WHY WE CAN'T SIMPLY THROW AID AT BURMA

The only successful air bridge bringing in relief food to save starving children against the wishes of the governing military junta occurred during the Nigeria-Biafra war 40 years ago. The Biafran children were dying; Nigeria’s blockade even denied powdered baby milk.

Refusing to watch the children die and do nothing, a group called Joint Church Aid chartered some clapped-out piston-engined cargo planes and flew missions, technically illegal, from the islands of Fernando Po (a Spanish colony) and Sao Tomé (Portuguese) over the Niger Delta and into the Biafran enclave.

I recall we had to fly in the dead of night, the planes showing not a spark of light, because somewhere above the delta two Nigerian Mig 17s were hunting us. It was – how shall I put it? – quite interesting.

About half a million children were saved from death. But this would not work in Burma. For one thing, back then the departure islands gave their consent. For another we were landing on an airstrip controlled by the Biafrans. In Burma, the Burmese army obeys the dictatorship and controls the whole Burmese territory. Illegal relief flights, even if they got through, could not land.

The sad fact is that with the UN adamant that “getting in there” without official permission is an act of war, and the West not prepared (or in Britain’s case even able) to go that far, there is little we can do about the horrible Burmese junta.

What I would like to see is every rotten, cruel, corrupt general in that junta publicised worldwide and charged before the International Criminal Court with mass murder by criminal negligence.

Meanwhile, I hope Wing Commander Morgan can calm down, go away, study the theory and practice of hostile air drops and perhaps volunteer as loadmaster on the first plane to take on the Burmese Migs.