Burma

Being a tourist in Myanmar

By Kristina Jönsson, Associate Professor Department of Political Science, Lund University The political changes currently seen in Myanmar (former Burma) were for most observers unthinkable only a few years ago. I am not a specialist on Burmese politics, but have over the years followed the developments in the country from a regional perspective in relation […]

Myanmar – a country opening up?

After 50 years of isolation Myanmar, formerly named Burma, is finally opening up to the outside world. According to the media the country is now welcoming tourists, foreign investment and development aid. But exactly what does the picture of openness look like in reality?   Photo taken in a small village in the Ayeyarwaddy Delta: […]

So..what is the definition of Genocide, again?

Rohingya: Rohingya is an ethnic minority with dark skin, Muslim beliefs and, for the most part, no citizenship anywhere. Some groups live as sea nomads.  Others live as illegal immigrants in Thailand, India or Bangladesh. Some live in refugee camps different places. Most live in poverty and most live in Burma.   Nobody likes the […]

Myanmar open for business, not its people

by Gerhard Hoffstaedter, School of Social Science at the University of Queensland Aung San Suu Kyi has just left Myanmar (Burma) for the first time in 24 years visiting Thailand and Europe and calling for more foreign investment in Myanmar. Meanwhile, ethnic tensions in Myanmar continue to erupt to the surface in a country that […]

A brief report from a Burma visit 13-21 February 2012

Mikael Gravers, Aarhus University The situation: On the surface there is a more relaxed mood in Rangoon when I visited Burma. However, all agree that the old totalitarian system is still working. People are still arrested during the night. Thus, we are cautioned that the situation could change rapidly again after the by-elections. There is […]

The waiting

Ang San Suu Kyi was released. And there was an election. And
that’s about as concrete as this post is going to get – of course there are
more to be said, but as is always the case with Burma
and her elusive leadership, there are no answers to be found in Rangoon.

As always, details are sketchy, indecipherable and
insufficient and what is really the situation for the average Burmese citizen
is unclear. Getting more concrete than just stating the two above things is not
an easy task.

Is this what they call momentum? by Anya Palm

The Lady is free. She speaks to her people and what comes
out of her mouth is the definition of grace and dignity – listen to some of her
words here: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-pacific-11752918

Send in the clowns – Burma election Nov. 7 2010 by Anya Palm

The spotlight is brightly
lit, while the preparations take place behind stage. The stage itself is empty
– for now – but every single seat in the audience is taken. All the VIP-guests
are in place – the UN, the ambassadors, the human rights defenders, the
experts. But despite a packed crowd, the theater is silent. The focus on the
empty stage is so intense that the spectators are not even exhaling. They are
waiting. They do not know what the show will be about and that is what makes
the waiting so tense. All they know is that it is a performance of utmost

WHO IS A PROBLEM IN BURMA? – After the trial of Daw Aung san Suu Kyi by Mikael Gravers

The suspended sentence and the 18 month house arrest for Daw Aung San Suu Kyi came after international pressure and are probably heavily influenced by China since it has urged the international community to respect Burmese law!However, the delay of the verdict may also be a result of and internal difference within the junta. Snr. […]