Current State of Affairs, BURMA

Current State of Affairs, BURMA

Invitation to Protest Against Junta’s planned sham 2010 election

Updated: Invitation to Protest Against Junta’s planned sham 2010 election

Current State of Affairs, BURMA

Current State of Affairs, BURMA

The 2008 Constitution and the 2010 Elections: Without Inclusiveness, Problems Will Remain Unresolved

December 1, 2009
The general population of Mon State and other parts of Burma think that the 2010 elections, and any new transformation of power that might result from them, will just be like ‘putting old wine into the new bottle’. The “taste” will be the same, and their suffering of various political, economic, cultural, and human rights violations will be similar.
The international community, the US government, ASEAN countries, and the opposition political parties in Burma have all demanded the release of political prisoners, including Daw Aung San Suu Kyi; these parties have also demanded a review of the 2008 constitution to make it more inclusive. These demands must be met if the SPDC intends to hold free and fair elections in 2010.
Additionally, there is a need for inclusiveness within Burma’s various ethnic political parties. There must be a period in which a countrywide ceasefire is declared, and a political dialogue between armed insurgent political parties must be initiated.
Currently, the Burmese military regime wants to hold its elections without the wider participation of pro-democracy political parties and ethnic opposition groups. Without considering the inclusion of both pro-democracy and ethnic opposition parties, the elections will be meaningless, unfair and undemocratic.
Both in the 1988 pro-democracy uprising and the 2007 “Saffron Revolution”, the people showed their clear desire for political reform and the establishment of peace and democracy. Therefore, if there is no conclusive resolution to the coming elections, the armed conflicts will likely continue and human rights abuses in the ethnic areas of the country will remain a key problem. Similarly, in the heart of Burma thousands of political prisoners will remain in Burma’s notorious jails, and their un-incarcerated, pro-democracy colleagues will always find more opportunities to demonstrate and to announce their political goals. These problems could explode at any time, and the people of Burma will continue to suffer.
Written by HURFOM · Filed Under Commentary

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Myanmar (Burma): Greater funding needed to meet most critical needs

Myanmar (Burma): Greater funding needed to meet most critical needs
30 Nov 2009 09:41:14 GMT
Source: Merlin – UK
Reuters and AlertNet are not responsible for the content of this article or for any external internet sites. The views expressed are the author’s alone.

Eighteen months after Cyclone Nargis devastated communities in the Irrawaddy Delta, there are critical needs that still haven’t been addressed.
International donors pledged $88 million at an ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations) conference in Bangkok last week to support the recovery effort, but more funding is needed to help the most vulnerable – particularly women and children living in some of the most hard to reach areas.
While three out of four households even now have no access to improved water sources and nine out of ten babies are still delivered at home, the UN has estimated that a further $483m is required over the next three years to meet the needs of the whole recovery programme.
Yet many organisations are downsizing their operations and some are even pulling out of the country, due to lack of funds.
In a speech to leaders at the conference, Dr Paul Sender, Merlin’s Country Director in Myanmar said:
“The scale of humanitarian operations across the cyclone-affected Delta region is reducing month by month. From the time the cyclone hit in May 2008 to the end of that year, $74m was made available to international NGOs to provide humanitarian assistance. This figure fell to $64m available for 2009, and the figure for 2010 could be half that. The levels of funding currently available will not allow us to match assistance and actions to where even the most critical needs have been identified.”
Merlin is co-leading the UN’s post-Nargis recovery plan (PONREPP) for the health sector and advocating for greater funding from international donors.
At the conference, which was chaired by the ASEAN Secretary General and UN Under Secretary General, Dr Sender presented the PONREPP Prioritised Action Plan on behalf of international aid agencies on the ground, outlining minimum needs to be addressed by July 2010.
Recovery will take more than two years, but Merlin is calling for international donors to support the Action Plan to meet the most pressing needs in the next seven months.
Dr Ashok, Merlin’s Senior Project Medical Coordinator based in Laputta, said:
“Merlin has made significant progress in meeting the health needs since the cyclone. We have rebuilt or refurbished 22 health centres that were damaged or destroyed in the cyclone. And our network of over 534 community health workers have provided frontline health care to over 185,000 people. But with more funding, we could reach many more people affected by the cyclone who are still in need of assistance.

http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/fromthefield/218926/017d98b74adf63fe9084336d75bd53e3.htm

Updated: Invitation to Protest Against Junta’s planned sham 2010 election

Updated: Invitation to Protest Against Junta’s planned sham 2010 election

Burma Junta’s 2008 Constitution Discussion

Burma Democratic Concern (BDC): This is the PRIME TIME to press junta

Burma Democratic Concern (BDC): This is the PRIME TIME to press junta

GAB Emergency Statement

GAB Emergency Statement

Burma Lawyers’ Council Press Release

Burma Lawyers’ Council Press Release