Myanmar

[Ginger Yellow]

I presume there isn't a thread on the disaster because everyone is too gobsmacked by it. Watching the news yesterday was about the most depressed I've ever been. I was struck by the thought that there are now up a million people trying to survive in what is going to be literally the worst place on earth for the next few weeks. Take all the horrific things about natural disasters in developing countries, and then add on an incompetent, brutal and reclusive government that won't accept aid it doesn't control and can't deliver what it does.

[Gerontophile]

Myanmar

Ginger, I am just typing bollocks, but yes, I didnt want to go to this subject, because I am inelloquent.

Thank you.

[Rogin the Armchair fan]

Myanmar

What's struck me immediately about the bbc's reporting of the cyclone is that "we" in the West are still steadfastedly calling the country "Burma", not "Myanmar", even though the name supposedly changed a few years ago. Even though "Burma" is apparently the best the British soldiers (of whom my Grandad was one) could do to pronounce the locals' name for their own land, it seems that the "proper" name is so associated with the hated current government, that even the people of the country would rather be known by what seems at best to be a nickname granted on them by the British.

Sorry, etymological diversion into a discussion of a human tragedy of almost unprecedented scale. My bad, etc.

[Jimski]

Myanmar

Yeah, I believe opposition groups in Burma refuse to recognise the "official" name change to Myanmar (by the junta). Since the junta aren't even recognised as a legitimate government by the UN, I suspect it really is officially still Burma.

Oddly, CNN seem to call the country Myanmar though.

[Femme Folle]

Myanmar

It is generally referred to as 'Myanmar' by the American press.

I can't quite wrap my head around the number of people killed in this. It's so tragic.

[boris]

Myanmar

I don't know if anyone saw the DEC appeal ad that was aired yesterday, fronted by Stephen Fry. Very moving stuff. Of course, the problem with an appeal like this is, as GY states, the lack of control that aid agencies have over little things, like what the money is spent on and who receives it. Hopefully, it looks like the regime is so overawed by the cyclone that it is relaxing a lot of the restrictions that it normally places on foreign organisations, and might allow them a degree of autonomy unprecedented in the country since it came to power.

[Eggchaser]

Myanmar

The regime wasn't overawed. They were safely in a bunker miles and miles away from the shit that was flying having had good warning of it. It's the poor bastards at ground zero that had fuck all warning that are the overawed ones.

The junta are just acting in your standard mad, evil regime fashion, but with a degree of stubborness and stupidity that surprises even the most cynical of bastard watchers.

There was a good interview with a woman from Oxfam who said that they only deal with charities and organisations in the country directly and have nothing to do with the government.

[San Bernardhinault]

Myanmar

What a bunch of complete and utter cunts

[Eggchaser]

Myanmar

I assume you mean the junta. I'll take it as read we all think the UN are useless cunts.

This could be a real opportunity for China to earn some brownie points for doing the right thing for a change - they have influence there and I've no doubt some heavy leaning by them on the junta would case them to allow aid in or at least stop being total fucking bastards for a bit.

[S. aureus]

Myanmar

Watching Good Morning America a couple of days ago, I was struck by a couple of things (apart from what a set of bastards the ruling junta are, and what an absolute disaster this is).
Firstly, NBC referred to the country as Myanmar the whole time, while the US Chargé d'Affaires said Burma during her interview.
Secondly, Laura Bush showed quite a lot of gall (or a very short memory) when saying the fact that Burma was ill prepared for this cyclone demonstrated the illegitimacy of the rulers, or something very much along those lines.

[Incandenza]

Myanmar

Possibly irrelevant and inappropriate complaint, but Good Morning America is on ABC, S. aureus--NBC has the Today show.

[S. aureus]

Myanmar

Oh, yes. Today show it was.

[Tactical Genius]

Myanmar

S.aureus, it is not just laura Bush that said that, the whole American media is saying the same thing.
The do not seem to realise that 3rd world countries do not have the sophisticated early warning systems and mass communications they have in the Southern United states.

I am also suspicious at how the Western media is spinning this.

[Incandenza]

Myanmar

India apparently warned the junta at least 36 hours in advance:

Meteorological officials in India say they warned the Burmese government well ahead of time. 'We issued a warning 36 hours in advance. Everything was told to the concerned officials in Myanmar: the intensity of the storm, the time of impact, where it will land – and that information was updated every three hours,' says B.P. Yadav, a spokesman for the Indian Meteorological Department in New Delhi.

Burma's meteorological office said it received the warning from India and used it to issue a warning.

But critics say the warning was ineffectively disseminated, costing more lives. 'They issued a typical storm report that nobody listened to. It was on page 4 or page 5 of the [state-run] newspaper,' says Aung Saw, editor of Irrawadday, an opposition newspaper based in Thailand, relying on reports he received from inside Burma. 'If it had been on page 1 ... maybe thousands of lives would have been saved.'

'The cyclone warning from India to the authorities was ignored or downplayed by the weather forecasts on Burmese TV,' wrote a Burmese resident, who asked not to be identified, in an e-mail. 'It stated that the cyclone has lost its intensity and will go up north, and Rangoon will be hit only marginally, and the wind velocity hitting Burma will be reduced to 40/50 mph.'

[Eggchaser]

Myanmar

I wonder how the constitutional vote is going?

[boris]

Myanmar

The WFP have now denied reports that their shipments were seized or diverted by the government. I wonder if that's because their shipments weren't seized or diverted by the goverment, or if the government told them to issue a denial if they want future shipments to be neither seized nor diverted.

[Tactical Genius]

Myanmar

Indeed Boris, it appears as if people are using this human disaster to play political points.