On the Today Programme, BBC Radio 4
Burma Campaign UK Executive Director Anna Roberts is interviewed about the election on the Today programme, Radio 4. You can listen to the interview here (2hr 40 mins in to the programme)
Burma villagers’ battle to vote in the general election
Our briefing paper on the election is quoted in the Telegraph today: “The UK Burma Campaign estimates that up to 10 million people – around 20 per cent of the country’s population – may be unable to go to the polls. The electoral commission has cited ethnic conflict as a reason to cancel the election …
Myanmar counts down to landmark election
Burma Campaign UK is quoted in this article in Al Jazeera: Aung San Suu Kyi’s opposition party is expected to win big, but even a landslide may not bring significant change. “Just like all the previous elections, this election will not address key issues relating to ethnic rights and aspiration such as self-determination,” said Zoya …
Should have read the small print
Article in Democratic Voice of Burma (DVB) by Mark Farmaner, Director of Burma Campaign UK. November’s election keeps being described as a turning point in Burma’s transition to democracy. But Burma isn’t transitioning to democracy. It is transitioning into a new form of hybrid regime. The first major step in the reform process was the …
New election Briefing Paper – Constitution ensures continued military control
Elections in Burma are scheduled for 8 November. Our new briefing paper looks at what is likely to happen after election day, the process of the elections, and key election statistics. You can download the brieing here. Key points from the briefing include: Regardless of who wins the election, the military has control and/or influence …
Caterpillar Disputes Illicit Jade Ties, Says ‘Robust Screening’ Used
An article in The Irrawaddy about a detailed report released by Global Witness on Friday, which alleged widespread corruption in Burma’s multibillion dollar jade trade at the behest of the military, senior figures from the former junta and individuals connected to the drug trade. Mark Farmaner, from Burma Campaign UK, is quoted: “British Burma policy …
British political prisoner Philip Blackwood’s case reported in The Guardian and Telegraph
The Guardian reports: Malnourished British prisoner suffering ‘awful’ conditions in Myanmar jail A British man held in Myanmar’s most notorious jail is wasting away in a tiny cell with no window and an open sewer for a toilet while the British government is ignoring pleas to intervene, his father has told the Guardian. The family …
Blackwood ‘malnourished, suffering mental stress’
An article in DVB about the case of Philip Blackwood: “Phil Blackwood, a bar-restaurant manager who has been incarcerated in Rangoon’s Insein Prison for nearly ten months, is malnourished and suffering from mental stress, according to his parents in Wellington, New Zealand. Speaking to DVB this week, Brian and Angela Blackwood said, “Philip had lost over …
Last Month in Parliament
This month’s edition is out and has everything Burma related that was raised in the British Parliament last month. Download the report here.
At the TUC
At the Trades Union Conference in Brighton, where hundreds of union delegates are writing messages of solidarity for Naing Htay Lwin and Myo Min Min – Trade Union leaders in Burma who were arrested just for asking for a pay rise of $1 a day for garment workers. Take action here to help free them. …
Army chief skips peace talks for Israeli military dealings
In Irrawaddy News: “Burma currently has better relations with neighbouring countries than at any time it its history,” said Mark Farmaner of Burma Campaign UK. “Any weapons Min Aung Hlaing is considering buying from Israel must be for use in ethnic states. That Min Aung Hlaing chose to go shopping for weapons for use against …
UK Firm Withdraws Application to Explore Jade Area
Irrawaddy News reporting on London-based firm Aurasian Minerals Plc withdrawing its three applications for mineral exploration licenses to Burmese mining authorities, less than a year after submitting the applications. Mark Farmaner, director of the Burma Campaign UK, said that the firm appeared to have sought exploration licenses in Burma without appreciating the implications of the …
Drop the Charges against Andy Hall
Andy Hall is a researcher who defends the rights of migrants in Thailand, including migrants from Burma. In 2013 he was involved in exposing how a factory in Thailand was committing human rights abuses against migrant workers in its factory. Abuses included child labour, workers being beaten, being paid illegally low wages and facing dangerous …
The Khin Nyunt-isation of Shwe Mann
Article by Mark Farmaner, Director at Burma Campaign UK, in Mizzima Until his downfall in 2004, Khin Nyunt had been head of military intelligence as well as holding various other posts. He was a brutal man, Myanmar’s torturer-in-chief, responsible for monitoring and arresting activists. He was a staunch defender of the dictatorship, both as a …
To End Sexual Violence, British Government Can’t Avoid Elephant in the Room
Article by Zoya Phan, Campaigns Manager at Burma Campaign UK: “If the British government is serious about meeting this aim, it must stop avoiding the fact that most sexual violence in conflict is being committed by the Burma Armed Forces. Instead, it refuses to support proposals to establish a UN Inquiry into sexual violence in …
You helped free 11 political prisoners!
Yesterday in Burma around thirteen political prisoners were released. Eleven of them were political prisoners we have been campaigning on! Released! Bi Mon Te Nay Journal’s three journalists Kyaw Zaw Hein, Win Tin, Thura Aung, and owners Yin Min Htun and Kyaw Min Khaing were arrested in July and charged with making false statements that …
Jailed for calling themselves Rohingya
Take action to free these political prisoners – Rohingya community leaders, Ba Thar, Kyaw Khin, Kyaw Myint and Hla Myint, who have been jailed for calling themselves Rohingya.
Last Month in Parliament
Lots of questions and discussion on Burma in the British Parliament last month. Read everything that happened here.
Burma’s General Election date announced
(Photo credit: Mizzima) The date for Burma’s general elections this year has finally been announced as 8th November. Unfortunately, it is impossible for any election to be free and fair under the current conditions in Burma. As Aung San Suu Kyi has stated, “There will be no fair elections with the current constitution.” Our upcoming …
Analysis: Why Burma’s election will be neither free nor fair
Article in Asian Correspondent: The constitution has already ensured that the election result can be neither free nor fair, as it gives unelected army officers the balance of power in parliament. Ultimate power still lies with Min Aung Hlaing rather than the electorate whose votes seem less about democratic self-determination and more about providing a …
The Rohingya crisis: Why the name matters
The crisis of Burma’s Rohingya Muslim continues to escalate with little to no international action to improve the lives of a persecuted minority. Calling them by their name “Rohingya” has become something of a challenge to Burmese officials who pressure foreign officials not to use the word. Anna Roberts, executive director of the Burma Campaign …
At the UNISON conference
At the UNISON conference in Glasgow this week, where delegates are writing messages of support and solidarity for union leaders Naing Htay Lwin and Myo Min Min who are currently detained in Insein Prison. Take action yourself to free them here.