Medical charity pulls French staff from Myanmar

The international medical charity Doctors without Borders (MSF) says it has closed its French office in Myanmar after four years because government restrictions had made it impossible to work there.

The aid agency said the head of its French mission had left Myanmar on March 26, because unacceptable conditions imposed by the authorities on working with people who live in a war zone.

MSF said its Swiss and Dutch sections would continue to operate in the country, formerly known as Burma, which has been ruled by the military for four decades. But it said they were also "questioning the future" of their projects in Myanmar.

The Paris-based charity has since 2001 been working in the Thai border regions of Mon and Karen, which are caught in the armed conflict between Myanmar's military regime and armed rebel groups.

"The Myanmar regime wants to get rid of all humanitarian workers in these politically sensitive regions," said Herve Isambert, head of MSF's French programme in Myanmar.

"The restrictions imposed on us reduced us to the role of specialist contractors subjected to the political will of the military junta. In reality, the Myanmar authorities do not want anyone to witness the acts of violence they are committing against their own people," he added.

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Sadly, Myanmar (Burma) is still so controlled that there aren't even photos that we can show. They only have local channels on TVs. All media (visual and audio) are controlled by the government.

This is Myanmar we are talking about now. At least there are more people who've heard of Myanmar, Vietnam and Cambodia. I have not even touched on Laos...

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Just finished another CWO (Contemporary Wind Orchestra) rehearsal in school. It was pretty fun. I like Mimi Rabson's work. Original.

2 more upcoming concerts and I'll be facing with finals. Ooh, enrolment for summer courses has begun. I need to act soon.