Myanmar

The state media announce today a 92.4 percent vote for the "yes" on the new charter pushed through by the generals with every sort of violence and intimidation against the electorate. In the areas struck by the cyclone, voting will be conducted on May 24, while in the refugee camps the devastation continues among the survivors. The UN announces the departure of an envoy to Myanmar.

Buddhist monks are collecting tonnes of material aid for Myanmar. Many remember Myanmar’s help in rebuilding the Dalada Maligawa, a temple that houses the only known relic of the Buddha.

The Burmese Church continues its post-cyclone rescue work. In Pathein, the local bishop has set up two camps for survivors and organised volunteer medical teams. The military is “stealing” the little foreign assistance allowed to trickle into the country as emergency food aid. Anyone who wants to help the PIME solidarity campaign can do so by following instructions at the bottom of the article.

The junta takes over the cyclone-hit area. Burmese volunteers cannot get in and survivors cannot get out. AsiaNews talks to a survivor from the Pathein area who talks about 200,000 dead, lack of food and medicines, people dying like flies. He calls for aid held back in Thailand to be released. He blames regional powers and points the finger at China for trying to slowly colonise the country.

The National League for Democracy documents the serious irregularities in the voting on May 10: voters found their ballots already marked "yes", and others were threatened. Aid is still slow to arrive for the victims of Nargis. International aid workers warn of an "unimaginable" health disaster.

The junta suspends aid to 1.5 million survivors in need of food and shelter, in order to send the army to the polls. Meanwhile, it is confiscating material from all over the country with the excuse of collecting aid. The protests of the Burmese exiles in Japan, Malaysia, Thailand.

The first cases of cholera and an alarm over deaths from hunger. But in the area of Yangon, the officials of the regime are permitting aid for the victims of the cyclone only in exchange for a favourable vote on tomorrow's referendum on the new constitution. The regime clarifies: yes to aid from abroad, but no to aid workers.

Members of Burma’s 1990 parliament-elect make an appeal. Their original election victory was never recognised by the ruling junta. They tell world governments it is time to speak up because for their people even moral support is important.

The Pontifical Institute for Foreign Missions launches a campaign to collect funds for the emergency in the south of the country. The number of victims continues to rise, together with the alarm over sanitary conditions, but the junta says the situation is "returning to normal". Tonnes of food aid from the UN are at the border, waiting for permission to enter from the military regime. The people are beginning to sell family heirlooms on the black market in order to eat.

The archbishop of Yangon, a city devastated by the cyclone, reports that he will use diocesan funds to buy and distribute food, medicine, and tents among the survivors. A special committee has been created to provide essential aid to 60,000 families. Help also from the Churches of India and Thailand.

According to Save the Children, "millions" are homeless, while the decomposing bodies increase the risk of serious disease. Many areas are still isolated and lack food and water. The rice paddies of the Irrawaddy have been damaged, and food prices are sky high; three days from the constitutional referendum, the frustration of the population could reignite protests against the regime.

Benedict XVI wanted beside him Karekin II, who is paying a visit to the Holy See. An exchange of greetings highlights hope in the journey toward full unity. This evening, the concert of the philharmonic orchestra of Beijing. The Chinese embassy relates the event to the Olympics and to an "improvement" in relations with the Vatican. A new appeal for solidarity toward Myanmar.