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Hidden Genocide in Burma

Contributed by: T.P. Beh on 11/17/2006

While the media's attention has appropriately been focused in recent years on human rights abuses in Darfur, Sudan, another equally serious-if not worse-situation in Southeast Asia has escaped public attention. In what has been described as a "hidden genocide," the brutal military dictatorship of Burma is engaged in the systematic destruction of ethnic minorities within its borders, being identified by the U.S. State Department as one of the worst human rights violators in the world.

In power since 1962, the ruling junta, misnamed the State Peace and Development Council (SPDC), refused to recognize the results of a fair parliamentary election held in 1990, where pro-democracy parties won more than 80 percent of the seats. Since then, leading democracy proponent and Nobel Peace Prize winner, Aung San Suu, has spent over 11 years in prison and remains under house arrest, while others have been arrested, disappeared or died in prison, and the freedoms of speech, expression, association and religion have been denied.

The SPDC is particularly brutal toward the Karen and Kareni minorities in eastern Burma, which have strongly resisted their illegitimate rule, using its 400,000-man-strong army to crush all opposition. In a typical SPDC raid, houses are burned to the ground, crops are stolen or torched, women are raped and individuals-including children-are taken captive. Used as army "porters," they are fed little and forced to carry heavy loads of ammunition and supplies on their backs until they literally drop dead or are shot. Following a raid, the army frequently plants land mines around what remains of a village and its croplands to prevent escapees from returning, earning Burma the reputation as the "land mine capital of the world." As part of the SPDC's "assimilation program," rape is used as an official weapon against minority women (to create half-Burmese children), who are also routinely used as sex-slaves.

To date, the ethnic-cleansing policy of the Burmese government has resulted in the death of tens of thousands of Karen and Kareni, the destruction of some 3,000 of their villages and the displacement of over one million men, women and children. Currently, over 150,000 live in refugee camps in southwestern Thailand, where their freedoms and options are severely restricted. Most of the rest, known as internally displaced peoples (IDPs), attempt to survive in the jungles of Burma where life is a daily battle against death-not only from SPDC bullets and bombs-but from starvation and diseases like malaria, dysentery and rickets.

Once a prosperous nation, Burma (renamed Myanmar by the SPDC) has joined the ranks of the poorest countries in the world, while its leaders engage in a massive military build-up (conscripting over 70,000 child-soldiers) and spend lavishly on themselves. In an effort many believe is designed to further isolate the country, consolidate their rule and avoid public scrutiny, the dictatorship, now led by Senior Gen. Than Shwe, spent untold millions moving the capital city to Pyinmana-about 200 miles north of Rangoon, Burma's former capital and largest city-and on a lavish "grand opening" celebration. In early November, with most of its 55 million people experiencing malnorishment, an extravagant state wedding was held for Gen. Shwe's daughter, reportedly costing upwards of $300,000.

While world attention has been slow to recognize the human rights abuses, genocidal atrocities and ethnic cleansing taking place in Burma, some hopeful signs are occurring. In the last few months, the U.S. State Department put the country atop its list of the world's worst human rights violators, and a 10-4 vote of the Security Council (with China and Russia voting no), placed Burma on the U.N.'s permanent agenda. Amid increasing calls for sanctions on the Burmese government and the release of Aung San Suu from groups like the US Campaign for Burma (www.uscampaignforburma.org), the U.N. sent envoy Ibrahim Gambari to meet with officials of the dictatorship, November 9-12, and to visit with Suu. However, it remains to be seen if any serious actions will be taken.

Apart from the denial of basic freedoms and general suffering of the Burmese people, as we learned from Rwanda in the 1990's, ignoring genocide/ethnic cleansing anywhere in the world only allows it to thrive. While our State Department and the United Nations dawdle over what to do, a growing number of Coloradans, like local resident Jack Johnson, are becoming involved in efforts to alleviate the suffering of the Karen people. For more information on the Karen or relief efforts in Burma, contact Mr. Johnson at Evenjack@myedl.com.


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CONTRIBUTOR INFORMATION

T.P. Beh

Castle Rock , CO

T.P. Beh has posted 9 stories and 0 comments since joining on 11/28/2005. T.P. Beh 's average story rating is 4.67.
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