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Name
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Burma was renamed "Myanmar"
by the country's ruling military regime in 1989.
However, the democracy movement inside the country,
the European Union, the United States, and many
major media outlets continue to use the term
"Burma" as a symbolic protest against
the military regime.
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Location |
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Burma is located in Southeast
Asia and borders Thailand, Laos, China, India,
Bangladesh, and the Andaman Sea. It shares the
longest border with Thailand, and is roughly
the same size as Texas.
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Geography
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The country is geographically
diverse, with beaches and oceanfront on the
Southwest, while mountainous and rugged in the
Shan and Karen States. Hundreds of islands make
up the Mergui archipelago near Thailand.
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Population / Ethnic Makeup |
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It is impossible to get an accurate
estimate of the population of Burma, since a
census has not been conducted in over 30 years.
However, most observers estimate the total population
to be around 50 million persons.
There are eight major ethnic groups in Burma,
each comprising part of the total population.
Karen and Shan groups comprise about 10% each
of the total population, while Akha, Chin, Danu,
Indian, Kachin, Karenni, Kayan, Kokang, Lahu,
Mon, Naga, Palaung, Pao, Rakhine, Tavoyan, and
Wa peoples each constitute 5% or less of the
population.
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Human Rights /
Democracy / Freedom
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The U.S. State Department and
two credible NGOs found in 2002 that Burma's
military regime is using rape as a weapon of
war.
There are approximately 1,600 political prisoners
in Burma, including 38 elected members of parliament.
Millions of Burmese have been pressed into what
the International Labor Organization, a United
Nations agency, calls "a modern form of
slavery".
More persons died from landmines in Burma in
2002 than any other country in the world.
Burma is ranked "Not Free" by Freedom
House's international reports.
Burma was ranked the fifth most repressive government
in the world by Parade Magazine.
The Burmese Freedom and Democracy Act of 2003,
which passed the U.S. Congress overwhelmingly,
found that Burma's regime is using ethnic cleansing
against Burma's ethnic peoples.
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Political History |
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Britain colonized Burma, and
ruled the country as part of India until 1947.
General Aung San, father of Aung San Suu Kyi,
exploited the Japanese occupation to gain Burma's
independence in 1948, but was assasssinated
just before the handover. The country functioned
as a parliamentary democracy until 1962, when
General Ne Win assumed power, ostensibly to
prevent Burma's ethnic groups from seeking autonomy
or independence. Many attempts were made to
overthrow Ne Win and reinstate democracy, but
he held onto power until a nationwide uprising
in 1988. A group of military leaders formed
a military junta, now known as the State Peace
and Development Council, and have ruled ever
since. The junta held an election in 1990, presumably
believing it would win, but lost in a landslide
to the National League for Democracy, which
was led by future Nobel Peace Prize recipient
Aung San Suu Kyi. The junta has locked up Suu
Kyi on and off ever since, from 1989-1995, again
from September 2000-May 2002, and most recently
in May 2003. NLD members and supporters are
regularly killed.
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Narcotics
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Burma is the world's second largest
producer of illegal opium and Southeast Asia's
largest producer of methamphetamines, both of
which are highly addictive.
Burma was one of only two countries to be "decertified"
for refusing to comply with U.S. anti-narcotics
efforts in 2002-2003.
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