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May 6, 2008 8:53 am US/Central
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In The Know: Don't Send Money To Myanmar
(WCCO)
A cyclone has devastated the country of Myanmar, which used to be called Burma. The death toll is rising, and the United States has offered help. So far, the Myanmar government has refused to accept it. Don Shelby says that's par for the course for that nation's government.
When Myanmar's military government is not killing Buddhist monks in the street and imprisoning them in their own monasteries, it is putting behind bars anyone who would speak up for the freedom of the Burmese people.
The government armed forces are an everyday presence in the country's streets, but unaccountably, according to Westerners on the scene, very few of them have been dispatched to help in this crisis, to help their own people. This cyclone may have killed 10,000 people, a number a bit higher than the "official" government estimate of 351.
The U.S. Embassy immediately authorized the release of $250,000 for initial aid, but the government of Myanmar turned it down, the military junta's pride a bit greater than its concern for the welfare of its people; but I repeat myself.
There will no doubt be calls for donations to help in this devastation, but a word to the wise: Don't send any of your money to the government of Myanmar. It will likely never make it to the people.
(© MMVIII, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)