Burma is known for it's tempting, beautiful, untouched virgin landscape - exotic, many people would call it. However, the cries of the Burmese are getting stronger and louder. They are finding means and ways to get their voice heard. Many real life encounters were unfolded, told by the very people who escaped from the clutches of the junta.
Despite working in a foreign country, Burmese are required to pay 10% of their salary to the government every month, if they want to retain their citizenship.
These are the lucky ones, who have a choice.
They are many others who are still stuck in the country, waiting for their 'fate'.
So if you are thinking of visit Burma, have plans to, are planning, whatever - please don't.
“Burma will be here for many years, so tell your friends to visit us later. Visiting now is tantamount to condoning the regime.”
-Aung San Suu Kyi
Wednesday, June 21, 2006
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
2 comments:
That's right! Don't go there! Instead, just let the small emerging middle class, which is making some little money from tourism, fall in the gutter. Let the girls working in factories become whores, thanks to international sanctions. Let the country be closed, far from sight, and the military do what they want with their population, like it is the case in North Korea, instead of allowing people to see with their own eyes what is going on there. To conclude, let Burma die alone, in the dark, like a madman cast away in an asylium (ref. Erving Goffman), but let us have good conscience and congratulate ourselves for not having done anything... Sanctions and boycotts are such constructive approaches, right? That's right, we're the best!
First of all, I'd like to thank you for sharing your perspective. I sincerely appreciate it and hope you might even read this comment, since you did not leave your contact. The posting was not written without deep thoughts. The matter of fact is that Myanmar is under an autocratic military junta which practices communism - in other words, any form of earnings will eventually have to be surrendered to the government, volunteerily, or by force. I'm not supporting the NGOs for boycotting tourism in Myanmar forever, it's just for now. Girls working in factories will not become whores just because we don't visit Myanmar - because the existence of these factories are to sustain local consumption and economy - it has nothing to do with international trade. The reason the country is closed is not due to lack of tourism, but due to the lack of openness of the government. The very fact that you responded to my posting shows that people around the world are concerned about Myanmar, they are not alone and we ARE trying to do something about it, and tourism is not the ONLY way to help. Furthermore, it's a plea by Daw Aung San Suu Kyi herself, a very good representation of the people of Myanmar, the people who knows the best what they want for themselves. http://www.burmacampaign.org.uk/action_holiday.html
I'm sorry you felt so strongly about my posting and hope we can discuss more about this.
Post a Comment