Myanmar leader makes first visit to relief camp

YANGON, Myanmar -- The leader of Myanmar's ruling junta made his first visit to a refugee camp Sunday, patting the heads of babies and shaking hands with cyclone survivors, amid growing international criticism over the government's handling of the crisis.

U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, rebuffed so far in attempts to discuss the situation with the junta's leaders, announced he would go to the disaster zone Wednesday to try to ramp up aid efforts.

A senior British official hinted a breakthrough may also be near that would allow foreign military ships to join the relief effort, but warnings grew of a potential second wave of death among children hard-hit by the lack of fresh water and proper shelter.

Myanmar's state-run media lashed out at critics, detailing the regime's response. State television featured footage of junta leader Senior Gen. Than Shwe inspecting supplies and comforting victims in relatively clean and neat rows of blue tents.

According to the report, Than Shwe traveled from the capital, Naypyitaw, in the northern jungles, to relief camps in the Hlaing Thar Yar and Dagon suburbs of Yangon.

Some survivors clasped their hands and bowed as he and a column of military leaders walked past. At least 78,000 people were killed in the May 2-3 storm and another 56,000 are missing.

In the devastated Irrawaddy delta to the south of Yangon, the situation remained grim.

In the city of Laputta, hundreds of children covered their heads from the rain with empty aluminum plates as they lined up in front of a private donation center. They were given rice, a spoonful of curry and a potato.

"Children only. Please. Children only," shouted a man who pushed back a crowd of adults. He explained they were feeding children and the elderly first because food supplies are limited and adults can still fend for themselves.

In one of the few positive notes of the day, British Foreign Office Minister Lord Malloch-Brown told the British Broadcasting Corp. that he believes the rulers of Myanmar -- also known as Burma -- may soon relent on allowing military ships to join in the relief effort, especially if Asian go-betweens are involved.

"I think you're going to see quite dramatic steps by the Burmese to open up," he said.

A breakthrough appeared to be on the horizon in the junta's dealings with the United Nations.

Myanmar's military government has given permission for the U.N. secretary-general to travel to the Irrawaddy delta to visit areas hardest hit by the cyclone, U.N. spokeswoman Michele Montas said.

Myanmar's leaders, angered by criticism of their handling of the crisis, stepped up their rhetoric Sunday even amid warnings by Save the Children that thousands of children face starvation.

The state-run New Light of Myanmar newspaper said in an editorial Sunday that the government, "mobilizing the cooperation of the people, social organizations and departments," has rushed to carry out relief and rehabilitation tasks.

"Necessary measures are being taken constantly to attend to the basic needs of the people in the relief camps, while specialists are making field trips to the storm-struck areas to provide health care," it said.

The publication accused foreign news agencies of broadcasting false information that has led international organizations to assume that the government is rejecting aid for storm victims.

"Those who have been to Myanmar understand the actual fact," it said.

State-run radio said the government has so far spent about $2 million for relief work and has received millions of dollars worth of relief supplies from local and international donors.

Still, aid agencies say some 2.5 million survivors are in desperate need of help -- food, shelter from intermittent monsoon rains, medicines, clean drinking water and sanitation. A U.N. report said Saturday that emergency relief from the international community had reached only 500,000 people.

Save the Children, a global aid agency, expressed concern Sunday about the thousands of children now suffering from severe acute malnourishment, the most serious level of hunger.

"When people reach this stage, they can die in a matter of days," said Jasmine Whitbread, who heads the agency's operation in Britain.

U.N. and other major international aid agencies such as World Vision have been forced to depend on their limited local Myanmar staff to distribute aid in the delta, and say a much greater effort is needed if more diseases and deaths are to be prevented.

Although U.S., British and French warships loaded with aid are just off its coastline, Myanmar has refused to let them join in relief efforts.

Malloch-Brown said Britain and Myanmar had reached a kind of consensus over the direction of the aid operation under which Asian countries such as India, China, Thailand and Indonesia would take the lead in conjunction with the U.N.

"There is now a leadership which the Burmese can accept and we can work through to deliver our assistance," he said.