Internal Affairs

  Myanmar expects to hold new general elections in the second half of 2023, Commander-in-Chief of Defence Services, Sen-Gen Min Aung Hlaing, chair of the newly formed State Administration Council, said, in his televised message to the public today. “The constitution states, according to subsection (b) of Section 421, if one cannot accomplish the duties within one year of the emergency period, it permits only two extensions of the prescribed duration for a term of six months for each extension. In the meantime, we have to do the things that should be done. Then, we will take six months, by

Myanmar’s Foreign Affairs Ministry, yesterday further extended the entry restrictions for all travellers, to the end of Aug, amid the COVID-19 pandemic. The entry of all travellers, the issuance of all types of visas and visa exemption services, will be suspended until Aug 31. According to the ministry, foreign nationals, including diplomats and UN officials, who wish to travel to Myanmar by relief or special flights, due to urgent official missions or compelling reasons, are asked to contact the Myanmar mission for possible exceptions to certain visa restrictions. Meanwhile, the Ministry of Transport and Communication also issued a further extension

SEOUL, SOUTH KOREA – In less than two weeks, Courtney Frerichs will face off in Tokyo against some of the world’s fastest runners. But like every elite athlete preparing for the Summer Olympics, her focus is not only on preparing to compete. Frerichs, …

Singapore’s tourism board said on Wednesday that a cruise ship operated by Genting Cruise Lines on a so-called cruise to nowhere had returned to the city-state after a 40-year-old passenger was suspected to have contracted COVID-19. “The passenger was …

Madam President, distinguished members of the Human Rights Council:In the five months since the government of Myanmar was overthrown in an illegal coup, two interlocking patterns have emerged:First, the military junta’s widespread, systematic attacks a…

The Human Rights Council this afternoon held an interactive dialogue with Tom Andrews, the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Myanmar, who said that the people of Myanmar were working to save their country, but desperately needed th…

— The UN Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Myanmar, Tom Andrews, today called for the urgent formation of an “Emergency Coalition for the People of Myanmar” to stop what he described as the military junta’s “reign of terror” in t…

BANGKOK – The decision by Myanmar’s junta leader Min Aung Hlaing to visit Russia before next-door neighbor China highlights his military’s easier relations with Moscow and hopes of drawing the Kremlin closer to avoid relying on Beijing alone, analysts …