Than Tun echoes the governor. The vagueness, from men who should know instantly and exactly such crucial statistics, characterizes Myanmar 50 years after Independence. Confusion can be found everywhere in this resource-rich but desperately poor nation. Nothing is quite what it seems. Security has improved, although antagonism among the minority ethnic groups toward the majority Burmans still exists.
Planes flying into Yangon are often full.
But in the capital, many restaurants and bright new hotels appear empty. Despite economic hardship, sidewalk merchants are busy and the streets are jammed with traffic. Schools have so few resources that most parents pay for extra private tuition for their children. Yet the level of spoken English is better than in neighboring Thailand. Universities have remained closed since student protests in December 1996.