Social development
Human rights
Unionists arrested by undercover police out on bail
Two unionists jailed since February 2 have been released on bail by the Kompong Speu Provincial Court in Cambodia, officials said on 10 March, although they remain charged with incitement and intentional violence in connection with a protest outside the Cerie garment factory. Keep reading ...
Re-elected TJA president warns of less media freedom
The challenge to press freedom is still of concern this year, said the re-elected president of the Thai Journalists Association on 4 March. Keep reading ...
Environmental campaigner convicted of forestry crime
A prominent anti-dam activist in Cambodia’s Koh Kong province who has been jailed since October was convicted on 3 March of illegal logging and given a suspended prison sentence, allowing him to walk free but leaving the shadow of a criminal conviction hanging over him. The decision ...
IDPs must not be forgotten in wake of elections: UN
United Nations representatives are continuing to pressure Myanmar on the international stage over its treatment of Muslim minorities and internally displaced people. A high-ranking UN official who recently toured IDP camps in Rakhine, Kachin and Shan states on 2 March spoke of his “heartbreaking” experiences. John Ging, director ...
Thai celebrities join UNHCR campaign to support Myanmar refugees
Well-known Thai actor Saharat “Kong” Sangkapricha and actress and model Priya “Pu” Suandokmai have joined a UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) fundraising project that highlights the plight of Myanmar’s displaced in Thailand. The campaign, called “Namjai for Refugees,” aims to assist over 120,000 Myanmar refugees currently living ...
Index stresses risk of violence
The ruling Cambodian People’s Party’s (CPP) popularity will continue to wane, and change is on the horizon for Cambodia, although that change could be violent, according to the Bertelsmann Transformation Index (BTI) 2016 report. The BTI has been published every two years since 2006, monitoring countries’ progress ...
Questions for rights body as NLD prepares to take office
In what many have hailed as a new dawn in terms of respect for human rights in Myanmar with the coming to power of a National League for Democracy government, some activists are questioning how much, and how soon, anything is going to change. The focus is ...
Refugees trickle home as TNLA reports more clashes
Fighting flared in northern Shan State on 7 February and while tensions remain high between the belligerents – the Restoration Council of the Shan State/Shan State Army-South (RCSS/SSA), the Ta’ang National Liberation Army (TNLA) and the Tatmadaw – clashes have only been sporadic in the ...
Volunteer vessel to monitor for migrants in Andaman Sea
A ship, two rescue boats and a fleet of drones will be deployed in the Andaman Sea on 3 March to comb for migrants and monitor for smuggling vessels – and respond in case of a crisis. The Migrant Offshore Aid Station was launched by an ...
Myanmar Government ignores Amnesty report on rights abuses
The Myanmar government has said it will not respond to Amnesty International’s annual report, in which the rights group on 25 February criticised it for failing to address religious discrimination and human rights abuses. The report also alleged there was an ongoing climate of impunity for ...
