Burma opens for business
Burma’s biggest city Rangoon is experiencing a resurgence in its fortunes as the country’s new civilian government takes charge of the country’s economy.
The city missed out on the Asian boom as Burma’s military rulers mismanaged the nation’s natural resources.
But a new civilian government, which has overseen reform and released pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi, is turning its attention to Burma’s finances.
Opening up previously restricted markets means there is now a boom in car sales after prices were slashed by up to 80 per cent.
But the price of property in the elegant but faded former capital is soaring, reflecting an influx of foreign buyers and optimism about further political and economic reform.
While the Chinese have a major head start in terms of major infrastructural projects that exploit Burma’s vast natural resources, Western investors could be quick to follow if current EU and US trade sanctions are lifted.
One of the things everybody agrees on is there are still political prisoners in Burma’s prisons. Phil Robertson.
Phil Robertson from Human Rights Watch told Channel 4 News such a move could be premature.
He said: “It should be a process of benchmarks, and one of the key benchmarks was the release of all political prisoners.
“One of the things everybody agrees on is there are still political prisoners in Burma’s prisons.”
Human rights and investors alike will take a keen interest in Aung San Suu Kyi’s bid to win a parliamentary seat in April’s by-elections. If observers are satisfied that the election is free and fair, that could be another key benchmark in the opening up of Burma.