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Burma Issues (BI) was formed in 1990 as a private non-profit organisation devoted to peacefully addressing Burma's struggle for human rights and democratic rule. BI is unique in that we focus on the marginalized communities living in the war zone of Burma as our target group for building a peace based on justice for everyone. Our approach is based on concepts of empowerment of these marginalized communities. In 2002 the Peace Way Foundation was formed and registered with the Royal Thai Government. It serves as an umbrella organization for Burma Issues and as a link between the grassroots people of Burma and the regional and international community.
Aim: To try and participate in building up a people's movement that is capable of carrying out the long-term struggle necessary to bring a true and lasting peace to Burma
Objectives 1) To systematically document for analysis the events of the past and present through a documentation centre, in order to plan for a better future. This will focus on information for the internal movement and for external supportive campaigns. 2) To build up activists who have a vision for true change in Burma, are responsible and disciplined and are clear in the nature of their commitment for the long term struggle 3) To encourage grassroots people to lead the struggle for social, economic and political change in Burma 4) To build up international awareness and support for the struggle in Burma by acting as a bridge between the grassroots people and the international support community in such a way that the grassroots people help international support groups focus actions on the most critical issues which prolong the country's cycle of war
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Resources
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5Finding Food in Fear/Living in Fear (video)
Finding Food in Fear/Living in Fear
Introduction for ‘one family’....
In February 2010, Burma Issues conducted a field trip inside Karen State to raise internally displaced persons’ (IDPs) awareness of the upcoming elections. While they were watching a video, the township where the IDPs were staying was attacked by the Burmese army. They had to flee into the jungle and our cameraman decided to follow.
Living Ghosts - The spiraling repression of the Karenni population under the Burmese military junta
Executive Summary: "The people of Karenni State are living ghosts. Their daily survival is an
achievement; however, it also signifies their further descent into poverty and a
spiralling system of repression. Whilst this report documents the deteriorating
situation in Karenni State over the past six years, this is nothing new for the
ethnically diverse population of this geographically small area. They have been
living in a protracted conflict zone for over 50 years with no respite from decades
"I Will Not be Forced From My Own Land" - internal displacement in Burma
In a nation of 50 million people there are estimates that up to 1 million are Internally Displaced Persons (IDP). Despite the relatively recent use of the phrase internally displaced people in the context of Burma, there is evidence that the practices that lead to this displacement have been in place for a long period of time.
After the 1997 Offensives: The Burma Army's Relocation Program in Kamoethway Area
Mass Displacement by the Burmese Army's forced relocation program in Tenasserim division first rose to awareness when multi-national companies started to build the Yadana gas pipeline. What followed was a Burmese Army offensive in 1997 to KNU controlled areas to secure more of the area for their business interests. After the arrival of foreign companies and the Yadana gas pipeline the Kamoethway area became a refuge for those fleeing from the gas pipeline area. Later Kamoethway area itself became another target for Burmese troops trying to gain better access to the gas pipeline.
IDPs in Burma: A short summary
Burma has a population of 50 million people, recent estimates place 2 million of those people as Internally Displaced
Persons (IDP). They live precarious and transient lives in the jungles of Burma’s ethnic border areas and in the more urban
central plains. They are denied the stability of having a home and a livelihood and are forced into a constant state of
movement: never having the opportunity to maintain a home, their farms, access to education and medical facilities and
peace of mind...