ULFA militants killed in Indian drone attack on Myanmar
New Delhi: Separatist ULFA militants in northeastern India said the Indian army carried out cross-border… Read More
4 weeks ago
Myanmar
Myanmar, also called Burma, country, located in the western portion of mainland Southeast Asia. In 1989 the country’s official English name, which it had held since 1885, was changed from the Union of Burma to the Union of Myanmar. In 2005 the government began to shift its administrative center, first to the city of Pyinmana and then to Nay Pyi Taw, a newly constructed city near Pyinmana. Nay Pyi Taw was proclaimed the capital of Myanmar in 2006.
Myanmar is primarily a Theravada Buddhist society, with about 89% of the population. Most Burmese are very devout and treat monks with great respect. Under British colonial rule, Burma was the richest country in Southeast Asia, awash in rubies, oil, and valuable timber. Sadly, after decades of mismanagement by post-independence dictators, Myanmar has become one of the poorest nations in the world.
Estimates of the per capita income are unreliable, but it is probably about $230 US. Myanmar’s currency is the kyat. As of February 2014, $1 US = 980 Burmese kyat.
In 2015, the citizens of the country held their first general elections with the National League for Democracy taking the majority in both national parliament chambers and placing Ktin Kyaw as the first elected non-military president since the coup of ’62. A prime minister-type role, called the State Counsellor, was established in 2016 and Aung San Suu Kyi took the role.
Hundreds of Myanmar troops, civilians flee across Thai border
BANGKOK: More than 500 civilians and soldiers fled conflict in Myanmar and crossed into Thailand… Read More
4 weeks ago
In Myanmar, internet shutdowns hinder earthquake aid response
BANGKOK: More than a week since a 7.7 magnitude earthquake struck Myanmar, turning buildings into… Read More
4 months ago
Myanmar quake death toll hits 1,000 as international aid starts to arrive
Foreign rescue teams began flying into Myanmar on Saturday to aid the search for survivors… Read More
4 months ago
Myanmar returns first batch of Chinese scam workers to Thailand
MAE SOT, Thailand: Myanmar on Thursday handed over the first batch of hundreds of Chinese… Read More
6 months ago
India seizes 5.5 tonnes of Myanmar meth in ‘biggest’ drug bust
NEW DELHI: India's coast guard said Tuesday they had seized their biggest haul of illicit… Read More
9 months ago
Myanmar led world in landmine victims in 2023: monitor
BANGKOK: Landmines and unexploded munitions claimed more victims in Myanmar than in any other country… Read More
9 months ago
90 Rohingya left ‘stranded’ on Indonesia beach
Human traffickers left dozens of Rohingya refugees, including children, stranded on a shoreline in westernmost… Read More
9 months ago
Thousands of Rohingya flee to Bangladesh from violence in Myanmar, official says
Around 8,000 Rohingya Muslims have fled to Bangladesh in recent months, escaping escalating violence in… Read More
11 months ago
Myanmar displaced now at 3 million: UN
YANGON: The number of displaced people in Myanmar has reached three million, the United Nations… Read More
1 year ago
Myanmar armed group says captured hundreds of junta personnel
BANGKOK: A Myanmar ethnic armed group said on Monday it had captured a military command… Read More
1 year ago
Myanmar records hottest ever April temperature of 48.2C
YANGON: Myanmar recorded its hottest ever April temperature of 48.2 degrees Celsius (118.76 Fahrenheit), authorities… Read More
1 year ago
Myanmar’s detained ex-leader Suu Kyi moved to house arrest
Myanmar's detained former leader and Nobel laureate Aung San Suu Kyi has been moved from… Read More
1 year ago
Myanmar troops retreat as rebels declare control over key town
About 200 Myanmar military personnel withdrew to a bridge to Thailand on Thursday after a… Read More
1 year ago
No bids as house of Myanmar’s Suu Kyi auctioned
YANGON: The lakeside mansion where Myanmar's democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi spent years under… Read More
1 year ago
India says to end Myanmar free border movement
NEW DELHI: India's interior minister said Thursday that he had "recommended the immediate suspension" of… Read More
2 years ago
Myanmar ethnic minority fighters claim control of port town
BANGKOK: Fighters from a Myanmar ethnic minority armed group have seized control of a port… Read More
2 years ago
Myanmar armed ethnic groups claim key northern town
BANGKOK: An armed ethnic alliance in Myanmar claimed late Friday to have taken a northern… Read More
2 years ago
Myanmar pro-democracy fighters battle to take state capital
LOIKAW, Myanmar: Myanmar pro-democracy fighters in a battered pickup truck drive past abandoned and bombed-out… Read More
2 years ago
Myanmar armed group seizes China-Myanmar border crossing
BANGKOK: An ethnic minority armed group in Myanmar has seized control from the country's ruling… Read More
2 years ago