Burmese Protest Swells to 20K

Monks vow to keep marching as government sends troops to rally sites

(NEWSER) - Burma issued a dusk-to-dawn curfew and warned it will crack down on any large meetings, but protesters still marched by the tens of thousands today. The junta also sent out armed troops and declared it time to "take action," raising fears that it will repeat its 1988 crackdown, in which soldiers killed 3,000 people, the BBC reports. More»

Detained Burmese leader seeks to overturn extension of house arrest

(AP) - Lawyers for detained Burmese opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi today appealed her recent conviction that extended her years of house arrest, a day after the ruling junta announced it was releasing thousands of prisoners. Reporters were banned from the hearing, where her lawyers insisted that the law under which she was convicted is invalid because it applies to a constitution abolished 2 decades ago. More»

Burmese activist remains on trial

(NEWSER) - Activists worldwide are marking the 64th birthday of Aung San Suu Kyi, the Burmese democracy activist who remains on trial for breaking the terms of her house arrest. The EU today called for her "unconditional release," and a group of celebrities ranging from Salman Rushdie to Julia Roberts has signed a petition demanding she be freed. The Nobel laureate and prime minister-elect is being held in a notorious political prison. More»

(NEWSER) - A closed-door court in Burma has sentenced 14 members of a noted pro-democracy organization to 65 years each. Family members and defense lawyers were not permitted at the trial, and relatives only heard of the sentence from prison officials. The activists were members of 88 Generation Students, a group formed out of the crushed 1988 democracy uprising; many played a part in last year's mass protests against the Burmese junta. More»

Opposition leaders dismiss move as 'public relations spin'

(NEWSER) - The military junta in Burma said today the nation will have multiparty, democratic elections in 2010, Reuters reports. Opposition leaders greeted the decision with a heavy dose of skepticism and charged that even if the vote goes through, the military will not release its grip on power. The regime has been under heavy international pressure for reform since its violent crackdown on protesters in the fall. More»