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Title – Planet’s Burma guide ‘unethical’
Source – www.bbc.co.uk
Date – 21st February 2008
I make no secret of being a firm believer that people should not visit Burma on holiday at this time, the argument for visiting are flawed and anyone who has a good understanding of how things work in Burma will know that the very simple fact is that they don’t, nothing is said and nothing happens without the say so of the military. This is the same military which is responsible for oppression, violence and extra judicial killing of its own people. The list of atrocities is substantial and truly disturbing. The recent demonstrations in September 2007 highlighted this further; peaceful demonstrations by Buddhist monks (by their very nature people who preach peace and tranquillity) quelled by a government with gun fire, beatings and indiscriminate violence. As if it was not enough to break up demonstrations, this was followed up by violent raids on monasteries, abductions incarceration of the monks that took part in the demonstrations and the same treatment for their families.
The Burmese military is such a secretive organisation ruling by fear alone that no one quite knows the number of people killed, injured or imprisoned but most agree that the official figures of 10 – 15 killed is probably at least ten times lower than the actual figures. As for those sent to detention camps far away from their homes in the remote north of Burma, the figures can only be guessed at but they certainly number in their thousands and there is never even the suggestion of a trial, let alone fair trial.
So should we blame Lonely Planet for all of this or for publishing a Burma travel guide? I don’t believe it is that black or white. As a staunch supporter of organisations like the Burma Campaign (http://www.burmacampaign.org.uk)i/ believe strongly that people should not visit Burma. It has long been the request of Anug San Suu Kyi that people do not visit Burma until the generals are defeated, she is the only legitimate leader and representative of the Burmese people and acknowledged as one of the world’s great leaders and greatest advocate of peace, so she should be listened to.
The argument about Lonely Planet for me is more than just the fact that a guide book promotes a country, it is the fact that in our free society we should let people decide for themselves if they want to visit Burma or not, otherwise we are not much better than the Burmese Generals. Democracy is about freedom and choice, we should defend that, but that does not mean that we should promote Burma as a travel destination. The lonely planet Burma, gives people the choice to visit and it gives them the chance to find out more about the country in a stark warning at the beginning of the book, does that warning go far enough? Probably not.
So for me we should campaign for Lonely Planet to go further with the argument and the facts behind Burma’s regime, tell the real horror story and make more of an argument about not visiting, make the Lonely Planet a tool for change in Burma waking readers up to the atrocities and the support they will give the Burmese government if they visit, not simply banning the book which censors our freedom of choice. I object to travel companies advertising Burma as a destination with phrases like 'an unspoilt paradise' or 'a place of serenity and beauty' as they are just lies, if travel agents tell the truth and if Lonely Planet tells the truth a bit more extensively then people will not travel to Burma anyway and we will not have to censor our books. The truth is always more powerful then hiding behind lies, the Burmese military have been fighting that for years and with the help of the world standing up for the innocent voiceless people of Burma the truth will defeat the Burmese Military and destroy their grip on the Burmese people.
Besides if Lonely Planet publishes more of the real story about Burma and presents the real facts, not the lies of the generals, the Burmese authorities will stop letting people bringing it into the country, solving the discussion at a stroke…
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www.safegapyear.comSource – www.bbc.co.uk
Date – 21st February 2008
I make no secret of being a firm believer that people should not visit Burma on holiday at this time, the argument for visiting are flawed and anyone who has a good understanding of how things work in Burma will know that the very simple fact is that they don’t, nothing is said and nothing happens without the say so of the military. This is the same military which is responsible for oppression, violence and extra judicial killing of its own people. The list of atrocities is substantial and truly disturbing. The recent demonstrations in September 2007 highlighted this further; peaceful demonstrations by Buddhist monks (by their very nature people who preach peace and tranquillity) quelled by a government with gun fire, beatings and indiscriminate violence. As if it was not enough to break up demonstrations, this was followed up by violent raids on monasteries, abductions incarceration of the monks that took part in the demonstrations and the same treatment for their families.
The Burmese military is such a secretive organisation ruling by fear alone that no one quite knows the number of people killed, injured or imprisoned but most agree that the official figures of 10 – 15 killed is probably at least ten times lower than the actual figures. As for those sent to detention camps far away from their homes in the remote north of Burma, the figures can only be guessed at but they certainly number in their thousands and there is never even the suggestion of a trial, let alone fair trial.
So should we blame Lonely Planet for all of this or for publishing a Burma travel guide? I don’t believe it is that black or white. As a staunch supporter of organisations like the Burma Campaign (http://www.burmacampaign.org.uk)i/ believe strongly that people should not visit Burma. It has long been the request of Anug San Suu Kyi that people do not visit Burma until the generals are defeated, she is the only legitimate leader and representative of the Burmese people and acknowledged as one of the world’s great leaders and greatest advocate of peace, so she should be listened to.
The argument about Lonely Planet for me is more than just the fact that a guide book promotes a country, it is the fact that in our free society we should let people decide for themselves if they want to visit Burma or not, otherwise we are not much better than the Burmese Generals. Democracy is about freedom and choice, we should defend that, but that does not mean that we should promote Burma as a travel destination. The lonely planet Burma, gives people the choice to visit and it gives them the chance to find out more about the country in a stark warning at the beginning of the book, does that warning go far enough? Probably not.
So for me we should campaign for Lonely Planet to go further with the argument and the facts behind Burma’s regime, tell the real horror story and make more of an argument about not visiting, make the Lonely Planet a tool for change in Burma waking readers up to the atrocities and the support they will give the Burmese government if they visit, not simply banning the book which censors our freedom of choice. I object to travel companies advertising Burma as a destination with phrases like 'an unspoilt paradise' or 'a place of serenity and beauty' as they are just lies, if travel agents tell the truth and if Lonely Planet tells the truth a bit more extensively then people will not travel to Burma anyway and we will not have to censor our books. The truth is always more powerful then hiding behind lies, the Burmese military have been fighting that for years and with the help of the world standing up for the innocent voiceless people of Burma the truth will defeat the Burmese Military and destroy their grip on the Burmese people.
Besides if Lonely Planet publishes more of the real story about Burma and presents the real facts, not the lies of the generals, the Burmese authorities will stop letting people bringing it into the country, solving the discussion at a stroke…
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