Government moving capital to middle of country
Bangkok (AsiaNews/Agencies) Burma's military government has confirmed it is moving the government to a new administrative compound near the town of Pyinmana, 600 km (373 miles) north of the current capital of Yangon, in an isolated and mountainous area.
The military junta had been planning the move to the location for many years, but construction began in earnest only a year ago.
Unofficial sources said that the new government complex will occupy some 10 sq km (4.6 sq miles) and is designed to include homes for military leaders, diplomatic quarters, a parliamentary building, an airport, golf course and other buildings to accommodate the bureaucrats.
Some ministries have already begun the long trip north, and many more are expected to follow, but bureaucrats have not been allowed to take along their families.
Although the new capital will provide the military junta greater secrecy and security, it is still unclear why it finally decided for the move.
Information Minister Kyaw Hsan yesterday told reporters the site of the new capital "is centrally located, and has quick access to all parts of the country". But foreign analysts remain unconvinced. They believe it was possible the country's hard-line military rulers were worried about a US attack.
"I'm Burmese, and sometimes even I don't understand what the government is thinking," said Aung Zaw, the editor of Irrawaddy, a publication run by Burmese journalists in exile. "Rumours of an American invasion are just a joke, but the military is extremely paranoid," he added.
According to Aung Kin, a London-based Burmese historian, the country's army is much stronger than its navy, and it is "more comfortable defending a land perimeter" such as Pyinmana than a coastal city such as Yangon, he said.
But according to Christian Lemiere, Asia editor of Jane's Country Risk, any potential enemy is much more likely to attack by air than by sea, and therefore moving location will make little difference. In fact, if anything, a smaller centre of government will be easier to target from the air, Mr Lemiere said.
Diplomats have speculated that another possible reason for the move to Pyinmana is that its central location will make the government better able to monitor the lawless border regions of the ethnic Shan, Chin and Karen states.
Aung Zaw said that to a certain extent this may be true, but he doubted it would make much difference in terms of military control.
Saw Sarki, from the Karen National Union (KNU), agreed. "The army is quite decentralised anyway, and it is spread throughout Burma already," he said.
For Joseph Silverstein, a Burma specialist and Emeritus Professor of Rutgers University, the most likely explanation for the relocation is advice by traditional Burmese fortune-tellers. "Everybody listens to fortune-tellers in Burma," he said.
General Ne Win, who came to power in 1962, was totally dependent on their advice, Mr Silverstein added.
.png)
