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OFFICIALS conducted a field inspection this morning of the implementation status of the Mya Sein Yaung Village Project activities carried out in South Bukyaung Yenangyoung Township, Magway Region, under the Department of
THE Department of Rural De-velopment, under the Ministry of Cooperatives and Rural Devel-opment, Kangyidaunt Township, Ayeyawady Region, inspected the 100 per cent completion of a 400-volt power line installation project
THE Department of Rural Development, under the Min-istry of Cooperatives and Rural Development, conducted a field inspection of a completed concrete wheel-track road in Yaytaik Village, Thayawady Township yesterday.,Thay
THE Mya Sein Yaung (MSY) Village Project in- troduction and committee formation ceremony was held at the monastery in Shwepyauk Village, Kyauktan Township, Yangon Region, on the morning of 13 August. The event was organi
THE Myanmar Pharmaceutical and Medical Device Manufacturers Association donated medicines and medical supplies worth over K370 million, along with K71 million in cash, to the Ministry of Health yesterday for healthcare s
UNDER the supervision of the Chin State Rehabili- tation and Reconstruction Committee, local compa- nies performed renova- tion work on departmental office buildings in Falam district and township that were damaged by th
TO date, five downtown wards of Laymyethna Township, 124 inner-city roads and surrounding villages, 37 villages of Hinthada Township, four wards of Yekyi Township and 27 surrounding villag- es, two downtown wards of Ngat
TO provide greater con- venience for customers through banking and dig- ital services accessible via AYA Bank’s authorized agents, AYA Bank and PRO 1 Global Company Limited have signed a Memorandum of Under- standing for
THE Myanmar Investment Com- mission (MIC) approved 14 new investment projects that create over 3,300 jobs yesterday.,The meeting approved two new foreign investment pro- jects from the capital increase of ongoing investm
GLOBAL news media have presented different accounts of displaced persons from Rakhine State, and “the boat peo- ple” migrating to other countries, as well as those living in camps in Cox’s Bazar, Bangladesh. It is observ
THE Sitagu Sayadaw inspected the maintenance work at the historic Moscow Shwezigon, the first-ever pagoda in Russia built in authentic traditional Myanmar architecture. To ensure the long-term durability and preservation
MYANMAR’S GW-11 rice is currently fetching the high- est price among rice-export- ing countries supplying the Philippines, according to the Myanmar Rice Federation. Vietnam and Thailand, like Myanmar, are also ex- portin
THE Yangon City Development Committee (YCDC) has in- tensified efforts to chlorinate the city’s water supply network to protect public health and prevent the spread of diarrhoeal diseases, officials from the Engineering
MYANMAR and China’s Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region discussed matters on expanding cooperation in economic and trade ties, education, cultural exchanges, and artificial intelligence (AI) technology, according to the Min
Speaker of the Pyithu Hluttaw U Khin Yi received a delegation led by Ms Olga Chemodanova, Chairperson of the Belaya Rus Party of the Republic of Belarus, who paid an observation visit to the Hluttaw at Zabuthiri Hall of
Amyotha Hluttaw Speaker U Aung Lin Dwe received a delegation led by Ms Olga Chemodanova, Chairperson of the Belaya Rus Party of Belarus, at the Amyotha Hluttaw Reception Hall in the Hluttaw complex in Nay Pyi Taw at 10 a
The Ministry of Defence of the National Unity Government (NUG) announced on August 14 that over 85 percent of the expenditures for People's Defence Force (PDF) units, amounting to approximately $30 million USD, were fund
AYEYARWADDY TIMES (Falam), August 14 Two staff members of the Electricity Supply Corporation (EPC) were injured in a bomb explosion in Falam town, Chin State, which was recaptured by the junta forces, according to local
The Arakan Army (AA) launched an offensive with heavy weapons against the junta's Jamathauk-based Engineering Regiment (Weapon Registration Number 908) located in Sittwe Township, Rakhine State, resulting in casualties o
Ayeyarwaddy Times August 14 Due to heavy monsoon rains and rising river levels, the Ayeyarwaddy River's water level has risen above the warning level in six townships, including Hinthada and Zalun, and in Pantanaw town,
A Khumi young woman was killed and more than 10 civilians were injured in an airstrike carried out by the Myanmar military on Sami town in southern Chin State, according to local residents. The airstrike was conducted wi
Ayeyarwaddy Times August 14 Fierce battles have intensified in more than five locations in Ye Gyi and Tharpawng townships, which are border areas between Rakhine and Ayeyarwaddy regions, due to the military's large-scale
AYEYARWADDY TIMES August 14 The military council launched airstrikes on Chintharly town and Kaingkhone village in Mrauk-U Township, Rakhine State, on the night of August 13, killing eight civilians, including children. T
AYEYARWADDY TIMES August 13 In the Ala La Baung ward of Aung Myetharsan Township, Mandalay City, it has been learned from local residents that members of the ward administration committee and election commission members
Malaysia will prioritize the safety, welfare, and status verification of Myanmar refugees before executing any repatriation to their home country, Malaysian Foreign Minister Mohamad Hasan said at an event in Taman Pinggi
Myanmar’s new Steering Council is an interim body meant to guide the revolution toward a federal democratic union—not a replacement for the NUG, ethnic nationalities, or a future elected government. Guest contributor James Shwe More than five years after the military coup, Myanmar’s people continue to pay an unbearable price: airstrikes, displacement, arrests, destroyed homes, ruined schools and clinics, and a collapsing economy. Yet the military has not regained the legitimacy it lost when it overturned the people’s vote in 2021. The resistance has endured because it is broader than any one organization. It is carried by ethnic revolutionary organizations, the People’s Defense Force, elected representatives, striking civil servants, women, youth, civil society, local administrators, and communities across the country. That diversity is a strength. But it also poses a difficult question: How can the resistance coordinate its political, military, and federal goals without repeating Myanmar’s old system of centralized power? The answer being developed is the Steering Council for the Emergence of a Federal Democratic Union, or SCEF. The name explains its purpose SCEF’s name tells the public what it is—and what it is not. It is a Steering Council. Its role is to guide, coordinate, and keep the revolution moving in a common direction. It is not a final government or a new institution claiming all authority. It is for the emergence of a federal democratic union. This matters just as much. Myanmar has not arrived at federal democracy. The country remains in a revolutionary struggle, and the work ahead is enormous: ending military rule, protecting civilians, establishing federal arrangements, creating civilian control of armed forces, delivering justice to victims, drafting a new constitution, and eventually holding free elections. A federal democratic union cannot simply be declared. It must be built through agreement, participation, and shared power. SCEF is not the federal democratic union. It is the interim body meant to steer Myanmar toward one. SCEF is not replacing the NUG The National Unity Government remains a vital democratic institution. Since the coup, it has carried the people’s democratic mandate, represented Myanmar internationally, supported public services and the Civil Disobedience Movement, and worked toward a federal democratic future. But the NUG was never meant to be the sole source of authority in a future federal Myanmar. Ethnic revolutionary organizations administer and defend territory. Local bodies provide services. Resistance forces operate across the country. Women, youth, civil society, and affected communities have all shaped this revolution. SCEF recognizes this reality. It brings the NUG and the Committee Representing Pyidaungsu Hluttaw (CRPH) together with major ethnic revolutionary organizations—including the Kachin, the Karen, the Chin, and the Karenni—in a collective framework built on three pillars: states and ethnic revolutionary organizations; the people and democratic representatives; and women. The NUG is not being removed. It is being integrated into a broader model of collective leadership and shared sovereignty. The simplest explanation is this: The NUG is a key democratic institution. SCEF is the common table where the NUG, ethnic revolutionary organizations, and other pillars of the revolution coordinate the next stage. Not a centralized government SCEF is not a government that replaces ethnic administrations, local authorities, or community institutions in liberated areas. It is an interim coordinating body for a period in which Myanmar has not yet completed its transition. Its task is to align political, military, federal, administrative, and diplomatic work; reduce fragmentation; and prepare for federal transitional arrangements. Its stated objectives include removing the military from politics, abolishing the 2008 Constitution, putting armed forces under elected civilian command, creating a new federal democratic constitution, and pursuing transitional justice. The public should expect coordination—not slogans. SCEF should improve joint strategy, present clearer common positions internationally, help prevent a political vacuum, and prepare for the day when the military no longer controls Myanmar’s future. Unity requires accountability SCEF’s success depends on whether it practices the federal values it promotes. Myanmar cannot replace military centralization with another centralized authority. A real federal democracy requires shared sovereignty between the Union and states or federal units, respect for ethnic equality and self-determination, meaningful participation by women, and institutions accountable to the people. The public has every right to ask how decisions will be made, how the three pillars will function, whether women will have real authority, how communities will be consulted, and what prevents the return of top-down rule. These are not attacks. They are necessary demands for accountability. Reject sabotage, not criticism The junta will attack SCEF because a coordinated resistance threatens its survival. Its propaganda will claim that the NUG is being weakened, ethnic organizations are being controlled, the resistance is divided, or federalism will destroy the country. These are familiar divide-and-rule tactics. But negative propaganda may also come from people who fear losing political relevance, status, access, or influence in a more inclusive movement. Some will portray every disagreement as a crisis, spread anonymous rumors, or attack individuals rather than engage with policy. There is a clear difference between criticism and sabotage. Criticism asks: How will SCEF be transparent, inclusive, accountable, and federal in practice?
The Myanmar National Democratic Alliance Army (MNDAA), a Kokang ethnic armed organization, has announced plans to impose a heavy annual tax on residents using solar power systems in its controlled territory in northern S
Township administration office, as real estate brokers and ward administrators, to carry out field work of grams to strengthen ownership of real estate in towns and villages in Shan State, and to obtain revenue tax and c
Conflict in Myanmar between the military and opposition forces is increasingly brutal, with both sides likely responsible for international crimes including summary executions, top independent rights investigators said o
A total of 251 security CCTV cameras will be additionally installed in the Shwedagon Pagoda and its surrounding related areas in Yangon City, said U Nay Lin Htun, the Minister of Information, Relief and Resettlement, and
The fares for YBS buses operating in Yangon city will be increased starting next September, according to U Lyan Kyin Man, Joint Secretary of the Yangon Region Public Transport Supervision Committee (YRTC). U Lyan Kyin Ma
An introductory event for SHWE Bank's 'Shwe Loan' loan program, which does not require collateral, was held on August 14 at the Premier Banking Lounge located at the corner of 27th and 79th streets in Chanayethazan Towns
It has been learned from the statement of the Minister of Electricity, Energy, Industry and Transport of the Mandalay Region Government that only two out of 15 resorts along the Duthawadi River have been granted business
Due to the increasing cost of purchasing vehicle spare parts and related accessories, the YBS bus fare will be increased from the current 200 kyats to 300 kyats, and from the current 400 kyats to 600 kyats starting Septe
It is known that the Indian Embassy organized the 'Day of Remembrance for the Tragic Partition'. The 'Day of Remembrance for the Tragic Partition' was held on August 14 at the Indian Cultural Centre in Yangon, in solemn
Myanmar junta forces are threatening, restricting, and blocking local aid workers attempting to deliver relief to flood victims in Sagaing Region, where residents are struggling under the dual impacts of armed conflict a