YANGON, May 12, 2022 (BSS/AFP) - Myanmar's junta will allow tourists to
apply for visas after a break of more than two years, state media said
Thursday, sparking calls by an activist group for foreign travellers to stay
away.

   The country closed its borders to visitors in March 2020 at the beginning
of the coronavirus pandemic in an attempt to prevent infections rising.

   It was further isolated after the army toppled the civilian government of
Aung San Suu Kyi in February 2021, prompting huge protests and a bloody
military crackdown on dissent.

   "With an aim to develop the tourism sector... e-Visa (Tourist)
applications will be allowed and accepted from 15 May 2022," said a notice in
the Global New Light of Myanmar.

   It did not give details on when the first visitors could be expected to
arrive.

   Activist groups warn that the military's vested interests in swathes of
the economy -- including mines, banks, petroleum, agriculture and tourism --
mean tourist dollars will likely end up in the junta's coffers.

   "Even if foreign visitors avoid hotels and transport owned by the Myanmar
military and their associates, they will still fund the junta through visa
fees, insurance and tax," said activist group Justice for Myanmar.

   "We call on anyone considering a holiday in Myanmar to boycott."

   After democracy was established in 2011 following decades of military
rule, Myanmar opened up to tourists, becoming popular with travellers seeking
an exotic destination away from the well-trodden backpacker haunts of
Southeast Asia.

   But the tourism sector was battered by the pandemic, with the country
registering 40,000 daily Covid-19 cases at its peak last year. It has
recorded almost 20,000 deaths in total.

   Clashes between anti-coup fighters and security forces following the
military takeover, including in the main cities of Yangon and Mandalay, have
also dented business, with many international firms pulling out of the
nation.

   The economy has slumped, with the local kyat currency plunging against the
dollar and rolling power outages in major cities aggravating economic misery.

   Access to ATMs and foreign exchange counters is patchy even in commercial
hub Yangon.

   Commercial flights for business travellers resumed in April, with visitors
required to take a Covid-19 test on arrival but no longer required to
quarantine.

   More than 1,800 people have been killed by security forces and over 13,000
arrested since the coup, according to a local monitoring group.