Showing 1 - 10 of 14
Home alone … a case of bad timing
Oped, Roger Crutchley, Published on 18/07/2021
» The emotional events at Wembley Stadium last Sunday inevitably stirred personal memories of a similar happening with a different outcome 55 years previously in the summer of 1966.
Suu Kyi stands up to lawsuit avalanche
News, Larry Jagan, Published on 25/11/2019
» Myanmar's top leaders -- both military and civilian -- have been shell-shocked by the avalanche of international legal cases they are now facing. In the space of days, three cases have been lodged in separate courts, all intended to make the Myanmar government and the country's military leaders accountable for the horrendous events that unfolded in strife-torn western Rakhine state during military operations over the last three years. These forced nearly a million Muslims, or Rohingya as they call themselves, to flee to safety in Bangladesh.
The Panglong peace process is precariously poised
News, Larry Jagan, Published on 28/10/2019
» Myanmar's stalled peace process is precariously poised, and may now be in danger of falling apart all together, as mistrust and hostility between some of the ethnic groups and the military worsened significantly. The fragile relationships between the three key players deteriorated further on the eve of the anniversary of the signing of a key peace pact, and the hopes of kick-starting negotiations and bringing the groups back to the table took a tumble for the worst.
Myanmar's peace process stumbles on
News, Larry Jagan, Published on 19/03/2018
» Myanmar's peace process is precariously poised with Panglong -- or the national peace conference as it is formally called -- set to meet in May. Several more ethnic groups -- including the Wa -- have agreed to sign the national ceasefire agreement (NCA). But, despite this, the peace process is in danger of disintegrating.
Surakiart's Rakhine mission no easy task
News, Larry Jagan, Published on 17/02/2018
» After a dramatically shaky start, Surakiart Sathirathai's international advisory group is getting down to tackle the Herculean task of trying to find practical solutions to Myanmar's tragic inter-communal violence. As the Myanmar government comes under increased criticism and international scrutiny, Mr Surakiart believes he and his team must help Myanmar look forward and produce a comprehensive and sustainable plan to restore peace, harmony and development to the country.
Myanmar's military commander-in-chief on the rise
News, Larry Jagan, Published on 02/02/2018
» Myanmar's military chief, Snr Gen Min Aung Hlaing, has become the man of the moment in the country's unfolding political crisis. While he and the country's civilian leader, State Counsellor Aung San Suu Kyi, may not trust each other, he has become increasingly her indispensable ally amid the increasing international turmoil surrounding the government's handling of the Rakhine crisis.
Suu Kyi should heed Pope's suggestion on UN role
News, Larry Jagan, Published on 04/12/2017
» Pope Francis' visit to Myanmar last week was an overwhelming success and may provide the much needed spark to ignite the government's peace process and its efforts to bring reconciliation to the country's violence-torn western region of Rakhine. The Pope's message was loud and clear: the only way forward for Myanmar was "love and peace", the title used for his visit.
Rakhine violence leaves Aung San Suu Kyi reeling
News, Larry Jagan, Published on 28/08/2017
» Myanmar's restive western state of Rakhine erupted into violence on Friday, leaving the government's efforts to find a solution to the communal tension there in tatters. Insurrection and arson engulfed large areas around Maungdaw and Buthidaung.
When shortwave radio was my best friend
News, Roger Crutchley, Published on 12/03/2017
» After 20 years the BBC is ending its foreign-language shortwave transmissions from Nakhon Sawan after failing to renegotiate its agreement with the Thai authorities. The transmissions were directed mainly at places like Afghanistan and Pakistan where radios are sometimes still the only source of news.
Turkey is swiftly heading towards a regime of terror
News, Gwynne Dyer, Published on 12/11/2016
» 'In Turkey, we are progressively putting behind bars all people who take the liberty of voicing even the slightest criticism of the government," wrote author Orhan Pamuk, Turkey's first Nobel Prize winner. "Freedom of thought no longer exists. We are distancing ourselves at high speed from a state of law and heading towards a regime of terror" that is driven by "the most ferocious hatred".