KNU 58th Anniversary of Martyr's Day Address

Dear All Karen Nationals, KNLA Officers and Men,

First, I would like to extend my greetings by wishing the best of health in mind and body to all of you. Today, August 12, 2008 is the 58th anniversary of the day on which our martyrs sacrificed their lives in the fight for justice and freedom for the Karen people and a day on which we remember and honor them for their heroic sacrifice. Today, we are still in the battlefield, having to fight on for our rights. We still cannot struggle out of various forms of mistreatment by the military dictatorship. We still have to carry on armed struggle, because successive military dictatorship cliques, practicing extreme chauvinism, have rejected on several occasions negotiation, and our effort to settle political problems by political means.  For that reason, we must fight on together with our fellow oppressed nationalities and the democratic forces for the rights to decide our own destiny, equality, democracy, true Karen State and establishment of a federal union, in accordance with aspirations of the Karen people. Continue

US First Lady visits Myanmar refugees

US First Lady Laura Bush, a vocal critic of Myanmar's junta, toured a refugee camp on Thursday and called on the military regime to open dialogue with the pro-democracy opposition.
Highlighting abuses in military-run Myanmar has been the chief cause of the first lady, and with her daughter Barbara she made her way through a muddy settlement which is home to tens of thousands who fled the junta's repression.
She thanked the Thai government for allowing the nine camps housing more than 120,000 refugees that string the border with Myanmar.
"If we could see a change in the Burmese government... people could move home in safety, that would be the best result," the first lady told camp leaders, referring to Myanmar by its previous name. Continue

KNU denies junta accusation of blasting pylon

The Karen National Union (KNU) has rubbished Burmese military junta accusations that it blasted a pylon to disrupt power supply from Lawpyita to Taungoo, in Leiktho, Karen State.

According to the state run, the New Light of Myanmar, the No. 206 pylon in Yado village collapsed following a mine explosion at about 10:40 last night. The junta has blamed the KNU, the country's largest anti-junta group.

"We will not do anything that will harm civilians. KNU believes in this policy," KNU Join-Secretary David Tharckabaw said.

"The junta is trying to frame the KNU and it has done it before also," he added.

The local military government authorities have warned against more bomb attacks and also appealed to the public to come forward timely with information about terrorists. Continue