A Regional Dilemma: What Role Can the Southeastern Asian Nations Play in Myanmar’s Affairs?

With the never-ending unrest (as seen in the image to the left) in Myanmar as I have mentioned in my previous post, the international community’s attempt to calm the matter was through sanctions. Its goal is to deprive the military junta of any foreign exchange earnings, in hopes of impairing its economy. However, these sanctions have not been very effective (pictured below) because not all of the nations uphold the sanctions. Some of these countries are those from the Southeast Asian region. Countries such as China and Singapore are still trading with the junta and fueling it with military equipments. Thus, this has inspired me to explore the blogsphere to see what others thought on the matter of Southeastern nations supporting the military junta. In my search, I found two well-developed blogs in Blogger. The first blog post, “State Terrorism, Agonies of Myanmar & Regional Stability (2-3)”, was authored by Mg Yin, a Burmese, who has very strong feelings in favoring immediate regional military invention in Burma The other blog post, "Sleeping With the Enemy", belonged to Andrew Sheldon, a UNSW graduate, whose area of interest is global politics. For each of the blog, I commented on the content of their post and my responses can be found below.

“State Terrorism, Agonies of Myanmar & Regional Stability (2-3)”

Comment:

First of all, I want to commend you on your post. I can see the passion and devotion you put into this piece. Like you, I do believe that something should be done about the military regime. However, I thought your argument to initiate military action from the ASEAN family was particularly weak. I noticed that you brought up the matter of human rights violations in Burma as the reason for invention when you said, “[we must fight against the] inhuman dictatorship and their Fascism of killing its people.” It is true bringing up the matter of human mistreatment is a very persuasive tactic to stir up a social movement, but not a very effective way to change a government’s foreign policy. Most governments today are not interested in moral issues, and it is often the last concern when it comes to foreign policy. I think the only way to convince the ASEAN family to get involved is by targeting their economic interest. If there is something to gain through intervention such as resources, many of the ASEAN countries would step in immediately to stop this atrocity, knowing that they have access to resources that can proliferate their economy. However, the problem with this tactic is that it is not definite that these countries will gain access to the resources depending on the new government’s policy.

“Sleeping With the Enemy”

Comment:

First of all, I thought you made a good argument on the unlikeness of military intervention by China and Singapore. Like the fact that you mention how China and Singapore’s national interests overpower their moral righteousness. It is apparent today that most countries, especially those in the South Asian region, are always looking out for their economic interest and always wanting to make a profit. As you pointed out, the trade interest lies in “energy resources – offshore gas”, which have escalated investments in Burma from many bordering countries. Thus, China and Singapore will not give up the opportunity to get a hold of that natural reserve. Rather than militarily intervening in Burma’s internal affairs, they are investing millions of dollars in supporting the military junta.

Second of all, I disagree with your assumption that military intervention is unlikely to happen at all when you said, “I just don’t see it happening.” I think an intrusion is unlikely at this moment because their national interest is not being threatened, but it will become the only practical solution in the near future. We must consider that the arrests and beatings in Burma will escalate in a migration of Burmese to bordering countries such as China. This will cause a border dilemma as refugees pour in by the thousands, which would result in human trafficking, illegal immigration, and the spread of viral diseases. Hence, this becomes a threat to China’s national interest because they cannot fully accommodate for all of the refugees. This would leave most homeless and jobless, resulting in a rise in poverty level, and the citizens becoming prone to infectious diseases through mere interaction, which would leave China in a health crisis. By and large, I believe that military intervention will occur soon enough once China realizes that its national interest is threatened by those factors I presented.

Burma: Closing its Doors on Health Care

Burma, also known as Myanmar, has been a main topic of controversy in the news. The country is in turmoil, fueled by an oppressive military junta and civilian demonstrators, due to the junta's unwillingness to loosen the dictatorial grip on the country's political, economic, and social structure. Because of this, many of the inhabitants have begun to protest, however, with very little progress as the junta counters by military force. According to BBC news, many are arrested and killed through the use of baton charges and tear gas.

Though it is distressing to see this kind of violence, what is also occurring is a health care crisis within the country that should be addressed immediately. Even before the start of the rebellion, the Burmese health system has been anything but adequate. To confirm this fact, “the World Health Report 2000, graded Myanmar 190th in overall health system performance of 191 countries." What places Myanmar as the world’s second worst health system is negligence from the military government to implement health regulations and build public clinics. The regime is too occupied with maintaining its authoritarian power through military spending (as seen to the left), thereby disregarding the severity of the health dilemma. A statement from the Unrepresented Nations and Peoples Organization (UNPO) noted, “The regime has more than doubled the size of the military and slashed its spending on health care to less than $1 per person per year." This leaves many Burmese vulnerable to illnesses and diseases. State-run medical facilities are unequipped to provide clinical assistance to the poorer provinces. Given the lack of treatments, “almost 90 of Burma’s 52 million population[s] are at risk of malaria, and […] with nearly 9, 700 [tuberculosis] cases detected every year. […] A third of children are chronically malnourished, 15 of the population is food insecure, and the under-5 mortality rate is 106 per 1000.” If the government does not take notice of this crucial matter soon, maintaining power would not be the only predicament that it will face in the future.

The government’s lack of initative to spend on health care has caught the attention of many humanitarian organizations. Agencies, like the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) and Doctors Without Borders, have sent up medical supplies and clinical institutions to aid the people. However, the junta, in fear of dissent to overthrow the government, has imposed limitations on the travel of aid and health volunteers. This only resulted in “many international medical charities […] winding up their operations in Burma, […] citing government restrictions on [their] movement made functioning nearly impossible.” As more civil society organizations leave the country, the public is left to fend for themselves; some are even willing to flee the country to find medical relief, dangerously crossing the border into countries such as Thailand and Cambodia. There are a few who do receive clinical services, but “many patients come too late and died in the clinic (as pictured to the right), while newborn babies and the elderly are sometimes abandoned by family who simply cannot afford to care for them [during the journey]” states Dr. Cynthia Maung of Mae Tao Clinic. Children and elders, the ones who suffer the most, cannot handle the physical demands that the journey entails and are left behind to wait for death.

The core issue in Myanmar is a violation of human rights. The military leaders continue to ignore and neglect the wellvbeing of its citizens, with many waiting for death because of inadequate health treatments. Given the junta’s hunger for power and control, most of the country’s expenditure is focused on building up an army rather than health services. As the military government becomes more power hungry and insecure, the rights and lives of these citizens are pushed aside. These people are entitled to medical care; it is the government’s obligation to take care of its citizens and their health should be the first priority. This injustice should be stopped and the only possible way is that other powerful states in the international community should intervene. However, many states are reluctant to intervene due to the bylaws of the state sovereignty. Still, we must consider that this is not a matter of people just being arrested, but people are dying and suffering from a lack of medical treatments. Should we stand by and allow this atrocity to continue?

Skin Bleaching: A Growing Trend in Southeast Asia

With the phenomenon of globalization bringing forth new ideas and information, even a continent as culturally unique as Asia is feeling its effects. In Southeast Asia for example, women are perusing through the pages of imported Western magazines and are captivated by their Western counterpart’s standards of beauty. These women have begun to develop the perception that light or pale skin represents beauty, believing that having a fair complexion will make them seem more attractive and confident. Thus, some Asian women are buying face bleaching products in order to achieve the white, milky complexion. A June 2004 survey conducted by Synovate asserts that thirty-eight percent of women in Hong Kong, Malaysia, the Philippines, South Korea, and Taiwan are using skin whitening products. Though this cultural issue has not been mentioned in recent news, it has become a trend that is rapidly gaining popularity.

Globalization may have accelerated the popularity of skin whitening, but the trend can be dated back to ancient China and Japan. In a CNN article, Professor Lam Wai-kei confirmed, “In their early bid to lighten up, Chinese ground pearl from seashells into powder and swallowed it to whiten their skin, […] while Geisha girls powdered their faces chalk white." In most Southeast Asian countries, there is a collective belief that a fair milky skin is associated with the higher social class, whereas dark skin pertains to the lower social class. Unfortunately, this belief has been passed down through generations, and has been seeded in the minds of most women today.

The media has been the chief contributor to the skin whitening trend’s popularity in Southeast Asia starting with the Asia-Pacific television promoting lighter skin. As the soap operas industry are taking Asia by storm, regardless of the language differences, most of the leading actors in these dramas are usually lighter skinned. To make matters worse, these actors are placed in advertisements promoting skin whitening products like the ad seen to left. In the New York Times, a dermatologist from Bangkok, Nithiwadi Phuchareuyot, commented, “Every Thai girl thinks that if she has white skin the money will come and the men will come. The movie stars are all white-skinned, and everyone wants to look like a superstar.” Given the fact that the media are constantly feeding the “lighter is better” image to its consumers, it is difficult for Asian women to set a frame of mind that lighter skinned does not always reflect beauty.

With constant media bombardment, Asian women pressured to keep up with the trends are running to their local pharmacies or beauty stores to buy these skin whitening products. However, most women from the poor regions of Southeast Asia cannot afford it. In order to get their hands on the creams at a lower price, they resort to buying uncertified skin bleaching creams from their local village or the black market. These uncertified creams usually contain chemicals such as mercury or hydroquinone in high amounts, which are very harmful to the skin. For instance, the International Herald Tribune reports an incident involving a Thai woman named Panya, who bought a skin bleaching cream for a dollar. After using the cream, Panya’s skin became itchy and became marred with pink patches. It was later discovered that she had developed leukoderma, as seen in the image to the right. From then on, her life plunged into a downward spiral when she lost her job as a singer due to her unbearable appearance. Panya is only one of the many unlucky women who have experienced the adverse effects of skin bleaching.

What makes the skin-whitening such an important matter is that it threatens the cultural identity of the people of Southeast Asia. These women are fixated on the glamour of the West and are blinded to seeing the natural beauty of their own skin color. Given the magnitude of the issue, I believe the governments of Southeast Asia should intervene in this matter because the skin-whitening trend has traveled to poorest region and have become unsafe to use. What is being sold to these women is harmful, and the consequences are devastating because it may leave them facially scarred. Addressing the matter means protecting these women from being preyed on by the black market, and hopefully setting an example that darker skin can still be considered beautiful.

India's Tea Industry: A Long Forgotten Sector

As many may know, globalization is a rising trend among many nation-states. Nation-states are becoming more interconnected as information, technology, and ideas are spreading like wildfires. However, globalization has the ability to either break down or build up a nation’s economy. In the instance of India, it has been known as the main source, second to China, for providing goods and services to developed countries. India is known for exporting textile goods, jewelry, and medical products. As for services, it is best known as the main settlement for outsourcing because of cheap labor. These components are the huge contributors to India economic success and rising power within the international system. With all the profitable advantages that globalization has brought to India, not all sectors of the economy is benefiting from this trend such as the tea production industry (as seen in the image to the left).

The tea market was once the most profitable sector in India’s economy. The tea production industry can be traced back to the British’s colonial rule. Dating back as far as the 1830s, the commercial production of tea began and flourished when the East India Company decided to move tea production from China to India. Thus, over the past decades even after India’s partition from Britain, India became one the leading suppliers of tea alongside China. According to a Euromonitor International article, “India [was producing] 826 million kg of tea in 2002, representing approximately 30% of the world’s tea supply.” Unfortunately, today, India’s tea industry has fallen into difficult times. Most tea farmers (as seen in the image to the right) are barely making a living as the tea market becomes more competitive and tea becomes more abundant. The family-owned tea farms are the ones that are struggling to survive. These family-owned farms are either bought out by large tea companies or go out of business due to lack of earnings. On a larger scale, the entire industry in India is looking at a bleak future in tea production as competition goes beyond the border.

Foreign competition has been one of the main reasons for the downward sales in Indian tea. Some underdeveloped and developing countries, like India, are taking advantage of globalization and are targeting the tea industry. Some of these countries are Vietnam, Sri Lanka, and Kenya. Due to cheap labor in these countries, they are able to sell their tea at a lower price than India can. A case study conducted by American University in Washington D.C. confirms that teas in Sri Lanka are sold at the low price of 1.5 U.S. dollars a kilogram, whereas India’s teas are sold for 2 dollars. Though the price difference is only 50 cents, foreign tea importers would prefer to buy Sri Lankan tea because they would be saving 50 cents per kilogram. In the world of business, companies and buyers are looking for the lowest common denominator, and they will always want to make a profit from it. Therefore, India must find a way to keep their tea prices down , but still make a profit to support their laborers, in order to attract and sway the buyers from the competition.

The Indian government has not taken full initiative to resolve this crisis. However, within some of the Indian states, the state governments have taken the initiative to enact laws to promote the tea industry. One of the laws is the Himachal Pradesh Ceiling on Land Holdings Act, which restricts tea farmers from selling their land or changing their land use. Yet, the act has not been very effective because it leaves the farmers stagnant. Basically, they are not raking in enough revenue, and they are not allowed to cultivate any crops other than tea. If this matter is not resolved, many tea farms will go out of business and the farmers will face poverty.

It could be in the near future that the Indian tea leaf industry could be coming to a close as foreign competition and ineffective land regulations by state governments leave the industry high and dry. I believe the life and death of the industry lies in the hands of the Indian government and how they regard its importance to India’s economy. The Indian government may either decide to close down the tea industry because it is a drag on the economy or they may decide to keep the industry and find a way to subsidize the tea planters.

Taiwan: Dreaming For a Seat in the U.N.

For years, Taiwan has dreamt of being an independent state, but the People’s Republic of China would not allow this dream to become a reality. Thus, Taiwan has taken a different route for independence through applying for membership in the U.N., which can be seen in the image to the left. Unfortunately, the U.N. rejected Taiwan’s request for membership just last week. This was a disappointment for Taiwan because it was the 15th consecutive time that they have been rejected. Thus, I explored the blogsphere to seek out what many has to say about this matter. Within Blogger, I found a very interesting post from Taiwanese professor, Dr. T, from Soochow University. In his post, “Through the UN rejects Taiwan’s UN bid, we will never give up!” he seems very certain that Taiwan would find their way to the U.N. Therefore, I made comment on his blog to point out that Taiwan may be facing a few obstacles before it can rightfully take a seat in the U.N. Along with that, I found another blog post that caught my interest at Blog@Case. The blog post, “Taiwan-Why we continue to ignore it?” belonged to an alumnus of Case Western Reserve University. In his post, he was upset that the U.N. had rejected Taiwan’s bid, and he claimed that Taiwan is being overlooked because of China’s economic influence over the global community. Hence, I wanted to refute his claim that China may not be such a powerful influence over the global community.

Though the UN rejects Taiwan's UN bid, we will never give up!

My comment:

Through reading your post, I predict that it is going to be a difficult task for Taiwan to gain U.N. membership. We must take into consideration the U.N. resolution 2758 enacted in 1971, which recognizes the People’s Republic of China as the main U.N. representative of all China. The U.N. cannot ignore or suddenly change its resolution because of one country. If the U.N. did decide to give Taiwan a seat, it would undermine the U.N.’s governing power and cause uproar in China. As many may know, the U.N. does not have absolute power over the international community, thus it cannot retract its resolution without upsetting China. China, as many may know, has gained a lot of power over the years. They hold and produce most of the world’s goods. It is possible that China may either stop its export of these goods or it may launch a full missile attack on Taiwan if the U.N. agrees to Taiwan’s bid. Though I believe it is unjustly that Taiwan cannot participate in the U.N., we must look at the larger picture. This matter goes beyond the fact that Taiwan cannot get a seat in the U.N.; it concerns the order of the global community and the prevention of nuclear warfare between China and Taiwan. I supposed that Taiwan can continue their attempts, but I hope they consider the possible repercussions to their actions.

Taiwan - Why do we continue to ignore it?

My comment:

I do agree that Taiwan has demonstrated or represented itself as a sovereign state for years. By examining the eight criteria that makes a state independent, I have noticed that Taiwan fits most of these criteria. However, I thought there was one essential criterion that was missing from the list, political power. It is essential for a sovereign state to have the power to create and mandate laws onto its citizens if it wants to be considered as a sovereign state. Aside from that matter, I see that Taiwan has a few supporters as Taiwan tried to gain membership in the U.N. However, I noticed that these supporters do not have a strong presence in the global community. Not trying to be biased, I think the only way Taiwan can have the upper in hand in the U.N. situation is by forming allies with great powers such as Japan, Britain, and the U.S. These great powers have their own way of persuading the U.N. and possibly China. Even though China has an advantage over the U.S. because of trade, the U.S. will not sit back and allow China to dictate Taiwan -U.S. relations.

On the matter of China taking a military stance on Taiwan, it is unlikely that China would use military force. China knows that the global community will not allow such behavior. The U.N. would immediately place a sanction on China and mandate a cessation of trade with other nations. This would economically hurt China and they would not want to take that risk. After a while, China may just loosen its grasp on Taiwan and allow Taiwan to hold a seat the U.N. because China did allow Taiwan to hold presidential elections even if it went against China’s socialist system.

China's One Child Policy: A Policy Gone Ethically and Socially Wrong?

For years, the People’s Republic of China has been on the radar as the most populous country in the world. Its population has soared dramatically over a few years. According to the U.S. Census Bureau’s International Data Base, China has reached up to 1.3 billion people. The country has made many attempts to control its growing population and hopefully to stabilize it. One of China’s attempts was the one child policy . This policy decreed that every couple living in urban areas are only allowed to have one child. Those living in the rural areas or minority groups are allowed to have a second child after a five-year break. Since the installment of the one child policy, China has seen the policy’s effectiveness. As the People’s Daily Online, a Communist Party newspaper, reports “… [the policy] has been credited with preventing more than 400 millions births since it was introduced in the late 1970s…” Though the one child policy may seem effective in population control, there have been many social, ethical, and international problems that have risen from this policy.

In a Los Angeles Times article, Luo Cuifen, a 29-years-old Chinese woman, discovered that 23 needles were flowing around in her body (as seen in the image below). It was a surprise to many Chinese surgeons that she has survived until this age. Qu Rui, a spokesman for the Richland International Hospital, asserted that Cuifen was a victim of female infanticide. Also, the surgeons assumed, “the woman’s grandparents may have inserted the needles long ago, hoping she would die and her parents might have a boy in her place.” This discovery has left Cuifen psychological scarred. Cuifen knew her worth every since she was born as she stated, “I knew my grandfather looked down on me because I was a girl, but I had no idea he hated me that much until I found out about the needles.”

After reading the article, I found that it was obvious that the one child policy has become an ethical and social problem in China. Traditionally, many Chinese families prefer to have sons rather than daughters because sons tend to support and stay with the family, whereas daughters leave their family to live with the in-laws. With the installment of the one child policy, couples must resort to female infanticide in order to continue reproducing to get a son. These female infants are either killed right after birth or a forced abortion is done beforehand. This is an unethical crime that these couples commit in order to avoid the raft of the government. As a result, there is now a gender imbalance in China. The number of girls that are killed each year is the reason for this. According to the National Population and Family Planning Commission of China, the male population outnumbers females by 37 million. This is a tremendous gender imbalance, and it has resulted in many unwed and sexually frustrated men.

With such a demand for brides, China is facing a social and international problem of human trafficking or best known as bride trafficking. According to China Daily, young girls from rural areas of China are being kidnapped and sold to Chinese bachelors. These young girls are being separated from their families and are often never seen again. Moreover, bride trafficking is not only occurring within China, but beyond China’s borders. There have been reports of bride trafficking from North Korea, Vietnam, and other Asian countries surrounding China. Similar to the bride trafficking within China, girls are being kidnapped and sold into prostitution or marriage. This is an international matter concerning human rights. The rights of these young girls in China and other Asian countries are being taken away from them as sacrifices to China’s one child policy. Many young girls are being stranded and distanced from their loved ones in a moment’s notice.

As these social problems become more apparent, China has not taken any extreme measures to resolve these issues. China does realize that they are facing a gender imbalance and human trafficking issue, but they have not implemented an effective strategy to resolve it. For instance, China had implemented a “care for girls” policy in 2000 that provided incentives for families with female infants. However, the policy only insures girl-only families in rural areas. This creates a problem because most rural families are farmers, and they need or prefer sons to help them with the heavy works. When theses girls are married off, they leave their family; thus, leaving the family to defend for themselves. On the matter of bride trafficking, China has discussed the matter, but no policies have been implemented. By and large, it is understandable that China is trying to control its growing population, but the current policy has its flaws.