Elena Jotow and Nicholas Ganz interviewed
Q Tell me about the book, what inspired you to write 'Burma: The alternative guide' how do you feel the guide is different to others out there? How long did you travel around Burma for?
A Our decision to write this book initially was to present this unknown and simultaneously fascinating and shocking country as we saw it with our own eyes. There have been many books about Burma, which mostly presented just one side of the picture and we wanted to show all the aspects that influence this country. Our book leads the reader through the reality inside this hidden and unknown country. For our research we traveled to Burma many times over the last 4 years, posing as tourists and also entering the country illegally into the liberated areas of the ethnic freedom armies. We were able to see many different parts of Burma, from Kachin State in the north to many Arakan and Shan State in the west and east. We have also been able to see a little bit of Mon and Karen State in the south, beside the regular trips to Mandalay and Rangoon Division. We also spent a lot of time in Thailand and the refugee camps there. As foreigners we were restricted to some areas and this is why we are unable to provide photos or information from every single corner of Burma. But with our visits in the liberated areas of the ethnic liberation armies we were able to see the reality of Burma from another point of view, rather than only the touristic.
Q What areas are off limits for tourists and where should be avoided? Did you feel at risk traveling around Burma?
A There are several areas all over Burma that cannot be entered by foreigners or only with a special permit, that is only available with a great deal of time and patience from the Immigration offices in Rangoon. These areas are concretely described in good tourist guide books and in general the many military checkpoints along the way prevent clearly, that foreigners can enter restricted areas. We never really felt in danger or at risk while travelling in Burma. Sometimes we saw strangers who followed or watched us in a mysterious way, supposingly spies by the notorious Military Intelligence. Even being inside the liberated military camps of the ethnic liberation armies did not make us feel scared or in danger. But we are sure, while being a witness of the mass uprisings in 1988 or latest in 2007 could have caused a lot of dangers for foreigners. We know about one foreigner, who ran into the protests in 2007 by accident, and later he felt 'like his heart was going to implode' because of what he had to witness during the brutal crackdown.
Q What advice would you give to tourists traveling to Burma for the first time? You mention foreigners need to get visas to enter the country- are these difficult to get hold of?
A In general we do can not give any advice to tourists, who want to enter the country, as we can not advice people to enter this country. This decision should be made by one-self. Every person, who is travelling in Burma should be aware, that a certain amount of the money spent inside Burma is automatically going into the hands of the generals, and also do finance the war against the people of Burma in some way. A traveller should walk through this country with two open eyes and ears, because it is very important to see behind the propaganda mask of the junta, who wants Burma to be only recognised as the "Golden Land".
Q You talk of the atrocities of ethnic minorities in Burma suffering rape, men being shot and children recruited to armies. Is the violence visible or hidden? are there memorials to Burma's tragic history, such as the 8.8.88 event?
A The tragic events in the Burmese history never were honoured in a memorial. All these tragic events have been happening behind closed doors and no foreigner was able to see it with his or her own eyes. The Burmese junta is very clever in guiding their foreign visitors through their country without seeing the harsh human-rights violations. Only the mass uprisings of 1988 and 2007 have been witnessed by both foreign journalists, who came for this event as well as ordinary tourists, who wanted to spend their time in this country. These events have not been avoidable to the eyes of foreign visitors. But each and every year, these events are commemorated in protests, mostly held in front of the Burmese embassies throughout the world.
Q In the war against ethnic minorities by the government, are tourists considered a part of this and unwelcome in the country?
The reason, why many parts of the country are off-limits for foreigners, is because these foreigners might be able to see something of the civil-war against the ethnic peoples of Burma or the Opium production, or forced-labour, etc. The military junta is very clever in giving the right picture to their foreign visitors. If a tourist goes to Burma fully unaware of the whole picture, he or she might think of a peaceful and beautiful country. But as the comedian Lu Maw from the famous Moustache Brothers once said to us in an interview: " In Burma one eye is not enough, one ear is not enough!" Otherwise you oversee so many things and the harsh reality of life in Burma. But in general the ruling military junta has a strong view against Western countries and the West is considered as neo-colonial invaders who wants to intervene or even destroy the so-called stability of Burma. But on the other hand do the tourists bring a significant amount of foreign money, because they have to pay almost everything in US-Dollars. The junta prefers tourists to travel in guided groups, to have more control about what they might see and hear.
Q Do you feel there is hope for Burma and a democracy that the people long for?
We personally cannot answer this question accurately. Many factors are depending on the realization of the dream for democracy and freedom in Burma. But there is always hope for this and there will always be people in Burma, who dedicate their life for this long-lasting struggle for democracy and freedom in Burma. Sure we have hope for this and we believe in the forces of liberation and democracy inside Burma and in exile. There are many groups, either armed or fighting politically or with humanitarian efforts for a change in Burma. But these forces need a lot more support to get their ultimate goal of freedom and democracy, what everybody is longing for.
Q You say it was voted 'The most corrupt country' in 2007 by Transparency International and that tourists can only pay by US dollars- not credit cards or traveller cheques- which goes straight to the military. Do you think tourism is increasing the wealth of the military and therefore the power of the regime?
A Of course, the wealth of the military clique is increasing in a certain way by the US Dollars brought by the foreigners. But especially individual tourists are also able to support poor people in Burma directly by avoiding government-run services and facilities. The Burmese government strongly relies on the financial support of China, India, Europe and also their neighbouring countries. The strong exploitation of the natural resources of the country, like oil, gas, timber and diamonds are the biggest points to finance the military regime.
Q Do you think more attention needs to be brought to Burma, does the country need outside aid help and interception?
A There is a huge problem with aid works and humanitarian aid inside Burma. If an organization is working inside Burma, it must work together with the military junta. By this, every help- or aid-organization must respect and accept the demands and follow the rules of the military junta. So, several aid donations and help do never ever arrive to the needy people. Additionally, most of the suffering people in the rural areas or in the civil-war zones can never be reached by foreign aid-organizations. These are restricted areas. As we have seen after the disaster of cyclone Nargis in May 2008, most of the help- and aid-donations never reached the people, who were hit by this terrible natural disaster. Instead, a vast amount of money ended up in the juntas pockets. This is the sad reality inside Burma, so how can foreign aid bring some change? Sure, there should be more support of the opposition groups and the people who fight for democracy. Especially China and the ASEAN countries should be more internationally pressurized to stop their support of the Burmese junta, but so far the international efforts for a change in Burma are rather meagre than having a certain effect for a change.
This interview first appeared in Time Out in 2009