Mr Samak - are these the "good Buddhists" you told the Thai people about?

By BangkokPost.com, Deutsche Presse-Agentur dpa Privy Councillor Surayud Chulanont is to fly to Burma on Sunday, the ninth day of the cyclone disaster, to try to convince the Burmese dictatorship that the world wants to help devastated people. On Saturday, the junta reached a new level of cynicism, pasting huge labels on aid packages from Thailand to claim the help was from the top generals, rather than the Thai people. The regime plastered names of the top generals on the aid boxes, as part of the propaganda and intimidation campaign it is running to back its referendum seeking to perpetuate the 46-year military control of the country. The Associated Press reported that state-run television inside Burma continuously ran images of elaborate cemonies where top generals - including the junta leader, Senior Gen Than Shwe - handed out boxes of Thai aid disguised so as to appear it came from the junta, to survivors of the tragedy. One box seen in the videos bore the name of Lt Gen Myint Swe, a rising star in the government hierarchy, in bold letters, overshadowing a smaller label which barely could be read:: "Aid from the Kingdom of Thailand." "We have already seen regional commanders putting their names on the side of aid shipments from Asia, saying this was a gift from them and then distributing it in their region," said Mark Farmaner, director of Burma Campaign UK, which campaigns for human rights and democracy in the country. Gen Surayud, a former prime minister, is to fly to Naypyidaw, the Burmese "jungle capital," to do the unthinkable - convince the Burmese generals to allow the world to help the victims of a killer cyclon. As an illustration, Gen Surayud will present aid packages provided by the King. On Saturday, His Majesty instructed the Raja Prachanukroh Foundation to send 2,000 bags of utensils and bedding. The 10 tonnes of subsistence aid was to be flown to Rangoon on Sunday on a Royal Thai Air Force C-130 cargo plane, said foundation officials. While aid agencies hashed out terms with the Burmese military regime, the country's rulers pushed through a "sham" referendum intended to cement their political power. Marcus Prior, a spokesman for the WFP in Bangkok, said: "Given the humanitarian crisis, we felt the need to continue the supplies." The agency was allowed another three air shipments of supplies to Rangoon, scheduled to arrive Saturday and Sunday. The UN refugee agency, UNHCR, said its first trucks had also arrived in Burma carrying 20 tons of emergency aid - enough to provide shelter for up to 10,000 people. "This convoy marks a positive step in an aid effort so far marked by challenges and constraints," said Raymond Hall, UNHCR's Representative in Thailand. "We hope it opens up a possible corridor to allow more international aid to reach the cyclone victims." While aid agencies hashed out terms with the military regime by which the emergency supplies may be released, Burmese rulers pushed through a "sham" referendum Saturday intended to cement their political power.

It may sound harsh but I'm not going to follow the calls to donate by aid organisations this time around. I have no intention of propping up the regime in Myanmar with intended aid for those victims of the cyclone.

the regime doesn't need help in propping itself up.

you should give anyway. peoples lives depend upon it. who steals the credit is less important.

I am not really all that surprised. One more way to keep a junta that has no right to live let alone control over a dog

Sorry Loburt but I disagree. The junta choose to make the aid to the cyclone victims a political issue...so be it.

The tens of thousand that may die in the coming weeks of exhaustion and epidemies are not going to be on the conscience of the international community that was willing to help but will be added to the bad Karma of the generals.

If terrorists are taking hostages then governments refuse to negotiate, so why treat a government that takes it populace hostage any different?

Let the Chinese pick up this poison chalice as they already trying to do in Zimbabwe as well. Thanks to their cosy relationship with the generals in Myanmar I have no doubt they will be saving the day...at a price.

I've worked for aid organisations in developing countries and know of the dilemmas facing one there when trying to help people in the face of (at best) indifference by the rulers. If I was asked to help set up water pumping and purification stations for the survivors in Myanmar I would drop everything and be on my way. Just handing over the equipment and the cash for the generals to do as they like? I don't think so!

do as you wish, but people are dying. if the generals want to make political hay out of the aid, let them, as long as people get the aid and live.

they aren't gonna love the generals anyway.

Bangkok/Yangon - Burma's death toll from Cyclone Nargis could increase 15-fold to 1.5 million people in coming weeks unless a tsunami-style relief effort is put in place and access granted to international aid workers, the international agency Oxfam said Sunday.

if only burma have oil, the US would have invaded by now.

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>if only burma have oil, the US would have invaded by now.

I doubt it because of Iraq and the mid east. But, what about the rest of the world, folks. Really the neighbors and trading partners of Burma have the ability to make an immediate difference if they had the balls to step up to the plate. No one cares enough to do so.

Without drinking water there will be massive deaths from either dehydration or dysentery.

The generals running the country are the worst of the worst of dictators.

Than Shwe is actually worse than Saddam, US would have already put an end to it, wouldnt they be fully backed by china.

just sarcasmism about oil and us invasion. On related important news Cuban rolls cigar said to be world?s longest.

is there no depths to which this scum (the generals) will not stoop !!

it may sound sarcastic, but a successful revolution takes a hungry nation.