Myanmar Cyclone: a brief case study
By Maya Yaacobi - Green Shield Youth Board Member
Brief History:
Myanmar, also knows as Burma is situated between China in the North, Laos in the East, Thailand on the Southeast, Bangladesh on the West and India on the Northeast. The government of Myanmar is a military controlled government led by Than Shwe since 1992.
On the 4th of January 1948 Myanmar gained its independents from England but unlike other former British colonies it did not become part of the Commonwealth. The Democratic rule in Myanmar ended in 1962 after a coup-d’état which was led by Ne Win whom ruled the country for nearly 26 years after that. In 1990 the government held free elections but the Military regime did not step down even though the National League for Democracy won with 392 seats.
Through out the years Myanmar was not in rest – the military junta continued with torturing of activists whom acted against the government and showed resistance.
On 7 February 2008, the military led government announced that there will be a referendum for the Constitution in May 2008, and Elections by 2010. Various global corporations have been criticized for profiting from the dictatorship by financing Burma’s military junta. World governments remain divided on how to deal with the military junta. Calls for further sanctions by United Kingdom, United States, and France are opposed by neighbouring countries; in particular, China has stated its belief that “sanctions or pressure will not help to solve the issue”.
The Cyclone:
On May 3rd Cyclone Nargis entered Myanmar, leaving behind it thousands of dead and missing. Some whole villages are almost completely gone and the main rice industry was ruined by the hard weather condition.
Foreign aid workers estimate that between 2 to 3 million people are homeless now. The Cyclone is considered to be one of the worst Nature disasters in Burma after the Tsunami of 2004.
As the Burmese junta carries out no appropriate measures to manage the million dead bodies, they are now being abandoned on streets and everywhere, with the situation worsening as time pass. The international community is concerned that the emerging and spreading of communicable diseases would continue and grow.
Although the government of Myanmar did ask for assistance from the United Nations, they still prefer State to State – Government to Government kind of assistance rather than International assistance from International Organizations. Few private reliefs were allowed into Burma to assist in the situation; these include UNICEF, World Vision and Save The Children. Yet it was clearly declared that Myanmar wants foreign supplies but not foreign workers. The foreign help that did manage to enter Myanmar is not likely to be enough and help the thousands of homeless people whom have no shelter, food or water.
Today, the 9th of May the Myanmar Junta asks the citizens to vote for the army-drafted constitution despite the disaster which hit the country just a week ago. The drafted constitution, according to the military led government, is part of the road to become a democratic regime by 2010. U.N Secretary General, Ban Ki-Moon, is persisting that the government should transfer the money of the referendum to the aid of the Cyclone victims.
The situation in Myanmar is worsening as the time passes. Since the government does not have the tools to take care of its citizens whom suffer from severe damage due to the cyclone and it is not wiling to get assistance from International aid workers, the total amount of deaths is increasing every day. The Cyclone in Myanmar is one of the worst natural disasters in the past few years. What makes it even more terrible is the fact that the government is not equipped and yet not willing to get enough aid which would cover all the damaged areas and take care of the people whom need it most.
The organizations which did manage to get inside Myanmar say that financial aid is much more in need and profitable than the sending of goods.
Editors Note: Green Shield is taking actions for sending clothes and money and other supplies to Myanmar. Currently the problem is that there is no way for a container to enter the country through sea, since the ports are closed due to damage from the cyclone, but we are working this out to send the supplies through roadway. If you have any used clothes which you are willing to give away for help, you can drop them off at our central offices at Kyriakou Matsi Street in Ayie Omoloyites, Nicosia (nearby the Presidential Palace). Money is also accepted as the cost for sending supplies by shipping is high.
For more information (ways to contact us):
Green Shield Telephone #: 22454828
Fax: 22519554
Mobile: 99433732 (Green Shield Youth)
Offices Address:
Kyriakou Matsi 50E Agioi Omologites Nicosia Cyprus 1082
Filed under: Donations, Help, Natural Catastrophes | Tagged: burma, cyclone, Donations, Help, myanmar, myanmar information
