MYANMAR

MYANMAR

Human Rights Watch defends Muslims praying in public


Human Rights Watch on Monday called for the Myanmar government to overrule local officials in Rangoon who are threatening to charge Muslims for holding Ramadan... More

After withdrawal from the UNFC, the KIO seeks to...


The Kachin Independence Organization (KIO), the second largest armed ethnic organization in Myanmar, has recently withdrawn from the United Nationalities Federal Council (UNFC) an alliance... More

Myanmar State Counselor meets with senior Chinese military official


Myanmar State Counselor Aung San Suu Kyi met with General Fang Fenghui, member of China's Central Military Commission (CMC) and chief of the Joint Staff... More

Ma Ba Tha’s new political party denounces NLD govt


The chairman of a new political party formed by supporters of banned ultra-nationalist Buddhist association Ma Ba Tha has accused the National League for Democracy... More

SNLD leaders: Govt insistence on ‘non-secession’ deprives Shan of...


The Shan Nationalities League for Democracy (SNLD), the biggest ethnic political party in Shan State, has asked the government to remove term “non-secession from the... More

State Counselor’s office to probe allegations of army abuse...


The Office of State Counselor Daw Aung San Suu Kyi said in a statement on Wednesday that it had set up a probe into Burma... More

UN names fact-finding mission members


The UN named a trio of independent experts on Tuesday to investigate widespread allegations of killings, rape and torture by Burma’s security forces against Rohingya... More

State Counselor: Peace conference agreements ‘A significant step’ for...


The stakeholders’ negotiations at the Union Peace Conference (UPC) “mark a significant step” toward future democratic federalism, said the State Counselor Daw Aung San Suu... More

Ma Ba Tha Lay members announce plan to form...


Leading laypersons from Burma’s biggest Buddhist nationalist group, the Association to Protect Race and Religion—commonly known as Ma Ba Tha—have announced that they will soon... More

Peace conference to end ‘without good result’: Govt


The second session of the 21st Century Panglong peace conference is likely to end without major agreement after the issue of “non-cessation” from the Union... More

Myanmar’s hardline monks gather despite ban


Hundreds of monks and supporters of Myanmar's ultra-nationalist Ma Ba Tha movement gathered in a Yangon monastery Saturday, in a defiant meeting days after Buddhist... More

EU launches photo exhibition in Yangon


A unique photo exhibition showcasing the European Union's work in Myanmar is now live and moving! It can be seen on and in 10 buses... More

China-backed militia new powerbrokers in Myanmar peace process


Branded as Asia's most heavily-armed drug dealers, the China-backed ethnic Wa rebels have emerged as key players in Myanmar's peace process, a development seen as... More

Northeastern alliance optimistic about future peace talks with govt


The northeastern armed groups that met with Daw Aung San Suu Kyi on Friday in Naypyidaw said that further talks with the State Counselor appeared... More

Religion minister seeks banks’ help to track nationalist funds


Religious affairs minister U Aung Ko is grappling with the Central Bank of Myanmar for cooperation in order to trace the funds used for the... More

Wirathu urges followers to persevere after govt moves to...


Burma’s infamous firebrand Buddhist monk U Wirathu urged his followers to find a solution to the struggles of the nationalist movement in a video published... More

Portrait of Myanmar’s ‘Buddhist Bin Laden’ chills Cannes


'The Venerable W', his chilling portrait of the monk who has been accused of preaching hate and inciting attacks on Myanmar's Muslim Rohingya minority, has... More

Myanmar seeks to kick start stalled peace process


Hundreds of representatives from Myanmar’s ethnic insurgent groups gathered in the capital on Wednesday for talks aimed at reviving Aung San Suu Kyi’s stuttering peace... More

Myanmar’s Defense Services leader meets Chinese special envoy


Commander-in-Chief of Myanmar's Defense Services Senior- General Min Aung Hlaing met with Special Envoy for Asian Affairs of the Chinese Foreign Ministry Sun Guoxiang in... More

State Buddhist Authority Bans Nationalist Organization’s Name, Signboards


The state Buddhist Sangha authority, Ma Ha Na, imposed further restrictions on Burma’s biggest religious nationalist group, the Association for Protection of Race and Religion,... More

Myanmar army clears itself of Rohingya atrocity claims


Myanmar's army on Tuesday (May 23) cleared itself of allegations that troops may have carried out ethnic cleansing of Rohingya Muslims, but said a soldier... More

COLUMN

A burning issue

On June 25, a day before Eid, an oil tanker carrying 40000 liters of fuel from Karachi to Lahore overturned when a tyre punctured attempting a sharp turn near Bahawalpur. Oblivious of the danger, hundreds of people from surrounding localities, carrying pails, bottles and jerry cans rushed... More

Myanmar embraces responsible business

Myanmar’s economic performance is increasingly causing foreign investors to shy away from the country, while local businesses complain of government inertia. But the government insists that the country is on the verge of a major economic take off. “Myanmar is like a plane running on the runway in... More

Eid and the culture of the travelling classes

The local grocer asked me if I was going outside Dhaka for Eid. I replied that I was totally urban with no village home to visit and wish or means to pursue fun and shopping in Kolkata or Bangkok or elsewhere. He was disappointed as many of... More

Talent and sprit running wild

Precariously making the cut for the eighth and final spot on the ICC ODI rankings, Pakistan came into the 2017 ICC Champions Trophy tournament as rank underdogs. Routed by India in their very first match by a whopping 124 runs, almost everyone gave up on Pakistan. One... More

Better Late than Never

As they say, better late than never. One of the more positive moves of India's Modi government has also been one of its least publicised one. Perhaps because the move to ratify the UN TIR convention will not provide much domestic mileage. India has now ratified the... More

EDITOR'S CHOICE

By naming Salahuddin, is Trump mediating in Kashmir?

It was like an Eid gift from US president Donald Trump to Indian prime minister Narendra Modi. The Muslims of the sub-continent were celebrating Eid-ul-Fitr on the night of June 26, when the US administration,... More

Belt and Road helps Nepal diversify relations and expand trade ties

Despite a high amount of political pressure exerted by India, Nepal signed a Belt and Road initiative deal with China on May 12, three years after a preliminary agreement. It is believed that Nepal would... More

Dynamics of Afghan conflict

The United States has finally understood that it is not winning in Afghanistan and that it needs to forge a fresh strategy to attain its objectives. Its long-running objective has been to defeat the... More

Attack on Fakhrul sends ominous signal for politics

Having faced insulting comments and criticism from the ruling party, secretary general of the opposition BNP Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir had wanted to go and stand by the side of the suffering people of... More

MOST POPULAR

READER'S VIEW

Reaction to “Behind Hasina’s RAW tirade”

David Bergman, British investigative journalist based in Bangladesh, commented on a recently published column of South Asian Monitor titled "SOUTHERN EYE: Behind Hasina’s RAW tirade" in his facebook profile. "This is a fascinating and detailed article... More

Sign up for South Asian Monitor:

Enter your email and stay on top of things

Subscribe!