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“Kratom Culture” is growing in Mon areas: substance abuse on the rise

HURFOM: Summer festival season celebrates ordinations and weddings.  The season has arrived in many Mon communities. Kratom leaf liquor  plays an important and essential role in the festival season, to welcome and treat visitors.

Kratom leaves are boiled  in a big bowl and distilled to create the liquor that is served to neighbors who came to support the ceremony and guests. During the festival season people are drinking alcohol, beer and Kratom liquor and dancing happily in the ordination ceremonies

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Public health system collapses: public helpless in fight with Covid-19

HURFOM: The public health system of Mon State has collapsed during the third wave of COVID-19. High infection rates and deaths have left the  public helpless in the fight against the pandemic.

In response to the coup, health workers have left their workplaces, and public hospitals do not have enough beds to accept COVID-19 patients. Private clinics have also closed due to the large number of cases.

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COVID-19 public health measures not functioning under military junta

HURFOM: Mon State has been experiencing an increase of COVID-19 cases. As of June 23 there have been more than 200 cases reported.

Providing care to patients afflicted with the virus has become increasingly challenging due an inadequate number of healthcare staff.

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Military coup is a dark chapter for human rights in Burma

HURFOM: The February-1 military coup has pulled Burma back into the past of more than 3 decades ago and opened a dark chapter for human rights in the country. Upholding basic human rights was a struggle under the civilian government, but now with brutal killings taking place in the streets on a regular basis , human rights has hit rock bottom under the military junta.

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Jeopardy for the poor: Opportunity for the rich

Land grabbing during COVID-19 in Southern Ye Township

Despite work and travel bans imposed across Myanmar, a mining company has unlawfully and secretly bought land and plantations in the Magyi village track, in Southern Ye Township, Mon State. The conduct of the company has provoked conflicts within the community, and has led to negative impacts on the livelihoods of local villagers.

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Infectious disease don’t scare empty stomachs

HURFOM: “If I can go abroad for work, I won’t have many problems. [But for now] I have to tolerate it as there is a travel ban. My eldest son and I will go to Malaysia for work as soon as the travel ban is lifted,” murmured Daw Ohmar to herself.

Daw Ohmar is a quiet spoken mother of two and recently divorced.  She has been struggling to pay off a debt borrowed during her marriage. Her former husband refused to repay the debt and does not provide any support to their two children.

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Can Mon State eliminate its noise pollution?

HURFOM: Seasonal festivals, calls for donations, wedding ceremonies and initiations of novices to the monastery are all celebrated loudly throughout Mon State.  The use of mobile loudspeakers and sound systems operating at maximum levels can be found at all of these events.

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Do misunderstandings of the parliamentary rules and regulations impair the checks and balances of the legislative and executive branches of government? 

HURFOM: 49 questions were to be raised during the 14^th regular meeting of the second-term of the Mon State Parliament,  but the Mon State government replied on September 17 that they could answer only 25 questions.

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Drug use on the rise: Unsupported belief in health benefits of kratom leaf risking Mon youth’s future

HURFOM: According to a 2017 report by the Mon Youth Progressive Organization (MYPO), drug use in some ethnic areas, throughout Burma is on the rise. MYPO interviewed 500 people from 10 townships in Mon State. Those interviewed were between 12 to 60 years of age, and had experience with drug use.

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An issue we must not leave behind

Burma is a patriarchal society where, despite Aung San Suu Kyi’s high profile, gender inequality still exists. Women are still denied equal rights and continue to face discrimination. Politics is one key realm where Burma’s ongoing gender inequality comes into focus. Read more

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