Myanmar

55 million people
Internet:
Not Free
Press:
Not Free
Partly Free

Population and GNI data source

News & Updates

Statements

37 Organizations Urge President Obama to Update Blacklist with Respect to Burma

November 7, 2013

Thirty-seven organizations submitted a joint letter to President Barack Obama calling on the US Administration to update the Specially Designated Nationals (SDN) list with respect to Burma and implement unambiguous criteria for removing and adding persons to the list. This list maintained by the Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) designates individuals and companies barred from having financial ties with the U.S.
Joint Letters

Joint Letter to President Obama on Updating Burma's Financial Sanctions

November 5, 2013

We urge the Administration to carefully calibrate its targeted sanctions on select individuals and entities in Burma.
Freedom Alert

Freedom House Calls for Release of Burmese Activists Imprisoned for Peaceful Protest

September 27, 2013
Freedom House condemns the prison sentences handed down to ten activists in Burma’s Rakhine state on September 26 for participating in a peaceful protest. The ten should be released immediately and the Peaceful Assembly and Peaceful Procession Law, under which they were jailed, should be amended to comply with international human rights standards.
 
Freedom Alert

Burmese Authorities Use Peaceful Assembly Law to Target Activists

August 14, 2013

The arrests this week of Naw Ohn Hla and Rohingya activist Than Shwe are a continuation of a disturbing trend of the government using the peaceful assembly law to stymie the work of human rights defenders.  Freedom House condemns the arrests and calls for the activists’ immediate release.

Pages

Experts

Sarah Cook

Senior Research Analyst for East Asia

Sarah Cook is a senior research analyst for East Asia at Freedom House.

Issues: 
Regions: 
Asia-Pacific

Lauren Galacia

Program Manager, Asia

Lauren Galacia manages the Asia program.  Prior to joining Freedom House, she oversaw the development and implementation of citizen engagement programs throughout Asia and Eurasia, with a focus on Thailand and Burma.

Issues: 
Civil Society
Regions: 
Asia-Pacific

Signature Reports

Freedom in the World

Freedom on the Net

Freedom of the Press

Countries at the Crossroads

Special Reports

Worst of the Worst 2011: The World's Most Repressive Societies

Freedom House has prepared this special report entitled Worst of the Worst: The World’s Most Repressive Societies, as a companion to its annual survey on the state of global political rights and civil liberties, Freedom in the World. The special report provides summary country reports, tables, and graphical information on the countries that receive the lowest combined ratings for political rights and civil liberties in Freedom in the World, and whose citizens endure systematic and pervasive human rights violations.

Worst of the Worst 2007

Sudan, North Korea and Uzbekistan are prominent among the most repressive regimes in the world, according to a report released by Freedom House.  The study, “The Worst of the Worst: The World's Most Repressive Societies 2007,” named seventeen countries with the worst records for political rights and civil liberties, and pointed to thirteen countries which have been on the list for five years or more.

Programs

Southeast Asia programs

In Southeast Asia, Freedom House programs enable citizens to assert their rights and supports their efforts to gain a greater say in how they are governed.

Issues: 
Regions: 
Asia-Pacific

LGBTI Rights in Southeast Asia (Past program)

Freedom House helps LGBTI rights groups in Southeast Asia to push back against the tide of intolerance.

Issues: 
Civil Society, Freedom of Expression, Human Rights, LGBTI Rights
Regions: 
Asia-Pacific