Myanmar’s Military Junta: Preserving National Unity?

President SBY of Indonesia gave a public lecture in LSE on the sideline of G-20 meeting last March. When asked about his view on the policies of Myanmar’s ruling military junta, particularly those towards the oppositions, he mentioned that the military junta had no other options but to enforce its repressive policies because if it didn’t do so, Myanmar’s diverse ethnic groups would fight one another and cause the country to break apart. For a while, I thought it was a reasonable explanation but as I read more articles on Myanmar, I start to question its validity and strongly believe that SBY was just paying a lip service to a fellow member of ASEAN.

My basis for having such thinking is that most if not all of the junta’s actions appear to have no correlation to preserving national unity. When cyclone Nargis struck for example, one wonder how not mobilizing soldiers to rescue those in need as well as intentionally slowing down the entry visa applications by foreign aid workers would preserve national unity?

On the political front, the last few reasons given to extend opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi’s house arrest were downright baseless. Its latest action of preventing her doctor to treat her illness was obviously extreme if carried out in the name of national unity.

To me, its actions look more like a desperate cling to power and preserving national unity is nothing more than a party line to legitimize the regime. If that’s true, then why is international pressure on the regime not as strong as that compared to other countries with human-rights violations? (Pretty sure the international community is not blind.) Well, the sad reality is the military junta poses no real threat to any major powers or its immediate neighbors at the moment. In addition, it has also reiterated its commitment to restore democracy in several international gatherings, albeit at a very slow pace. Unless it starts acquiring nuclear weapons or showing hostility like North Korea and Iran, it seems that Myanmarese have to live with this regime for a foreseeable future.