THE 2003 invasion of Iraq has enabled two important realizations. First, that imperial powers only “act” to preserve their interests, and second, that humanitarian intervention — i.e. humanitarian imperialism — is touted and encouraged by the media and official circles mostly to circumvent the true self-serving intents of aggression.
Granted, many Americans are still under the impression that Iraq harbored Al-Qaeda, developed WMDs and threatened America’s security. But who can blame them? Compare the relentless campaign of fabrication and half-truths prior to the invasion — courtesy of the Bush administration and its willing allies in the media — to the dismal follow-ups on whether such military adventurism actually achieved any of its declared objectives.
Every facet in America’s propaganda machine was in ceaseless motion to make a case for war; aside from the obvious pretext, Iraq’s horrors under Saddam were repeatedly emphasized. Also showcased were Iraq’s exiled elites, who “proved” that the US war was compelled by the desperate pleas of the Iraqi masses. Forget the actual masses then butchered with impunity. Compare again the attention given to Saddam’s victims to the subsequent attention given to the victims of the US war (estimated to number a million), who were not even validated as victims, but instead presented as grateful beneficiaries. A few months into the invasion, a leading US neoconservative claimed to me in an interview that the Iraq democracy experiment was so successful that “Iranians are calling me at my office angrily saying, how come you liberated the Iraqis and are yet to liberate us?”
So why aren’t the US and Britain responding to the situation in Myanmar with the same determination that they exhibited for Iraq, and now Iran? Why haven’t media pundits rushed in to make a case for war against the brutal regime of Gen. Than Shwe, who has denied his people not only political freedom, but also the basic requisites for a dignified life? To maintain their extravagant lifestyles in the midst of crushing poverty, junta generals jacked fuel prices by 500 percent in August. This provoked even Burmese monks — legendary symbols of peace and endurance — to demonstrate en mass, demanding greater compassion for the poor. The protests, starting in a rural town on Aug. 19, culminated into massive rallies of hundreds of thousands, and lasted for weeks.
The media, correctly drew parallels between the most recent Saffron Revolution and the 1988 uprising, when students in Rangoon triggered nationwide demonstrations that were suppressed brutally by the army, claiming 3,000 lives. Gen. Shwe became the head of the junta in 1992 and continued to rule with an iron fist. However, his subversion of democracy was not a strong enough reason to prevent large multinationals from seeking lucrative contracts in the gas-rich country. He accumulated wealth and his officials continued to roam the globe with few hindrances, while the Myanmarese people continued to suffer. This eventually led to the most recent revolt, which was once again crushed without remorse. The number of dead this time remains unknown; estimates range between 200 and 2,000. Thousands have also been arrested and many monks have reportedly been tortured, their monastaries ransacked. From a media angle, no revolution could be as sentimental or appealing. But, of course, it takes more than tens of thousands of monks leading hundreds of thousands of the country’s poor in mass rallies to make Myanmar relevant for too long.
Western leaders, aware of the criticism that awaits them, have paid the necessary lip service. British Prime Minister Gordon Brown decried the use of violence against protestors and demanded European sanctions. President Bush declared that Americans “stand in solidarity with these brave individuals.” Israel, on the other hand, denied its military links to the junta, despite much contradictory evidence. It justified its unwillingness to influence the situation on the grounds of nostalgia — Myanmar was the first South Asian country to recognize Israel (Haaretz, Sep 30). The UN sent its envoy to Burma to meet Gen. Shwe and Ibrahim Gambari was left waiting for days before he was allowed to express the concerns of the international community. And that’s that.
Myanmar is as important to China as the Middle East is to the US. China cares more about the political stability of its neighbors than human rights and democracy; the US cares about such a nuisance insofar as its ability to serve its own militaristic and economic interests. China is the world’s fourth largest economy, and will soon be the third; its holds $1.4 trillion in reserves, mostly in US treasury bonds. Its sway over the global financial system is undeniable, and under no circumstance will it allow America a significant role in a country that shares with it a 2,000-kilometer border. The US, on the other hand, pays lip service to democracy in Myanmar, and its continued “support” of opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi and her National League for Democracy (NLD) is aimed at maintaining a foothold in Myanmar for a future role, should the relationship between the West and China go sour.
Humanitarian imperialism has proved more destructive than the injustices it supposedly eradicates. But expect none of that in the case of Myanmar, because intervention does not serve the interests of the influential parties — not the West’s, nor China’s, nor Russia’s. We may see a few sentimental meetings between Aung San Suu Kyi and representatives of the generals, and perhaps a few gestures of goodwill by the latter, at the behest of China and the West. But they will bring no sweeping reforms, no meaningful democracy or human rights. These can only be achieved by the people of Myanmar themselves, by their monks, civil society activists and ordinary people.
If Iraq has been a lesson of any worth, it is that the Myanmarese are much better off without American bombers or British napalm. True reforms and democracy can only come from within, from the closed fists of the determined dispossessed. Indeed, Burma is not Iraq and thank God for that.
