Cyclone kills at least 351 in Myanmar, state-run TV reports

Cyclone kills at least 351 in Myanmar, state-run TV reports
5/4/08 http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080504/ap_on_re_as/myanmar_cyclone;_ylt=Asy7rRdhIaquDoOPmz1.fixvaA8F
Summary: This Saturday Tropical Cyclone Nargis killed at least 351 people in Myanmar, including 162 people who lived on Haing Gyi Island off the country‘s southwest coast. The cyclone swept in destroying thousands of homes, buildings and other facilities in the area, disrupting life in Myanmar. With winds at 120 mph, hospital roofs were blown off and almost all electricity was cut. The Irrawaddy delta was hit extremely hard where Chris Kaye a humanitarian coordinator says the “villages there have reportedly been completely flattened.” Many people worried that the military junta controlling Myanmar would not be eager to ask for international help. This cyclone hit at a very bad time right before a referendum on a new constitution was about to be made. Voters already blame the junta (a group of military officers who have taken control of a country) for corrupting the economy and democracy. Many citizens were complaining that the 400,000 military was doing little to help victims of this cyclone. Myanmar or Burma has been under military rule since 1962, and its government has been criticized for human rights abuse. The Forum of Democracy in Burma with other groups urged the military junta on Sunday to allow outside help from other countries, this can only be done with the military rulers approval. The economy has also been greatly impacted in a negative way. With gas prices shooting up from $2.50 to $10.00 a gallon and normal goods such as eggs tripling in price, Myanmar is not in good shape.

Reactions:
A) I think this article relates to two AP World History themes. It relates to Interaction between humans and the environment because this natural disaster has affected all lives in Burma. No longer is this society stable, and they need to rebuild in this new environment. The other theme this relates to is State-building, expansion and conflict because of Myanmar’s political problems. There military junta controlling the government is not helping the citizens and is not allowing help from other nations.

B1) Myanmar achieved independence from the Unites Kingdom on January 4th 1948, and became the Union of Burma. It later was called the Socialist Republic of the Union of Burma. Myanmar has been a military dominated government since General Ne Win led a coup in 1962 that took over the civilian government of U Nu. To this day Burma or Myanmar continues to struggle to mend ethnic tensions between people. The country's culture, is heavily influenced by its neighbors, and is based on Theravada Buddhism mixed with local elements.

B2) A cyclone is created in an area of low atmospheric pressure. Cyclones are characterized by inward spiraling winds that rotate counter clockwise in the northern hemisphere and clockwise in the southern hemisphere. With strong winds and heavy rains a cyclone can cause mass devastation to any area.

C) The point of view in this article is unknown, but the reporter gets information from Myanmar state-ran TV reports. It is not clear weather this person is a male or female.

D) The reporters point of view may effect the news reported in this article. Even though we do not know where this person is from or what nationality this person is, he/she does seem to clearly have an opinion on one matter. I believe that he/she may feel that the Myanmar government is not doing a good job, and does not agree with the way they control Burma. He reports all the negatives about the government and leaves out all the positives. He says “Its government has been widely criticized for human rights abuses and suppression of pro-democracy parties.” This shows how he does not support the military junta.

E) The point of view I feel is missing is a government leader or a member of the military junta. This point of view would be helpful because we do not get to hear there side of the story, and how they will go about handling the situation caused by the cyclone.

F) My reactions to this article was shock and grief. I feel horrible about all the deaths caused by the cyclone, and I did not know a cyclone could cause so much destruction. I also dislike the way the Myanmar government is controlled and I feel a change needs to occur. Being in such a horrible situation I think the military junta really should step in and take control of the situation in a positive way, by restoring the economy and the cities.