Fool

Thanks to some crazy US Mormon, Burma's Daw Aung San Suu Kyi is facing trial and the possibility of five more years of jail/arrest. The man swam across the lake to her house, stayed there overnight, prayed (probably baptising her) and then left, violating the no foreign visitor conditions of her incarceration. Damn fool.

From today's New York Times:

Myanmar's pro-democracy leader, Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, went on trial Monday in a mostly procedural hearing as hundreds of police officers and army soldiers blocked crowds of protesters, according to reports from news agencies and opposition exile groups.

...

Though the American, John Yettaw, apparently acted without her knowledge, his adventure led to charges that she violated the terms of the house arrest that has limited her outside contacts for 13 of the past 19 years.

...

Mr. Yettaw, from Falcon, Missouri, swam across Inya Lake in central Yangon earlier this month and sneaked into Mrs. Aung San Suu Kyi’s lakeside compound at night. He used empty plastic jugs to keep himself afloat during his swim, and he had a pair of makeshift flippers strapped to his feet, according to reports in the official Myanmar press.

The reasons for his escapade remained unclear, although an American diplomat said last week he seemed to have religious motivations for trying to visit the house. Mrs. Aung San Suu Kyi’s principal lawyer, who called Mr. Yettaw “a nutty fellow” and “a fool,” said the Nobel laureate pleaded with him to leave, but he complained of exhaustion and leg cramps. She gave him a ground-floor room while she stayed in her bedroom upstairs.

...

Mr. Yettaw, 53, a Mormon, was reported to have prayed often while he was at the house. He is said to have departed late the following night and was spotted by the police while he was swimming back across the lake.

He is facing trial along with Mrs. Aung San Suu Kyi and two women who share her home.

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Pray for the people of Burma that some day they can be freed from their slavery.

[flag of the Free Burma coalition, the Fighting Peacock]

Exuberance

The mail today brought me a fun surprise: a jacket from Burma. The Episcopal Church's missioner to/for/with Burma, knowing that I am a Princeton graduate (Ph.D.), saw this jacket in Burma and brought it back for me. It is fabulous.


Evidently there was enough material for the maker to create a matching bag in which the jacket arrived.


This is definitely a General Convention jacket in the tradition of deputy Charles Crump from Tennessee, GC's longest serving deputy (25 GCs starting in 1957). He has one jacket that he always wears at some point during GC (I'll try to find a photo of it, though GC deputies will know of what I speak). In any event, I have this exuberant jacket that I will wear with joy....

Meanwhile, a nice donation will go out to the Church of Burma: the funds for these items helps support schools for children of all faiths. Pray for our missioner for her safe travel and the solidarity she brings to us from the people of Burma.

Los desastres no son naturales

Disasters are not natural.

As I listened this morning to the reports from China of the anguished, now angry, parents who lost their children to the earthquake allege that the buildings were poorly made, my mind went to a book published in 2003 by Equipo Maiz in El Salvador, Los desastres no son naturales: Disasters are not natural. Equipo Maiz (the Corn Collective) is a group of non-profit organisations (Diakonia, Lutherhjälpen, Manos Unidas, Desarrollo y Paz) that publishes challenging books. They tend to be photographic collections and are bilingual.

In the introduction of the book, Uraguyan Eduardo Galeano writes:

'So it has been, so it is, so it shall be: time and time again it is said that nature is a heartless mother, cursing us with catastrophe since time immemorial. But, just how natural are the natural catastrophes lashing the world? Floods and droughts — don't they multiply because of the ravaging of forests and soil, all done in the name of progress? And isn't the climate crazy because of this very civilization that poisons the air?

'As if these manufactures catastrophes that condemn millions to hunger and exodus weren't enough, there are many natural catastrophes that would better be called social catastrophes. Hurricane Mitch left twenty thousand dead in Central America, where the poor are saved only by the grace of God. By comparison, there have barely been any victims when hurricanes of equal or greater strength have struck Florida or Cuba.'

While his words may be provocative regarding Florida or Cuba, I believe his basic premise is correct. Consider the 451 people (some of whose surviving family members I have met and have heard their stories) who died in the 13 January 2001 earthquake in Las Colinas, Santa Tecla, El Salvador. Even though the ridge above the neighbourhood had been proven to be geologically unstable, a developer was building houses for the upperclass without any thought about those who lived below. The ridge had been so deforested such that when the earth shook, the land slid over this tight-knit community and buried them alive on a Saturday morning.

The editors of the book simply say: 'We are convinced that disasters are not natural. They are the product of decisions that place profit above the welfare of the people.' Later on in the book, they write: 'Natural phenomena will become categorised as disasters due to the precarious conditions under which urban and rural communities are growing and becoming more and more impoverished.'

And in the case of Burma, the disaster has been compounded by a power-hungry military dictatorship.



Disasters are not natural.

Continued prayers

[flooded temple south of Rangoon/Yangon]

Keep praying for Burna and be sure to go to Episcopal Relief and Development and click on the 'donate' button.

Please keep praying for Naomi. She will be having a MRI and bone scan to see if the Ewings has spread into her bones. There are no shadows, per se, but she aches all over. They will be checking her hip, thigh, leg and shoulder.

And, again, remember Kirstin as she waits for her operation.

Open your hands, open your hearts... and pray to God.

Staying in touch

Now that Myanmar/Burma has fallen off the US's radar (i.e., it is no longer the top story), it will be harder to follow what is going on over the.

The BBC website has an article about Burmese bloggers managing to communicate with the outside world and from there, I found the link to a newspaper, the Irrawaddy.

There, you can not only follow what is going on with relief efforts but also the referendum on consolidation of the military's power, slated for 24 May but perhaps postponed in the delta.

More on Myanmar/Burma

Editorial in today's New York Times

Disaster in Myanmar

By all accounts, Cyclone Nargis has devastated Myanmar — a 12-foot wall of water sweeping away entire villages, leaving the coastal plain under water, thousands dead, missing or homeless and much of the capital city of Yangon without electricity or water. It is the sort of disaster that brings the world together in a desire to help, and the reaction of governments, the United Nations and international humanitarian organizations has been swift and noble. There is no time to waste.

We wish we could also say that this is no time for politics, but that simply would not be true. Myanmar — the name the junta gave to Burma — has been ruled by military dictatorship for 46 years, increasingly isolated and struggling under economic sanctions by the United States and Europe. Last September, the junta crushed peaceful protest marches by Buddhist monks.

These repressive policies contributed greatly to the the disaster. Crushing poverty left many coastal communities more vulnerable to the storm than they otherwise might have been, and, as Laura Bush observed, the government-controlled news media failed to issue timely warnings. The fear now is that the generals may create obstacles to the rescue operation, which will require moving volumes of supplies as well as large numbers of aid workers, many from countries hostile to the regime.

Though the junta took the unusual step of asking for foreign assistance, the information minister suggested that only “friendly countries” would be allowed to help. It is still not clear whether aid workers will require visas. The junta also has refused to cancel a referendum scheduled for next Saturday on a constitution that claims to be a step toward democracy. The referendum, which will effectively leave the military in control anyway, will divert attention from recovery efforts.

None of this should dissuade any government or agency from trying to help. President Bush pledged $3.25 million on Tuesday. He said the United States stood ready to “do a lot more” — including deploying American naval assets to assist rescue and aid distribution efforts — but first the junta must approve and let American disaster teams assess the damage.

Helping the people of Myanmar is the immediate task. In time, the world can redouble its effort to free Myanmar from the great disaster of the junta itself.

ER-D is responding to Nargis

from the ERD newsroom

Episcopal Relief and Development is providing emergency assistance to communities in Burma affected by Cyclone Nargis. The storm, packing winds up to 120 miles per hour, swept through the country on Saturday, leaving at least 4,000 dead and 3,000 unaccounted. Officials fear that the death toll will top 10,000. The low-lying Irrawaddy Delta region suffered the most severe damage.

The situation in Burma is dire. At best, the infrastructure in Burma is marginal and the storm has placed an unbearable strain on already limited services. Power outages and scattered debris across the country continue to hamper recovery efforts. Reports indicate that tens of thousands of homes were destroyed, leaving hundreds of thousands of people without shelter. The full extent of the damage throughout the country remains unclear due to poor communications and roads made impassable by the storm. In Rangoon, the capital, machete-wielding monks have taken to the streets to assist with clearing the wreckage.

Working with our partner, the Anglican Church of Burma, Episcopal Relief and Development is sending funds to secure shelter, food water and other relief needs for people displaced by the Cyclone. As part of our long term strategy, we have been working for the past two years with five dioceses on economic development including agriculture, livestock, and micro-loans, clean water and education programs.


“Episcopal Relief and Development’s response to the cyclone will involve a long term recovery and rehabilitation strategy for affected areas in which the church has a presence,” says Kirsten Laursen Muth, Senior Program Director for Asia and New Initiatives. “Our prayers are with the people of Burma at this very difficult time,” she added.

To help people affected by the cyclone in Burma, please make a donation to Episcopal Relief and Development’s “Emergency Relief Fund” online, or call 1-800-334-7626, ext. 5129. Gifts can be mailed to: Episcopal Relief and Development “Emergency Relief Fund” P.O. Box 7058, Merrifield, VA 22116-7058.

Pray for Burma

Pray for the people of Burma (Myanmar) who are suffering from the effects of the typhoon and cyclone that devastated their country this weekend.

Our church has a missioner, the Rev'd Katherine Babson, who goes to Myanmar when she can get travel permits.

[Something is really, really weird with blogger this morning — I am typing on a split screen. Later I will correct the typos but I can't see half of what I am doing.]

[later] It turns out that the problem was with Camino.


In an e-mail message from the main city, Yangon, one resident reported: "Stories get worse by the hour. No drinking water in many areas, still no power. Houses completely disappeared. Refugees scavenging for food in poorer areas. Roofing, building supplies, tools - all are scarce and prices sky-rocketing on everything."

The military is still refusing to issue travel permits. People are increasingly getting angry with their limited response. The monks, on whom the military cracked down recently, have been in the streets picking up debris.

I always think of my colleague, Sang, with whom I worked at the Seamen's Church Institute of NY and NJ during the summer of 1991. He was a Protestant minister who had been tortured and imprisoned. He was a quiet and gentle soul who still was able to laugh. I still have a hat and a little picture made out of pieces of bamboo and cloth that he gave me at the end of our summer. If he is still alive, I hope he is OK.