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The Irrawaddy (Burmese: ဧရာဝတီ; MLCTS: ei: ra wa. ti) is a website by the Irrawaddy Publishing Group (IPG), founded in 1990 by Burmese exiles living in Thailand. From its inception, The Irrawaddy has taken an independent stance on Burmese politics. As a publication produced by former Burmese activists who fled violent crackdowns on anti-military protests in 1988, it has always been closely associated with the pro-democracy movement, although it remains unaffiliated with any of the political groups that have emerged since the 8888 Uprising.
The Irrawaddy is published in both English and Burmese, with a primary focus on Burma and Southeast Asia. It is regarded as one of the foremost journalistic publications dealing with political, social, economic and cultural developments in Burma. In addition to news, it features in-depth political analysis and interviews with a wide range of Burma experts, business leaders, democracy activists and other influential figures.
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Displaying 6 - 10 of 67Rule of Law’ Will End Land Grabs in Ethnic Areas, Official Tells Activists
An advisor to President Thein Sein met with a group of ethnic activists in Naypyidaw on Friday and tried to assuage their concerns over a recent rise in land conflicts in Burma’s ethnic areas.
Tin Htut Oo, chairman of the National Economic and Social Advisory Council (NEASAC), told the activists that the government’s attempt at establishing “rule of law” would protect ethnic communities against land-grabbing.
Ethnic Activists Warn of Surge in Land Grabs After Ceasefires
About 40 ethnic activist groups are calling on the government, ethnic militias and the international community to address a surge in land-grabbing, as companies move into Burma’s ethnic regions following recent ceasefire agreements.
But their campaign was off to a rocky start on Thursday when two government committees on land use declined to meet the activists.
Military Involved in Massive Land Grabs: Parliamentary Report
RANGOON—Less than eight months after a parliamentary commission began investigating land-grabbing in Burma, it has received complaints that the military has forcibly seized about 250,000 acres of farmland from villagers, according to the commission’s report.
The Farmland Investigation Commission submitted its first report to Burma’s Union Parliament on Friday, which focused on land seizures by the military.
UN Urges Aid for Kachin IDPs in Rebel Areas
A top United Nations official has urged the Burmese government to allow access to Kachin internally displaced persons (IDPs) in rebel-controlled areas of northernmost Burma.
Baroness Valerie Amos, the UN under-secretary-general for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator, told a press conference in Rangoon on Friday that conditions for displaced civilians remain dire and there was no reason to restrict access.
Land Grabs Intensify as Burma ‘Reform’ Races Ahead of Law
While foreign governments heap praise on the Burmese government’s liberal tilt, land theft appears to be increasing as state agencies and powerfully placed domestic firms position themselves to welcome foreign investment.
Farmers across the country are being muscled out of their fields with little hope of appeal to the law. This is because despite all the trumpeting in the West about President Thein Sein’s “reforms,” the rule of law in Burma is closer to 12th Century Europe than the 21st Century.