Burmese Overview

[Siam Sam]

Rather than keep using this thread (http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=467541), which started out as a Great Debate, I feel it more appropriate to start another thread for all things Burma.

Here (http://www.irrawaddy.org/article.php?art_id=15209) we see the Burmese government is willing to take back some of the Rohingya boat people if they repackage themselves as Bengallis and not Rohingyas.

And here (http://www.irrawaddy.org/article.php?art_id=15203) we see the possibility of the big US oil firms returning to Burma. It seems the new administration in Washington is not happy about China getting all the access to Burma's energy sources and so may "adjust" the sanctions against the junta. I understand the concern about China, but I would not like to see any sanctions eased myself.

[Llama Llogophile]

Darn. I was hoping this would be about Burmese cats.

[Siam Sam]

There's a good one here (http://atimes.com/atimes/Southeast_Asia/KC12Ae01.html) on how the Burmese military is actually a sort of Ponzi scheme.

[caveman]

"Myanmar"
Is hard to rhyme
I thought the old name
Worked just fine

Burma Shave

[Siam Sam]

Well, this sucks: Burmese Rock Fans Arrested in Bangkok (http://www.irrawaddy.org/article.php?art_id=15417).

[Siam Sam]

A sad report: Dying, and Alone, in Burma (http://www.nytimes.com/2009/04/01/world/asia/01iht-myanmar.html?_r=1&emc=eta1). (I refuse to use "Myanmar.")

[Siam Sam]

Burmese Migrants Handed Over to Human Traffickers (http://www.irrawaddy.org/article.php?art_id=15536). By Malaysian officials. :mad:

[Siam Sam]

Been away for a week, so pardon if any of these have been mentioned elsewhere, especially Aung San Suu Kyi's poor health.

And she is indeed in poor health, with her doctor prevented from seeing her. Story here (http://edition.cnn.com/2009/WORLD/asiapcf/05/10/myanmar.suukyi/index.html).

Supposedly, an American man was arrested last week after swimming across a lake to Suu Kyi's home, where she is under house arrest. This is being talked about all over Burma, with the truth of the report in question. Story here (http://www.irrawaddy.org/article.php?art_id=15610).

And a little humor: The mighty e-mail petition brings down the Burmese junta (http://www.notthenation.com/pages/news/getnews.php?id=781). :D

[Siam Sam]

The plot thickens. IF the American man swimming across the lake to Aung San Suu Kyi's compound is real, it seems he may have secretly visited before. See here (http://www.irrawaddy.org/article.php?art_id=15616). There are fears now that Suu Kyi may be involved in something that could get her into further legal trouble.

[Siam Sam]

he plot is REALLY thickening. Aung San Suu Kyi has been removed from her home and taken to Insein Prison under armed escort. Word is she may be charged with treason; it's related to the American who allegedly swam to her house. She's apparently NOT going to be returned to her home, which means she'll stay locked up in the jail, which by all accounts is bad even by Third World standards. She was reportedly ill and on a saline drip before this.

Most of the above is from BBC TV, but there's a story here (http://edition.cnn.com/2009/WORLD/asiapcf/05/13/myanmar.suukyi/index.html).

[Siam Sam]

The situation with Aung San Suu Kyi is spiralling, so I started a new thread (http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=517659) just for it. Hope that's okay; this is a seriously grave matter now.

[Siam Sam]

Chevron CEO: Chevron Is 'Constructive Force' In Myanmar (http://money.cnn.com/news/newsfeeds/articles/djf500/200905271536DOWJONESDJONLINE000833_FORTUNE5.htm)

Uh huh.

[Siam Sam]

Many Burmese See Pagoda Collapse as an Omen for the Junta (http://www.nytimes.com/2009/06/07/world/asia/07iht-burma.html?emc=eta1)

"It cannot have pleased Myanmar’s ruling family: the collapse of a 2,300-year-old gold-domed pagoda into a pile of timbers just three weeks after the wife of the junta’s top general had helped reconsecrate it with a diamond orb and a sacred golden umbrella.

"There is no country in Asia more superstitious than Myanmar, and the collapse of the temple was widely seen as something more portentous than shoddy construction work."

[Siam Sam]

Mystery Surrounds North Korean Tunnel-building in Burma (http://www.irrawaddy.org/interview_show.php?art_id=16019)

"North Korea has been helping Burma build an extensive network of tunnels in its new capital, Naypyidaw, and in Shan State, as an underground shelter for the government and “for other unknown purposes,” according to the Burma expert and author Bertil Lintner."

Related are these from Yale Global: Tunnels, Guns and Kimchi: North Korea’s Quest for Dollars, Part I: North Korea digs tunnels for Burma’s brutal, secretive regime (http://yaleglobal.yale.edu/display.article?id=12442)

And Part II (http://yaleglobal.yale.edu/display.article?id=12461), although it gets away from the Burma aspect.

[Siam Sam]

A Land the World Forgot (http://www.pulitzercenter.org/openitem.cfm?id=1638)

[Siam Sam]

A North Korean ship is under watch, suspected of taking small arms banned under a UN resolution to Burma. An intercept is unlikely, unfortunately. Story here (http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5iURO8fOyWVOA0ytFlaAGuC9F7R9wD98VS8A80). Should arrive maybe late in the week.

And 1,750 pounds of hair was donated by 30,000 Burmese women to raise money for repairs on the route to a sacred Buddhist pagoda. Story here (http://www.sandiego6.com/entertainment/weirdnews/story/Donated-hair-repairs-road/Os9LexGGp0Snik636Z26TA.cspx?rss=804). It will end up in wigs or dolls.

[Siam Sam]

Burmese Internet Users Share Video, Documents about North Korea (http://www.irrawaddy.org/article.php?art_id=16240)

There seems to be a strengthening military alliance between Burma and North Korea. Banned small-arms shipments. Mysterious giant tunnels being dug by North Korean soldiers. But a video of a 1983 bombing in Rangoon that was blamed on North Korea has become popular among the ordinary citizens. The bombing was aimed at the visiting South Korean president. He escaped, but 19 died. Burma severed diplomatic relations with North Korea afterward, but they've been getting cozy with them for a decade now.

Documents detailing some of the improving relations have also been leaked recently, presumably by army personnel not happy with the growing ties with North Korea.

I think this (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eTgP8B-IGug) is the video in question. I've not seen it yet -- it's almost impossible for me to use YouTube, our service is so slow.

[Siam Sam]

A North Korean ship is under watch, suspected of taking small arms banned under a UN resolution to Burma. An intercept is unlikely, unfortunately. Story here (http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5iURO8fOyWVOA0ytFlaAGuC9F7R9wD98VS8A80). Should arrive maybe late in the week.

Good news! BBC TV is reporting the US Navy hailed the ship off the coast of Vietnam, and it suddenly turned around. Looks like it's heading back to North Korea. They must have been worried about being boarded. Or sunk, the bastards.

[Siam Sam]

A good Wall Street Journal piece on the ineffectiveness of UN Chief Wimp Ban Ki-moon, especially regarding Burma: The UN's Invisible Man (http://online.wsj.com/article/SB124752598527835381.html?mod=googlenews_wsj).

And of course, there's skepticism over the Burma's "amnesty plan." See here (http://edition.cnn.com/2009/WORLD/asiapcf/07/14/myanmar.prisoner.amnesty/index.html).

[Siam Sam]

A new film opened in Britain last week that documents the 2007 street protests and military crackdown. Called Burma VJ. Info here (http://www.reuters.com/article/asiaCrisis/idUSLH714449).

[Siam Sam]

Criminy! There's suspicion that Burma is trying to go nuclear, with assistance from North Korea. Story here (http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/07/21/AR2009072100256.html). Won't happen anytme soon but still well worth looking out for.

On a more pleasant note, Aung San Suu Kyi has been awared the Gandhi Peace Prize. See here (http://www.monstersandcritics.com/news/asiapacific/news/article_1490923.php/Myanmar_opposition_leader_Suu_Kyi_awarded_Gandhi_peace_prize_).

[Siam Sam]

Crackdown on Passport Brokers Linked to Leaked Photos? (http://www.irrawaddy.org/article.php?art_id=16382)

Seems to be a problem with people obtaining passports from these brokers, leaving the country and never returning. Gee, I can't imagine why!

The crackdown is also possibly linked to people smuggling out photos and video footage:

"The Bangkok-based English-language newspaper The Nation reported recently that several senior Burmese officials and some journalists were sacked some weeks ago after publication of photographs and video footage of secret tunnels in Burma surfaced in the international media. Photographs and video footage of a tunnel construction site in Burma were also published by Burmese media organizations.

"During his seven-day visit to Pyongyang, Shwe Mann signed a memorandum of understanding at the defense ministry with North Korea’s Chief of General Staff, Gen Kim Kyok-sik, to formalize military cooperation between the two nations."

[Siam Sam]

This is rather worrying: Defectors Tell of Burma's Secret Nuclear Reactor (http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/asia/defectors-tell-of--burmas-secret-nuclear-reactor-1766566.html)
"North Korea is helping country develop weapons."

Unrelated: No Country to Call Their Own (http://www.irrawaddy.org/article.php?art_id=16438)
"Stateless Burmese children in Thailand are still being denied basic rights such as access to education and health services, and they are vulnerable to many kinds of exploitation and abuse, according to migrant rights advocates."

[purple haze]

Have you ever considered creating a blog, if you haven't already? 21 of the 23 posts here are yours. I kept wondering why the pigeon eggs thread kept popping up, and out of curiousity I read it today.

Wow! It's been around for well over a year. You could put that info in your blog too.

[Siam Sam]

No, not really. Actually, the few "information threads" I have I've been asked to keep going, publicly and/or privately, depending on the thread. The pigeon thread in particular seems to garner a lot of interest. If I thought I was being truly annoying -- at least, annoying to more than a small handful of members I've noticed seem to go out of their way to find something to complain about (no, I'm not referring to you) -- then I would end them. As it is, I figure anyone not interested in them will do as I do with threads I'm not really interested in and not open them.

As for Burma, their nuclear ambitions are starting to worry some over here. And apropos of those, people are wondering if this building (http://www.armscontrolwonk.com/2407/big-odd-myanmar-box) has anything to do with them. The Burmese leaders are just as evil as North Korea's, but there's no comical Kim Jong-il-type goofus for the world to laught at.

[purple haze]

Thank you for the reply. By the way, I was saddened to hear about Bob.

[Siam Sam]

Art censorship these days in Burma (http://www.nbc26.com/Global/story.asp?S=10871890). The junta just gets weirder and weirder.

There was a Burmese artist in Bangkok recently who had spent some time in jail. The stuff he said was incredible. White doves are out. Red is bad, because it denotes blood. Black is bad. He said it's really odd having the censor stand before your work and say: "If you could just make the red in your sunset a little more orange, that would be good."