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U.N. Envoy Heads to Burma With Urgent Relief Message

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Posted on May 18, 2008
Burma cyclone aftermath
AP photo

Cyclone survivors line up to buy drinking water near Yangon on Sunday.

More than two weeks have passed since Cyclone Nargis hit Burma, killing 78,000 people and leaving tens of thousands more unaccounted for. Now the U.N. is pushing Burma’s ruling junta to cooperate with international aid efforts, sending an envoy with a message from Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon in hopes that a more personal approach will produce lifesaving results.


BBC:

John Holmes will carry a letter from UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon to Burma’s leader, Than Shwe, who has refused to answer Mr Ban’s calls.

Burma says some 78,000 people have died and 56,000 are missing since Cyclone Nargis hit the country on 2 May.

Burma has so far been refusing most offers of international aid.

However, a team of 50 Indian medical personnel has been given permission to fly into Burma, equipped with medical supplies.

Meanwhile, a UK-based charity says young children may already be dying of starvation.

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By Expat, May 18 at 7:27 am #

CY, I take no pleasure in fighting with you.  I like your posts very much and mostly agree with them.  On this issue it is my pleasure to call the country Burma in honor of Ang Su Kyi; the rightful, elected leader of Burma.  I respect your opinions 99%, but on this I am firm.  I wish you no ill.

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By Expat, May 18 at 7:18 am #

^ call it as you see it.

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By Conservative Yanlee, May 18 at 7:14 am #
(Unregistered commenter)

Passed by the General Assembly in the UN with no negative votes, been the name for 18 years, and if we get into disclaiming names because they were enacted by governments where the people had no say, 3/4 of the world’s countries need to be re-named, including England, Spain France, Germany, Russia, India, Iraq, Iran, Turkey, and a host of others. The country’s name is still Myanmar. .

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By Expat, May 18 at 7:12 am #

^ is the one who changed Burma’s name to Myanmar.  The people of Burma had no say in this.  I refuse to use this other name for Burma.  For once it seems clear that the UN should use its legal mandate and forcefully impose aid for the people of this cyclone disaster.  We are a world of confused and contradictory values, too often dictated by politics rather than humanitarian concerns.  We seem to act when inappropriate and fail to act when appropriate; this isn’t a good sign for our collective values.  Just what are our collective values?  Answer that question and it will reveal who we are as a collective!

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By Conservative Yanlee, May 18 at 7:11 am #
(Unregistered commenter)

Passed by the General Assembly in the UN with no negative votes, been the name for 18 years, and if we get into desclaiming named because they were enacted by governments where the people had no say, 3/4 of the world’s countries need to be re-named, including England, Spain France, Germany, Russia, India, Iraq, Iran, Turkey, and a host of others. The country’s name is still Myanmar.

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By Expat, May 18 at 6:46 am #

Burma is the name!

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By Expat, May 18 at 6:45 am #

Only if you honor the military junta; they changed the name; the people didn’t change the name!

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By Expat, May 18 at 6:43 am #

^ go in; blow the hell out of the Burmese junta, get Ang Su Kyi; put her in charge (her rightfully elected position as president of Burma) and end this shit!  Get 1,000 Blackwater security guards (killers) for her body guards and nobody will mess with her.  It’ll take 4 hours max. and then we leave.  Burma is free and safe and the relief agencies will save the remaining citizens.  It might even redeem us a little for our butchery in Iraq.  Hey, it’s a modest proposal.

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By Conservative Yankee, May 18 at 4:36 am #
(Unregistered commenter)

The country’s name is Myanmar.

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