In 1988, a military junta seized control of Burma changing its name to Myanmar. This junta has been antidemocratic and depraved in its actions toward its own people. Since 1996, the government has eradicated over 2,500 villages and displaced over one million people as recounted in Foreign Affairs. However, a recent cyclone has left Myanmar in even more of a tumult. This disaster has left the world with its most serious humanitarian crisis since the 2004 Asian tsunami.
Currently, the death toll is approximately one hundred thousand, and with nearly one million homeless Burmese, disease and starvation will likely lead to many more deaths. The United Nations and United States have made serious efforts to send food to Myanmar. However, the Junta has disabled the obtainment of much needed supplies by the Burmese by seizing these shipments. Many diplomats believe that the United States should intervene militarily to provide humanitarian aid to the Burmese people since it is the wealthiest nation in the world and has a moral obligation to assist victims of the crisis. However, an invasion by the United States violates sound foreign policy and can also exacerbate the crisis, leading to the loss of even more human lives.
A unilateral humanitarian intervention would be extremely costly. After the 2004 tsunami, 24 U.S. ships and 16,000 troops were positioned throughout the Pacific and Indonesian regions, costing the U.S. around five million dollars per day. In total, the U.S. spent 900 million dollars to rebuild after the tsunami, whereas the U.S. government has only allocated 3.5 million dollars to the Myanmar crisis. The Burmese junta has been extremely adverse to the idea of Western aid. Even if the U.S. proposed to station troops in Myanmar with the sole purpose of distributing humanitarian relief, the junta would reject such a course of action due to its dislike for Western values and culture.
Even if the Burmese death toll increases tenfold to approximately 1 million people, an invasion could cause an equal number of deaths, if not more. Currently, Myanmar is divided between ethnic groups that have deep animosity towards one another creating a situation that is very comparable to Iraq before the American invasion in 2003. The present military dictatorship in Myanmar can be held accountable for holding the country together with the threat of using force.
An effort to overthrow the junta will not instantly create a utopian land. Myanmar would become a land ravaged by civil war and would require a long military occupation. This occupation would be very politically unpopular in the United States due to its cost and would necessitate military manpower that is already a scarce American resource.
Rather than a unilateral humanitarian invasion, the best hope for a viable solution to the current crisis in Myanmar is an international effort. Any international solution requires a consensus between the Western powers and MyanmarÕs Asian trading partners, especially China. This will require compromise so that the United States and Western powers can persuade China and its neighbors to hold Myanmar accountable for its actions, which international organizations are labeling as genocide.
The United States may have to give concessions to China on certain regulatory issues in order to gain Chinese support on the Myanmar crisis. The United Nations Security Council cannot pass resolutions imposing sanctions without ChinaÕs agreement since China has a veto. Nevertheless, the United NationÕs Secretary-General and General Assembly can continue to express public outrage over the military juntaÕs refusal to allow complete Western assistance to the victims of Cyclone Nargis.
China requires world support to have a successful Olympics in 2008. Citizens in the U.S. and other Western countries can continue to send food and other supplies and express their outrage through a program of unified protest. Hopefully, a large public outcry and pressure from China can help solve the crisis in Myanmar without requiring an American invasion.
