Burma's despair / Jeff Kingston

Study of the current situation in Burma where 80% of the population lives on less than $1 per day, satellite television fees rose from $5 to $800 overnight (to prevent access to foreign news) and where the democratically elected government was prevented by the military from taking office in 1982. Attacks by the military on monks in September 2007 to quell the so called safron revolution further alienated the general public. There have even been calls for western intervention, and there is deep suspicion that ASEAN's much vaunted policy of constructive engagement benefits ASEAN states but does nothing for the Burmese. The driving forces of internal unrest are poverty and repression both of which are increasingly evident. Suggests that the international community should take advantage of every opportunity to assist the people with initiatives ranging from educational scholarships to humanitarian aid, nation building and democratic transition.