Auspicious Moment

Except for his general feeling of discouragement over the state of his nation, his party and his stomach, nobody knew just why Burma's top man U Nu chose to step down from the premiership nine months ago. Last week, except for the fact that his astrologers had declared the moment auspicious (11:15 a.m., March 1), nobody knew just why U Nu had chosen to take power again. But when U Nu gave the word, the Burmese Parliament without a dissenting vote accepted the resignation of interim Premier U Ba Swe and named U Nu in his place.

In the interval between his premierships, nothing much had changed for the better in the nine-year-old nation which the serene and inscrutable U Nu has headed in fact, if not in name, all along. Screaming black crows still challenge packs of vicious dogs for riparian rights to the uncollected garbage strewn in Rangoon's streets. Ragged human beings fight each other for the trickle of water left after rebels destroyed the city's chief water main for the 18th time in nine years. Corruption still runs rampant in the ranks of U Nu's own governing party, the Anti-Fascist People's Freedom League, while countless vague insurgent groups roam the hills and even the streets of Burma's cities. In many places law and order scarcely exist, and Communist atrocities, like the murder last week of a riverboat captain and three of his passengers, rate only a few paragraphs in local papers. Rebels of one kind or another--Red Flag Communists, White Flag Communists. Karens--still control large areas of Burma. The 80,000-man Burmese army has no Magsaysay dedicated to winning through against them.

After suffering the worst war depredation of any nation in Southeast Asia, Burma in nine years of independence has managed to restore its national output to less than 90% of what it was before World War II. Because of the civil warring, there are 3,000,000 fewer acres of farmland under cultivation, despite an ambitious development plan inaugurated by the government four years ago.

With even a partial restoration of law and order. Burma's economy could probably increase its productivity 15% to 20%. Why then, doesn't the government do something about it? "For the same reason," said one Burmese last week, "that the garbage isn't collected."

Last week, as U Nu returned to take up the burden of office, former Premier U Ba Swe breathed a sigh of relief. He was free at last to spend more time on the ponies and shooting pool near the bar at the Union of Burma Club.

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