Citizen of Burma Award

Citizen of Burma Award is the award for Burmese Volunteer Social Service Works and Workers for their sacrifice and their contribution. Kachin activist and journalist LaFai Naw Main is the winner of Citizen of Burma Award 2012.  Congratulations!!

Read more: http://www.citizenofburma.org/

Candlelit Rally

A candlelit rally in the Burma started Burma's second city Mandalay on 20th May 2012 and spreading to some part of Burma. The public protesting against chronic power shortage. Around three-quarters of Burma's population is facing power outages problem. They are getting only a couple hours of power supply per day and power cuts are a daily problem. Many hours blackouts are unbearable and it get worsening day by day.  Demonstrators hold up candles as they protest against electricity shortages and demanding round-the-clock power supply for everyone. This protest is the second biggest after saffron revolution in 2007. Much of the electricity generated in Burma is sold to China, and less than 20 percent of the population has access to electricity.

How to promote the real reform

Burma had made some progress by releasing some political prisoners, pursuing ceasefire talks with ethnic groups and opening dialogue between President Thein Sein and Daw Aung San Suu Kyi. Though we are seeing the political opening , we continue to have concerns over the conflict areas which cause serious human rights abuses. The human rights groups say more needs to be done towards the real reform by releasing all remaining political prisoners. Daw Suu warned that she felt sometimes that "people are too optimistic about the scene in Burma. You have to remember that the democratization process is not irreversible." Excessive optimism over a political opening is not promoting the democracy in Burma.

Invitation to Citizen of Burma Award Ceremony

If you are around the area, please join the event.  Hope to see you all.

Maintaining sanction

Despite an abundance of natural resources, Burma's development in all area has lagged far behind its neighboring countries like Singapore.  Burma economic matter is screwed up under the political conflicts, terriable dictatorship over the last 50 years.  The general population has  already missed so many opportunities with no industry, commerce, trade or tourism.  The junta and their cronies monopolize all those contracts on all natural resources-oil and gas, teak and gems,rice and grain.  They are doing business with the rest of Asia and still use the foreign currencies.  All those currencies go into their pocket and none was used on public matters. The reason why  Daw Aung San Suu Kyi recommends maintaining Western sanctions on Burma, sanctions affected the military regime and their cronies and not the general population.   So,it would  not be simple to lift the sanction ,they would only do better if sanctions were dropped.

ENDURANCE

"The Lady" Takes Office in Burma

current issue of Ms. Magazine

For two decades, the struggle for democracy in Burma was deadlocked. No ground was given in the war of wills between the country’s hard-line military rulers and opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi, the Nobel Peace Prize laureate they imprisoned after stealing an election from her. But recently there has been a dramatic shift indicating compromise—by both parties.......Read the full story
http://www.msmagazine.com/winter2012/theladytakesofficeinburma.asp

Daw Aung San Suu Kyi joines Parliament

Daw Aung San Suu Kyi and her elected members of NLD were sworn in as a member of Burma’s Parliament and she’ll have an official voice in the legislative branch for the first time. The opposition party is now working officially in and out of the parliament. We have now our leader who has stood up for us in the parliament and she would not give up the struggle she has waged since 1988.