The SPDC recently announced (again) that the National Coalition Government of Burma (NCGB - in exile), the All Burma Students' Democratic Front and the Shan State Army are illegal. Any and all members of said organizations and their leaders are subject to arrest and imprisonment.

In other news, the sky is blue and pigs can't fly.

Rumours began circulating last week that there was a coup in Burma. Not a coup to be particularly excited about, mind you, as it was suspected the Junta's number two man, Maung Aye, had ousted General Than Shwe - who himself had seized power in an overthrow of General Khin Nyunt. But, as far as news goes, a coup is nothing to shake a stick at. For a few days at least, news agencies and the Thai intelligence were all abuzz trying get confirmation. Except for the paper which ran the original story, (which I haven't found, by the way) few Burma watchers ever believed it was true. Although unusual fluctuations in the exchange rate and price of gold in Burma did give some pause - it seems merely that the rumor was wreaking a bit of havoc in Yangon as well.   more »

The worst flood in 40 years hit Chiang Mai and the north of Thailand this weekend, and even yours truly and her cat are now staying with friends. The area from the Night Bazaar to the Airport was one of the hardest hit in Chiang Mai, being inundated with up to two meters of murky scummy river water in the deepest places. The flood lasted about two and half days, with the clean-up effort already begun yesterday. As a prime tourist destination, the government will be quick to clean up and restore order. With damages estimated at about 1 billion baht, the hardest hit will be small businesses, and workers in the night bazaar. Many of the workers in the night bazaar are fearing wage cuts, and loss of income from commissions. Its doubtful they'll be able to access official releif efforts without legal papers and id cards. Although I wouldn't be surprised if the the government issues emergency loans and funding to their employers to get their businesses up an running again. We'll just have to wait and see what will happen to the workers. I've also been told that an exiled Burmese human rights organization has also been hit hard by the flooding, their office being near the river and the Night Bazaar. Again, they won't be able to access official channels for releif, and must rely on the generosity of friends.   more »

The Salween dam, a proposed joint venture between Thailand and Burma, is back on the agenda after the Electricity Generating Authority of Thailand (EGAT), has decided it's a good idea. There are innumerable reasons as to why this is the stupidest thing the Thai government has done of late, and I expect to be expounding on them in the future. In fact, it is an assigment I'm giving myself for the blog. So stay tuned. In the meantime, read more:

From Scorched Earth To Flooded Earth: The Generals' Dam On Burma's Salween River

Signature campaign to oppose the Salween Dam