NUG vows to block revived Myitsone Dam, warning project sacrifices Myanmar’s "lifeblood" to China

-
Image
Mizzima The National Unity Government (NUG) has issued a stern warning against the military junta’s attempts to restart the long-suspended Myitsone Dam project , characterized by NUG spokesperson U Nay Phone Latt as a desperate move to trade the nation’s “heart and lifeblood” for Chinese backing. Speaking on the “ Reporting to the Public and International Community ” program on 6 January 2026, U Nay Phone Latt declared that any international agreements signed by the “terrorist military junta” are legally void and that investors will be held solely responsible for any subsequent financial losses. The spokesperson detailed catastrophic environmental risks, noting that blocking the natural flow of silt would lead to severe soil degradation across the Ayeyarwady Region and allow seawater intrusion to destroy the agricultural viability of the Delta . Furthermore, the NUG highlighted the lethal threat posed by the dam’s location near the Sagaing Fault ; experts warn that a structural failu...
Post a Comment

Junta minister reports over 300 arrests under Myanmar’s repressive election protection law

-

Mizzima

In an announcement on 6 January 2026, Lieutenant General Tun Tun Naung, the military junta’s Minister of Home Affairs, revealed that 335 individuals have been arrested nationwide under the controversial Election Protection Law.

According to reports in military-controlled media on 7 January, the detainees include 60 women and several minors, all of whom face charges in 240 separate cases for allegedly “obstructing” the ongoing multi-phase general election. This figure marks a sharp escalation in the regime’s crackdown, with over 100 new arrests occurring in just the 20 days since 15 December, as authorities intensify their efforts to suppress any opposition to the polls.

Lt. Gen. Tun Tun Naung, who also serves as the Chair of the Central Committee for Election Period Security, stated that investigations will continue into those involved in “incitement and propaganda” deemed a threat to election security. The enforcement of the law – formally titled the Law on the Protection of Multiparty Democratic General Elections from Obstruction, Disruption, and Destruction – has been particularly severe in the cultural sector.

Several prominent film directors and artists, including Mike Tee, Aung Yay Chan, and Zabu Htun Thet Lwin, were reportedly detained and sentenced for social media activities, such as liking or sharing posts critical of the junta’s election propaganda films.

The Election Protection Law, enacted in late July 2025, carries draconian penalties ranging from three years in prison to the death penalty for acts that result in fatalities.

Human rights organizations, including Fortify Rights, have condemned the legislation as a tool of state repression used to silence dissent and legitimize a “sham” electoral process.

Observers argue that by criminalizing peaceful criticism and even minor social media interactions, the junta is effectively disenfranchising the population and ensuring an environment of fear during the second phase of voting scheduled for 11 January.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

World's longest internet shutdown ends in parts of Myanmar

-
Image
Rakhine people travel by motorcycle in Sittwe, Rakhine State, Western Myanmar, 02 February 2021. Photo: Nyunt Win/EPA By AFP The world's longest internet shutdown -- affecting more than a million people for 19 months in one of Myanmar's ethnic conflict zones -- has come to an end, according to a mobile operator based in the region. The internet in parts of Myanmar's troubled northern states of Rakhine and Chin was suspended in June 2019 following "emergency" orders issued by the telecoms department under Aung San Suu Kyi's civilian government. Following Monday's military coup, mobile operator Telenor Group confirmed it had reinstated full services in eight townships in Rakhine and Chin states on Wednesday. "Telenor Group and Telenor Myanmar have been advocating for the restoration of services and emphasised that freedom of expression through access to telecoms services should be maintained for humanitarian purposes," the company said in a stateme...
Read more

First ministerial meeting held

-
Image
Mizzima Myanmar held the first meeting among newly appointed ministers after a recent major cabinet reshuffle by the military in capital city of Nay Pyi Taw on Tuesday morning, according to a release from the Military True News Information Team Xinhua reported. The Commander-in-Chief of Defence Services Senior General Min Aung Hlaing, acting President U Myint Swe and nine newly appointed union ministers were present at the meeting held at the Presidential Palace, the release said. Min Aung Hlaing unveiled plans to include reopening religious buildings and pagodas, resuming domestic travel and hotel businesses as well as industries in line with COVID-19 rules and regulations, and revitalizing the country's economy.
Read more

Indonesia detains British woman on terror suspect list

-
Image
File photo of Indonesian police personnel standing guard. (Photo: AFP) AFP Indonesia has detained a British woman named on a list of global terror suspects and plans to deport her for visa violations, authorities told AFP Tuesday. Tazneen Miriam Sailar -- a Manchester-born convert to Islam married to an Indonesian jihadist who was killed in Syria -- is not charged with terror offences. But she and her late husband are on an Indonesian police list of suspected extremists that includes several foreigners notorious in the West. Sailar, 47, and her 10-year-old Indonesia-born son, were being held in Jakarta after being picked up last year without documents allowing her to remain in the Southeast Asian nation, her lawyer Farid Ghozali said. "She was put (in detention) while awaiting her return, which will be facilitated by the British embassy," Indonesian immigration directorate spokesman Ahmad Nursaleh told AFP. The embassy declined to comment, and it was unclear when...
Read more