Be informed!

Our About Burma page provides an introduction to Burma and its problems, but there are many Web sites that provide more extensive information about Burma -- some of the sites contain current, timely, thoughtful and accurate information while other sites contain dated, copied or inaccurate information.

We recommend:

National Coalition Government of the Union of Burma

authoritative Web site for the National League for Democracy

Canadian Friends of Burma

the strongest, most active and influential Canadian group

Free Burma Coalition

collection of leading activist groups

The BurmaNet News

extensive up-to-date news coverage

Canada and Burma

Canada-Burma relations are summarized in a Canadian Trade Commissioner Service Burma (Myanmar) article. These relations are based on a Canadian approach to human rights in foreign policy that the Canadian government has developed over the years.

The Canadian Trade Commissioner Service also provides a Burma fact sheet and statistics about Canadian exports to Burma and Canadian imports from Burma.

More information about Canada-Burma relations can be found by searching the Canadian Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade Web site.

In the Canadian House of Parliament, any examination of human rights in Burma is the responsibility of the Sub-Committee on Human Rights and International Development of the Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs and International Trade. The Sub-Committee last looked at human rights in Burma in a November 17, 1999 meeting at which members of the Canadian Friends of Burma presented information to the Sub-Committee and answered questions.

The work of the Sub-Committee led to the Standing Committee's Report 4 - Human Rights in Burma, which urged the 36th Parliament of Canada to recognize the Committee representing the People's Parliament as the representatives of the people of Burma, and further urged the government of Canada to consider the imposition of investment sanctions on the regime in Burma. The report was tabled in the House of Commons on April 5, 2000 by the Standing Committee's chair, Bill Graham, who was the Minister of Foreign Affairs in the 37th Parliament of Canada and is the Minister of National Defense for the 38th Parliament of Canada. The Canadian Parliament has yet to take any action on the report's recommendations.