For 40 years now, Burma has been ruled by an unelected military government. In that time thousands of people have been imprisoned for speaking out against the regime, the most famous being Aung San Suu Kyi, leader of the Burmese opposition party. The Nobel peace laureate won elections in 1990 but the results were never recognised by the military. She has since spent much of her time under house arrest, only getting released earlier in May this year. Suu Kyi is now trying to secure the release of around 1,500 others still in prison for their political beliefs.
Around the world, human rights organisations are also trying to put pressure on the Burmese government. In Amsterdam, the Burma Centre of The Netherlands is lobbying the Dutch and European parliaments to impose sanctions on the junta and, this summer, the organisation embarked on a campaign to limit tourism to Burma. Aung San Suu Kyi, herself has asked tourists to stay away, one of the major concerns being that much of the tourist money goes straight to the military regime.
Making a Bad Situation Worse
"It starts with your visa," explains Peter Ras, Co-ordinator of the Burma Centre of The Netherlands, "and you need a visa otherwise you can't go into the country, and then the majority of people have to pay US$200 dollars on entry. That will go directly to the military. If you visit tourist sites, you usually have to pay dollars for it, and sometimes even a lot of dollars. This money helps to keep this military government in power for a longer time."
The organisations supporting the tourism ban say that Burma is the only country in the world where you really shouldn't go on holiday. The presence of tourists in the country, they say, worsens the human rights situation there. "There are roads, railway lines and even a few hotels that have been built with forced labour," says Peter Ras. "The main tourist attraction in Burma is the Bagan area. Many people there were forced to leave their houses and didn't get another place to stay because the military wanted to promote tourism in the area. They said it should look clean and empty, not littered with all these small, ugly houses. Also, the airport of Mandalay was mainly built and extended by forced labour because the generals wanted to get more tourists to come."
Poor Excuse
But regardless of this people still do go. Around 100,000 tourists each year visit the ancient temples, or lie on the spectacular sandy beaches. Many go with an informed view of the country and want to understand what life is really like there. They argue that a ban on tourism would only harm local people who rely on the extra cash, while having very little effect on the military chiefs.
"The main reason for poverty in Burma is not the economic sanctions of western countries or the tourism boycott," adds Peter, "it's the very stupid economic policy of the Burmese generals and the amount of corruption." Tourists, he says, come back with stories of how grateful local Burmese people were to see the holidaymakers and that they don't support Aung San Suu Kyi's call for a tourism ban. But as much of the country is out of bounds to tourists, only a small minority can benefit from their dollars. Those who do get the extra income, says Peter, are of course, only too anxious to see even more people spend their holiday cash in Burma.
Giving Support
"I think we have to look very carefully at the most effective way to help the Burmese people in their struggle for democracy," he continues, "and there are much better ways to support them than just go there as a stupid tourist!"
A far better way to help the Burmese people, says Peter, is to give money to aid organisations that refuse to cooperate with the government, such as Medicins Sans Frontier. The regime, he argues, only uses tourism as a propaganda tool. "They say; Look so many tourists came to our country, we are a normal country with a normal government, people don't have a problem with us. There are so many countries in the world, and in almost all of them you can go without any problems. Why do you have to go to Burma?"
Campaign Success
The Burma Centre's campaign has been very successful in The Netherlands so far, with around a dozen tour organisers cancelling their trips to Burma. Only a few companies still operate in the country, but Dutch people seem to be aware of the problems and only a very small number actually go on holiday there. And whether you believe a ban on tourism will be helpful or not, its clear that Burma is not like any other tourist destination.
"There are many differences between Burma and other countries," says Peter, "the most obvious being that in Burma the democratic opposition say: Don't go. Don't come to Burma. I don't mind if they don't want to listen to us but at least bear in mind the concerns of the Burmese democratic opposition and they say don't go. Please wait a few years, there are some chances for change in the next few years so please don't do it. Don't go."