Rumours in Naypyidaw

Source: Ko Moe Thee

Rumours are rife in Naypyidaw that US armed forces are going to bomb the administrative capital.

Some of the residents (Naypyidaw was once a village named Kyat Pyay) and civil servants have been seen leaving the city. The source of the anxiety? A deathly pale General Than Shwe who was seen casting his vote on National Television at his first public appearance in serveral days. He was said to have looked so ill that he could barely walk. This had led the civil servants to conclude that he was hysterical about an impending attack by the US armed forces, one civil servant reportedly said. He himself had left Naypyidaw for his safety. In Naypyidaw though, there are nightly parties giving the impression that everything was normal.

People have taken to comparing the current situation to that of the era when Burma was invaded by the British. Prior to the invasion, King Sibaw, the last king of Burma, ordered his advisors killed; they had warned him of the invasion. Instead of planning a defence, he had then arranged for parties and festivals in order to distract the population. Shortly after, Burma fell to the British.

For the original article in Burmese, please click here.