It was perhaps inevitable that the disbursement of billions of kyat to help needy households weather the COVID-19 storm would lead to questions about administrative.
It was perhaps inevitable that the disbursement of billions of kyat to help needy households weather the COVID-19 storm would lead to questions about administrative.
Hopes are rising that elections can soon be held in the nine Rakhine State townships where voting was cancelled on November 8, but the National League for Democracy seems unconvinced.
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Ethnic identity is poised to define the election in the Kachin State capital, where votes from internal migrants and Tatmadaw soldiers could tip the scales in a close race.
BY Hkun Lat
Mobile internet and COVID-19 restrictions have combined to make a free and fair election impossible in Rakhine State, parties say.
The Ta’ang National Liberation Army and Kachin Independence Army have fought side by side for decades, but recent abuses against civilians underscore how communal relations in northern Shan State are shifting as the Ta’ang armed group grows ever stronger.
BY Lawi Weng
Voters in the affluent Yangon township remain enthusiastic about the ruling party, but the insurgent People’s Pioneer Party is pouring resources into the election race.
BY Ye Mon
A township in the low-lying, humid centre of Kayah State is a magnet for parties and candidates looking to splurge cash on a tiny electorate in exchange for an easy win.
The Tatmadaw-backed opposition party has hired a team of young, tech-savvy researchers to monitor what is said about the party online.
People’s Pioneer Party chairperson Thet Thet Khine says the National League for Democracy is “autocratic” and plagued by an overriding fear of offending party leader.
BY AFP
Officials say the number of confirmed COVID-19 cases is decreasing in Rakhine State, but residents are struggling under stay-at-home orders and other restrictions that are pushing up commodity prices.
As COVID-19 cases mount in Yangon, the government has ordered townships to open quarantine centres but is not providing any financial support.
Opinion
Doh Athan
Latest Issue
- December 3, 2020
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Myanmar’s COVID-19 response is at a crossroads, and something has to give
More than two months after they were introduced, residents and officials in Yangon are increasingly ignoring stay-at-home orders, yet the government insists infection rates need to fall before they can be rolled back.
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