‘Humanitarian’ Focus Does Harm and Prolongs Myanmar’s Crisis
A flash mob anti-regime protest is held in Yangon in May. / The Irrawaddy
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By Igor Blazevic 9 June 2021
The humanitarian crisis in Myanmar caused by Senior General Min Aung Hlaing’s attempted and so far failed coup is deepening every day. For those outside the country, the humanitarian catastrophe evolving in Myanmar is still a bit like the explosion of a very distant star. The explosion has already happened, but its light and waves have still not fully reached us.
There are still not enough dramatic calls and dramatic pictures drawing enough attention. Anybody familiar with the dynamic and depth of the current crisis is aware that this will change soon. The economy has already come to a standstill. Millions of citizens have been without any income for months and their already meagre reserves are running out. Many are trapped in regions where front lines, old and new, have been reactivated. Tens of thousands of highly vulnerable civilians, including women, children and the elderly, are already on the move, fleeing from the punitive military operations of the Myanmar army. The Indian strain of the coronavirus is spreading rapidly from Chin State on the western border of the country.