China has responded to its apparent loss of influence in Myanmar by unleashing an aggressive propaganda and organizing campaign aimed at countering Western influence and cultivating a pro-Beijing grassroots political base particularly among ethnic Chinese in Myanmar.
Until very recently, Ou Virak was President of the Cambodian Center for Human Rights. Being a human rights activist in Cambodia, a country with too many abuses in that category to possibly list here, is quite the daunting task. The government of Prime Minister Hun Sen and his ruling Cambodian People’s Party (CPP) have notoriously […]
President U Thein Sein of Myanmar visited Washington, D.C. last week and met with President Barack Obama in what was billed by many in the media as “an historic event,” taking into account that President Sein is the first president of Myanmar—also known as Burma—to come to the United States in almost fifty years. US-Myanmar […]
“Asia’s rice bowl.” That was the name of Burma (now called Myanmar) some time ago. Now isolated and under stern military rule, Burma has lagged behind other Asian nations. What this documentary shows is the rich history of Burma, its strong Buddhist traditions, and its struggle against occupiers. When it comes to revealing the many […]
By now, most people have come to the realization that the global economic order is under the unrepentant control of neoliberal institutions. Not to conflate neoliberalism with capitalism, but suffice to say both philosophies share the same goal: privatization, deregulation, and trade liberalization, all in the pursuit of profits. For some people, like Slate’s Matthew […]
No sooner had my previous post — warning of an imminent massacre of Muslims in Burma — been published two weeks ago, deadly sectarian riots swept through the town of Meiktila in central Myanmar leaving an estimated 32 people dead, according to a government official. Alternative estimates claim that the death toll is quite a […]
Never again. Remember that? The world was very determined to never allow another attempt at genocide after the Holocaust. We know now that those words were as empty and hollow as a whiskey barrel on the George Bush ranch. Genocides have happened again and will continue to happen if it is not in the “international […]
This week: Dennis Rodman hangs out in North Korea, Hugo Chavez dies, America plays out its fiscal drama, and Bashar al-Assad follows in his father’s footsteps.
Last year I reported on the gradual opening of the political environment in Burma (last update here), including the incorporation of former dissident Aung San Suu Kyi’s opposition party National League of Democracy into parliament. The “Great Decisions in Foreign Policy” series on PBS — produced by Foreign Policy Association — has taken a […]
“To work with all our heart and all of our might to make sure that America is secure, that our interests are promoted and our values are respected.” – Former Secretary of State Clinton If only former Secretary of State Clinton had remained true to the words she uttered so many times during her […]
If you thought last week’s story about Thailand’s decision to forcibly deport Rohingya refugees escaping ethnic violence in Myanmar was horrifying enough, you should probably stop reading now. An investigation conducted by the BBC has uncovered evidence that Thai military and police officials have been complicit in intercepting refugees and then selling them to human […]
U.S. President Barack Obama is returning to Asia for his first overseas trip since winning re-election. He will attend, for the second consecutive year, the East Asia Summit which is viewed by the U.S. as the emerging eminent multilateral forum for regional leaders from 17 other states to discuss salient strategic and security issues. The […]
As history tells it, the father of modern day Myanmar, Gen. Aung San, was assassinated in 1947 not long after the country gained its independence from Britain as he sought to forge a democracy among leaders from Myanmar’s 100-plus ethnic groups. But even 50 years of authoritarian military rule (itself installed following ethnic rivalries in […]
After campaigning tirelessly throughout the majority of her adult life in hopes of bringing democracy to her country and after spending nearly fifteen of those years under house arrest for espousing her views, Aung San Suu Kyi, Burma’s icon of hope and political freedom, has unofficially won a seat in the country’s parliament. An official […]
The 2012 Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) summit will take place April 3rd and 4th in Phnom Penh, Cambodia. As the new chair of the regional bloc for the 2012 year, Cambodia will have an opportunity to show off its capital city’s latest developments, both socioeconomic and political. The streets are already being decked […]