263 lines
21 KiB
Plaintext
263 lines
21 KiB
Plaintext
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BURMA
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GEOGRAPHY
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Total area: 678,500 km2; land area: 657,740 km2
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Comparative area: slightly smaller than Texas
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Land boundaries: 5,876 km total; Bangladesh 193 km, China 2,185 km,
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India 1,463 km, Laos 235 km, Thailand 1,800 km
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Coastline: 1,930 km
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Maritime claims:
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Contiguous zone: 24 nm;
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Continental shelf: edge of continental margin or 200 nm;
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Exclusive economic zone: 200 nm;
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Territorial sea: 12 nm
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Climate: tropical monsoon; cloudy, rainy, hot, humid summers
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(southwest monsoon, June to September); less cloudy, scant rainfall, mild
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temperatures, lower humidity during winter (northeast monsoon, December
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to April)
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Terrain: central lowlands ringed by steep, rugged highlands
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Natural resources: crude oil, timber, tin, antimony, zinc, copper,
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tungsten, lead, coal, some marble, limestone, precious stones, natural
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gas
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Land use: arable land 15%; permanent crops 1%; meadows and pastures
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1%; forest and woodland 49%; other 34%; includes irrigated 2%
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Environment: subject to destructive earthquakes and cyclones;
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flooding and landslides common during rainy season (June to September);
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deforestation
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Note: strategic location near major Indian Ocean shipping lanes
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PEOPLE
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Population: 42,112,082 (July 1991), growth rate 2.0% (1991)
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Birth rate: 32 births/1,000 population (1991)
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Death rate: 13 deaths/1,000 population (1991)
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Net migration rate: 0 migrants/1,000 population (1991)
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Infant mortality rate: 95 deaths/1,000 live births (1991)
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Life expectancy at birth: 53 years male, 56 years female (1991)
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Total fertility rate: 4.1 children born/woman (1991)
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Nationality: noun--Burmese; adjective--Burmese
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Ethnic divisions: Burman 68%, Shan 9%, Karen 7%, Rakhine 4%,
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Chinese 3%, Mon 2%, Indian 2%, other 5%
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Religion: Buddhist 89%, Christian 4% (Baptist 3%, Roman Catholic
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1%), Muslim 4%, animist beliefs 1%, other 2%
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Language: Burmese; minority ethnic groups have their own languages
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Literacy: 81% (male 89%, female 72%) age 15 and over can
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read and write (1990 est.)
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Labor force: 16,036,000; agriculture 65.2%, industry 14.3%, trade
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10.1%, government 6.3%, other 4.1% (FY89 est.)
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Organized labor: Workers' Asiayone (association), 1,800,000
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members; Peasants' Asiayone, 7,600,000 members
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GOVERNMENT
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Long-form name: Union of Burma; note--the local official name is
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Pyidaungzu Myanma Naingngandaw which has been translated by the US
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Government as Union of Myanma and by the Burmese as Union of Myanmar
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Type: military regime
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Capital: Rangoon (sometimes translated as Yangon)
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Administrative divisions: 7 divisions* (yin-mya, singular--yin) and
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7 states (pyine-mya, singular--pyine); Chin State, Irrawaddy*, Kachin
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State, Karan State, Kayah State, Magwe*, Mandalay*, Mon State, Pegu*,
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Rakhine State, Rangoon*, Sagaing*, Shan State, Tenasserim*
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Independence: 4 January 1948 (from UK)
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Constitution: 3 January 1974 (suspended since 18 September 1988)
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Legal system: martial law in effect throughout most of the
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country; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction
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National holiday: Independence Day, 4 January (1948)
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Executive branch: chairman of the State Law and Order Restoration
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Council, State Law and Order Restoration Council
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Legislative branch: unicameral People's Assembly (Pyithu Hluttaw)
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was dissolved after the coup of 18 September 1988
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Judicial branch: Council of People's Justices was abolished after
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the coup of 18 September 1988
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Leaders:
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Chief of State and Head of Government--Chairman of the State Law
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and Order Restoration Council Gen. SAW MAUNG (since 18 September 1988)
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Political parties and leaders:
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National Unity Party (NUP; proregime), THA KYAW;
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National League for Democracy (NLD), U TIN OO and AUNG SAN SUU KYI;
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League for Democracy and Peace, U NU
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Suffrage: universal at age 18
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Elections:
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People's Assembly--last held 27 May 1990, but Assembly never
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convened;
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results--NLD 80%;
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seats--(485 total) NLD 396, the regime-favored NUP 10, other 79
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Communists: several hundred (est.) in Burma Communist Party (BCP)
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Other political or pressure groups: Kachin Independence Army (KIA),
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United Wa State Army (UWSA), Karen National Union (KNU), several Shan
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factions, including the Shan United Army (SUA) (all ethnically-based
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insurgent groups)
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Member of: AsDB, CP, ESCAP, FAO, G-77, GATT, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, IDA,
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IFAD, IFC, ILO, IMF, IMO, INTERPOL, IOC, ITU, LORCS, UN, UNCTAD,
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UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WHO, WMO
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Diplomatic representation: Ambassador U MYO AUNG; Chancery at
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2300 S Street NW, Washington DC 20008; telephone (202) 332-9044 through
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9046; there is a Burmese Consulate General in New York;
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US--Ambassador (vacant); Deputy Chief of Mission Franklin P.
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HUDDLE, Jr.; Embassy at 581 Merchant Street, Rangoon (mailing address
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is G. P. O. Box 521, Rangoon or Box B, APO San Francisco 96346);
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telephone 82055 or 82181
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Flag: red with a blue rectangle in the upper hoist-side corner
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bearing, all in white, 14 five-pointed stars encircling a cogwheel
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containing a stalk of rice; the 14 stars represent the 14 administrative
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divisions
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ECONOMY
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Overview: Burma is a poor Asian country, with a per capita GDP
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of about $400. The nation has been unable to achieve any substantial
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improvement in export earnings because of falling prices for many
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of its major commodity exports. For rice, traditionally the most
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important export, the drop in world prices has been accompanied by
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shrinking markets and a smaller volume of sales. In 1985 teak replaced
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rice as the largest export and continues to hold this position. The
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economy is heavily dependent on the agricultural sector, which generates
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about half of GDP and provides employment for 66% of the work force.
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GDP: $16.8 billion, per capita $408; real growth rate NEGL%
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(FY90 est.)
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Inflation rate (consumer prices): 22.6% (FY89 est.)
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Unemployment rate: 9.6% in urban areas (FY89 est.)
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Budget: revenues $4.9 billion; expenditures $5.0 billion,
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including capital expenditures of $0.7 billion (FY89 est.)
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Exports: $228 million (f.o.b., FY89)
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commodities--teak, rice, oilseed, metals, rubber, gems;
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partners--Southeast Asia, India, China, EC, Africa
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Imports: $540 million (c.i.f., FY89)
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commodities--machinery, transport equipment, chemicals, food
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products;
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partners--Japan, EC, China, Southeast Asia
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External debt: $5.5 billion (December 1990 est.)
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Industrial production: growth rate 2.6% (FY90 est.); accounts
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for 10% of GDP
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Electricity: 950,000 kW capacity; 2,900 million kWh produced,
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70 kWh per capita (1990)
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Industries: agricultural processing; textiles and footwear; wood
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and wood products; petroleum refining; mining of copper, tin, tungsten,
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iron; construction materials; pharmaceuticals; fertilizer
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Agriculture: accounts for 51% of GDP (including fish and
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forestry); self-sufficient in food; principal crops--paddy rice, corn,
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oilseed, sugarcane, pulses; world's largest stand of hardwood trees;
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rice and teak account for 55% of export revenues; fish catch of
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732,000 metric tons (FY90)
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Illicit drugs: world's largest illicit producer of opium poppy
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and minor producer of cannabis for the international drug trade; opium
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production is on the increase as growers respond to the collapse
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of Rangoon's antinarcotic programs
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Economic aid: US commitments, including Ex-Im (FY70-89), $158
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million; Western (non-US) countries, ODA and OOF bilateral commitments
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(1970-88), $3.9 billion; Communist countries (1970-88), $424 million
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Currency: kyat (plural--kyats); 1 kyat (K) = 100 pyas
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Exchange rates: kyats (K) per US$1--6.0476 (January 1991), 6.3386
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(1990), 6.7049 (1989), 6.3945 (1988), 6.6535 (1987), 7.3304 (1986),
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8.4749 (1985)
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Fiscal year: 1 April-31 March
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COMMUNICATIONS
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Railroads: 3,991 km total, all government owned; 3,878 km
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1.000-meter gauge, 113 km narrow-gauge industrial lines; 362 km double
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track
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Highways: 27,000 km total; 3,200 km bituminous, 17,700 km improved
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earth or gravel, 6,100 km unimproved earth
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Inland waterways: 12,800 km; 3,200 km navigable by large commercial
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vessels
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Pipelines: crude, 1,343 km; natural gas, 330 km
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Ports: Rangoon, Moulmein, Bassein
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Merchant marine: 60 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 968,226
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GRT/1,433,584 DWT; includes 3 passenger-cargo, 19 cargo, 2 refrigerated
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cargo, 3 vehicle carrier, 2 container, 3 petroleum, oils, and
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lubricants (POL) tanker, 2 chemical, 1 combination ore/oil, 24 bulk,
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1 combination bulk
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Civil air: 17 major transport aircraft (including 3 helicopters)
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Airports: 86 total, 79 usable; 29 with permanent-surface runways;
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none with runways over 3,659 m; 3 with runways 2,440-3,659 m; 37
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with runways 1,220-2,439 m
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Telecommunications: meets minimum requirements for local and
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intercity service; international service is good; radiobroadcast coverage
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is limited to the most populous areas; 53,000 telephones (1986);
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stations--2 AM, 1 FM, 1 TV (1985); 1 Indian Ocean INTELSAT earth station
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DEFENSE FORCES
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Branches: Army, Navy, Air Force
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Manpower availability: eligible 15-49, 20,766,975; of the
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10,378,743 males 15-49, 5,566,247 are fit for military service; of the
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10,388,232 females 15-49, 5,558,007 are fit for military service; 442,200
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males and 431,407 females reach military age (18) annually; both sexes
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are liable for military service
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Defense expenditures: $315.0 million, 3% of GDP (FY88)
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