Myanmar cyclone: plan to beat Burmese block on Western aid

By David Blair and Thomas Bell
Last Updated: 8:37PM BST 19/05/2008
An international relief operation designed to help victims of Burma's cyclone, exploiting loopholes in the regime's ban on Western aid, should begin soon, Britain said.
Lord Malloch-Brown, the Foreign Office minister responsible for Asia, returned to London after visiting Burma and neighbouring countries. A relief effort led by the Association of South-East Asian Nations (Asean), in co-operation with the UN, had been agreed, he said.

"It was clear that the Burmese had more confidence in their Asian neighbours than they did in a Western-directed operation," said Lord Malloch-Brown.

Aid from Western countries will go to Burma's neighbours, from where it will be transferred to the devastated areas of the Irrawaddy Delta.

This "Asean-UN" approach was the "best show in town and we're putting our eggs in that basket," said the minister. But he added: "We can't afford to have this snagged up in Burmese delays."

If this method failed, Lord Malloch-Brown said that other options remained open.

Western aid agencies and Burma's military regime hold diametrically opposing views on the scale of the crisis. Foreign relief workers think that between 1.5 million and two million people need help – and only 500,000 are being reached at present.

But Lord Malloch-Brown said that when he met Burmese ministers "their insistence was 'what crisis? All the emergency needs are met and what we need from the Asean nations is assistance for the recovery phase'."

The minister said this was a "panglossian view", adding that a "needs assessment" should be completed before a donors' meeting on Monday.

Meanwhile, Burma's generals have followed China and belatedly announced three days of national mourning. General Than Shwe, the junta leader, appeared on television for the first time since the cyclone struck. State radio boasted that the regime had spent £1 million on aid.
got this from here.