Some Good News from South Asia

First, a major milestone in polio eradication has been reached in India; the country has gone a full year without a reported case of the disease. The Indian government worked closely with local religious leaders to spread the message and increase cultural acceptance of vaccination. The World Health Organization and Sabin Vaccine Institute are hopeful this strategy can be copied in central Asia and in west and central Africa, where polio is still endemic.

But perhaps the even bigger story is the continuing democratic reforms in Burma. The reforms began after elections in 2010. Though there were widespread charges of fraud and the election was boycotted by Aung San Suu Kyi's National League for Democracy (NLD), Burma's military junta ceded some of its power to the new Parliament.

Suu Kyi was freed from house arrest in November 2010 and is running for Parliament in upcoming elections. Laws censoring the press have been relaxed and websites like Youtube have been unblocked. Construction of the controversial Myitsone Dam in northern Burma, which would endanger the Kachin people's cultural identity and (seeing as it's located near a major fault line) their lives, has been suspended. The government has signed a cease-fire with Karen insurgents in the east. Political prisoners, including student protesters from 1988 and Buddhist monks from 2007's "saffron revolution," have been released in two batches, first in September 2011 and then again this month.

The U.S. has been engaging with the Burmese government. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton visited the country after the first batch of political prisoners was released. After the second, the U.S. announced that it would exchange ambassadors with Burma for the first time since 1990. The Obama Administration should be lauded for how they have handled the situation, though reforms have resulted more from conditions on the ground than diplomatic engagement.

So why has the Burmese government started these reforms? Partly there is a desire to ease Western sanctions, which have restricted travel of prominent members of the regime, frozen their assets, and limited foreign investment in the country. More importantly, argues Marie Lall of the University of London, is the government's desire to chair the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) in 2014 and for greater economic integration with the rest of the ASEAN community.

Whatever the reason, let's hope that Burma continues down the path of democratic reform.

The Crisis in Myanmar

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A week ago, Cyclone Nargis slammed into the southeast Asian country of Myanmar (AKA Burma). Although the death count stood as low as 350 a few days ago, it is now estimated that 100,000 people have died, and millions more are homeless and at serious risk of disease due to a lack of clean drinking water.

The military junta that runs the country has acted irresponsibly and continues to do so. The government was warned that the cyclone was coming, but did nothing to inform the people. Now, the junta is making it harder for international aid organizations to bring aid into the country and distribute it among the people.

Luckily, there are a couple actions you can take to help the people of Myanmar. You can donate money to the International Burmese Monks Organization. According to Avaaz.org:

In many of the worst-hit areas, the monasteries are the only source of shelter and food for Burma's poorest people. They have been on the front lines of the aid effort since the storm struck. Other forms of aid could be delayed, diverted or manipulated by the Burmese government--but the monks are the most trusted and reliable institution in the country.

If you are unable to give money, you can donate rice to the UN World Food Program while developing your vocabulary through FreeRice.com. Although Free Rice began in October 2007 and will likely be around long after the Myanmar crisis, rest assured that the UN World Food Program is working to send supplies into Myanmar. And since the damage to the Irrawaddy Delta, Myanmar's "Rice Basket", will limit the supply of rice, raising prices when prices are already high, the work of the World Food Program is needed more than ever, not just for Burma but for the world.

Update: Through Amnesty International, you can also email the Burmese ambassador to the U.S., urging his country not to restrict aid or in away way influence its dispersion.

Headlines: Cinco de Mayo 2008

• Baghdad Disneyland contractor: Violence in Baghdad is like 'drive-bys' in L.A.
  

  No, Disney is not building a theme park in Iraq.
  

• Two die in Somali currency riot
  

  Due to inflation caused by counterfeiting, vendors are only accepting American dollars, which the people don't have.
  

• Up to 10,000 feared dead in Burma cyclone
  

  The official count is at 3,934 dead, but yesterday's count was 350. This trishaw driver has it right:
  

  "Where are all those uniformed people who are always ready to beat civilians?"