Injustice in the Shadows

By Connor Murray

Guest Contributor

March 2022

With Ukraine under attack, lately Americans’ eyes have snapped open to how power-hungry people can create havoc that sends shockwaves worldwide.

Everyone’s talking about Ukraine, and they should. However, with the domestic chaos of the past year (ok, more than a year), many Americans took little notice of the military coup and genocide in Myanmar that started a year ago.

The BBC has reported that the military, which took over a democratic election, is facing widespread, fierce opposition from armed organizations and ordinary citizens who have pulled together militias.

The Kyat, Myanmar’s currency, dropped more than 60 percent in value, according to Reuters. The economy has pretty much collapsed. Cash shortage, inflation, and rising food prices have been widespread.

Most foreign companies came into Myanmar in hopes of success, but since the junta’s regime, the opportunity is now gone, and it is dangerous to operate in the country. The military junta of Myanmar has been hostile, and violent crackdowns on innocent civilians have led many foreign businesses to leave the country.

Business and economic leaders in Myanmar have organized meetings and negotiations with other countries. Some of the countries that have attended are China, Hong Kong, Israel, Malaysia, Thailand, India, and South Korea. CNBC reported that U.S. Secretary of State Anthony Blinken is considering calling the military takeover a genocide, and that the U.S. has joined together with other countries to impose sanctions.

A junta chief named Min Aung Hlaing appeared at a meeting in Yangon and claimed to have built cars and installed a subway system in the capital. However, as the Council on Foreign Relations stated in January, millions of people are experiencing hunger, and tens of thousands have fled. A political analyst based in Myanmar, Khine Win, expressed doubt in an article in Aljazeera that the regime will build the economy back up.

The main demographic of people being harmed by the military and the declining economy are working-class citizens. The political leaders and junta are not being affected, because while their people starve they still get to live in peace in large houses with plenty of food.

The junta and politicians in Myanmar have also allowed the police to kill civilians protesting conditions within the country and arrest journalists and medical workers, according to the Council on Foreign Relations.

What is happening in Myanmar is terrible. Innocent civilians have to suffer because their government and regime are power hungry. The people who are being seriously harmed by the regime are the civilians. Some think it was irresponsible for some of the foreign businesses and companies to leave Myanmar during this state of the country, but personally, I think that leaving would have been the only option for these businesses to remain safe from the regime.

As we express horror at Putin’s attack on Ukraine, let’s also pay attention to the other conflicts that are shaping the world but sneaking under the headlines.