Campaign: Total
In the beginning of January, the Ministry of Finance decided to go against our demands to withdraw the Norwegian petroleum fund's investment in French Total because of the company's engagement in Burma. In the recommendation to the Ministry of Finance, the ethical council for the petroleum fund expresses that it is likely that Total knew about the human rights violations during the construction of the pipeline, but that they did not see the company as responsible for any systematic abuses of the human rights in the pipeline area. Se recommendation in English. The Norwegian angle towards the Total campaign has been based on our demand for the Petroleum Fund to pull out. However, we will still continue with our campaign against Total, and we are rethinking the campaign and how to approach the subject after the negative decision.

Refugee coordinator
The NBC has experienced a large increase in inquiries related to the situation for Burmese in Norway due to the recent arrival of more than 800 refugees. Claire Whelan has been hired for a period of four months in order to research various aspects related to Burmese in Norway, and specifically to assess what the future role of the NBC may be in this regard.

How to work politically for a democratic Burma from Norway
On 4 Feb: Representatives from Norwegian media, politicians and labor unions will share their experiences with the Burmese community in Norway on the best ways of working in the Norwegian context. We will get concrete illustrations on how to successfully work on international campaigns on a grassroots level in Norway. The seminar is open to all Burmese in Norway, also those that have not worked politically before, and will be conducted in English and Burmese. Send us an e-mail at whelan@burma.no or call 22 47 92 37 to tell us if you are coming.

New government - what will it mean?
On 22 Feb: Last September, Norway changed government from a liberal to a social democratic coalition. In February, we will facilitate a meeting between the Deputy Secretary of the MFA and the other organizations working on Burma or related issues in Norway.

Burma days with the Nobel Peace Center
On 7.-17. Feb, the Nobel Peace Center and NBC will cooperate on Burma days, where high school classes are invited to participate in a role-play about child soldiers in Burma.