Burma: A Nation at the Crossroads

by Benedict Rogers

For more than 50 years, Burma has been ruled by a succession of military regimes which rank among the most oppressive dictatorships in the world. Accused of crimes against humanity, they have brutally mistreated their people. Yet in the last couple of years, and in spite of sham elections, the pace of change has been breathtaking. Much is now hoped for. However, Burma is one of the most ethnically diverse nations in SE Asia: there are roughly seven major ethnic groups living along its borders. They have a long history of conflict with the government and have been cruelly treated by the current regime. Their future affects the country as a whole, as Benedict Rogers explains. Drawing heavily on his many fact-finding visits both inside Burma and along its frontiers, he gives a unique appraisal of the current ethnic situation and its implications for the nation as a whole. Wide-ranging, expertly researched, and full of brand new accounts of the courage and determination of the Burmese people, Burma: a nation at the crossroads explains the country's conflicted history, as well as its contemporary struggle for justice. Burma stands poised for freedom, or for further repression. No one can be sure. This fascinating and accessible book describes what is really happening inside this beautiful, secretive, and potentially prosperous country.

Genres: Nonfiction, History, Politics

288 pages, Paperback

First published May 31, 2012

About the author

Benedict Rogers is a human rights activist and journalist.

Reviews

[Chandni · Rating 3 out of 5]

A searing and uncomfortable narrative of Burma's recent history. Rogers draws on decades of reporting to discuss the fractures within the 'Union of Myanmar'.

It's extremely detailed and the alphabet soup of Burma's political landscape often gets tedious but overall a good read for anyone interested in understanding how there is more to Burma's ethnic conflicts than the Rohingya crisis.

[Reza Amiri Praramadhan · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a book about a long-suffering country named Burma, or Myanmar. For most of its life, Burma is under the iron grip of military rule, which is painfully inept at ruling yet succeeding in holding on to power through sheer brutality and utter ruthlessness. From forced labour and child soldiering down to outright genocide, Burmese military, the Tatmadaw had done it all. Many momentous events of Burma were explained in this book, from the fall of Ne Win regime, the (failed) ascendancy of Aung San Suu Kyi, the Saffron Revolution, the Cyclone Nargis, right to the military regime’s efforts to implement reform in kind of ‘disciplined democracy’. What amazes me are the tenacity of Tatmadaw, what they lacked in administrative competence, they covered it with an amazing sense of political survival, managing its own safety and its even independence from the new civilian government of Aung San Suu Kyi, which started with so many promises, yet ended up bending its knees to the whims of the military, the solid proof being Suu Kyi’s reluctance to stood against the ethnic persecution of the Rohingyas and other minority ethnic groups, which was promoted by radical xenophobic buddhists and military. My reaction after reading this book would be a feeling of numbness, which is caused by being angry again and again at the Tatmadaw’s atrocities and the world’s ignorance of it, while being amazed by its own ability to get away with it.

[TG Lin · Rating 2 out of 5]

一般而言，我對「八旗文化」的作品通常都敬而遠之。但由於前幾天碰了一本商務的「雷書」，因此就只能從圖書館中現存的書中來認識緬甸這個國家。我的想法還是一樣，針對歐美記者撰寫的域外獵奇作品，我仍然覺得是值得出版，因為必須要有各種眼睛盯著各地社會是否發生的不公義事件。所以這本英國記者 Benedict Rogers 將他長年在緬甸採訪的報導紀聞，讓我們看到一幕幕在這個封閉國度內所發生的各種暴虐，值得人們省思。
　
不過，畢竟我已經不是個容易熱血沸騰的覺醒青年了。所以在閱讀本書時，除了心中偶然興起的輕微憤怒與憐憫之外，我更常想到的是「何以致之」的疑問。本書只具有挑動情緒的作用，卻無法滿足我的問題——更嚴重的是，這位記者在行文中念玆在玆的解決方案，只有「民主」這個虛無籠統的名詞。
　
雖然我不是緬甸專家，但由這堆零散的資料中可以看出，緬馬國（Myanmar）是個很複雜的集合體。本書雖然號稱是第一手親身的採訪，但用的卻是非面簡單的「戲劇臉譜」手法︰緬甸軍政府是喪盡天良無惡不作的大魔王，被緬軍迫害的全都是一群無辜的民主人士與地方少數民族。我非常同意在初接觸現況時，有個戲劇性的定錨手法，特別容易讓觀眾「進入狀況」。但畢竟我當臭老九已經不是一兩年的事了。如果事情真的如此簡單，那為何緬甸軍政府可以輕而易舉地幹了六十年的大魔王呢？我的閱讀與親身經驗告訴我一個歷史原則「世間絕無大魔王」。除非可以證實緬甸的「尼溫將軍」是個外星人，否則我完全不相信生物學上的一個「智人」物種可以幹盡所有旁人認定的邪惡政策。
　
耐著性子讀完了這本書之後，我可以歸納本書的幾個「臉譜」︰緬甸軍政府是大壞蛋，緬甸爭民主的人士是好人，「緬馬國」境內的「非緬族」、「非佛教信徒」族群都是被大壞蛋欺負的無辜好人。事實上，在這一大堆臉譜塑造當中，我很容易便能塑造出作者從來不想告訴讀者的真相︰緬人願意支持緬軍對其他民族分離主義的軍事行動，緬軍願意以行政力量造福緬人。
　
首先，本書淡化了「緬馬國」各族群之間對於經營「共同體／聯邦制」的嚴重衝突。佔主導地位的緬族，當然要以強勢力量避免國家分裂。就「緬馬國」的角度，這是一場不容妥協的「內戰」；就其他民族（克倫族、撣族、克欽族）的角度，這是一場神聖的獨立戰爭。無論就哪一方來看，這都是雙方拿武器互鬥的不折不扣戰爭。因此我們若遵照著這位記者刻意的選擇角度，便只能不斷地看到一群又一群被緬軍欺壓的人民。然而緬軍畢竟不是複製人大軍，他們對於欺壓民族的恨意怎麼來的，作者完全不提，只是將他們扁平化為「反正大魔王就是那麼壞」。而反抗軍的販毒問題，本書幾乎不談（其實是有的。但作者不知從哪裡來的小道消息，說緬甸軍政府不容許緬人吸毒，對少數民族則睜眼閉眼希望他們全都變成毒癮廢物……）。
　
其次，本書描述到緬甸民主人士的奮鬥，兩次民主示威（1988 年與 2007 年）活動，驚天地泣鬼神。但我的疑問其實早由新聞中得到解答了。緬甸軍政府長期以來的內政，走的是國家社會主義的路線，造福著緬族人民（軍隊也是人民所構成的）；縱使貪污腐化嚴重（這一向是歐美最容易挑毛病的懶人包），但討厭折騰、只想平靜過日子的人民，加上外界消邊的封鎖，無欲則心不起波瀾，由「大魔王」當政，也就無所謂了。而書中所提到的這兩次抗議政府的示威活動，引爆點居然十分相似，全都是政府無法堅持原先的社會主義福利政策（取消物價限令、造成民生消費上漲）。雖然之後由一堆大學生（乖乖，大魔王政權還容許最愛搞叛逆的大學哩？）趁機而起，披上「要求民主」的外衣繼續要推翻政府，所以接下來的死傷悲劇便難以避免了……
　
我一直覺得，對於低發展的國家而言，西方人推廣他們的「民主歡樂送」，根本是不通人間事理的胡鬧（除非他們擺明就是要惡搞這個國家）。而本書的作者，正是這種「民主崇拜」的範例。他將一切不願施行「民主」的，全都沒什麼好話；對於要求「民主」的，全都贈與高尚的頌詞。
　
取一段他在 203 頁的話︰「2011 年，民主運動席捲北非，打垮了班．阿里在突尼西亞二十三年的統治、霍斯尼、穆巴拉克在埃及三十年的統治，還有格達費在利比亞四十二年的統治。當地民運人士運用傳統的群眾抗議手段、結合現代通訊科技於一戰成功，他們的作法或許堪為日後爭自由的運動借鏡，不過出現在北非這些國家的後續發展無疑不足效法。」
　
——這便是高傲的西方記者最愛看待他國的觀點︰有民主，一定好。但如果你們實施了民主卻沒有更好，那是你們自己的路子走偏了，可別錯怪我心目中那崇高的「真民主」。
　
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可以一讀的書。只不過要小心服用，以免成了殘害別人或自己國家的覺醒青年。

[Yuka · Rating 4 out of 5]

Burma has not had a chance to be a unified. Ethnic minorities have engaged in uprisings to gain independence and equal rights. The Burmese military regime has responded with armed forces to restore order ever since it gained power in 1958 and regained its rule after a coup d’état in 1962. What initially was seen as uprisings has developed into a form of civil war which political organisations were set up and villagers were trained to become armies, such as one of the ethnic groups’ long and powerful resistance force, Karen’s Karen National Union (KNU) and its Karen National Defence Organisation. The atrocious attacks on Karen people by the military regime have lost many lives and burnt down many villages. This fact is what almost everyone in the world has become aware of today. However, what we have heard less of is that a Karen man was caught, tied up to a tree upside down, eyes gouged out and drowned (55). Or a Shan women and her two daughters being “gang-raped by over fifty soldiers (64)”. Or a twelve-year old Kachin boy recalling “how his mother was shot dead (86)”. This is only few of the stories the author aims to deliver. The situation of Burma and the struggle of the people is not happening in one place or in one ethnic group, but there are various other factors involved. The author argues that this can only be understood by looking at Burma as a whole and by telling their stories of suffering “almost in silence, virtually unheard, unknown, and un-helped (p. xxi)”.
The author successfully accomplishes this by narrating stories he heard from his multiple visits to Burma’s ethnic regions and meeting actual people with first-hand experience of the brutal attacks by the military. However, his encounters are not limited to victims of this ethnic fight, but also Burmans who are fighting for democracy, displaced people for religious reasons, and former soldiers. His wide range of sources allow him to achieve his goal of taking a holistic view on Burma. The author introduces several organisations that fight along them by issuing reports about them to gather attention from the outside. He strategically takes the book to the conclusion that with the solidarity among various groups of people and the support from outside, Burma can change itself, as it is now at the crossroads.
Since 2000, the author has visited Burma multiple times to the borderlands where the ethnic groups are. He has also visited the borders where many refugees are displaced. He has “looked into the eyes of (xxiii)” the people fighting for freedom in their own country. His visits are not limited to the peripheries but also main cities, such as Rangoon, Mandalay and Naypyidaw. The variety of people he encountered can be seen from the arrangement of chapters; ethnic groups in the East, North, and West; “Stateless people (127)”, who he calls the Rohingyas of; former adult and child soldiers of the Burma Army; and protestors of the Saffron Revolution. He does not separate one group from the others and specialise in them. He instead categorises them all into one group as fighting against the same enemy.
On the one hand, he is speaking for the victims of the military regime. However, he does not blame the people carrying out the attacks. The uniqueness of the book is where he includes episodes with officers of the Burma Army which show that they have a soft side and are just taking orders. He includes his casual interaction with one of the officers while waiting for the plane in the process of his deportation and an account from a foreign woman when the soldiers came to her house with rifles but all naturally focused on her smiling baby. Through this he is able to show that the fault is not entirely on the people but on the system that forces them to act brutally.
As one of the groups fighting for Burma’s freedom, he also introduces a variety of non-profit, non-government organisations that are fighting with the people and also playing an important role in informing the world of the situation through newsletters, reports, and articles. These organisations include Free Burma Rangers, Women’s League of Chinland, the Human Rights Foundation of Monland, Assistance Association for Political Prisoners, and so the list goes on. Most of these organisations are unheard of and yet crucial to the battle for freedom, as they have reliable statistical data of deaths, displaced, raped, child soldiers, and many more violation of human rights. In the case of Shan State, which is the largest state located in the east and has the largest population, from 1996 to 1998, 80,000 Shans fled to Thailand, 1,400 villages were forcibly relocated, 300,000 people were attacked by armed forces, 300 people were killed in one town, and 664 people were executed, according to the Shan Human Rights Foundation (64). Shan Women’s Action Network (SWAN) reported in 2001, between 1996 and 2001, there were 173 incidents of rape involving 625 women and girls, which 61 percent were gang rapes and 25 percent ended killed (64). The issue of rapes in Shan state was brought into awareness for the first time by the reports, which prompted investigation by the US State Department. These numbers have drawn public attention from outside the country.
Burma: a nation at the crossroads, is a new type of book on Burma, which is unlike the others that specialise in one dimension of the country or take a viewpoint of an ethnic group. Instead, he aims to illustrate the fight of the people in Burma as a whole. Ethnic groups scattered in the borderlands, Burmans in the cities led by Aung San Suu Kyi, Christians and Muslims, former Burma Army soldiers, all have been abused by and suffered from the military regime. Yet, they stand up against the regime and continue to fight for their freedom. In addition, non-governmental and non-profit organisations have also joined the fight to raise awareness outside. The author concludes that the combination of courage of the people and support from outside will bring peace to Burma. With abundant sources of first-hand interviews and information from a wide range of groups of people, the author successfully achieves to demonstrate his equal position among the people, although biased on them as a whole against the military regime, and lead to the conclusion that Burma is at the crossroads to become a better country. With solidarity among the people and support from the outside, Burma is able to accomplish the change.

[Angelica · Rating 4 out of 5]

Heartbreaking.

Can’t help but feel Rogers is exaggerating slightly, but he makes no pretense about where he stands and his work is incredibly important for documenting and giving voice to the events and people of Burma.

A necessary book and a well-written one.

My only other thought, as I contemplate this now, is the extent to which the groups are incredibly fractured / misunderstanding / dismissive of one another, e.g. do the Karen support the Rohingya? Were the monks protesting during the Saffron Revolution at all sympathetic (or aware) of the plight of the Shan? To what extent are the Buddhist Burman ethnic minorities more privileged than the non?

Based on conversations with my uncle, who is working in Burma, it seems the situation is currently just as dire as ever, with very little leadership calling for a unified or federalist state. Certainly the treatment of the Rohingya is absolutely deplorable and a human rights nightmare. The well-touted benefits of social media for democratic revolution, it seems, can be just as easily turned to the cause of persecution and mob rule.

[VaultOfBooks · Rating 4 out of 5]

By Benedict Rogers. Grade: B+
I for one have always felt that in fiction reviews, the writer must come first; he must precede the novel. However I think in non-fiction the content precedes the author; it is greater and has endured more travails than the author, the author thus becomes just a medium.
For more than 50 years, Burma has been ruled by a succession of military regimes which rank among the most oppressive dictatorships in the world. Accused of crimes against humanity, they have brutally mistreated their people.
Yet in the last couple of years, and in spite of sham elections, the pace of change has been breathtaking. Much is now hoped for. However, Burma is one of the most ethnically diverse nations in SE Asia: there are roughly seven major ethnic groups living along its borders. They have a long history of conflict with the government and have been cruelly treated by the current regime. Their future affects the country as a whole, as Benedict Rogers explains. Drawing heavily on his many fact-finding visits both inside Burma and along its frontiers, he gives a unique appraisal of the current ethnic situation and its implications for the nation as a whole.
Wide-ranging, expertly researched, and full of brand new accounts of the courage and determination of the Burmese people, Burma: a nation at the crossroads explains the country’s conflicted history, as well as its contemporary struggle for justice. Burma stands poised for freedom, or for further repression. No one can be sure. This fascinating and accessible book describes what is really happening inside this beautiful, secretive, and potentially prosperous country.
This novel retraces the origins of the Burman crisis, a nation once rich and prosperous and known as the rice bowl of the earth. This has now deteriorated to a state where scarcity of food is a daily event. The events have been narrated in a chronological manner to save the reader from getting muddled with details. This book however is not a historical guide (though it tries to be) of Burma since independence; it is meant to be an introduction to the events that have taken places and bring to fore the crimes against humanity and political unrest.
Like most novels based on recent history, this too is biased (not without much reason though) and takes a political stand on some matters (Burma not Myanmar), and this does lead to more or less a one sided account of affairs. I don’t know if this is a shortcoming, or the author planned it in such a way and wanted no mistakes on the fact on which side he was (typical Orwellian, you are not with us, you are against us philosophy), but perhaps sometimes, there are no sides, and sometimes right and wrong, good and evil are not as befuddled as they seem to be.
The author’s writing style is that of a journalist in nature. Although he tries his level best to write as chronicler of events, his language gives way to headline-lines in the book and pieces of interviews juxtaposed to create an emotional impact. Such things, however, make the book eminently readable unlike the usual drabs (Eg.: Rise and Fall of the Third Reich) historical books are, but perhaps this is not history, it is one man’s opinion, and for this reason alone, the novel loses some credit. However the novels succeeds with glory in the area it seems to be aiming at (creating awareness, and helping people know more about the situation).
The novel traces the events that take place in Burma after Independence, the formation of the government, the coup, the false elections followed by the coup, then the rigged elections followed by a rigged government still largely managed by the army. Despite this, the author calls it a ’Nation at Crossroads’ after witnessing the changes that Burma has undergone in the past year and Suu Kyi’s proclamation that the prime minister Thein Sein is a good man. However he doubts if the Prime Minister would live through theyear of reforms as there are serious considerations over his health, and whether Burma would ever see the true light of democracy. Would the countless killed ever get the peace that everyone is entitled to?
Here ends the review, but it is events like this what happened in Burma, what happened in Sierra Leone, the Rwandan Genocide, the Holocaust, Stalin’s rule, and countless other examples of brutality and inhumanity to the extreme is not the violence of the leaders, but the extreme degree of violence perpetrated by the people themselves on other people. History does not have a record of Hitler, Stalin or any other leader for that matter of having killed anyone. However the two are responsible for the deaths of nearly 80 million people. No person can kill this many; the fact is that people agreed, they bowed down to pressure, they gave in easily and the human spirit we value so highly crumbled. But all is not bleak as only in the darkest hours does the tiny bug seems the brightest. There have been instances of extreme resistance, be it in the form of Schindler in Holocaust or Rusesabagina’s lone fight during Rwanda genocide, or the countless acts of love, courage and bravery executed when least expected. What’s alarming about the Burman scenario of brutal murder, countless rapes, innumerable victims, was that is was all happening at a time we cherished free media (I don’t remember any news about it) and talked about making the world a better place. A cyclone killed a million people and displaced many more, most died from starvation, fewer from cyclones. The mere fact that this was allowed to happen shows that even in sympathy there was economic gain needed. The UN was once again powerless as it is usually, and it took nearly 6 months to reach to an agreement. Most will agree when I say that the fact that those who survive did is because of the Superhuman effort put in by people who too could have sat and spectate.
To conclude, History teaches us many things, but most importantly it teaches that there is always a choice.


Originally reviewed at http://the-vault.co.cc

[Goh Jiayin · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book provides a comprehensive summary of what has happened during the oppression. It is horrible to know that such peace loving people could do horrible acts. Burma has seen lots of her people being oppressed, not just Rohingyas.. If what the author said is true, may all sentient beings in Burma be well and happy. Your voices will not be unheard again.

[Yeongbae K · Rating 1 out of 5]

I looked forward to reading the book and to learn more about the subject.

I stopped reading about one-third of the book. I do not doubt the atrocities that the ethnic peoples of Burma have suffered.

However, the author kept recounting the atrocities of one people and then those of another. I learned that the Burmese military hade inflicted great sufferings on the peoples. But what else?

[Derek · Rating 5 out of 5]

I thought the book provided a fantastic summary to the post independent struggles faced by the country. I enjoyed Rogers' storytelling technique of moving through the events and struggles chronologically.

[Lori · Rating 5 out of 5]

A comprehensive and eye-opening account of Burma's history, political situation and appalling treatment of its people.

[Tony · Rating 5 out of 5]

well researched on history of Burma, understand its politic deeply also fun to read

[Sunny · Rating 2 out of 5]

Recommended for an introductory read about modern Burmese politics.

The book briefly covers Burma gaining independence in the mid-20th Century. The remainder provides accounts of how the military dictatorship has ruthlessly oppressed minority groups and political opponents in various parts of the country.

Other than the familliar names Thein Sein, Than Shwe, and Aung San Suu Kyi; the book was a mish-mash of acronyms, names, dates and location. The book reads as an effective piece of advocacy and political essay (as the author has intended). The narrative of Burma's modern History and it's people is not as well described. For example, the stories of ethnic minorities and survivors of political imprisonment are featured as 1-2 page vignettes.

One particularly important part of the book is the discussion in the epilogue about anti-Muslim violence and persecution of Rohingya in Burma. Having personally worked with Rohinya refugees, this minority of Burma is not discussed enough.

[Chris · Rating 4 out of 5]

Archbishop Desmond Tutu calls this "An important introduction to Burma - comprehensive, vivid, and powerful." I agree on all counts. Having recently travelled through the country, I was looking for more information on its history, on what led to the crossroads it now finds itself at. Benedict Rogers doesn't disappoint. While incredibly informative in a way that is easy to digest, it's also impossible to read his account of those suffering in Burma without feeling moved. It has ignited in me a want to discover more about a country I knew so little about only a few weeks ago. If that isn't testament to its quality as an introductory text, I don't know what is.

[KhinHnin · Rating 1 out of 5]

No new information on Burma, except for the detailed accounts of torture done by the military regime on the ethnic minorities. The writing style is not engaging. But good for people new to Burma to have a quick overview.

[Will · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is probably the most up-to-date and widely available book on the Myanmar regime. Technically, it is an updated version of an early print of the book. It covers the history of the country, though it emphasizes stories of human rights abuses more so than contextual detail or analysis.

[CoryandSadie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very informative and interesting book. This would be a great place to start if you are looking into the reason why Myanmar (Burma) is where it is today.

[Christel Keijzer · Rating 3 out of 5]

immense suffering by the Burmese people in our era, often hidden from the rest of the world, their struggles to survive and avoid ethnic cleansing