(Interview with journalist Evan William)

 

On Monday 02 October 2006, Channel 4 TV’s dispatches program broadcasted a documentary called “Burma’s Secret War”, in which journalist Evan Williams reported about the sufferings of Burmese people under the brutality of their own government. Evan Williams, who is banned from entering Burma, went into Burma undercover to investigate the mass ethnic cleansing, forced labour and vicious clamping down of political opposition which characterize the dictatorship. Enslaved by a brutal military dictatorship which wields absolute power, Burma is a secretive state where suppression reigns and dissent is not tolerated.

 

 

1. You’ve been reporting on Burma for more than 10 years; how did you first become interested in Burma?

I became interested in Burma when I was appointed SE Asia correspondent for the Australian Broadcasting Corporation based in Bangkok in 1991. Ever since then, Burma struck me as a  little reported story that needs more coverage, the genocide-like actions of the military engaged in attacking ethnic minorities and the complete disregard by the military of the will of the people as seen in the 1991 election of the National League Democracy. The continuing imprisonment of Aung San Suu Kyi, the hailing of 1100 other political prisoners and the increasing use of deadly violence against the those standing up for democracy are in my view crimes that must be reported. However, over the years, I have also spent a great deal of time trying to build up contacts also with members of the armed forces. Many , in my experience, also have a point of view and some I think feel trapped by their own regime’s actions over the years. Many are simply staying in power for their own greed, but some I think likely do feel they are doing what they do for the good fo the nation. The military could be given away out but that’s up to the elected representatives of the nation as the only way for the impasse to be broken and the country to join the rest of the modern worlds – which at the moment – it sadly is not.

 

1. Do you work exclusively for Channel 4 TV? Is your “Uproar Production” a branch of Channel 4? And do you report exclusively on Burma?

No myself and my partner at Uproar Productions work for many different TV broadcasters around the world on a wide range of topics and shows. Channel 4 is one of the most exciting, they take risks to cover things that are not easily understood or seen by others and offer fantastic support to independent production companies to get films like Burma made. While we keep a very close eye on Burma we cover many other issues. But Burma is very also very close to my heart personally and I will keep doing whatever I can to get the story of what is happening there out to the rest of the world. I would encourage the military regime to offer us a visa and to come and do interviews with them to hear their side of the story.

 

1. You are officially barred from entering Burma because of your reportings on Burma. On your last trip, how do you got inside Burma? Who helped you along? And what kind of risks you faced?

Whatever risks I faced are truly nothing compared to the risks faced by many people in the ethnic areas, especially Karen and Karenni States right now and the many people struggling for democracy in the rest of the country. For operational and security reasons, I’d prefer not to talk about how I got in to the country this time.

 

1. You interviewed a lot of former political prisoners in Burma. As far as you know, what is the most common type of torture they suffered in Burmese jails? And what is the worst or the most horrible torture they told you?

There are many former political prisoners who can better describe the sorts of torture they suffered. I was shown the chains and bars many had to wear, the painful positions they were forced to hold for many long hours and days, I was told of the cramped cells with no air, the dog cells, the threats of violence, the use of electric shock – especially in the ethnic villages. The most terrible torture of all I think is having once liberty taken by a bunch of crooks simply for standing up for a democratic future in one’s country.

 

1. What kind of atrocities you saw, with your own eyes, in ethnic minority areas in Burma? (Please kindly elaborate in as much detail as possible.)

The wide spaces, terrain and nature of army attack make it very difficult to witness first hand many of the atrocious actions. I met and interviewed civilians hiding in the jungles who had been forced to flee from their homes, the victims of fresh mines laid by government troops, the witness of arbitrary murder by government troops, a man who was given electric shocks, pictures of a man who was gunned down by government troops as he carried his mother out of the jungle, pictures and testimony of political assassinations inside main cities of Burma, widows of men shot dead by troops…the list goes on.

 

1. As a journalist you might have seen or known about other cases of ethnic cleansings around the world. How does Burma’s case compare with other genocide cases around the world? Do you think Burmese junta’s ethnic cleansing amounts to genocide?

I know the “community” gets very worked up by the use of words like genocide and a lot of time is spent discussing whether this is genocide or not. I would say: I believe the intent, acts and result of military actions result on genocide-like impact on the people. Are Karen as a people being deliberately wiped out because they are Karen…no. But are large numbers of Karen dying through all forms of direct attack, disease and distress because they are Karen resisting direct military rule and oppression – most definitely yes. I think what is happening in Burma in the unreported valleys is a crime against humanity that requires urgent international intervention and action to save people’s lives and as such it compares with all other such attacks on civilian groups anywhere.

 

1. You also went to Rangoon. How poor was the conditions of the lives of ordinary people in urban areas of Burma?

Burma is one of the most resource-rich nations in South East Asia – there is no excuse for the parlous state of the economy or people’s lives, the decrepit infrastructure and sad human indicators like the state of education and infant health and now HIV infection other than forty years of military greed and misrule.

 

1. Did you get any personal experience of corruptions of authorities and government officials in Burma? Did you meet any absurdly rich, super-rich, business cronies of military generals?

I know they and their cronies are there, a few percent of the comparatively super-rich getting richer on oil gas, gems and teak. Sadly, this time we tried to avoid them given the nature of our journey.

 

1. After your personal experience in Burma, what is your view concerning international economic sanctions on SPDC military regime of Burma? Are sanctions the cause of poverty and sufferings of people in Burma, as accused by the regime? Or, are the sanctions doing any help for the people’s pro-democracy struggle?

I think I have to take the lead of the truly elected leader of Burma, Aung San Suu Kyi which is that while the military retains power the rest of the world should maintain and strengthen all economic sanctions on Burma. We know everyone hurts – but money flowing only benefits the generals

 

1. Lastly, but not least, how do you think international community can best help Burma?

Controversially, I believe talking is getting nowhere. There is only one solution that can be employed in many different ways - Intervention on behalf of the elected government denied power. This could first be done by setting up an armed UN corridor in the ethnic areas especially Karen and Karenni state to stop the killing and allow the delivery of humanitarian aid to thousands of vulnerable civilians hiding in the jungles.

 

****THANK YOU SO MUCH INDEED FOR KINDLY GIVING US AN INTERVIEW.

(Interview carried out by Dr. Tayza)