People and government

In the midst of a stand-off with local authorities, anti-drug campaign group Pat Ja San is lobbying the National League for Democracy to address the issue of opium poppy cultivation in parliament. The Christian drug-fighting vigilantes – notorious for their hardline tactics – have been encamped ...

Health officials are to continue their polio vaccination campaign beyond the official end of the program, which was on 22 February, as it emerged that even in downtown Yangon less than half the under-fives eligible had been inoculated. The US$4 million Supplementary Polio Immunisation Campaign targeted 4.6 ...

The spectre of drought is already hanging over a Mandalay township, where villagers are being forced to pay K50,000 per load of water as their wells dry up. Taungtha township, Mandalay Region, has been facing water shortages as nearby lakes and wells go dry, said Ko ...

It is officially described as the best-preserved city in Southeast Asia, a bygone seat of kings tucked into a remote river valley of Laos. Luang Prabang weaves a never-never land spell on many a visitor with its tapestry of French colonial villas and Buddhist temples draped ...

An umbrella organisation of ethnic armed groups has formed a five-member team to help negotiate an end to fighting in northern Shan State that has forced up to 5000 people to flee their homes. The United Nationalities Federal Council formed the team at a four-day emergency ...

Five foreigners accused of multiple offences of fraud involving the use of fake bank cards or electronic equipment to withdraw cash can be tried together, Yangon Region’s High Court has decided. The decision means that the cases of a British man and four Indian citizens will ...

Construction of the controversial Bt14-billion Chao Phraya Landmark project is expected to start early next year, according to a source close to the project. The source also said on 21 February that Deputy Prime Minister and Defence Minister Prawit Wongsuwan had ordered state radio and TV stations ...

Australians have pledged to continue their support for child development in Laos with a focus on strengthening the quality of primary education. This was the message given by Australian Ambassador to Laos John Williams and officials from Plan International Australia at a reception held on 18 ...

Ho Chi Minh City will need VND13.5 trillion (US$602.678 million) more for its programme to improve water bodies, which started in 2001 with the aim of cleaning up all canals, the People’s Committee has said. Chairman Nguyen Thanh Phong said the money would be used for ...

Human resource development and awareness of self-ownership and self-reliance on the part of local authorities is inadequate and is hindering the progress of grassroots development projects. This finding was reported at a meeting in Vientiane on 19 February to review development progress in areas along the shared ...