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| Southeast Asia |
| Myanmar government pondering leaving Yangon for somewhere "safer" |
| 2005-07-04 |
| Myanmar's military government may be readying to move part of its administration outside the capital to somewhere "safer", analysts and diplomats here say. Pyinmana, a region described by tour guides as full of "verdant charm", could become the "escape city" for top leaders, military commanders and some ministers, they said. Some suggested that the relocation inland would be aimed at warding off a potential Iraq-style invasion by the United States, one of the staunchest critics of Myanmar. Several ministries are preparing to move from October to the mountainous region, about six hours north of the capital Yangon along the road to Mandalay, analysts said. "Starting in October, some ministries are going to move -- defence, agriculture and energy," one Western diplomat said. "The ministers would go there, but they would keep a presence here in Yangon with the deputy ministers," he said, noting that "this would allow another layer of screening when it comes to welcoming visiting foreigners." "These are rumours, but Myanmar bureaucrats are busy finding housing there, thinking of schools for their children," he said. "I am told that they have laid a lot of concrete." Another observer said five ministries could move to the region which used to be a bastion of communist insurgents. "It's been in the works for three or four years. It's pretty well prepared," he said. The Myanmar authorities have called "for help from foreign experts, especially Russian". Plans for the site call for a military base, a large hydroelectric dam at Paung Laung built with Chinese assistance, as well as tunnels, bunkers, hospitals and, of course, a golf course, observers said. A Myanmar businessman said the government's military headquarters could leave Yangon in the next month and set up in Pyinmana. "Some went already," he said. Government officials will neither confirm nor deny the rumours, but admit they exist. Some are skeptical about the talk. "They're building something, that's certain, but nobody knows exactly what it's going to be," another diplomat said. "I don't believe part of the government will move," he said. "Either everyone moves, or no one. It wouldn't make much sense (for only part to move)." "And this is not a move of the capital, it's not Brasilia," he said. Talk of an "escape city" for the generals has spread throughout Yangon. The plan was apparently reinforced by the US-led invasion of Iraq in 2003, which heightened the government's fears of attack by the United States, analysts say. While Myanmar is not among the White House's top foreign policy priorities, as are Iran, North Korea, Cuba or Syria, it imagines it isn't far behind. Some observers believe the generals think the United States could invade by sea, which would put Yangon -- a port on the Andaman Sea -- and all the top command on the front line. "Some people describe it (Pyinmana) as a strategic base to which they would retreat in case of an attack by sea," one analyst said. Another diplomat agreed that the US-led invasion of Iraq had rattled military leader Senior General Than Shwe. The army has boosted its military spending in the past few years, according to experts, notably buying MiG 29s. "There's a clear phenomenon of bunkerization," he said. "They feel threatened and have become paranoid. They think that the Americans have an Iraq-style solution" for Myanmar. "If all this turns out to be true, the top leaders would also go. The country functions like an army with a chain of command, and the chief of staff would move," he said. "The army could fall back to the north," a mountainous and forested region, "to organize a guerrilla-style resistance not far from China," he said. "It's like something from science fiction." |
| Posted by:phil_b |
| #2 Myanmar government pondering leaving Yangon for somewhere "safer" Whatever happened to Burma, and Rangoon?...sigh... |
| Posted by: Bomb-a-rama 2005-07-04 11:42 |
| #1 This is an Anglo-India problem, horse holding only. |
| Posted by: Shipman channelling Vinegar Joe 2005-07-04 07:38 |