We know that the junta has tried to act like victor that cares nothing but greed, self-centredness, pride, negligence, ignorance and stubbornness that are practiced with the powers of brute force, the threat to lose of life, lose of belongings, causing injuries, etc, without mercy. For its inhumane pride and illegal wealth, it’s ready to do anything – we all know. It’s willing to sacrifice the lives and properties of the people and soldiers to keep its palace in Nay-pyi-daw. Nothing else matter but to do everything right so that powers and laws will stay in its hand.
Pleasing the communist China is vital here – as we all know; act according to What the Beijing government has to say. As the international pressure is mounting due to cyclone Nargis, whilst China is also hit by earthquakes and needing the international sympathy, the junta has to come and visit the cyclone survivors – unwillingly but to please everyone outside Burma. Well, if the junta does have a heart for them, this should have happened since the cyclone hit the delta.
Three weeks ago, the junta listened to nobody – but its gut feeling – to win referendum; now it has at least on paper. But it was the time the people needed helps to survive. Previously, they needed emergency warnings and mass evacuation. Sadly India doesn’t have Burmese radio program to give a hand to the regional population even though it’s climbing up to become a super power nation and tragically to have influence on the region and wider world - but we won’t blame this.
But we must condemn the junta for its way of contempt of life and religion. This is its choice of policy and lifestyle: Killing, torturing, looting, raping, demolishing villages, suppressing conscience , endangering the environment by unsustained exploitation, destroying cultures and traditions, keep the fear among the population, destroying morality of the society, depriving the children of the civilians from education and health, the list can go on and on.
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One of the most serious things is the junta is oppressing the true nature of Buddhism to control it and use it for political purpose as Buddhists are the majority in Burma – apart from suppressing other religions as if it were for Buddhism.
We know what a hundred heartless soldiers with machine guns can do to 50,000 unarmed demonstrators. We cannot blame the saffron for its failure. We knew it wouldn’t succeed with verbal support from international community.
It’s true that our people have to liberate themselves. It’s true that the energy and power for liberation are up to our people and mainly inside our country. It’s true that the good organizational skills and the quality of leadership of our leaders are vital to achieve freedom by mobilizing the people.
But I never got wrong that the people cannot do anything without the commitment and physical supports of the international community – particularly the free world.
A government is to govern and manage a country – rather with a dutiful manner. A government doesn’t need legitimacy given directly to it but it must have mutual understanding with the population it is governing. All government must have capability to manage the resources, trade and tax; its good services are various but mainly to fix the problems, improve or expand the developments, start new developments, invest for the future, secure peace, prosperity and the rule of civil laws, and keep all these good momentums running smoothly. A government must be able to manage all basic commodities to be affordable, keep inflation down and allocating the services where they are really needed. A government must be able to rescue and save lives wherever whenever. The organization that kills civilians for survival is not a legal group – it’s a criminal group.
Without good services, there is no government. A government that doesn’t govern and manage the country is not a legitimate government – whether it is elected sometimes in the past, whether it won referendum to be government eternally. Without the acceptance of the population, a government is not a government – it has lost legitimacy.
A government cannot keep a war forever – especially a civil war. It must win or negotiate – this is only to make conditions that peace is re-established to save lives and resources. A government must make all parties satisfied, their rights are met, and integrity is crystal clear. This is mainly concerned to Burma as grievances are the cause of infighting. A government is not an organisation that keeps wars for its own sake.
There are good reasons to start a war: to save a country, to save civilians, to gain independence, to bring down a dictator, to secure peace and give way to future prosperity of local population, etc.
Some wars are graceful and necessary.
We, Burmese people, have to see long-term security and stability by scarifying whatever necessary.
The junta has taken the victory from the referendum in Nargis crisis whilst the people, all other organizations and international governments were overwhelmed by rescue and relief efforts. The referendum was the strategy of the junta to keep the laws in the hands of the generals. And the reality of referendum has been implemented and legalised the rule of brutality.
We all know the junta is not capable of rescue and relief. Yet it’s banned the world effort. The results are predictable. We won’t see the junta will open the borders in time to safe lives. We must understand what can happen because that.
We know we could never trust the ASEAN. We never got any trustworthy aids from this organization. All we have got is blunt favour to the junta and its lip services to gain the favour from the world. The reality on the ground is different as we all know.
Therefore, we must not feel satisfied with the service of ASEAN only that will make the junta look good and its mission will be only to keep the junta in place. We are already facing the same dilatory tactic of both the junta and ASEAN. Along side this, the UN is also hijacked by softly-softly approach again mainly because of ASEAN.
We have already favoured ASEAN’s approaches. We’re in danger again to be held in the pattern of self-inflicting thinking and actions. We have been also divided again. We must learn lessons not to become numb in the game of these people. We should have condemned them already.
We have to ask the UN – what is it waiting for? As we know it cannot answer, that it’s made of opposite sides – we must seek actions vigorously from the countries that can. We must seek the relief efforts of all organizations and all countries that we must ask them to do that now. We must also make the people to seek aids and supplies even if necessary to cross the borders. We must encourage the people with information and directions.
The ships of US, UK and France have been there for weeks. We must let them go back only with mission-accomplishment. We must encourage them by providing information and direction and support actions.
But I wonder why the US had to decide to delay alongside with France, UK, Germany, Australia, etc. Will ASEAN change their mind to go home and do nothing about the crisis?
However, there are no sufficient forces with the navy – I don’t know how that can threaten the junta to deny humanitarian supplies and aids workers – apart from blocking the opportunity to observe the referendum. But now the referendum has finished and the junta has mission-accomplished.
Therefore, it must open all borders and let the aid workers in.
