Burma

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Cyclone Could Weaken Junta's Grip

Upcoming vote could challenge government

(Newser) - The devastation of cyclone Nargis could spur stronger opposition to Burma’s ruling junta, the Christian Science Monitor reports. “It could be quite catalytic, like the [2004] tsunami in Aceh,” says a regional aid director. The government, reluctant to allow outside aid, has struggled to cope with the...

100,000 Burmese Now Feared Dead

Tally doesn't include prisoners Burmese junta might have shot after storm hit

(Newser) - The death toll from Burma's catastrophic cyclone could reach 100,000, a US diplomat said today. That's almost five times what the nation's government had estimated, CNN reports—and aid workers are still waiting in Thailand, to be allowed into the country to help the estimated million hungry and homeless...

Disease, Hunger Now Threaten Cyclone Survivors

Tainted water, corpses pose grave danger

(Newser) - The Burmese lucky enough to survive a catastrophic cyclone now face the threat of death by disease and hunger. Dirty water and rotting corpses pose a grave danger of cholera and diarrhea, and the devastated infrastructure is making it nearly impossible to deliver food to people who were hungry even...

Bush to Junta: Let the US Help
 Bush to Junta: Let the US Help 
May 6, 2008 2:07 PM CDT

Bush to Junta: Let the US Help

President signs act awarding Congressional Gold Medal to Suu Kyi

(Newser) - President Bush today expressed “heartfelt sympathy” to the victims of the Myanmar cyclone and called on the ruling junta to allow the US to offer more help, the Voice of America reports. The government has accepted $250,000 of US aid but balked at letting US Navy rescue teams...

Cyclone Death Toll 22,000 and Climbing
 Cyclone Death Toll
  22,000 and Climbing 
updated
May 6, 2008 7:16 AM CDT

Cyclone Death Toll 22,000 and Climbing

Burmese junta allows international aid, delays vote in some parts

(Newser) - The cyclone that ripped through Burma has claimed at least 22,000 lives, the military junta said today, and more than 40,000 remain missing. The scope of the disaster forced military leaders to postpone a constitutional referendum—designed to cement their grip on power—in the worst-hit regions, the ...

First Lady Steps Up for Cyclone Relief

Bush blasts Burmese junta, presses nation to accept US aid

(Newser) - First Lady Laura Bush took a rare turn in the spotlight today and pressed Burma to let a US disaster response team into the country, CNN reports. In a press conference, she also slammed the junta for its "failure to meet its people's basic needs" after a cyclone killed...

Up to 10,000 Dead in Burma Cyclone
 Up to 10,000 Dead
 in Burma Cyclone 
Updated
May 5, 2008 1:24 PM CDT

Up to 10,000 Dead in Burma Cyclone

Toll continues to rise as relief officials gain access to hard-hit areas

(Newser) - As many as 10,000 might have died in the cyclone that struck Burma on Saturday, a government official told foreign diplomats today, and that number could rise yet higher as aid workers pick through the rubble. The death toll, originally estimated at 351, had already been raised to 4,...

Burma Cyclone Toll Leaps to 4,000

Another 3,000 missing, hundreds of thousands homeless

(Newser) - The death toll in yesterday's Burmese hurricane has skyrocketed to 4,000, CNN reports, up from initial estimates of 350. State-run media issued a revised estimate this morning, along with the government's emergency plea for help. Another 3,000 are thought to be missing. Major relief work has already begun,...

Cyclone Savages Burma; at Least 351 Dead
 Cyclone Savages Burma;
 at Least 351 Dead 
Updated
May 4, 2008 7:28 AM CDT

Cyclone Savages Burma; at Least 351 Dead

Winds reach 120 mph, destroying thousands of buildings

(Newser) - A tropical cyclone has wreaked havoc in Burma, killing at least 351 and destroying tens of thousands of buildings, the BBC reports. Cyclone Nargis brought 120 mph winds to the country, knocking down 75% of buildings in one town and cutting off power, water, and phone lines in the largest...

Thailand Plans OPEC-Style 'Rice Cartel'

PM wants to control market with neighbors, including Burma

(Newser) - The prime minister of Thailand is exploring the idea of setting up a rice price-fixing cartel with four other governments in southeast Asia, including the military dictatorship of Burma. The Bangkok Post reports that Samak Sundaravej wants to establish an OPEC-style collective of producers that will influence the market for...

Myanmar Activist Wins Congressional Gold Medal

Aung Suu Kyi tapped for top civilian award

(Newser) - The Senate has voted overwhelmingly to award the Congressional Gold Medal to Myanmar democracy champion Aung San Suu Kyi, reports Reuters. Politicians praised her courage, and said the award was a gesture of solidarity with the oppressed Burmese people. The Nobel Peace Prize laureate remains under house arrest in Rangoon,...

54 Burmese Migrant Workers Suffocate in Border Crossing

They screamed an hour before driver halted

(Newser) - Police yesterday discovered the bodies of 54 Burmese migrant workers who suffocated in a truck heading across the border to Thailand. Workers crammed in the 7-by-20-foot space, almost all women, say when they finally managed to alert the driver, he fled. Each worker paid $314 to be smuggled into Thailand,...

London Erupts in Torch Protests

Activist grabs torch, 25 busted in street battles with cops

(Newser) - Despite massive security, London erupted today in a series of protests along the route of the Olympic flame relay, and a "free Tibet" protester managed to grab the torch before police wrestled him to the ground, reports the Guardian. At least 25 protesters were busted as scores of police...

West Must Boycott Olympic Venues 'Stained With Blood'

Oppressed Chinese, Tibetans demand no less, French philosopher says

(Newser) - The West must take a stand against China's human-rights abuses by boycotting the Summer Olympics, French philosopher Bernard-Henry Levy insists in the New Republic. Otherwise, athletes will compete in “stadiums stained with blood.” China was supposed to cease its worst behavior, but it’s done the opposite: A...

Tibet Protests Could Snuff Olympic Torch's UK Visit

April 6 stop in London will test police readiness, set tone for rest of tour

(Newser) - The Olympic torch will pass through London on April 6, meeting major protests over China's human-rights abuses in Tibet and other causes. The visit will test how disruptive political forces could be on the Summer Games—and how well British security forces are preparing for the 2012 London Olympics, the...

China Off US Rights Blacklist
 China Off US Rights Blacklist 
Mar 12, 2008 10:26 AM CDT

China Off US Rights Blacklist

State Dept. report drops China from top 10 worst abusers despite poor record

(Newser) - The State Department has taken China off its list of the world's 10 worst human rights abusers, the New York Times reports. China's human rights record "remained poor," the department's annual report said, with abuses including "extrajudicial killings, torture, and coerced confessions of prisoners." Officials declined...

Burmese Rebel Leader Assassinated in Thailand

Suspicion falls on military junta, allies

(Newser) - One of Myanmar's top rebel leaders was shot dead in his home in Thailand today, Reuters reports. Mahn Sha Lar Phan was the secretary-general of the Karen National Unit, the largest rebel group in the former Burma. His son, another senior leader, immediately blamed the attack on a splinter group...

Burma's Pens Mightier Than Censors
Burma's Pens Mightier Than Censors
Feb 13, 2008 1:17 PM CST

Burma's Pens Mightier Than Censors

Info-starved population gets creative to bypass government's gags

(Newser) - Never shy about censorship, Burma has cracked down even more since September's monk uprising—no small event in a country that ranks 164th out of 168 on the Press Freedom Index. But information-starved citizens are finding creative ways to circumvent an extreme government that bans even benign news about soccer...

Burma Pledges Free Elections in 2010

Opposition leaders dismiss move as 'public relations spin'

(Newser) - The military junta in Burma said today the nation will have multiparty, democratic elections in 2010, Reuters reports. Opposition leaders greeted the decision with a heavy dose of skepticism and charged that even if the vote goes through, the military will not release its grip on power. The regime has...

Burma Horrors 'Continue in Secret'
Burma Horrors 'Continue
in Secret'
Jan 4, 2008 5:56 AM CST

Burma Horrors 'Continue in Secret'

Offensives in remote ethnic areas 'far worse' than urban crackdown

(Newser) - Tensions have eased in Burma's cities since the September crackdown on pro-democracy protesters, but aid groups and rebels say brutal atrocities continue in remote areas far from media scrutiny, AP reports. Government forces are murdering, raping and burning their way through ethnic minority areas, according to reports. Villages have been...

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