Neocolonialism is a major them in Emma Larkin’s travel chronicles in Burma. Larkin’s observations reveal similarities between the current military control and the former imperial control. The first similarity is that just like the British colonialists, the military have a virtual monopoly of power. The opposition has been suppressed by all means including criminalization of parties and protracted imprisonment of the leaders such as Aung San Syu Kyi. Secondly, there are gross human rights violations because there are no institutions to check the government. The military regime has been ruthless in suppressing and eliminating perceived enemies of the state. Thousands of civilians have been killed by the military in targeted ethnic attacks. Many more have been arrested and tortured for opposing the government.
The Burmese military regime has mastered the art of controlling information. The rest of the world is not privy the goings on in Burma because the government has a well-structured propaganda machinery that produces specific convoluted images of the country as a place where the people are happy. It is only after landing in the country that Larkin is confronted by a citizen who tells her to spread the word on the country’s need for democracy to the rest of the world because they are tired of the military dictatorship (Larkin 76). Similar to controlling information, is the indoctrination of the general population. Burmese people are feed with the propaganda that the military government is taking care of their interests and that the opposition leaders and other insurgents are the enemies of progress. This information is packaged and spread as the truth in all media and well as school curriculum (Larkin 89). The British colonialist used a similar strategy to make themselves indispensable to their colonies although in reality, they needed the colonies more than the colonies needed them.
The concept of fear has been used, first as a control tactic borrowed from the British colonialists and secondly as effective tool for exercising power. Fear is the ultimate tool for exercising power because it paralyses the population from speaking out against injustices and eventually cripples them from rallying to fight against an unjust regime. The people have seen the atrocities unleashed by the government on opposition leaders the very same people they hoped would fight on their behalf. Fear as a tool for control is efficient to the point that the Burmese were forced to accept continued military rule even after voting overwhelmingly for a civilian led government (Larkin 54). On numerous occasions, the military has unleashed terror on unarmed civilians as a way of reinforcing the control of the government on the people. Fear in its purest form creates paralysis of though and action therefore allowing the wielder to rule as long as they want.
While in Burma, Larkin spotted the presence of a thick web of military intelligence officer, spies and informants. She knew that she was being followed everywhere and that the government knew about her movements within the country (Larkin 43). She also knew that her life and the lives of the Burmese citizens she interacted with were in danger. That is why she penned the book under a pseudonym and changed the names of her subjects. Information is power and nowhere is this truer than in Burma. The military has been able to hold onto power despite being extremely unpopular. One of the reasons why the tyrannical generals have managed to hold onto power is because they are aware of every occurrence on the ground. In effect this means that it will be difficult if not impossible for a large number of people to start an underground movement to oust the government.
The three most interesting parallels between Larkin and Aung Suu Kyi’s books is that as women, they both present the softer humanitarian side of the problem instead of focusing on the complex power dynamics. Larkin is on a journey of discovery while Suu Kyi is seemingly grounded by her awareness of the issues that affect her people. Lastly, both authors are certain that a democracy will change the lives of the people of Burma and bring much needed restoration to the broken country.
Work Cited
Larkin, Emma. Finding George Orwell in Burma. New York: Penguin Press, 2005. Print.
