Myanmar's (Burma's) ultra-repressive rulers have no intention of
allowing "democratic" or even sham elections, as they've demonstrated
time and again.
But as much as they are to blame for running one of the world's worst
enslavements, CHINA, which borders Myanmar, has exhibited only
approbation and encouragement of a dictatorship which is an exact
reflection of what passes for "government" in Yellohordeland.
So, is there any wonder that the world is so hostile to CHINA's
hypocritical efforts to conduct the 2008 Olympics?
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"Democracy, Burma-Style"
"It's a brave soul who votes no"
Editorial
Sunday, May 4, 2008; B06
IT WOULD be unfair to the generals who control Burma to suggest that
they have given their population no choice when it comes to a
referendum next Saturday that would ensconce military rule behind a
facade of democracy. People do have a choice: They can support the
referendum, or they can go to jail. We know this, because brave people
in Burma have worn "Vote No" T-shirts, and they have been carted off
to prison. And we know that it is unacceptable to vote no, since
hundreds of expatriate Burmese seeking to do so have been turned away
from their embassy in Singapore.
All of which heightens the mystery of a recent comment from the office
of U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki-moon: "Asked about reports that
voters in Myanmar [the junta's name for Burma] are being compelled to
vote 'yes' in a referendum, the Spokeswoman said that the United
Nations has no firsthand information on this, but reiterated its
position that it is important for the Government of Myanmar to honor
its commitment to a free and fair process." There's no mystery as to
why the U.N. Security Council is impotent on this matter, as made
evident by a useless statement the council approved on Friday; China
and Russia would rather see the organization humiliated than have it
support democracy in the Southeast Asian nation of 50 million people.
That's not Mr. Ban's fault. But why should he bolster the illusion of
a "free and fair" process?
Burma's regime allowed an election once before, in 1990. It lost,
badly. The National League for Democracy won four of every five
parliamentary seats; the regime promptly locked up the winners, and
some remain in prison 18 years later. The head of the party, Aung San
Suu Kyi, is under house arrest, as she has been for most of the past
two decades. Last September the generals crushed a peaceful rebellion
of Buddhist monks and unarmed citizens. This time they seem to be
taking no chances.
Can anything be done? It's not easy, given the complicity of Burma's
neighbors: China backs the generals, India is silent, Thailand worse
than silent. The Bush administration has imposed banking sanctions on
Burma's rulers and the companies they corruptly control, but the
effectiveness is limited by Europe's reluctance to join in. A bill
that would limit gem imports from Burma, again hitting the regime
hardest, has been bottled up in Congress since last fall.
Still, amazingly, people inside Burma continue to protest and resist.
Many of them may vote no, though the government no doubt will not
disclose that result. The least those outside their giant prison can
do is not pretend that Saturday's referendum has anything to do with
democracy.
http://ww.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/05/03/AR2008...
