Fine Phayre – The Irrawaddy
YANGON - Rip-Off Rangoon, where a plate of Lok Lak about half as good as you'd get in Phnom Penh costs US$10. Where a handful of veneered restaurants and bars…
A new man readies for office in Indonesia – The Irrawaddy
JAKARTA - While Widodo didn't spend very long in office in Jakarta – a job described by some as the 3rd most powerful in Indonesia, he did enough to convince…
Ladies in the slow lane – The Edge Review
YANGON - It was hot Tuesday evening just before the start of the Myanmar's rainy season, and Ni Ni Shein sat in her car, the engine running, next to Junction…
Unclear whether Aung San Suu Kyi will attend Sittwe reform rally – The Irrawaddy
RANGOON — Aung San Suu Kyi’s constitutional reform roadshow is due to hit Sittwe sometime over the coming weeks, but it is not yet confirmed whether the opposition leader will…
Burma factories warn of rise in strikes fueled by activists – The Irrawaddy
RANGOON — Representatives of Burma’s garment-makers say that prominent former political prisoners are getting involved in labor disputes, and warn that more strikes are likely in the run up to…
Burmese Govt urges foreign investors to ‘take the plunge’ – The Irrawaddy
http://www.irrawaddy.org/business/burmese-govt-urges-foreign-investors-take-plunge.html Through a new “one-stop” office in Rangoon, the country’s investment body is looking to make it easier for international firms to enter the frontier economy. RANGOON — Despite lingering…
Ceasefire talks make progress despite Kachin war – The Irrawaddy
http://www.irrawaddy.org/burma/ceasefire-talks-progress-despite-kachin-war.html RANGOON — As representatives of Burma’s government and ethnic militias met this week to finish a second draft of a proposed nationwide ceasefire accord, it appeared that negotiations were…
Water supply strains to meet demands of growing Rangoon – The Irrawaddy
http://www.irrawaddy.org/feature/water-supply-strains-meet-demands-growing-rangoon.html RANGOON — As the noontime temperature soared into the high 30s, Tin Oo helped sister Nyaunt Myint, 70, onto a timber bench in the front yard of the family’s…
Air safety to be tested as Burma readies for tourism boom – The Irrawaddy
http://www.irrawaddy.org/burma/air-safety-tested-burma-braces-tourism-boom.html RANGOON — As Burma’s economy grows and tourist arrivals rise, aviation safety will be increasingly put to the test in a country long ago described as Southeast Asia’s air…
New film law on the way for Burma – The Irrawaddy
http://www.irrawaddy.org/burma/burmas-govt-drafting-new-film-law.html RANGOON — Burma’s Ministry of Information (MOI) is hoping to have a draft Motion Picture Law submitted to Parliament by the end of this year, with the country’s erstwhile…