US policy of engagement leaves exiles uneasy

After more than a decade of using the stick in relations with Burma's military junta, the administration of US President Barack Obama has shown signs it also intends to use the carrot - at the risk of upsetting exiled Burmese opposition groups.

FOCUS

Thailand's border with Burma has long been a sanctuary for tens of thousands of displaced Burmese who have fled persecution in their homeland. More than 120,000 refugees have been living in makeshift camps along the border for the last 25 years, but the area is also home to scores of exiled politicians, rebels and even Buddisht monks who escaped the crackdown that followed the Safron revolution of September 2007, in which hundreds of people were killed.

A new policy of engagement and dialogue with the military junta initiated by the US administration of President Barack Obama has taken the exiled Burmese community by surprise. We went to hear their reactions, ranging from rejection to despair and sometimes hope.

10/02/2012 - FRANCE

Renault's new factory sends French workers into a spin

Renault boss Carlos Ghosn and Morocco's King Mohammed VI opened the carmaker's new factory near Tangiers on Thursday with great ceremony. The plant will have an initial capacity of 170,000 vehicles, expected eventually to reach 400,000. Yet the partly state-owned Renault has faced a storm of criticism over the project, seen by some in France as denying French workers jobs that were rightfully theirs.

09/02/2012 - CHINA

The war on microblogs

The Chinese government is cracking down on the country's most popular microblogs in an effort to prevent any Facebook or Twitter-inspired revolution spreading to China. As of mid-March, users of Weibo, the Chinese equivalent of Twitter, will be forced to register their microblogs under their real name. But with 250 million Chinese people logged on, it's unlikely the government can clamp down completely.

09/02/2012 - GREECE

Greeks fear austerity overdose

Just how much more belt-tightening can the Greek population bear? As Greece's government prepares a new austerity plan, a condition for receiving a second vital bailout from the European Union, European Central Bank and the International Monetary Fund, protests have become a regular fixture in Athens. Greeks say they're being bled dry.

08/02/2012 - GERMANY

Germany's green growth running out of steam

The German government plans to decommission its nuclear plants by 2022 and to obtain 80% of all energy from renewables by 2050. Today, renewable energy sources already account for nearly a fifth of Germany's electricity, but the construction and transfer of wind energy from offshore farms is not making as much headway as had been expected.

08/02/2012 - NIGERIA

Inter-religious tensions set northern Nigeria on edge

Nigeria is battling a bloody insurgency launched by radical Islamist sect Boko Haram. The group want to overthrow the government and establish an Islamic state. In January, a string of attacks in the north of the country killed 185 people. As President Goodluck Jonathan confronts the violence in the town of Kano, tensions continue to simmer.

- Barack Obama - Burma - military junta - Washington D.C.

US policy of engagement leaves exiles uneasy

After more than a decade of using the stick in relations with Burma's military junta, the administration of US President Barack Obama has shown signs it also intends to use the carrot - at the risk of upsetting exiled Burmese opposition groups.

Renault's new factory sends French workers into a spin

The war on microblogs

Greeks fear austerity overdose

Germany's green growth running out of steam

Inter-religious tensions set northern Nigeria on edge

Comments

Post new comment

Related Content

‘Darth Vader’ demands free land from Ukrainian government

My networks activity