FlyerTalk Forums - View Single Post - Ethics of visiting Myanmar?
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Old Sep 24, 2018 | 12:01 am
  #9  
seavisionburma
20 Years on Site
 
Join Date: Jul 2005
Location: SE Asia
Programs: Thai ROP GOLD, SIA Silver Kris, QANTAS FF, Velocity Rewards, Emirates Skywards
Posts: 361
As a very long term Myanmar residing expat - I see these kind of moral questions posed often, or have been asked/criticised about my long term working and living there

As one poster said above, if you need to ask, may be better not to go.

But which country is without its state-related problems?

Our head office is in Phuket, Thailand. Thailand had (yet another) military coup in 2014, has been run since by the military, and there have been serious questions about the democratic process for many years up to now. Shouldn't this also come on the "should I visit list"

The genocide of the Rohingya is deplorable - this goes without saying. There are many other ethnic conflicts also ongoing in the country and some of these battles get little foreign media coverage

Myanmar on the whole is very safe for foreign tourists, and no visitor here would ever come across any conflict personally in the destinations they visit.
Foreign tourism provides much needed income for local Myanmar citizens trying to earn a daily living and support their families, as in many other countries. Travelers can do their research and be savvy in supporting non-government/military/crony businesses if they feel strongly about this.

I realise the paragraph above doesn't address the OP's specific concerns, but there is a bigger picture to consider and one person's moral afflictions are theirs and theirs alone to decide upon

I have more to add on personal experiences but that is not for this thread. Myanmar has only recently started a transition to a reasonable level of democracy, when you take into account 50 years of dictatorship and brutal military oppression. They still have a long way to go, but life for everyone else in the country must continue - to make a living and support their families.

Difficult question. OP must make their own call on this methinks
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