The country of Burma is home to one of the most brutal military regimes in the world. A military dictatorship has ruled Burma since 1962. The regime faced international condemnation beginning in 1988, when it massacred thousands of pro-democracy demonstrators. The Dictators promised to transform the country into a democracy, and held elections in May 1990. The National League for Democracy was elected to 84% of the seats in Parliament. Aung San Suu Kyi, who later won the Nobel Peace Prize, was a founder and General Secretary of this party. In response to her popularity with the people of Burma, the Junta placed her under house arrest and her supporters were tortured, imprisoned and systematically murdered. Suu Kyi is still under house arrest.
Initially calling itself the SLORC, the regime renamed itself "State Peace and Development Council" (SPDC). SPDC has been condemned by governments and international organizations across the political spectrum for their human rights abuses, including the U.S. State Department, the U.N. General Assembly, Commission on Human Rights and International Labor Organization, the European Parliament, Amnesty International, and Human Rights Watch Asia.
The Junta spends nearly 50% of the budget on its Armed Forces but only 3% on healthcare for its citizens. The World Health Organization ranked Burma 190th out of 191 nations in terms of health. As a result, HIV/AIDS, TB and Malaria have a profound effect far beyond what contemporary societies face. Nearly 97,000 new TB cases are reported each year. Malaria kills 3,000 people each year and is the leading cause of death for children under 5. At least 12% of the population suffers from malaria at any given time.
Since 2004, the conditions have worsened. At that time, the military ousted General Khin Nyunt and have taken a hard line on international and humanitarian agencies. It has ceased cooperating with international agencies, such as the UN Special Rapporteur on Human Rights, the International Labor Organization and others. Humanitarian organizations are under pressure to work only with official state organizations, limiting their freedom to distribute aid to those in need and becoming a tool for the regime, according to “ Doctors without Borders” for Burma.
Ethnic groups residing in Eastern Burma bear the brunt of the Junta’s oppressive policy. The Karen people are one such group. The SPDC routinely raids Karen villages, burn crops, steal livestock, force men and boys to serve as laborers. Rape of Karen women and girls is a common occurrence.As a result, a number of Karen have fled to Thailand, the jungles or isolated camps inside Burma. Health conditions in this region are at disaster levels, according to various reports by the United Nations. An estimated 1 million people are displaced into Thailand and another 1 million are displaced internally within Burma.
In 2004 and 2006, international agencies, such as the World Health Organization, documented the dire conditions faced by the Karen.
- 1 in 12 Karen mothers die from child-birth, compared to 1 in 900 for Thai mothers
- 1 in 5 Karen children will die by age 5 compared to 1 in 50 in neighboring Thailand
Malaria and diarrhea are the leading causes of death. The remoteness of the area restricts their access to basic health support.
Click here for more information on the crisis...
