Kachin Independence Organization leader visits China
The Kachin Independence Organization (KIO) Chairperson General N’Ban La led a delegation to China on Sunday. Beijing reportedly invited the Kachin leader as fighting between the Kachin Independence Army (KIA) and the military has intensified in Bhamo and Mansi townships, located 120-127 miles (193-204 km) from the Kachin State capital Myitkyina, since Dec. 4.
The KIA launched an offensive on military outposts in Bhamo Township last week. It seized two military outposts along the Bhamo-Mansi Road on Dec. 4. Bhamo residents told DVB that most have fled their homes for safety as fighting with the military intensified on Tuesday.
China has called for dialogue between the regime and the Brotherhood Alliance members, the Myanmar National Democratic Alliance Army (MNDAA) and the Ta’ang National Liberation Army (TNLA), in northern Shan State on Dec. 4. The MNDAA declared a unilateral ceasefire on Dec. 3 and the TNLA announced it was ready for talks with the regime on Nov. 25. Protesters in the U.S. and Canada called on Beijing to stop supporting the regime in Naypyidaw over the weekend.
Union Election Commission meets 53 political parties
The regime’s Union Election Commission (UEC) met with 53 political parties in Naypyidaw on Friday. It stated that the regime elections, which are tentatively scheduled for November 2025, will be held in 161 out of the total 330 constituencies across Burma, which are currently under stable regime control. It added that the number of constituencies will increase if security can be guaranteed in areas controlled by ethnic armed groups.
“We, the political parties, have been told that the military will provide full security for the representatives during the election period but there will be risk for us because of the current political [crisis],” Thein Kyi, the chairperson of the National Political Alliance (NPA) party, told DVB.
The UEC added that the lower house of parliament, the Pyithu Hluttaw, will continue with its First Past the Post (FPTP) electoral system. The upper house of parliament, the Amyotha Hluttaw, along with the state and regional assemblies, will use a Proportional Representation (PR) electoral system. More than 40 political parties, including the National League for Democracy (NLD) party, refused to re-register with the UEC.
National Unity Government Minister Sasa visits US
The National Unity Government (NUG) Minister of International Cooperation Sasa said that he wants to meet with representatives of the U.S. government in Washington, D.C. to discuss Burma’s crisis, which has engulfed the nation since the 2021 military coup. Sasa has been meeting with members of the diaspora from Burma in the U.S. since last month.
“I’ve visited the U.S. to meet with government officials and to meet with Burmese people in order to urge for unity,” said Sasa during a speech on Sunday in the U.S. state of Maryland. “I feel that the U.S. does not have a strong and precise strategy on Burma’s affairs. That’s why I need to talk with the U.S. government and the Congress.”
Sasa visited Boston, Massachusetts to attend a film screening fundraiser for the Burmese language movie “Phyat [Cut]” on Nov. 30. While there, he urged the International Criminal Court (ICC) to issue its arrest warrant – requested by ICC Chief Prosecutor Karim Khan – for Min Aung Hlaing on alleged crimes against humanity for the military’s forced displacement of Rohingya from northern Arakan State into Bangladesh in 2016-17.
News by Region
SAGAING—A volunteer group called Snakes of Myanmar stated that a 17-year-old girl died in Pakokku Township after being bitten by a venomous snake on Nov. 24. It added that in October, at least 30 others died from snake bites. A Kanbalu Township resident told DVB that antivenom can cost from 30,000-70,000 kyats ($6-15 USD).
“There is an insufficient amount of antivenom. Recently, two cobra bite cases required leg amputation,” Soe Sanda Aung from Snakes of Myanmar told DVB. The World Health Organization (WHO) stated in September that approximately 2.7 million people are bitten by poisonous snakes and an estimated 138,000 die from snake bites globally.
SHAN—The TNLA stated that it had recovered the bodies of 15 dead military personnel, and arrested 17 soldiers, near the Tawnghkam military outpost in Nawnghkio Township on Monday. Nawnghkio is located 75 miles (121 km) northeast of Mandalay in northern Shan State and seized control by TNLA on July 10.
“The military conducted an offensive and we fought back,” a source from the TNLA told DVB on the condition of anonymity. Fighting broke out between the TNLA and the military in Nawnghkio town on Sunday. The TNLA told DVB that it has not received any response from the regime since it called for peace talks on Nov. 25.
YANGON—Twelve prison staff working at Insein Prison were arrested on Sunday and are now under investigation by the Office of the Chief of Military Security Affairs (aka Sa Ya Pha). A source close to Insein Prison told DVB on the condition of anonymity that the reason for their arrests was due to alleged connections to resistance groups.
“People from Sa Ya Pha disguised themselves as prison staff and watched over the prison. There were letters written by the political prisoners that were smuggled outside of the prison. Mobile phones were also discovered inside prison cells,” added the source. Security inside Insein Prison has been heightened since the arrests were made on Dec. 8.
(Exchange rate: $1 USD = 4,470 kyat)
