Thu Thu Aung

Only skin deep: Unregulated cosmetic surgery spreads in Myanmar Women who have suffered health problems and other complications from cosmetic procedures are sounding the alarm about practitioners who use slick advertising on social media while hiding their lack of...

Women who have suffered health problems and other complications from cosmetic procedures are sounding the alarm about practitioners who use slick advertising on social media while hiding their lack of training.

Frontier’s owner responds to allegations made by Myanmar Now that he is engaging with the junta.

Read here: www.frontiermyanmar.net/en/setting-t...

Riverside communities in Myanmar’s Sagaing Region worry that gold mining, approved by forces aligned with the National Unity Government, will destroy their agricultural land, poison the water and attract attacks from the junta.

Read here: www.frontiermyanmar.net/en/in-the-sh...

Holding the line in Mawdaung In the Myanmar border town of Mawdaung, seized last year by resistance forces led by the Karen National Union, residents struggle to survive as junta blockades and a closed Thai border leaves them on ...

VIDEO | In the Myanmar border town of Mawdaung, seized last year by resistance forces led by the Karen National Union, residents struggle to survive as junta blockades and a closed Thai border leaves them on the brink.

‘I’m losing so much’: Classrooms fall silent in embattled Rakhine State Stymied by airstrikes, travel bans and school closures, students and teachers in Myanmar’s westernmost state are uncertain of what the future holds for education under Arakan Army control.

Stymied by airstrikes, travel bans and school closures, students and teachers in Myanmar’s westernmost state are uncertain of what the future holds for education under Arakan Army control.

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Growing debt: Myanmar farmers suffer from dwindling bean market Farmers in Ayeyarwady Region face mounting debts and threats to their livelihoods as black bean prices plummet due to a combination of decreased international demand and the junta’s mismanagement of t...

Farmers in Ayeyarwady Region face mounting debts and threats to their livelihoods as black bean prices plummet due to a combination of decreased international demand and the junta’s mismanagement of the economy.

Myanmar junta founds office to counsel post-poll government Myanmar's junta announced a new office advising the president on Wednesday, a role which may allow the military chief to formally embed his power over the incoming civilian government.

AFP | Myanmar’s junta announced a new office advising the president on Wednesday, a role which may allow the military chief to formally embed his power over the incoming civilian government.

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Caught in limbo: US cancellation of ‘protected status’ hits thousands The imminent termination of Temporary Protected Status leaves 4,000 Myanmar nationals in the United States facing the possibility of deportation to their war-ravaged country.

The imminent termination of Temporary Protected Status leaves 4,000 Myanmar nationals in the United States facing the possibility of deportation to their war-ravaged country.

No alternative: The junta’s election and Myanmar’s first-time voters As the military regime presses ahead with its poll, young voters describe being coerced into voting through fear, family pressure and restrictive laws.

As the military regime presses ahead with its poll, young voters describe being coerced into voting through fear, family pressure and restrictive laws.

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Costs of copper: Residents near mines suffer under junta’s heavy hand Chinese-run copper mines in Myanmar’s Sagaing Region have become a focal point of fighting between the military and anti-junta resistance forces, while local residents bear the brunt of the regime’s i...

Chinese-run copper mines in Myanmar’s Sagaing Region have become a focal point of fighting between the military and anti-junta resistance forces, while local residents bear the brunt of the regime’s indiscriminate brutality.

Is Min Aung Hlaing looking over both shoulders? Can the Myanmar junta navigate its way in a nascent new world order, with great powers like China and the United States asserting their control over their “areas of influence”?

OPINION | Can the Myanmar junta navigate its way in a nascent new world order, with great powers like China and the United States asserting their control over their “areas of influence”? By Guy Dinmore.

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Learning the hard way: Students warn against MBA scams The number of MBA programmes offered through private schools in Myanmar has grown in the past decade, but many are not recognised by international institutions – a deficiency that is usually not menti...

The number of MBA programmes offered through private schools in Myanmar has grown in the past decade, but many are not recognised by international institutions – a deficiency that is usually not mentioned in their advertising.

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‘Hard to fight’: Weapon shortages hamper resistance groups Pressure from China has forced ethnic armies in Shan State to stop supplying arms to resistance groups in Myanmar's central Dry Zone, leading to scarcity of guns and ammunition among PDFs struggling t...

Pressure from China has forced ethnic armies in Shan State to stop supplying arms to resistance groups in Myanmar’s central Dry Zone, leading to scarcity of guns and ammunition among PDFs struggling to hold ground against the military.

Myanmar junta takes autocratic approach to its ‘free and fair ‘ election Myanmar’s regime claims its election, starting on December 28, will be free and fair, and will lead to peace and democracy, but it is contradicting these assurances by arresting people who criticise t...

DOH ATHAN | Myanmar’s regime claims its election, starting on December 28, will be free and fair, and will lead to peace and democracy, but it is contradicting these assurances by arresting people who criticise the poll.

Myanmar junta airstrike on hospital kills 31: on-site aid worker A Myanmar military airstrike killed more than 30 people at a hospital, an on-site aid worker said Thursday, as the junta wages a withering offensive ahead of an election beginning this month.

AFP | A Myanmar military airstrike killed more than 30 people at a hospital, an on-site aid worker said Thursday, as the junta wages a withering offensive ahead of an election beginning this month.

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‘An election held under fear’: Junta persecutes critics of its poll Myanmar’s regime is hunting down those who oppose its upcoming election by using a law criminalising any criticism of the poll, detaining and handing long jail sentences to a wide array of people, fro...

Myanmar’s regime is hunting down those who oppose its upcoming election by using a law criminalising any criticism of the poll, detaining and handing long jail sentences to a wide array of people, from film stars to ordinary citizens.

'A city in the shadow of an election' As the junta prepares its election, scheduled to be held in phases starting on December 28, Yangon residents speak to Doh Athan about their fears and anxieties, as well as their scepticism about a pol...

DOH ATHAN | As the junta prepares its election, scheduled to be held in phases starting on December 28, Yangon residents speak to Doh Athan about their fears and anxieties, as well as their scepticism about a poll few believe can solve Myanmar’s problems.

As grant funding dries up, exiled newsrooms are finding hope in new revenue strategies In autumn 2025, Meduza, the largest exiled Russian-language media outlet, published an alarm call to its audience: “Meduza is in trouble – we’re running out of funding. We’ve already cut salaries and ...

Our editor-in-chief Thu Thu Aung discusses with Reuters Institute for the study of Journalism the future of Frontier and its viability at a time of crisis for independent exile media.

‘I had never done this in my life’: Poverty pushes many to beg in Rakhine The war between the Arakan Army and the military in Rakhine, and crippling trade blockades imposed by the junta, have destroyed the state’s economy, causing many of its inhabitants to beg in the stree...

The war between the Arakan Army and the military in Rakhine, and crippling trade blockades imposed by the junta, have destroyed the state’s economy, causing many of its inhabitants to beg in the streets to feed themselves and their families.

Refugee plan out to sea: Bangladesh closes Rohingya island to new arrivals Bangladesh has abandoned plans to send more Rohingya to Bhasan Char, a low-lying silt island in the Bay of Bengal, ending what aid workers say was an ill-conceived bid for a solution to the refugee cr...

Bangladesh has abandoned plans to send more Rohingya to Bhasan Char, a low-lying silt island in the Bay of Bengal, ending what aid workers say was an ill-conceived bid for a solution to the refugee crisis.

PR ploy: Junta scam centre raid changes little The Myanmar military’s raid on KK Park resulted in thousands of arrests and confiscation of illegal equipment, but analysts say the operation was an empty spectacle by the junta to create the impressi...

The Myanmar military’s raid on KK Park resulted in thousands of arrests and confiscation of illegal equipment, but analysts say the operation was an empty spectacle by the junta to create the impression it was cracking down on the scam industry.

‘Living in fear of the sky’: Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh battle environmental crisis The Rohingya camps in Cox’s Bazar are succumbing to an environmental nightmare of deforestation, landslides, flooding and fires – exacerbated by cuts in

The Rohingya camps in Cox’s Bazar are succumbing to an environmental nightmare of deforestation, landslides, flooding and fires – exacerbated by cuts in international aid that have halted most efforts to mitigate the effects of such disasters.
www.frontiermyanmar.net/en/living-in...

Refugees in limbo battle depression Myanmar nationals who have spent years in refugee camps in Thailand awaiting resettlement in the United States now face increased depression and other mental health issues since President Donald Trump...

DOH ATHAN PODCAST | Myanmar nationals who have spent years in refugee camps in Thailand awaiting resettlement in the United States now face increased depression and other mental health issues since President Donald Trump halted his country’s refugee programs.

The perils of abortion for Myanmar women Abortion carries a strong social stigma and is illegal in Myanmar, pushing many women to seek it in Thailand or, for those who cannot afford travelling to the neighbouring country, the use of dangerou...

Abortion carries a strong social stigma and is illegal in Myanmar, pushing many women to seek it in Thailand or, for those who cannot afford travelling to the neighbouring country, the use of dangerous pills bought on TikTok.

Viral justice: Social media and the court of public opinion Frustrated by a lack of institutional accountability, internet users in Myanmar are increasingly turning to social media to raise awareness – and air grievances – about perceived injustice.

Frustrated by a lack of institutional accountability, internet users in Myanmar are increasingly turning to social media to raise awareness – and air grievances – about perceived injustice.

“We will not surrender.”

In conversation with the @washingtonpost.com, MPP student Thu Thu Aung reflects on life in exile, the struggles of Myanmar’s independent media and her hopes for sustaining press freedom amid conflict. 👇
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Fear and voting in Myanmar: Junta election heralds more violence Many resistance groups have vowed to disrupt the regime’s poll, widely considered to be a sham aimed at maintaining the military's grip on power, and civilians forced to serve as poll workers fear get...

Many resistance groups have vowed to disrupt the regime’s poll, widely considered to be a sham aimed at maintaining the military’s grip on power, and civilians forced to serve as poll workers fear getting caught in the crossfire.

‘Strategic bargaining chips’: Kachin’s rare earth mining pause

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Back in business: Zahkung Ting Ying tries to rebuild his empire
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