Burma 'wants aid not foreigners'

[Curt 1]

This Burma situation is getting a bit rididulous now. BBC have the thread title as a headline now, but they aren't letting foreigners in or something daft like that. What will it take?

[Mantas 3]

A dictatorships worst nightmare.

They actually NEED help from outsiders.

 

Ego's are more important than lives in some parts of the world.

[Davo 1]

I noticed on the news last night that some aid agency representatives and a spokesman from the Thai government were being very diplomatic about the junta's instrangisence. Grating though it may be to do that, it is probably the best way to get them to co-operate in the short term.

 

Some of the speculation that 500,000 may have died is simply horrific, and the big threat now is disease and starvation.

 

I hope that in the longer term this will spell the end of the junta, but for now I hope the Chinese and other neighbours can exercise some positive influence. The paranoid generals certainly don't want to have the US getting involved.

 

[Ezorisu 0]

I'm sure no one will want to wager that "unescorted food aid" or "monetary aid" actually gets to the affected people but instead gets squandered by the ruling elite and the military.

[Davo 1]

Amazing that they seem to be more interested in the referendum which is part of some democratic change sham. The 500,000 dead is probably a far too high inital worst case estimate, still a very grim situation though.