New book unmasks Burma's military ruler

Updated July 1, 2010 11:29:14

Authorities in Burma have reported the capture of a rare 'white elephant', which is believed to bring good fortune.

Local reports say villagers in Rakhine state in western Burma had reported the sighting of the white elephant in a herd of five, prompting a search by the Forestry ministry, which caught it last weekend. Reports say the 'white elephant' is likely to be taken to the capital, Naypyidaw, for the military ruler, General Than Shwe. A new book called 'Than Shwe: Unmasking Burma's Tyranny' looks at General Than Shwe's belief in astrology, his skills in psychological warfare and why he should be investigated for crimes against humanity.

Presenter: Sen Lam
Speakers: Ben Rogers, author of 'Than Shwe: Unmasking Burma's Tyranny'

ROGERS: Than Shwe comes from a very humble background near Mandalay in the centre of the country and we're not sure really what education he achieved, but when he did complete his schooling. He started out in life as a postman, was a postal clerk for a short time and then he joined the military. He's not given to particularly extravagant taste, at least not until he reached the top position. But he is also a much cleverer person than people give him credit for and he's a very skilled manipulator of people and part of his background in the military was in psychological warfare, so he's an expert of divide-and-rule tactics.

LAM: The Burmese military regime is a notoriously secretive one. Did you find many challenges in compiling this biography of its leader?

ROGERS: Yes, of course, many challenges. I had to rely primarily on information given to me by a number of defectors from the Burma army who have known Than Shwe at different times in his life and who have come out of Burma and were able to talk to me and also the impressions of international diplomats that I interviewed who have met Than Shwe at various times and had contact with the regime. But it was impossible to really get very close to Than Shwe. I was not able to get direct access to anyone close to him today.

LAM: You mentioned that he wasn't very well educated, but do we know for instance, whether or not he has natural intelligence, even though Burma's fairly reclusive, whether or not he's well informed about the world, about the rest of the world?

ROGERS: I think he is more well informed than people think he is. I am told anecdotally that, for example, is a Manchester United supporter. He has a favourite grandson and he's known to watch Manchester United with his favourite grandson. He's also reputed to occasionally look at the internet and to read English-language newspapers. He speaks better English also than people think he does, so I think he is better informed than people think and as I say, he's a lot more intelligent than people give him credit for.

LAM: And Ben, I was told that you wrote this book partly in the hope that it may led to the setting up of a UN Commission of Inquiry into war crimes against humanity in Burma. So have you uncovered anything that makes for a more compelling case, to look into war crimes in Burma?

ROGERS: A lot of the evidence that is included in the book is evidence that I had already documented in my work for the human rights organisation, Christian Solidarity Worldwide, and I've travelled over the years many times to the ethnic areas of Burma, both in Eastern Burma, but also along the borders with India, China and Bangladesh. What I've known for a long time and what I set out in the book is the scale of the human rights violations that are perpetrated by Than Shwe's regime. Rape is a weapon of war, forced labour on a widespread and systematic scale, the use of child soldiers, the destruction of more than 3,500 villages in eastern Burma and the targeting of civilians, particularly in eastern Burma. All of these things do, according to The Rome Statute [of the International Criminal Court], amount to crimes against humanity and war crimes, and I think when you compile them together as I have done in this book, the case is pretty overwhelming really. If you add into that as well, and of course these are not crimes against humanity, but they add to the picture, the regime's involvement in drugs, the regime's possible nuclear program and some indicators of the use of biological or chemical weapons at times. They all make for a pretty shocking picture of Than Shwe and his regime.

I have long advocated a combination of engagement and pressure and I think for too long the argument has been either engagement or pressure. I think it is actually both. We need a certain type of engagement, but it has to be at the highest level and that engagement has to be backed up by international pressure, by targeted economic sanctions and by a commission of inquiry to investigate crimes against humanity.

It was, a few years ago, a clique of generals, it is no longer that. It's Than Shwe's regime and he is definitely the number one.

LAM: So are there no younger generals who might greater notice of the world and what the rest of the world thinks who might be a little bit more outward looking than the older generals as represented by General Than Shwe?

ROGERS: That really remains to be seen. If they had any reformist or outward-looking credentials, they certainly would be wise not to reveal them and indeed the person who did who a slightly more progressive outlook, although I would not describe him as a reformer, General Khin Nyunt was axed by Than Shwe in 2004, because he became too much of a threat to Than Shwe. So I think anyone who has views that are different from Than Shwe's is keeping them quiet and we'll only know after Than Shwe has gone what the new generals will be like.