Min Aung Hlaing visits Belarus after opening ‘peace talks’
Regime media reported on Wednesday that Min Aung Hlaing departed Burma for Belarus after his opening address to delegates at the regime “peace talks” with ethnic armed groups in Naypyidaw on June 25. He will attend the 4th Eurasian Economic Forum in Minsk June 26–27, but sources told DVB that he is also expected to visit Buryatia, a Russian republic located in eastern Siberia, after Minsk.
At the opening ceremony of the talks yesterday, Min Aung Hlaing reaffirmed that a “multi-party democratic” system would be re-established in Burma after his planned elections set to begin in December, which he announced during his last visit to Belarus in March. He also told those gathered in Naypyidaw that armed resistance to his regime is “against democracy.”
Min Aung Hlaing’s regime seized power after the military coup that ousted the democratically-elected National League for Democracy (NLD) government on Feb. 1, 2021. BBC Burmese reported on Wednesday that China’s Special Envoy Deng Xijun and U.A.E. Ambassador to Burma Mutaz Al Faheem are in Naypyidaw for the talks, which end tomorrow.
Participants in ‘Flower Strike’ on Aung San Suu Kyi birthday freed
A source close to the regime told DVB that 11 civilians were released on Monday after being arrested in Danubyu Township of Ayeyarwady Region for sharing messages or images to social media commemorating jailed State Counsellor, and NLD leader, Aung San Suu Kyi’s 80th birthday on June 19. Danubyu is located 80 miles (128 km) northeast of the region’s capital Pathein.
The source told DVB on the condition of anonymity that they were made to sign pledges stating if they re-offend they could be re-arrested. A regime media employee in Naypyidaw was also arrested but was accused of sedition on June 21. Residents of Pathein Township told DVB that four women were arrested on June 20 for sharing messages to social media and remained in custody as of June 22.
Over the last four years, people inside Burma and abroad have participated in a “Flower Strike” on June 19 to raise awareness about Aung San Suu Kyi’s detention. She’s been held by the regime since the 2021 coup. Sources told DVB that authorities were ordered to monitor any public campaigns across the country, or online, to mark Aung San Suu Kyi’s 80th birthday.
Earthquake emergency transitions into ‘early recovery’
Nearly three months after the March 28 earthquake, six million people are still in urgent need of humanitarian assistance, according to the U.N. It estimates that 3,800 were killed and over 5,000 were injured, while DVB data reports the number killed at 4,520 with 11,366 injured in the six hardest hit regions of Sagaing, Mandalay, Magway and Bago, as well as Naypyidaw and southern Shan State.
“The devastation caused by the quakes compounded the existing challenges of conflict, displacement and severe humanitarian needs,” said Jorge Moreira da Silva, the executive director of the U.N. Office for Project Services (UNOPS). “Recovery and reconstruction should support Myanmar’s journey to peace and reconciliation. Protection of civilians must be a priority.”
UNOPS, which maintains the largest U.N. staff presence in Burma, reached 500,000 people within weeks of the quake with a reported $25 million USD for emergency shelters, clean water, and the deployment of infrastructure specialists for rapid assessments. Jorge Moreira da Silva paid a three-day visit to the quake zone, adding that greater international support is needed in Burma’s post-quake recovery.
News by Region
SHAN—Kyaukme Township residents told DVB that four civilians were killed and four were injured by an airstrike on Tuesday. Kyaukme is located 68 miles (109 km) southwest of the regional capital Lashio and 107 miles (172 km) east of Mandalay.
“The first bomb fell near a restaurant. Then another one fell near a mosque,” a Kyaukme resident told DVB. The Ta’ang National Liberation Army (TNLA) confirmed the attack. A total of 10 homes were destroyed. Kyaukme came under TNLA control on Aug. 5.
YANGON—The Solidarity of Trade Union Myanmar (STUM) announced on Tuesday that a female worker at the True Green City factory in Shwepyitha Township was fired on June 23 after filing a complaint against the employer with the regime’s Department of Labour.
The STUM added that the worker was told by her employer on June 17 that she would be dismissed in three months for “being pregnant.” A formal complaint was filed which led to her immediate termination. The woman began working at the factory on May 1, 2024.
NAYPYIDAW—Sources told DVB that the Union Solidarity and Development Party (USDP) Vice Chairperson Hla Tun told members to win all seats in the capital during the upcoming elections in December. The pro-military party governed the country from 2011-16.
USDP Chairperson Khin Yi visited China on June 16 at the “invitation of the Communist Party”. The USDP is one of 10 parties registered with the Union Election Commission (UEC) to contest polls nationwide in 267 out of 330 townships, where the election is expected to take place. Naypyidaw is composed of eight townships.
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