Myanmar generals - the sick men of Asia

It has to be assumed that the generals in Union of Myanmar do not know the expression: "Never look gift horses in the mouth."

For if they did then they would not have spurned the offers of help from many nations and aid agencies following the disastrous cyclone that affected so much of their country. The few pictures that emerged from Myanmar showed a country in desperate need of succour.

However, not wishing to appear cynical, I must admit it is difficult to determine how much of the devastation is due to the cyclone, and how much is due to the misrule for decades by the generals.

Myanmar is in need of many things in many ways, not least a change of leadership. But that is obviously a long way off because who is there to undertake their removal?

Certainly not the people, as the years of suppression they have suffered at the hands of the military have all but turned them into subservient beings, getting along by scraping a living from almost nothing. Compare this with the military leadership.

As I have written before, for any successful dictatorship to retain its hold on power, the leaders must ensure that the basis of their support is sound and remains on-side, come hell or high water.

Examples of this can be seen around the world. But in Myanmar, the generals have perfected it to a fine art. The country's major religion is Buddhism, so the generals have cashed in on the nation's religious beliefs of non-violence by crushing any pathetic attempt at opposition.

Non-violence is a noble intention to be sure, and one that principally worked in India in the days of Mahatma Gandhi, but it now tends to get brushed aside by people of more aggressive intent, such as the Myanmar generals.

I find it sickening to see these bloated plutocrats living in the lap of luxury - even to the extent of building a new capital city, Nay Pyi Taw - while the majority of the 50 million or so population remains in abject poverty.

It is a member of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean), but for years that body has stood aside and watched the decline of Myanmar, making little or no comment on the issue. Asean member nations claim the decline is an internal affair and the association's mandate does not allow it to interfere.

Compelled

We've heard this before, of course. Most frequently, it used to be parroted by the UN Security Council until global public dissension compelled the UN to broaden its authority. Appeasement is not a pleasant word and images of Neville Chamberlain and "Peace in our time" still rankle.

Which is why South Africa's President Thabo Mbeki's continued appeasement of Zimbabwe's President Robert Gabriel Mugabe is dismissed by the majority as being totally ineffective.

Standing aside and allowing a nation to collapse should never be tolerated. If we are to believe that mankind has progressed significantly from the days of the Stone Age, then it behooves us all to act in the face of ethnic cleansing, suppression, mass starvation or national destitution.

In this 21st century, we are our brothers' keepers and if we are to prosper, it is as well to remember that.

Contrariwise, Asean believes, like Brer Rabbit, it is best to lie low and say nuffin'. Yet without any threat from either inside the country or from neighbours, the generals in Myanmar will be able to continue their hold on power with impunity.

Worse, now they are even changing the constitution, through a referendum which the public are expected to vote on during the cyclone crisis.

The new constitution will give free rein to the generals, under a type of democracy they invented which took about a decade to formulate to ensure continuation of power in perpetuity.

Is it any wonder, then, that the generals can adopt such complacency in a time of crisis? When the cyclone struck, it was not known how many people died or were injured.

With a complete lack of action from the leadership for nearly two weeks - other than to reject outside help - it can only be speculated upon as to how many more people died due to a lack of aid.

But worse was to follow. When limited aid was initially allowed in, what did the world see? Photo opportunities as senior military personnel received one bag of rice (or similar) off an aid truck, and hand it over to an aid worker, ensuring much glad-handing and salutes at the same time. Despicable.

The UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon may have alleviated the situation by getting the generals to agree to "all" aid agencies being allowed in - but that has yet to be seen to be effective. Probably there will be delays in distribution as each soldier gets his picture recorded for posterity.