Myanmar flood death toll hits 100, one million affected

The death toll from severe flooding across Myanmar has topped 100, state media reported Monday, with nearly one million people affected as fears intensify for the country’s crucial rice bowl region.
Floods from a heavy monsoon season have cut through swathes of South and Southeast Asia in recent weeks, claiming hundreds of lives and displacing millions.

Myanmar, one of Asia’s most impoverished countries, has been hit particularly hard by weeks of torrential rain with 12 out of 14 states and regions suffering flooding. International aid has been stepped up in recent days following an official government request for help.

The Global New Light of Myanmar newspaper Monday gave updated government figures, of “more than 100″ dead and “nearly one million” people affected nationwide by the inundations. More than 1.2 million acres (486,000 hectares) of rice fields are currently under water, with more than 430,000 acres destroyed by the floods, the paper added.

Four regions have been designated disaster zones, with the cyclone-battered western state of Rakhine particularly hard hit. In recent days fears have grown for rising waters in the the more downstream areas of the Irrawaddy basin and its delta, two key agricultural areas close to the commercial hub Yangon.

Citing the weather bureau, the Global New Light of Myanmar said river levels had dropped slightly on Sunday but “still remained above their designated danger levels”. Myanmar’s previous junta government was accused of indifference in its sluggish response to Cyclone Nargis in May 2008, a crisis which at least 138,000 people dead or missing.

The country is set for a general election in November and the floods have taken on a political dimension, with both the quasi-civilian government and opposition — led by Aung San Suu Kyi — at pains to show they are reacting speedily to the floods.

President Thein Sein was pictured visiting relief efforts on Sunday in the Irrawaddy region as army chief Min Aung Hlaing made trips to the western states of Sagaing and Chin. But many of those hit by the flooding appear not to be relying on government help, either trying to cope alone or turning to local monasteries or community groups.

Authorities have insisted that the election set for November 8 will go ahead despite the floods, even as they try to assess the scale of the damage.

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Myanmar flood death toll hits 100, one million affected

The death toll from severe flooding across Myanmar has topped 100, state media reported Monday, with nearly one million people affected as fears intensify for the country’s crucial rice bowl region.
Floods from a heavy monsoon season have cut through swathes of South and Southeast Asia in recent weeks, claiming hundreds of lives and displacing millions.

Myanmar, one of Asia’s most impoverished countries, has been hit particularly hard by weeks of torrential rain with 12 out of 14 states and regions suffering flooding. International aid has been stepped up in recent days following an official government request for help.

The Global New Light of Myanmar newspaper Monday gave updated government figures, of “more than 100″ dead and “nearly one million” people affected nationwide by the inundations. More than 1.2 million acres (486,000 hectares) of rice fields are currently under water, with more than 430,000 acres destroyed by the floods, the paper added.

Four regions have been designated disaster zones, with the cyclone-battered western state of Rakhine particularly hard hit. In recent days fears have grown for rising waters in the the more downstream areas of the Irrawaddy basin and its delta, two key agricultural areas close to the commercial hub Yangon.

Citing the weather bureau, the Global New Light of Myanmar said river levels had dropped slightly on Sunday but “still remained above their designated danger levels”. Myanmar’s previous junta government was accused of indifference in its sluggish response to Cyclone Nargis in May 2008, a crisis which at least 138,000 people dead or missing.

The country is set for a general election in November and the floods have taken on a political dimension, with both the quasi-civilian government and opposition — led by Aung San Suu Kyi — at pains to show they are reacting speedily to the floods.

President Thein Sein was pictured visiting relief efforts on Sunday in the Irrawaddy region as army chief Min Aung Hlaing made trips to the western states of Sagaing and Chin. But many of those hit by the flooding appear not to be relying on government help, either trying to cope alone or turning to local monasteries or community groups.

Authorities have insisted that the election set for November 8 will go ahead despite the floods, even as they try to assess the scale of the damage.

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Myanmar student protesters clash with riot police

Myanmar student protesters clash with riot police

Student protesters in Myanmar have clashed with riot police in Letpadan, 140km (90 miles) north of Yangon. Several hundred students began trying to break through police lines which prevented them continuing a march south. Police are reported to have hit the students with batons and detained some.

The students say they want changes to be made to a new bill which they say centralises control over higher education. Tensions have been rising in Letpadan since last week, after police gave them a deadline to disperse.

But there had been reports of negotiations between the two sides, and earlier on Tuesday a breakthrough agreement was announced, granting the students permission to continue on their journey to their final destination - Yangon, Myanmar's biggest city and former capital.

Myanmar's Irrawaddy newspaper reported that despite this deal, conflict broke out when authorities refused to allow student flags to be hoisted. Some 200 students attempted to push through several hundred police officers and several fainted or cut themselves on the barbed wire barricades, the newspaper said.

Several were dragged into trucks, AP news agency reported. Some were chased into a Buddhist monastery where they have been taking refuge, according to Reuters.  "Many have been beaten and some have been arrested, including many female students,'' one student protester, Honey Oo, told AP.

The changes to the new education law that the students are calling for include decentralising the school system, giving students the right to form unions and teaching in ethnic minority languages. The group began their march in Mandalay in January and have been halted in Letpadan for more than a week where police blocked their path with vehicles and barbed wire barricades.

Some of the protesters and their supporters were also arrested earlier in the week. Five students were reportedly detained in Letpadan on Friday but have since been released, and eight were detained and later freed in Yangon.

Young Burmese have been at the forefront of several protests in Myanmar over the years, including a notorious 1988 uprising against the former ruling junta.

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Myanmar student protesters clash with riot police

Myanmar student protesters clash with riot police

Student protesters in Myanmar have clashed with riot police in Letpadan, 140km (90 miles) north of Yangon. Several hundred students began trying to break through police lines which prevented them continuing a march south. Police are reported to have hit the students with batons and detained some.

The students say they want changes to be made to a new bill which they say centralises control over higher education. Tensions have been rising in Letpadan since last week, after police gave them a deadline to disperse.

But there had been reports of negotiations between the two sides, and earlier on Tuesday a breakthrough agreement was announced, granting the students permission to continue on their journey to their final destination - Yangon, Myanmar's biggest city and former capital.

Myanmar's Irrawaddy newspaper reported that despite this deal, conflict broke out when authorities refused to allow student flags to be hoisted. Some 200 students attempted to push through several hundred police officers and several fainted or cut themselves on the barbed wire barricades, the newspaper said.

Several were dragged into trucks, AP news agency reported. Some were chased into a Buddhist monastery where they have been taking refuge, according to Reuters.  "Many have been beaten and some have been arrested, including many female students,'' one student protester, Honey Oo, told AP.

The changes to the new education law that the students are calling for include decentralising the school system, giving students the right to form unions and teaching in ethnic minority languages. The group began their march in Mandalay in January and have been halted in Letpadan for more than a week where police blocked their path with vehicles and barbed wire barricades.

Some of the protesters and their supporters were also arrested earlier in the week. Five students were reportedly detained in Letpadan on Friday but have since been released, and eight were detained and later freed in Yangon.

Young Burmese have been at the forefront of several protests in Myanmar over the years, including a notorious 1988 uprising against the former ruling junta.

Continue Reading