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MYANMAR: Taking bets on increased poverty

20 Jul 2009 10:18:43 GMT
Source: IRIN

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• Children

YANGON, 20 July 2009 (IRIN) - Illegal lotteries are growing in popularity in Myanmar, fuelled by a sense of hopelessness and exacerbating the widespread economic hardship, say aid workers.

On the streets of Yangon, the former capital, the so-called "two digits" illegal lottery is so popular that development workers call it one of the most serious problems facing the children of poor families. It is especially popular among the poorest, who can least afford to lose their daily wages of US$1-$3.

Agents willing to take bets are everywhere - in cities, market towns and rural areas across Southeast Asia's second-largest nation of 58 million. But there is no social safety net, nothing to stop a family from going under when the betting losses add up.

"They bet because they think they'll get a big win, and then their troubles will be over," said a Burmese community worker, who runs self-help groups for poor women living in temporary shelters around Yangon.

"When they've lost everything they must give up their house, take their children out of school and send them to work. Often they will end up begging."

Economic burden

Myanmar's citizens are no better off now than 20 years ago, and most subsist on an average annual income of less than $200 per capita, the US State Department reports.

According to a 2005 UN Development Programme (UNDP) household survey, one-third of Myanmar's population lives below the poverty line.

Inflation is adding to the economic burden, with the price of rice, for example, up by 30 percent over the past year alone.

In an extensive survey by an international NGO, Myanmar children cited gambling as one of their biggest problems.

"Children said gambling happens everywhere, at home, at school, in the village. They also said everyone gambles: fathers, mothers, aunts, uncles, grandparents," said a child protection expert at the NGO, who did not want to be identified because illegal gambling is a sensitive political issue.

"The children said the gambling drained the family economy, created an unhappy household and led to domestic violence."

Paying with child labour

Children also said they could be used in negotiations over debt - parents often sell their children's labour in return for credit.

"In Mandalay, some teashop owners told us that children who came to work in their restaurants usually came from families who had lost their assets betting on the two digits and three digits lottery," the child protection worker told IRIN.

It is common for gambling addicts to lose their homes, or be forced to mortgage their houses to the government, burdening them with a monthly debt, aid workers say.

The two digits lottery is an illegal scheme based on the last two digits of the closing price of the Bangkok stock exchange, unpredictable numbers that appear each day on the Thai television news, beamed into Myanmar by satellite.

The higher-risk, and higher-reward, "three digits" lottery is based on numbers from Thailand's own national lottery.

Kyaw Kyaw, 35, is a typical gambler. He lives in the rundown Yangon township of Daubon, repairing small motors and generators on the ground floor of his small brick house. He bets about a third of his daily income of some $3. Like all Myanmar's small-time betters, he usually loses.

But he does not see it that way: "Twice a day I have hope," he says.

Saleswomen for the betting agents come round to the house every day, collecting cash. They take a 10 percent cut and will often offer credit - pushing families dangerously into debt.

Awareness raising

The business is illegal, and anyone caught gambling or taking bets could receive a prison sentence of between three months and two years.

But gamblers say a bribe will get rid of most policemen, who will also expect a cut if someone in the neighbourhood has had a big win.

NGOs say they want to start to tackle the problem at community level, by raising awareness in education, child protection or micro-finance programmes. This would give community members an opportunity to share experiences and to recognize how gambling affects their lives.

"Only the bookmakers get rich," said the community worker. "But if they could see what we see, how it ruins people's lives, then I hope they would stop."

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