In The News

Trade and Security Trump Democracy in Burma – Part I

Bertil Lintner October 3, 2007
Burma, called Myanmar by its current rulers, is rich with natural resources, yet one of the poorest nations in Asia. All resources go toward keeping the current regime in power, and the military junta relies on violent repression to stop Buddhist monks and activists marching in protest to seek political and economic reform. This two-part YaleGlobal series analyzes the international response. In...

Burma's Brutal Crackdown Continues

October 3, 2007
Although the streets of Yangon, Burma's largest city are now quiet and empty of protesters, the killing has not stopped. Der Spiegel correspondents report that police forces have invaded monasteries in the area, imprisoning and executing dissenters under the cover of darkness. Although the world condemns violence against unarmed protesters, some authorities see cause for hope. British...

Scarier than Bin Laden

Bruce Hoffman October 2, 2007
The most formidable nemesis for the US is Ayman al-Zawahiri, according to Bruce Hoffman, a professor of security studies. “Zawahiri is the superior strategist,” writes Hoffman, who credits the Al Qaeda leader for designating both “near” and “far” enemies for attack. The “near” enemies include corrupt regimes throughout the Muslim world, in power only with the support of “far” enemies such as the...

Asia's Forgotten Crisis

Michael Green September 29, 2007
Attempting to hide evidence of its cruelty and the country's devastation, the repressive military regime in Burma has cut all internet connections. But satellite images show burned villages and huge camps of displaced citizens. People of Burma march in protest daily, risking their lives to protest a corrupt and inept government that provides no sense of order or security for its people....

Children Trafficked From Asia to UK to Work in Cannabis Factories

Nina Lakhani September 27, 2007
In 2004, Britain declassified cannabis, decreasing the penalties for growing or possessing the controlled substance. As fear of punishment faded, demand grew and so did the appeal of producing the drug for greater profits. Organized crime rushed to fill the gap between supply and demand, and with record levels of production, Vietnamese gangs rely on children to tend plants. So declassification...

Venturing Into Unreported China

Dan Griffiths September 26, 2007
The job of a journalist is to discover new people and locales, reporting stories of conflict and cooperation in accurate and unbiased ways. But local officials in China fear media exposure and discourage both domestic and foreign reporters from setting out to find “scoops” – the stories not yet told by other journalists. Dan Griffiths discovered the limits to practicing journalism in rural China...

Armed Guards in Iraq Occupy a Legal Limbo

John M. Broder September 23, 2007
Providing extreme security measures for a few has become a problematic policy in Iraq. Iraqis complain about private-security contractors, particularly companies responsible for several shootings and injuries of Iraqi citizens. Early in the Iraq war, the US exempted armed contract guards from Iraqi law, and the Pentagon has not yet developed rules for security contractors, as so urged by the US...