>> >> [ ♪♪ ] on "america tonight", the release of aung san suy kyi, the suspension of u.s. sanctions and a rise in tourism opened up burma to the world. [ explosion ] but there is a side of burma the government does not advertise. a surge in violence by the burmese army also tonight... >> a worse nightmare that a parent could go through.

. >> reporter: alex overdosed in her home. >> we did a do not resuscitate. the priest came and passed peace fly. >> reporter: alex might have been brought back to life with this thanks for joining us. i'm joie chen. it's jaw dropping. the spike of heroin use in the country it's claimed lives we thought would never be lost to smak. it's been called a health crisis. now, more officers armed themselves with an important weapon against drug overdoses - an anxiety dote that can save lives and rescue users from the edge of death. in suburb jp maryland lori jane gliha joined out what happens when the help comes too late. >> it's the worst night mair

that a parent could go through. >> renae's son alex was clean for six months and home for the holidays. >> alex was special, loving giving affectionate. do anything for anyone give the shirt off his box. >> reporter: alex was addicted to afly codin -- oxy coatin after an injury in college, and turned to heroin. renae thought he had turned his life around at age 28. it was a rainy night in january. it was his last night at home. >> we had plans to go to the gym at 8 in the morning, then meet a friend for early lunch on his way back out of town. the next thing i know when i went to bed at midnight was at four in the morning a neighbour's boys was screaming for me to wake up that alex stopped breathing. >> alex overdosed in her home. >> alex went to the hospital he

was not mentally going to be the same. we had to make the decision whether he we wanted to resuscitate him or not. it's a hard decision. in your hard you want to in your mind you should. >> reporter: alex might have been brought back to life with this. >> it's 1 milligram per nostril. >> reporter: once you put it in someone's nose how quickly do they come back to life. >> up to a minute. >> reporter: it is known as narcan and can bring an overdose victim back to conscious. >> scott is with the police. members were on the scope, responding to renae's 911 call. weeks later police would be trained and equipped with the drug that could have saved alex. >> so many things went wrong.

all the what ifs. what if he had narcan. what if his friend had narcan what if he woke me up. there's a lot of things that could have changed the course of event the most recent numbers show heroin overdose deaths tripled nationwide between 2010 and 2013. with a growing epidemic police departments are changing their approach to drug addiction, arming police officers with ant dotes, instead of making arrest. >> reporter: an ambulance might have this. >> they do. >> reporter: what if a police officer gets to the scene. >> if we get to the scene, we can administer it. we have policies to administer it. when overdosing seconds count. >> reporter: it has been around for decades, injected with a need. more police departments and emergency crews are turning to an easy to use nasal spray

version of the drug. >> reporter: we take the cap off here and here. >> a use not approved by the sda and considered off-label. maryland is among dozens of states. it's a law removing liability from people who dispense the drug. but the so-called miracle drug is less of a reality for some because the price has nearly doubled in the past year. stock jumped by 70% since it went public last june. many municipalities already have contracts that set long-term pricing for the drugs nearby. >> reporter: do you think lives will be lost as a result of police not being able to afford it. >> yes, if it's cost prohibitive, we won't carry it. we could come across an

overdose we don't have narcan. we have to wait 6-8 minutes. seconds count. >> reporter: both the price increase and the stock jump caught the attention of lawmakers. more months the senator wrote this letter to the c.e.o. of amfer star pharmaceuticals: amfer store is working on a response. "america tonight" made requests for comment to the pharmaceutical company. all unanswered. in the fast they have said the price increase is due to the rising cost of raw materials, energy and labour. rena is planning to receive draining and keeping it with her at all times. she's rushing to the hospital to pick up her son, her other son,

who is also an addict. michael has been addicted to opiates, including heroin for years. his mother encouraged him to appear on camera to demonstrate the powerful grip the drugs have on him, and his struggle to get well. >> can you describe for me now what is your situation with drugs? >> i resort back to them. i - they control me they control everything and they make he hurt the people i love the most. >> when you think about what happened to your brother, do you worry that could happen to you. >> i'm in a dark flarks a way i was envious of my brother, i tried to commit suicide twice, it's like a prison in your head all the anxiety, depression and drug use. and i wish it happened to me instead of him. >> that's the last thing renae

wants and hopes narcan con keep him alive. >> reporter: tell me why it's important for you to have narcan here? >> i know when you live with an addict every minute of every day is a potential time for them to overdose and it would allow you to have peace of mind and comfort. that should an emergency come like this you can help. >> reporter: but she can't be there every minute of every day and will have to rely on first responders hoping she'll never have to relive her worst nightmare. >> "america tonight"s lori jane gliha is standing buy. this was workable. you say more and more police departments are getting the medication and putting it in the hands of their officers. is it accessible. >> yes, a lot of states are starting to do it. regular citizens like renae or

you or me can go through the training and that qualifies them to get a prescription. some say it may be a good thing, if you live with an addict and you know they have the potential of overdosing you can have it in your home before the police arrive. the police didn't have the anecdote fire and emergency crews get there, but every second counts. >> that's what the officer was saying it's important to get there quickly and have this. it's not that complicated to use then. >> no it's simple. if you put it - they add an atom issa you put it up the nose it's one squirt. seemed simply doesn't seem hard to use, people can get a certificate. you said that the fta has not authorised this medication in this way. is there an option.

>> it's considered an off approved use, there's another method an autoinjector coming in a little box. it talks to you, telling you the instructions that you need to do. you have to go through training to get a prescription for it. it's a needle in jected in the leg, i think. most insurance companies cover it. the cost pocket is $30. >> it's almost like an epipen. >> similar to an epipen six to use. the one that is out there as well. >> "america tonight"s lori jane gliha. >> next an art heist on the street. one of the world's most celebrated and secretive artists, banksy and the caper that led his latest twork disappear. later, a spot in south-east asia - western tourists and

tribal tensions. long hidden from the world, burma re opens. we get an insiders view of the fight against the government still under way and hot on "america tonight"s website now. rosa park's revealed. five things you didn't know about the mother of the civil rights movement. her lift of defines. and what changed "america tonight". that's at

aljazeera.com/americatonight. ericatonight. [ ♪♪ ]

in our fast-forward something: is it simply graffiti or gold. banksy made his mark around the world. daring to bring his message to the streets and walls and doors. turning them into canvases of great value. that is why art collectors are banking on banksy. >> banksy is a well-known street artist. starting with small pieces in europe. he's become hot. and in eight years he went from a few hundred pounds to selling $1.8 million at sotheby. >> reporter: in this case that's pounds as in british money. >> it used to be all the works

were destroyed. people are catching on - hay, we have something part of the mystique is you never know where he'll turn up. in cities across the globe he left a trail of graffiti art, under the colour of darkness. this image of a heart-shapen balloon became on overnight senn takes, with people lining up around the block for a moment of communion. then, almost as quickly as it came it disappeared. enter chris arnold in his gally. >> i didn't sleep for three days until this got here. >> he brought the work. it's estimated it will fetch several hundred thousands of dollars. for the owner of the building it's like hitting the lottery. >> fast-forward - talk about a jackpot. someone scored the banksy

original for less than $200, the artist slipping into the gaza strip. he pointed four murals, one a greek goddess drawn on the door of the family's home. it was all that remained. the family didn't realise the family of the artwork and were persuaded to sell the door for about 180. they didn't know the banksy was probably worth thousands. and the buyer didn't tell them. >> now, new opening, but old fear. burma re-engages with the world. insiders show us the tribal turmoil under way. friday on "america tonight". another community torn by different factions is views. >> i think it's a cool town the way it is. >> if there's a majority a

large portion of the community, something is long. >> christopher putzel returns to ferguson, missouri. that's friday, on "america tonight".

long close to the world, burma has reopened. decades of political strife all but cut off the south-east asian nation. with a new regime and promises of greater liberties for its people, burma has become a hot tourist destination. even president obama travelled there last year. still, beyond the gaze of outsiders there are signs of turmoil. a crackdown on ethnic minorities and reports of atrocities, communicated by a group -- documented by a group that sheila macvicar found is determined to bring the truth to

light. >> reporter: the november visit by president obama to burma called myanmar showed just how far the military-led country moved away from its image as a human rights pariah. the release of opposition leader aung san suy kyi, the suspension of u.s. sanctions, and a steep rise in tourism opened up burma to the world. [ explosion ] >> reporter: there is a side of burma the government doesn't advertise - a surge in violence by the burmese army. there are hundreds of ethnic minorities in burma, some in conflict with the government for years. ethnic separatists are increasingly under attack by the burmese army, and they are driving minor dis out of some -- minorities out of some reasons, forcing many from their homes. it's a conflict that outside the region attracts little attention.

a small band of volunteers risked death daily to document the brutality of the government's continuing wars against ethnic minorities. they call themselves the free burma rangers. >> let's look at the picture on 19 january. >> reporter: this is a devote christian in a buddhist count riff. he's been a -- country. he's been a ranger for nearly 15 years. >> reporter: even armed with faith he struggles not to hate the burmese army.

>> reporter: the free burma ranges were originally founded by an american missionary. they are members of buddhists, christians, muslims, an army of accountability seeking to regard human rights violation by the national army. 28-year-old camera man ted is angry over the government suppression of his native aracon state. >> reporter: he has a flag tattooed on his back. reminding him of his people's former glory. >> reporter: he has no illusions about his fate if captured by the burmese army.

the burmese army. . >> if they know i'm a freedom ranger, i will be arrested and probably killed. >> reporter: this january they went deep into the state, bordered with china, controlled by an independence army. government forces increased attacks against the separatists and have been accused of bombing villages to drive thousands of mainly christians from their homes. the rangers prepare for a mission to revisit a mission, the site of an attack last year by the burmese army. they plan to interview witnesses and check on those that fled. >> reporter: usually unarmed, they check weapons in case they encounter army patrols.

>> reporter: the journey will take them deep into government-held territory, deep into danger. the first evidence they see of the burmese army attacks are -- who fled. entire families live in a single room, trying to keep warm. the rangers distribute food, the rangers distribute food, and set up of an ad hoc medical clinic. one acts as a dentist, extracting a tooth in a 15-year-old girl. just outside the camp, the roads become too dangerous to travel. the rangers leave the truck to avoid running into burmese army checkpoints. when night falls, they set out on foot. >> the reason is to avoid contact with the burmese army.

we don't want to have unnecessary problems. >> reporter: after a gruelling 3-day trek covering 60 miles, taking the rangers across soined streams, abandoned rice padies, and down a path, they arriving at the village. >> reporter: the rangers film evidence of a national army attack on a school, which survivors say killed an 8-year-old boy, and injured three others. >> reporter: down the road they meet one of the few villagers to return home. last year the free burma rangers dug up a grave and found his son's body.

he had been tortured and killed, along with six others, when he insisted on staying in the village to care for his livestock. he blames himself for allowing his son, deaf and unable to speak, to stay. the rangers take him to visit his son adds grave. -- his son's grave. >> all they can do is offer comfort and record his story in the hope that one day the old man will see justice. now the mission enters a final

and dangerous stage. near the village, they receive urgent news. the rangers are told the burmese army is forcing villages to build an access road to their camp. they develop a plan. get as close as possible. film it and get out. the burmese army has been signed accused of forcing the villages to work to death. -- work to death. they are full of bravado. signed >> this is mine. i feel nothing. >> reporter: a short while later, he is on edge.

>> reporter: the rangers creep within a few hundred yards of signed the camp. >> they take the security. maybe they should. >> reporter: they start to film a group of villagers working under the watchful eye of a guard. they film as long as they can. as quickly as they came the rangers pack up and are gone. later, safely away from the burmese army the rangers review their footage, erupting in applause. the next day a report was sent by satellite to the outside world. >> reporter: he reports on another loss two of their own,

three killed in a mortar attack by the burmese army. when the rangers return. they give a eulogy. the death strengthens their resolve to hold the burmese government accountable to all people regardless of their religion or ethnicity the story of their community. that's "america tonight". tell us what you think at aljazeera.com/americatonight. visit us on twitt or or facebook. come back we'll have more of "america tonight" tomorrow.

celebrations in rain after world powers reach a break through deal on tehran's nuclear programme. israel warns that the agreement threatens its existence hello, this is al jazeera, live from doha i'm adrian finegan. also on the programme... >> the u.n. calls for swift justice for those behind the attack on a university in kenya that killed 147 people.