Burma Elections
 

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/04/03/wo....html?ref=asia

I've been holding my breath over whether the elections in Burma will stand. Given the president's comments, it appears ASSK and the other NLD candidates elected will take office. What an incredible change for the country!

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/04/04/wo..._r=1&ref=world

Kathie, thanks for posting this!

So thrilled that words fail me! Been following this since the voting began and Daw Aung San Suu Kyi appeared in her red dress to encourage her party. Such a classy lady!

Believe it was a clean sweep!

We saw THEY CALL IT MYANMAR: The Lifting of a Curtain this evening and the question and answer session with the writer/director Robert Lieberman. The documentary is very well-done and shows the wrath and openness of the Burmese people, reaffirming so much of what all the Fodorites who have already visited Burma/Myanmar have been reporting.

When asked about the election, however, Lieberman, who portrays himself as a "glass is half-full kind of guy" said he was not very optimistic. HE said that so much rests of the shoulders of ASSK, that she is 67 and physically fragile, albeit extraordinary. It was somewhat disheartening to hear him say this--and he went into further detail as to why he thinks this way--after watching his 90minute film showing a country that is so impoverished and that seems to be starting to open itself to the world.

The election has been so thrilling, I sincerely hope his analysis is contradicted by events.

whoops--the dangers of not proofing before posting!! the second sentence is meant to say: The documentary is very well-done and shows the WARMTH and openness...!!!!" In NO way does it show any "wrath" and I realize "openness" has to be qualified--Faces were either blocked or off-screen when people did speak about any sensitive subjects.

520, I was not optimistic about the elections, after all we've seen ASSK win an election before and be imprisoned as a result. Actually, all of the elected NLD candidates from that election spent time in prison.

However, given what is happening right now in Burma, I am hopeful that they have turned a corner. I have been in correspondence with a friend in Burma who says

"80% of Myanmar peoples like Daw Aung San Su Kyi party.
Now all of the Myanmar peoples are very happy..
I heard about the Daw Aung San Su Kyi news everywhere in Bagan and Nyaung Oo area and from the local visitor who peoples come from different region...
Peoples hope Daw Aung San Su Kyi can change Myanmar policy."

Let me say that I, like many others, feel like I'm still holding my breath over what happens next. But the changes in the country between our 2009 and 2011 visits were amazing, and the changes since even more amazing. The government is officially allowing the kyat to "float" against the dollar as of Monday, doing away with the old artificial set exchange rate with the dollar. This will mean that more NGOs will be willing to work in Burma without the huge "tax" going to the generals.

I also read that they are finally issuing visas to journalists -- which also seems like a big step in the right direction.

The journey of a thousand miles starts with the first step.

Let's hope this is the first step towards democracy - especially for the minority peoples of Burma (Myanmar) - ever since her father was assassinated and democracy was derailed.

KQED radio had the filmmaker of They Call it Myanmar and others who have worked in Myanmar on Forum yesterday. If you are interested in hearing more, go to KQED.org and search the Forum audio archives for April 3rd to listen to an interesting program.

I couldn't be more pleased. Eleven years ago I only visited Yangon, always hoping to see more of the country some day. I did just that in January 2012. What kind, generous peole the Burmese are. When I fell ill, a kind vendor was more than generous in caring for me. Everyone along the way returned a smile with the smile or a wave. I am optimistic that the Burmese people will, albeit slowly, enjoy the rewards of of their changing goverment.

And the US makes more moves toward normalizing diplomatic relations with Burma.

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/04/05/wo...s.html?_r=1&hp