Yung-Ty Chin

EDGE Final Paper

Myanmar: A Nation in Crisis
The nation of Myanmar, also known as Burma, is currently under the rule of a
ruthless totalitarian regime, guilty of numerous human rights violations and target of
intense international criticism. Located in Southeast Asia, on the western border of
Thailand and Laos, it has been under military rule since World War II. Burma is mired in
socioeconomic crisis stemming from the rule of the military junta, and the citizens are
suffering. The environment of Burma is being destroyed, the people are treated
inhumanely, and the country is notorious for its contribution to global narcotics. The
paragraphs below detail the current situations facing the country, why they came about,
and the parties that are to blame for sending the country on a dangerous downward spiral.
First, however, it is important to understand Burmas political history.

A History of Burma
The ancestors of the people of Myanmar migrated down along the Irrawaddy
River from Tibet and China, and they brought with them cultural traditions stemming
from India. The Mon, at around 3000 B.C., were the first people to come. They
established centers of settlement in central Myanmar, in the Irrawaddy delta, and farther
down the eastern coast of the Bay of Bengal. They developed farming and irrigation
systems, and they kept ties with India as well as other Mon settlements. The Burmese
entered the Irrawaddy River valley in the mid-9th century, eventually absorbing the
nearby Pyu and Mon communities. The Shan, Kachin, and Karen arrived later and are
currently the major ethnic minority groups in the country. In 1044, King Anawrahta
united the nation in the city of Pagan where he built Buddhist temples and pagodas. In the

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following years Burma experienced a golden age that was a relatively peaceful era. After
250 prosperous years, control of the nation switched between invading Mongols and the
countrys various ethnic groups. Eventually the Toungoo dynasty emerged in the 16th
century, and the country was unified under a single Burmese state. The dynasty fell in
1752 after years of invasion, clashes with the Portuguese, and ultimately a Mon rebellion.
The rebellion gave way to the Kongbaung dynasty, which did restore Burmese
control over the country. There was a great deal of friction and eventually full-fledged
fighting between the Kongbaung dynasty and the British, particularly over the coastal
province of Arakan. This tension gave way to the First Anglo-Burmese war in the early
19th century, after which the British gained control of Arakan as well as the province of
Tenasserim. The Second Anglo-Burmese War in 1852 gave the British near complete
control of Burma, and it was annexed as a British Colony in 1885. Although it required
the suppression of various uprisings and widespread dissent, British rule actually helped
modernize the country, create a more stable social structure, and increase the productivity
of its industries. The British made Burma a leading exporter of rice, and the city of
Yangon became a major shipping port as a result. However, this economic expansion
came at the expense of traditional Burmese customs and culture. British control
eventually began to wear upon the residents of Burma, and a new independence
movement was driven by university student movements as well as religious movements
by Buddhist monks. The Saya San Rebellion, which opposed the British modernization of
the country, was suppressed in the early 1930s.
During the 1930s, Rangoon University would be the birthplace of the national
independence movement. A law student named Aung San, an executive officer in the

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universitys student union, became a leader for the new independence movement. He
garnered nationwide support after years of student strikes. When World War II broke out,
Aung San and his followers saw an opportunity to liberate Burma. He and 29 of his
colleagues, who called themselves the 30 Comrades, left Burma to train with the
Japanese military in 1941. With this military expertise, they were able to assemble a
Burma Independence Army (BIA) upon their return to the country. Allied with the
Japanese in exchange for a guarantee of independence, the BIA accompanied the
Japanese invasion of Myanmar and subsequent ousting of the British in 1942, but it was
truly a political rather than military entity. Aung San created the Anti-Fascist Peoples
Freedom League (AFPFL) to resist the occupation by Japan after he and the BIA realized
that Japan would not relinquish control of the country. The AFPFL had nearly complete
control of political power in Burma towards the end of the war because of the weakening
Japanese regime. By the time the war ended, the British, upon their return, were forced to
broker a deal with the ruling AFPFL guaranteeing Burmese independence.
The AFPFL won Burmas 1947 elections in a landslide, and they began
construction of a new constitution. However, in July of that year, Aung San and six of his
colleagues were tragically assassinated by U Saw, one of Aungs political enemies. U Nu,
one of his Aungs surviving cabinet members, was forced to take charge of the AFPFL.
The Karens revolted against the AFPFL government in the 1950s, and Communist
insurgents from the north revolted as well. Both of these were turned down, as were most
of the other ethnic and political insurrections during this ten year period. These groups
felt that the 1948 constitution was unfair to their minority factions.

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In 1958, the Burmese economy was floundering; the AFPFL had a party split
despite winning in two different national elections during the 1950s. A caretaker army
government, led my General Ne Win, a former associate of Aung San, took control.
Although U Nu won the national election in 1960 with ease, Ne Win staged a coup in
1962 and regained control of the country. He would proceed to build a totalitarian
military regime that was intolerant of ethnic separatists as well as opponents of
modernization. He tried to reshape the nation and began by abolishing all political
opposition to his regime and consolidating the media into a single government-controlled
newspaper. His policies also called for isolation from the outside world, which would
lead Burma down a disastrous path. He attempted to apply his plan, the Burmese Way to
Socialism, to the economy. The Rangoon University Student Union, where Aung San
had begun his independence movement, was destroyed. The country suffered during the
first few years of Ne Wins rule, as the economy declined and people became hungry. In
1974, a new constitution was written, and new policies were adopted to improve the
economy. Fewer restrictions were placed on trade, peasants were given more money for
the crops they generated, and international aid helped keep the economy afloat. During
this time, however, there was constant fighting with the Karen rebels to the north,
creating a thorn in the side of Ne Wins government. The economy declined in the late
1980s, and in 1988 Ne Win unexpectedly retired.
Students saw another chance to liberate Burma from military rule, and again
student-led demonstrations erupted across the country. However, with the government
being controlled by the riot police, the demonstrations were dealt with swiftly and
harshly. The police fired shots into demonstrations throughout the country, leaving

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thousands of students, women, and children dead. The ruling military formed the State
Law and Order Restoration Council (SLORC), which ruled with an iron fist. They did,
however, pledge to hold a free election. It was at about this time that Aung San Suu Kyi,
the daughter of the slain Aung San, returned to Burma after studying abroad and helped
form the National League for Democracy (NLD). After her party began to garner
nationwide support for the upcoming national elections, she was put under house arrest
by the SLORC. In the ensuing 1990 elections, Aung San Suu Kyis NLD party won in a
landslide. When NLD members tried to establish their positions in government many of
them were arrested, and some even fled to the Thai border to reorganize.
Aung San Suu Kyi won the Nobel Peace Prize in 1991, bringing even more
international scrutiny and pressure upon the SLORC and the deplorable state of affairs in
Burma. Suu Kyi was released from house arrest in 1995, but placed back under house
arrest once again in 2002. In 1996 and 1997, the SLORC constantly thwarted the NLDs
efforts to organize delegates, hold meetings, or garner any support. In 1996, the SLORC
was terminated, and the State Peace and Development Council (SPDC) took its place.
Clearly it was a cosmetic change in response to UN pressure on Burma throughout the
1990s, as the ruling members of the SPDC retained the exact same positions they held in
the SLORC. After being released in 2002, Aung San Suu Kyi was captured again in 2003
while touring the country and remains under house arrest up to this day. The military
junta remains in control up to this day as well, and its grip on the country is as strong as
ever, despite various international sanctions placed on the country by the UN and EU.

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Environment and Natural Resources
Burma is one of the worlds most resource-rich countries, but due to the
negligence and ruthlessness of the ruling junta, its environment and natural resources are
being destroyed. The ongoing destruction of Burmas lush rainforests begins with the
SPDC generating income at any expense to the environment. Burmas rainforests contain
extremely valuable teak trees, and foreign loggers, particularly Thai, pay the ruling junta
in order to exploit this resource. Completely unregulated, these companies clear out acres
upon acres of rainforest at a rate even faster than that of the Amazon rainforest. These
forests are not only home to the various ethnic minorities that call Burma home, but also
several endangered species, such as the clouded leopard, gaur, silvered leaf monkey, tapir,
tiger, Asian rhinoceros, and Asian elephant. The clear-cutting of rainforest also exposes
the land to erosion and landslides.
The Burmese government is just as negligent with its rich fishing resources in the
Andaman Sea. The ruling junta made agreements in 1989 and 1993 that allowed Thai
fishing companies to exploit these resources, and it has led to severe overfishing in the
Andaman Sea. The fishing villages which normally rely on these resources to make a
living have lost their source of income, and these villages are constantly shrinking and
becoming impoverished. Once again, the junta has exploited the countrys rich natural
resources at the expense of the environment as well as the locals of the area being
exploited.
Fertile agricultural lowlands once made the country, once called the Rice Bowl
of Asia, a leading rice exporter. The military juntas new agricultural policies,
unsurprisingly aimed at generating a revenue stream for the government, are leading the

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country on the path to agricultural disaster. Farmers are forced to double and often triple
the amount of crops they and the land would normally produce. Then, for an extremely
discounted fee, they sell most of their harvest to the government, which exports the rice
at true market prices, giving the regime quite a handsome profit. These policies not only
penalize farmers and distort the market economy, but they are also environmentally very
dangerous. Growing additional rice crops and using harsh fertilizers will eventually
destroy soil fertility, damage water supply, and open rice lands to pestilence traditionally
avoided by crop rotation.
Oil, gas and mining operations are also being expanded at an alarming rate.
Burma is home to a rich supply of petroleum, tin, antimony, zinc, gold, copper, tungsten,
lead, coal, some marble, and limestone. Mining companies from all over the world are
allowed to extract Burmas mineral supply with essentially no regulations. Not only does
this deplete their mineral resources quickly, but it also allows these corporations to
destroy anything in their path to reach mining sites and expand them. As a result, the
rainforests in the mountainous mining regions as well as its inhabitants are threatened and
sometimes destroyed without hesitation. The lure of the money of foreign investors in
exchange for unregulated access to Burmas natural resources have put the environment
in jeopardy. The Burmese government also has plans for hydroelectric dams for many of
the countrys major rivers. Not only would this flood and destroy the lush rainforest
ecosystems surrounding the rivers, it would also displace thousands of indigenous
peoples who rely on these areas for their sustenance.
No foreign investment project provides a better example of the environmental and
human rights negligence than the Yadana Pipeline. Stemming from natural gas reserves in

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the Andaman Sea, the pipeline crosses southeast Burma and then across the border to
Thailand. The Burma State Oil Company, Myanmar Oil Gas Enterprises, sponsor the $1.2
billion project, along with two main foreign oil corporations: UNOCAL of the United
States, and TOTAL of France. The effect of the gas pipeline construction is similar to that
of the mining logging industries. To clear a path for the pipeline, rainforest ecosystems
and wetland areas are demolished, ruining the habitat of endangered species. Acres upon
acres of rainforest are clear-cut to make way for the pipeline. Since the government is
directly involved in construction, the pipeline area becomes completely militarized. This
allows logging companies to enter the area unhindered and under the protection of the
Burmese military. Burmese soldiers are also allowed into the militarized pipeline area
and its surrounding wilderness to poach endangered game such as elephants. Across the
border in Thailand, the pipeline is having similar effects on the rainforest and its
endangered species, much to the protest of Thai environmentalists.

Human Rights Violations

For all the disregard for the environment, an even more serious problem has
arisen because of the construction of the Yadana pipeline: blatant and cruel human rights
violations. The government, of course, did not allow local residents to approve of the
construction of the pipeline in the first place. Instead, thousands of local residents along
the pipelines route have been signed on as forced laborers to help construction of the
pipeline as well as other infrastructure projects. These laborers have become slaves of the
military, and they are routinely beaten and tortured.

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Corporate Involvement
UNOCAL has faced various law suits in U.S. Federal Court in the Central District
of California that charge the company with abetting human rights violations associated
with the pipeline project. According to recent findings by a U.S. federal judge in Los
Angeles, the Western companies working in conjunction with the Burmese government
knowingly benefited from the forced labor of local residents. Although U.S. District
Court Judge Ronald S.W. Lew dismissed human-rights charges brought by Burmese
plaintiffs against UNOCAL, the judges final report did use company records and
consultants reports to prove that UNOCAL and TOTAL knew about the forced labor that
accompanied construction of the Pipeline when construction began. As recently as
September 2004, California judges have been dismissing cases brought against
UNOCAL, attributing the blame for human rights violations solely on the Myanmar
army.
Another American company involved in the construction of the pipeline was Vice
President Dick Cheneys very own Halliburton. Although the United States suspended aid
to Burma in 1990 and in 1997 forbade American companies to invest in the country,
Halliburton seems to have found a loophole in these international sanctions, as have most
of the companies that still conduct business there. Halliburton, considered a service
contractor, is not blocked from participating in Burma by the sanctions, and they do not
violate the 1997 law since they invested in Burma several years before. Hence,
Halliburton has escaped any legal wrong-doing.
According to some corporate reports, Halliburton began work in Burma in the
early 1990s to do preliminary work on the Yadana pipeline. Other reports state that Dick

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Cheney himself oversaw a signing ceremony for Halliburtons new agreement to supply
gas from Burma to India in 1996. Houston-based research firm Offshore Data Services
reports that later that year, Halliburton was officially awarded the Yadana pipeline
contract only a few months after Cheney became CEO.

Crimes Against Humanity

International organizations led by the United Nations, Amnesty International, and
Human Rights Watch have repeatedly detailed long list of human rights violations,
including murder, torture, rape, imprisonment without trial, forced relocations, and forced
labor. Even before 1988 when student demonstrators were massacred across the country,
Burmas army faced allegations of serious human rights abuses, especially in its
campaigns against ethnic groups along the countrys borders. These violations still exist
in the same areas today. In cities, citizens can be randomly apprehended in the middle of
their everyday lives to go work for the military. Conditions are even worse for rural
villages. Village leaders are required to provide either laborers or money for the military,
or simply be exterminated.
Forcing Burmese citizens to become military porters is one of the worst forms of
forced labor in Burma and is prevalent in rural border areas, home to most of Burmas
ethnic minorities. Men, women, and children are forced to become porters for the
military, which is often engaged in combat with ethnic and political rebels. The porters
are forced to carry heavy loads of supplies and ammunition for soldiers. These workers
are not paid. They are required to bring their own tools, supplies, and food. Even worse,
they are extremely vulnerable to enemy fire and are often placed at the front of the lines

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to draw out hiding enemies or detonate mines. If they refuse to perform their duty, they
will be either tortured or killed.
In 1997, The International Labor Organization (ILO) began an inquiry into
alleged forced labor and subsequent human rights violations by the Burmese junta. They
released a report in 1998 that detailed their findings. The ILO determined that Burma was
guilty of severe human rights violations through forced labor and other humanitarian
crimes. The ILO banned Burma from future meetings and from any future support: A year
later, because, the junta had not acted on the report, the ILO banned Burma from future
meetings and from any future support.
In 1999, The United States Department of State issued a human rights report on
Burma. Some excerpts of the report:

There continued to be many credible reports of extrajudicial killings by soldiers of

noncombatant civilians, particularly in areas of ethnic insurgencies.

There were numerous detailed but unconfirmed reports that army soldiers
indiscriminately shot and killed ethnic Karen, including women and children, in villages
in the Thaton District of Mon State during the first half of the year.

The Government routinely subjected detainees to harsh interrogation techniques

designed to intimidate and disorient. The most common forms of mistreatment were sleep
and food deprivation coupled with around-the-clock questioning under bright lights;
some detainees also were kicked and beaten. Credible reports continued that prisoners

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were forced to squat or assume stressful, uncomfortable, or painful positions for lengthy
periods.

Forced or compulsory labor remained a widespread and serious problem. Throughout

the country, international observers have confirmed that the Government routinely
continued to force citizens to work on infrastructure construction and maintenance
projects. The law does not prohibit forced and bonded labor by children specifically, and
forced labor by children occurs.

Trafficking in women and girls to neighboring countries for the purpose of forced
prostitution remained a serious problem.

In summary, violence and societal discrimination against ethnic minority and

women are serious problems. Forced labor all men, women, and children is well
documented. The forced labor of porters remains one of the most dangerous human rights
violations. The Government did not honor its repeated pledge to prevent its officials from
using their authority to mobilize forced labor, so the Burmese government knowingly and
willingly condones forced labor even in the face of international scrutiny. It is not only
the Burmese army that is guilty of these atrocities, however. Rebel forces are reported to
have committed the same abuses, making the countrys human rights problems even
worse.

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Drugs
Burma is the worlds largest supplier of opium and heroin. In fact, Burma
produces 90 percent of Southeast Asias opium output. These disturbing statistics
underline the serious drug trafficking problem the country has on its hands. The border
area between Burma, Laos, and Thailand along the Mekong River is known as the
Golden Triangle, and it is a hotbed for heroin production. Poppy flowers are harvested
and processed to opium, which is further refined for heroin. Most of the heroin
production and trafficking is controlled by the ethnic rebel warlords in the border regions
where the poppy flowers are grown. This has led to drugs having a disturbing role in
government. Since 1989, the Burmese military has offered rebels, who also happen to run
most of the drug trafficking in the country, ceasefire agreements in exchange for ending
their strikes on the army. The regime's greatest concern is to end insurrection, and
perhaps, generate another revenue stream; an anti-drug campaign is not exactly their top
priority.
It is true that there is no evidence that the government, on an institutional level, is
involved in the drug trade. However, several dependable sources have implicated certain
corrupt military personnel, who wield a great deal of power in the drug-filled regions, in
being directly involved in and profiting from drug trafficking. This relationship between
the government and drug traffickers have had the effect of condoning money laundering,
as the government actually encourages these groups to invest their drug revenue in
legitimate businesses as an alternative to trafficking. Businesses owned by or affiliated
with known drug traffickers have invested heavily into government sponsored projects
such as roads, hotels, ports, and real-estate development. Many of these projects will

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benefit the regions controlled by the drug traffickers themselves, giving them even further
incentive to invest their drug money into the government. In any case, Burma's drug lords
are now major investors in the country's economy, and Burma's army rulers are clearly
profiting from the heroin trade, no matter how tainted the method.
Although there is no hard evidence of government profit from drug money, some
analysts estimate that profits from drug smuggling have exceeded the profits of even
Burma's legal exports. Immense heroin profits are allegedly laundered through Burma's
weak and ill-regulated banking system. Burmese banking regulations are extremely lax
because the country is so desperate for foreign investment. Renowned Burmese drug
lords Lo Hsing Han and Khun Sa have cultivated close ties with Burmese generals, and
despite the requests by America to help capture Khun Sa, he has lived in comfort,
protected by the government presumably because of their heavy investment in
government projects. The Burmese governments drug enforcement policies are no doubt
lax, but they seem to be possibly corrupt. Khun Sa supposedly surrendered to the
government, after which he was made to live life as a businessman in Rangoon. He is still
known to be involved in drug trafficking, and there has been no slow down in production
of heroin in the region he used to control.
The global increase in heroin use over the past few years is directly the result of
an increase in heroin production from Burma. Government officials estimate the number
of addicted Burmese citizens is around 60,000, but international health organizations
estimate that as many as 500,000 people could be addicted to heroin. The effect of the
increased heroin production can be seen in New York City alone, where heroin arrests
rose more than 50% from 1988-1997. An outbreak of HIV/AIDS has accompanied

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increased sharing of needles among heroin users, especially in the ethnic minority areas
that are the source of the drugs.
Studies have shown that over 90% of heroin users have tested HIV-positive in the
northern Kachin State, and the disease was acquired soon after the use of heroin began.
The military has turned a blind eye to this problem, which could eventually explode into
an epidemic, considering how they are allowing drug trafficking to grow unchecked and
also do not provide any medical assistance to those who have contracted the disease. In
general, there is little hope that Burma's heroin production, and the suffering and
destruction that rising addiction is causing around the globe, will diminish as long as the
army, which flaunts its public dealings with drug barons, rules Burma. At the root of the
problem is the poppy farms themselves. The farmers have incentive to participate in such
a lucrative business, as well as immense pressure from local rebel generals to produce
poppy flowers. A completely different government would be needed to actually enforce
drug trafficking rules and not broker corrupt deals with the rebels. Both rebel forces as
well as the Burmese junta are responsible for creating such a huge drug problem.

Civil Rights Violations

The Burmese people are denied basically all civil rights. The government controls
all aspects of life and does what they want with whomever they want. Although
Buddhism is the national religion promoted by the government, it imposes
institutionalized control over Buddhist clergy in order to restrict efforts to promote
human rights and political freedom. Buddhist monks are often supporters for democratic
movement, and the junta has been known to invade monasteries to prevent these monks

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from spreading their message. The government also tries to impose Buddhism upon the
ethnic minorities, particularly Muslims, who are constantly being attacked by the army in
southwest Burma. Hundreds of thousands of Muslims have escaped to Bangladesh
between 1988 and 1997. The Burmese military themselves started anti-Muslim riots and
destroyed several mosques in 1997.
The Government restricts freedom of movement people in between towns and
cities. There are special restrictions on foreign travel by female citizens, the most notable
of whom is Aung San Suu Kyi's, under house arrest, not allowed to see visitors or set foot
off of her residence. Ethnic minorities, even though they are citizens, are routinely denied
passports and are closely monitored when traveling between towns. At the same time, the
government forces massive relocations thousands of people at a time, forcing them to
leave their homes permanently. Citizens may also be arbitrarily apprehended in the
middle of the day, even at a public place, to be brought to prison.
The junta simply disregards the education of children by under-funding public
schools. The country has gone from many educated pro-democracy student demonstrators
to an education system in shambles. It is estimated that two-thirds to three-fourths of
children drop out of school by the 5th grade. Many of the nations universities were closed
by the junta after widespread student demonstrations in 1996.
There is no freedom of expression. The letter of the law states that any criticism
of the government in any way can result in immediate imprisonment, but one is likely
subject to far worse than that. The government must approve any public displays of art or
entertainment, and all media are strictly censored. The Press Scrutiny Board is in charge
of determining whether or not certain media are acceptable, and they will remove any

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media that is the least bit critical of the regime. Under the 1996 Computer Science
Development Law, unlicensed possession of a fax machine or modem is punishable by a
15 year prison sentence. A Scandinavian man with Burmese citizenship was thought to
have been tortured and executed for having a fax machine. After refusing to allow an
international investigation into the issue, the Burmese government stated that he died
from natural causes in prison. Before the 1962 coup, Burma had over 30 newspapers, but
now there is just one national newspaper, the New Light of Myanmar. State television and
radio is fairly predictable, with the typical images of generals making rousing speeches
and cutting ribbons.
Freedom of association and assembly are denied. Political parties, especially the
widely popular National League for Democracy (NLD) are closely monitored and its
members harassed and arrested (Aung San Suu Kyi for example). According to Amnesty
International, in early 1998 nearly 2000 political prisoners, mostly of the NLD, were
placed into Burmese jails, and many were left there to die. Years after the 1990 victory of
the NLD and subsequent arrest of those who tried to assume their rightful positions in
office, 39 NLD prisoners remain. The government often prevents any media from
attending NLD events, and the size of these events is usually limited.

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The Future of Myanmar
Burma is indeed a nation in crisis. To this day, inspirational NLD leader Aung San
Suu Kyi remains under house arrest. Despite international pressure and sanctions, the
government has still taken very few measures to improve life for its citizens. There are no
viable media outlets for the educated activists to spread their ideas without getting
caught. One of the more effective strategies to induce change in Burma is boycotting the
global corporations that generate revenue in Burma. Pressuring these companies to
withdraw from Burma would result in a huge loss of foreign investment and income for
the Burmese government and perhaps even induce the government to change their
policies. Another main strategy is education, for people both inside and outside of Burma.
There are widespread international efforts to help educate children in Burma so the future
of the country is in better hands. It is also essential to educate the world about the plight
of innocent Burmese citizens. Despite all these outside efforts, it is clear that no
significant progress can be made until the military loosens or even loses its grip on the
country, and one can only hope this happens soon for Myanmars sake.

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