Allies in Paranoia and Repression
The U.S. Navy shadowing a North Korean cargo ship suspected of carrying weapons bound for Burma is the stuff of potboiler thrillers. Yet for two of the world’s most reclusive and repressive states, the only unique feature of these events is the fact that anyone is taking notice. For several years, Burma’s ruling State Peace and Development Council (SPDC) and Kim Jong Il’s government in North Korea have been slowly strengthening their diplomatic and military ties, largely beneath the international radar.

A Letter to Ban Ki-moon
Your upcoming visit to Myanmar is a historic opportunity to underscore to Senior General Than Shwe the utmost seriousness with which the United Nations regards Myanmar’s failure to address violations of international humanitarian law. You should make clear that ending impunity is necessary to ensure the maintenance of peace and security. Under the direction of Gen. Than Shwe, the regime’s use of the judiciary to eliminate political opponents constitutes a crime against humanity. The arrest and imprisonment of Daw Aung San Suu Kyi and other political prisoners must be addressed in this context in order to ensure that the cycle of crime is not perpetuated.

The Pandemic That Isn't
From the beginning of the H1N1 swine flu outbreak, the WHO’s decisions and pronouncements have been far from reassuring. Most flu and public health experts consider the WHO to have been overly alarmist, and that their decision during the week of April 27 to raise the pandemic flu threat to the penultimate level, Phase 5, “Pandemic Imminent,” far outpaced the data that had accumulated and was unwarranted.