3 villagers killed in fighting in Kachin state's Mansi township

Burmese soldiers

Three villagers were killed by fighting in Mai Hkawng village, in eastern Kachin state's Mansi township, on the afternoon of Wednesday September 23rd at 5:30 PM, the Kachin News Group has learned.

NDAK chief bars NLD from campaigning in his fiefdom in Kachin state

Long time New Democratic Army-Kachin leader (NDAK) Zahkung Ting Ying (also spelled Za Khun Ting Ring) has barred candidates from Aung San Suu Kyi's National League for Democracy (NLD) from campaigning in territory he has long ruled over in north eastern Kachin state.

Heavy fighting between KIO and army reported in Mansi township

KIA soildiers take position at a frontline near its Laiza headquarters in Kachin State,Norther Burma

The Kachin News Group has learned that heavy fighting between Burma army troops and those loyal to the Kachin Independence Organization (KIO) broke out Monday morning in Mansi township in eastern Kachin state. The clashes took place in Laika Zup Ja village, two miles away from Mai Hkawng village.

IMF calls Central Bank of Myanmar's capacity “weak”

Buying and selling of Hpakant jade from Burma's northern kachin state es often done by Chinese Yuan rather than Burmese kyat

In a country update released on Friday the International Monetary Fund (IMF) warned that the Central Bank of Myanmar's (CBM) “regulatory and supervisory capacity is still relatively weak”. The Washington based organization did however praise what it described as the “ongoing liberalization of the financial sector” which includes the recent Burmese government's decision to allow 9 foreign owned banks to operate inside the country.

UK mining firm withdraws permit for jade area in Kachin state

 Aurasian Minerals Plc (AuM) a British mining firm that last year had applied for a mineral exploration permit in a jade mining area in Burma announced earlier this month that it had withdrawn the exploration permit citing a delay in a new national mining law. In an article published by the Irrawaddy magazine on Friday September 18th the firm acknowledged that its permit applications were for Kachin state, something previously unacknowledged by the company.

KIO's N'ban La meets Thein Sein as clashes continue

KIO's N'ban La meets Thein Sein as clashes continue

During a visit to the Burmese capital Naypyidaw last week, Kachin Independence Organization (KIO) vice chair General N’Ban La met with President Thein Sein on September 9th, in what appears to be the first time the two men have met since the conflict began in June 2011. The veteran KIO leader was in Naypyidaw as part of a delegation of senior leaders from ethnic armed groups including the Shan State Progressive Party (SSPP), the Karen National Union the New Mon State Party (NMSP) and the Karenni National Progressive Party (KNPP), groups. N'ban La was joined by Dr La Ja, the KIO's general secretary.