People and Society of Myanmar

Nationality

Burmese (singular and plural)

Ethnic Groups

Burman 68%, Shan 9%, Karen 7%, Rakhine 4%, Chinese 3%, Indian 2%, Mon 2%, other 5%

Population

53,414,374

Population in Major Urban Areas

RANGOON (capital) 4.457 million; Mandalay 1.063 million; Nay Pyi Taw 1.06 million

We highly recommend that you share your travel plans with your doctor so that you can best prepare for the endemic health-related challenges that confront travelers in Burma. Most medical facilities in Burma are inadequate for even routine medical care. There are very few medical personnel in Burma who are trained to U.S. standards. You should also know that, in an emergency, you would likely need to be medically evacuated to a hospital outside Burma. Medical evacuation from Burma is expensive and is transacted in cash. We strongly urge all travelers to secure medical evacuation insurance before coming to Burma. Most pharmaceuticals on sale in Burma have been smuggled into the country, and many are counterfeit or adulterated. Travelers should consider Burmese pharmaceuticals generally unsafe to use and should accordingly bring adequate supplies of their medications for the duration of their stay in Burma. All travelers are advised to bring a complete and detailed list of regularly used medicine, and dosages, in case of an emergency. HIV/AIDS is widespread among high-risk populations, such as prostitutes and illegal drug users. Malaria, dengue fever, tuberculosis, hepatitis, and other infectious diseases are endemic in many parts of the country. In early 2006 throughout 2007, and again in early 2010, brief avian influenza outbreaks resulted in the death of domestic poultry and some wild birds. In December 2007, the World Health Organization and Burmese Ministry of Health confirmed Burma’s first case of human infection with the H5N1 avian influenza virus. If you travel to Burma and other South Asian countries affected by avian influenza, we caution you to avoid poultry farms, contact with animals in live food markets, and any other surfaces that appear to be contaminated with feces from poultry or other animals. There were no reported human cases of H5N1 in Burma during the 2010 outbreaks.

Major Infectious Diseases

Very high

Literacy Definition

Age 15 and over can read and write

• Buddhist89.0%
• Christian4.0%
• Muslim4.0%
• other2.0%
• animist1.0%

Burmese

Burma is a nation of many races - some 135 ethnic groups, with their own languages and dialects, make up its population of nearly 45 million. It is impossible to mention more than a few of the races, for Burma is an anthropologist's paradise. The Burmese people call their own language Bamar or Myanmar and it is the main language spoken throughout the country. About 70 percent of the people of Burma speak one or other of the Burma Group of languages while the percentage of those speaking Burmese is estimated at ninety. Despite the diversity and geographic separation, the national groups share with each other a wide variety of social customs and cultures. The Burmese language vocabulary contains a large number of Pali and Sanskrit words. The earliest Burmese writing was the Myazedi Stone Inscription. which is a four-sided stone inscription constructed in 1113 A.D. during the Pagan Period. The inscription is written in Myanmar, Pyu, Mon, and Pali and was discovered in 1887.

• Burmese

Crime Information

Crime rates in Burma, especially toward foreigners, are lower than those of many other countries in the region. Nevertheless, the crime rate has been increasing. Violent crime against foreigners is rare. Don’t buy counterfeit and pirated goods, even if they are widely available. Not only are the bootlegs illegal in the United States, but if you purchase them, you may also be breaking local law.

Criminal Penalties

While you are traveling in Burma, you are subject to its laws, even if you are a U.S. citizen. Foreign laws and legal systems can be vastly different than our own. It is illegal to take pictures of Burmese officials and of certain buildings, such as military installations and government buildings. There are also some things that might be legal in Burma, but still illegal in the United States. You can be prosecuted under U.S. law if you buy pirated goods. Engaging in sexual conduct with children or using or disseminating child pornography in a foreign country is a crime prosecutable in the United States. While in Burma, you should carry your U.S. passport or a photocopy of passport data and visa pages at all times so that if you are questioned by Burmese officials, you will have proof of your U.S. citizenship readily available. It is important to remember, however, that your U.S. passport won’t help you avoid arrest or prosecution for violating local laws. Some foreigners have been denied even minimal rights in criminal proceedings in Burma, especially when suspected of engaging in political activity of any type. This includes, but is not limited to, denial of access to an attorney, denial of access to court records, and denial of family and consular visits. Although the current civilian government has repealed some of the laws that prohibited people from exercising many of the rights that U.S. citizens enjoy in the United States – including the freedoms of assembly and speech – there are still many laws on the books that criminalize things that are not illegal in the United States. For example, Burmese law forbids Burmese citizens from possessing dual nationality. Under the Burmese Motor Vehicle Act of 1964, driving while intoxicated is punishable by either six months in jail, a 500 kyat (equivalent to USD 50 cents) fine, or both. Based on the Vienna Convention on Consular Relations and customary international law, if you are arrested in Burma, you have the option to request that the police, prison officials, or other authorities alert the U.S. Embassy of your arrest, and to have communications from you forwarded to the U.S. Embassy.