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.

23/05/2012 - CANADA

Students in Quebec march against tuition fee hike

Student protests in the Canadian province of Quebec are now into their fourth month. Hundreds were arrested at marches to mark 100 days since the protests began. Students are demonstrating against an 80% rise in tuition fees in Quebec, the Canadian province that has until now enjoyed the country's lowest rates for higher education.

23/05/2012 - EGYPT

Egyptians head to the polls

Egyptians go to the polls in the country's first truly contested presidential election on Wednesday. With an array of candidates to choose from, voters will decide who's the best man to lead them through the last phase of the country's troubled democratic transition that began with Egypt's revolution in January last year. Cairo correspondents Kathryn Stapley and Sonia Dridi talked to some of the activists whose protests in Tahrir Square changed the course of Egypt's history.

22/05/2012 - EGYPT

A troubling time for Egypt's Coptic Christians

Egyptians go to the polls tomorrow to vote for a new president for the first time since Hosni Mubarak was ousted during the revolution last year. Two of the front-runners in the presidential race with a realistic chance of winning are devout Islamists, which is troubling for Egypt's Coptic Christians. They are Egypt's largest religious minority and many of them don't think any of the candidates are capable of protecting them from the religious violence that has been steadily increasing.

22/05/2012 - WEST BANK

'The Battle of the Empty Stomachs'

Palestinians nicknamed it "the battle of the empty stomachs". For weeks, 1,600 Palestinian prisoners in Israeli jails refused food and drink in what became the longest ever mass hunger strike. Israel finally capitulated and a deal was reached, allowing those in isolation back onto the general wards, and visas for those family members wishing to visit from Gaza. In exchange, prisoners agreed not to carry out "security activities" such as recruiting for terrorist missions.

21/05/2012 - SERBIA

Serbia's new president - nationalist or not?

Serbia has elected a new president - and it's not the one that most people were expecting. Tomislav Nikolic has unseated Boris Tadic, the man in power since 2004. Observers are worried about the new head of state, who used to be part of the ultra-nationalist Radical Party. He once said he would prefer to be allied with Russia than join the EU, but he has since toned down the rhetoric, saying he will take Serbia to Europe after all.

- 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.

Students in Quebec march against tuition fee hike

Egyptians head to the polls

A troubling time for Egypt's Coptic Christians

'The Battle of the Empty Stomachs'

Serbia's new president - nationalist or not?

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