CSI Miami in Mae Sot??

Interestingly, some guy from CSI Miami has been hanging around Mae Sot lately. We think he is narrating a documentary about the situation in Burma. Not sure. I've seen him a time or two, or at least have been told that I have, but I am not sure if I've ever seen the show.

It's good to know that people are working to spread the word. I haven't said much about the politics here. In the late 50's there was a military coup that has controlled the country ever since. In 1988 there was a huge pro-democracy movement that led another coup I think from within the old leadership, the State Law and Order Restoration Council. For some reason, they decided to have elections in 1990. The National Liberal Democratic party got 82% of the vote and chose Aung San Suu Kyi as the new national leader. This election was rejected by the SLORC and Suu Kyi was placed under house arrest. She has occasionally been released, but once attacked and nearly killed. In the meantime she has been awarded various things including a Nobel Peace Prize. She is currently still under house arrest.

The regime's economic strategies seem to be based on forced labor of ethnic minorities (like the Karen and others I work with) and leasing of all the countries resources to foreign corporations. Burma also supplies this part of the world with opium and amphetamines. Today, the NLD has broken up and is engaged in fairly disorganized guerrilla warfare. There are currently plans to damn several rivers destroying large areas of Karen and Shan land, making life even harder on them. My impression is that it is not an all out war on the minority groups, but a slow, deliberate campaign to squeeze them out by removing food supplies, land, access to healthcare, forcing relocation etc. It seems to be working very well.

The military government, in 2005, decided to move the capitol from Rangoon to an area of remote jungle in the middle of the country. It is a few miles outside a small town, but has been built ex nihilo over the last two years. It can be found on Google Earth. It is the only city in the nation that has electricity 24 hrs/day. It is basically a large military compound with villas for the generals and probably a large impressed work force to maintain it and continue construction. Some say the move was due to fear of invasion, others say that an astrologer suggested they make the move. Most of the world thinks it is crazy. China is on the fence about whether to move their embassy or not.