<p>Burmese authorities should urgently provide information on the whereabouts and well-being of two ethnic Kachin Baptist leaders who were apparently forcibly disappeared in Northern Shan State, Human Rights Watch and Fortify Rights said today. Langjaw Gam Seng, 35, and Dumdaw Nawng Lat, 65, who had guided journalists reporting on Burmese airstrikes that allegedly severely damaged a Catholic church, were last seen on December 24, 2016 traveling to a military base.&nbsp;</p>

<p>The Union Election Commission (UEC) has&nbsp;<a href="http://click.icptrack.com/icp/relay.php?r=72826759&amp;msgid=908506&amp;act=98NZ&amp;c=348258&amp;destination=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.dvb.no%2Fdvb-video%2Felection-2015-polls-wont-open-in-karen-states-east%2F57703">declared</a>&nbsp;102 villages in Karen State to be too dangerous for polling to take place, which will prevent nearly 10,000 citizens in Burma from voting during the 8 November, 2015 General Elections. The announcement comes amid a number of similar voting cancellations and interference during the last few months.<br /></p>

<p>As talks over the signing of a nationwide ceasefire agreement (NCA) continue, with another meeting planned for later this month, the Burma Army continues to attack various ethnic armed organizations (EAOs) in Kachin, Palaung, Shan and Karen areas, casting doubt on the dominant narrative of optimism that surrounds the NCA. Meanwhile, as has always been the case, it is civilians and local communities who are bearing the brunt of the war, with their protection glaringly absent in the ceasefire discourse.</p>

<p>In response to your recent public comments in the United States regarding the conflict and human rights violations in Kachin State, Kachin communities world-wide would like to take this opportunity to invite you to visit internally displaced people (IDP) forced to live in makeshift camps in Mai Ja Yang, Kachin State.<br /></p>