Thursday January 31 and Friday February 1, 2019 – At Sea in the Andaman sea (part of Indian Ocean) sailing from Phuket, Thailand to Yangon, Myanmar (Rangoon, Burma).
It was nice to have a couple of days at sea where the main activities were feeding the brain with lectures and feeding the stomach with good food.
The lectures during these two days focused on different aspects of Myanmar which were very informative particularly as we know little about this country, but at least in the minds of many, is the main reason for selecting this Cruise.
Myanmar is a country the shape of a rhombic kite with a long tail extending along the western border of Thailand and the Andaman sea. It is equivalent in length from Canada to Texas or Bruxelles to Gibraltar and has a population of 55 million. Myanmar / Burma is bordered by Thailand South; Laos South East; China North East; India North West; A short border North West with Bangladesh and The Andaman Sea to the West.
The North Mai River and Mall River in the North of the country join to form the Irrawaddy River all within Burma borders. At the juncture of these two rivers is the Irrawaddy Myltsone Dam Project. The River flows down to the delta and other branches, one of which – The Yangon River – is the one we sail up to reach our berth in the heart of the city of Yangon (Rangoon). This used to be the capital of the country until 2005 when it was moved to the specifically constructed Naypyidaw (Much like Brazil that moved it’s capital from Rio de Janiero to Brasilia).
Myanmar has gone through a glorious past then world isolation prior to 2011 and now is opening up again to the global community. For the past 195 years from 1824 to 2019 the country has been in transformation. Briefly, some of the key historical points are:-
A) 1824-1826 – The East India Company try to take it over but suffer many deaths due to diseases
B) 1852 – The Anglo Burma war over Tea (The king of Burma was the only person permitted to do trading)
C) 1885 – Britain takes over and removes the last king as it was weakened over the prior years and practically included only the central section of the country. During and just prior to this period, the British had taken over the northern and southern parts of the country that were more independent and thus more difficult for the Central Government to control.
D) 1885-1895 Pacification of Burma and the annexation to India which was all under British Rule. It was important for the British to run the country as it was a major provider of Teak for ships, rice for India and oil for lamps and machinery.
E) 1895 – 1935 – Burma was under British Rule. India provided Capital for projects; Kanpur and Burma supplied the Labour & Land for the major transformative projects in the country. A mixed direct rule over the central part of the country however, an indirect rule over the North and South ensued, allowing the local tribal leaders to rule their areas while paying allegiance to the central Colonial rulers.
F) 1937 the Burmese were given partial control of the government but not the areas of Finance, Military and Foreign Affairs that remained under British control.
G) 1942-1947 – Japanese Occupation during WW II
H) 1947 – The First local Constitutional Assembly was achieved.
i) 1947-1958 Retaken by the British, but slowly handed over power during this time in a manner similar to Indian Independence movement where local matters could be controlled by elected officials from the country, but Military and Foreign Affairs were handled by the British.
J) January 4, 1948 – Independence and Ne Win became the leader of the country after many years serving in the military.
K) 1958-1960 – Caretaker Government leading to elections in 1962 (March 2, 1962 – Peasants day commemorating the coup)
L) 1962–1974 – Revolutionary Military Council were in power
M) 1962-1990 – Country was Intellectually Frozen and isolated
N) 1974-1988 One party system under Ne Win
O) 1988-2011 Military Coup government
P) 2008 New Constitution written by the military specifically prohibiting Aung San Suu Kyi from becoming president and assuring the Military having 25% of both houses by appointment not election and requiring more than 75% vote to congress the constitution.
Q) 1948 – 2018 Mainly Military based officers ran the Foreign Ministry and the International affairs of the nation
R) 2015-2020 – Aung San Suu Kyi and her party received the overwhelming majority vote in both houses and a special title (above the President) was formed and thus Aung San Suu Kyi ruled the country.
In one of the lectures was dedicated to “General Ne Win and the Burmese Road to Socialism” by the author Bob Taylor of his 600 page biography. This was his taking:-
One of the early and important leaders of the country was Ne Win (1911 to 2002). He was born on May 14 or 24, 1911 or July 6, 1911 of a father who was a Tax Collector, Rice Broker and land owner. He studied medicine but failed his exams due to getting in with the party and gambling friends. He joined the army, was trained by the Japanese military, returned with them in 1952 to take the country with the Burmese National Army to defeat the British, then turned pro-Britain and against the Japanese. He became a very successful General. He had 9 children from various wives and was good to all of them but all were made to go out onto the world and make their own way. He was not corrupt, very smart in his tactical way, befriended the Communists, the Americans and British and was the de facto socialist dictator from 1962 to 1988. A major figure in the Cold War 1948/49 battle.
On April 1, 2011 President Thien Siem former Army General took power and started to transform the quasi military government into a democratic country with a proposed plan. One of the first actions was bringing Aung San Suu Kyi to power in 2016. She was married to a British Oxford Professor with two children and held under house arrest for 16 years by the military dictatorship. She was the daughter of the slain former leader Aung San. She was given the Nobel Peace Prize in recognition of her struggles for a peaceful Burma. In the first open elections in some 40+ years her party won virtually all the elected seats in the assembly.
The plan consisted of creating a people centered economy reform agenda with the following timetable:-
A) 2011-2012 – was dedicated to Political Reform;
B) 2012-2014 to Economy Reform and
C) 2014-2016 to Reforms of the people.
There were many violent clashes in 2011-2013 between the various groups – Buddhist Vs Muslims; Nationalism Vs Extremism; Rakhine Vs Rohingya and in general terms social instability. There was a leadership struggle between Thien Stein and the House Speaker Sher Mann who was aligned with the opposition leader Aung San, however, in August 2015, four months before the General Election, Shaw Mann was ousted. Aung San And the National League for Democracy Party got into power in 2017 with 60% of the Upper House and 59% of the Lower House and Thein Sein transferred power to the new president Htin Kyaw on March 31, 2016. The president is selected by the ruling party not by popular vote as will be described in another posting. Thien Sein is considered to have failed due to weak leadership and weak institutions and failed to consolidate democratization but did bring about a more transparent and dynamic Society, achieved reintegration with the international community achieving an all inclusive political process and since 1948 had a peaceful transfer of power. Most people today in the country live on less than US$1 a day.
We had a nice Dinner with Robert & Anne Hickman who Judy had chatted to in one of the lectures. He was with Rolls Royce Engines in Mexico for some 40 plus years and knew a lot of the same people we knew / know in Mexico. It was fun catching up on old times. He had done a lot of charity work for which he was awarded a CBE.
After the dinner on Thursday we went out on the deck where Judy tripped and fell hitting her head on the railings and requiring several stitches in the head wound. All is ok now and we are looking forward to seeing Rangoon on Saturday, Sunday and Monday. Over the last several days we have moved the clocks back 1 1/2 hours. 1 hour more sleep to Thailand and 1/2 hour time change to Myanmar.
Just to finalize this somewhat varied and perhaps disjointed posting, but attempting to give the reader a bit of flavor of the country we are about to visit, I would like to talk about the national food dish of Myanmar – Mohinga which is a fish and noodle soup with lime and vegetables and is eaten for breakfast or at other times during the day.
Roger & Anne Travels 