With all the war, conflict and protests which we've become accustomed to seeing on the news in recent years, it's easy to let the events going on in Burma just wash over and blend into the background. I'd urge anyone reading this not to let this happen and take a second look at Burma right now.

Burma (also known as Myanmar; read about why, and the significance here) is ruled by probably one of the most dreadful military dictatorships in the world. According to the BBC, the junta "suppresses almost all dissent and wields absolute power in the face of international condemnation and sanctions". The United Nations has charged the military government with a “crime against humanity” for its systematic abuses of human rights, including according to a recent BBC documentary, ethnic cleansing and the burning of entire villages to the ground.

I myself have known about this since the plight of the popular pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi was brought to my attention back when I was President of the Students' Union at the University of Leicester (as is traditional in students' unions, we named a room after her). Despite having won a general election and a Nobel Peace Prize, Suu Kyi has, with a few brief spells of exception, been kept under house arrest since her return from exile in 1988.

I don't pretend by any means to be an expert on Burma, but there is enough information around for those who are interested, including a campaign group here in the UK. Since the news companies in Burma are state-owned, and the entire population is subjected to heavy censorship, accurate reports of the actual events occurring are not easy to come by. However, bloggers such as Ko Htike (who is based in London, but in contact with people in Burma who are able to avoid the government's censorship) are providing a window on Burma through the accounts of ordinary people on the ground. Much of his blog is in Burmese, but significant portions are also in English. The BBC also comments on those using the internet to get information out of Burma, including how the government is attempting to hijack the system to spread misinformation.

After a night of military raids, in which the state-owned television claimed that nine protesters were killed, the demonstrations are now in their tenth day.