Burma, devastated by cyclone Nargis, is undergoing a national disaster that is beyond politics.

The military government said on Tuesday 22,464 people are dead and 41,054 are missing, but local people say the figure may go much higher. One million people may be homeless in Rangoon and Irrawaddy divisions, according to aid workers.

It’s time to go beyond politics: local, national and international.
 
Neighboring Asian countries, Western countries and the United Nations are ready to provide relief assistance. But what is the military government doing?

People across the region complain of a lack of warning as the storm approached. After the storm hit, the military, police and other governmental workers were nowhere to be seen. On Monday—two days after the cyclone struck—a few uniformed people could be seen in areas of the city. Overall, the government’s response has been criminally negligent, a clear demonstration of its disrespect and concern for the people of Burma.

Scores of people were quoted in the media noting the government’s readiness to dispatch troops to shoot, beat and arrest people engaged in peaceful demonstrations in 2007, and its recent disappearing act when the people needed its help.
    
In the ruling generals’ view, the disaster is something to be exploited for politics. The generals, including Prime Minister Gen Thein Sein, have appeared on television handing out aid donations to families of victims. The people receiving blankets and other material were shown clapping on state television—pure propaganda.

Meanwhile, The Irrawaddy stringers in Rangoon file reports saying many people in Hlaing Tharyar and Shwe Pyi Thar townships are sleeping on the roads because their houses are gone. People don’t have clean drinking water. Almost all towns in the affected areas still lack electricity and other public services. Prices of all commodities are doubling and tripling. Material for rebuilding homes is skyrocketing, if it can be found.

Some European countries, the United States and some Asian countries quickly offered assistance, but the military regime, as always, was skeptical and slow to accept help. Nevertheless, aid from Thailand and India is already on the way, and many other countries are setting the wheels in motion for a massive relief effort. On Tuesday, a UN spokesperson said the junta finally signaled it will welcome humanitarian aid. 

Unfortunately, the UN and other aid groups will face cumbersome restrictions as usual. In the past, the junta has thwarted international NGOs from having clear access to people in need of their services. The suspicious generals believe foreigners are looking for information they will use to embarrass the regime.

In spite of the turmoil, the regime is determined to hold the constitutional referendum except in 47 townships that were hit hardest by the cyclone. The vote in forty townships in Rangoon Division and seven townships in Irrawaddy Division will be postponed until May 24. The rest of the country will vote on May 10 as scheduled.

Meanwhile, local sources said the military regime has continued to pressure people in rural areas to vote “yes” in the referendum.

The referendum should have been postponed. The government clearly lacks the ability to cope with the current disaster and the follow-up relief effort. Going on with the referendum as scheduled is callous and demeaning.

During the relief effort, the junta will be asked to work with more international groups than ever before, and the logistics of the relief effort will be more demanding than anything the military has attempted in the recent past.

The generals No 1 priority should be to help take care of the dead, injured and homeless, and to follow through with a massive rebuilding of essential public services. Tragically, the chances of that happening are slim indeed.