Thanks, No Thanks; We're Fine
The bland assurances to your enquiries lay to rest any troubling worries that you could be assisting in a disastrous accident, leaving you free to walk away, conscience assuaged. Or perhaps not. But there it was, after a meeting between Thai Prime Minister Samak Sundaravej and Burmese Prime Minister Thein Sein, the world was advised not to worry, the situation is well in hand."He insisted that his country has a government, its people and the private sector to tackle the problem by themselves", said Mr. Samak. "They are confident of dealing with the problem by themselves ... They don't need experts, but are willing to get aid supplies from every country. Get lost. Send money. Send emergency supplies. Keep your disaster relief experts at home. Don't worry. Everything is fine.
Two weeks post-Cyclone Nargis the country is back to normal. Very resilient, extremely self-sufficient, obviously talented in survival modes well beyond the understanding of those who have never had to cope with such a brutal onslaught of nature. Take notes; we might learn something of stalwart self-appraisal and self-reliance should we ever be faced with such a nature-induced tragedy.
The United Nations is obviously indulging in unwarranted panic. Imputing negligence to the military junta of Burma. Whereas the ruling generals know their country intimately; did they not just hold a referendum, resulting in a compellingly-reassuring vote of confidence from the Burmese people? Ensuring that the kindly totalitarian junta has the blessing of the people to continue its rule?
The Red Cross reporting that over a hundred thousand Burmese have expired is obvious rubbish. Worries evinced by the international community about an impending epidemic of infectious water-borne diseases are rank nonsense. Projecting a catastrophic loss of the rice crop - some convincingly 65% of which emanates from the cyclone-hit area is nobody's business; never heard of sovereign dictatorship?
Logistical planning is obviously best left to those who are expert in its prosecution; namely the ruling junta. Did they not, after all, restore electricity instanter to the street in Rangoon on which the first lady resides? The operation of highly technical equipment such as water purification plants is no big deal; we'll manage without international expertise, says the junta.
Everyone just wants to stand around and ogle the after-effects of the cyclone. It's human nature, like the crowds that gather around the scene of accidents. Exactly what all those aid organizations are doing, getting in the way of government troops doing their thing. Which may or may not be distributing emergency rations to needy survivors.
Bear in mind that the ruling State Peace and Development Council knows what it is about. You foreigners, what do you know? The cyclone may have killed thousands of farmers and villagers, inundated rice fields with salt water, destroying dikes and irrigation channels, drowning hundreds and thousands of plow-dependent water buffalo. That's all right.
That's life. And what is life, after all, but a slow death procession. Foreigners are a nuisance, a pestilence, a deterrence to management of the situation. Which accounts for the added security measures to detain and keep reporters and intrepidly-stupid foreign "experts" from entering and further diminishing the junta's potential for dealing with the situation.
Another significant tropical system heading this way? We'll look after things. Just go on, get out of the way, stop bedevilling us and interrupting our vital business.
Labels: Political Realities, Societal Failures, World Crises
posted by Pieface @ Thursday, May 15, 2008
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