Your donations for the present crisis have been aimed at bypassing corrupt processes that either prevent or diminish aid in getting to the people who need it. Because our friends inside Burma are reporting that children and elderly are dying in remote areas, our main effort remains focused on them.
We have been working in this region since 2004, and formally as a non-profit organization since 2006. Our focus has been on Leader Development, Skills Training, Support to Education, Health and Welfare, and Human Rights Reporting primarily in the eastern mountainous region.
The military dictatorship of Burma / Myanmar has for decades, waged a campaign driving non-Burman ethnic groups from ancestral lands owned for over two thousand years. This is a massive land grab for natural resources. These ethnic groups are unfortunately in the way.
To date over 3000 villages have been burned down or mined and over 500,000 internally displaced people are on the run on any given day inside Burma. With the present natural disaster in the Irrawaddy River delta region, that number is in the millions. It is also important to note that over 800,000 forced laborers unwillingly support the regime under brutal conditions so that leaders may profit from a land rich in natural gas, oil, precious gems, teak wood and hydro power potential. Refer to www.tbbc.org.
Most of the world is unaware of the true cost of a gallon of Chevron or Total gasoline coming from this region. The UK Burma Campaign publishes a Dirty List annually to identify businesses that contribute to the regime’s wealth.
As you watch the present crisis unfold, it is important to consider events in the above context or one can be mislead as to what is really going on “in the shadows”. Unfortunately what we are witnessing is a regime that uses weather and time in ways that suit its strategy of driving non-Burman ethnics from their lands. The Irrawaddy River region is the richest agricultural region in Southeast Asia and is largely populated by the Karen ethnic group.
Following blogs will provide you updates on the current crisis response, as well as background information on Worldwide Impact Now.
Sincerely, Tim
Tim Heinemann
Worldwide Impact Now
Forward-based in the region
