Just a few hours after the destructive earthquake with a strength of 7.7 hit the central Myanmar last Friday, the head of the military junta controlling the country, min Aung Hlaing, begged for any international help, which was quickly sent to the isolated country.
Hlaing claimed that “he opened all ways to help foreign” because he asked for countries and organizations to “come and help” with desperate rescue efforts along the fastened of the swelling and the overthrow of thousands of buildings, stopping the indescribable number of people.
Almost a week after the earthquake, the number of fatalities was 3145 people, and over 4,500 people were injured, and many others were still stuck under the rubble. The actual numbers are expected to be much higher.
Hlaing's dismissal was an extremely rare move for the military leader, who took power in the coup, which spoke to the democratically chosen government Aung San Suu Kyi at the beginning of 2021 and immediately sealed the country from the rest of the world.
After grabbing power, there were bloody repression regarding opposition throughout the country and the ongoing civil war.
The call for help was provided by a slight flash of hope among experts in the political situation of Myanmar that this disaster may differ from previous ones to hit the country, such as Cyclone Mocha in 2023, when help's efforts were difficult.
The Chinese media reported that rescuers released four people from broken buildings in Myanmar, as the Chinese media reported, when the seekers raced to find more survivors in Myanmar and Thailand.
But this hope dispersed quickly.
Numerous organizations of help and human rights group confirmed that the quick help for people in Myanmar who need it the most was blocked, because the “golden” lifebuoy of 72 hours after the mass earthquake – in which they most likely survived trapped under the rubble – closed.
“This turned out to be a disaster,” said Tom Andrews, a special UN reporter for human rights in Myanmar, said CBC News during an interview in Bangkok in Thailand, who also suffered damage over a thousand kilometers from Epicenter Quake. (Fighting in the construction of a skyscraper, stopping over 80 employees. A dozen dozen were confirmed by the dead).
“We know that help (in Myanmar) has been difficult. We know that there were arrests and blockades in control points in areas where they do not want help,” said Andrews.
“There is a weapon of this help.”
“I saw this movie earlier”
In the days after the earthquake-the wigger region saw from the age of the age and the arguments and attacks on rebellious territories. Junta currently controls less than a third of the country, and its power is concentrated in large cities.
But on Wednesday, Myanmar's leaders announced a temporary three -week suspension of weapons to support auxiliary activities, after the military government attracted widespread condemnation for releasing the Chinese convoy of the Red Cross, trying to provide food and medicine for people who survived.
Junta spokesman confirmed that the soldiers shot vehicles because, he said, they were not notified that the convoy would come.
Rescue teams from Junta allies – including China and Russia – were the first to enter the country to help with crews from countries such as India, which maintained cordial relations with Myanmar army leaders.
The ruling junta was rejected and sanctioned by most Western countries.
According to Andrews, Junta follows the well -known textbook, hindering key help, especially in regions where armed resistance against the coup is strong. It is a tactic used in the past to consolidate the power of the army in Myanmar.
“I saw this movie earlier and there is no happy ending,” said Andrews.
Pressure on junta
He added that continuous raids also create “the whole level of fear and terror” in the entire torn war of the country, in which about 20 million Burmese were already deprived of adequate access to food and shelter from the earthquake.
“We need all our hands on board in Myanmar. But instead they are inverted and instead of life they are saved,” said Andrews.
The catastrophe caused questions whether Junta would be able to maintain power when the resistance is deepening.
The earthquake caused extensive damage in the new capital of Naypyidaw, a strongly fortified city created by the previous army to raise the towing of the army on Myanmar and isolate their leaders from popular opposition. The air traffic control tower in the city failed, and several government wings of the ministry collapsed.
One retired school headmaster New York Times said That Myanmar has “saying that a huge earthquake is a way of punishing a cruel and corrupt ruler.”
“After killing so many people, Aung Hlaing is now in the face of nature judgment,” she added.
In November, the International Criminal Court issued an arrest warrant for crimes against humanity, related to the persecution of the country and the deportations of the Muslim community of Rohingya.
Desperation is growing
Six days after the disaster, there was chaos among hundreds of collapsed buildings near the epicenter. Many residents will crowds parks and other open spaces at night, too scared to enter their partially cracked houses, while others are not able to return to demolished houses.
“In the city of Mandalay, most of us do it all ourselves,” said 31 -year -old Khin Thazin Aung, unable to fight tears, describing local rescue activities.
“We need everything – things like food and shelter. But (our government) cannot help us,” said CBC News, adding that he hopes that the world knows how urgently Myanmar needs help.
Many residents are struggling with the trauma, said Aung, who said that they saw some survivors are shaking uncontrollable when the smell of bodies trapped under the rubble was in the air.
In the shadow of the main bridge, which fell in the earthquake, Tin, which gave his name only on Reuters, combing the river for his daughter's body.
“I am looking for her because there are no rescue operations here,” he said. “Nobody is here to help me.”
Myanmar military leaders refused to allow foreign journalists in the country to cover devastation.
Some assistance organizations also had difficulties in entering Myanmar, said Mikhael de Souza, project director of Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) in the former capital of Yangon.
But he still hopes that the scale of devastation, in addition to the International Retention Center, will affect the junta to allow more help.
“We have bands and many materials that are just waiting for the country to enter, and I have good hope that it will happen soon,” said De Souza in CBC News on Thursday.
Despite this, he admitted that Myanmar is a “difficult, complex country”, whose military government was difficult to negotiate in the past.
Damaged infrastructure also hinders the speed of saving and recovery, and driving from Yangon, the largest city, to Mandalay near Epicenter, which is now double for eight hours.
De Souza said that the basic health problem is the lack of electricity and clean water in the disaster zone, with fear that the lack of infection control in damaged hospitals can cause a cholera epidemic.
The monsoon season is also just around the corner, which will already connect catastrophic conditions in the central part of the country.