Why Today Should Be the Day You Head to Burma
Decades of deservedly critical press
warning travelers to stay away from Burma is finally giving way to
encouraging signs for the country’s future. After historic elections
passing power from the military junta to a civilian government, and the
release of leading democracy activist Aung San Suu Kyi from more than
twenty years of house arrest, Burma is finally open for business, and
the green light is on for tourists to come and support its
transformation.
Such a long time
spent staying away means many still have niggling doubts, but there are
plenty of reasons why now really is the time to visit this stunning,
until now isolated country that has so much to offer the indie traveler
in search of a destination perhaps like no other they’ve seen before.
The politics
The
release of Suu Kyi, who holds great respect and popularity amongst
Myanmar’s population, is the striking signal of change in Burma, making
the country more democratic and more palatable to the conscience of
western visitors. The release of political prisoners was one of the main
conditions set for the easing of economic sanctions, and apart from Suu
Kyi, other high-profile dissidents have been released. Among them are
students involved in protests in 1988, monks who protested in 2007, and
activists from Burma’s many ethnic minorities.
The
United States and Burma have also begun the process of exchanging
ambassadors for the first time since 1990, and Suu Kyi has won the seat
she stood for – it is the first time she has contested political power
since her National League for Democracy won the 1990 general election by
a landslide but were prevented by the military from ever taking office.
A
ceasefire has been signed between the government and the Karen National
Union, representing the ethnic minority group whose insurgency
struggles since independence from British rule in 1948 have seen the
country gripped by civil war and civilians deliberately targeted, driven
from their homes and forced to work for the army, their villages
destroyed.
With such flagrant human
rights abuses taking place across the country, the NLD under Suu Kyi has
long pursued a boycott of tourism on the grounds that it would
politically justify and economically feed a corrupt, undemocratic state
fighting its own people. But in view of the changes taking place, the
NLD now welcomes what it calls “responsible tourism;” one that benefits
rather than harms local people.
For
the most part this means traveling independently rather than as part of
an organized tour group and doing what we can to ensure that our money
goes to locals rather than into government and military coffers, which
can come in convincing disguise. “The NLD would welcome visitors who are
keen to promote the welfare of the common people and the conservation
of the environment and to acquire an insight into the cultural,
political, and social life of the country while enjoying a happy and
fulfilling holiday in Burma,” said the party in its statement.
The practicalities
Clearly
it is still early days in Burma’s moves towards democratization, and
the development of the rights of its population, but changes have
nonetheless been dramatic and fast moving. Many believe that 2012 will
prove to be a big year for Myanmar’s tourist industry. Though the
816,319 tourist visits to the country in 2011 remains dwarfed by the
region’s big players, like Thailand with its fast approaching twenty
million annual visits and almost twenty-five million in Malaysia, Burma
has already seen some 400,000 arrivals in the first two months of 2012.
On
a practical note, too, Burma is upping the ante. It has announced the
introduction of electronic visa applications from March 2012, which
“would allow international visitors to apply for a visa from anywhere
via the internet before visiting.” Such a system would put Myanmar on
par with Cambodia, which already uses an e-visa scheme.
It
is thought that this kind of liberalization of visa procedures could
further help increase the country’s tourist figures. Certainly, it would
put Myanmar leaps ahead of the likes of Thailand and Malaysia,
otherwise seen as regional heavyweights, neither of which currently
offers an online application service. Both offer thirty to ninety-day
visa-free stays to visitors of many nationalities, but those wishing to
stay longer are forced into lengthy and bureaucratic, paper-based
application procedures.
Indeed, the
worst news in the development of Myanmar’s tourist industry is probably
for the likes of Thailand, set to lose out in competition. Tourism
bosses have already claimed that Thailand needs to refresh its offering
if it is to stay ahead of regional rivals, rather than resting on its
laurels by selling “the same old products” of beaches and islands.
“Other countries in the region are promoting [an] identical experience,”
said President of the Association of Thai Travel Agents, Sisdivachr
Cheewarattanaporn.
Regional
commentators see a developing Burma as the biggest competitor to
Thailand’s tourist industry. Stuart McDonald, co-founder of online
Southeast Asia travel guide Travelfish.org, tweeted in response to a
news story about Mr Sisdivachr’s comments: “Burma really [is] opening,
stable etc, [it is the] #1 threat to Thai tourism, especially in the
Gulf.”
The sights
Of
course, your ultimate reason for visiting Burma probably isn’t its
political development, or the fact that it can offer you an electronic
visa. Burma is a stunning country steeped in Buddhist tradition, and by
virtue of its political problems, largely isolated and sheltered from
the sorts of tourism growth and changes that neighboring Southeast Asian
countries have experienced.
Mandalay,
touted as the Burmese equivalent to the northern Thai cultural capital
of Chiang Mai, is set to be a big draw for tourists. The last
independent capital of Burma before the British conquest, Mandalay is,
however, worlds away from Chiang Mai – horse-drawn carts still ply the
streets of the city center, and poor road conditions are the norm. The
iconic and photogenic U Bein bridge crops up in many a visitor’s snaps,
and ancient cities and the Mingun temples provide plenty for travelers
to see here.
Elsewhere, picturesque
Lake Inle is already drawing in the crowds, and the old capital city of
Rangoon, well worth a visit, will be the first stop on most itineraries.
A trekking scene is developing in the Shan ethic group’s tribal
villages around hill stations like Kalaw, up in the mountains, and
historical sites such as the expansive cave temples at Pindaya, with
their sheer number of incredible Buddha images that easily trump similar
sights in both neighboring Thailand and Laos, are another draw.
As
Burma moves to a new period of what everyone hopes will be more stable
politics, the development of its appeal and success as a tourist
destination is inevitable. What is also inevitably is that the country
will quickly change beyond recognition over the five or ten years to
come – meaning that, without a shadow of a doubt, it’s now or never.
Source: bootsnall.com
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