International
Myanmar: Drilling for a Dream in Myanmar
May 24, 2017
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Adam Dean, New York Times
Nga Naung Mone is one of three oil fields near the town of Minhla, in south central Myanmar, and the largest by far. The others,…
Afghanistan: USAID Hosts Women’s Agriculture Credit Shura to Improve Lives and Livelihoods of Afghan Women Farmers
May 24, 2017
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USAID
One of the most difficult challenges for women farmers and agriculture-related business owners in Afghanistan is the access to credit for their agriculture operations, and…
Afghanistan: Death to Land Grabbers: Protestors
May 24, 2017
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Afghanistan Times
A large number of Logar residents on Wednesday took out to the streets to give vent to their anger against the evil practice of land…
Afghanistan: Afghanistan's Beautiful 'Green Zone' Offers Emeralds, Peace
May 23, 2017
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Fox News, Hollie McKay
It has been dubbed Afghanistan's Green Zone: A pocket of paradise amid the bloody, conflict-ravaged country -- both a hidden gem and full of gems.…
Cambodia/Myanmar/Vietnam: Land Disputes Cloud Fast-Developing Cambodia, Vietnam and Myanmar
May 22, 2017
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Straits Times
In countries like Cambodia, Vietnam and Myanmar, where weak legal systems are often accompanied by land tenures that are insecure, or difficult to obtain, tens…
Malawi/Mozambique: Water Wars Worry Lake Chiuta Fishers
May 22, 2017
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James Chavula, The Nation
Malawian fishers on Lake Chiuta have lamented frequent armed attacks from their Mozambican neighbours despite efforts to end the conflict. The communities surrounding the 200-square-kilometre…
Iraq/Kurdistan: Boundary between Iraq, Kurdish Territory Divides Communities
May 22, 2017
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Balint Szlanko, Associated Press
Since 2014, Iraq’s Kurds have expanded the territory they control by about half at the expense of Iraq. The status of some of these areas,…
Myanmar: Committee Will Probe Khamti Jade Mine Conflict
May 20, 2017
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Aung Ko Oo, Mizzima
An inquiry has been launched to look in to the conflicts that happened on May 17 between the local police force and jade scavengers in…
Colombia: Major Politicians in Colombia Accused of Illegal Land Grabbing
May 20, 2017
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Michelle Begue, CGTN
Former Colombian President, Alvaro Uribe Velez has been accused of accumulating land meant for less fortunate farmers.The Comptroller General’s report, which compiled evidence from 2013…
Liberia: CFMB, CFDC Union Want Lawmakers Pass Land Rights Bill
May 19, 2017
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Robin Dopoe, Liberian Observer
The continued delay by lawmakers to pass into law the 2014 Land Rights Bill, which calls for the protection of community land, among other things,…
South Sudan: NGO Blames Water Pollution in S.Sudan on Oil Company
May 19, 2017
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Daniel Pelz, Detusche Welle
Drinking water around an oil-producing area in South Sudan is heavily polluted. A German NGO puts the blame on Malaysian oil company Petronas. It has…
Sudan/South Sudan: S. Sudan Calls for Pushing Sudan on Resolving Abyei Issue
May 19, 2017
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Xinhua
South Sudan on Friday called on the UN to push Sudan on quickly resolving the issues on the status of the contested oil-rich Abyei region…
Myanmar: Report: Burma Rapidly Losing Forest Cover
May 19, 2017
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Irrawaddy
Satellite imagery indicates that intact forest cover in Burma has declined rapidly over the last decade, according to a study. A countrywide analysis of Landsat…
Myanmar: Mandalay Division Govt Takes Tough Line on Illegal Logging
May 19, 2017
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Myat Pyae Phyo, Irrawaddy
Mandalay Division government will crack down on illegal logging in the area, said division minister for planning and finance U Myat Thu. The divisional government…
Colombia: Rebel Road Expansion Brings Deforestation to Remote Colombian Amazon
May 19, 2017
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Taran Volckhausen, Mongabay
Encouraged by the Colombian peace process promising infrastructure advancement across the country, local citizens and municipal governments of Miraflores and Guaviare have started construction to expand…
Morrocco/Western Sahara: Morocco Phosphate Ship Held in Panama over Western Sahara challenge: Officials
May 18, 2017
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Patrick Markey, Reuters
Panama authorities have detained a Moroccan phosphate shipment from the disputed territory of Western Sahara after the Polisario independence movement claimed the cargo had been…
Myanmar: Screening Cancelled of Film Showing Army’s Role in Jade Trade
May 17, 2017
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Irrawaddy
The screening of a new documentary showing Burma’s jade industry as a driving force behind the country’s armed conflict was cancelled on Wednesday after Park…
Myanmar: Myanmar's Extensive Forests Are Declining Rapidly Due to Political and Economic Change
May 17, 2017
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Phys.org
Due to its long political and economic isolation, Myanmar has retained much of its original forest cover but much of the intact forest is unprotected…
China/Vietnam/South China Sea: China Deploys Anti-Diver Rocket Launchers to Man-Made Island in South China Sea: Report
May 17, 2017
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Jesse Johnson, Japan Times
China has deployed anti-frogmen rocket launchers intended to fend off Vietnamese intrusions on one of its man-made islands in the contested South China Sea, Chinese…
Iraq/Kurdistan: Iraqi official: Kurdish Black Forces at North Oil Company Seek ‘Political’ Gains
May 17, 2017
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Rudaw
Iraq’s oil ministry has stated that the Black Force units deployed to the Kirkuk’s state-run oil company in early March are seeking “political” gains and…
Nigeria: The Water Wars in Northeast Nigeria
May 17, 2017
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Ahmad Salkida, Sahara Reporters
In northern parts of Borno and Yobe, the raging water scarcity has led to the creation of new "water culture." The Lake Chad region is…
Myanmar: Startling Photos Capture Myanmar’s $31 Billion Jade Mining Industry [Photos]
May 17, 2017
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Laura Mallonee, Wired
The rolling hills of Kachin state in northern Myanmar hold the finest jade in all the world. The best stones command hundreds of thousands of dollars…
Myanmar: As Myanmar Democratizes, Women’s Rights Lag Behind
May 16, 2017
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Mike Ives, New York Times
Change is coming to Myanmar as it transitions to democracy. But when it comes to protecting women from violence, the needle has barely budged. Myanmar…
Making the Environment an Ally for Peace: Q&A with Erik Solheim
May 15, 2017
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Jimena Leiva Roesch, IPI GLobal Observatory
Policymakers need to better connect environmental management with respect for other important social values, according to United Nations Environment Executive Director Erik Solheim, who highlighted…
Myanmar: New Documentary Sheds Light on Link between Gems and War in Myanmar
May 15, 2017
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Euan Black, Globe
Produced by the UK-based NGO Global Witness, ‘Jade and the Generals’ follows the group’s undercover investigation in 2015, which revealed the gem trade to be…
Myanmar: 80 Myanmar and Thai NGOs Condemn Legal Action over Tanintharyi Tin Mine Report
May 15, 2017
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Frontier Myanmar
Eighty NGOs, including 56 from Myanmar, have condemned a Thai company’s decision to sue a reporter with Bangkok’s Nation newspaper over a report about a…
China/Vietnam/South China Sea: China, Vietnam Agree to Keep South China Sea Tensions in Check
May 15, 2017
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Reuters
China and Vietnam will manage and properly control their maritime disputes, avoiding actions to complicate or widen them, so as to maintain peace in the…
Sudan/South Sudan: UN Gives Sudan and South Sudan 6 Months for Abyei Monitoring
May 15, 2017
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Edith M. Lederer, Associated Press
The U.N. Security Council agreed unanimously late Monday that the stalemate between Sudan and South Sudan over the status of the oil-rich region of Abyei…
Afghanistan: Land-Grabbing Still in Practice in Logar
May 15, 2017
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Abdul Maqsud Azizi, Pajhwok
Tens of thousands of acres of land has been usurped by powerful individuals and ordinary people in central Logar province, a practice still ongoing, officials…
Myanmar: The Struggle to Save Arakan’s Mangroves
May 13, 2017
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Myanmar Now
Until fairly recently, the residents of Kan Ngu, a coastal village in southern Arakan State, considered the mangroves in their area simply as another source…