Regional news from Southeast Asia in English — ASEAN politics, economy and diplomacy, covered by Thai PBS World.
Press cards, cameras and all equipment set aside, news reporters in Myanmar go underground and carry on doing their jobs, amid the climate of fear, brought on by the military junta. Ordinary civilians, meanwhile, live in constant fear of arbitrary arrest and intimidation, deprived of the right to information and free movement. “From my personal
Myanmar’s Buddhist monkhood led an earlier struggle against military rule but is split on the coup that ended the country’s nascent democracy, with some prominent religious leaders defending the new junta. Three months of turmoil have followed the February pre-dawn raids in which soldiers arrested civilian leader Aung San Suu Kyi and her top allies,
The Myanmar National Unity Government (NUG) is warning of a regional crisis, escalating from the current situation in Myanmar, as no meaningful action has been taken by ASEAN, or the international community, in the 100 days since the February 1st coup. “If help is further delayed, the situation will become uncontrollable. The region can expect
Thai Journalist Association (TJA) has issued a statement, asking Thai authorities to uphold humanitarian principles and to ensure the safety of five media broadcasters and trainers from the Democratic Voice of Burma (DVB) Association, after a report that they fled violence and the media crackdown in Myanmar and that Thai authorities are trying to push
Malaysia on Monday imposed a new nationwide lockdown, as the country grapples with a surge in coronavirus cases and highly infectious variants that the government said are testing its health system. Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin said all inter-state and inter-district travel will be banned, along with social gatherings. Educational institutions will be shut but economic
YANGON – Three months after the February 1st coup, by the Tatmadaw (military), Yangon is seeing a new kind of large gathering. While anti-coup protests persist, lethal crackdowns, with hundreds killed and thousands detained, mean that most Yangonites no longer take part in mass rallies. Instead, the impact of the coup on the already ailing
The Myanmar junta has charged under a “fake news” law, a report said Tuesday, in the latest blow to press freedom since the military seized power. Freelance reporter Yuki Kitazumi was arrested last month and charged on Monday, World Press Freedom Day, with spreading fake news, according to a report by Kyodo news agency. He
Analysts claim that the current “state of emergency” in Thailand is a way of enabling the government to limit press freedom and citizens’ rights to free expression. It is a strategy often employed by 4 other Southeast Asian countries, especially Cambodia, Indonesia, Malaysia and the Philippines, according to the Asia Democracy Network (ADN). The ADN
UNITED NATIONS – The U.N. Security Council called Friday for an immediate end to violence in Myanmar as stated in an ASEAN plan, giving unanimous approval to a statement watered down to satisfy China and Russia. The plan, which also calls for the naming of an envoy from the Association of Southeast Asian Nations to
(by David Tun in Yangon) The coverage on this live blog has ended — for up-to-date coverage on the Myanmar protest, visit the May Myanmar Journal. April 28 – Myanmar’s Central Bank has announced that banks will be accepting applications for new accounts, which will have no restrictions on withdrawals or other limitations. This move
Myanmar’s pro-democracy unity government, formed to oppose the military junta that seized power nearly three months ago, on Wednesday ruled out talks on the crisis until all political prisoners are released. The 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) has been trying to find a path for Myanmar out of the bloody turmoil that followed
Myanmar military junta leader Min Aung Hlaing said he will consider proposals by ASEAN to solve the ongoing crisis in Myanmar after peace and stability is restored in his country. It is seen as the first known response by the general to the ASEAN leaders’ “five-point consensus” designed to find a peaceful solution to the
