Myanmar - Union of Myanmar - Country Profile - Burma - Asia ___ Myanmar - Burma Destination Myanmar. Myanmar is a country in Southeast Asia, also known as Burma, its also called the Golden Land. With an area of 676,578 km² the country is almost twice the size of Germany or slightly smaller than the U.S. state of Texas . Myanmar is bordered in north and northeast by China , in east by Laos and Thailand , in south by the Andaman Sea and the Bay of Bengal and in west by Bangladesh and India . With 5,881 m (19,295 ft) Mount Hkakabo Razi in Kachin state on the border tri-point with China and India is the highest elevation in Myanmar and Southeast Asia's highest mountain. Main rivers are the Chindwin and the Irrawaddy (Ayeyarwady) river. Myanmar has a population of 51.4 million people (2014 census). Largest city, former capital, and the economic center of Myanmar is Yangon , capital is since 2005 the planned city of Naypyidaw . Spoken languages are Burmese.

On this pages you will find comprehensive information about Myanmar, or Burma in its diversity, its geography, economy, people, culture, environment, government and history. You will have access to newspapers from Myanmar and you will find travel and tourism information. Landscape near Mrauk U a town in in northern Rakhine State. Image © nationsonline.org Capital City since 6 November 2005: Naypyidaw (Nay Pyi Taw) Other Cities: Yangôn (Rangoon, pop. 5 million), Mandalay (pop. 700 000) Government: Type: nominally civilian government (since 29th March 2011, when Burma's military handed over power). The new political system came into effect after an election in November 2010. Constitution: 3 January 1974 (suspended since 18 September 1988 when latest junta took power). Burma has been under military authority since 1962. Geography: Location: Southeast Asia, bordering the Andaman Sea and the Bay of Bengal.

Area : 676,578 km² (261,228 square miles). Terrain: A land of hills and valleys rimmed in the north, east and west by mountain ranges forming a giant horseshoe. Enclosed within the mountaion barriers are the flat lands of Ayeyarwaddy, Chindwin and Sittaung River valleys where most of the country's agricultural land and population are concentrated. Climate: Tropical monsoon; cloudy, rainy, hot, humid summers (southwest monsoon, June to September); less cloudy, scant rainfall, mild temperatures, lower humidity during winter (northeast monsoon, December to April). People: Nationality: Burmese. Population : 51.4 million (2014 census) Ethnic groups: according to Myanmar's Ministry of Foreign Affairs there are 8 Major National Ethnic Races in Myanmar, which all comprises different ethnic groups: the Kachin, the Kayah, the Kayin, the Chin , the Mon, the Bamar, the Rakhine, and the Shan.

according to the CIA World Factbook the ethnic groups are: Burman 68%, Shan 9%, Karen 7%, Arakanese 4%, Chinese 3%, Mon 2%, Indian 2%, other 5%. Religions: Buddhism (89.2%), Christianity (5.0%), Islam (3.8%), Hinduism (0.5%), Spiritualism (1.2%) and others (0.2%). Languages : Burmese; Myanmar is a union of 135 ethnic groups with their own languages and dialects. Literacy: 90% (2003 official Government of Burma statistics); estimates of functional literacy are closer to 30% Natural resources: Timber, tin, antimony, zinc, copper, tungsten, lead, coal, limestone, precious stones like jade, ruby and sapphires, natural gas, hydropower, and some petroleum. Agriculture Products: Rice, pulses, beans, sesame, groundnuts, sugarcane, hardwood, fish and fish products. Industries: Agricultural processing; knit and woven apparel; wood and wood products; copper, tin, tungsten, iron; construction materials; pharmaceuticals; fertilizer; cement.

Former Flag of Myanmar (1974 - 2010) Background: Previously an independent kingdom, Burma was annexed by the British Empire into the colony of India in 1886. The occupation brought social, economic, cultural and administrative changes to the once-feudal society. The Japan ese Empire invaded and occupied the country during World War II but it was returned to British control until independence in 1948. From 1962 to 2011, the country was ruled by a military junta with absolute power. The name of the country was changed in 1989 by the ruling military government, officially recognized by the United Nations. Some national governments, such as Canada , the United Kingdom , the United States , and much of the Burmese population do not recognize this name change, since they do not recognize the military government. Despite multiparty elections in 1990 that resulted in the main opposition party winning a decisive victory, the military junta refused to hand over power.

Key opposition leader and Nobel Peace Prize recipient AUNG San Suu Kyi, has been set under house arrest from 1989 to 1995, and was again placed under house detention in September 2000; her supporters are routinely harassed or jailed. In 2011 the military junta was dissolved following a general election in 2010 and a civilian government has been installed. Aungsan, Burmese, Karen and Suukyi fonts available for Mac and PC. Mural paintings, Hpo Win Daung Caves, Monywa Images © Nations Online Project Business & Economy Since the transition to a civilian government in 2011, Burma has begun an economic overhaul aimed at attracting foreign investment and reintegrating into the global economy. The government’s commitment to reform, and the subsequent easing of most Western sanctions, has begun to pay dividends. Burma’s abundant natural resources, young labor force, and proximity to Asia’s dynamic economies have attracted foreign investment, actually more an invasion of foreign interests and badly needed money. Transportation Real Life / Peoples Republic Of Tyranny - TV Tropes Trivia Real Life Instances The Democratic People's Republic of Korea, AKA North Korea .

The DPRK's name is four lies for the price of one - it isn't democratic; it isn't for the people; it isn't a republic (seeing as the head of state is a dead man and the ruling family is a monarchy in all but name); and it doesn't include all of Korea, only the Northern half.note (It should be noted, though, that South Korea is also guilty of that last one, being the Republic of Korea, and that both sides still claim the whole peninsula as theirs, but for different reasons. North Korea refuses to recognize the South as its own country, saying they're all race-traitors duped into servitude by the imperialist-pigs of the United States. South Korea similarly refuses to recognize North Korea as its own country, since doing so would be to admit that Kim Jong Un isn't a crazy man playing "dictator" with millions of peoples' lives.) bits for itself. The Senate and Roman People (Senatus Populusque Romanus, or SPQR) retained its original name once it became The Empire , even though the Emperor had complete control over the senatusï¿½ decrees. The Democratic Republic of the Congo , formerly Zaire.

Highly atypical for a nation using such nomenclature, the Democratic Republic of the Congo has never practiced any form of communism, not even the In-Name-Only version used by modern China, though it's still got the usual lack of democracy. Its neighbor to the northwest, the Republic of the Congo , isn't much better off. The Republic of the Congo (the one that's now the the Democratic Republic, not the other Republic of the Congo mentioned to above) was, as a bog-standard dictatorship , formerly known as the People's Republic of the Congo from 1970-1991. Congo is no stranger to this; during the bloody, oppressive rule of Leopold II , it was known as the Congo Free State . The actual meaning of "Free State" (or "État Indépendant" in French) had nothing to do with real freedom, rather it designated that the entire region was Leopold II's personal property, separate from his role as King of the Belgians. The indigenous population were... also treated as his property .

Zaire was officially known as the Republic of Zaire, despite the fact that Mobutu ruled it as his own personal fiefdom, plundering every last cent he could from the country. Mobutu claimed that Zaire repudiated both communism and capitalism...in practice this meant it was his own personal brand of fascism. The name " Union of Soviet Socialist Republics " counts, to an extent. The name suggests that the USSR was a federation of "soviets", locally and democratically elected councils, and the head of state was officially the chairman of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet, a body elected by separate soviets to discharge their legislative business. In practice, however, the USSR was ruled entirely by the Communist Party, and the Supreme Soviet was just a rubber stamp for legislation, at both the federal and subnational level. Soviet satellites also played this trope straight: East Germany was a "democratic republic" and Poland, Hungary, Bulgaria, and Albania all had "People's" in the name. Upon making the transition to democracy, the East German states joined West Germany and took its name, "the Federal Republic of Germany", and the other four all removed "People's" from their names.

Romania , which had been the "People's Republic of Romania" from 1947 to 1965 (at which point it changed its name to the "Socialist Republic of Romania") decided to top them all and just go by "Romania," plain and simple, when Ceauşescu and his regime came crashing down in 1989. Hungary may be an inversion: in January 2012, it dropped the "Republic of" from its official name, and at the same time became less democratic by restricting freedom of the press and changing the electoral law to benefit the ruling party. Poland requires a special mention because the name "Republic of Poland" has been used officially since the 16th century and was first used in 1358 (in one pledge of allegiance to the king) when Poland was still a hereditary monarchy. Actual democratic republics in Europe (to the west of the Iron Curtain) inverted this. As illustrated by the former West Germany, such countries did not have "people's" or "democratic" in their official names.

France = French Republic (République française) Italy = Italian Republic (Repubblica Italiana) Austria = Republic of Austria (Republik Österreich) Post- Estado Novo Portugal = Portuguese Republic (República Portuguesa)note This was the same official name Portugal has had ever since 1910 , including during the Estado Novo itself (1933-1974). Finland = Republic of Finland (Suomen tasavalta) Switzerland = Swiss Confederation in English, German (Schweizerische Eidgenossenschaft) and French (Confédération suisse); Helvetic Confederation in Latin (Confoederatio Helvetica) Yemen was until 1990 divided into North and South, not East and Westnote Although on a map it was hard to see why they weren't called East and West instead. South Yemen (formerly a British colony) was the "People's Democratic Republic of Yemen". Yes, a Communist dictatorship with Islamic flavoring. The Great Socialist People's Libyan Arab Jamahiriya , or Libya as it was known under the rule of the late Muammar Gaddafi .

The ordinary word for republic in Arabic is "jumhūriya", from the Arabic jumhūr, meaning "public", with the -iya being a suffix that, in context,note It is also the suffix indicating the feminine possessive, but that applies in other circumstances. means "thing of (the) [thing it's suffixed to]" (thus jumhuriya is "thing of the people", i.e. a direct translation of the Latin res publica). "Jamahiriya" is a neologism based on pluralizing the "public" part (jumhūr) to mean "masses" (jamāhīr). The preferred translation is the Libyan Arab Islamic State of the Masses. It's no wonder that the country was renamed to just "Libya" when the rebels took over. During the Russian Civil War , anti-communist nationalist states added "People's" or "Democratic" to its name to distinguish themselves from the Bolshevik-backed "Soviet Socialist Republics", for example the Ukrainian and Crimean People's Republics, and the Democratic Republics of Armenia, Georgia and Azerbaijan.

The Union of Myanmar : the former military junta was known as the State Peace and Development Council. Voltaire famously observed that the Holy Roman Empire was the pre- French Revolution equivalent of this trope. Instead of a totalitarian dictatorship claiming to be a democratic republic, it was a loose federation of autonomous cities and principalities, located more or less exclusively in Germany, claiming to be the actual, genuine Western Roman Empire (give or take three hundred years). "Holy", "Roman", and "Empire" were the great political buzzwords of The Middle Ages , and the HRE's claim to any of those was rather dubious. While it always maintained some influence with the Catholic Church, several Holy Roman Emperors spent most of their reigns fighting the Pope for authority, and after The Renaissance and the Protestant Reformation they couldn't even agree what "holy" meant in the first place. Charlemagne, the first emperor, gave Rome away to the Pope, and by The Renaissance the Empire was basically reduced to Germany, a region which the genuine article had for the most part never even owned (there are a couple of German towns near the French border that do have Roman ruins, but that's it).

By the time it finally broke up, the emperor had so little power that it was more The Alliance than The Empire , and sometimes not even that . , and Swaziland . Averted with the People's Republic of Bangladesh , which is by most measurements considered to be a legitimate- though still somewhat corrupt- democracy. Around the same part of the world as the above, Sri Lanka has the full name Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, but according to That Other Wiki it actually is a democracy, with the "Democratic Socialist" part referring to the social democracy form of government. The Liberal Democratic Party of Russia. In fact, it's a ultra-nationalist party that was engineered during the collapse of the Soviet Union as a sort of stalking horse for the CPSU and KGB to use to split the liberal vote. It's now mostly a cult of personality around its showmanlike leader, who uses a lot of opposition rhetoric but actually tends to vote with Putin and United Russia when it comes to policymaking . An Argentine military coup that deposed President Juan Perón was named "Revolución Libertadora" (in Spanish, "Liberating revolution").

Besides being a military coup, unlike Perónï¿½who was chosen by the people in "free" electionsï¿½the "Libertadora" banned the very mention of Perón's name. Yes, exactly as it sounds. Rafael Correa, president of Ecuador, tries to impose control of the press by claiming that the freedom of the press is a state attribute. This control is named "Democratic control" of the press. The Peoples Temple founded by the Reverend Jim Jones operated like this, especially when it built the so-called utopia of Jonestown in Guyana. And we all know how that turned out . The Independent State of Croatia, which was actually a puppet state of Nazi Germany. There's an obscure political party in the U.S. called the American Freedom Party. It supports a white supremacist ideology. Venezuela 's full name, Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela. Name taken after Hugo Chavez's "socialist" party started to take over and change a lot of things, usually while saying that they endorse democracy.

While the "democracy" thing has been a thing of doubt and rumours in Chavez's 14 years presidency run, after his death, the government has taken a toll with a lot of repression, revolts around the country and heavy takes of corruption. The "Bolivarian" part in the name alluded to Simon Bolivar (Venezuelas's Liberator back in the 1800's) body of thinking being taken as a foundational philosophy, and to be fair many of the goverment policies were based on Bolivar's ideas... The Theme Park Version of them. While the term "people's republic" was long believed to be a thing of the past, kept only by a handful of regimes established before the closure of the Cold War, the 2014 pro-Russian insurgency in eastern Ukraine saw the establishment of the "Donetsk People's Republic" and "Lugansk People's Republic" which, while definitely not communistic in nature, are definitely portrayed as People's Republics of Tyranny by pretty much all Western media (standing in striking contrast to what Russia has to say about them).

Though "people's republic" is usually indicative of leftist dictatorships, some rightist political parties in countries such as Switzerland and Austria have "People's" in their name, in their cases the Swiss and Austrian People's Parties. Ditto the People's Party of Spain and the People's Party for Freedom and Democracy of The Netherlands. The main conservative parties of Japan, Australia, and Denmark have "Liberal" in their names. Ditto the Liberal Party of British Columbia, which has no affiliation with the national Liberal Party of Canada. The name of Japan's "Liberal Democratic Party" can seem particularly jarring in the United States, where "Democratic Party" has long had a left-leaning connotation (but see also below). This is not out of an attempt to mislead, but because those Liberal parties are named after the former British Liberal Party, and their economic policies derive from those of Asquith and the Whigs (which is also what neoliberalism refers to), whereas American liberals are referring to social policy traditions from the other original faction of the British Liberals, the Radicals. Sweden's main conservative party is known as the Moderate Party. The so-called "Swedish Democrats" are a far-right party.

The term "progressive" is typically indicative of leftist politics, although one of Iceland's primary center-right parties is known as the Progressive Party. Similar to the above, there is also a hardline conservative party in Norway called the Progress Party. The People's Front for Democracy and Justice, the ruling body of the African country of Eritrea. , narrowly beating out North Korea . "Positive Christianity" sounds really uplifting until you know that it was a perversion of Christianity promoted by Nazi Germany . The Constitution Party in the United States is a far-right theocratic party. The use of "Constitution" is ironic, since the US Constitution bans preferential treatment of any religion. The American Independent Party was more or less a vehicle for the segregationist Alabama governor George Wallace. For a long time in the Southern states, the Democratic party itself governed in what was essentially a one-party rule, disenfranchising whole classes of voters. The ruling party of Singapore , the People's Action Party, is a downplayed example of this trope. They've held a majority on power since 1959, and they are notorious for their authoritarian governance, but they do allow elections, and have delivered on the promises of prosperity for Singapore.

The First Mexican Republic (the one that fought in the Texan Revolution) was this. Ruled as a dictatorship by Antonio Lopez de Santa Anna, the country became increasingly centralist (to the point where Santa Anna suspended the country's constitution and put a new one in place), and was heavily biased towards the military (after the country lost the Texan Revolution various expeditions to reconquer Texas were used as excuses to give the military more funding. Real Life Allusions In the United States (and sometimes other English-speaking countries as well), liberal leaning areasï¿½especially college townsï¿½that are surrounded by conservative areas will be given the "People's Republic" label as a way of conservatives mocking liberals. In turn, said liberal areas will often start calling themselves that : Cambridge, Massachusetts uses the name "People's Republic of Cambridge" in jest, sometimes in official documents. It is far from the only Massachusetts example, as Amherst (note the silent 'h') is another wildly liberal victim/perpetrator (naturally, which one it is depends on who's saying it and how it's being used) of this trope.

The Maryland town of Takoma Park (in the DC suburbs) is often called the People's Republic of Takoma Park, for things like declaring themselves a nuclear-free zone in the Eighties. Davis, California (home to a branch of the University of California) is yet another nuclear-free city, in spite of the nuclear reactor on the university campus; they also build toad tunnels so comrade toads aren't left out (as featured on The Daily Show ). See the PRD page on the Davis Wiki . After the 2011 pepper spray incident, the People's Republic of Davis title has lost much of its irony. Same applies to Boulder, Colorado, being a university town in a liberal county, surrounded by conservative areas on nearly all sides. Bloomington, Indiana is a shining example of this as well, as most of the rest of Indiana is very Republican and conservative. Election maps show this quite well.

(Monroe County, the area where Bloomington is located, in the south-central part of the state, is relatively blue compared to the surrounding red.) Madison, Wisconsin (site of the University of Wisconsin and state capital), a VERY liberal city in an otherwise moderate swing state is often called the People's Republic of Madison, a term first coined by one of the state's governors. An even more extreme example may be found in Texas, with the People's Republic of Austin (state capital and home of the University of Texas), a VERY liberal city located in the middle of a VERY conservative state. And yet another good example is the Arizonan city of Tucson, otherwise known as the People's Republic of Tucson by the rest of the largely conservative state. Not only does it moonlight as a San Francisco styled "sanctuary city" for illegals, but it more than once threatened to secede from Arizona with the rest of Pima County to form its own state (though obviously it never followed through) in protest against some of Arizona's more conservative doctrines (i.e. SB 1070 ).

Vermont is one of the most liberal states in the Union, electing the only admitted socialist to Congress (Bernie Sanders)note although he has shied away from that label since the mid-90's, and no European-style Socialist would EVER consider the Senator among their ranks. An older biography of Sanders focusing on his time as mayor of Burlington in The '80s is titled The People's Republic. In the Australian city of Melbourne, a left leaning inner suburb Brunswick is sometimes referred to as the People's Republic of Brunswick Though generally played for laughs, The People's Republic of Cork has expanded enough for T-shirts of Che Guevara to become relatively popular. The kicker is that Cork is merely a county in the south of Ireland (though it does have the second largest city in the country, discounting Belfast). In Scotland, the People's Republic of Fife and the People's Republic of Motherwell. These areas probably have the best claim to the name out of any in the UK, seeing as they actually elected Communist MPs. During the Thatcher era, some of the more socialist areas of Northern England were mockingly given this name - most famously, the area around Sheffield was jokingly called the People's Republic of South Yorkshire .

in the arts quarter of Bristol, England. Opposition to the opening of a supermarket in the area led to well-publicised riots . For periods of around four weeks, a portion of North Carolina becomes the People's Republic of Pineland, a dictatorship fighting against a rebellion that serves as a training exercise for Green Berets, whose main mission is to train indigenous forces. Their legal tender looks suspiciously like Monopoly money. Canadians, when being compared to the (generally for rightish) American politics, will sometimes mention they live in the People's Republic of Canuckistan. And within Canada, Quebec will be sometimes referred to as République Populaire du Québec for being more socialist than the rest of Canada and for their tendency to have to "do things their own way." British politicians used to snark that only nations with no concept of law or justice felt the need to have a Ministry of Justice. Come the Blair administration, and what did Britain create...

One of the lines the anti-Ortega and anti-FSLN opposition in Nicaragua uses for their fuzzy non-Sandnista political concept note As oppostions go the Nicaraguan one is very heterogeneous and prone to infighting is "Nicaragua vuelve a ser Republica" (Nicaragua returns to being Republic) which first of all is extremely meaningless due to this trope, second of all a very dubious slogan given that the long form name of Nicaragua is "Republica de Nicaragua" and third a tad hypocritical on part of former Somoza supporters, who still play a role in the Nicaraguan right wing, as Somoza's regime can best be described as a Hereditary Republic . :: Indexes :: Burma Bureau of East Asian and Pacific Affairs Fact Sheet January 13, 2017 More information about Burma is available on the Burma Page and from other Department of State publications and other sources listed at the end of this fact sheet. U.S.-BURMA RELATIONS The United States supports a peaceful, prosperous, and democratic Burma that respects the human rights of all its people.

Elections in November 2010 led to a peaceful transition from sixty years of military rule to a quasi-civilian government headed by former President Thein Sein. Under former President Thein Sein, the previous Government of Burma initiated a series of political and economic reforms which resulted in a substantial opening of the long-isolated country. These reforms include the release of many political prisoners and child soldiers, the signing of a cease-fire agreement with eight major non-state ethnic groups, greater enjoyment of freedom of expression, including by the press, and parliamentary by-elections in 2012 in which pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi and her opposition party, the National League for Democracy (NLD), won 43 of the 45 contested seats. In historic elections in November 2015, the NLD won a majority of the total seats in the national parliament and in most state and regional parliaments.

Despite some structural problems, including the reservation of 25 percent of parliamentary seats for the military; the disfranchisement of groups of people who voted in previous elections, including the Rohingya; and the disqualification of candidates based on arbitrary application of citizenship and residency requirements, this election represented an incredible step forward in Burma’s democratic transition. The new national parliament sat February 1, 2016, and National League for Democracy member Htin Kyaw was inaugurated as president on March 30, 2016. President Htin Kyaw’s inauguration, and the formation of a democratically elected, civilian-led government were momentous steps for Burma’s democratic transition. In two of its first major initiatives, the new government released two waves of political prisoners, including five well-known journalists and 69 student activists held on politically motivated charges, though others remain in jail. These actions demonstrated the new government’s ability to realize its commitment to human rights issues. The United States has employed a calibrated engagement strategy to recognize the positive steps undertaken to date and to incentivize further reform.

The guiding principles of this approach have been to support Burma’s political and economic reforms; promote national reconciliation; build government transparency, and accountability and institutions; empower local communities and civil society; promote responsible international engagement; and strengthen respect for and protection of human rights and religious freedom. As part of our calibrated approach to support further reform, the United States has restored full diplomatic relations, re-established a U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) Mission in country, supported new grant and lending operations and technical assistance by international financial institutions, and eased economic and investment sanctions against Burma. Senior U.S. government officials have traveled to the country to meet with the Government of Burma, political parties, civil society, human rights activists, religious and ethnic leaders, and youth, demonstrating the United States’ continuing support to Burma in its democratic reform efforts. While the country has made significant progress, major institutional and political challenges remain, including completing the national reconciliation process with various ethnic groups, strengthening respect for and protection of human rights and fundamental freedoms, releasing remaining political prisoners, and improving the conditions in Rakhine State, particularly those facing members of the Rohingya population.

Additionally, more progress needs to be made to reduce the military’s role in politics, move from cease-fires to political dialogue, and to improve rule of law and government accountability. The United States continues to emphasize to the Government of Burma the importance of promoting values of tolerance, diversity, and peaceful co-existence, and for the Burmese military to completely end military ties with the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea. The military government changed the country name to "Myanmar" in 1989. U.S. Assistance to Burma The United States has a long-standing commitment to improving the lives of the people of Burma. After the USAID Mission was closed in 1989, the United States continued to deliver emergency humanitarian assistance along the Thailand-Burma border, including through NGO partners for Burmese refugees and asylum seekers in the refugee camps on the border. The United States resumed targeted health programs in 1998. In 2008, U.S. assistance efforts scaled up in response to the devastation caused by Cyclone Nargis. Burma's ongoing reforms led to the re-establishment of the USAID Mission in 2012. Carefully integrated with U.S.

diplomatic efforts, U.S. development assistance focuses on deepening and sustaining key political and economic reforms, ensuring that the democratic transition benefits everyday people, and mitigating division and conflict. Since 2012, the United States has provided over $500 million to support Burma’s transition, advance the peace process, and improve the lives of millions, including by assisting communities affected by violence and combatting hate speech and communal violence. More than 1.1 million people have improved food security, and over 300,000 impoverished farming families have increased their agricultural productivity with better access to technology, markets and new investments. New entrepreneurs are benefiting from the economic reform process, which has increased access to information and communications technology. Over 20 public-private partnerships with leading U.S. corporations, information and communications technology companies, and foundations work to develop small and medium enterprises, improve healthcare, and bring new technologies to Burma. In preparation for the historic elections in 2015, the United States trained more than 7,300 political party members and partnered with over 300 civil society organizations on voter education and observation, strengthening public participation in Burma’s overall reform process.

In FY 2015, the United States provided more than $50 million to address humanitarian needs in Burma, including among internally displaced persons throughout the country and vulnerable Burmese refugees and asylum seekers in the region. In response to the maritime migrant crisis in May and June 2015, the United States provided more than $6 million towards the emergency appeals from the International Organization for Migration and the UN High Commissioner for Refugees and helped provide temporary shelter, emergency relief items, and health, nutrition, and psychosocial assistance. During the heavy seasonal rainfall in July and August 2015 and Tropical Cyclone Komen, which caused significant flooding and landslides throughout the country and affected more than 1.6 million people, the United States provided more than $5 million in humanitarian assistance to all affected communities, working with local officials and international relief partners to distribute essential supplies and services to the emergency shelters in the worst-affected areas and assist in early recovery efforts. The United States continues to provide emergency assistance to vulnerable communities along the Thailand-Burma border and in Rakhine, Kachin, and Shan States. In addition to USAID, many other U.S.

agencies provide assistance and training in Burma, including the U.S. Department of State, U.S. Department of Commerce, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, U.S. Census Bureau, U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, U.S. Department of Energy, U.S. Department of Labor, U.S. Department of Defense, U.S. Department of the Treasury, and U.S. Trade and Development Agency. Bilateral Economic Relations In recognition of Burma's political and economic reform progress, the United States has taken concrete steps to accelerate broad-based economic growth and support the political reform process. The United States played an instrumental role in supporting renewed engagement from multilateral development banks, which re-started operations in 2013. Over the past three years, U.S. development partners at the World Bank and Asian Development Bank have committed more than $3.8 billion to critical needs in Burma’s infrastructure and human services. In July 2012, the United States issued general licenses that, subject to certain limitations, authorize the exportation of U.S. financial services to Burma and authorize new U.S. investment in Burma, thus permitting the first new U.S. investment in Burma in nearly 15 years.

In September 2012, the United States removed President Thein Sein and Speaker Shwe Mann from the Specially Designated Nationals (SDN) list. In October 2012, the United States took action under H.R. 6431 to allow the U.S. Executive Directors at international financial institutions (IFIs) to vote in favor of the provision of assistance for Burma by the IFI, paving the way for new grant and lending operations. In November 2012, the United States issued a waiver and general license to ease the ban on the importation of products of Burma into the United States, with the exception of jadeite and rubies mined or extracted from Burma and articles of jewelry containing them, for the first time in almost a decade. The July 28, 2013 expiration of the Burmese Freedom and Democracy Act’s (BFDA) ban on imports from Burma removed the underlying statutory basis for the general import ban. Shortly thereafter, the President issued Executive Order 13651 to remove the general import ban from Executive Order 13310 and to maintain the previously described restrictions associated with jadeite and rubies.

In 2013, the United States issued a general license to authorize U.S. persons to conduct most transactions – including opening and maintaining financial accounts and conducting a range of other financial services – with four of Burma’s major financial institutions: Asia Green Development Bank, Ayeyarwady Bank, Myanmar Economic Bank, and Myanmar Investment and Commercial Bank. In December 2015, the United States issued a six-month general license to authorize most transactions ordinarily incident to the export of goods, technology, and non-financial services to or from Burma provided that the exportation is not to, from, or on behalf of SDNs or otherwise blocked persons. The U.S. government encourages responsible investment in Burma as part of an overall strategy to encourage economic growth and improve the standard of living for the people of Burma. The United States plays a leading role by enhancing human capacity and promoting global standards throughout Southeast Asia due to the quality of private investment. U.S. companies will continue to play a critical role in supporting broad-based, sustainable development in Burma and are helping the country progress toward a more open, inclusive, and democratic society.

Burma's Membership in International Organizations Burma became a member of the United Nations in 1948 following independence from the United Kingdom, and a member of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) in 1997. Burma was the chair of ASEAN for 2014, its first chairmanship in 17 years as an ASEAN member state. Burma and the United States belong to a number of the same international organizations, including the UN, International Monetary Fund, World Bank, and World Trade Organization. Bilateral Representation The U.S. Ambassador to Burma is Scot Marciel ; other principal embassy officials are listed in the Department's Key Officers List. Burma maintains an embassy in the United States at 2300 S Street NW, Washington, DC 20008, tel.: (202) 332-3344; fax: (202) 332-4351.

More information about Burma is available from the Department of State and other sources, some of which are listed here: Myanmar Map | Map of Myanmar Infographic Of Myanmar (Burma) Facts Myanmar History Around 300 BC, the region of southern Burma already had a rich civilization called the Mon, whose people lived on the banks of the Salween and Sittaung Rivers. In 100 BC, the Pyu people settled in northern Burma, building city states from the 1st century BC to the 9th century AD. The next ethnic group to arrive in the region were the Bamar or the Burman people who originated from China and Tibet. Today, about 2/3 of the country's population are of Burman origin. From the 11th to 13th centuries, the region was unified under the Pagan dynasty, followed by the rule of the Toungoo dynasty in the 16th century, and the Konbaung in the 18th century. It was during the Konbaung rule that Mandalay was established as the capital, becoming the last capital city of the Burmese kings.

In the early 1800's, Britain started to invade the region, and in 1886, Burma eventually became a province of British India. Rebellions and national uprising against the British rule came into national consciousness when a student strike occurred at the Rangon University in 1920. In the 1930's, a group of poor farmers created a new militant group called Dohbama Asiayone, where Aung San became President just before the Second World War. In 1947, Aung San became the Deputy Chairman of the Executive Council of Burma, which was the transitional government from British rule to Burmese independence, but was assassinated in July of that year. Burma became an independent republic on January 4, 1948, but by 1962, a successful coup d'etat brought the country under military rule. Burma's name was then changed to Myanmar in 1989 when a new military government took over. The military junta was dissolved in 2011, creating the current democratic republic. Geography Myanmar is located in Southeast Asia.

It is the second largest country in the region, and borders China to the north and northeast, Laos and Thailand to the east and southeast, India and Bangladesh to the west, and the Bay of Bengal and the Andaman Sea to the south. Myanmar has every kind of landscape except for the desert - the northern region of the country has frozen alpine mountains while the south has tropical jungles. Polities Myanmar is a unitary presidential republic. The President is Head of State and elected in office through general elections. Legislative power is exercised by the bicameral legislative called Assembly of the Union. The Upper House consisting of 224 members are the House of Nationalities, while the Lower House of 440 members are the House of Representatives. A portion of the members of the Assembly are appointed by the military while the rest take office through elections. Travel Because Myanmar was closed off to tourists for much of its modern history, tourism only began to rise when the military handed over the government to the people. Yangon, which was the former capital, is the most visited city in the country. Known for its colonial architecture and historic monuments, Yangon boasts of being home to the Shwedagon - the most honored pagoda in Southeast Asia.

Said to have been constructed during the time of the Buddha, the impressive 326-feet structure is dated at about 2,500 years old. Bagan is another Myanmar city whose religious monuments and ancient attractions are popular tourist sites. There are over 2000 temples, stupas, and pagodas in this city, with the most popular ones the Ananda Temple built in 1091, and the Shwe Sandaw Temple where both locals and tourists gather to watch the sun set at the Bay of Bengal. Mandalay, another former capital, is the geographic center of Myanmar. It is the economic and cultural center of the country, known as the home of more than half of the country's monks, and for the Royal Palace walled city. It is also know for being a cycling city where most of its residents prefer to get around in bicycles rather than motorized vehicles. Myanmar also boasts of beautiful beaches. The Ngwe Saung Beach is one of the longest in Southeast Asia, which has 9 miles of sand.

The Ngapali Beach on the Bay of Bengal is an unspoiled 3-km beach with crystal waters and soft white sand that's become a favorite of tourists coming from metropolitan cities. Education Myanmar's educations system is similar to that of the United Kingdom's. English is taught as a second language from kindergarten, and schooling is compulsory but only until the end of elementary, where children are at the age of 9, compared to the age of 16 in most countries. Adult literacy rate in the country is at 89.7%, and about 1.2% of the government's annual budget is dedicated to education funding. Trivia Myanmar is among the very few countries in the world where plumpness is a sign of health. Coca-Cola was banned from the country until 2013. New Year's Day in Myanmar is on April 16, and consists of a 3-day celebration. Myanmar has one of the most corrupt governments, and its military regime is considered to be one of the most abusive in the world.

IW20141128 Myanmar: Maps, History, Geography, Government, Culture, Facts, Guide & Travel/Holidays/Cities Aung San Suu Kyi's Opposition Party Wins 2015 Landmark Election Geography Slightly smaller than Texas, Myanmar occupies the Thailand/Cambodia portion of the Indochinese peninsula. India lies to the northwest and China to the northeast. Bangladesh, Laos, and Thailand are also neighbors. The Bay of Bengal touches the southwest coast. The fertile delta of the Irrawaddy River in the south contains a network of interconnecting canals and nine principal river mouths. Government Military regime. History The ethnic origins of modern Myanmar (known historically as Burma) are a mixture of Indo-Aryans, who began pushing into the area around 700 B.C. , and the Mongolian invaders under Kublai Khan who penetrated the region in the 13th century. Anawrahta (1044–1077) was the first great unifier of Myanmar.

In 1612, the British East India Company sent agents to Burma, but the Burmese doggedly resisted efforts of British, Dutch, and Portuguese traders to establish posts along the Bay of Bengal. Through the Anglo-Burmese War in 1824–1826 and two subsequent wars, the British East India Company expanded to the whole of Burma. By 1886, Burma was annexed to India, then became a separate colony in 1937. Thein Sein | The Plaid Avenger The Plaid Avenger Government: In transition from Military Dictatorship? Years Left in Office: till 2016; re-election possible Political Classification: Center-right Age: 71 (born April 20, 1945) Thein Sein Facts and Information Important Points Thein Sein is the first civilian president of Burma since it became a military dictatorship. Thein Sein has a military background, but retired to focus on his political career. Thein Sein is a center-right, reformist leader trying to instill democracy into Burma.

Thein Sein has released more than 6,300 political prisoners that were sentenced by the military dictatorship. While in office, Thein Sein has removed numerous sanctions that were put upon Burma and has greatly improved their global relations as a whole. The Rundown Serving as the current president since February 2011, Thein Sein is like the custodian trying to clean the mess that has been a Burma (otherwise known as Myanmar) for about the past 50 years. Although he has a military background, Thein Sein is the first civilian leader of Burma since it became a military dictatorship in 1962. He has been labeled as a moderate, reformist leader especially in comparison to his recent predecessors. Through improving global relations and supporting a more democratic approach to government, Thein Sein has already brought about drastic changes to Burma. He was born on April 20th, 1945 by his father Maung Phyo, who was a Buddhist monk, and his mother Khin Nyut. He attended and graduated from the Defense Services Academy in 1968 with a Bachelor of Arts degree. Shortly after graduating, he began his military career as a bureaucrat.

Starting as a second lieutenant, he moved quickly moved through the ranks of the military ladder. Thein Sein’s political career began as he joined the State Peace and Development Council in 1997. About 7 years later, he began serving as the council’s secretary. Swiftly gaining the respect and recognition from his country, he was appointed as the interim prime minister of Burma only 3 years later in 2007. Soe Win, the prime minister at the time, was being treated for leukemia in which he never recovered. Thus, making Thein Sein the permanent prime minister. On April 29th 2011, he retired from the military in order to lead the Union Solidarity and Development Party as a civilian. Only a year later in a controversial election where he was accused of tweaking it with irregularities, he was elected president and sworn in 2 months later. In order to completely understand the political career of Thein Sein, it is important to understand Burma’s history. Burma became a republic in 1948 and within 15 years, the military overthrew the civilian government and it became a dictatorship.

As you can imagine, not everybody was okay with the military trying to run the show and pro-democracy protests started to flare up. One notable protest occurred on August 8th, 1988 (also known as the 8-8-88 uprising). On this infamous day, democratic activists were killed and repressed by the military junta. One female pro-democracy advocate, named Aung San Suu Kyi, became the figurehead for the movement as she created the National League of Democracy shortly after the crisis. In response to the continuous uprising, the military junta held a general election in 1990 where Suu Kyi’s party won 90 percent of the vote. The junta immediately nullified the results and reclaimed total control of power. The military went as far as to putting Aung San Suu Kyi on house arrest for the next 15 years in order to try and diminish the democratic efforts. During this reign of military dictatorship, Burma was characterized by a weak civilian society and a fear for national integration and foreign intervention. Many countries interactions with Burma squandered and there was even economic sanctions placed on Burma by many countries, including the US.

In 1989, the junta announced the official change of the name of Burma, to Myanmar (which the US still refuses to recognize). Now back to Thein Sein, where we left off with him leaving the military and winning presidency. In his time in office, he has made pretty extravagant changes and decisions. Some of which are supported and some of which are controversial by the democratic activists. Some of his less favorable policies include attempting to resettle the minority of Burma, the Rohingya, to a different country. He also tried to pass legislature that prosed to view the Rohingya as non-citizens. Sein was prime minister during one of Burma’s worst natural disasters, Cyclone Nargis, on May 2, 2008. The importance of this disaster was that he spent 90% of Burma’s effort trying to hide the damage and the other 10% trying to keep international aid workers out. Regardless, Thein Sein has become a well-known and special leader not only in the Eastern Asian countries, but in the world. One of his first moves in office was the reshuffle almost his whole cabinet to try and consolidate the authority. He has managed to deregulate the country’s censored media.

With some outside pressure, he has released more than 6,300 political prisoners including Aung San Suu Kyi. Improving relations and increasing trade ties by making international tours, has been Thein Sein’s specialty. Before he took office, Burma was considered one of the most isolated countries in Asia. Granted, Burma is no social butterfly yet, but he has certainly done his share to ease the tension. If Thein Sein continues to help his country slowly embrace democracy, then he might become known as the man who turned Burma around and reintroduced it to the world. Photos

Question: The Republic of the Union of Myanmar is otherwise known by what name?
Answer: Burma