Page 2 of 2 Laura Bush's Myanmar crusade
By Brian McCartan
representative of the Karen Human Rights Group, the situation has remained
intolerable for Karen villagers across the border in Myanmar. The First Lady
toured the camp with her daughter, Barbara, and bid farewell to a group of
Karen about to be resettled in the US.
In the early afternoon, she travelled back to Mae Sot to visit the Mae Tao
Clinic run by Dr Cynthia Maung, an ethnic Karen who fled Myanmar in the wake of
the crackdown on the 1988 pro-democracy uprising. Known as Dr Cynthia, she has
run the clinic on the Thai-Myanmar border for almost 20 years. In 2007, she won
the prestigious Magsaysay Award for community leadership and her name has been
mentioned as a possible Nobel Peace
Prize nominee. The clinic treats around 50,000 migrants, refugees, villagers
and wounded soldiers from Myanmar every year.
Mrs Bush spent about an hour at the clinic meeting with Dr Cynthia and touring
the facility, including a workshop that makes artificial legs for landmine
victims. Participants in the clinic meeting said the First Lady asked questions
about the damage caused by Cyclone Nargis and the continuing political,
education and health situation in the country. She also said she would
encourage the Thai government to provide more support for health, education and
refugees.
During a brief press conference at the clinic, Mrs Bush said, "The best
solution would be if [Myanmar leader] General Than Shwe's regime would start
real dialogue." She went on to say, "We urge the Chinese to do what other
countries have done, to sanction, to put a financial squeeze on the Burmese
generals."
China has used its veto power in the UN Security Council to block American and
European moves to censure the regime, including in the wake of the cyclone
disaster.
Therein lies the diplomatic rub. Analysts note that while American support has
been strong and Mrs Bush's statements of moral support have generally been well
received by the Myanmar exile community, without real action the prospects for
regime change in Myanmar are dim. American influence in Myanmar is severely
limited and without the support of China and India, American threats fall flat.
Investments by China, India, and even US-ally South Korea provide huge
financial support to the regime that allows it to act without fear of US
sanctions. Chinese military might and Myanmar's perceived status of lying
within China's sphere of interest precludes any US threats of military action.
Critics say that Mrs Bush's visit was merely symbolic and aimed more at
improving the international image of the US and President Bush as defenders of
freedom and human rights as a way to blunt the negative criticism he has
received for attending the opening of the 2008 Olympics in Beijing, not to
mention his own war-driven foreign policies.
The First Lady's comments after the cyclone were also criticized by American
political commentators, who speculated that they were driven by a desire to
make her look good, especially when husband George Bush was hovering around 27%
in opinion polls.
Today (Friday) is the 20th anniversary of the pro-democracy uprising in Myanmar
in 1988, known locally as 8-8-88. The date with its four recurring numbers was
meant to have mystical significance after government troops opened fire on
demonstrators and more than 3,0000 are estimated to have been killed. Thousands
more fled to the country's borders.
Many in the exiled community are hoping for another uprising today, 8808, but
that prospect is unlikely. The military also recognizes the significance of the
anniversary and has deployed thousands troops on standby in and around Yangon,
the old capital. Even so, the economy continues to deteriorate and the country
is still seething with anger over the killing of monks and other protestors in
the crushing of last year's demonstrations and the junta's hapless and corrupt
cyclone relief efforts.
Whether Mrs Bush's stance on Myanmar is genuine, or based on rhetoric that
attempts to associate her husband's administration with a cause that nearly
everyone agrees is worthy but which few are willing to do anything concrete
about, her comments and actions have at least served to keep Myanmar in the
news. The country's generals have become adept at riding out storms of
criticism until fickle world attention moves elsewhere.
The regime's slow grind against ethnic minority groups has resulted in decades
of small military clashes, killings of civilians and the destruction of
villages and livelihoods in remote places that, until Bush took up the cudgel,
seldom made international headlines. This despite hard statistics indicating
that Myanmar has one of the largest internally displaced populations in the
world, more destroyed villages than Darfur, one of the largest land areas
contaminated with landmines and the largest use of child soldiers by a
government army. By keeping Myanmar in the news, more international attention,
and criticism, has been placed on the regime.
Many in Myanmar's exile community hope that Laura Bush will continue her
interest and remain a close friend even after her husband's term as president
expires in a few months.
Brian McCartan is a Chiang Mai-based freelance journalist. He may be
reached at brianpm@comcast.net
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