Tony Blair pictured speaking in Gaza City last month as part of his role as a Middle East peace envoy. PHOTO/AFP
Worried about the raging ethnic conflict in Kokang? Or the ongoing student protests just outside Yangon? Relax. Tony Blair is back.
The former British Prime Minister, who since leaving office has carved out a lucrative career as a statesman and entrepreneur, was spotted in an upmarket restaurant in Nay Pyi Taw yesterday by Reuters journalist Andrew Marshall.
This is what Nay Pyi Taw looks like.
The Office of Tony Blair, which handles enquiries about his many charities and enterprises, did not respond immediately to requests for comment.
The politician has been to Myanmar at least four times since 2012, last in May 2014, and is believed to be playing an advisory role to President Thein Sein, according to Burma Campaign UK.
“We know that Blair had someone working in the President’s office as an advisor,” Mark Farmaner, director of the UK-based lobby group, told Coconuts Media. “We don’t know if they are still there.”
Farmaner said the group had written to Blair’s office 20 times since his first visit but had not been told exactly what kind of advice the former Prime Minister was giving.
“We assume that as Blair refuses to disclose what he is doing, it involves advising Thein Sein on public relations with the international community,” Farmaner wrote in an email.
Blair has a history of working with countries who have an abundance of resources and little in the way of human rights. His roster of client states include Kazakhstan and Kuwait and he has deals with Saudi and South Korean oil firms.
A Financial Times investigation revealed he is estimated to earn £20 million per year.
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