The Chinese could teach the Burmese a thing or two about how to react to a natural disaster

[fannybanjo]

title says it all...

Does anyone know why the Chinese authorities turned away the rescue team from UK?

True, but a few years back the Burmese stance would have been theirs too.

Two threes and a six.

I have never been a fan of the Chinese Government (as have the majority of the Western World) but in the face of adversity they seem to be doing the best they can to rescue the injured.

Olympics anyone ???

I read something yesterday - and I can't find it now - about how some people are calling for an invasion of Burma to get food and aid to the people affected by the cyclone.
I just feel so sad when I read of the figures affected. 78,000 approx dead and 56,000 missing.
Why are the Burmese government so afraid of other nations? have they actually let anyone from outside in? I read one report by a njournalist who said that villagers in remote places were asking him "why don't people come to help us?" how sad is that

Message withdrawn

"Why are the Burmese government so afraid of other nations? "

Read a bit about the history of Burma as a British colony. There is oil and gas in Burma, they will have seen what happened in Iraq (now openly admitted to be about oil by many in the US e.g. Greenspan, McCain). It is not strange that the junta don't want, and maybe fear, that kind of help.

The events unfolding are unbelievably, unbearably tragic.

Unfortunately, charities have in the past behaved in a crashingly tactless way, going into countries and setting up permanent networks staffed by foreigners. The people who live there are understandably suspicious that these networks are being misused for spying.
Agree, this situation is tragic, but it is not as simple as saying "the Burmese govt are murderers"

china is such a big country, they naturally don't have the same fears as Burma.

"but it is not as simple as saying "the Burmese govt are murderers""

Agree, Katrina was a tragic disaster on a much smaller scale but the US still responded woefully badly. IIRC, they also refused foreign aid.

I don't mean to suggest that the junta in Burma are good or decent, but it I don't think the situation is as simple as it is made out to be.

Have a look at picture 6 here - I did hear yesterday that the official govt line was "everybody's rescued, press ahead with reconstruction" and I thought - but sorting out a temple ahead of providing clean water????

And this ship is just sitting there loaded with aid and can't do anything.

wendy - pictures 5 and 7, either side of the temple building, are sad to look at. I just don't get how the governemnt of that country can let the aid go to waste and not help their own people.
I bet the soldiers are all fed and watered and have homes with roofs

It is as simple as saying the burmese government are murderers. I'm from burma and I can assure you now that regime is brutal, heartless and cruel beyond imagination. I don't understand why people have to compare this situation to Katrina or the situation in Iraq and try to get on the moral highground about USA. We are not talking about invading burma but sending aid and aid workers to prevent a further two million people dying of starvation and disease. Any regime that allows its own citizens to die like that are brutal coldblooded murderers.

My family are waiting for clean water, food, medical supplies and reconstruction help. The UN and member countries have said this is not about politics but aid so I don't think it's acceptable to even begin to try and understand the regime's stance on aid. This help is not politically motivated and that kind of talk is the kind of talk that makes a person who may not fully understand the situation think twice about donating to an aid agency.

There are hundreds of thousands of people homeless in the delta region and they don't know that there is help waiting for them, they don't know that thousands of tonnes of aid are sitting abandoned on the airport tarmac. Think of the despair that they face tonight as more rains hit them thinking that no one cares and no one is coming to help as their children cry out in hunger, fear and pain. And remember that the very aid they need can be brought to them via helicopter within a couple of hours but its not because the regime would rather hold onto its vice like grip on power - power that they stole from a legitimately elected government. So that they can sell the oil and gas and other resources cheaply to China and pocket the proceeds without a single penny ever going back for health, education or infrastructure. Now tell me do you really think its not as simple as labelling them murderers?

jj - Of course they should accept help in this emergency, which is not a normal situation.
My comments come from a background of having personal links in 2 other countries, where the regimes have also been very much criticised in the western press, for refusing to allow charitable aid in, among other things. In both cases, my contacts are government supporters, are very anti western charities and believe that they have proof that charities have been used for spying. Yet, in the western media we are given the impression that the governments are cruelly denying aid that people want.

Am very sorry that your family is among the people caught up in this horrendous situation, and I do hope that the emergency help that people all round the world want to send, will reach them soon.

Your thread title is wrong it's not the Chinese and the Burmese, it's the Chinese government and the Burmese government.

I won't get into the issues with how corrupt China is, but yes they are doing a good job. The people of Burma have no choice. I heard a heatbreaking thing on the radio this morning, a woman in Burma who has lost her entire family was told there are ships bringing aid waiting to dock who are not being allowed and she said 'well fight them until they can'.

Makes me sick how places like this are off the radar for countries who could have helped them before, perhaps because they offer little threat or any financial benefit to say the u.s.a. (blood boils)

hi TDWP - did you try and ring me on Saturday - didn't get to ShelleyLo's until just gone 12 so we weren't sure if you'd rung and we weren't there.

Still on for next week???

Hope you had a good weekend (sorry complete thread hi-jack )

Have to say I agree with TDWP about it's the governments reactions which are different, both are corrupt and have extremely (to be polite) dubious track records - however at least the Chinese Government is letting help in and being seen to trying to help their own people - while the Burmese Government appears not to give a shit.

Not only not give a shit but are allegedly burning bodies so the extent of their cock up is never revealed (fuming)

FAQ I'll email you in a bit lovey.

Nighbynight - i do understand what you are saying, the whole topic of aid to developing countries is very complex and interesting. There are several theories that western aid to Africa has perpetuated the problems there. For example, the giving of food aid meant that people obtained very cheaply much cheaper then local farmers could produce food for, therefore local farmers stopped producing food, the land became barren as a result and then of course this lead to famine, etc. The food aid given was in fact GM modified food so in effect Africa was used as a testing ground for GM foods before it became widespread in USA. Also theories as to the IMF perpetuating third world debt by giving out loans with so many conditions attached that no useful infrastructure could be built with these loans, etc. This is very simplified of course as I don't think anyone wants a long essay on this topic but the situation in Burma is exceptional and I don't think the western media is misleading by giving the impression that the government are cruelly denying aid - that is accurate reporting, that is really what is happening. The truth is that if you speak to the Burmese people, majority of them are waiting for Western Governments to invade Burma and get rid of the regime they are that desperate.

JJ you are right that they are murderers. I think it boils down to the fact that for all their sins, the Chinese govt cares about its own people. The Burmese government doesn't.
All they care about is their own survival.
The Burmese govt has been starving its people for decades-- look at the child malnutrition rates. And the HIV rates. And the way they treat students, monks, ethnic minorities.

I don't believe in interfering in other countries generally, but Burma is exceptional.

jj I guess change will only happen slowly. One day, hopefully sooner, your beautiful country will be restored to democracy.
I didnt mean to give the impression of letting the govt off the hook, rather frustration that there isn't better organisation of the response to disasters, instead of leaving it to charities and governements (mostly hostile to the rulers in Burma), as seemed to be the case here. Why cant the UN have agreement from national governments on a plan of action, before natural disasters happen? We know which countries are in earthquake zones, flood zones, fire risk areas etc. there is so much that the UN can't do, this would seem to be an example of something good that it could do.
It is particularly unfortunate that the Chinese disaster happened at the same time, because the chinese govt is presumably one of the few parties who could put pressure on the govt of Burma.

You have to remember that although the Chinese government appear to be doing a good job at the moment, what it's people say on record to foreign news reporters is said with fear of reproach and news is still strictly censored.

Of course the olypics has a lot to do with how much the Chinese government wants us to believe they are bending over backwards, as well.

Remember, this is a government (China) who displaced millions of people from their homes with little or no financial or practical aid and destroyed whole villages during the building of the Three Gorges Dam.

I used to live in China in the 90's and am painfully aware that what we see in the western world is what they want us to see.