For most Indians, Myanmar, with whom we share a placid 1,600 km border, is conceptually even more remote than our own north east, even though similar ethnic groups live on both sides of the border. Often we lapse into bouts of collective amnesia and seem to forget that Myanmar, important to us in its own right, is also an important buffer with a China that is getting stronger and more assertive, is our land route to south east Asia and a friendly coast line would help us better protect Andaman and Nicobar as well as our interests through the Bay of Bengal.

One fine Saturday morning in June 1988 the Military junta in its infinite wisdom demonetized the Kyat without placing any alternative currency in the market till ten days later. An already impoverished country of 40 million had that many paupers overnight. A month later, seething with rage, the people were out on the streets, but leaderless till someone thought of Aung San’s daughter Suu Kyi who was visiting her ailing mother Daw Khin Kyi, former Ambassador to India.