Food Aid to North Korea

THE U.S. IS CONSIDERING SENDING food aid to North Korea and sending monitors along to make sure it gets to where it’s needed most (AFP via Serious Eats). The U.S. has previously relied on the UN’s World Food Program to deliver aid but is considering government-to-government relations because of progress in nuclear disarmament talks.

While the UN has said that it closely watches over its operations in the North it estimates that at least 4 million people are still chronically short of food there.

Democracy Activist Killed in Burma

AN ACTIVE MEMBER OF the National League for Democracy was killed in Burma while under interrogation by the military, The GuardianUnlimited reports today. According to a human rights group in Thailand the family of Win Shwe, 42, was notified that he had been killed and cremated but were not given the time or cause of death. Other activists in the country are worried about the fate of pro-democracy leader Hla Myo Naung, who was arrested on his way to seek treatment for an eye problem.

While reports have been coming in that the streets of Burma have been pounded back into an unnatural calm, it is obvious that the crackdown continues. Worldwide, people are calling for divestment (1, 2, 3 …) of Myanmar in order to put pressure on the junta – a move I support. The only way to twist the arms of the Burmese generals is take the money out of their pockets. If private and public investors continue to support the junta with their dollars then they are complicit in the oppression of an entire population.