Myanmar: Forward or Stuck

The Lady: Aung San Suu Kyi 

The first thing that comes to mind when you think of Myanmar is probably Aung San Suu Kyi, the Burmese Nobel Peace Prize laureate and democracy advocate. Before coming to Myanmar, I watched two powerful films, The Lady and They Call It Myanmar. They both stressed the grand impact the Aung San family have had in Myanmar’s history and how large of a role Suu Kyi still plays in the politics of this suffering nation. Now under loosened military rule, Myanmar was once closed off from the world by self-isolation and harsh economic sanctions and is still suffering from the effects. The poorest people in Southeast Asia and a victim of harsh, tyrannical military-rule, Myanmar’s population looked to Aung San Suu Kyi, the daughter Aung San, the late general who gained Myanmar’s independence, to bring the country freedom. Suu Kyi sacrificed her personal life – not being there to watch her children grow up and her husband die – for her country. She founded the National League for Democracy and gathered the trust and support of a nation pleading for change. Unfortunately, the military government was afraid of her power and influence, jailing her supporters and putting her under house arrest for a total of 15 years over the course of 21 years. Throughout her adult life, she has worked tirelessly for the freedom of the Burmese people and plans to run for president in the elections this October (2015). Although she is by far the most popular and worthy candidate, she may not be able to run. Suu Kyi already won an election while under house arrest and was not allowed to take office due to an arbitrary rule stating that those married to foreigners may not be president. Even though her husband passed away, this rule has yet to be changed, thus Suu Kyi’s possible presidency is, unfortunately, still in question.

Drugs in Myanmar

While the military government of Myanmar is corrupt and evil in most areas, they have a clear and strict policy on drug control. Myanmar, a part of the “Golden Triangle” of East Asia, is the 2^nd highest producer of heroin - after Afghanistan - and also produces and sells large amounts of cocaine and opium. According to our guide, the government has established a very harsh punishment on possession of these drugs, sentencing a user to 6 years of jail time for 1 gram of the drug and capital punishment for dealing drugs. However, due to corruption, the drug trade still goes on. The government rarely catches rich and famous people because they have “contacts” and can easily escape the laws. 

The British colonizers first hooked the Chinese on drugs through “The China Trade,” established in order to trade opium for Chinese luxury goods like tea, porcelain, and silk. The Chinese usage went up quickly and spread through the region.  These drugs have continued to weigh down on productivity and hence on healthy economic activity. There is a deep dependence on these drugs not only because of the addiction, but also because they are a main source of income for farmers. Poppy cultivation has tripled since 2006 and all signs are pointing uphill for the drug trade and downhill for the future of the addicted population. 

Income Inequality

Drugs are just one reason why people in Myanmar suffer from huge poverty. Myanmar is the  poorest nation out of the Southeast Asian countries and struggles with a huge wealth gap. The rich get their wealth from one or more of these following reasons: landowners whose property value has risen greatly, military generals “cronies,” friends of the people in power. Driving through the town, the differences between the rich and the poor were stark. The corrupt government has led to poor infrastructure (only 26% of families have reliable electricity), shortage of skilled laborers, unfriendly Foreign Direct Investment laws, and lack of transparency and democracy. All these factors result in an unattractive business environment and so far, very few companies and countries have invested in Myanmar. The people are trapped in a land with little to no education and health care. One guide referred to an ATM as a sign of modernity and a park featured an airplane - working as a restaurant - for the citizens to see what planes are like because most people have never flied in one. The experience made me realize how lucky I am to live in a society where I am provided with not only the basic needs like food, water, education, and healthcare, but also the most important human need: freedom.

Stupas Beyond Compare

The population of Myanmar ultimately lives a very hard life, but Buddhism helps them cope with their worries and do the best with what they have. Strong believers in karma, people go to the beautiful temples day after day to pray for a better life in their next reincarnation. The country enjoys an abundance of temples with golden pagodas drawing followers from all over the world. We visited one of their most beautiful sights, the Shwedagon Pagoda, where we admired a plethora of golden stupas and people from all over the country paying their dues for a good 2015. It was a magnificent sight.

Before coming to Myanmar, I was a little tentative because I had only heard about the poverty and oppression happening there. While I was not misinformed, I learned that there is so much more to the country than its sad history and current struggles. When I come back, I want to visit the ancient city of Bagan!

Laos: Visit Laos!

A Peek into Luang Prabang 

At first glance, there is no indication that Laos is a communist country. There is a surprising absence large red propaganda billboards, no pictures of cult leaders, no stark grey buildings, and no police standing at every street corner. In fact, I was really surprised to find out that religion plays such a large role in the population’s everyday life. The little city of Luang Prabang, "Royal Buddha Image," lies between two rivers: the Nam Khan and Mekong. Decorated with 42 Buddhist temples, the city gleams with golden stupas, multi-colored glass designs, and 2,000 chanting monks. Because of high levels of poverty, many families submit their boys ages 8 to 21 to monkhood in order for them to get educated and be looked after. Thus, a large population of Laotians have been monks at some point in their lives.

Vow of Poverty

Every morning, the town’s monks walk around collecting alms from the residents and tourists. One morning, my mom and I participated in an alms ceremony at a city sidewalk at 5:30 am. We were instructed to take our shoes off as to be on the same level as the monks who don’t wear shoes. We sat cross legged on the floor on mats and waited for group after group to show up. Fortunately our hotel prepared sticky rice for us. We were told that often tourists give the monks packaged snacks or fast foods and that this kind of food does not suit the monks well and they tend to gain weight. Instead, people are supposed to give out home cooked food like rice and eggs. When the monks did walk by, we put a handful of sticky rice into their bowls avoiding eye contact.  It’s important to maintain the monks’ dignity when they are begging for food. Monks are not supposed to ever ask for anything and giving them their food for the day made me feel like I was helping them get through their day. This ceremony does not need recognition, the merit is in the act of giving itself. The selfless sharing is rewarding and adds to one’s karma.

Bearly Rescued

The adorable little city is also home to some natural beauties such as the Tat Sae waterfall and Kuang Si waterfall. The later has tiers of turquoise pools and is a central tourism sight for Laos serving as a natural swimming pool and waterpark. At the base, there is a moon bear (Asiatic black bear) sanctuary run by an organization, Free the Bears, that has set up a rescue and raise program for the endangered animal. On our tour, we were told that many poachers capture these bears to sell them as pets or kill them for the supposedly “miracle working” bile. These bears are tortured as they often lose limbs during capture and are kept in very small tight cages. Free the Bears has done tremendous work in rescuing and nurturing these beautiful creatures and without the organization, the Moon Bears would definitely be more endangered, if not extinct. To learn more about their worthy work, please check out their website here.

Laos’s natural beauty and cultural jewels are harshly contrasted by the toils of communism and corruption.

Corruption, Communism, and Central Planning

The country of Laos remains one of the last five communist countries in the world along side Vietnam, Cuba, China, and North Korea. Even though it is ruled by a communist party monopolizing the political scene, Laos does hold elections for their National Assembly. However, the only legal party is the communist party, so no real power is actually given to the people. The concentration of economic power and hence enormous corruption also contribute to the poverty of the people. With one of the lowest per capita incomes in the world, one third of the Laotian population lives under the international poverty line, at a shocking $1.25 per day. The country struggles to educate its public and provide electricity to households. Additionally, being a landlocked country infringes on easy trade. Less than 5% of the land is fit for agriculture, yet 80% of the work force is agrarian.

Dam that's (probably) not gonna work

A very poor country, Laos looks to the Mekong River to harbor electricity for its own population, but mostly to supply the rest of Southeast Asia. Laos already has 23 hydroelectric dams functioning on the Mekong and plans to have 93 more by 2020. The Laotian government plans to have these electricity exports be its main source of revenue by 2025. This is all great news for the Laotians- they have an accessible natural resource they can take advantage of and use to grow their poor economy. There is just one problem: the Mekong River flows through three other countries, Cambodia, Thailand, and Vietnam, each of which is worried about how these dams will affect their fish populations and communities. NGOs and the neighboring countries have been trying to persuade the Laotian government to stop building these dams but, plugging their ears to concerns for the future, the government digs on. 

Strength Through Struggle

In addition to a brutal history of colonization by the French, Laos was deeply scarred from involvement in the Vietnam War. Because Laos borders Vietnam to the west, Northern Vietnamese soldiers would go through Laos for a safer transport route to the South. Consequently, Laos also became a target of vicious United States bombings: "...Laos, the most heavily bombed country on earth...was hit by an average of one B-52 bomb-load every eight minutes, 24 hours a day, between 1964 and 1973. US bombers dropped more ordnance on Laos in this period than was dropped during the whole of the second world war."

Though it all, the country has stayed strong at heart and pursued a beautiful culture illustrated by their dedication to Buddhism.