Imagine a mobile phone being out of your reach.

I've had a mobile phone since I was 16. More because my parents wanted to keep track of where I was. In Burma, the internet was just available a few years ago and it's mostly still dial up. Most people still do not have telephones in their homes and mobile phones are just status symbols.

Why, you ask? It's a control issue. The military government does not want you to be able to talk to each other freely. lol. I'm putting it in very simple words. There are other issues such as the money that should be used for the progress of the country is being used on Military intelligence to torture people, etc.

I thought it would be interesting for most people to read the article below. Enjoy.

Myanmar's mobile phone blues Print this page..
Indo-Asian News Service

Yangon, Aug 3 (IANS) Asia may be witnessing a communications boom, but owning a mobile telephone remains a distant dream in military-ruled Myanmar where some people have still not even heard a dial tone.

Myanmar has only a few hundred thousand telephones (including landlines and mobile phones) and even in this capital city mobile telephones are a rare sight, according to Mizzima news agency.

"A mobile phone is a status symbol in Yangon," said Daw Nu Nu, who runs an ivory shop at the Pabedan Township here.

"Mobile communication facilities are in the hands of the military and the police along with the elite. The common people cannot afford a mobile phone. Moreover, it takes years to get a connection," said Nu, who has been waiting for a mobile connection for three years.

The number of cellular phone users in Myanmar, which has a population of 50 million, is around 150,000 while there are 397,000 direct line subscribers.

According to a Myanmar Times report, state-run Myanmar Posts and Telecommunications, the regulatory authority for Global System for Mobile Communications (GSM) phones, has sold only 100,000 mobile phones (in Yangon and Mandalay) since March 2002.

Sky-Link Communications of the British Virgin Islands was asked to supply 135,000 GSM phones to the country in 2000.

"The expenditure discourages the common people from buying a cell phone even in urban areas, where mobile network is available," said Win Myint, a hotel industry professional.

"A handset in Myanmar will cost a minimum of $500 with a connection charge of around $1,000. And one has to wait for years after applying for a connection. However, an active SIM card can be purchased for $3,000-$5,000 in the black market," added Myint, who got his mobile from the black market.

Apart from Yangon and Mandalay, some other major cities like Myitkyina, Moulmein, Bhamo, Taunggyi, Sittwe and Prome have also been brought under the cellular network in the country that has been tightly controlled by the military junta for four decades.

Myanmar posts and telecommunications launched the public phone system in Yangon and Mandalay as late as September 2001. Around 2,000 fixed line phones were installed in the city.

There are small landline telephone booths all over the capital city. However, these are open only during the day. And phone calls can be made only to cities, not to rural areas.

But while the cities can boast of some kind of telephone network, most villages in this largely rural country are deprived of even fixed line telephones.

However, the ruling State Peace and Development Council claims it has made "all-out efforts" for development of the telecom sector.

A teacher summed up the situation: "The restriction on cell phones is not because of technical problem or inefficiency, but is primarily a political conspiracy. The junta does not want many people to avail of mobile phone services.

"Perhaps, the military rulers feel that more cell phones will lead to greater communication and usher in awareness among people, which may inspire the pro-democracy movement led by (imprisoned leader) Aung San Suu Kyi," he added.

http://www.eians.com/stories/2005/08/03/03mob.shtml