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The Nation (7/6/98) news (r)



The junta, including Khin Nyunt need to figure out what the game plan will be
for the long term. If they have to warn teachers to control mid through high
school students, then we have a problem. If children this young have a problem
with the military government, it is obvious the problem is with the men and
women in uniform and not with the children.

Like I have said before and I will say it again, soldiers have no business in
government. Even if they happen to be excellent administrators, and I am sure
we have many of them, they are not trained to manage civilians. Soldiers by
training, achieve very specific and usually short term goals with total
control over resources through commands. Civil society does not operate in the
same way. Discussion, debate and concensus are the way decisions are made in a
civil society and totally unheard of in the military. 

Unless the SPDC agrees to a move towards a democratic civilian form of
government there will be no long term peace or developement in Burma. So if
the P & D in SPDC really means Peace and Developement then Generals Than Shwe,
Khin Nyunt, Maung Aye, Tin Oo, Win Myint, etc.,,,, have to make the first
move. The future of Burma and its people are in their hands. 

As a matter of fact, the future of the country and its people have been in the
hands of the Burma Army since 1962. Anybody else would have given up by now.
But the Burmese Army seems to have the guts and the gall to go on for ever and
ever. They believe they have the corner on patriotism and loyalty. I also
believe they do. But it is not for country and people but for themselves, the
few generals who are living off the sweat and tears of forty million Burmese
people.




Richard Aung Myint
Mountain View, CA.