Fueling Repression or Assisting the Oppressed?

With the military-skewed national budget, there have always been enough weapons and ordnance at hand to kill every man, woman and child in the country. The use of forced and child labor, meanwhile, is a problem that relates to every major project in the country, be it rebuilding the highway from Rangoon to Pegu or restoring Fort Dufferin in Mandalay.

Tourism did not create the circumstances most people advocating a boycott worry about. The question is really whether it can exacerbate them. It would be extremely naïve to suggest that tourism can, in itself, solve any of Burma’s profound problems. Crass attempts at mass tourism would certainly be harmful to a country in such a weakened condition. Enormous damage has already been done to the ancient capital of Pegu by inappropriate “renovations” and structures that blot out the skyline of Pagan.

But a better balance needs to be struck, certainly when it comes to more judicious travelers arriving individually or in small groups. These people should have the chance to see things for themselves and to learn more about the country and its situation. They should not be automatically rebuked by the politically correct for visiting the country. Ordinary Burmese, meanwhile, would benefit from more normal access to outsiders and the chance to run small businesses that can earn some hard currency.

As it is, most of Burma can still o­nly support backpackers and ecotourists. The latter travel with their mantra of trying to do no harm and perhaps occasionally a little good.  Many fail to do any good, some don’t. They sometimes push boundaries, and the cultural interface can be an untidy business. But at the end of the day, the tourism boycott is no more likely to contribute to the collapse of the junta than have Western sanctions.

The boycott and sanctions are both statements of disapproval. They offer safe moral high ground but no real hope of success. Those who want to express their disapproval in this way should carry o­n doing so from the comfort of their armchairs. Others should be asking themselves what they can usefully do with a Burmese visa.