue to leave large numbers of people destitute, and inadequate legal reform in protecting land tenure.
Jailed Reuters journalist Wa Lone tells a Yangon court that during a police interrogation, which included sleep deprivation, police officers tried to induce him and his colleague Kyaw Soe Oo not to publish an investigation into a military-led massacre of 10 Muslims in Inn Din village of northern Rakhine State.
Ethnic issues Lead Story News Peace Process
A faction of the National Socialist Council of Nagaland will not be allowed to sign the Nationwide Ceasefire Agreement because of the ethnic Naga armed group’s core demand for an independent Naga homeland spanning either side of the Burma-India border, according to government spokesperson Zaw Htay.
Bridges over major rivers can transform local, as well as national, economies. But not everyone is in favour of building a $168 million bridge linking the congested downtown of Yangon with the poor and rural township of Dala to the south.
Burma’s drinkers currently prefer beer or spirits, but wine producers are hopeful that wine enjoyment will keep growing steadily from its low base. as supermarkets in larger cities are stocking an increasing number of locally made wines.
Business Labour Issues Lead Story News
A major labour union in Burma plans on proposing an increase in the daily minimum wage that would nearly double the current figure, citing rising costs of living in the country.
Drugs Features Lead Story News Women's Issues
Most state-run drug rehabilitation centres in Burma accept men only.
A judge has sentenced a Rangoon resident to eight days in jail for public disorder after he entered a residential neighborhood and threatened to kill all Muslims in the vicinity.
One former political prisoner describes a tiered system of abuse within Insein Prison, Burma’s most infamous correctional facility on the outskirts of Rangoon.
One Kaman man said that more than 1,000 men holding swords surrounded his village in 2012. But he escaped the mob, hiding in a pigsty owned by Arakanese Buddhist friends.
On a hot day this month, farmers and workers could be seen harvesting potatoes in the wide expanse of fields outside southern Shan State’s Heho Township.
Arakan Environment Lead Story News
Conservationist Kyaw Win said many locals had now “lost their enthusiasm” for protecting the mangroves because of a lack of government support.
flora and fauna Lead Story News Pegu Division
Elephant poaching in Burma is on the rise amid an increasing demand for ivory and other products made from elephant parts, such as its skin, which is used in traditional medicine.
Human Rights Interview Lead Story News
Myanmar Now speaks to Yu Lwin Aung of the Myanmar National Human Rights Commission.
Farmers Lead Story Mandalay Division News
In central Burma’s harsh dry environment, drip-irrigation vegetable gardens help hundreds of families get by.
Hundreds of small farmers in southern Shan State have boosted their income through apiculture and they are trained, and enthusiastic, beekeepers.
In recent years, farmers in Irrawaddy Division have come under pressure to modernise, as labour costs rise and productivity of the delta’s soil declines.
Lead Story News Religion Rohingya
A Buddhist monk who is a regional spokesperson for Ma Ba Tha said the new NLD-led government should avoid a showdown with Burma’s nationalist movement.
Arakan Interview Lead Story News
Ba Shein, a leading Arakan National Party MP, discusses his party’s dispute with the NLD and other issues affecting Arakan State.
Burma’s warring rebel leaders have thrown their support behind the National League for Democracy’s pick for President, set to take over the country’s fractured peace process.
While parliament’s vote for a civilian president is greeted with optimism, the appointment of a junta-era figure to first vice-president concerns many.
Myanmar Human Rights Commission member Khine Khine Win discusses the body’s limitations and what she believes are its achievements.
2015 Elections Lead Story News Politics
Community leaders in Mon State fear a spate of recent attacks are racially motivated and attempts to foment inter-communal tensions here in the run up to Burma’s 8 November polls.
“We cannot have a preference for a particular party. Under the current circumstances, we will have to vote for the USDP only,” said an army official from Karen State.
Ethnic issues Kachin Lead Story News Peace Process Politics
PNLO leader and former NLD member Khun Myint Htun explains why the Pa-Oh group acceded to the NCA, and how the political dialogue will affect the election.
2015 Elections Lead Story News Politics
Recent events in the last five years will all impact the general election in November, as Burma goes to the polls amidst conflict and religious tension.
2015 Elections Lead Story News Politics Rangoon
According to a straw poll by Myanmar Now, voters in Rangoon cannot see beyond Suu Kyi’s party.
Practice your English with DVB news. This week: Women running in the election find they must fight not only rival parties but also sexism and prejudice.
2015 Elections Interview Lead Story News Politics
Australia’s former ambassador to Burma, Trevor Wilson, speaks about how far Burma has come since his tenure, and why he thinks Thein Sein is under-valued.
2015 Elections Lead Story News Politics
Women candidates say they have to endure slurs and malicious rumours, while some also fear for their safety as they campaign in their constituencies.
