Rangoon Mayor Announces Cutback in Tea Shop Licenses

Rangoon’s mayor, Brig-Gen Aung Thein Lin has announced a cutback in the number of restaurant and tea shop licenses to be issued in 2008, reportedly because he believes people waste too much time and money in them.

The cutback was reported by a Rangoon journal, which quoted the killjoy mayor as saying: “There will not be any improvement for the people as long as there are so many tea shops in the city, so we have stopped issuing licenses to open more.”

Disappointment and anger greeted the announcement. The popular comedian Zarganar, who spent time in prison because of his support for the September demonstrations, said people should be able to spend their time and money as they wished.

Tea shop table talk is a colorful part of Burmese life, and business boomed following the September demonstrations.

A Rangoon journalist said it appeared that restaurants and tea shops able to receive satellite TV were being targeted.

“People usually watch Democratic Voice of Burma’s newscasts in restaurants and tea shops that have satellite dishes, as most Burmese people can not afford to set up a satellite dish at home,” he said.

A famous Rangoon restaurant owner said the economic crisis had created boredom and driven people to seek out restaurants and tea shops for social activity.

“Most of the people who spend their time in my tea shop and restaurant are jobless,” he said. “I think if they had jobs they wouldn’t come and spend so much time here.”