One of Myanmar’s most prominent investigative journalists was granted bail on Monday after being charged with insulting a Buddhist monk who praised the killer of a Muslim government lawyer. Police detained Swe Win at Yangon airport on Sunday evening as he tried to fly to Bangkok, claiming that he might evade a defamation charge leveled … Read more
Hundreds of Myanmar farmers entered a seventh day of protest over land grabs on Wednesday, demanding the government return seized fields and protect them from a surge in prosecutions over property disputes. Land ownership is one of the most contentious issues in formerly junta-run Myanmar, where the army is accused of rampantly confiscating land during … Read more
Myanmar’s military released 67 child soldiers on Friday, its first discharge this year as part of a slow process to end decades of forced recruitment of underage fighters that began under the former junta. There are no concrete figures on how many children are still among the estimated 500,000 troops that serve in Myanmar’s military … Read more
Myanmar’s top Buddhist body has ordered hardline group Ma Ba Tha to remove all public displays, according to a document seen by AFP on Tuesday, a move aimed at curbing the movement’s influence amid rising Islamophobia. Myanmar is gripped by deepening religious tensions that have repeatedly spilled into violence, partially attributed to anti-Muslim rhetoric spread … Read more
Skidding and screeching across the concrete the young bikers perform a carefully choreographed dance of gravity-defying stunts, a dazzling display of Myanmar’s thriving youth culture on the streets of its biggest city. Every week dozens of them gather near Yangon’s golden Shwedagon pagoda to practise tricks under the night sky, one of many sports gaining … Read more