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[OM] Re: Burma [partially OT camera]

Subject: [OM] Re: Burma [partially OT camera]
From: Bernard Frangoulis <lists@xxxxxxxxx>
Date: Sun, 6 Jan 2008 12:19:41 +0100
First of all, John, there was no "party". My wife and I never, ever, travel in 
a tour group. We get a plane ticket to the country, then travel using local 
transportation means, as everybody else: buses, pick-ups etc. We have travelled 
this way many times to South-East Asia countries and to India.

Thus, we were not "escorted". There was no "photo trip". Nobody ever told me 
what could and could not be photographed. We went exactly where we wanted to 
go. We had the opportunity to discuss with some burmese people which were not 
exactly complimentary for the government and the current state of the country. 
We also knew a French woman who worked in an NGO in Yangon.

If you had been there, you would know that (at the time at least) there was not 
a truck of soldiers at every crossroads. Life seemed to go on as normally as 
possible, although it was diffficult, people were poor, gas was expensive etc.

Of course we know that we could only get a glimpse of the country. At least we 
have been there. We avoided as much as possible anything which was 
governmemnt-owned. And our dollars were useful for the small hotels, family-run 
restaurants, street food stalls, and non-government-owned companies which we 
used.

You may also have noted that I don't use the term "Myanmar", which is the 
officially-endorsed one by the generals. And that the legends on my Burma pages 
are not complimentary to the junta (look up the "Bagan" pages).

Well sorry John, but your comments hurt me.

Bernard

Quoting John Hudson (6/01/08):

>I will be interested to know whether Bernard and his party was escorted by
>Burmese government minders who dictated what could and what could not be
>photographed.The photos  certainly do not point up a nation in the grip of
>one of most repulsive governments on planet Earth and lead me to think that
>the photo trip must have been a publicity coup for the generals in Rangoon
>.................

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