10/13/2007 | 12:34 AM
YANGON, Myanmar - Myanmar's military junta rejected a UN statement calling for negotiations with the opposition, insisting Friday that it would follow its own plan to bring democracy to the country.
The impoverished country's main opposition party, however, urged the ruling generals to comply with UN demands for negotiations with pro-democracy forces and ethnic minorities, and the release of political prisoners.
State-run TV and radio issued a statement Friday arguing that conditions inside Myanmar ? a reference to the anti-government protests that were violently suppressed by troops on Sept. 26 and 27 ? were not the concern of the outside world.
"Myanmar's current situation does not affect regional and international stability," said the statement, attributed to Col. Thant Shin. "However, we deeply regret that the UN Security Council has issued a statement contrary to the people's desires." <http://www.gmanews.tv/story/64267/Myanmars-junta-rejects-UN-call-for-negotiations>
10/16/2007 | 05:34 PM
KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia - UN envoy Ibrahim Gambari won a pledge from Malaysia on Tuesday that Southeast Asia will fully support his mission to coax Myanmar's military government to reconcile with the pro-democracy opposition.
On his second stop in a six-nation Asian tour, Gambari met with Malaysian Foreign Minister Syed Hamid Albar, who told him that the 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations wants to see his negotiating work succeed.
Gambari said he was delivering a message to Malaysia about ''the support that the United Nations needs from Asean'' and neighboring countries to address the immediate crisis and also long-term issues like democratization. - AP <http://www.gmanews.tv/story/64670/UN-envoy-to-Myanmar-wins-Malaysias-assurance-of-Asean-support>
10/17/2007 | 07:31 PM
MANILA - A proposed Southeast Asian human rights body is unlikely to be empowered to impose sanctions or take a tough approach to violators like Myanmar, human rights officials said Wednesday.
The Association of Southeast Asian Nations, which includes military-ruled Myanmar, has been hailed for recently deciding to create a regional human rights body under a landmark charter that its heads of state were expected to sign in Singapore next month.
But Asean, noted for deciding issues by consensus and for not intervening in member countries' domestic affairs, would not likely empower the rights body to take punitive actions on any erring member, Southeast Asian human rights officials said.
However, they stressed that Asean's decision to set up the body after years of deliberations was a milestone worth praising.''It has taken more than 10 years just to put it on paper - that's already very positive,'' said Simon Sipaun, vice chairman of Malaysia's Human Rights Commission, on the sidelines of a regional human rights forum in Manila.
Sipaun said he was not optimistic that the proposed body could be established rapidly, or take tough actions against violators, considering many governments in the region ''are not human rights friendly.''
In the 10-nation Asean, only Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines and Thailand have established human rights commission to deal with concerns, with the rest seemingly not prioritizing such an important institution, he said.
Existing human rights institutions were at best advisory bodies. Asean's proposed rights body would not likely have greater powers given the consensus that has to be reached by its diverse members, including Myanmar.
An official of Thailand's Human Rights Commission, Khunying Ambhorn Meesok, doubted whether the proposed ASEAN body could even entertain complaints, saying it would likely be tasked mainly to set up policies, act as an advocate and initiate regional projects to promote human rights.
Philippine Human Rights Commissioner Purificacion Quisumbing said promoting human rights in a diverse region like Southeast Asia is a slow process that should not be rushed.
''Are you going to attack and intervene and send an army there? That's not possible,'' Quisumbing said.Myanmar's military junta said Wednesday it detained nearly 3,000 people during a crackdown on pro-democracy protesters, adding that hundreds remain in custody and that it is still hunting for others. At least 10 people were killed when troops fired into crowds of peaceful protesters last month. - AP <http://www.gmanews.tv/story/64837/Proposed-Asean-rights-body-unlikely-to-get-tough-on-Myanmar-violators>
09/29/2007 | 08:34 AM
YANGON, Myanmar - Soldiers and police took control of the streets Friday, firing warning shots and tear gas to scatter the few pro-democracy protesters who ventured out as Myanmar's military junta sealed off Buddhist monasteries and cut public Internet access.
On the third day of a harsh government crackdown, the streets were empty of the mass gatherings that had peacefully challenged the regime daily for nearly two weeks, leaving only small groups of activists to be chased around by security forces.
"Bloodbath again! Bloodbath again!" a Yangon resident yelled while watching soldiers break up one march by shooting into air, firing tear gas and beating people with clubs.
Thousands of monks had provided the backbone of the protests, but they were besieged in their monasteries, penned in by locked gates and barbed wire surrounding the compounds in the two biggest cities, Yangon and Mandalay. Troops stood guard outside and blocked nearby roads to keep the clergymen isolated.
Many Yangon residents seemed pessimistic over the crackdown, fearing it fatally weakened a movement that began nearly six weeks ago as small protests over fuel price hikes and grew into demonstrations by tens of thousands demanding an end to 45 years of military rule.
The corralling of monks was a serious blow. They carry high moral authority in this predominantly Buddhist nation of 54 million people and the protests had mushroomed when the clergymen joined in. <http://www.gmanews.tv/story/62440/Military-junta-takes-back-control-in-Myanmar>
09/29/2007 | 02:51 PM
Women leaders will write a letter to the government of Myanmar (Burma) to free pro-democracy activist, Aung San Suu Kyi, a Nobel Peace Prize awardee for her non-violent struggle against a military dictatorship in her country.
Presidential spokesman Ignacio Bunye on Saturday said the suggestion to write to the Myanmar government was made by President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo during the third meeting of the Women Leaders Working Group at the United Nations General Assembly in New York City.
?The President suggested that as a women?s group, they write a letter to the Burmese government to free Aung San Suu Kyi. The group agreed," Bunye said in a Blackberry email to Palace reporters.
The group, which includes US Secretary of State Condoleeza Rice, held its meeting with the theme ?Progress on Women?s Empowerment" at New York's Waldorf Hotel?s Empire Suite. - GMANews.TV <http://www.gmanews.tv/story/62477/Worlds-women-leaders-to-press-for-Suu-Kyis-release>
10/09/2007 | 11:31 AM
YANGON, Myanmar - Myanmar's ruling junta said Tuesday it hoped to achieve ''smooth relations'' with detained opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi, a day after suggesting that her release from house arrest was unlikely to happen anytime soon.
The New Light of Myanmar newspaper, a mouthpiece of the junta, printed a brief official announcement on its front page saying that Deputy Labor Minister Aung Kyi had been appointed ''minister for relations'' to coordinate contacts with Suu Kyi, the country's democracy icon. A similar announcement was made the night before on state radio and television.
The appointment was suggested by UN special envoy Ibrahim Gambari during his visit to Myanmar earlier this month, the statement said. It added that the junta had accepted the idea ''in respect of Gambari's recommendation and in view of smooth relations with Daw Aung San Suu Kyi.'' - AP <http://www.gmanews.tv/story/63735/Myanmar-hopes-for-smooth-relations-with-Suu-Kyi>
10/25/2007 | 12:52 PM
UNITED NATIONS - A UN human rights expert says he will demand access to prisons when he visits Myanmar next month and try to determine the number of people killed and detained by the military government in last month's crackdown on peaceful protesters.
''If they don't give me full cooperation, I'll go to the plane, and I'll go out,'' said Paulo Sergio Pinheiro, the UN's independent rights investigator on Myanmar who was given a green light by the government to visit for the first time since November 2003.
Pinheiro said at a news conference Wednesday that he plans to visit Myanmar, also known as Burma, immediately after UN envoy Ibrahim Gambari, whose return trip has been moved up to the first week in November. The UN hopes Gambari's visit will ''kick-start'' talks between the government and opposition.
The UN Human Rights Council had urged an immediate investigation of the rights situation in Myanmar at an emergency session on Oct. 2 where it condemned the crackdown on the demonstrators. The government informed Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon that Pinheiro could visit before the Nov. 17 summit of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations.
''My task is to offer an honest, complex, objective picture of ... the immediate origins of the crisis, the crisis itself, the excessive use of force,'' Pinheiro said.''I will be particularly concerned to verify the numbers, whereabouts and conditions of those currently detained, as well as an accounting for the numbers killed during the protests,'' he said during an earlier briefing to the General Assembly committee that deals with human rights. <http://www.gmanews.tv/story/65848/UN-rights-expert-wants-free-access-in-Myanmar-prisons>
10/26/2007 | 08:38 PM
YANGON, Myanmar - At least 70 people detained by the military government following protests in Myanmar - including 50 members of pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi's party - have been released, a party spokesman said Friday.
The detainees were released Thursday from the infamous Insein Prison in Yangon, said Nyan Win, the National League for Democracy party spokesman.
Among those released was an executive of the NLD, Hla Pe, Nyan Win said, adding that at least 250 NLD members remained in detention.
The government had earlier said it detained about 3,000 suspected dissidents in connection with last month's pro-democracy demonstrations but have released most of them. There are many reports they have been mistreated in custody.
Pressure has been mounting on the junta since the crackdown to release political detainees. The UN Security Council issued its first-ever statement on Myanmar earlier this month, condemning the clampdown and calling for the release of all political prisoners.
Meanwhile, hundreds of riot police, armed with assault rifles and tear gas, moved into position at sites in the country's largest city where protesters staged a bloody, pro-democracy demonstration a month ago.
The sudden show of force in Yangon after several weeks of relative quiet appeared aimed at forestalling any protests to mark the one-month anniversary of a key day in the anti-regime uprising by Buddhist monks, activists and ordinary citizens angry at the country's entrenched junta. <http://www.gmanews.tv/story/66043/70-detainees-freed---Myanmar-opposition-party>
A senior US diplomat has held talks with Burmese government ministers in Beijing, in the first such high-level meeting since 2003. The US pressed for the release of the democracy activist, Aung San Suu Kyi. Ms Suu Kyi, 61, has spent 11 of the last 18 years in detention. Her latest period of house arrest began in 2003. Washington described the discussions as frank but that there was no sign the Burmese military government had changed its basic opinions. <http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/6251872.stm>
The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) has publicly denounced what it says are major human rights abuses by Burma's military government. In a highly unusual departure from its normally neutral stance, the ICRC said the actions of Burmese authorities were causing immense suffering to thousands. The group accuses the regime of using detainees as army porters, and abusing people living along the Thai border. It says Burmese officials have refused to discuss the abuse, or take action. This statement is the harshest public criticism from the Swiss-based ICRC since it denounced the genocide in Rwanda more than a decade ago, the BBC's Imogen Foulkes in Geneva says. The continuing deadlock... has led the ICRC to take the exceptional step of making its concerns public It is a sign that the organisation, which prides itself on the results it can achieve in confidential discussions with governments, thinks there is little to hope for from Burma's military rulers, our correspondent adds. The criticisms came as the US and Burma (Myanmar) held their highest-level meeting since 2003. <http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/6252024.stm>
One of the leaders of fuel price protests in Burma has been arrested by the military junta following a manhunt across the country's Yangon region.Htin Kyaw, 44, who has been detained three times this year for protesting over living standards, was beaten as he was seized on Saturday, witnesses said. Mr Kyaw had apparently been planning another protest before his arrest. <http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/6964282.stm>
Pro-democracy activists in Burma's main city, Rangoon, have taken part in demonstrations against the recent increase in the price of fuel.The BBC News website asked people in Burma (Myanmar), and Burmese living abroad, for their views on how the fuel price rise affects daily life and whether the protests will make a difference. <http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/6960273.stm>
Burma's military leaders have freed an activist whose leg was broken when he was arrested during a demonstration, activists say.
Ye Thein Naing was detained last month at a protest against a fuel price hike.The apparently conciliatory gesture comes a day after Buddhist monks briefly took about 20 state officials hostage, after clashes at a protest.
Burma's state media blamed the unrest on external groups and said it would not tolerate destabilising acts.
Dozens of people have been detained at small protests around the country since the government decided to double the price of fuel on 15 August. <http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/6982932.stm>
By Soe Win Than
BBC Burmese Service
Many people in Burma have been surprised by the sheer persistence of the protests in recent weeks.In a country where the authorities show zero tolerance of even the slightest criticism, such public displays of defiance have not been seen for almost 20 years. These protests stem from a decision by the military government to suddenly raise the price of fuel by up to five times on 15 August.
Transport fares rose and that triggered a sharp rise in the price of consumer goods, hitting poor people particularly hard. <http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/6992923.stm>
Military officials in Burma have used tear gas to disperse hundreds of monks holding a rally in the city of Sittwe, reports from the area say.
Witnesses said some demonstrators were beaten and several were arrested. <http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/7000269.stm>
Hundreds of Buddhist monks have marched around Burma's most revered temple, in a third consecutive day of protests against the military government. <http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/7004074.stm>
By Andrew Harding
BBC News, Rangoon
Buddhist monks may be able to protest in the streets of Burma, but other pro-democracy activists risk being labelled as "terrorists" and arrested by the authorities. Activist Nilar Thein has been on the run for one month. <http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/programmes/from_our_own_correspondent/7006506.stm>
Burma's opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi has greeted Buddhist monks protesting against the military junta.Apparently unable to hold her tears, Aung San Suu Kyi came out of the house she has been detained in since 2003 as the monks were let through a roadblock. <http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/7008217.stm>
Tens of thousands of monks and civilians in Burma's main city Rangoon have defied military warnings and staged new anti-government protests.
Some chanted "we want dialogue", others simply shouted "democracy, democracy".Earlier lorries with loudspeakers warned residents that the protests could be "dispersed by military force".
Eyewitnesses said several military trucks were parked near the start of the march, but there were no soldiers visible further along the route.<http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/7011655.stm>
By Michael Bristow
BBC News, Beijing
China, which has become one of Burma's main supporters over recent years, has remained largely silent about the current protests.Beijing is traditionally reluctant to speak publicly about the internal affairs of other countries.
But, despite this, there are signs that Chinese politicians are anxious to help stabilise the political situation in Burma.They perhaps do not want to tarnish China's image ahead of next year's Beijing Olympics by appearing to support any military crackdown in Burma.
Officially, China is playing down its ability to influence events in Burma.
"China always adopts a policy of non-interference," said Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Jiang Yu at a regular press briefing.It is in China's long-term business interests to make sure its neighbour is stable
"As Myanmar's (Burma's) neighbour, China hopes to see stability and economic development in Myanmar," she added."The stability of Myanmar serves the interest of Myanmar itself and the interests of the international community."
But China's ties with the military junta ruling Burma go deep, and include expanding trade links, the sale of military hardware and diplomatic support. <http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/7011746.stm>
By Stephanie Holmes
BBC News
Burma's bloggers are using the internet to beat censorship, and tell the world what is happening under the military junta's veil of secrecy.
Images of orange-robed monks leading throngs of people along the streets of Rangoon have been seeping out of a country famed for its totalitarian regime and repressive control of information. <http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/7012984.stm>Monks march along a street of Rangoon, Burma
Burma's street protests have been made visible by bloggers
Several thousand Burmese monks and other protesters have begun a new march in Rangoon despite a baton charge by police at the city's holiest shrine.Police charged the crowd outside the Shwedagon Pagoda as demonstrators met for a ninth day of marching and warning shots were fired at another site.
The new march seems to be heading towards the home of detained opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi.
Police and troops are surrounding key Buddhist sites around the city.Analysts fear a repeat of the violence in 1988, when troops opened fire on unarmed protestors, killing thousands. <http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/7013638.stm>
Protests in BurmaBurmese soldiers in Rangoon - 27/09/2007
Burma's security forces have sealed off the five main monasteries in Rangoon and declared them no-go areas to prevent anti-government protests.
The move came as official media said nine people were killed on Thursday as troops fired tear gas and bullets to clear protesters off Rangoon's streets. <http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/7017496.stm>
Soldiers and police have baton-charged Burmese protesters who tried to stage a further day of marches in Rangoon.Security forces sealed off five monasteries that were focal points of previous mass marches, in a bid to prevent further demonstrations.
Official media said nine people were killed on Thursday as troops fired tear gas and bullets to clear large crowds of protesters off Rangoon's streets.
British and Australian ambassadors in Burma say the toll was probably higher. <http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/7017496.stm>
A United Nations special envoy, Ibrahim Gambari, is due to arrive in Burma within hours for urgent talks with the country's military leaders.Mr Gambari is expected to urge a peaceful end to a government crackdown on pro-democracy protests. <http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/7019359.stm>
By Michael Dobie
BBC News
As Burmese soldiers crush dissent on the streets on Rangoon, the country's military rulers have moved to cut the flow of images and information leaving the country.Images of a Japanese video journalist gunned down in the street and blood-stained protesters and monks have galvanised international condemnation and calls for restraint from the authorities. <http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/7016238.stm>
By Jonathan Head
BBC News, Bangkok
Buddhist Monks protest in Rangoon on 24 September 2007Will Burma's military rulers listen to the endless pleas for restraint and dialogue? Could the regime crumble under the weight of popular anger, or through splits in the ranks of the armed forces?
These protests echo unrest in 1988, also sparked by economic woes
Or will they succeed in terrorising the population into submission again through mass killings, as they did in 1988?We simply do not know which of these scenarios is more plausible, because it is impossible to know the thinking of the tight clique of generals who run the country.
But there are "end-of-regime" scenarios we can look at in other countries; specifically Indonesia, a fellow member of the Association of South-East Asian Nations (Asean). <http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/7017162.stm>
As governments around the world consider how to respond to the protests in Burma, the BBC News website looks at the aims and influence of key Western and Asian players. <http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/7018285.stm>
Burma's closest ally, China, has made its most strident call yet for the military regime to end a violent crackdown on pro-democracy protesters.
After talks by telephone with his UK counterpart Gordon Brown, Chinese Prime Minister Wen Jiabao said Beijing hoped peace would return to Burma quickly.
EU foreign policy chief Javier Solana urged China to lean harder on Burma.The remarks came as UN special envoy Ibrahim Gambari was in Burma hoping to hold talks with the military rulers.
In a statement, Mr Wen said China wanted a peaceful resolution to the situation in Burma."China hopes all parties concerned in [Burma] show restraint, resume stability through peaceful means as soon as possible, promote domestic reconciliation and achieve democracy and development." <http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/7020399.stm>
UN envoy to Burma Ibrahim Gambari has met detained opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi in the main city of Rangoon.Mr Gambari is attempting to mediate between Burma's junta and the opposition, and end a bloody crackdown on mass pro-democracy protests.
Earlier, he met some of the country's military leaders in the new capital Naypyidaw, and has now returned there for further talks.
He has yet to see senior general Than Shwe or his deputy.Ms Suu Kyi's National League for Democracy easily won elections in 1990, but these were annulled by the junta. <http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/7020465.stm>
By Andrew Harding
BBC News, Bangkok
Over the last week protesters against the military government in Burma have been shot at and beaten. Streets have been barricaded and temples and monasteries occupied by security forces attempting to stop the protests. Communication with those inside the country is difficult, but some information is getting out.
Demonstrators with sticksYou could hear the gunfire down the phone line. And the fury in the man's voice.
No-one would dare attack the monks, demonstrators hoped
It was Thursday afternoon and he was running, the muffled crack of bullets overhead.
Then shouts, and then his breathless description, "They're carrying a body past me now - someone's been shot."
In the week that Burma's military regime used lethal force to crush pro-democracy protests, filmmaker Evan Williams asks who are the generals issuing the orders, and how do they convince young soldiers to open fire on their own people?
One of the biggest challenges in reporting on Burma is trying to understand what the country's rulers really think."The top echelons are made up of graduates from the defence services academy, which is Burma's equivalent of Sandhurst or West Point," explained Maung Zarni, a former activist.
"They receive military science training for four years. For them there is no parent, the army is their parent," he said.The regime is essentially a secretive cabal of 12 generals called the State Peace and Development Council (SPDC). They may disagree behind closed doors but always present a unified position in public.
The junta is run by three top generals. <http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/7019502.stm>
By Paul Reynolds
World Affairs correspondent BBC News website
The military crackdown in Burma is a reminder that street demonstrations do not necessarily lead to success for popular uprisings.The key factor is the destabilisation of the existing regime and if protests cannot bring that about, they become vulnerable to the kind of repression the Burmese authorities have imposed. <http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/7021567.stm>
By Jonathan Head
BBC News, Bangkok
On 22nd February, a small group of around 25 people attracted little attention at first in the crowded Rangoon market. Then they brought out home-made posters, and began shouting.
Their complaints seemed innocuous enough. "Down with consumer prices," read one poster. "We want 24-hour electricity," read another. They pointedly avoided saying anything critical about Burma's military government.That did not spare them. Nine were rounded up and jailed, accused of acting "totally against the law". They were later released, but they had touched a very raw nerve.
Though small, these were the first street protests seen in Rangoon for at least a decade.And they highlighted the growing economic distress that was beginning to push huge numbers of Burmese families to the brink of destitution - distress caused by the government's incompetence. <http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/7023548.stm>
A Buddhism student, who experienced first-hand the events of the last two weeks at a Buddhist monastery in Burma, describes the recent unrest.In Burma, the topic of politics is always on people's minds. But only until recently it would have been impossible to predict the events that were about to unfold.
It is commonly perceived that the government has spies in Buddhist monasteries.There is always a feeling of suspicion and everyone's careful about what they say. Casual conversations have led to trouble in the past. <http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/7022475.stm>
UN special envoy Ibrahim Gambari has met detained Burmese opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi for a second time, hours after talks with military rulers.The meeting took place on Mr Gambari's return from the new capital, Naypyidaw, where he conveyed to General Than Shwe concerns over a violent crackdown.
At least 10 people were killed, possibly many more, when troops ended days of pro-democracy demonstrations.Rangoon, the main city and centre of unrest, has eased its curfew.<http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/7023344.stm>
The world is still trying to gauge the mood in Burma following the clampdown on pro-democracy demonstrations by the military regime.Foreign media, including the BBC, are not allowed to report from Burma, but we have received this report from a correspondent in the main city of Rangoon.
To a casual observer, the Burmese city of Rangoon looks the same as it did before the pro-democracy marches of the past few weeks.
Although security levels are still high - military trucks often rumble past, and soldiers and riot police are still milling around at key locations - local people are trying to get on with their everyday lives as best they can.
Most of the shops and temples are now open, the street hawkers and beggars are back in place and people are once more spending their time travelling on overcrowded buses and sitting in tea shops to avoid the monsoon rain.It is almost as if the events of the past week - the mounting anti-government protests by thousands of the city's Buddhist monks, followed by a bloody three-day crackdown - are just a distant memory.
But if you go down one of the city's back streets, or try to engage in a conversation with anyone, it immediately becomes apparent that the mood has changed.
In fact, you could cut the tension with a knife.<http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/7024825.stm>
Monks on top of a bus in Rangoon, 02/10
Many monks are desperate to leave Rangoon, witnesses say
Scores of monks are trying to leave Burma's main city, Rangoon, following the military's bloody crackdown on anti-government protests, reports say.Witnesses said many monks were at the railway station, while bus drivers were said to be refusing to take them out of fear they would not be allowed petrol.
Hundreds of people have now been detained, with more arrests overnight.A UN envoy is preparing a key report on his talks with Burma's leaders amid global concern over the situation.
The envoy, Ibrahim Gambari, met top military leaders to voice concern over the violence. He also met pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi.
He is expected to brief both UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon and the Security Council later this week. <http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/7025357.stm>
By Andrew Harding
BBC News, Bangkok
On the telephone from Rangoon, the businessman sounded desperate.
"I have looked everywhere," he said.Street market in Rangoon
For some Burmese, life appears to be returning to normal...
"The soldiers took my daughter off the street last week. I don't know if she is injured or what has happened to her. She is 18."As Burma's military authorities continue to hunt down and arrest those suspected of involvement in last week's massive street protests, the fate of an unknown number of detained monks and civilians remains unclear.
"I have heard that 6,000 people may be missing - that sounds plausible," said one Western diplomat, on condition of anonymity.A local United Nations official said his office was still looking for several staff members and their families. <http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/7026259.stm>
Tom White was the UK's cultural attache in Burma during the 1988 protests and bloody crackdown that ensued. He argues that the ruling junta is heavily influenced by lucky numbers.Burma's ruling junta holds a belief, widely shared by the Burmese public, in astrology as a means of explaining the present and influencing the future.
This was apparent in the 1988 pro-democracy uprising and has resurfaced during the current crisis.
Ne Win, Burma's dictator from 1962 to 1988, had blind faith in '9' as his lucky number, hence the sudden decision in September 1987 to issue banknotes whose face value was divisible by 9 (for example 45 and 90 kyat).Demonstrators gathering in central Rangoon to protest against the government, 06 August 1988
The latest crackdown began on the same date as the 1988 purge
The democracy movement's favourite number was 8, so the uprising sparked by the ensuing economic crisis, began on '8-8-88'. It was savagely put down by the army on the 18th of the following month (1+8=9) of September - the ninth month.A few nights ago the BBC rebroadcast a clip from a Burmese television report on what it said was a mass rally supporting the government in the face of the current crisis, attended by 98,100 people' (9 and 8+1). <http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/7025827.stm>
Aung San Suu Kyi (L) with UN envoy Ibrahim Gambari, 04/10
Western powers say the junta should talks to Aung San Suu Kyi
Western powers have circulated a draft statement at the UN condemning the "violent repression" of pro-democracy protests by Burma's military rulers.
The US, France and the UK called for immediate dialogue with opposition leaders, while the US suggested it would push for sanctions on Burma.
However, China has said such pressure would only lead to confrontation.Meanwhile, human rights groups are staging an international day of action in support of Burmese demonstrators.
Events are scheduled to take place at noon local time in Austria, Australia, Belgium, Canada, France, India, Ireland, New Zealand, Norway, South Korea, Spain, Thailand, the UK and the US. <http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/7031171.stm>
The BBC's Mike Thomson travels over the border from Thailand to Burma to visit a community of ethnic Karen who talk about their persecution under the military regime. <http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/7029957.stm>
Aung San Suu Kyi (R) with UN envoy Ibrahim Gambari
The junta is putting conditions on talking to Aung San Suu Kyi
Malaysia has urged the Burmese military to drop preconditions for talks with pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi.Foreign Minister Syed Hamid Albar said the move was necessary if Burma was to avoid stronger international pressure.
Burmese state media reported military leader Gen Than Shwe had agreed to meet Ms Suu Kyi, but only if she ended calls for international sanctions on Burma.
Malaysia and regional grouping Asean also oppose sanctions, which are being called for by the US, UK and France. <http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/7032291.stm>
The BBC News website's Kate McGeown has just returned from visiting Burma's main city, Rangoon, in the aftermath of a crackdown against anti-government protests. <http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/7032759.stm>
Burma's military rulers have appointed an official to liaise with detained pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi in an apparent concession to the UN.
Aung Kyi, a retired general currently serving as deputy labour minister, was appointed to "continue relations [with her] in the future", state TV said.The appointment of a go-between was an issue raised by a UN envoy visiting after September's bloody crackdown. <http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/7034190.stm>
The BBC News website's Kate McGeown has just returned from visiting Burma. Here she assesses what the Burmese people want from the international community. <http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/7033911.stm>
Monks in front of a pagoda near Rangoon, 08/10A Burmese diplomat has told the BBC how "appalling" treatment of Buddhist monks during last month's protests prompted him to resign from the military regime.
Burma's generals have come down hard on the monks
Ye Min Tun, a foreign ministry official for 10 years, said Burma's generals had ignored the people's desire for them to negotiate with opposition activists. <http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/7035049.stm>